1 Chronicles 23:3-6

23:3 The Levites who were thirty years old and up were counted; there were 38,000 men. 1  23:4 David said, 2  “Of these, 24,000 are to direct the work of the Lord’s temple; 6,000 are to be officials and judges; 23:5 4,000 are to be gatekeepers; and 4,000 are to praise the Lord with the instruments I supplied for worship.” 3  23:6 David divided them into groups corresponding to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

1 Chronicles 23:26-32

23:26 So the Levites no longer need to carry the tabernacle or any of the items used in its service.” 23:27 According to David’s final instructions, the Levites twenty years old and up were counted. 4 

23:28 Their job was to help Aaron’s descendants in the service of the Lord’s temple. They were to take care of the courtyards, the rooms, ceremonial purification of all holy items, and other jobs related to the service of God’s temple. 5  23:29 They also took care of 6  the bread that is displayed, the flour for offerings, the unleavened wafers, the round cakes, the mixing, and all the measuring. 7  23:30 They also stood in a designated place 8  every morning and offered thanks and praise to the Lord. They also did this in the evening 23:31 and whenever burnt sacrifices were offered to the Lord on the Sabbath and at new moon festivals and assemblies. A designated number were to serve before the Lord regularly in accordance with regulations. 9  23:32 They were in charge of the meeting tent and the holy place, and helped their relatives, the descendants of Aaron, in the service of the Lord’s temple. 10 

1 tn Heb “and their number by their heads, by men, was 38,000.”

2 tn The words “David said” are supplied here in the translation for clarification. The appearance of the first person verb “I supplied” in v. 5 indicates that David is speaking here.

3 tn Heb “made to [or “for”] praise.”

4 tn Heb “for by the final words of David, they were the number of the sons of Levi, from a son of twenty years and upward.”

5 tn Heb “For their assignment was at the hand of the sons of Aaron for the work of the house of the Lord concerning the courtyards and concerning the rooms and concerning the purification of all holiness and the work of the service of the house of God.”

6 tn Heb “with respect to.”

7 tn The Hebrew terms מְשׂוּרָה (mÿsurah) and מִדָּה (middah) refer to different types of measurements.

8 tn Heb “and to stand.”

9 tn Heb “by number according to the manner upon them, regularly before the Lord.”

10 tn Heb “and they kept the charge of the tent of meeting and the charge of the holy place and the charge of the sons of Aaron, their brothers, for the service of the house of the Lord.”