1st Chronicles 15

CHAPTER 15

¹And David made to him houses in the city of David, and he builded a place to the ark of the Lord, and arrayed a tabernacle to it.

²Then David said, It is unleaveful, that the ark of God be borne about of any others, no but of the deacons [or Levites] , which the Lord chose to bear it, and for to minister to him into without end.

³And David gathered together all Israel into Jerusalem, that the ark of God should be brought into his place, which he had made ready to it;

⁴also and he gathered together the sons of Aaron, and the deacons [or Levites] ;

⁵of the sons of Kohath, Uriel was prince, and his brethren two hundred and twenty;

⁶of the sons of Merari, Asaiah was prince, and his brethren two hundred and thirty;

⁷of the sons of Gershon or Gershom, the prince was Joel, and his brethren an hundred and thirty;

⁸of the sons of Elizaphan, Shemaiah was prince, and his brethren two hundred;

⁹of the sons of Hebron, Eliel was prince, and his brethren fourscore;

¹⁰of the sons of Uzziel, Amminadab was prince, and his brethren an hundred and twelve.

¹¹And David called for Zadok and Abiathar priests, and the deacons [or Levites] , Uriel, Asaiah, and Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel, and Amminadab;

¹²and said to them, Ye that be princes of the meines of Levi, be ye hallowed with your brethren, and bring ye the ark of the Lord God of Israel to the place, that is made ready to it;

¹³lest, as at the beginning, for ye were not present, the Lord smote us, so and now it be done, if we do any unleaveful thing.

¹⁴Therefore the priests and deacons [or Levites] were hallowed, that they should bear the ark of the Lord God of Israel.

¹⁵And the sons of Levi took the ark of God with bars upon their shoulders, as Moses commanded by the word of the Lord.

¹⁶And David said to the princes of deacons [or Levites] , that they should ordain of their brethren singers in organs of musics, that is, in gitterns, and harps, and cymbals; that the sound of gladness should sound on high.

¹⁷And they ordained deacons [or Levites] , Heman, the son of Joel, and of his brethren, Asaph, the son of Berechiah; soothly of the sons of Merari, [the] brethren of them, they ordained Ethan, the son of Kushaiah,

¹⁸and the brethren of them with them; in the second order Zechariah, and Ben, and Jaaziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Unni, Eliab, and Benaiah, and Maaseiah, and Mattithiah, and Elipheleh, and Mikneiah, and Obededom, and Jeiel, porters;

¹⁹and the singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, sounding in brazen cymbals;

²⁰and Zechariah, and Aziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Unni, and Eliab, and Maaseiah, and Benaiah, these sang privates in gitterns;

²¹and Mattithiah, and Elipheleh, and Mikneiah, and Obededom, and Jeiel, and Azaziah, sang in harps for the eighth, and epinicion, that is, thankings that owe to be done to God, over-comer and victor ;

²²and Chenaniah, the prince of deacons [or Levites] , and of prophecy, was sovereign to before-sing [the] melody, for he was full wise;

²³and Berechiah, and Elkanah, were porters of the ark;

²⁴and Shebaniah, and Jehoshaphat, and Nethaneel, and Amasai, and Zechariah, and Benaiah, and Eliezer, priests, sounded with trumps before the ark of the Lord; and Obededom, and Jehiah, were porters of the ark.

²⁵Therefore David, and the greater men in birth of Israel, and the tribunes, went to bring the ark of [the] bond of peace of the Lord from the house of Obededom with gladness.

²⁶And when God had helped the deacons [or Levites] that bare the ark of [the] bond of peace of the Lord, seven bulls and seven rams were offered.

²⁷And David was clothed with a white stole, and all the deacons [or Levites] that bare the ark, and the singers, and Chenaniah, the prince of the prophecy among [the] singers, were clothed in white stoles ; and also David was clothed with a linen surplice.

²⁸And all Israel led forth the ark of [the] bond of peace of the Lord, and sounded in joyful song, and in sound of clarions, and in trumps, and in cymbals, and in gitterns, and harps.

²⁹And when the ark of [the] bond of peace of the Lord had come into the city of David, Michal, the daughter of Saul, beheld forth by a window, and saw king David dancing and playing; and she despised him in her heart.