﻿1 Chronicles.
Chapter 23.
When David was old and full of years, he made his son Solomon king over Israel. 
He gathered all the leaders of Israel, the priests, and the Levites. 
The Levites thirty years old and above were counted, and their total, counted man by man, was 38,000. 
Of these, 24,000 were to oversee the work of the house of the LORD, and 6,000 were officials and judges. 
Four thousand were gatekeepers, and 4,000 praised the LORD “with the instruments I made for praise.” 
David divided them into divisions according to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 
From the Gershonites: Ladan and Shimei. 
The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the chief, Zetham, and Joel, three. 
The sons of Shimei: Shelomith, Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the heads of the ancestral houses of Ladan. 
The sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zina, Jeush, and Beriah. These four were Shimei’s sons. 
Jahath was the chief and Zizah the second. Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, so they were counted together as one ancestral house. 
The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four. 
The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart to be consecrated as most holy, he and his sons forever, to burn incense before the LORD, minister to him, and bless in his name forever. 
The sons of Moses the man of God were reckoned as part of the tribe of Levi. 
The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer. 
The sons of Gershom: Shebuel the chief. 
The sons of Eliezer: Rehabiah the chief. Eliezer had no other sons, but Rehabiah’s descendants became very numerous. 
The sons of Izhar: Shelomith the chief. 
The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the chief, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. 
The sons of Uzziel: Micah the chief and Isshiah the second. 
The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish. 
Eleazar died without sons, having only daughters. The sons of Kish, their relatives, married them. 
The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth, three. 
These were the descendants of Levi according to their ancestral houses, the heads of ancestral houses as registered, counted individually by name, who did the work of service in the house of the LORD, twenty years old and above. 
For David said, “The LORD, the God of Israel, has given rest to his people and will dwell in Jerusalem forever. 
The Levites will no longer need to carry the tabernacle or any of the utensils used in its service.” 
According to David’s last instructions, the descendants of Levi were counted from twenty years old and above. 
Their duty was to assist the descendants of Aaron in the service of the house of the LORD, caring for the courts and rooms, purifying all the holy things, and doing the work of service in the house of God. 
They were also responsible for the bread set out in rows, the fine flour for grain offerings, the unleavened wafers, what was prepared in pans, the well-mixed dough, and all measurements of quantity and size. 
They were to stand every morning to give thanks and praise to the LORD, and likewise in the evening, 
and to serve whenever burnt offerings were offered to the LORD on Sabbaths, New Moons, and appointed festivals, in the prescribed number and order, regularly before the LORD. 
They were to keep the charge of the tent of meeting, the sanctuary, and their relatives the descendants of Aaron, in the service of the house of the LORD. 
