利未人的職務
1大衛年紀老邁,壽數將盡,就立他兒子所羅門為以色列王。 2他召集了以色列的眾首領、祭司和利未人。 3凡三十歲以上的利未人都在統計之列,共有三萬八千男子, 4其中有兩萬四千人在耶和華的殿裡司職,六千人做官長和審判官, 5四千人守門,四千人用大衛提供的樂器頌讚耶和華。 6大衛將利未人革順、哥轄和米拉利的子孫分成班次。
7革順的兒子有拉但和示每。 8拉但有長子耶歇,還有細坦和約珥,共三個兒子, 9都是拉但族的族長。示每的兒子有示羅密、哈薛和哈蘭三人。 10示每的兒子還有雅哈、細拿、耶烏施和比利亞四人。 11雅哈是長子,細拿是次子。耶烏施和比利亞的子孫不多,所以合為一族。
12哥轄有暗蘭、以斯哈、希伯崙、烏薛四個兒子。 13暗蘭的兒子是亞倫和摩西。亞倫和他的子孫永遠被分別出來事奉耶和華,向祂獻至聖之物,在祂面前燒香,奉祂的名祝福,直到永遠。 14上帝的僕人摩西的子孫歸在利未支派的名下。 15摩西的兒子是革舜和以利以謝。 16革舜的長子是細布業。 17以利以謝只有一個兒子利哈比雅,但利哈比雅子孫眾多。 18以斯哈的長子是示羅密。 19希伯崙的長子是耶利雅,次子是亞瑪利亞,三子是雅哈悉,四子是耶加緬。 20烏薛的長子是米迦,次子是耶西雅。
21米拉利的兒子是抹利、姆示。抹利的兒子是以利亞撒、基士。 22以利亞撒終生沒有兒子,只有女兒,同族人基士的兒子娶了她們為妻。 23姆示的三個兒子是末力、以得和耶利摩。 24以上是利未各宗族的子孫,他們登記在各自族長的名下,凡二十歲以上的男子都在耶和華的殿裡任職。 25大衛說:「以色列的上帝耶和華已使祂的子民安享太平,祂永遠住在耶路撒冷。 26利未人再不用抬聖幕和其中的器皿了。」 27按照大衛臨終時的囑咐,二十歲以上的利未人都已被統計。 28他們的任務是幫助亞倫的子孫在耶和華的殿裡司職,管理殿的院子和廂房,負責潔淨聖物等事務。 29他們還負責供餅、做素祭的細麵粉、無酵薄餅的調和、烤製、分量和尺寸。 30他們每天早晚要肅立、頌讚耶和華, 31每逢安息日、朔日23·31 「朔日」即每月初一。或其他節期,他們要按照規定的數目將燔祭獻給耶和華, 32並負責看守會幕和聖所,幫助他們的親族——亞倫的子孫在耶和華的殿裡供職。
The Levites
1When David was old and full of years, he made his son Solomon king over Israel.
2He also gathered together all the leaders of Israel, as well as the priests and Levites. 3The Levites thirty years old or more were counted, and the total number of men was thirty-eight thousand. 4David said, ‘Of these, twenty-four thousand are to be in charge of the work of the temple of the Lord and six thousand are to be officials and judges. 5Four thousand are to be gatekeepers and four thousand are to praise the Lord with the musical instruments I have provided for that purpose.’
6David separated the Levites into divisions corresponding to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath and Merari.
Gershonites
7Belonging to the Gershonites:
Ladan and Shimei.
8The sons of Ladan:
Jehiel the first, Zetham and Joel – three in all.
9The sons of Shimei:
Shelomoth, Haziel and Haran – three in all.
(These were the heads of the families of Ladan.)
10And the sons of Shimei:
Jahath, Ziza,23:10 One Hebrew manuscript, Septuagint and Vulgate (see also verse 11); most Hebrew manuscripts Zina Jeush and Beriah.
These were the sons of Shimei – four in all.
11(Jahath was the first and Ziza the second, but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons; so they were counted as one family with one assignment.)
Kohathites
12The sons of Kohath:
Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel – four in all.
13The sons of Amram:
Aaron and Moses.
Aaron was set apart, he and his descendants for ever, to consecrate the most holy things, to offer sacrifices before the Lord, to minister before him and to pronounce blessings in his name for ever. 14The sons of Moses the man of God were counted as part of the tribe of Levi.
15The sons of Moses:
Gershom and Eliezer.
16The descendants of Gershom:
Shubael was the first.
17The descendants of Eliezer:
Rehabiah was the first.
(Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very numerous.)
18The sons of Izhar:
Shelomith was the first.
19The sons of Hebron:
Jeriah the first, Amariah the second,
Jahaziel the third and Jekameam the fourth.
20The sons of Uzziel:
Micah the first and Ishiah the second.
Merarites
21The sons of Merari:
Mahli and Mushi.
The sons of Mahli:
Eleazar and Kish.
22(Eleazar died without having sons: he had only daughters. Their cousins, the sons of Kish, married them.)
23The sons of Mushi:
Mahli, Eder and Jerimoth – three in all.
24These were the descendants of Levi by their families – the heads of families as they were registered under their names and counted individually, that is, the workers twenty years old or more who served in the temple of the Lord. 25For David had said, ‘Since the Lord, the God of Israel, has granted rest to his people and has come to dwell in Jerusalem for ever, 26the Levites no longer need to carry the tabernacle or any of the articles used in its service.’ 27According to the last instructions of David, the Levites were counted from those twenty years old or more.
28The duty of the Levites was to help Aaron’s descendants in the service of the temple of the Lord: to be in charge of the courtyards, the side rooms, the purification of all sacred things and the performance of other duties at the house of God. 29They were in charge of the bread set out on the table, the special flour for the grain offerings, the thin loaves made without yeast, the baking and the mixing, and all measurements of quantity and size. 30They were also to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord. They were to do the same in the evening 31and whenever burnt offerings were presented to the Lord on the Sabbaths, at the New Moon feasts and at the appointed festivals. They were to serve before the Lord regularly in the proper number and in the way prescribed for them.
32And so the Levites carried out their responsibilities for the tent of meeting, for the Holy Place and, under their relatives the descendants of Aaron, for the service of the temple of the Lord.