23:1  Now when David reached old age, he made his son Solomon king over Israel.

23:2  And he gathered together all the leaders of Israel with the priests and the Levites.

23:3  The Levites he had numbered from thirty years old and upward, and their number by census of men had reached 38,000.

23:4  Of these, 24,000 oversaw the work of the house of the LORD; and 6,000 served as officers and judges,

23:5  and 4,000 served as gatekeepers, and 4,000 praised the LORD with the instruments which David made for giving praise.

23:6  David divided them into divisions according to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

23:7  Of the Gershonites we identify Ladan and Shimei.

23:8  The sons of Ladan we identify as Jehiel the first and Zetham and Joel, three.

23:9  The sons of Shimei we identify as Shelomoth and Haziel and Haran, three. These served as the heads of the fathers' households of Ladan.

23:10  The sons of Shimei we identify as Jahath, Zina, Jeush and Beriah. These four we identify as the sons of Shimei.

23:11  Jahath we identify as the first and Zizah the second; but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, so they became a father's household, one class.

23:12  The sons of Kohath we count as four: Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel.

23:13  The sons of Amram we identify as Aaron and Moses. And Aaron became set apart to sanctify him as most holy, he and his sons forever, to burn incense before the LORD, to minister to Him and to bless in His name forever.

23:14  But as for Moses the man of God, his sons received names among the tribe of Levi.

23:15  5The sons of Moses we identify as Gershom and Eliezer.

23:16  The son of Gershom we identify as Shebuel the chief.

23:17  The son of Eliezer we identify as Rehabiah the chief; and Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah grew to very many.

23:18  The son of Izhar we identify as Shelomith the chief.

23:19  The sons of Hebron we identify as Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third and Jekameam the fourth.

23:20  The sons of Uzziel we identify as Micah the first and Isshiah the second.

23:21  The sons of Merari we identify as Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli we identify as Eleazar and Kish.

23:22  leazar died and had no sons, but daughters only, so their brothers, the sons of Kish, took them as wives.

23:23  The sons of Mushi numbered three: Mahli, Eder and Jeremoth.

23:24  These we identify as the sons of Levi according to their fathers' households, even the heads of the fathers' households of those of them who they counted, in the number of names by their census, doing the work for the service of the house of the LORD, from twenty years old and upward.

23:25  For David said, "The LORD God of Israel has given rest to His people, and He dwells in Jerusalem forever.

23:26  "Also, the Levites will no longer need to carry the tabernacle and all its utensils for its service."

23:27  For by the last words of David the sons of Levi had become numbered from twenty years old and upward.

23:28  For their office consisted of assisting the sons of Aaron with the service of the house of the LORD, in the courts and in the chambers and in the purifying of all holy things, even the work of the service of the house of God,

23:29  and with the showbread, and the fine flour for a grain offering, and unleavened wafers, or what they baked in the pan or what they had mixed well, and all measures of volume and size.

23:30  They will stand every morning to thank and to praise the LORD, and likewise at evening,

23:31  and to offer all burnt offerings to the LORD, on the sabbaths, the new moons and the fixed festivals in the number set by the ordinance concerning them, continually before the LORD.

23:32  Thus they would keep charge of the tent of meeting, and charge of the holy place, and charge of the sons of Aaron their relatives, for the service of the house of the LORD.