Beginning
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 [a]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.[b] 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.
Chapter 16
1 They brought the Ark of God and placed it inside of the tent that David had pitched for it. They offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before God. 2 When David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord. 3 He gave each man and each woman in Israel one loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins.
The Levite Ministers. 4 He appointed some of the Levites to minister before the Ark of the Lord, to commemorate, to thank, and to praise the Lord, the God of Israel. 5 They were Asaph, the leader, Zechariah, the next in charge, and Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, and Obed-edom. They were to play upon the lyres and the harps while Asaph was to play upon the cymbals. 6 Benaiah and Jahaziel were the priests who normally blew the trumpets before the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord.[c]
7 On that day David first gave Asaph and his brethren this psalm of thanks to the Lord:
8 [d]Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name;
make his deeds known among the nations.
9 Sing to him, praise him with song;
speak of all his wondrous deeds.
10 Glory in his holy name,
let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
11 Seek the Lord and his strength,
seek his face continually.
12 Remember the marvels he has done,
his wondrous deeds and the judgments of his mouth.
13 O descendants of Israel, his servant,
O children of Jacob, his chosen one.
14 He is the Lord, our God,
his judgments extend to all the earth.
15 He always remembers his covenant,
the word he has commanded for a thousand generations,
16 which he made with Abraham,
the oath he swore to Isaac.
17 He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree,
to Israel as an eternal covenant,
18 saying, “I will give you the land of Canaan;
it will be your allotted inheritance.”
19 When there were only a few of them,
few indeed, with foreigners among them,
20 they wandered from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another people.
21 He did not let anyone oppress them,
for their sake he rebuked kings,
22 “Do not touch my anointed;
do no harm to my prophets.”
23 Sing to the Lord, all the earth,
proclaim his salvation from day to day.
24 Declare his glory among the nations,
among all nations, his marvelous deeds.
25 For great is the Lord, greatly to be praised;
he is to be feared more than all the other gods.
26 All the gods of the nations are idols,
but the Lord made the heavens.
27 Glory and honor are before him,
strength and joy in his dwelling place.
28 Give to the Lord, O families of nations,
give to the Lord glory and strength.
29 Give to the Lord the glory due his name.
Bring an offering and come before him;
worship the Lord in holy attire.
30 Tremble before him, all the earth;
the world is firmly established, not to be moved.
31 Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice;
let them say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”
32 Let the sea roar, and whatever fills it;
let the fields rejoice, and all that is in them.
33 The trees of the forest will sing out before the Lord,
for he comes to judge the earth.
34 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his mercy endures forever.
35 Shout forth, “Save us, O Lord, our savior;
gather us in and deliver us from the nations.
Then we will give thanks to your holy name,
we will glory in your praise.”
36 Praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
forever and ever.
All the people said, “Amen! Praise the Lord!”
37 He left Asaph and his brethren there before the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord to minister before the Ark and to do each day’s required work. 38 He also left Obed-edom and sixty-eight of his brethren with them. Obed-edom, the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah were the gatekeepers.
39 He also left Zadok, the priest, and his fellow priests before the tabernacle of the Lord at the high place in Gibeon. 40 He was to offer the regular burnt offerings upon the altar of burnt offerings, each morning and each evening, just as it is written in the law of the Lord which he gave to Israel. 41 With him there were Heman and Jeduthun and the others who had been chosen, who had been designated by name to give thanks to the Lord, for his mercy endures forever. 42 Heman and Jeduthun were responsible for playing the trumpets and the cymbals as well as the other sacred musical instruments. The sons of Jeduthun were gatekeepers.
43 Then all the people departed, each returning home. David, too, went home to bless his household.
Chapter 17[e]
Nathan’s Oracle. 1 After David had moved into his palace, David said to Nathan the prophet, “Behold, I live in a house of cedar, but the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord lives under awnings.” 2 Nathan said to David, “Do whatever you want to, for the Lord is with you.”
3 But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying, 4 “Go and tell David my servant: Thus says the Lord, ‘You are not to build a house in which I will live. 5 I have not dwelt in a house from the time that I brought Israel up from out of Egypt up to the present day. I have traveled around from one tent site to another. 6 In the whole time that I have traveled around with Israel, have I ever said to any of the judges of Israel whom I commanded to shepherd my people, Why have you not built me a house made from cedar wood?’
7 “Now, therefore, tell my servant David: Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘I took you from the sheepfold, from following after the sheep, to be the ruler over my people Israel. 8 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut down all of your enemies from before you. I have made your name famous, as famous as the great men of the earth. 9 I will establish a dwelling place for my people Israel. I will plant them so that they might dwell in their own place. They will not have to move about anymore, nor shall the children of wickedness oppress them as they have done in the past, 10 from the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel. I will humble all of your enemies.
“ ‘Furthermore, it is the Lord who will build you a house. 11 When your days have been fulfilled and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your seed after you, one of your sons,[f] and I will establish his kingdom. 12 He will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. 13 I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will not withdraw my mercy from him, as I took it away from the one who preceded you.[g] 14 I will have him stand firm in my house forever, and his throne will be established forever.’ ”
15 Nathan reported this entire vision and all of these words to David.
16 David’s Prayer of Thanksgiving. King David then went in and sat before the Lord and said, “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my household that you have brought me to this point? 17 And as if there were a small thing in your sight, O God, you have spoken about the future of your servant’s house. You have looked upon me, treating me as one who is highly exalted, O Lord God. 18 What else could David say to you for honoring your servant, for you know your servant well? 19 O Lord, you have done this great thing and revealed all these great things for the sake of your servant and because you have willed it. 20 There is no one like you, O Lord, and there is no other God but you, as we have heard with our own ears. 21 And who is like your people Israel, the one nation upon the earth whose God went forth to redeem his own people, thus making a great name for yourself, and who drove out nations with great wonders from before your people whom you redeemed out of Egypt. 22 You have granted that your people, Israel, will be your own people forever, and you, O Lord, will be their God.
23 “O Lord, let the things that you have spoken concerning your servant and his household now be established forever, even as you have promised. 24 As it is established, so will your name be forever great. It will be said, ‘The Lord of hosts is the God of Israel, the God of Israel.’ Let the household of David, your servant, be established before you forever. 25 You, O God, have revealed to your servant that you will build him a house. This is why your servant has found it in his heart to say this prayer before you. 26 O Lord, you are God, and you have promised this good thing to your servant. 27 Therefore, may it please you to bless the house of your servant so that it might be before you forever, for you have blessed it, O Lord, and may it be blessed forever.”
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