23 David was old and his life had nearly finished. [ a ] He chose his son Solomon to rule over Israel as king.
2 He brought together all Israel's leaders, as well as the priests and the Levites. 3 His officers counted all the Levites who were 30 years old or older. There were 38,000 men. 4 David said, ‘24,000 of these Levite men must have authority for the work of the Lord 's temple. 6,000 of them will be officers and judges. 5 4,000 of them will be guards at the gates of the temple. 4,000 of them will use music to praise the Lord . They will use the musical instruments that I have provided for them.’
6 David made the Levites into three separate groups. Each group had descendants from one of Levi's sons: Gershon, Kohath and Merari.
7 From Gershon's clan there were Ladan and Shimei.
8 Ladan's three sons were: Jehiel, the firstborn, then Zetham and Joel.
9 Shimei's three sons were: Shelomoth, Haziel and Haran.
Those men were the leaders of Ladan's family.
10 Shimei had four more sons: Jahath, Ziza, Jeush and Beriah.
11 Jahath was the oldest son and Ziza was the second. But Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons. So the officers counted them together as one family.
12 Kohath's four sons were: Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel.
13 Amram's sons were Aaron and Moses.
The Lord chose Aaron and his descendants for special work for all time. Their work was to offer special holy things to the Lord . They would offer sacrifices to the Lord . They would serve him in the temple. And they would use his name to bless the people.
14 The tribe of Levi included the sons of Moses, God's servant. [ b ]
15 Moses' sons were Gershom and Eliezer.
16 Gershom's oldest son was Shebuel.
17 Eliezer's son was Rehabiah. He was the leader of the family. Eliezer had no other sons, but Rehabiah had many descendants.
18 From the family of Kohath's second son Izhar, Shelomith was the leader.
19 Hebron had four sons: Jeriah was the leader, Amariah was second, Jahaziel was third and Jekameam was fourth.
20 Uzziel had two sons: Micah was the leader and Isshiah was second.
21 Merari's sons were Mahli and Mushi.
Mahli's sons were Eleazar and Kish.
22 Eleazar died without any sons. He had only daughters. Kish's sons, who were their cousins, married them.
23 Mushi's three sons were: Mahli, Eder and Jeremoth.
24 Those were the leaders of the Levites' clans, family by family. The Israelites carefully recorded the names of all the men who were 20 years old or older. From that age, they each had their work to do in the Lord 's temple.
25 David had said, ‘Now the Lord , Israel's God, has given rest to his people. He has his home in Jerusalem for all time. 26 So the Levites no longer need to carry the tabernacle to different places. They do not need to carry all the things that are used to serve God.’ 27 So David counted the Levites who were 20 years old or older and could work in the temple. Those were David's last words before he died.
28 The Levites' work was to help Aaron's descendants as they served the Lord in his temple. They took care of the temple's yards and its small rooms. They made the Lord 's special things clean and holy. They did the work that was necessary to serve God in his temple. 29 They took care of the special bread for the table in the holy place. They kept the flour for the grain offerings, for the flat bread that they made without yeast and for the special cakes. They weighed and they measured all the things for the bread and the cakes. 30 Every morning they stood in their places to thank the Lord and to praise him. They did the same thing every evening. 31 They also did that when the priests offered burnt offerings to the Lord . That happened on Sabbath days, at New Moon festivals and on other special days. The correct number of Levites must be there to serve the Lord at all times, as the rules commanded. 32 In that way, the Levites had authority to take care of the special tent and the holy place. They helped their relatives, Aaron's descendants, as they served the Lord in his temple. [ c ]
23 David became an old man, so he made his son Solomon the new king of Israel. 2 David gathered all the leaders of Israel and also the priests and Levites. 3 David counted the Levites who were 30 years old and older. All together there were 38,000 Levites. 4 David said, “24,000 will supervise the work of building the Lord ’s Temple. 6000 will be court officers and judges. 5 4000 will be gatekeepers, and 4000 will be musicians. I made special musical instruments for them. They will use them to praise the Lord .”
6 David separated the Levites into three groups. They were the tribes of Levi’s three sons, Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
7 From the tribe of Gershon there were Ladan and Shimei. 8 Ladan had three sons. His oldest son was Jehiel. His other sons were Zethan and Joel. 9 Shimei’s sons were Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran. These three sons were leaders in Ladan’s families.
10 Shimei had four sons. They were Jahath, Ziza, Jeush, and Beriah. 11 Jahath was the oldest son and Ziza was the second son. But Jeush and Beriah did not have many children. So Jeush and Beriah were counted like one family.
12 Kohath had four sons. They were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 13 Amram’s sons were Aaron and Moses. Aaron was chosen for a special work. He and his descendants were chosen to always be the ones to do this special work—to prepare the holy things for the Temple service. They were the ones to burn the incense before the Lord , to serve him as priests and give blessings to the people in his name forever.
14 Moses was the man of God, and his sons were part of the tribe of Levi. 15 Moses’ sons were Gershom and Eliezer. 16 Gershom’s oldest son was Shubael. 17 Eliezer’s oldest son was Rehabiah. Eliezer had no other sons. But Rehabiah had very many sons.
18 Izhar’s oldest son was Shelomith.
19 Hebron’s oldest son was Jeriah. Hebron’s second son was Amariah. Jahaziel was the third son, and Jekameam was the fourth son.
20 Uzziel’s oldest son was Micah, and Isshiah was his second son.
21 Merari’s sons were Mahli and Mushi. Mahli’s sons were Eleazar and Kish. 22 Eleazar died without having sons. He only had daughters. Eleazar’s daughters married their own relatives. Their relatives were Kish’s sons. 23 Mushi’s sons were Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth. There were three sons in all.
24 These were Levi’s descendants. They were listed by their families. They were the leaders of families. Each person’s name was listed. The people who were listed were 20 years old or older. They served in the Lord ’s Temple.
25 David had said, “The Lord , the God of Israel, has given peace to his people. And he has come to live in Jerusalem forever. 26 So the Levites don’t need to carry the Holy Tent or any of the things used in its services anymore.”
27 David’s last instructions for the Israelites were to count the descendants from the tribe of Levi. They counted the Levite men who were 20 years old and older.
28 The Levites had the job of helping Aaron’s descendants in the service of the Lord ’s Temple. They also cared for the Temple courtyard and the side rooms in the Temple. And they made sure all the holy things were kept pure. It was their job to serve in God’s Temple. 29 They were responsible for putting the special bread on the table in the Temple and for the flour, the grain offerings, and the bread made without yeast. They were also responsible for the baking pans and the mixed offerings. They did all the measuring. 30 The Levites stood every morning and gave thanks and praise to the Lord . They also did this every evening. 31 The Levites prepared all the burnt offerings to the Lord on the Sabbath days, during New Moon celebrations, and on the other special meeting days. They served before the Lord every day. There were special rules for how many Levites should serve each time. 32 So the Levites did everything that they were supposed to do. They took care of the Holy Tent and the Holy Place. And they helped their relatives, the priests, Aaron’s descendants, with the services at the Lord ’s Temple.
23 So when David was old and full of days, he made Solomon his son king over Israel.
2 And he gathered together all the princes of Israel, with the priests and the Levites.
3 Now the Levites were numbered from the age of thirty years and upward: and their number by their polls, man by man, was thirty and eight thousand.
4 Of which, twenty and four thousand were to set forward the work of the house of the Lord ; and six thousand were officers and judges:
5 Moreover four thousand were porters; and four thousand praised the Lord with the instruments which I made, said David, to praise therewith.
6 And David divided them into courses among the sons of Levi, namely, Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
7 Of the Gershonites were, Laadan, and Shimei.
8 The sons of Laadan; the chief was Jehiel, and Zetham, and Joel, three.
9 The sons of Shimei; Shelomith, and Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the chief of the fathers of Laadan.
10 And the sons of Shimei were, Jahath, Zina, and Jeush, and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei.
11 And Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second: but Jeush and Beriah had not many sons; therefore they were in one reckoning, according to their father's house.
12 The sons of Kohath; Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four.
13 The sons of Amram; Aaron and Moses: and Aaron was separated, that he should sanctify the most holy things, he and his sons for ever, to burn incense before the Lord , to minister unto him, and to bless in his name for ever.
14 Now concerning Moses the man of God, his sons were named of the tribe of Levi.
15 The sons of Moses were, Gershom, and Eliezer.
16 Of the sons of Gershom, Shebuel was the chief.
17 And the sons of Eliezer were, Rehabiah the chief. And Eliezer had none other sons; but the sons of Rehabiah were very many.
18 Of the sons of Izhar; Shelomith the chief.
19 Of the sons of Hebron; Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth.
20 Of the sons of Uzziel; Micah the first and Jesiah the second.
21 The sons of Merari; Mahli, and Mushi. The sons of Mahli; Eleazar, and Kish.
22 And Eleazar died, and had no sons, but daughters: and their brethren the sons of Kish took them.
23 The sons of Mushi; Mahli, and Eder, and Jeremoth, three.
24 These were the sons of Levi after the house of their fathers; even the chief of the fathers, as they were counted by number of names by their polls, that did the work for the service of the house of the Lord , from the age of twenty years and upward.
25 For David said, The Lord God of Israel hath given rest unto his people, that they may dwell in Jerusalem for ever:
26 And also unto the Levites; they shall no more carry the tabernacle, nor any vessels of it for the service thereof.
27 For by the last words of David the Levites were numbered from twenty years old and above:
28 Because their office was to wait on the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of the Lord , in the courts, and in the chambers, and in the purifying of all holy things, and the work of the service of the house of God;
29 Both for the shewbread, and for the fine flour for meat offering, and for the unleavened cakes, and for that which is baked in the pan, and for that which is fried, and for all manner of measure and size;
30 And to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord , and likewise at even:
31 And to offer all burnt sacrifices unto the Lord in the sabbaths, in the new moons, and on the set feasts, by number, according to the order commanded unto them, continually before the Lord :
32 And that they should keep the charge of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the charge of the holy place, and the charge of the sons of Aaron their brethren, in the service of the house of the Lord .
23 ( A ) Now when David [ a ] reached old age, ( B ) he made his son Solomon king over Israel. 2 And he gathered together all the leaders of Israel with the priests and the Levites.
3 ( C ) Now the Levites were counted from thirty years old and upward, and ( D ) their number by [ b ] head count of men was thirty-eight thousand. 4 Of these, twenty-four thousand were ( E ) to oversee the work of the house of the Lord ; and six thousand were ( F ) officers and judges, 5 and four thousand were gatekeepers, and ( G ) four thousand were praising the Lord with the instruments which [ c ] David made for giving praise. 6 David divided them into divisions ( H ) according to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
7 Of the Gershonites there were [ d ] Ladan and Shimei. 8 The sons of Ladan were Jehiel the first, and Zetham and Joel, three. 9 The sons of Shimei were Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the heads of the fathers’ households of Ladan. 10 The sons of Shimei were Jahath, [ e ] Zina, Jeush, and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei. 11 Jahath was the first and Zizah the second; but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, so they became a father’s household, one group for duty.
12 The sons of Kohath were four in number : Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 13 ( I ) The sons of Amram were Aaron and Moses. And ( J ) Aaron was set apart to sanctify him as most holy, he and his sons forever, ( K ) to burn incense before the Lord , to serve Him and bless in His name forever. 14 But as for ( L ) Moses, the man of God, his sons were named among the tribe of Levi. 15 The sons of Moses were Gershom and Eliezer. 16 The [ f ] son of Gershom was [ g ] Shebuel the chief. 17 The [ h ] son of Eliezer was Rehabiah the chief; and Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very many. 18 The [ i ] son of Izhar was [ j ] Shelomith the chief. 19 The sons of Hebron were Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. 20 The sons of Uzziel were Micah the first and Isshiah the second.
21 The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli were Eleazar and Kish. 22 Eleazar died and had no sons, but only daughters; so their relatives, the sons of Kish, took them as wives . 23 The sons of Mushi were three: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth.
24 ( M ) These were the sons of Levi according to their fathers’ households, the heads of the fathers’ households of those among them who were [ k ] counted, in the number of names by their [ l ] head count, doing the work for the service of the house of the Lord , ( N ) from twenty years old and upward. 25 For David said, “The Lord God of Israel ( O ) has given rest to His people, and He dwells in Jerusalem forever. 26 Also, ( P ) the Levites will no longer need to carry the tabernacle and all its utensils for its service.” 27 For by the last words of David, the sons of Levi were counted from twenty years old and upward. 28 For their office is [ m ] to assist the sons of Aaron with the service of the house of the Lord , in the courtyards and in the chambers, and in the purification of all holy things, and the work of the service of the house of God, 29 ( Q ) and with the showbread, and ( R ) the fine flour for a grain offering, and unleavened wafers, or ( S ) what is baked in the pan or ( T ) what is well-mixed, and ( U ) all measures of volume and size. 30 They are to stand every morning to thank and to praise the Lord , and likewise at evening, 31 and to offer all burnt offerings to the Lord , ( V ) on the Sabbaths, the new moons and ( W ) the appointed festivals, in the number determined by the ordinance concerning them, continually before the Lord . 32 So ( X ) they are to perform the [ n ] duties of the tent of meeting, the holy place, and ( Y ) of assisting the sons of Aaron their relatives, for the service of the house of the Lord .
23 When David was old and full of years, he made his son Solomon ( A ) king over Israel. ( B )
2 He also gathered together all the leaders of Israel, as well as the priests and Levites. 3 The Levites thirty years old or more ( C ) were counted, ( D ) and the total number of men was thirty-eight thousand. ( E ) 4 David said, “Of these, twenty-four thousand are to be in charge ( F ) of the work ( G ) of the temple of the Lord and six thousand are to be officials and judges. ( H ) 5 Four thousand are to be gatekeepers and four thousand are to praise the Lord with the musical instruments ( I ) I have provided for that purpose.” ( J )
6 David separated ( K ) the Levites into divisions corresponding to the sons of Levi: ( L ) Gershon, Kohath and Merari.
7 Belonging to the Gershonites: ( M )
Ladan and Shimei.
8 The sons of Ladan:
Jehiel the first, Zetham and Joel—three in all.
9 The sons of Shimei:
Shelomoth, Haziel and Haran—three in all.
These were the heads of the families of Ladan.
10 And the sons of Shimei:
Jahath, Ziza, [ a ] Jeush and Beriah.
These were the sons of Shimei—four in all.
11 Jahath was the first and Ziza the second, but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons; so they were counted as one family with one assignment.
12 The sons of Kohath: ( N )
Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel—four in all.
13 The sons of Amram: ( O )
Aaron and Moses.
Aaron was set apart, ( P ) he and his descendants forever, to consecrate the most holy things, to offer sacrifices before the Lord , to minister ( Q ) before him and to pronounce blessings ( R ) in his name forever. 14 The sons of Moses the man ( S ) of God were counted as part of the tribe of Levi.
15 The sons of Moses:
Gershom and Eliezer. ( T )
16 The descendants of Gershom: ( U )
Shubael was the first.
17 The descendants of Eliezer:
Rehabiah ( V ) was the first.
Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very numerous.
18 The sons of Izhar:
Shelomith ( W ) was the first.
19 The sons of Hebron: ( X )
Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third and Jekameam the fourth.
20 The sons of Uzziel:
Micah the first and Ishiah the second.
21 The sons of Merari: ( Y )
Mahli and Mushi. ( Z )
The sons of Mahli:
Eleazar and Kish.
22 Eleazar died without having sons: he had only daughters. Their cousins, the sons of Kish, married them. ( AA )
23 The sons of Mushi:
Mahli, Eder and Jerimoth—three in all.
24 These were the descendants of Levi by their families—the heads of families as they were registered under their names and counted individually, that is, the workers twenty years old or more ( AB ) who served in the temple of the Lord . 25 For David had said, “Since the Lord , the God of Israel, has granted rest ( AC ) to his people and has come to dwell in Jerusalem forever, 26 the Levites no longer need to carry the tabernacle or any of the articles used in its service.” ( AD ) 27 According to the last instructions of David, the Levites were counted from those twenty years old or more.
28 The duty of the Levites was to help Aaron’s descendants in the service of the temple of the Lord : to be in charge of the courtyards, the side rooms, the purification ( AE ) of all sacred things and the performance of other duties at the house of God. 29 They were in charge of the bread set out on the table, ( AF ) the special flour for the grain offerings, ( AG ) the thin loaves made without yeast, the baking and the mixing, and all measurements of quantity and size. ( AH ) 30 They were also to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord . They were to do the same in the evening ( AI ) 31 and whenever burnt offerings were presented to the Lord on the Sabbaths, at the New Moon ( AJ ) feasts and at the appointed festivals. ( AK ) They were to serve before the Lord regularly in the proper number and in the way prescribed for them.
32 And so the Levites ( AL ) carried out their responsibilities for the tent of meeting, ( AM ) for the Holy Place and, under their relatives the descendants of Aaron, for the service of the temple of the Lord . ( AN )
