Category: 1 Chronicles

[17:16] Then King David went into the Tent of the Lord's presence, sat down, and prayed, “I am not worthy of what you have already done for me, Lord God, nor is my family.

[17:17] Yet now you are doing even more; you have made promises about my descendants in the years to come, and you, Lord God, are already treating me like someone great.

[17:18] What more can I say to you! You know me well, and yet you honor me, your servant.

[17:19] It was your will and purpose to do this for me and to show me my future greatness.

[17:20] Lord, there is none like you; we have always known that you alone are God.

[17:21] There is no other nation on earth like Israel, whom you rescued from slavery to make them your own people. The great and wonderful things you did for them spread your fame throughout the world. You rescued your people from Egypt and drove out other nations as your people advanced.

[17:22] You have made Israel your own people forever, and you, Lord, have become their God.

[17:23] “And now, O Lord, fulfill for all time the promise you made about me and my descendants, and do what you said you would.

[17:24] Your fame will be great, and people will forever say, ‘The Lord Almighty is God over Israel.’ And you will preserve my dynasty for all time.

[17:25] I have the courage to pray this prayer to you, my God, because you have revealed all this to me, your servant, and have told me that you will make my descendants kings.

[17:26] You, Lord, are God, and you have made this wonderful promise to me.

[17:27] I ask you to bless my descendants so that they will continue to enjoy your favor. You, Lord, have blessed them, and your blessing will rest on them forever.”

[18:1] Some time later King David attacked the Philistines again and defeated them. He took out of their control the city of Gath and its surrounding villages.

[18:2] He also defeated the Moabites, who became his subjects and paid taxes to him.

[18:3] Next, David attacked King Hadadezer of the Syrian state of Zobah, near the territory of Hamath, because Hadadezer was trying to gain control of the territory by the upper Euphrates River.

[18:4] David captured a thousand of his chariots, seven thousand cavalry troops, and twenty thousand foot soldiers. He kept enough horses for a hundred chariots and crippled all the rest.

[18:5] When the Syrians of Damascus sent an army to help King Hadadezer, David attacked it and killed twenty-two thousand men.

[18:6] Then he set up military camps in their territory, and they became his subjects and paid taxes to him. The Lord made David victorious everywhere.

[18:7] David captured the gold shields carried by Hadadezer's officials and took them to Jerusalem.

[18:8] He also took a great quantity of bronze from Tibhath and Kun, cities ruled by Hadadezer. (Solomon later used this bronze to make the tank, the columns, and the bronze utensils for the Temple.)

[18:9] King Toi of Hamath heard that David had defeated Hadadezer's entire army.

[18:10] So he sent his son Joram to greet King David and congratulate him for his victory over Hadadezer, against whom Toi had fought many times. Joram brought David presents made of gold, silver, and bronze.

[18:11] King David dedicated them for use in worship, along with the silver and gold he took from the nations he conquered—Edom, Moab, Ammon, Philistia, and Amalek.

[18:12] Abishai, whose mother was Zeruiah, defeated the Edomites in Salt Valley and killed eighteen thousand of them.

[18:13] He set up military camps throughout Edom, and the people there became King David's subjects. The Lord made David victorious everywhere.

[18:14] David ruled over all Israel and made sure that his people were always treated fairly and justly.

[18:15] Abishai's brother Joab was commander of the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was in charge of the records;

[18:16] Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was court secretary;

[18:17] Benaiah son of Jehoiada was in charge of David's bodyguards; and King David's sons held high positions in his service.

[19:1] Some time later King Nahash of Ammon died, and his son Hanun became king.

[19:2] King David said, “I must show loyal friendship to Hanun, as his father Nahash did to me.” So David sent messengers to express his sympathy. When they arrived in Ammon and called on King Hanun,

[19:3] the Ammonite leaders said to the king, “Do you think that it is in your father's honor that David has sent these men to express sympathy to you? Of course not! He has sent them here as spies to explore the land, so that he can conquer it!”

[19:4] Hanun seized David's messengers, shaved off their beards, cut off their clothes at the hips, and sent them away.

[19:5] They were too ashamed to return home. When David heard what had happened, he sent word for them to stay in Jericho and not return until their beards had grown again.

[19:6] King Hanun and the Ammonites realized that they had made David their enemy, so they paid nearly forty tons of silver to hire chariots and charioteers from Upper Mesopotamia and from the Syrian states of Maacah and Zobah.

[19:7] The thirty-two thousand chariots they hired and the army of the king of Maacah came and camped near Medeba. The Ammonites too came out from all their cities and got ready to fight.

[19:8] When David heard what was happening, he sent out Joab and the whole army.

[19:9] The Ammonites marched out and took up their position at the entrance to Rabbah, their capital city, and the kings who had come to help took up their position in the open countryside.

[19:10] Joab saw that the enemy troops would attack him in front and from the rear, so he chose the best of Israel's soldiers and put them in position facing the Syrians.

[19:11] He placed the rest of his troops under the command of his brother Abishai, who put them in position facing the Ammonites.

[19:12] Joab said to him, “If you see that the Syrians are defeating me, come and help me, and if the Ammonites are defeating you, I will go and help you.

[19:13] Be strong and courageous! Let's fight hard for our people and for the cities of our God. And may the Lord's will be done.”

[19:14] Joab and his men advanced to attack, and the Syrians fled.

[19:15] When the Ammonites saw the Syrians running away, they fled from Abishai and retreated into the city. Then Joab went back to Jerusalem.

[19:16] The Syrians realized that they had been defeated by the Israelites, so they brought troops from the Syrian states on the east side of the Euphrates River and placed them under the command of Shobach, commander of the army of King Hadadezer of Zobah.

[19:17] When David heard of it, he gathered the Israelite troops, crossed the Jordan River, and put them in position facing the Syrians. The fighting began,

[19:18] and the Israelites drove the Syrian army back. David and his men killed seven thousand Syrian chariot drivers and forty thousand foot soldiers. They also killed the Syrian commander, Shobach.

[19:19] When the kings who were subject to Hadadezer realized that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with David and became his subjects. The Syrians were never again willing to help the Ammonites.

[20:1] The following spring, at the time of the year when kings usually go to war, Joab led out the army and invaded the land of Ammon; King David, however, stayed in Jerusalem. They besieged the city of Rabbah, attacked it, and destroyed it.

[20:2] The Ammonite idol Molech had a gold crown which weighed about seventy-five pounds. In it there was a jewel, which David took and put in his own crown. He also took a large amount of loot from the city.

[20:3] He took the people of the city and put them to work with saws, iron hoes, and axes. He did the same to the people of all the other towns of Ammon. Then he and his men returned to Jerusalem.

[20:4] Later on, war broke out again with the Philistines at Gezer. This was when Sibbecai from Hushah killed a giant named Sippai, and the Philistines were defeated.

[20:5] There was another battle with the Philistines, and Elhanan son of Jair killed Lahmi, the brother of Goliath from Gath, whose spear had a shaft as thick as the bar on a weaver's loom.

[20:6] Another battle took place at Gath, where there was a giant with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. He was a descendant of the ancient giants.

[20:7] He defied the Israelites, and Jonathan, the son of David's brother Shammah, killed him.

[20:8] These three, who were killed by David and his men, were descendants of the giants at Gath.

[23:2] King David brought together all the Israelite leaders and all the priests and Levites.

[23:3] He took a census of all the male Levites aged thirty or older. The total was thirty-eight thousand.

[23:4] The king assigned twenty-four thousand to administer the work of the Temple, six thousand to keep records and decide disputes,

[23:5] four thousand to do guard duty, and four thousand to praise the Lord, using the musical instruments provided by the king for this purpose.

[23:6] David divided the Levites into three groups, according to their clans: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

[23:7] Gershon had two sons: Ladan and Shimei.

[23:8] Ladan had three sons: Jehiel, Zetham, and Joel,

[23:9] who were the heads of the clans descended from Ladan. (Shimei had three sons: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran.)

[23:12] Kohath had four sons: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.

[23:13] His oldest son, Amram, was the father of Aaron and Moses. (Aaron and his descendants were set apart to be in charge of the sacred objects forever, to burn incense in the worship of the Lord, to serve him, and to bless the people in his name.

[23:14] But the sons of Moses, the man of God, were included among the Levites.)

[23:15] Moses had two sons, Gershom and Eliezer.

[23:16] The leader among Gershom's sons was Shebuel.

[23:17] Eliezer had only one son, Rehabiah, but Rehabiah had many descendants.

[23:18] Kohath's second son, Izhar, had a son, Shelomith, the head of the clan.

[23:19] Kohath's third son, Hebron, had four sons: Jeriah, Amariah, Jahaziel, and Jekameam.

[23:20] Kohath's fourth son, Uzziel, had two sons, Micah and Isshiah.

[23:21] Merari had two sons, Mahli and Mushi. Mahli also had two sons, Eleazar and Kish,

[23:22] but Eleazar died without having any sons, only daughters. His daughters married their cousins, the sons of Kish.

[23:23] Merari's second son, Mushi, had three sons: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth.

[23:24] These were the descendants of Levi, by clans and families, every one of them registered by name. Each of his descendants, twenty years of age or older, had a share in the work of the Lord's Temple.

[23:25] David said, “The Lord God of Israel has given peace to his people, and he himself will live in Jerusalem forever.

[23:26] So there is no longer any need for the Levites to carry the Tent of the Lord's presence and all the equipment used in worship.”

[23:27] On the basis of David's final instructions all Levites were registered for service when they reached the age of twenty,

[23:28] and were assigned the following duties: to help the priests descended from Aaron with the Temple worship, to take care of its courtyards and its rooms, and to keep undefiled everything that is sacred;

[23:29] to be responsible for the bread offered to God, the flour used in offerings, the wafers made without yeast, the baked offerings, and the flour mixed with olive oil; to weigh and measure the Temple offerings;

[23:30] and to praise and glorify the Lord every morning and every evening

[23:31] and whenever offerings to the Lord are burned on the Sabbath, the New Moon Festival, and other festivals. Rules were made specifying the number of Levites assigned to do this work each time. The Levites were assigned the duty of worshiping the Lord for all time.

[23:32] They were given the responsibility of taking care of the Tent of the Lord's presence and the Temple, and of assisting their relatives, the priests descended from Aaron, in the Temple worship.

[24:1] These are the groups to which the descendants of Aaron belong. Aaron had four sons: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

[24:2] Nadab and Abihu died before their father did, and left no descendants, so their brothers Eleazar and Ithamar became priests.

[24:3] King David organized the descendants of Aaron into groups according to their duties. He was assisted in this by Zadok, a descendant of Eleazar, and by Ahimelech, a descendant of Ithamar.

[24:4] The descendants of Eleazar were organized into sixteen groups, while the descendants of Ithamar were organized into eight; this was done because there were more male heads of families among the descendants of Eleazar.

[24:5] Since there were Temple officials and spiritual leaders among the descendants of both Eleazar and Ithamar, assignments were made by drawing lots.

[24:6] The descendants of Eleazar and of Ithamar took turns drawing lots. Then they were registered by Shemaiah son of Nethanel, a Levite secretary. The king, his officials, the priest Zadok, Ahimelech son of Abiathar, and the heads of the priestly families and of the Levite families, were all witnesses.

[24:19] These men were registered according to their assignments for going to the Temple and performing the duties established by their ancestor Aaron in obedience to the commands of the Lord God of Israel.

[24:20] These are other heads of families descended from Levi: Jehdeiah, a descendant of Amram through Shebuel;

[24:21] Isshiah, a descendant of Rehabiah;

[24:22] Jahath, a descendant of Izhar through Shelomith;

[24:23] Jeriah, Amariah, Jehaziel, and Jekameam, sons of Hebron, in order of age;

[24:24] Shamir, a descendant of Uzziel through Micah;

[24:25] Zechariah, a descendant of Uzziel through Isshiah, Micah's brother;

[24:26] Mahli, Mushi, and Jaaziah, descendants of Merari.

[24:27] Jaaziah had three sons: Shoham, Zaccur, and Ibri.

[24:30] Mushi had three sons: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth. These are the families of the Levites.

[24:31] The head of each family and one of his younger brothers drew lots for their assignments, just as their relatives, the priests descended from Aaron, had done. King David, Zadok, Ahimelech, and the heads of families of the priests and of the Levites were witnesses.