1 Chronicles 13-15
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 13
The Ark Is Returned to Jerusalem.[a] 1 After David consulted with the captains of the thousands and the hundreds and with all of the leaders, 2 he spoke to the assembly of Israel, saying, “If you feel that this is good, for the Lord, our God, has willed it, then let us send messengers to the rest of our brethren throughout the land of Israel, including the priests and the Levites who are in their cities and pastures, so that they can come and join us. 3 Let us bring the Ark of God to where we are, for they did not make inquiry at it during the reign of Saul.”
4 The whole assembly said that they would do this, for all of the people considered it to be the right thing to do. 5 David assembled all of Israel, from the Shihor[b] in Egypt up to Lebo-hamath, to bring the Ark of God from Kiriath-jearim. 6 David and all of the Israelites with him went to Baalah of Judah, that is, Kiriath-jearim, to bring up from there the Ark of God, the Lord, who dwells between the cherubim where his name is proclaimed. 7 They carried the Ark of the Lord on a new cart to the house of Abinadab. Uzzah and Ahio drove the cart. 8 David and all of Israel played before the Lord with all their might, singing and playing on the harps, lyres, tambourines, cymbals, and trumpets.
9 When they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to grab the Ark because the oxen had stumbled. 10 The Lord’s anger blazed against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had touched the Ark.[c] He died there before the Lord. 11 David was disturbed because of the Lord’s outburst against Uzzah, which is why that place is called Perez-uzzah up to the present day.
12 David was afraid of the Lord that day, saying, “How shall I bring the Ark of God to myself?” 13 He did not take the Ark with him into the City of David. He had it carried into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. 14 The Ark of God remained with the family of Obed-edom, in his house, for three months. The Lord blessed the house of Obed-edom and all that he owned.
Chapter 14
David in Jerusalem. 1 Now Hiram, the king of Tyre, sent messengers to David, along with cedar wood, masons, and carpenters to build him a palace. 2 David knew that the Lord had confirmed him as king over Israel and that his kingdom had been highly exalted for the sake of his people Israel.
3 In Jerusalem David married more wives, and he had more sons and daughters. 4 These were the names of the children who were born to him there: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, 5 Ibhar, Elishua, Elpelet, 6 Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia, 7 Elishama, Beeliada, and Eliphelet.
David’s Victory over the Philistines. 8 When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed as king over all of Israel, all of the Philistines went up to seek out David. David heard about it and went out to meet them. 9 The Philistines arrived and spread themselves out in the Valley of Rephaim.
10 David inquired of God, saying, “Shall I go out against the Philistines? Will you deliver them into my hands?” The Lord answered them, “Go up, I will deliver them into your hands.”[d]
11 They went up to Baal-perazim, and there David defeated them. David said, “God has broken my enemies by my hand, just as when waters break forth.” This is why that place is called Baal-perazim. 12 They had left their gods there, and David gave an order that they be burned in the fire.
13 Still another time the Philistines came and spread themselves out in the valley. 14 David inquired of God again, and God said to him, “Do not attack them directly, but circle around them and attack them from behind the balsam trees. 15 As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, go forth into battle, for God has gone forth before you to strike down the Philistines.”
16 David did as God had commanded him, and they struck down the army of the Philistines from Gibeon all the way to Gezer. 17 David’s fame spread throughout every land, and the Lord caused all of the nations to fear him.
Chapter 15
Carrying the Ark to Jerusalem. 1 After David had constructed buildings for himself in the City of David, he prepared a place for the Ark of God, pitching a tent for it.
2 David then said, “No one can carry the Ark of God except the Levites. The Lord has chosen them to carry the Ark of God and to minister to him forever.”
3 David assembled all of Israel in Jerusalem to bring the Ark of the Lord to the place that he had prepared for it. 4 David assembled the descendants of Aaron and the Levites.
5 From the descendants of Kohath, there were Uriel, their leader, and one hundred and twenty of his brethren. 6 From the descendants of Merari, there were Asaiah, their leader, and two hundred and twenty of his brethren. 7 From the descendants of Gershon, there were Joel, their leader, and one hundred and thirty of his brethren. 8 From the descendants of Elizaphan, there were Shemaiah, their leader, and two hundred of his brethren. 9 From the descendants of Hebron, there were Eliel, their leader, and eighty of his brethren. 10 From the descendants of Uzziel, there were Amminadab, their leader, and one hundred and twelve of his brethren.
11 David summoned Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, and Uriel, Asaiah, Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel, and Amminadab the Levites. 12 He said to them, “You are the leaders of the ancestral clans of the Levites. Sanctify yourselves and your brethren so that you might bring the Ark of the Lord, the God of Israel, to the place that I have prepared for it. 13 [e]It is because you did not bring it up the first time that the Lord burst forth against us, for we did not inquire of him about the proper order.”
14 The priests and the Levites sanctified themselves to bring up the Ark of the Lord, the God of Israel. 15 The descendants of the Levites carried the Ark of God by its poles on their shoulders, as Moses had commanded, according to the word of the Lord.
16 David spoke to the leaders of the Levites to appoint their brethren as singers, lifting their voices up with joy, and accompanied by music played on the lyres, harps, and cymbals. 17 So the Levites appointed Heman, the son of Joel, and one of his brethren, Asaph, the son of Berechiah, and from among the brethren of the Merarites, Ethan, the son of Kushaiah.
18 With them, there were their brethren of second rank: Zechariah, Uzziel, Shemira-moth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel, the gatekeepers.
19 The musicians Heman, Asaph, and Ethan were to play upon bronze cymbals. 20 Zechariah, Uzziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah were to play the lyres according to Alamoth. 21 Matthithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah were to play upon harps according to the Sheminith. 22 Chenaniah, the leader of the Levites dedicated to music, directed the music, for he was skillful at it.
23 Berechiah and Elkanah were the gatekeepers for the Ark. 24 Shebaniah, Joshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Eliezer, the priests, were to blow the trumpets before the Ark of God. Obed-edom and Jeiel were also gatekeepers for the Ark.
25 The Ark Comes to Jerusalem. David, the elders of Israel, and the captains of the thousands went to bring the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord up from out of the house of Obed-edom with joy. 26 God helped the Levites carry the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord, and they sacrificed seven bulls and seven rams. 27 David was dressed in a robe made from fine linen, as were the Levites who were carrying the Ark, the singers, and Chenaniah, the director of the music. David also wore a linen ephod.[f] 28 All of Israel brought up the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord with shouting, to the sound of the horn, the trumpets, and the cymbal, and playing upon the harps and the lyres.
29 As the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord came to the City of David, Michal, the daughter of Saul, was watching out the window. She saw King David dancing and playing, and she despised him in her heart.
Footnotes
- 1 Chronicles 13:1 The Chronicler highlights the installation of the Ark in Jerusalem as the first solemn religious act of his hero. In order to lend the event an exceptional grandeur, he imagines all Israel being solemnly summoned to participate in this triumphal action. The capital with its liturgy and its priesthood becomes the holy city of the people of God. The first civil and military activities of the reign (ch. 14) will be simply an interlude in this solemnity.
- 1 Chronicles 13:5 Shihor: usually called “the River of Egypt”; this marked the southern border of Palestine.
- 1 Chronicles 13:10 Uzzah . . . touched the Ark: in his fervent desire to protect the Ark, Uzzah, son of Shimei, disregarded the strict rules for moving it that were assigned by God to Moses (Num 4:5-15). His offense resulted in his immediate death.
- 1 Chronicles 14:10 The Chronicler’s unabashed esteem for David comes through as he points out the wisdom of David, who always consulted the Lord before going into battle.
- 1 Chronicles 15:13 Even with all his wisdom, David sometimes failed to follow God’s instructions. Although returning the Ark to Israel was the right thing to do, David was careless in following the prescribed method and was unsuccessful until he was obedient to God’s explicit instructions.
- 1 Chronicles 15:27 The Chronicler seems to want to clarify what had been said in 2 Sam 6:14; the ephod was of linen, but it was worn over a robe of fine linen.
