1 Chronicles 6:1-48

Levi’s Descendants

6:1 (5:27) ¹  The sons of Levi:

Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

6:2 The sons of Kohath:

Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.

6:3 The children of Amram:

Aaron, Moses, and Miriam.

The sons of Aaron:

Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

6:4 Eleazar was the father of Phinehas, and Phinehas was the father of Abishua. 6:5 Abishua was the father of Bukki, and Bukki was the father of Uzzi. 6:6 Uzzi was the father of Zerahiah, and Zerahiah was the father of Meraioth. 6:7 Meraioth was the father of Amariah, and Amariah was the father of Ahitub. 6:8 Ahitub was the father of Zadok, and Zadok was the father of Ahimaaz. 6:9 Ahimaaz was the father of Azariah, and Azariah was the father of Johanan. 6:10 Johanan was the father of Azariah, who served as a priest in the temple Solomon built in Jerusalem. ²  6:11 Azariah was the father of Amariah, and Amariah was the father of Ahitub. 6:12 Ahitub was the father of Zadok, and Zadok was the father of Shallum. 6:13 Shallum was the father of Hilkiah, and Hilkiah was the father of Azariah. 6:14 Azariah was the father of Seraiah, and Seraiah was the father of Jehozadak. 6:15 Jehozadak went into exile when the Lord sent the people of ³  Judah and Jerusalem into exile by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar.

6:16 (6:1) ⁴  The sons of Levi:

Gershom, ⁵  Kohath, and Merari.

6:17 These are the names of the sons Gershom:

Libni and Shimei.

6:18 The sons of Kohath:

Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.

6:19 The sons of Merari:

Mahli and Mushi.

These are the clans of the Levites by their families. ⁶ 

6:20 To Gershom:

His son Libni, his son Jahath, his son Zimmah, 6:21 his son Joah, his son Iddo, his son Zerah, and his son Jeatherai.

6:22 The sons ⁷  of Kohath:

His son Amminadab, his son Korah, his son Assir, 6:23 his son Elkanah, his son Ebiasaph, his son Assir, 6:24 his son Tahath, his son Uriel, his son Uzziah, and his son Shaul.

6:25 The sons of Elkanah:

Amasai, Ahimoth, ⁸  6:26 his son Elkanah, ⁹  his son Zophai, his son Nahath, 6:27 his son Eliab, his son Jeroham, and his son Elkanah. ¹⁰ 

6:28 The sons of Samuel:

Joel the firstborn ¹¹  and Abijah the second oldest.

6:29 The descendants of Merari:

Mahli, his son Libni, his son Shimei, his son Uzzah, 6:30 his son Shimea, his son Haggiah, and his son Asaiah.

Professional Musicians

6:31 These are the men David put in charge of music in the Lord’s sanctuary, ¹²  after the ark was placed there. 6:32 They performed music ¹³  before the sanctuary ¹⁴  of the meeting tent until Solomon built the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem. ¹⁵  They carried out their tasks according to regulations.

6:33 These are the ones who served along with their sons:

From the Kohathites:

Heman the musician, son of Joel, son of Samuel, 6:34 son of Elkanah, son of Jeroham, son of Eliel, son of Toah, 6:35 son of Zuph, son of Elkanah, son of Mahath, son of Amasai, 6:36 son of Elkanah, son of Joel, son of Azariah, son of Zephaniah, 6:37 son of Tahath, son of Assir, son of Ebiasaph, son of Korah, 6:38 son of Izhar, son of Kohath, son of Levi, son of Israel.

6:39 Serving beside him was his fellow Levite Asaph, ¹⁶  son of Berechiah, son of Shimea, 6:40 son of Michael, son of Baaseiah, ¹⁷  son of Malkijah, 6:41 son of Ethni, son of Zerah, son of Adaiah, 6:42 son of Ethan, son of Zimmah, son of Shimei, 6:43 son of Jahath, son of Gershom, son of Levi.

6:44 Serving beside them were their fellow Levites, the descendants of Merari, led by ¹⁸  Ethan, son of Kishi, son of Abdi, son of Malluch, 6:45 son of Hashabiah, son of Amaziah, son of Hilkiah, 6:46 son of Amzi, son of Bani, son of Shemer, 6:47 son of Mahli, son of Mushi, son of Merari, son of Levi.

6:48 The rest of their fellow Levites ¹⁹  were assigned to perform the remaining tasks at God’s sanctuary. ²⁰ 

[6:1]  ¹ sn Beginning with 6:1, the verse numbers through 6:81 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 6:1 ET = 5:27 HT, 6:2 ET = 5:28 HT, 6:16 ET = 6:1 HT, etc., through 6:81 ET = 6:66 HT. Beginning with 7:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.

[6:10]  ² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[6:15]  ³ tn The words “the people of” are added in the translation for clarification.

[6:16]  ⁴ sn Chapter 6 of 1 Chr begins here in the Hebrew text; 6:16-81 ET = 6:1-66 HT. See the note at 6:1.

[6:16]  ⁵ tn The name “Gershom” (also in vv. 17, 20, 43, 62, 71) appears as “Gershon” in 1 Chr 6:1.

[6:19]  ⁶ tn Heb “by their fathers.”

[6:22]  ⁷ tn Or perhaps, “descendants,” since the list differs from the one in v. 18.

[6:25]  ⁸ tn Heb “and Achimoth.”

[6:26]  ⁹ tc The consonantal Hebrew text (Kethib) has, “Elkanah, his son, Elkanah.” The marginal reading (Qere) is “Elkanah, the sons of Elkanah.” The text probably originally read simply, “Elkanah his son.”

[6:27]  ¹⁰ tc After the last named individual (“Elkanah” in v. 27) some LXX mss insert the words “Samuel his son” to facilitate a transition to the following verse, which beings “and the sons of Samuel.” Among the English versions that include this added phrase are NAB, NIV, and NLT.

[6:28]  ¹¹ tc The Hebrew text lacks the name יוֹאֵל (yo’el, “Joel”), which has probably dropped out due to homoioteleuton (note the last three letters of the preceding name שְׁמוּאֵל (shÿmuel, “Samuel”).

[6:31]  ¹² tn Heb “house.”

[6:32]  ¹³ tn Heb “they were serving…with music.”

[6:32]  ¹⁴ tn Or traditionally “tabernacle.”

[6:32]  ¹⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[6:39]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and his brother Asaph, the one who stood at his right hand.”

[6:40]  ¹⁷ tc A few Hebrew mss, one LXX ms, and the Syriac read “Maaseiah.”

[6:44]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “and the sons of Merari, their brothers, on the left.”

[6:48]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “their brothers, the Levites.”

[6:48]  ²⁰ tn Heb “were assigned to all the work of the tabernacle of the house of God.”