1 Chronicles 23

THE DIVISIONS OF THE LEVITES

23When David was old and full of days,^t he installed his son Solomon as king over Israel.^{u 2}Then he gathered all the leaders of Israel, the priests, and the Levites. ³The Levites thirty years old or more were counted;^v the total number of men was thirty-eight thousand by headcount.^{w 4}“Of these,” David said, “twenty-four thousand are to be in charge of the work on the Lord’s temple,^x six thousand are to be officers and judges,^{y 5}four thousand are to be gatekeepers, and four thousand are to praise the Lord with the instruments that I have made for worship.”^z

⁶Then David divided them into divisions according to Levi’s sons:^aa Gershom,^A Kohath, and Merari.

⁷The Gershonites: Ladan and Shimei.

⁸Ladan’s sons: Jehiel was the first, then Zetham, and Joel—three.

⁹Shimei’s sons: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran—three. Those were the heads of the families of Ladan.

¹⁰Shimei’s sons: Jahath, Zizah,^B Jeush, and Beriah. Those were Shimei’s sons—four. ¹¹Jahath was the first and Zizah was the second; however, Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, so they became one family^C and received a single assignment.

¹²Kohath’s sons: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel—four.

¹³Amram’s sons:^ab Aaron and Moses.

Aaron, along with his descendants,^ac was set apart forever to consecrate the most holy things, to burn incense in the presence of the Lord,^ad to minister to him, and to pronounce blessings in his name forever. ¹⁴As for Moses the man of God,^ae his sons were named among the tribe of Levi.

¹⁵Moses’s sons: Gershom and Eliezer.

¹⁶Gershom’s sons: Shebuel was first.

¹⁷Eliezer’s sons were Rehabiah, first; Eliezer did not have any other sons, but Rehabiah’s sons were very numerous.

¹⁸Izhar’s sons: Shelomith was first.

¹⁹Hebron’s sons: Jeriah was first, Amariah second, Jahaziel third, and Jekameam fourth.

²⁰Uzziel’s sons: Micah was first, and Isshiah second.

²¹Merari’s sons: Mahli and Mushi.

Mahli’s sons: Eleazar and Kish.

²²Eleazar died having no sons, only daughters. Their cousins, the sons of Kish, married them.

²³Mushi’s sons: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth—three.

²⁴These were the descendants of Levi by their ancestral families^D—the family heads, according to their registration by name in the headcount—twenty years old or more, who worked in the service of the Lord’s temple.^{a 25}For David said, “The Lord God of Israel has given rest to his people,^b and he has come to stay in Jerusalem forever. ²⁶Also, the Levites no longer need to carry the tabernacle or any of the equipment for its service”^c—²⁷for according to the last words of David, the Levites twenty years old or more were to be counted—²⁸“but their duty will be to assist the descendants of Aaron with the service of the Lord’s temple, being responsible for the courts and the chambers, the purification of all the holy things, and the work of the service of God’s temple—²⁹as well as the rows of the Bread of the Presence,^d the fine flour for the grain offering,^e the wafers of unleavened bread, the baking,^Af the mixing,^g and all measurements of volume and length.^{h 30}They are also to stand every morning to give thanks and praise to the Lord, and likewise in the evening. ³¹Whenever burnt offerings are offered to the Lord on the Sabbaths, New Moons,ⁱ and appointed festivals, they are to offer them regularly in the Lord’s presence according to the number prescribed for them.^{j 32}They are to carry out their responsibilities for the tent of meeting, for the holy place,^k and for their relatives, the descendants of Aaron,^l in the service of the Lord’s temple.”