The Gatekeepers

26 Concerning the divisions of the gatekeepers: of the Korahites, ^[a]Meshelemiah the son of ^(A)Kore, of the sons of ^[b]Asaph.

The Confidence of the Foolish

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.

Redemption Remembered in Present Dishonor

To the Chief Musician. A ^(A)Contemplation^[a] of the sons of Korah.

¹⁹ And he set the ^(A)gatekeepers at the gates of the house of the Lord, so that no one who was in any way unclean should enter.

²³ Berechiah and Elkanah were doorkeepers for the ark; ²⁴ Shebaniah, Joshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Eliezer, the priests, ^(A)were to blow the trumpets before the ark of God; and ^(B)Obed-Edom and Jehiah, doorkeepers for the ark.

¹⁸ and with them their brethren of the second rank: Zechariah, ^[a]Ben, Jaaziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Elipheleh, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, and Jeiel, the gatekeepers;

The Levite Gatekeepers

¹⁷ And the gatekeepers were Shallum, Akkub, Talmon, Ahiman, and their brethren. Shallum was the chief. ¹⁸ Until then they had been gatekeepers for the camps of the children of Levi at the King’s Gate on the east.

¹⁹ Shallum the son of Kore, the son of Ebiasaph, the son of Korah, and his brethren, from his father’s house, the Korahites, were in charge of the work of the service, ^[a]gatekeepers of the tabernacle. Their fathers had been keepers of the entrance to the camp of the Lord. ²⁰ And ^(A)Phinehas the son of Eleazar had been the officer over them in time past; the Lord was with him. ^21 (B)Zechariah the son of Meshelemiah was ^[b]keeper of the door of the tabernacle of meeting.

²² All those chosen as gatekeepers were two hundred and twelve. ^(C)They were recorded by their genealogy, in their villages. David and Samuel ^(D)the seer had appointed them to their trusted office. ²³ So they and their children were in charge of the gates of the house of the Lord, the house of the tabernacle, by assignment. ²⁴ The gatekeepers were assigned to the four directions: the east, west, north, and south. ²⁵ And their brethren in their villages had to come with them from time to time ^(E)for seven days. ²⁶ For in this trusted office were four chief gatekeepers; they were Levites. And they had charge over the chambers and treasuries of the house of God. ²⁷ And they lodged all around the house of God because ^[c]they had the ^(F)responsibility, and they were in charge of opening it every morning.

³⁷ the son of Tahath, the son of Assir, the son of ^(A)Ebiasaph, the son of Korah,

⁹ The sons of Eliab were Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram. These are the Dathan and Abiram, ^(A)representatives of the congregation, who contended against Moses and Aaron in the company of Korah, when they contended against the Lord; ^10 (B)and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up together with Korah when that company died, when the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men; ^(C)and they became a sign. ¹¹ Nevertheless ^(D)the children of Korah did not die.