The Divisions of the Levites

1When David was old and full of years, he installed his son Solomon as king over Israel. 2Then he gathered all the leaders of Israel, as well as the priests and Levites.

3The Levites thirty years of age or older were counted, and the total number of men was 38,000. 4“Of these,” said David,a “24,000 are to oversee the work of the house of the LORD, 6,000 are to be officers and judges, 54,000 are to be gatekeepers, and 4,000 are to praise the LORD with the instruments I have made for giving praise.”

6Then David divided the Levites into divisions according to the sons of Levi:

Gershom, Kohath, and Merari.

The Gershonites
(Numbers 3:21–26; Numbers 4:21–28)

7The Gershonites: Ladanb and Shimei.

8The sons of Ladan: Jehielc the first, Zetham, and Joel—three in all.

9The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran—three in all. These were the heads of the families of Ladan.

10And the sons of Shimei:d Jahath, Zina,e Jeush, and Beriah. These were the sons of Shimei—four in all. 11Jahath was the first and Zizah was the second; but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, so they were counted as one family and received a single assignment.

The Kohathites
(Numbers 3:27–32; Numbers 4:1–20)

12The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel—four in all.

13The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron and his descendants were set apart forever to consecrate the most holy things, to burn incense before the LORD, to minister before Him, and to pronounce blessings in His name forever. 14As for Moses the man of God, his sons were named among the tribe of Levi.

15The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer.

16The descendants of Gershom: Shebuel was the first.

17The descendants of Eliezer: Rehabiah was the first. Eliezer did not have any other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very numerous.

18The sons of Izhar: Shelomith was the first.

19The sons of Hebron: Jeriah was the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth.

20The sons of Uzziel: Micah was the first and Isshiah the second.

The Merarites
(Numbers 3:33–37; Numbers 4:29–33)

21The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi.

The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish. 22Eleazar died without having any sons; he had only daughters. Their cousins, the sons of Kish, married them.

23The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremothf—three in all.

Levite Duties Revised

24These were the descendants of Levi by their families—the heads of families, registered individually by name—those twenty years of age or older who worked in the service of the house of the LORD.

25For David had said, “The LORD, the God of Israel, has given rest to His people and has come to dwell in Jerusalem forever. 26So now the Levites no longer need to carry the tabernacle or any of the articles for its service.”

27For according to the final instructions of David, the Levites twenty years of age or older were counted, 28but their duty was to assist the descendants of Aaron with the service of the house of the LORD, being responsible for the courts and chambers, the purification of all the holy things, and the work of the service of the house of God, 29as well as for the rows of the showbread, the fine flour for the grain offering, the wafers of unleavened bread, the baking, the mixing, and all measurements of quantity and size.

30They were also to stand every morning to give thanks and praise to the LORD, and likewise in the evening. 31Whenever burnt offerings were presented to the LORD on the Sabbaths, New Moons, and appointed feasts, they were to serve regularly before the LORD in the numbers prescribed for them. 32So the Levites were to carry out the responsibilities for the Tent of Meeting and the Holy Place, and, under their brothers the descendants of Aaron, the service of the house of the LORD.