Knox Bible

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The door-keepers, too, were divided into families. For the Corites, there was Meselemia, a son of Asaph,

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and his seven sons, Zacharias, Jadihel, Zabadias, Jathanael,

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Aelam, Johanan and Elioenai;

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together with the eight sons of Obededom, Semeias, Jozabad, Joaha, Sachar, Nathanael,

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Ammiel, Issachar and Phollathi; such blessing had Obededom from the Lord.

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His grandsons, too, through Semeias, were tried warriors and heads of separate families,

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Othni, and his warrior brothers, Raphael, Obed, Elzabad, Eliu, and Samachias.

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All these were descended from Obededom, and with their sons and brethren, sturdy ministrants, they made a company of sixty-two;

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the descendants of Meselemia, with their sons and brethren, valorous men too, were but twenty-eight.

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And for Merari there were the sons of Hosa; their father, his first-born lost, gave the chief place among them to Semri;

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the others were Helcias, Tabelias and Zacharias. Sons and brethren Hosa had in all thirteen.

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These were the men appointed to serve as commanders of the temple watch, sharing the duty with their brethren.

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Lots were cast between the various families, without regard to seniority, and so the various gates were assigned to them;

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the eastern side fell to Meselemias, the northern to his son Zacharias, a shrewd man and skilful;

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the south, where the elders sat in council,✻ to Obededom’s family,

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(to Sephim and) to Hosa the western side by the gate at the head of the ascent;✻ to each family its own watch.

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Each day there must be six Levites on guard to the east, four to the north, four to the south, with two more on each side of the council-chamber,

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and on the west, where the door-keepers had their guard-rooms, four without and two in either guard-room.

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Thus were duties assigned to the door-keepers, all of the Corite and Merarite families.

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The Levites, too, under Achias, had charge of the temple treasury, and of the votive offerings.

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Some of these came down from Ledan, son of Gersom; the heads of their families were named after Jehiel, who was descended from Gersom by Ledan,

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and Jehiel’s two sons, Zathan and Joel. These families had the permanent treasures of the Lord’s house in their charge, representing the whole Caathite clan,

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Amramites, Isaarites, Hebronites and Ozihelites alike;

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and the treasurer was Subael, descended through Gersom from Moses.

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Meanwhile Gersom’s brother Eliezer was represented by Selemith, his descendant through Rahabia, Isaias, Joram and Zechri;

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it was Selemith and his kindred that were treasurers of the votive offerings made by king David, by head of clan and captain and chief and general under him;

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out of their wars and the spoils of their wars, they made these offerings for the maintenance and furnishing of the Lord’s house.

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There was much that had been dedicated by the prophet Samuel, by Saul the son of Cis, Abner son of Ner, and Joab son of Sarvia; everything so dedicated was under the care of Selemith and his kindred.

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The Isaarite clan, under Chonenias and his sons, had the affairs of Israel, beyond the confines of the city, in their charge, as teachers and judges;

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and for the Lord’s service and the king’s business in general the Hebronites, a thousand and seven hundred active men under Hasabias and his brethren, commanded the whole of Israel west of the Jordan.

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And of the Hebronites … with all their clans and families, Jeria was the chief. In the fortieth year of king David, a register was taken at Jazer in Galaad, and the active men of his clan,

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all in the prime of life, counted two thousand and seven hundred (heads of families). These, for the Lord’s service and for the king’s business, David put in charge of Ruben and Gad and the eastern half of Manasses.✻