Commentaria in I Paralipomenon
Chapter 23. Synopsis of the Chapter
David, near his death, designates Solomon king, and distributes the Levites into their classes, and assigns them their offices; he also numbers among the Levites the sons, that is, the descendants, of Moses.
1. So David, being old and full of days, made Solomon his son king over Israel. 2. And he gathered together all the princes of Israel, and the priests and Levites. 3. And the Levites were numbered from thirty years old and upward, and there were found thirty-eight thousand men. 4. Of these were chosen and distributed to the ministry of the house of the Lord twenty-four thousand; and of overseers and judges six thousand. 5. And four thousand were porters; and as many psalmists singing to the Lord with the instruments which he had made for singing. 6. And David distributed them into courses among the sons of Levi, namely Gerson, and Caath, and Merari. 7. The sons of Gerson: Leedan and Semei. 8. The sons of Leedan: the chief Jahiel, and Zethan, and Joel, three. 9. The sons of Semei: Salomith, and Hosiel, and Aran, three: these were the chiefs of the families of Leedan. 10. And the sons of Semei: Leheth, and Ziza, and Jaus, and Baria: these were the sons of Semei, four. 11. And Leheth was the first, Ziza the second: but Jaus and Baria had not many sons, and therefore they were reckoned in one family, and one house. 12. The sons of Caath: Amram, and Isaar, Hebron, and Oziel, four. 13. The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. And Aaron was separated to minister in the Holy of Holies, he and his sons for ever, and to burn incense to the Lord according to his rite, and to bless his name for ever. 14. The sons also of Moses the man of God were numbered in the tribe of Levi. 15. The sons of Moses: Gersom and Eliezer. 16. The sons of Gersom: Subuel the first. 17. And the sons of Eliezer were: Rohobia the first; and Eliezer had no other sons. But the sons of Rohobia were multiplied exceedingly. 18. The sons of Isaar: Salomith the first. 19. The sons of Hebron: Jeriau the first, Amarias the second, Jahaziel the third, Jecemaam the fourth. 20. The sons of Oziel: Micha the first, Jesia the second. 21. The sons of Merari: Moholi and Musi. The sons of Moholi: Eleazar and Cis. 22. And Eleazar died, and had no sons, but daughters; and the sons of Cis their brethren took them. 23. The sons of Musi: Moholi, and Eder, and Jerimoth, three. 24. These were the sons of Levi in their kindreds and families, chiefs by their turns, and by the number of the heads of every one, who did the works of the ministry of the house of the Lord, from twenty years old and upward. 25. For David said: The Lord the God of Israel hath given rest to his people, and a dwelling in Jerusalem for ever. 26. And it shall not be the office of the Levites any more to carry the tabernacle, and all the vessels thereof for the ministry. 27. According also to the last commandments of David, the number of the sons of Levi shall be counted from twenty years old and upward. 28. And they shall be under the hand of the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of the Lord, in the porches, and in the chambers, and in the place of purification, and in the sanctuary, and in all the works of the ministry of the temple of the Lord. 29. And the priests shall be over the loaves of proposition, and for the sacrifice of fine flour, and for the unleavened cakes, and the frying pan, and the roasting, and over all weight and measure. 30. And the Levites shall stand in the morning to give thanks and to sing to the Lord: and in like manner in the evening, 31. as well in the offering of the holocausts of the Lord, as in the sabbaths and new moons and the other solemnities, according to the number and ceremonies of every thing, continually before the Lord. 32. And let them keep the observances of the tabernacle of the covenant, and the rite of the sanctuary, and the observance of the sons of Aaron their brethren, to minister in the house of the Lord.
Note: David distributed the Levites thus. The number of the Levites was 38 thousand; of these David assigned 24 thousand to the service of the temple, six thousand others he made overseers and judges, verse 4; whence it is clear that these Levites were judges, and as it were senators and Conscript Fathers; four thousand porters. Then he appointed another four thousand singers and musicians: add all these numbers into one sum and you will find the 38 thousand already mentioned.
Note secondly: David further appointed 24 orders of priests, who should succeed one another in turn to minister in the temple; for each order ministered for a week. Hence in Luke 1:9 it is said of Zacharias: “His lot was to offer incense”; for Zacharias was “of the course of Abia,” which in order was the eighth. These courses and orders of priests are enumerated in the following chapter. Moreover David assigned to each order of priests one order of Levites who should minister to them, and serve them in all things; hence there were as many orders of Levites as of priests ministering in the temple, namely 24. As many (namely 24) orders he appointed of Levites singing psalms both with voice and with musical instruments, each of whom sang in his own turn and under his own order of priests, as is clear from chapter 25; and they sang not only on sabbaths, new moons, and every other festival, but also daily at every sacrifice of holocausts, as is clear from verse 31. Hence it follows that every priest, as well as every Levite, ministered in the temple only twice a year; for there were 24 classes of them, each of which served in the temple for a week. Wherefore in 24 weeks each ministered only one week; but, these being doubled, twice: therefore in 48 weeks (the number the year comprises when four are added) twice, that is, each ministered for two weeks only.
Now David did these things not so much as king (for he has no right over priests and sacred things) as a prophet. Again, he did them not by himself, but by the High Priests Sadoc and Ahimelech, as we shall hear in the following chapter, verse 3, and by casting lots, as is said there, verses 5 and 31.
11. And Jaus and Baria had not many sons, —as if to say: These two together had not more sons than one alone of those already enumerated; wherefore these two made up only one class, the others each constituted one class.
13. And Aaron was separated,—as if to say: By God through Moses Aaron was chosen, that he and his firstborn descendants should be the high Priests or Pontiffs; the others, not firstborn, should be lesser priests. Hence the High Priests alone entered the Holy of Holies; the other priests burned incense on the altar of incense, which was in the Holy place before the Holy of Holies.
14. The sons also of Moses the man (friend) of God were numbered in the tribe of Levi.—Wonderful was the resignation and humility of Moses, by which he submitted himself to the ordinance of God, who decreed that he should transfer the leadership of the people to Josue, and number his own sons not among the priests but among the Levites. For the priesthood had been assigned by God to the descendants of Aaron, who was the elder brother of Moses.
24. The sons of Levi from twenty years old and upward.—David numbered the Levites twice, namely first, verse 3: “from thirty years old and upward”; secondly, here “from twenty years old and upward.” The reason was that originally it had been ordained by God through Moses that Levites from the thirtieth year of age and onward should serve the tabernacle, because their office was to carry the furniture of the Tabernacle through the desert, in which they were continually sojourning, for which a strong and robust age, such as thirty years, was required. But David, this burden ceasing, the temple being already built, and Israel resting in the holy land, ordained in this verse that they should be numbered from the twentieth year, and begin to serve; doubtless that, the elders already enumerated being distributed into their classes of ministers, porters, overseers, judges, singers, they should serve in the lesser matters. This reason David gives here in verse 26.
29. And the priests.—These words are not in the Hebrew nor in the Greek; wherefore the offices which are here subjoined belong both to the Levites and to the priests, because, namely, it was for the Levites to prepare them, and for the priests to offer them, already prepared, to God in sacrifice.
And over all weight and measure,—both because it was for the Priests and Levites to measure everything to be offered to God, whether, namely, it had the just weight and