I Chronicles 23

1When David reached a ripe old age, he made his son Solomon king over Israel.

2Then David assembled all the officers of Israel and the priests and the Levites.

3The Levites, from the age of thirty and upward, were counted; the head-count of their males was 38,000:

4of these there were 24,000 in charge of the work of the House of GOD, 6,000 officers and magistrates,

54,000 gatekeepers, and 4,000 for praising GOD “with instruments I devised for singing praises.”

6David formed them into divisions:The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

7The Gershonites: Ladan and Shimei.

8The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the chief, Zetham, and Joel—3.

9The sons of Shimei: Shelomith, Haziel, and Haran—3. These were the chiefs of the clans of the Ladanites.

10And the sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zina, Jeush, and Beriah; these were the sons of Shimei—4.

11Jahath was the chief and Zizah the second, but Jeush and Beriah did not have many children, so they were enrolled together as a single clan.

12The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel—4.

13The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart, he and his sons, forever, to be consecrated as most holy, to make burnt offerings to GOD and render service and pronounce blessings in God’s name forever.

14As for Moses, the agent of God, his sons were named after the tribe of Levi.

15The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer.

16The sons of Gershom: Shebuel the chief.

17And the sons of Eliezer were: Rehabiah the chief. Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very numerous.

18The sons of Izhar: Shelomith the chief.

19The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the chief, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth.

20The sons of Uzziel: Micah the chief and Isshiah the second.

21The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish.

22Eleazar died having no sons but only daughters; the sons of Kish, their kindred, married them.

23The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth—3.

24These are the sons of Levi by clans, with their clan chiefs as they were enrolled, with a list of their names by heads, who did the work of the service of the House of GOD from the age of twenty and upward.

25For David said, “The ETERNAL God of Israel has given rest to this people and will dwell in Jerusalem forever.

26Therefore the Levites need not carry the Tabernacle and all its various service vessels.”

27Among the last acts of David was the counting of the Levites from the age of twenty and upward.

28For their appointment was alongside the Aaronites for the service of the House of GOD, to look after the courts and the chambers, and the purity of all the holy things, and the performance of the service of the House of God,

29and the rows of bread, and the fine flour for the grain offering, and the unleavened wafers, and the cakes made on the griddle and soaked, and every measure of capacity and length;

30and to be present every morning to praise and extol GOD, and at evening too,

31and whenever offerings were made to GOD, according to the quantities prescribed for them, on sabbaths, new moons and holidays, regularly, before GOD;

32and so to keep watch over the Tent of Meeting, over the holy things, and over the Aaronites their kindred, for the service of the House of GOD.