Глава 23

1–32. Numbering the Levites and dividing them according to types of service. 1 Chronicles 23:1. David, having grown old and full of life, made his son Solomon king over Israel. Free from some of the affairs of government, thanks to the accession of Solomon, which, however, has not yet found a public character (1 Chronicles 29:22), and not disturbed by enemies (1 Chronicles 22:18), David devotes the last days of his life to the internal improvement of the state. His first task in this regard is to regulate the worship by dividing into orders of priests and Levites, indicating their respective duties. 1 Chronicles 23:3. And the Levites were numbered, from thirty years old and upward, and the number of them, counting them all, was thirty-eight thousand. The division of the Levites into so-called orders was preceded by the calculation of those of them who had thirty years each, i.e. age limit for entering the service according to the Law of Moses (Num. 4:3,23,30,39). But since persons even 25 years old were involved in the performance of duties (Num. 8:23–26), David subsequently took into account this decree (1 Chron. 23:24 et). 1 Chronicles 23:4. Of these, twenty-four thousand were appointed to work in the house of the Lord, and six thousand scribes and judges. The circle of “work in the house of the Lord” did not specifically include priestly affairs (1 Chronicles 24:1–19), judicial affairs (1 Chronicles 26:29–32), the duties of gatekeepers (verse 5; 1 Chronicles 26:1–19) and singers and musicians (1 Chronicles 25:5). 1 Chronicles 23:6. And David divided them into rows according to the sons of Levi - Gershon, Kohath and Merari. Judging by the fact that the names listed below are not found among the names of the 24 classes of singers (1 Chronicles 25:1), gatekeepers (1 Chronicles 26:1–19), and judges (1 Chronicles 26:29–32), we can think that in the present and subsequent verses we are talking about the division into orders of only 24,000 Levites, destined for “the work of the house of the Lord.” Their division was based on the division of the tribe of Levi itself into three main lines - Gershon, Kohath, and Merar (cf. 1 Chron. 6:16). 1 Chronicles 23:7. From the Girsonians - Laedan and Shimei. 1 Chronicles 23:8. The sons of Laedan: the first Jehiel, Zepham and Joel, three. 1 Chronicles 23:9. The sons of Shimei: Shelomith, Haziel and Garan, three. They are the heads of the Laedanov generations. 1 Chronicles 23:10. More sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zizah, Jeush and Beriah. These are the sons of Shimei, four. 1 Chronicles 23:11. Jahath was the chief, Zizah the second; Jeush and Beria had few children, and therefore they were in the same account at their father’s house. Heads of the Gershonites. The generation of Gershon split up under David into two main branches: Laedan, a descendant of Gershon's son Libni (1 Chron. 6:17,20; Exod. 6:17; Num. 3:18) and Shimei. The first numbered six representatives: three sons of Laedan (v. 8) and three - Shimei, a descendant of Libni (v. 9); the second (the branch of Shimei, brother of Laedan) - only three, since the two sons of Shimei - Jeush and Beria, due to the small number of their offspring, constituted one family (v. 11). Thus, from the Gershonites of David’s time, nine generations were chosen for the work of the “house of the Lord.” 1 Chronicles 23:12. The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel, four. 1 Chronicles 23:13. Sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart for dedication to the Holy of Holies, he and his sons forever, to burn incense before the Lord, to serve Him and to bless in His name forever. 1 Chronicles 23:14. And Moses, the man of God, and his sons are numbered among the tribe of Levi. 1 Chronicles 23:15. Sons of Moses: Gershon and Eliezer. 1 Chronicles 23:16. Sons of Gershon: the first was Shebuil. 1 Chronicles 23:17. The sons of Eliezer were: the first was Rechabiah. And Eliezer had no other sons; Rehabiah had many sons. 1 Chronicles 23:18. Sons of Izgar: the first Shelomith. 1 Chronicles 23:19. The sons of Hebron: the first Jeriah and the second Amariah, the third Jahaziel and the fourth Jekamam. 1 Chronicles 23:20. The sons of Uzziel: the first Micah and the second Ishishiya. Heads of the Kaafites. The tribe of Kohath belonged to the clan of Amram, represented by his sons Aaron and Moses. But the generation of Aaron, to whom the rights of the priesthood belonged, is not taken into account when dividing the Levites appointed to the affairs of the “house of the Lord” (v. 13), and, conversely, no such exception is made for the generation of Moses, numbered among the simple Levites (v. 14). Accordingly, in the line of Kohath the Levitical families of Moses, Izgar, Hebron and Uzziel are counted - the three sons of Kohath (1 Chron. 6:18; Exod. 6:18; Num. 3:19,27). The first gave two representatives (vv. 15-17), the second - one (v. 18), the third - four (v. 19) and the fourth - two (v. 20), therefore, the entire family of Kohath - nine. 1 Chronicles 23:21. Sons of Merarina: Mahli and Mushi. Sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish. 1 Chronicles 23:22. And Eleazar died, and had no sons, but only daughters; and the sons of Kish their brothers took them for themselves. 1 Chronicles 23:23. The sons of Mushiya: Makhli, Eder and Iremoth - three. The heads of the generation of Merari from his sons Mahli and Mushi (1 Chronicles 6:19; Exodus 6:19; Num.3:33). The line of Mahli from his son Eleazar, due to the latter’s childlessness (lack of sons), did not exist under David; representatives of the generation of Kish, another son of Mahli, are not named (v. 22). Three Levitical clans of Merari from his son Mushi are appointed for the work of the “house of the Lord” (v. 23). Together with the nine tribes of Gershon and the nine tribes of Kohath, they will make twenty-one tribes. But since, according to the testimony of Josephus (Ant. 7:4, 7), the Levites assigned to “the work of the house of the Lord” were divided into 24 classes or orders, in accordance with the 24 classes of priests and singers, then to achieve this number, three more generations are added to the 21 clans of Gershon, Kohath and Merari, descended from those named in ( 1 Chronicles 24:26) and allegedly missed in the chapter (Exodus 23) the third son of Merari - Jaaziah, namely the generation of Shogam, Zakkur and Ivri (1 Chronicles 24:27). But the translations of the LXX, Peshito and Vulgate count in this place only two sons of Merari. The Pentateuch and the entire Old Testament in general know nothing about his third son and the descendants of the last, and, finally, the text (1 Chronicles 24:26–27) bears a trace of undoubted damage (see below). All this taken together does not allow us to insist on the omission of Jaasia in (1 Chron. 23:21, etc.). In addition, with the addition of his three descendants to the clans of Kohath, Gershon and Merari, we will receive not 24 classes of Levites, but 25, since there is no reason to exclude the clan of Kish (1 Chronicles 23:22), although its representatives are not named by the author of Chronicles. In view of this, it should be recognized that from the generation of Merari four clans were appointed to “the work of the house of the Lord”; Consequently, all Levitical classes were set to 22. 1 Chronicles 23:24. These are the sons of Levi, according to the houses of their fathers, heads of families, according to their names, all of them, who carried out the works of service in the house of the Lord, from twenty years old and upward. 1 Chronicles 23:25. For David said: The LORD God of Israel has given rest to his people, and has established them in Jerusalem forever, 1 Chronicles 23:26. and the Levites do not have to carry the tabernacle and all the things thereof to serve in it. In addition to the Levites of thirty years of age, the limit for entering the service, David also appointed Levites of twenty years of age on the basis of the consideration that the service at the Jerusalem Temple, which was easier than in the desert, could be performed by people who were not entirely physically strong. And since there were 33,000 Levites of thirty years of age under David, it is obvious that the Levites of twenty years of age were not included in this number. The reason for this is supposedly that they were appointed to lower positions and were assistants to their older brothers. 1 Chronicles 23:28. that they should be with the sons of Aaron to serve the house of the Lord, in the courtyard and in the outbuildings, to keep the whole sanctuary clean and to perform every service in the house of God, 1 Chronicles 23:29. to watch over the showbread, and the fine flour for the grain offering, and the unleavened cakes, and over baked and roasted things, and over all kinds of measure and weight, 1 Chronicles 23:30. and to begin to give thanks and praise to the Lord every morning, and also in the evening, 1 Chronicles 23:31. and with all the burnt offerings offered to the Lord on the Sabbaths, on the new moons and on the feasts according to the number prescribed for them, constantly before the Lord, 1 Chronicles 23:32. and that they might guard the tabernacle and the sanctuary, and the sons of Aaron their brethren, in the service of the house of the Lord. Calculation of the duties of the Levites assigned to “the work of the house of the Lord.” The duties of the above-mentioned Levitical classes included monitoring the church courtyard and outbuildings, their cleanliness; preparation of the showbread (1 Chronicles 9:32), but not their position, the latter belonged to the priests (Lev.24:8, etc.), supervision of the preparation of grain sacrifices, the amount of honey, oil and wine added to the sacrifices (Exodus 29:40,30:24; Lev.19:35–36), the number of sacrificial animals, their age, properties, etc. (v. 31). You might be interested in: