David Organizes the Levites

23 ^(A)When David was old and full of days, ^(B)he made Solomon his son king over Israel.

² David^[a] assembled all the leaders of Israel and the priests and the Levites. ³ The Levites, ^(C)thirty years old and upward, were numbered, and ^(D)the total was ^(E)38,000 men. ⁴ “Twenty-four thousand of these,” David said,^{[b] (F)}“shall have charge of the work in the house of the Lord, 6,000 shall be ^(G)officers and judges, ⁵ 4,000 gatekeepers, and 4,000 shall offer praises to the Lord with the instruments ^(H)that I have made for praise.” ^6 (I)And David organized them in divisions ^(J)corresponding to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

^7 (K)The sons of Gershon^[c] were Ladan and Shimei. ⁸ The sons of Ladan: ^(L)Jehiel the chief, and Zetham, and Joel, three. ⁹ The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the heads of the fathers' houses of Ladan. ¹⁰ And the sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zina, and Jeush and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei. ¹¹ Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second; but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, therefore they became counted as a single father's house.

^12 (M)The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four. ^13 (N)The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. ^(O)Aaron was set apart to dedicate the most holy things, that he and his sons forever should ^(P)make offerings before the Lord and ^(Q)minister to him and ^(R)pronounce blessings in his name forever. ¹⁴ But the sons of Moses the ^(S)man of God were named among the ^(T)tribe of Levi. ¹⁵ The ^(U)sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer. ¹⁶ The sons of Gershom: ^(V)Shebuel the chief. ¹⁷ The sons of Eliezer: Rehabiah the chief. Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very many. ¹⁸ The sons of Izhar: Shelomith the chief. ¹⁹ The ^(W)sons of Hebron: Jeriah the chief, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. ^20 (X)The sons of Uzziel: Micah the chief and Isshiah the second.

^21 (Y)The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and ^(Z)Kish. ²² Eleazar died ^(AA)having no sons, but only daughters; their ^(AB)kinsmen, the sons of Kish, married them. ^23 (AC)The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth, three.

^24 (AD)These were the sons of Levi by their fathers' houses, the heads of fathers' houses ^(AE)as they were listed according to the number of the names of the individuals from ^(AF)twenty years old and upward who were to do the work for the service of the house of the Lord. ²⁵ For David said, “The Lord, the God of Israel, ^(AG)has given rest to his people, and he dwells in Jerusalem forever. ²⁶ And so the Levites no longer need ^(AH)to carry the tabernacle or any of the things for its service.” ²⁷ For by the last words of David the sons of Levi were numbered from ^(AI)twenty years old and upward. ²⁸ For their duty was to assist the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of the Lord, having the care of the courts and the chambers, the cleansing of all that is holy, and any work for the service of the house of God. ²⁹ Their duty was also to assist with the ^(AJ)showbread, the ^(AK)flour for the grain offering, the wafers of unleavened bread, the ^(AL)baked offering, the ^(AM)offering mixed with oil, and all ^(AN)measures of quantity or size. ³⁰ And they were to stand every morning, thanking and praising the Lord, and likewise at evening, ³¹ and whenever burnt offerings were offered to the Lord ^(AO)on Sabbaths, ^(AP)new moons, and feast days, ^(AQ)according to the number required of them, regularly before the Lord. ³² Thus ^(AR)they were to keep charge of the tent of meeting and the sanctuary, and to attend the sons of Aaron, their brothers, for the ^(AS)service of the house of the Lord.

David Organizes the Priests

24 The divisions of the sons of Aaron were these. The sons of ^(AT)Aaron: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. ^2 (AU)But Nadab and Abihu died before their father and had no children, so Eleazar and Ithamar became the priests. ³ With the help of ^(AV)Zadok of the sons of Eleazar, and Ahimelech of the sons of Ithamar, David organized them according to the appointed duties in their service. ⁴ Since more chief men were found among the sons of Eleazar than among the sons of Ithamar, they organized them under sixteen heads of fathers' houses of the sons of Eleazar, and eight of the sons of Ithamar. ⁵ They divided them ^(AW)by lot, all alike, for there were sacred officers and officers of God among both the sons of Eleazar and the sons of Ithamar. ⁶ And the scribe Shemaiah, the son of Nethanel, a Levite, recorded them in the presence of the king and the princes and Zadok the priest and ^(AX)Ahimelech the son of Abiathar and the heads of the fathers' houses of the priests and of the Levites, one father's house being chosen for Eleazar and one chosen for Ithamar.

⁷ The first lot fell to Jehoiarib, the second to Jedaiah, ⁸ the third to Harim, the fourth to Seorim, ⁹ the fifth to Malchijah, the sixth to Mijamin, ¹⁰ the seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to ^(AY)Abijah, ¹¹ the ninth to Jeshua, the tenth to Shecaniah, ¹² the eleventh to Eliashib, the twelfth to Jakim, ¹³ the thirteenth to Huppah, the fourteenth to Jeshebeab, ¹⁴ the fifteenth to Bilgah, the sixteenth to Immer, ¹⁵ the seventeenth to Hezir, the eighteenth to Happizzez, ¹⁶ the nineteenth to Pethahiah, the twentieth to Jehezkel, ¹⁷ the twenty-first to Jachin, the twenty-second to Gamul, ¹⁸ the twenty-third to Delaiah, the twenty-fourth to Maaziah. ¹⁹ These had as their appointed duty in their service ^(AZ)to come into the house of the Lord according to the procedure established for them by Aaron their father, as the Lord God of Israel had commanded him.

²⁰ And of the rest of the sons of Levi: ^(BA)of the sons of Amram, Shubael; of the sons of Shubael, Jehdeiah. ^21 (BB)Of Rehabiah: of the sons of Rehabiah, Isshiah the chief. ²² Of the Izharites, Shelomoth; of the sons of Shelomoth, Jahath. ^23 (BC)The sons of Hebron:^[d] Jeriah the chief,^[e] Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, Jekameam the fourth. ^24 (BD)The sons of Uzziel, Micah; of the sons of Micah, Shamir. ²⁵ The brother of Micah, Isshiah; of the sons of Isshiah, Zechariah. ^26 (BE)The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Jaaziah: Beno.^{[f] 27} The sons of Merari: of Jaaziah, Beno, Shoham, Zaccur, and Ibri. ²⁸ Of Mahli: Eleazar, ^(BF)who had no sons. ²⁹ Of Kish, the sons of Kish: Jerahmeel. ^30 (BG)The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jerimoth. These were the sons of the Levites according to their fathers' houses. ³¹ These also, the head of each father's house and his younger brother alike, ^(BH)cast lots, just as their brothers the sons of Aaron, in the presence of King David, ^(BI)Zadok, Ahimelech, and the heads of fathers' houses of the priests and of the Levites.

The Genealogy of Jesus Christ

1 ^(A)The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, ^(B)the son of David, ^(C)the son of Abraham.

^2 (D)Abraham was the father of Isaac, and ^(E)Isaac the father of Jacob, and ^(F)Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, ³ and ^(G)Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram,^{[a] 4} and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, ⁵ and Salmon the father of Boaz by ^(H)Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, ⁶ and ^(I)Jesse the father of David the king.

And ^(J)David was the father of Solomon by ^(K)the wife of Uriah, ⁷ and ^(L)Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph,^{[b] 8} and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, ^(M)and Joram the father of Uzziah, ⁹ and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, ¹⁰ and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos,^[c] and Amos the father of Josiah, ¹¹ and ^(N)Josiah the father of ^(O)Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

¹² And after the deportation to Babylon: ^(P)Jechoniah was the father of ^(Q)Shealtiel,^[d] and ^(R)Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, ¹³ and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, ¹⁴ and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, ¹⁵ and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, ¹⁶ and Jacob the father of ^(S)Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

¹⁷ So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to ^(T)the Christ fourteen generations.

The Birth of Jesus Christ

¹⁸ Now the birth of ^(U)Jesus Christ^[e] took place in this way. ^(V)When his mother Mary had been betrothed^[f] to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child ^(W)from the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling ^(X)to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. ²⁰ But as he considered these things, behold, ^(Y)an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will bear a son, and ^(Z)you shall call his name Jesus, ^(AA)for he will save his people from their sins.” ^22 (AB)All this took place ^(AC)to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

(which means, God ^(AF)with us). ²⁴ When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, ²⁵ but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And ^(AG)he called his name Jesus.

The Visit of the Wise Men

2 Now ^(AH)after Jesus was born in ^(AI)Bethlehem of Judea ^(AJ)in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men^[g] from ^(AK)the east came to Jerusalem, ² saying, “Where is he who has been born ^(AL)king of the Jews? For we saw ^(AM)his star when it rose^[h] and have come to ^(AN)worship him.” ³ When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; ⁴ and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where ^(AO)the Christ was to be born. ⁵ They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:

⁷ Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. ⁸ And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” ⁹ After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. ¹¹ And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, ^(AR)they offered him gifts, ^(AS)gold and ^(AT)frankincense and ^(AU)myrrh. ¹² And ^(AV)being warned ^(AW)in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

The Flight to Egypt

¹³ Now when they had departed, behold, ^(AX)an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” ¹⁴ And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt ¹⁵ and remained there until the death of Herod. ^(AY)This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, ^(AZ)“Out of Egypt I called my son.”

Herod Kills the Children

¹⁶ Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. ^17 (BA)Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah:

The Return to Nazareth

¹⁹ But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, ²⁰ saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for ^(BD)those who sought the child's life are dead.” ²¹ And he rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. ²² But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and ^(BE)being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee. ²³ And he went and lived in a city called ^(BF)Nazareth, ^(BG)so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

3 ^(BH)In those days ^(BI)John the Baptist came preaching in ^(BJ)the wilderness of Judea, ^2 (BK)“Repent, for ^(BL)the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”^{[i] 3} For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,

⁴ Now John wore ^(BO)a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was ^(BP)locusts and ^(BQ)wild honey. ⁵ Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, ⁶ and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, ^(BR)confessing their sins.

⁷ But when he saw many of ^(BS)the Pharisees and ^(BT)Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, ^(BU)“You brood of ^(BV)vipers! Who warned you to flee from ^(BW)the wrath to come? ⁸ Bear fruit ^(BX)in keeping with repentance. ⁹ And do not presume to say to yourselves, ^(BY)‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from ^(BZ)these stones to raise up children for Abraham. ¹⁰ Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. ^(CA)Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

^11 (CB)“I baptize you with water ^(CC)for repentance, but ^(CD)he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you ^(CE)with the Holy Spirit and ^(CF)fire. ¹² His ^(CG)winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and ^(CH)gather his wheat into the barn, ^(CI)but the chaff he will burn with ^(CJ)unquenchable fire.”

The Baptism of Jesus

^13 (CK)Then Jesus came ^(CL)from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. ^14 (CM)John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” ¹⁵ But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. ¹⁶ And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, ^(CN)the heavens were opened to him,^[k] and he ^(CO)saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; ¹⁷ and behold, ^(CP)a voice from heaven said, ^(CQ)“This is my beloved Son,^[l] with whom I am well pleased.”