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1 Chronicles 15

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David Prepares a Place for the Ark 1–2

1
And David made him houses in the city of David, and prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched for it a tent. ​
2
Then David said, None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites: for them hath the LORD chosen to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto him for ever. ​

The Assembly and the Priests 3–15

3
And David gathered all Israel together to Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the LORD unto his place, which he had prepared for it. ​
4
And David assembled the children of Aaron, and the Levites:
5
Of the sons of Kohath; Uriel the chief, and his brethren an hundred and twenty: ​
6
Of the sons of Merari; Asaiah the chief, and his brethren two hundred and twenty:
7
Of the sons of Gershom; Joel the chief, and his brethren an hundred and thirty:
8
Of the sons of Elizaphan; Shemaiah the chief, and his brethren two hundred:
9
Of the sons of Hebron; Eliel the chief, and his brethren fourscore:
10
Of the sons of Uzziel; Amminadab the chief, and his brethren an hundred and twelve.
11
And David called for Zadok and Abiathar the priests, and for the Levites, for Uriel, Asaiah, and Joel, Shemaiah, and Eliel, and Amminadab, ​
12
And said unto them, Ye are the chief of the fathers of the Levites: sanctify yourselves, both ye and your brethren, that ye may bring up the ark of the LORD God of Israel unto the place that I have prepared for it. ​
13
For because ye did it not at the first, the LORD our God made a breach upon us, for that we sought him not after the due order. ​
14
So the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the LORD God of Israel.
15
And the children of the Levites bare the ark of God upon their shoulders with the staves thereon, as Moses commanded according to the word of the LORD. ​

Organizing the Temple Musicians 16–24

16
And David spake to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brethren to be the singers with instruments of musick, psalteries and harps and cymbals, sounding, by lifting up the voice with joy. ​
17
So the Levites appointed Heman the son of Joel; and of his brethren, Asaph the son of Berechiah; and of the sons of Merari their brethren, Ethan the son of Kushaiah; ​
18
And with them their brethren of the second degree, Zechariah, Ben, and Jaaziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Unni, Eliab, and Benaiah, and Maaseiah, and Mattithiah, and Elipheleh, and Mikneiah, and Obededom, and Jeiel, the porters.
19
So the singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, were appointed to sound with cymbals of brass;
20
And Zechariah, and Aziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Unni, and Eliab, and Maaseiah, and Benaiah, with psalteries on Alamoth;
21
And Mattithiah, and Elipheleh, and Mikneiah, and Obededom, and Jeiel, and Azaziah, with harps on the Sheminith to excel.
22
And Chenaniah, chief of the Levites, was for song: he instructed about the song, because he was skilful. ​
23
And Berechiah and Elkanah were doorkeepers for the ark.
24
And Shebaniah, and Jehoshaphat, and Nethaneel, and Amasai, and Zechariah, and Benaiah, and Eliezer, the priests, did blow with the trumpets before the ark of God: and Obededom and Jehiah were doorkeepers for the ark.

The Ark Brought to Jerusalem 25–29

25
So David, and the elders of Israel, and the captains over thousands, went to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the house of Obededom with joy. ​
26
And it came to pass, when God helped the Levites that bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, that they offered seven bullocks and seven rams. ​
27
And David was clothed with a robe of fine linen, and all the Levites that bare the ark, and the singers, and Chenaniah the master of the song with the singers: David also had upon him an ephod of linen. ​
28
Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with shouting, and with sound of the cornet, and with trumpets, and with cymbals, making a noise with psalteries and harps.
29
And it came to pass, as the ark of the covenant of the LORD came to the city of David, that Michal the daughter of Saul looking out at a window saw king David dancing and playing: and she despised him in her heart. ​

Bible text: King James Version (1769 Blayney text) · Public domain

Study Notes for 1 Chronicles 15

Verse 1

pitched for it a tent — David made houses for himself in the city of David and 'prepared' (kun) a place for the ark. The tent was not the tabernacle of Moses, which stood at the high place in Gibeon (16:39). The LORD himself said, 'I have not dwelt in an house… but have gone from tent to tent, and from one tabernacle to another' (17:5).

Verse 2

None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites — The charge came from the law: 'the LORD separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister unto him' (Deut 10:8). 'Chosen' is bachar, and the ministry is 'for ever'. This corrects the cart of 13:7.

Verse 3

unto his place, which he had prepared for it — The same words as v.1: kun, to prepare, and maqom, place. The gathering of 'all Israel' repeats 13:5. Solomon assembled Israel in the same way to bring the ark up 'out of the city of David' (1 Kgs 8:1).

Verse 5

Uriel the chief — Vv.5–10 name six households and their chiefs: Kohath, Merari, Gershom, Elizaphan, Hebron and Uzziel. Kohath stands first, since the ark was its charge (Num 4:15; 7:9). Uriel is of Kohath's line (6:24). The brethren number 120 here, then 220, 130, 200, 80 and 112.

Verse 11

Zadok and Abiathar the priests — Zadok is first met at Hebron as 'a young man mighty of valour' (12:28). Abiathar was the son of Ahimelech who 'escaped, and fled after David' (1 Sam 22:20). Solomon later put Zadok 'in the room of Abiathar' (1 Kgs 2:35). The six Levites named correspond to the six chiefs in vv.5–10.

Verse 12

sanctify yourselves — Qadash in its reflexive form: they set themselves apart. At Sinai Moses 'sanctified the people; and they washed their clothes' (Ex 19:14). Josiah's Levites were told the same before the passover (2 Chr 35:6). 'Chief of the fathers of the Levites' is the phrase of 9:33.

Verse 13

after the due order — Mishpat is the ordinance, the way the law fixed for carrying the ark (Num 4:15; 7:9). 'Sought' is darash, the verb of 13:3, 'we enquired not at it'. 'Made a breach' is parats, as in 13:11. 'At the first' is the cart of 13:7.

Verse 15

with the staves thereon — Mot is a pole. The ark was made with rings so that it 'may be borne' by staves, and 'they shall not be taken from it' (Ex 25:14–15). 'As Moses commanded according to the word of the LORD' ties the carrying to Num 4:15 and 7:9, the Kohathites bearing on their shoulders.

Verse 16

psalteries and harps and cymbals — These are nebel, kinnor and metsiltayim. Hezekiah set the Levites in the house of the LORD 'with cymbals, with psalteries, and with harps, according to the commandment of David… for so was the commandment of the LORD by his prophets' (2 Chr 29:25).

Verse 17

Heman… Asaph… Ethan — Heman is a Kohathite singer (6:33), Asaph stood at his right hand (6:39) and Ethan of Merari at the left (6:44). Their names stand in the Psalm titles: 'A Psalm of Asaph' (Ps 50:1), 'Maschil of Heman the Ezrahite' (Ps 88:1) and 'Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite' (Ps 89:1).

Verse 22

Chenaniah… was for song — The Hebrew massa is a burden or lifting up, the word used of the Kohathites' burden in Num 4:15 and of 'The burden of Babylon' in Isa 13:1; here the KJV renders it 'song', and in v.27, 'master of the song'. 'Instructed' is yasar, to teach. 25:7 speaks of those 'instructed in the songs of the LORD'.

Verse 25

with joy — Simchah. The report that set David going was, 'The LORD hath blessed the house of Obededom, and all that pertaineth unto him, because of the ark of God' (2 Sam 6:12). The elders and 'captains over thousands' are the ranks David consulted in 13:1.

Verse 26

when God helped the Levites — Azar is to aid or protect. The Levites bore the ark as Moses commanded (v.15), and seven bullocks and seven rams were offered, the same animals and number named in Job 42:8. 2 Sam 6:13 adds that, when the bearers 'had gone six paces', David 'sacrificed oxen and fatlings'.

Verse 27

an ephod of linen — 'Fine linen' is buts, bleached white linen, and the 'robe' is meil. David's linen ephod is also named in 2 Sam 6:14. Samuel, too, 'ministered before the LORD, being a child, girded with a linen ephod' (1 Sam 2:18).

Verse 29

Michal the daughter of Saul — Here and in 2 Sam 6:16 she is called Saul's daughter, the name under which she first loved David (1 Sam 18:20). 'Despised' renders bazah. 2 Sam 6:20–23 records her words to David and his answer, ending: 'Michal the daughter of Saul had no child unto the day of her death.'