1 Chronicles 15:16–16:6

¹⁶Then David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint their relatives as singers and to have them raise their voices with joy accompanied by musical instruments—harps, lyres, and cymbals. ^e17So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel; from his relatives, Asaph son of Berechiah; and from their relatives the Merarites, Ethan son of Kushaiah. ¹⁸With them were their relatives second in rank: Zechariah, Jaaziel, ^fShemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, and the gatekeepers Obed-edom and Jeiel. ¹⁹The singers Heman, Asaph, and Ethan were to sound the bronze cymbals; ²⁰Zechariah, Aziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah were to play harps according to Alamoth; ^g21and Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah were to lead the music with lyres according to the Sheminith. ²²Chenaniah, the leader of the Levites in music, was to direct the music because he was skillful. ²³Berechiah and Elkanah were to be gatekeepers for the ark. ²⁴The priests, Shebaniah, Joshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Eliezer, were to blow trumpets ^hbefore the ark of God. Obed-edom and Jehiah were also to be gatekeepers for the ark.

²⁵David, ⁱthe elders of Israel, and the commanders of thousands went with rejoicing to bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the house of Obed-edom. ^j26While the Levites were carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord, with God’s help, they sacrificed seven bulls and seven rams. ^k

²⁷Now David was dressed in a robe of fine linen, as were all the Levites who were carrying the ark, as well as the singers and Chenaniah, the music leader of the singers. David also wore a linen ephod. ²⁸So all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the Lord with shouts, the sound of the ram’s horn, trumpets, and cymbals, and the playing of harps and lyres. ²⁹As the ark of the covenant of the Lord was entering the city of David, Saul’s daughter Michal looked down from the window and saw King David dancing ^land celebrating, and she despised him in her heart.

16They ^mbrought the ark of God and placed it inside the tent David had pitched for it. ⁿThen they offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings in God’s presence. ²When David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of Yahweh. ³Then he distributed to each and every Israelite, both men and women, a loaf of bread, a date cake, and a raisin cake.

⁴David appointed some of the Levites to be ministers before the ark of the Lord, to celebrate the Lord God of Israel, and to give thanks and praise to Him. ⁵Asaph was the chief and Zechariah was second to him. Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel played the harps and lyres, while Asaph sounded the cymbals ⁶and the priests Benaiah and Jahaziel blew the trumpets regularly before the ark of the covenant of God.