23: 2 And he gathered together all the princes of Israel, with the priests and the Levites.
23: 3 And the Levites were numbered from 211thirty years old and upward: and their number by their polls, man by man, was thirty-eight thousand.
211per Nu 4. But 20 [vs. 24] or, 25 [Nu 8:24].
23: 4 Of these twenty-four thousand were to oversee the work of the house of Jehovah; and six thousand were officers and judges;
23: 5 and four thousand were door-keepers; and four thousand praised Jehovah with the instruments which I made, said David, to praise therewith.
23: 6 And David divided them into 212courses according to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
212Hb. divisions
23: 7 Of the Gershonites: 213Ladan and Shimei.
213So also in ch. 26:21. But in ch. 6:17, Libni
23: 8 The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the chief, and Zetham, and Joel, three.
23: 9 The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, and Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the heads of the fathers’ houses of Ladan.
23: 10 And the sons of Shimei: Jahath, 214Zina, and Jeush, and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei.
214In vs. 11, Zizah
23: 11 And Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second: but Jeush and Beriah had not many sons; therefore they became a fathers’ house in one reckoning.
23: 12 The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four.
23: 13 The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses; and Aaron was separated, 215that he should sanctify the most holy things, he and his sons, 216for ever, to burn incense before Jehovah, to minister unto him, and to bless in his name, for ever.
215Or, to sanctify as most holy him and his sons,
216Or, for time unlimited, (both times) [i.e., without fixed termination]
23: 14 But as for Moses the man of God, his sons were named among the tribe of Levi.
23: 15 The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer.
23: 16 The sons of Gershom: 217Shebuel the chief.
217In ch. 24:20, Shubael Meaning, Returned to God Targum says, It is Jonathan (Jg 18:30) after he reformed from idols.
23: 17 And the sons of Eliezer were: Rehabiah the chief; and Eliezer had no other sons; but the sons of Rehabiah were very many.
23: 18 The sons of Izhar: 218Shelomith the chief.
218In ch. 24:22, Shelomoth
23: 19 The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the chief, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth.
23: 20 The sons of Uzziel: Micah the chief, and Isshiah the second.
23: 21 The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish.
23: 22 And Eleazar died, and had no sons, but daughters only: and their brethren the sons of Kish took them to wife.
23: 23 The sons of Mushi: Mahli, and Eder, and Jeremoth, three.
23: 24 These were the sons of Levi after their fathers’ houses, even the heads of the fathers’ houses of those of them that were counted, in the number of names by their polls, who did the work for the service of the house of Jehovah, from twenty years old and upward.
23: 25 For David said, Jehovah, the God of Israel, hath given rest unto his people; and he dwelleth in Jerusalem 219forever:
219Or, for time unlimited, [i.e., without fixed termination]
23: 26 and also the Levites shall no more have need to carry the tabernacle and all the vessels of it for the service thereof.
23: 27 For 220by the last words of David the sons of Levi were numbered, from twenty years old and upward.
220Or, in the last acts of David
23: 28 For 221their office was to wait on the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of Jehovah, in the courts, and in the chambers, and in the purifying of all holy things, even the work of the service of the house of God;
221Hb. their station was at the hand of the sons of Aaron See similar wording in Neh. 11:24.
23: 29 for the showbread also, and for the fine flour for a meal-offering, whether of unleavened wafers, or of that which is baked in the pan, or of that which is soaked, and for all manner of measure and size;
23: 30 and to stand every morning to thank and praise Jehovah, and likewise towards evening;
23: 31 and to offer all burnt-offerings unto Jehovah, on the sabbaths, on the new moons, and on the set feasts, in number according to the ordinance concerning them, continually before Jehovah;
23: 32 and that they should keep the charge of the tent of meeting, and the charge of the Holy, and the charge of the sons of Aaron their brethren, for the service of the house of Jehovah.
