Beginning
22 1 David said, “This is where the Lord God’s Temple will be, along with the altar of burnt offerings for Israel.”
David’s Plan to Build the Temple
2 David subsequently issued orders to conscript the resident aliens who lived in the land of Israel and appointed stonecutters to prepare stones for building a temple for God. 3 David also provisioned abundant supplies of iron for nails to build the doors for gates and to build clamps. Furthermore, he provided so much bronze it wasn’t inventoried, 4 as well as an innumerable amount of cedar logs, since the Sidonians and Tyrians brought vast amounts of cedar to David.
5 David thought, “My son Solomon is young and inexperienced. The temple that will be built for the Lord is to be magnificent, well known, and internationally honored, so I will complete preparations for it.” So before his death, David finished providing a great quantity of materials for it.
David Commissions Solomon to Build the Temple
6 Later, David called for his son Solomon and directed him to build a temple to the Lord God of Israel. 7 David addressed Solomon: “I have attempted to build a temple to the name of the Lord my God. 8 But this message from the Lord came to me, telling me
‘You have shed a lot of blood and fought great battles. You won’t be building a house for my name, since you have shed so much blood on the earth in my sight. 9 But look! A son born to you will live comfortably,[a] because I will give him rest from all his enemies that surround him on every side, since his name will be “Solomon”—I will give peace and quiet for Israel during his lifetime. 10 He will build a temple to my name. He will be a son to me, I myself will be a father to him, and I will secure his royal throne in Israel forever.’
11 So now, my son, may the Lord be with you, so that you are successful in constructing the Temple of the Lord your God, just as he has spoken about you.
12 “Only may the Lord give you discretion and understanding as he places you in charge over Israel, so you can keep the Law of the Lord your God. 13 Then you will be successful, if you keep on observing the statutes and ordinances that the Lord commanded Moses concerning Israel. Be strong, be courageous, and never give in to fear or dismay. 14 At great effort I have provided for the Temple of the Lord 100,000 gold talents,[b] 1,000,000 silver talents,[c] as well as bronze and iron beyond calculation, since there is so much of it. I’ve also provided timber and stone, but you’ll need to obtain more. 15 You already have plenty of workers, including stonecutters, masons, carpenters, and an innumerable group of artisans who are skilled at working in 16 gold, silver, bronze, and iron. So begin the work, and may the Lord be with you.”
17 David also issued these orders to all of the leaders of Israel to assist his son Solomon: 18 “Isn’t the Lord your God with you? Hasn’t he surrounded you with comfort? He has delivered the inhabitants of the land into my control, and the land lies subdued both in the Lord’s presence and before his people. 19 So set your minds and hearts to seek the Lord your God, to get up, and to build the sanctuary of the Lord God, so the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord and the holy vessels of God may be stored in a temple built for the name of the Lord.”
The Levitical Divisions
23 After David had reached old age, and had completed his reign,[d] he set his son Solomon as king over Israel. 2 David then gathered together all of the leaders of Israel, including the priests and descendants of Levi. 3 descendants of Levi 30 years old and above were counted for a total of 38,000. 4 “24,000 of these,” David said, “are to be set in charge of the work of the Temple of the Lord, with 6,000 serving as officers and judges, 5 with 4,000 gatekeepers, and with 4,000 offering praises to the Lord with the musical instruments that I have had crafted.”
6 David divided them into divisions based on Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, Levi’s sons.
An Abbreviated Genealogy of Levi’s Sons
7 The descendants of Gershon were Ladan and Shimei. 8 The three descendants of Ladan included[e] Jehiel (their chief), Zetham, and Joel. 9 The three descendants of Shimei included Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran. These were the heads of families of Ladan.
10 The descendants of Shimei included Jahath, Zina, Jeush, and Beriah. These four were sons of Shimei. 11 Jahath served as chief and Zizah was second in rank, but since Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, they were enrolled as a single family unit.
12 The four descendants of Kohath included Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 13 The descendants of Amram included Aaron and Moses. Aaron had been set apart to consecrate the most holy things, with the intent that he and his sons should present offerings in the Lord’s presence forever, ministering to him and pronouncing blessings in his name forever.
14 Meanwhile, as for Moses the man of God, his sons were considered among the tribe of Levi. 15 The descendants of Moses included Gershom and Eliezer. 16 The descendants of Gershom included Shebuel as their chief.
17 The descendants of Eliezer included Rehabiah as their chief. Eliezer had no other sons, but Rehabiah had many descendants.
18 The descendants of Izhar included Shelomith their chief.
19 The descendants of Hebron included Jeriah their chief, Amariah their second in rank, Jahaziel their third, and Jekameam their fourth.
20 The descendants of Uzziel included Micah their chief and Isshiah their second in rank.
21 The descendants of Merari included Mahli and Mushi. The descendants of Mahli included Eleazar and Kish, 22 but Eleazar died having no sons, but only daughters. Their relatives (the descendants of Kish) married them. 23 The three descendants of Mushi included Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth.
24 These were the descendants of Levi according to their ancestral households, with family heads documented according to the names of persons 20 years and older who were appointed to perform work in service to the Temple of the Lord.
25 For David had said “The Lord God of Israel has granted rest to his people, and he has taken Israel as his eternal residence. 26 Therefore[f] the descendants of Levi are no longer to carry the Tent or its service implements.”[g] 27 Since, according to David’s final instructions, the list above[h] contains the total number of descendants of Levi from the age of 20 years and upward, 28 David issued these orders:[i]
“Instead, they are to assist by lending a hand to the descendants of Aaron regarding service to the Temple of the Lord relating to the courts, the chambers, purification of everything pertaining to holiness, and to anything else pertaining to service on behalf of the Temple of God, 29 including assisting with the rows of showbread, selecting flour for the grain offerings, the unleavened bread, baked offerings, and oil-based offerings, no matter what the quantity or sizes. 30 They are to take their stand morning by morning, thanking and praising the Lord right through until the evening, 31 whenever burnt offerings are presented to the Lord, whether on Sabbaths, New Moons, or scheduled festivals, regularly in the Lord’s presence in accordance with the number required to conduct their service. 32 By doing this, they will fulfill their obligation as trustees over the Tent of Assembly and the Sanctuary, attending to the needs of[j] their relatives, who are descendants of Aaron, in keeping with their service on behalf of the Temple of the Lord.”
The Priestly Divisions
24 With respect to the descendants of Aaron, classes of service were organized for Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar, the descendants of Aaron. 2 But Nadab and Abihu died before their father did, leaving no sons, so Eleazar and Ithamar became priests. 3 Along with Zadok, one of Eleazar’s descendants, and Ahimelech, one of Ithamar’s descendants, David organized their service according to their assigned responsibilities.
4 More leaders were located among Eleazar’s descendants than among those of Ithamar, so sixteen leaders were appointed from the leaders of the ancestral households of Eleazar’s descendants and eight from those of Ithamar. 5 They were chosen by impartial lottery, since there were trustees[k] of the sanctuary and officers of God among both Eleazar’s descendants and among Ithamar’s descendants. 6 Nethanel’s son Shemaiah, a Levitical scribe, made an official record of them for the king, the officers, Zadok the priest, Abiathar’s son Ahimelech, and the heads of ancestral households of both the priests and the descendants of Levi. One ancestral house was chosen for Eleazar and one for Ithamar.
7 The first lottery was chosen in favor of Jehoiarib, the second for Jedaiah, 8 third for Harim, the fourth for Seorim, 9 the fifth for Malchijah, the sixth for Mijamin, 10 the seventh for Hakkoz, the eighth for Abijah, 11 the ninth for Jeshua, the tenth for Shecaniah, 12 the eleventh for Eliashib, the twelfth for Jakim, 13 the thirteenth for Huppah, the fourteenth for Jeshebeab, 14 the fifteenth for Bilgah, the sixteenth for Immer, 15 the seventeenth for Hezir, the eighteenth for Happizzez, 16 the nineteenth for Pethahiah, the twentieth for Jehezkel, 17 the twenty-first for Jachin, the twenty-second for Gamul, 18 the twenty-third for Delaiah, and the twenty-fourth for Maaziah. 19 These were appointed to enter the Temple of the Lord according to their protocols established by their ancestor Aaron, as commanded by the Lord God of Israel.
Other Levitical Divisions
20 Now with respect to the descendants of Levi there remained Shubael from the descendants of Amram and Jehdeiah from the descendants of Shubael; 21 with respect to Rehabiah, Isshiah their chief from the descendants Rehabiah; 22 with respect to the Izharites, Shelomoth, Jahath from the descendants of Shelomoth; 23 with respect to the descendants of Hebron, Jeriah their chief, Amariah their second in rank, Jahaziel their third, and Jekameam their fourth; 24 with respect to the descendants of Uzziel, Micah; with respect to the descendants of Micah, Shamir; 25 with respect to Micah’s brother Isshiah; with respect to the descendants of Isshiah, Zechariah; 26 with respect to Merari’s sons, Mahli and Mushi; with respect to the sons of Jaaziah, Beno; 27 with respect to the sons of Merari, Jaaziah, Beno, Shoham, Zaccur, and Ibri; 28 with respect to Mahli, Eleazar, who had no sons; 29 with respect to Kish, Jerahmeel, one of the descendants of Kish; 30 and with respect to the descendants of Mushi, Mahli, Eder, and Jerimoth. These were the descendants of Levi according to their ancestral households. 31 These individuals also cast lots corresponding to their relatives, Aaron’s descendants, in the presence of King David, Zadok, and Ahimelech, and in the presence of the heads of the ancestral households of the priests and of the descendants of Levi, and the eldest was treated as impartially as was the younger brother.
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.