1 Chronicles 23:1-24 - Compare All Versions
1 Chronicles 23:1-24 NIV (New International Version)
When David was old and full of years, he made his son Solomon king over Israel. He also gathered together all the leaders of Israel, as well as the priests and Levites. The Levites thirty years old or more were counted, and the total number of men was thirty-eight thousand. David 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. Four thousand are to be gatekeepers and four thousand are to praise the LORD with the musical instruments I have provided for that purpose.” David separated the Levites into divisions corresponding to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath and Merari. Belonging to the Gershonites: Ladan and Shimei. The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the first, Zetham and Joel—three in all. The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, Haziel and Haran—three in all. These were the heads of the families of Ladan. And the sons of Shimei: Jahath, Ziza, Jeush and Beriah. These were the sons of Shimei—four in all. 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. The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel—four in all. The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart, he and his descendants forever, to consecrate the most holy things, to offer sacrifices before the LORD, to minister before him and to pronounce blessings in his name forever. The sons of Moses the man of God were counted as part of the tribe of Levi. The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer. The descendants of Gershom: Shubael was the first. The descendants of Eliezer: Rehabiah was the first. Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very numerous. The sons of Izhar: Shelomith was the first. The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third and Jekameam the fourth. The sons of Uzziel: Micah the first and Ishiah the second. The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish. Eleazar died without having sons: he had only daughters. Their cousins, the sons of Kish, married them. The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder and Jerimoth—three in all. These 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.
1 Chronicles 23:1-24 ESV (English Standard Version 2025)
When David was old and full of days, he made Solomon his son king over Israel. David assembled all the leaders of Israel and the priests and the Levites. The Levites, thirty years old and upward, were numbered, and the total was 38,000 men. “Twenty-four thousand of these,” David said, “shall have charge of the work in the house of the LORD, 6,000 shall be officers and judges, 4,000 gatekeepers, and 4,000 shall offer praises to the LORD with the instruments that I have made for praise.” And David organized them in divisions corresponding to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. The sons of Gershon were Ladan and Shimei. The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the chief, and Zetham, and Joel, three. The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the heads of the fathers’ houses of Ladan. And the sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zina, and Jeush and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei. Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second; but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, therefore they became counted as a single father’s house. The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four. The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart to dedicate the most holy things, that he and his sons forever should make offerings before the LORD and minister to him and pronounce blessings in his name forever. But the sons of Moses the man of God were named among the tribe of Levi. The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer. The sons of Gershom: Shebuel the chief. The sons of Eliezer: Rehabiah the chief. Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very many. The sons of Izhar: Shelomith the chief. The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the chief, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. The sons of Uzziel: Micah the chief and Isshiah the second. The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish. Eleazar died having no sons, but only daughters; their kinsmen, the sons of Kish, married them. The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth, three. These were the sons of Levi by their fathers’ houses, the heads of fathers’ houses as they were listed according to the number of the names of the individuals from twenty years old and upward who were to do the work for the service of the house of the LORD.
1 Chronicles 23:1-24 NLT (New Living Translation)
When David was an old man, he appointed his son Solomon to be king over Israel. David summoned all the leaders of Israel, together with the priests and Levites. All the Levites who were thirty years old or older were counted, and the total came to 38,000. Then David said, “From all the Levites, 24,000 will supervise the work at the Temple of the LORD. Another 6,000 will serve as officials and judges. Another 4,000 will work as gatekeepers, and 4,000 will praise the LORD with the musical instruments I have made.” Then David divided the Levites into divisions named after the clans descended from the three sons of Levi—Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. The Gershonite family units were defined by their lines of descent from Libni and Shimei, the sons of Gershon. Three of the descendants of Libni were Jehiel (the family leader), Zetham, and Joel. These were the leaders of the family of Libni. Three of the descendants of Shimei were Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran. Four other descendants of Shimei were Jahath, Ziza, Jeush, and Beriah. Jahath was the family leader, and Ziza was next. Jeush and Beriah were counted as a single family because neither had many sons. Four of the descendants of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. The sons of Amram were Aaron and Moses. Aaron and his descendants were set apart to dedicate the most holy things, to offer sacrifices in the LORD’s presence, to serve the LORD, and to pronounce blessings in his name forever. As for Moses, the man of God, his sons were included with the tribe of Levi. The sons of Moses were Gershom and Eliezer. The descendants of Gershom included Shebuel, the family leader. Eliezer had only one son, Rehabiah, the family leader. Rehabiah had numerous descendants. The descendants of Izhar included Shelomith, the family leader. The descendants of Hebron included Jeriah (the family leader), Amariah (the second), Jahaziel (the third), and Jekameam (the fourth). The descendants of Uzziel included Micah (the family leader) and Isshiah (the second). The descendants of Merari included Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli were Eleazar and Kish. Eleazar died with no sons, only daughters. His daughters married their cousins, the sons of Kish. Three of the descendants of Mushi were Mahli, Eder, and Jerimoth. These were the descendants of Levi by clans, the leaders of their family groups, registered carefully by name. Each had to be twenty years old or older to qualify for service in the house of the LORD.
1 Chronicles 23:1-24 CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
When David was old and full of days, he installed his son Solomon as king over Israel. Then he gathered all the leaders of Israel, the priests, and the Levites. The Levites thirty years old or more were counted; the total number of men was thirty-eight thousand by headcount. “Of these,” David said, “twenty-four thousand are to be in charge of the work on the LORD’s temple, six thousand are to be officers and judges, four thousand are to be gatekeepers, and four thousand are to praise the LORD with the instruments that I have made for worship.” Then David divided them into divisions according to Levi’s sons: Gershom, Kohath, and Merari. The Gershonites: Ladan and Shimei. Ladan’s sons: Jehiel was the first, then Zetham, and Joel — three. Shimei’s sons: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran — three. Those were the heads of the families of Ladan. Shimei’s sons: Jahath, Zizah, Jeush, and Beriah. Those were Shimei’s sons — four. Jahath was the first and Zizah was the second; however, Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, so they became one family and received a single assignment. Kohath’s sons: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel — four. Amram’s sons: Aaron and Moses. Aaron, along with his descendants, was set apart forever to consecrate the most holy things, to burn incense in the presence of the LORD, to minister to him, and to pronounce blessings in his name forever. As for Moses the man of God, his sons were named among the tribe of Levi. Moses’s sons: Gershom and Eliezer. Gershom’s sons: Shebuel was first. Eliezer’s sons were Rehabiah, first; Eliezer did not have any other sons, but Rehabiah’s sons were very numerous. Izhar’s sons: Shelomith was first. Hebron’s sons: Jeriah was first, Amariah second, Jahaziel third, and Jekameam fourth. Uzziel’s sons: Micah was first, and Isshiah second. Merari’s sons: Mahli and Mushi. Mahli’s sons: Eleazar and Kish. Eleazar died having no sons, only daughters. Their cousins, the sons of Kish, married them. Mushi’s sons: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth — three. These were the descendants of Levi by their ancestral families — the family heads, according to their registration by name in the headcount — twenty years old or more, who worked in the service of the LORD’s temple.
1 Chronicles 23:1-24 KJV (King James Version)
So when David was old and full of days, he made Solomon his son king over Israel. And he gathered together all the princes of Israel, with the priests and the Levites. Now the Levites were numbered from the age of thirty years and upward: and their number by their polls, man by man, was thirty and eight thousand. Of which, twenty and four thousand were to set forward the work of the house of the LORD; and six thousand were officers and judges: moreover four thousand were porters; and four thousand praised the LORD with the instruments which I made, said David, to praise therewith. And David divided them into courses among the sons of Levi, namely, Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. Of the Gershonites were, Laadan, and Shimei. The sons of Laadan; the chief was Jehiel, and Zetham, and Joel, three. The sons of Shimei; Shelomith, and Haziel, and Haran, three. These were, the chief of the fathers of Laadan. And the sons of Shimei were, Jahath, Zina, and Jeush, and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei. And Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second: but Jeush and Beriah had not many sons; therefore they were in one reckoning, according to their father's house. The sons of Kohath; Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four. The sons of Amram; Aaron and Moses: and Aaron was separated, that he should sanctify the most holy things, he and his sons for ever, to burn incense before the LORD, to minister unto him, and to bless in his name for ever. Now concerning Moses the man of God, his sons were named of the tribe of Levi. The sons of Moses were, Gershom, and Eliezer. Of the sons of Gershom, Shebuel was the chief. And the sons of Eliezer were, Rehabiah the chief. And Eliezer had none other sons; but the sons of Rehabiah were very many. Of the sons of Izhar; Shelomith the chief. Of the sons of Hebron; Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. Of the sons of Uzziel; Micah the first, and Jesiah the second. The sons of Merari; Mahli, and Mushi. The sons of Mahli; Eleazar, and Kish. And Eleazar died, and had no sons, but daughters: and their brethren the sons of Kish took them. The sons of Mushi; Mahli, and Eder, and Jeremoth, three. These were the sons of Levi after the house of their fathers; even the chief of the fathers, as they were counted by number of names by their polls, that did the work for the service of the house of the LORD, from the age of twenty years and upward.
1 Chronicles 23:1-24 NKJV (New King James Version)
So when David was old and full of days, he made his son Solomon king over Israel. And he gathered together all the leaders of Israel, with the priests and the Levites. Now the Levites were numbered from the age of thirty years and above; and the number of individual males was thirty-eight thousand. Of these, twenty-four thousand were to look after the work of the house of the LORD, six thousand were officers and judges, four thousand were gatekeepers, and four thousand praised the LORD with musical instruments, “which I made,” said David, “for giving praise.” Also David separated them into divisions among the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. Of the Gershonites: Laadan and Shimei. The sons of Laadan: the first Jehiel, then Zetham and Joel—three in all. The sons of Shimei: Shelomith, Haziel, and Haran—three in all. These were the heads of the fathers’ houses of Laadan. And the sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zina, Jeush, and Beriah. These were the four sons of Shimei. Jahath was the first and Zizah the second. But Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons; therefore they were assigned as one father’s house. The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel—four in all. The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses; and Aaron was set apart, he and his sons forever, that he should sanctify the most holy things, to burn incense before the LORD, to minister to Him, and to give the blessing in His name forever. Now the sons of Moses the man of God were reckoned to the tribe of Levi. The sons of Moses were Gershon and Eliezer. Of the sons of Gershon, Shebuel was the first. Of the descendants of Eliezer, Rehabiah was the first. And Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very many. Of the sons of Izhar, Shelomith was the first. Of the sons of Hebron, Jeriah was the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. Of the sons of Uzziel, Michah was the first and Jesshiah the second. The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli were Eleazar and Kish. And Eleazar died, and had no sons, but only daughters; and their brethren, the sons of Kish, took them as wives. The sons of Mushi were Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth—three in all. These were the sons of Levi by their fathers’ houses—the heads of the fathers’ houses as they were counted individually by the number of their names, who did the work for the service of the house of the LORD, from the age of twenty years and above.
1 Chronicles 23:1-24 MSG (The Message)
When David got to be an old man, he made his son Solomon king over Israel. At the same time he brought together all the leaders of Israel, the priests, and the Levites. The Levites thirty years and older were counted; the total was thirty-eight thousand. David sorted them into work groups: “Twenty-four thousand are in charge of administering worship in the sanctuary; six thousand are officials and judges; four thousand are security guards; and four thousand are to serve in the orchestra, praising GOD with instruments that I have provided for praise.” David then divided the Levites into groupings named after the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. The Gershonites: Ladan and Shimei. The three sons of Ladan: Jehiel, Zetham, and Joel. The three sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran, all heads of the families of Ladan. The four sons of Shimei: Jahath, Ziza, Jeush, and Beriah. Jahath came first, followed by Ziza. Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons so they were counted as one family with one task. The four sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron was especially ordained to work in the Holy of Holies, to burn incense before GOD, to serve God and bless his Name always. This was a permanent appointment for Aaron and his sons. Moses and his sons were counted in the tribe of Levi. The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer. Shubael was the first son of Gershom. Rehabiah was the first and only son of Eliezer; but though Eliezer had no other sons, Rehabiah had many sons. Shelomith was the first son of Izhar. Hebron had four sons: Jeriah, Amariah, Jahaziel, and Jekameam. Uzziel had two sons: Micah and Isshiah. The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish. Eleazar died without any sons, only daughters. Their cousins, the sons of Kish, married the daughters. Mushi had three sons: Mahli, Eder, and Jerimoth. These are the sons of Levi twenty years and older, divided up according to families and heads of families and listed in the work groups that took care of the worship in the sanctuary of GOD.
1 Chronicles 23:1-24 NASB2020 (New American Standard Bible - NASB)
Now when David reached old age, he made his son Solomon king over Israel. And he gathered together all the leaders of Israel with the priests and the Levites. Now the Levites were counted from thirty years old and upward, and their number by head count of men was thirty-eight thousand. Of these, twenty-four thousand were to oversee the work of the house of the LORD; and six thousand were officers and judges, and four thousand were gatekeepers, and four thousand were praising the LORD with the instruments which David made for giving praise. David divided them into divisions according to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. Of the Gershonites there were Ladan and Shimei. The sons of Ladan were Jehiel the first, and Zetham and Joel, three. The sons of Shimei were Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the heads of the fathers’ households of Ladan. The sons of Shimei were Jahath, Zina, Jeush, and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei. Jahath was the first and Zizah the second; but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, so they became a father’s household, one group for duty. The sons of Kohath were four in number: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. The sons of Amram were Aaron and Moses. And Aaron was set apart to sanctify him as most holy, he and his sons forever, to burn incense before the LORD, to serve Him and bless in His name forever. But as for Moses, the man of God, his sons were named among the tribe of Levi. The sons of Moses were Gershom and Eliezer. The son of Gershom was Shebuel the chief. The son of Eliezer was Rehabiah the chief; and Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very many. The son of Izhar was Shelomith the chief. The sons of Hebron were Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. The sons of Uzziel were Micah the first and Isshiah the second. The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli were Eleazar and Kish. Eleazar died and had no sons, but only daughters; so their relatives, the sons of Kish, took them as wives. The sons of Mushi were three: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth. These were the sons of Levi according to their fathers’ households, the heads of the fathers’ households of those among them who were counted, in the number of names by their head count, doing the work for the service of the house of the LORD, from twenty years old and upward.
1 Chronicles 23:1-24 AMP (Amplified Bible)
When David reached old age, he made his son Solomon king over Israel. And he assembled together all the leaders of Israel with the priests and Levites. The Levites thirty years old and upward were counted, and their number man by man was 38,000. Of these 24,000 were to oversee and inspect the work of the house of the LORD and 6,000 were to be administrators and judges, and 4,000 were gatekeepers, and 4,000 [musicians] were to praise the LORD with the instruments which David made for giving praise. And David organized them into divisions according to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. Of the Gershonites: Ladan (Libni) and Shimei. The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the first and Zetham and Joel—three in all. The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran—three in all. These were the heads of the fathers’ households of Ladan. The sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zina (Zizah), Jeush, and Beriah. These were the four sons of Shimei. Jahath was the first and Zizah the second; but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons [not enough for a father’s house or clan], so they were [counted together] as one father’s household, one working group. The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel—four in all. The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart to consecrate him as most holy, he and his sons forever, to burn incense before the LORD, attend to His service, and to bless [worshipers] in His name forever. But as for Moses the man of God, his sons were counted among the tribe of Levi. The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer. The son of Gershom: Shebuel the chief. The son of Eliezer was Rehabiah the chief. Eliezer had no other sons, but Rehabiah’s sons were very many [in number]. The son of Izhar: Shelomith the chief. The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. The sons of Uzziel: Micah the first and Isshiah the second. The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish. Eleazar died and had no sons, but daughters only, and their relatives, the sons of Kish, took them as wives. The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth—three in all. These were the Levites by their fathers’ households, the heads of the fathers’ households of those registered, according to the number of names of the individuals who were the servants of the house of the LORD, from twenty years old and upward.
1 Chronicles 23:1-24 NET (New English Translation)
When David was old and approaching the end of his life, he made his son Solomon king over Israel. David assembled all the leaders of Israel, along with the priests and the Levites. The Levites who were thirty years old and up were counted; there were 38,000 men. David said, “Of these, 24,000 are to direct the work of the LORD’s temple; 6,000 are to be officials and judges; 4,000 are to be gatekeepers; and 4,000 are to praise the LORD with the instruments I supplied for worship.” David divided them into groups corresponding to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. The Gershonites included Ladan and Shimei. The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the oldest, Zetham, and Joel – three in all. The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran – three in all. These were the leaders of the family of Ladan. The sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zina, Jeush, and Beriah. These were Shimei’s sons – four in all. Jahath was the oldest and Zizah the second oldest. Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, so they were considered one family with one responsibility. The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel – four in all. The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron and his descendants were chosen on a permanent basis to consecrate the most holy items, to offer sacrifices before the LORD, to serve him, and to praise his name. The descendants of Moses the man of God were considered Levites. The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer. The son of Gershom: Shebuel the oldest. The son of Eliezer was Rehabiah, the oldest. Eliezer had no other sons, but Rehabiah had many descendants. The son of Izhar: Shelomith the oldest. The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the oldest, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. The sons of Uzziel: Micah the oldest, and Isshiah the second. The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish. Eleazar died without having sons; he had only daughters. The sons of Kish, their cousins, married them. The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth – three in all. These were the descendants of Levi according to their families, that is, the leaders of families as counted and individually listed who carried out assigned tasks in the LORD’s temple and were twenty years old and up.