What the Bible Says About Levites, the

Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD'S side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.

And he said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbour.

And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men.

But the Levites after the tribe of their fathers were not numbered among them.

For the LORD had spoken unto Moses, saying,

Only thou shalt not number the tribe of Levi, neither take the sum of them among the children of Israel:

And the LORD spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying,

Number the children of Levi after the house of their fathers, by their families: every male from a month old and upward shalt thou number them.

And Moses numbered them according to the word of the LORD, as he was commanded. word: Heb. mouth

And the LORD said unto Moses, Number all the firstborn of the males of the children of Israel from a month old and upward, and take the number of their names.

And thou shalt take the Levites for me (I am the LORD) instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel; and the cattle of the Levites instead of all the firstlings among the cattle of the children of Israel.

And Moses numbered, as the LORD commanded him, all the firstborn among the children of Israel.

And all the firstborn males by the number of names, from a month old and upward, of those that were numbered of them, were twenty and two thousand two hundred and threescore and thirteen.

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of their cattle; and the Levites shall be mine: I am the LORD.

And when the camp setteth forward, Aaron shall come, and his sons, and they shall take down the covering vail, and cover the ark of testimony with it:

And shall put thereon the covering of badgers' skins, and shall spread over it a cloth wholly of blue, and shall put in the staves thereof.

And upon the table of shewbread they shall spread a cloth of blue, and put thereon the dishes, and the spoons, and the bowls, and covers to cover withal: and the continual bread shall be thereon: cover: or, pour out withal

And they shall spread upon them a cloth of scarlet, and cover the same with a covering of badgers' skins, and shall put in the staves thereof.

And they shall take a cloth of blue, and cover the candlestick of the light, and his lamps, and his tongs, and his snuffdishes, and all the oil vessels thereof, wherewith they minister unto it:

And they shall put it and all the vessels thereof within a covering of badgers' skins, and shall put it upon a bar.

And upon the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue, and cover it with a covering of badgers' skins, and shall put to the staves thereof:

And they shall take all the instruments of ministry, wherewith they minister in the sanctuary, and put them in a cloth of blue, and cover them with a covering of badgers' skins, and shall put them on a bar:

And they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth thereon:

And they shall put upon it all the vessels thereof, wherewith they minister about it, even the censers, the fleshhooks, and the shovels, and the basons, all the vessels of the altar; and they shall spread upon it a covering of badgers' skins, and put to the staves of it. basons: or, bowls

And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, as the camp is to set forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it: but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation.

And to the office of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest pertaineth the oil for the light, and the sweet incense, and the daily meat offering, and the anointing oil, and the oversight of all the tabernacle, and of all that therein is, in the sanctuary, and in the vessels thereof.

And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

Cut ye not off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites:

But thus do unto them, that they may live, and not die, when they approach unto the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in, and appoint them every one to his service and to his burden:

But they shall not go in to see when the holy things are covered, lest they die.

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Take also the sum of the sons of Gershon, throughout the houses of their fathers, by their families;

From thirty years old and upward until fifty years old shalt thou number them; all that enter in to perform the service, to do the work in the tabernacle of the congregation. to perform: Heb. to war the warfare

This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, to serve, and for burdens: burdens: or, carriage

And they shall bear the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tabernacle of the congregation, his covering, and the covering of the badgers' skins that is above upon it, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the congregation,

And the hangings of the court, and the hanging for the door of the gate of the court, which is by the tabernacle and by the altar round about, and their cords, and all the instruments of their service, and all that is made for them: so shall they serve.

At the appointment of Aaron and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, in all their burdens, and in all their service: and ye shall appoint unto them in charge all their burdens. appointment: Heb. mouth

This is the service of the families of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of the congregation: and their charge shall be under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

As for the sons of Merari, thou shalt number them after their families, by the house of their fathers;

From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old shalt thou number them, every one that entereth into the service, to do the work of the tabernacle of the congregation. service: Heb. warfare

And this is the charge of their burden, according to all their service in the tabernacle of the congregation; the boards of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and sockets thereof,

And the pillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords, with all their instruments, and with all their service: and by name ye shall reckon the instruments of the charge of their burden.

This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service, in the tabernacle of the congregation, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

And Moses and Aaron and the chief of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites after their families, and after the house of their fathers,

From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation:

And those that were numbered of them by their families were two thousand seven hundred and fifty.

These were they that were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, all that might do service in the tabernacle of the congregation, which Moses and Aaron did number according to the commandment of the LORD by the hand of Moses.

And those that were numbered of the sons of Gershon, throughout their families, and by the house of their fathers,

From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation,

Even those that were numbered of them, throughout their families, by the house of their fathers, were two thousand and six hundred and thirty.

These are they that were numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, of all that might do service in the tabernacle of the congregation, whom Moses and Aaron did number according to the commandment of the LORD.

And those that were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, throughout their families, by the house of their fathers,

From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation,

Even those that were numbered of them after their families, were three thousand and two hundred.

These be those that were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the word of the LORD by the hand of Moses.

All those that were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the chief of Israel numbered, after their families, and after the house of their fathers,

From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that came to do the service of the ministry, and the service of the burden in the tabernacle of the congregation,

Even those that were numbered of them, were eight thousand and five hundred and fourscore.

According to the commandment of the LORD they were numbered by the hand of Moses, every one according to his service, and according to his burden: thus were they numbered of him, as the LORD commanded Moses.

For they are wholly given unto me from among the children of Israel; instead of such as open every womb, even instead of the firstborn of all the children of Israel, have I taken them unto me.

For all the firstborn of the children of Israel are mine, both man and beast: on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them for myself.

And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel.

Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men:

And they rose up before Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown:

And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the LORD? Ye take: Heb. It is much for you

And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face:

And he spake unto Korah and unto all his company, saying, Even to morrow the LORD will shew who are his, and who is holy; and will cause him to come near unto him: even him whom he hath chosen will he cause to come near unto him.

This do; Take you censers, Korah, and all his company;

And put fire therein, and put incense in them before the LORD to morrow: and it shall be that the man whom the LORD doth choose, he shall be holy: ye take too much upon you, ye sons of Levi.

And Moses said unto Korah, Hear, I pray you, ye sons of Levi:

Seemeth it but a small thing unto you, that the God of Israel hath separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to himself to do the service of the tabernacle of the LORD, and to stand before the congregation to minister unto them?

And he hath brought thee near to him, and all thy brethren the sons of Levi with thee: and seek ye the priesthood also?

For which cause both thou and all thy company are gathered together against the LORD: and what is Aaron, that ye murmur against him?

And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab: which said, We will not come up:

Is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land that floweth with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, except thou make thyself altogether a prince over us?

Moreover thou hast not brought us into a land that floweth with milk and honey, or given us inheritance of fields and vineyards: wilt thou put out the eyes of these men? we will not come up. put: Heb. bore out

And Moses was very wroth, and said unto the LORD, Respect not thou their offering: I have not taken one ass from them, neither have I hurt one of them.

And Moses said unto Korah, Be thou and all thy company before the LORD, thou, and they, and Aaron, to morrow:

And take every man his censer, and put incense in them, and bring ye before the LORD every man his censer, two hundred and fifty censers; thou also, and Aaron, each of you his censer.

And they took every man his censer, and put fire in them, and laid incense thereon, and stood in the door of the tabernacle of the congregation with Moses and Aaron.

And Korah gathered all the congregation against them unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and the glory of the LORD appeared unto all the congregation.

And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.

And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation?

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Speak unto the congregation, saying, Get you up from about the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.

And Moses rose up and went unto Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel followed him.

And he spake unto the congregation, saying, Depart, I pray you, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest ye be consumed in all their sins.

So they gat up from the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side: and Dathan and Abiram came out, and stood in the door of their tents, and their wives, and their sons, and their little children.

And Moses said, Hereby ye shall know that the LORD hath sent me to do all these works; for I have not done them of mine own mind.

If these men die the common death of all men, or if they be visited after the visitation of all men; then the LORD hath not sent me. the common: Heb. as every man dieth

But if the LORD make a new thing, and the earth open her mouth, and swallow them up, with all that appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the pit; then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the LORD. make: Heb. create a creature

And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground clave asunder that was under them:

And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods.

They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation.

And all Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them: for they said, Lest the earth swallow us up also.

And there came out a fire from the LORD, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense.

Thus speak unto the Levites, and say unto them, When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe.

And this your heave offering shall be reckoned unto you, as though it were the corn of the threshingfloor, and as the fulness of the winepress.

Thus ye also shall offer an heave offering unto the LORD of all your tithes, which ye receive of the children of Israel; and ye shall give thereof the LORD'S heave offering to Aaron the priest.

Out of all your gifts ye shall offer every heave offering of the LORD, of all the best thereof, even the hallowed part thereof out of it. best: Heb. fat

Therefore thou shalt say unto them, When ye have heaved the best thereof from it, then it shall be counted unto the Levites as the increase of the threshingfloor, and as the increase of the winepress. best: Heb. fat

And ye shall eat it in every place, ye and your households: for it is your reward for your service in the tabernacle of the congregation.

And ye shall bear no sin by reason of it, when ye have heaved from it the best of it: neither shall ye pollute the holy things of the children of Israel, lest ye die.

Command the children of Israel, that they give unto the Levites of the inheritance of their possession cities to dwell in; and ye shall give also unto the Levites suburbs for the cities round about them.

And the cities shall they have to dwell in; and the suburbs of them shall be for their cattle, and for their goods, and for all their beasts.

And the suburbs of the cities, which ye shall give unto the Levites, shall reach from the wall of the city and outward a thousand cubits round about.

And ye shall measure from without the city on the east side two thousand cubits, and on the south side two thousand cubits, and on the west side two thousand cubits, and on the north side two thousand cubits; and the city shall be in the midst: this shall be to them the suburbs of the cities.

And among the cities which ye shall give unto the Levites there shall be six cities for refuge, which ye shall appoint for the manslayer, that he may flee thither: and to them ye shall add forty and two cities. to them: Heb. above them ye shall give

So all the cities which ye shall give to the Levites shall be forty and eight cities: them shall ye give with their suburbs.

And the cities which ye shall give shall be of the possession of the children of Israel: from them that have many ye shall give many; but from them that have few ye shall give few: every one shall give of his cities unto the Levites according to his inheritance which he inheriteth. he: Heb. they inherit

And of Levi he said, Let thy Thummim and thy Urim be with thy holy one, whom thou didst prove at Massah, and with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah;

Who said unto his father and to his mother, I have not seen him; neither did he acknowledge his brethren, nor knew his own children: for they have observed thy word, and kept thy covenant.

They shall teach Jacob thy judgments, and Israel thy law: they shall put incense before thee, and whole burnt sacrifice upon thine altar. They shall teach: or, Let them teach they shall put: or, let them put before: Heb. at thy nose

Bless, LORD, his substance, and accept the work of his hands: smite through the loins of them that rise against him, and of them that hate him, that they rise not again.

And he commanded them, saying, This is the thing that ye shall do; A third part of you that enter in on the sabbath shall even be keepers of the watch of the king's house;

And a third part shall be at the gate of Sur; and a third part at the gate behind the guard: so shall ye keep the watch of the house, that it be not broken down. that: or, from breaking up

And two parts of all you that go forth on the sabbath, even they shall keep the watch of the house of the LORD about the king. parts: or, companies: Heb. hands

And ye shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand: and he that cometh within the ranges, let him be slain: and be ye with the king as he goeth out and as he cometh in.

And the captains over the hundreds did according to all things that Jehoiada the priest commanded: and they took every man his men that were to come in on the sabbath, with them that should go out on the sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest.

The sons of Levi; Gershom, Kohath, and Merari. Gershom: or, Gershon

And these be the names of the sons of Gershom; Libni, and Shimei.

And the sons of Kohath were, Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel.

The sons of Merari; Mahli, and Mushi. And these are the families of the Levites according to their fathers.

Of Gershom; Libni his son, Jahath his son, Zimmah his son,

Joah his son, Iddo his son, Zerah his son, Jeaterai his son. Joah: or, Ethan.ver.2. Iddo: or, Adaiah.ver.41.

The sons of Kohath; Amminadab his son, Korah his son, Assir his son, Amminadab: or, Izahar.ver.2.18.

Elkanah his son, and Ebiasaph his son, and Assir his son,

Tahath his son, Uriel his son, Uzziah his son, and Shaul his son.

And the sons of Elkanah; Amasai, and Ahimoth.

As for Elkanah: the sons of Elkanah; Zophai his son, and Nahath his son, Zophai: or, Zuph

Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, Elkanah his son.

And the sons of Samuel; the firstborn Vashni, and Abiah. Vashni: called also Joel

The sons of Merari; Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his son, Uzza his son,

Shimea his son, Haggiah his son, Asaiah his son.

And these are they whom David set over the service of song in the house of the LORD, after that the ark had rest.

And they ministered before the dwelling place of the tabernacle of the congregation with singing, until Solomon had built the house of the LORD in Jerusalem: and then they waited on their office according to their order.

And these are they that waited with their children. Of the sons of the Kohathites: Heman a singer, the son of Joel, the son of Shemuel, waited: Heb. stood

The son of Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Eliel, the son of Toah,

The son of Zuph, the son of Elkanah, the son of Mahath, the son of Amasai,

The son of Elkanah, the son of Joel, the son of Azariah, the son of Zephaniah,

The son of Tahath, the son of Assir, the son of Ebiasaph, the son of Korah,

The son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, the son of Israel.

And his brother Asaph, who stood on his right hand, even Asaph the son of Berachiah, the son of Shimea,

The son of Michael, the son of Baaseiah, the son of Malchiah,

The son of Ethni, the son of Zerah, the son of Adaiah,

The son of Ethan, the son of Zimmah, the son of Shimei,

The son of Jahath, the son of Gershom, the son of Levi.

And their brethren the sons of Merari stood on the left hand: Ethan the son of Kishi, the son of Abdi, the son of Malluch, Kishi: or, Kushaiah

The son of Hashabiah, the son of Amaziah, the son of Hilkiah,

The son of Amzi, the son of Bani, the son of Shamer,

The son of Mahli, the son of Mushi, the son of Merari, the son of Levi.

Their brethren also the Levites were appointed unto all manner of service of the tabernacle of the house of God.

And the porters were, Shallum, and Akkub, and Talmon, and Ahiman, and their brethren: Shallum was the chief;

Who hitherto waited in the king's gate eastward: they were porters in the companies of the children of Levi.

And Shallum the son of Kore, the son of Ebiasaph, the son of Korah, and his brethren, of the house of his father, the Korahites, were over the work of the service, keepers of the gates of the tabernacle: and their fathers, being over the host of the LORD, were keepers of the entry. gates: Heb. thresholds

And Phinehas the son of Eleazar was the ruler over them in time past, and the LORD was with him.

And Zechariah the son of Meshelemiah was porter of the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

All these which were chosen to be porters in the gates were two hundred and twelve. These were reckoned by their genealogy in their villages, whom David and Samuel the seer did ordain in their set office. did: Heb. founded set: or, trust

So they and their children had the oversight of the gates of the house of the LORD, namely, the house of the tabernacle, by wards.

In four quarters were the porters, toward the east, west, north, and south.

And their brethren, which were in their villages, were to come after seven days from time to time with them.

For these Levites, the four chief porters, were in their set office, and were over the chambers and treasuries of the house of God. set: or, trust chambers: or, storehouses

And David assembled the children of Aaron, and the Levites:

Of the sons of Kohath; Uriel the chief, and his brethren an hundred and twenty: brethren: or, kinsmen

Of the sons of Merari; Asaiah the chief, and his brethren two hundred and twenty:

Of the sons of Gershom; Joel the chief, and his brethren an hundred and thirty:

Of the sons of Elizaphan; Shemaiah the chief, and his brethren two hundred:

Of the sons of Hebron; Eliel the chief, and his brethren fourscore:

Of the sons of Uzziel; Amminadab the chief, and his brethren an hundred and twelve.

And he gathered together all the princes of Israel, with the priests and the Levites.

Now the Levites were numbered from the age of thirty years and upward: and their number by their polls, man by man, was thirty and eight thousand.

Of which, twenty and four thousand were to set forward the work of the house of the LORD; and six thousand were officers and judges: set: or, oversee

Moreover four thousand were porters; and four thousand praised the LORD with the instruments which I made, said David, to praise therewith.

And David divided them into courses among the sons of Levi, namely, Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. courses: Heb. divisions

Of the Gershonites were, Laadan, and Shimei. Laadan: or, Libni

The sons of Laadan; the chief was Jehiel, and Zetham, and Joel, three.

The sons of Shimei; Shelomith, and Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the chief of the fathers of Laadan.

And the sons of Shimei were, Jahath, Zina, and Jeush, and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei. Zina: or, Zizah

And Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second: but Jeush and Beriah had not many sons; therefore they were in one reckoning, according to their father's house. had: Heb. did not multiply sons

The sons of Kohath; Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four.

The sons of Amram; Aaron and Moses: and Aaron was separated, that he should sanctify the most holy things, he and his sons for ever, to burn incense before the LORD, to minister unto him, and to bless in his name for ever.

Now concerning Moses the man of God, his sons were named of the tribe of Levi.

The sons of Moses were, Gershom, and Eliezer.

Of the sons of Gershom, Shebuel was the chief. Shebuel: or, Shubael

And the sons of Eliezer were, Rehabiah the chief. And Eliezer had none other sons; but the sons of Rehabiah were very many. the chief: or, the first very many: Heb. were highly multiplied

Of the sons of Izhar; Shelomith the chief.

Of the sons of Hebron; Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth.

Of the sons of Uzziel; Michah the first, and Jesiah the second.

The sons of Merari; Mahli, and Mushi. The sons of Mahli; Eleazar, and Kish.

And Eleazar died, and had no sons, but daughters: and their brethren the sons of Kish took them. brethren: or, kinsmen

The sons of Mushi; Mahli, and Eder, and Jeremoth, three.

These were the sons of Levi after the house of their fathers; even the chief of the fathers, as they were counted by number of names by their polls, that did the work for the service of the house of the LORD, from the age of twenty years and upward.

For David said, The LORD God of Israel hath given rest unto his people, that they may dwell in Jerusalem for ever: that: or, and he dwelleth in Jerusalem, etc

And also unto the Levites; they shall no more carry the tabernacle, nor any vessels of it for the service thereof.

For by the last words of David the Levites were numbered from twenty years old and above: numbered: Heb. number

Because their office was to wait on the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of the LORD, in the courts, and in the chambers, and in the purifying of all holy things, and the work of the service of the house of God; their: Heb. their station was at the hand of the sons of Aaron

Both for the shewbread, and for the fine flour for meat offering, and for the unleavened cakes, and for that which is baked in the pan, and for that which is fried, and for all manner of measure and size; pan: or, flat plate

And to stand every morning to thank and praise the LORD, and likewise at even;

And to offer all burnt sacrifices unto the LORD in the sabbaths, in the new moons, and on the set feasts, by number, according to the order commanded unto them, continually before the LORD:

And that they should keep the charge of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the charge of the holy place, and the charge of the sons of Aaron their brethren, in the service of the house of the LORD.

And they cast lots, ward against ward, as well the small as the great, the teacher as the scholar.

Now the first lot came forth for Asaph to Joseph: the second to Gedaliah, who with his brethren and sons were twelve:

The third to Zaccur, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The fourth to Izri, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The fifth to Nethaniah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The sixth to Bukkiah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The seventh to Jesharelah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The eighth to Jeshaiah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The ninth to Mattaniah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The tenth to Shimei, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The eleventh to Azareel, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The twelfth to Hashabiah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The thirteenth to Shubael, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The fourteenth to Mattithiah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The fifteenth to Jeremoth, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The sixteenth to Hananiah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The seventeenth to Joshbekashah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The eighteenth to Hanani, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The nineteenth to Mallothi, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The twentieth to Eliathah, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The one and twentieth to Hothir, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The two and twentieth to Giddalti, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The three and twentieth to Mahazioth, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve:

The four and twentieth to Romamtiezer, he, his sons, and his brethren, were twelve.

And a third part shall be at the king's house; and a third part at the gate of the foundation: and all the people shall be in the courts of the house of the LORD.

But let none come into the house of the LORD, save the priests, and they that minister of the Levites; they shall go in, for they are holy: but all the people shall keep the watch of the LORD.

And the Levites shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whosoever else cometh into the house, he shall be put to death: but be ye with the king when he cometh in, and when he goeth out.

Then Hezekiah commanded to prepare chambers in the house of the LORD; and they prepared them, chambers: or, storehouses

And brought in the offerings and the tithes and the dedicated things faithfully: over which Cononiah the Levite was ruler, and Shimei his brother was the next.

And Jehiel, and Azaziah, and Nahath, and Asahel, and Jerimoth, and Jozabad, and Eliel, and Ismachiah, and Mahath, and Benaiah, were overseers under the hand of Cononiah and Shimei his brother, at the commandment of Hezekiah the king, and Azariah the ruler of the house of God. under: Heb. at the hand

And Kore the son of Imnah the Levite, the porter toward the east, was over the freewill offerings of God, to distribute the oblations of the LORD, and the most holy things.

And next him were Eden, and Miniamin, and Jeshua, and Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah, in the cities of the priests, in their set office, to give to their brethren by courses, as well to the great as to the small: next: Heb. at his hand set: or, trust

Beside their genealogy of males, from three years old and upward, even unto every one that entereth into the house of the LORD, his daily portion for their service in their charges according to their courses;

Both to the genealogy of the priests by the house of their fathers, and the Levites from twenty years old and upward, in their charges by their courses;

And to the genealogy of all their little ones, their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, through all the congregation: for in their set office they sanctified themselves in holiness: set: or, trust

Also of the sons of Aaron the priests, which were in the fields of the suburbs of their cities, in every several city, the men that were expressed by name, to give portions to all the males among the priests, and to all that were reckoned by genealogies among the Levites.

And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites out of all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem, to keep the dedication with gladness, both with thanksgivings, and with singing, with cymbals, psalteries, and with harps.

And the sons of the singers gathered themselves together, both out of the plain country round about Jerusalem, and from the villages of Netophathi;

Also from the house of Gilgal, and out of the fields of Geba and Azmaveth: for the singers had builded them villages round about Jerusalem.

And the priests and the Levites purified themselves, and purified the people, and the gates, and the wall.

Then I brought up the princes of Judah upon the wall, and appointed two great companies of them that gave thanks, whereof one went on the right hand upon the wall toward the dung gate:

And after them went Hoshaiah, and half of the princes of Judah,

And Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam,

Judah, and Benjamin, and Shemaiah, and Jeremiah,

And certain of the priests' sons with trumpets; namely, Zechariah the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Michaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph:

And his brethren, Shemaiah, and Azarael, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethaneel, and Judah, Hanani, with the musical instruments of David the man of God, and Ezra the scribe before them.

And at the fountain gate, which was over against them, they went up by the stairs of the city of David, at the going up of the wall, above the house of David, even unto the water gate eastward.

And the other company of them that gave thanks went over against them, and I after them, and the half of the people upon the wall, from beyond the tower of the furnaces even unto the broad wall;

And from above the gate of Ephraim, and above the old gate, and above the fish gate, and the tower of Hananeel, and the tower of Meah, even unto the sheep gate: and they stood still in the prison gate.

So stood the two companies of them that gave thanks in the house of God, and I, and the half of the rulers with me:

And the priests; Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Michaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, with trumpets;

And Maaseiah, and Shemaiah, and Eleazar, and Uzzi, and Jehohanan, and Malchijah, and Elam, and Ezer. And the singers sang loud, with Jezrahiah their overseer. sang: Heb. made their voice to be heard

Also that day they offered great sacrifices, and rejoiced: for God had made them rejoice with great joy: the wives also and the children rejoiced: so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard even afar off.