1 Chronicles 15-17

1 Chronicles 15

¹David constructed buildings for himself in the City of David, and he prepared a place for the ark of God and pitched a tent for it.

²Then David said, “No one but the Levites may carry the ark of God, because the LORD has chosen them to carry the ark of the LORD and to minister before Him forever.”

³And David assembled all Israel in Jerusalem to bring up the ark of the LORD to the place he had prepared for it.

⁴Then he gathered together the descendants of Aaron and the Levites:

⁵From the Kohathites, Uriel the chief and 120 of his relatives;

⁶from the Merarites, Asaiah the chief and 220 of his relatives;

⁷from the Gershomites, Joel the chief and 130 of his relatives;

⁸from the Elizaphanites, Shemaiah the chief and 200 of his relatives;

⁹from the Hebronites, Eliel the chief and 80 of his relatives;

¹⁰and from the Uzzielites, Amminadab the chief and 112 of his relatives.

¹¹David summoned the priests Zadok and Abiathar and the Levites Uriel, Asaiah, Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel, and Amminadab.

¹²And he said to them, “You are the heads of the Levitical families. You and your relatives must consecrate yourselves so that you may bring the ark of the LORD, the God of Israel, to the place I have prepared for it.

¹³It was because you Levites were not with us the first time that the LORD our God burst forth in anger against us. For we did not consult Him about the proper order.”

¹⁴So the priests and Levites consecrated themselves to bring up the ark of the LORD, the God of Israel.

¹⁵And the Levites carried the ark of God on their shoulders with the poles, as Moses had commanded in accordance with the word of the LORD.

¹⁶David also told the leaders of the Levites to appoint their relatives as singers to lift up their voices with joy, accompanied by musical instruments—harps, lyres, and cymbals.

¹⁷So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel; from his brothers, Asaph son of Berechiah; from their brothers the Merarites, Ethan son of Kushaiah;

¹⁸and with them their brothers next in rank: Zechariah, Jaaziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, and the gatekeepers Obed-edom and Jeiel.

¹⁹The musicians Heman, Asaph, and Ethan were to sound the bronze cymbals.

²⁰Zechariah, Aziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah were to play the harps according to Alamoth.

²¹And Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah were to lead the music with lyres according to Sheminith.

²²Chenaniah the head Levite was the director of the music because he was highly skilled.

²³Berechiah and Elkanah were to be guardians of the ark.

²⁴Shebaniah, Joshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Eliezer—the priests—were to blow the trumpets before the ark of God. Obed-edom and Jehiah were also to be guardians of the ark.

²⁵So David, the elders of Israel, and the commanders of thousands went with rejoicing to bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD from the house of Obed-edom.

²⁶And because God helped the Levites who were carrying the ark of the covenant of the LORD, they sacrificed seven bulls and seven rams.

²⁷Now David was dressed in a robe of fine linen, as were all the Levites who were carrying the ark, as well as the singers and Chenaniah, the director of music for the singers. David also wore a linen ephod.

²⁸So all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with shouting, with the sounding of rams’ horns and trumpets, and with cymbals and the music of harps and lyres.

²⁹As the ark of the covenant of the LORD was entering the City of David, Saul’s daughter Michal looked down from a window and saw King David dancing and celebrating, and she despised him in her heart.

1 Chronicles 16

¹So they brought the ark of God and placed it inside the tent that David had pitched for it. And they presented burnt offerings and peace offerings before God.

²When David had finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD.

³Then he distributed to every man and woman of Israel a loaf of bread, a date cake, and a raisin cake.

⁴David appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to celebrate, to give thanks, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel.

⁵Asaph was the chief, Zechariah was second, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel. They were to play the harps and lyres, while Asaph sounded the cymbals

⁶and the priests Benaiah and Jahaziel blew the trumpets regularly before the ark of the covenant of God.

⁷On that day David first committed to Asaph and his associates this song of thanksgiving to the LORD:

⁸“Give thanks to the LORD; call upon His name; make known His deeds among the nations.

⁹Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; tell of all His wonders.

¹⁰Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.

¹¹Seek out the LORD and His strength; seek His face always.

¹²Remember the wonders He has done, His marvels, and the judgments He has pronounced,

¹³O offspring of His servant Israel, O sons of Jacob, His chosen ones.

¹⁴He is the LORD our God; His judgments carry throughout the earth.

¹⁵Remember His covenant forever, the word He ordained for a thousand generations—

¹⁶the covenant He made with Abraham, and the oath He swore to Isaac.

¹⁷He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant:

¹⁸‘I will give you the land of Canaan as the portion of your inheritance.’

¹⁹When they were few in number, few indeed, and strangers in the land,

²⁰they wandered from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another.

²¹He let no man oppress them; He rebuked kings on their behalf:

²²‘Do not touch My anointed ones! Do no harm to My prophets!’

²³Sing to the LORD, all the earth. Proclaim His salvation day after day.

²⁴Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.

²⁵For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.

²⁶For all the gods of the nations are idols, but it is the LORD who made the heavens.

²⁷Splendor and majesty are before Him; strength and joy fill His dwelling.

²⁸Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the nations, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.

²⁹Ascribe to the LORD the glory due His name; bring an offering and come before Him. Worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness;

³⁰tremble before Him, all the earth. The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved.

³¹Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice. Let them say among the nations, ‘The LORD reigns!’

³²Let the sea resound, and all that fills it; let the fields exult, and all that is in them.

³³Then the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the LORD, for He is coming to judge the earth.

³⁴Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His loving devotion endures forever.

³⁵Then cry out: ‘Save us, O God of our salvation; gather and deliver us from the nations, that we may give thanks to Your holy name, that we may glory in Your praise.’

³⁶Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.” Then all the people said, “Amen!” and “Praise the LORD!”

³⁷So David left Asaph and his associates there before the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to minister there regularly according to the daily requirements,

³⁸along with Obed-edom and his sixty-eight relatives. Obed-edom son of Jeduthun, and also Hosah, were to be gatekeepers.

³⁹And David left Zadok the priest and his fellow priests before the tabernacle of the LORD at the high place in Gibeon

⁴⁰to regularly present burnt offerings to the LORD on the altar of burnt offerings, morning and evening, according to all that was written in the Law of the LORD, which He had commanded Israel to keep.

⁴¹With them were Heman, Jeduthun, and the rest of those chosen and designated by name to give thanks to the LORD, for “His loving devotion endures forever.”

⁴²Heman and Jeduthun had with them trumpets and cymbals for the music and instruments for the songs of God. And the sons of Jeduthun were stationed at the gate.

⁴³Then all the people departed for their homes, and David returned home to bless his household.

1 Chronicles 17

¹After David had settled into his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the LORD is under a tent.”

²And Nathan replied to David, “Do all that is in your heart, for God is with you.”

³But that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying,

⁴“Go and tell My servant David that this is what the LORD says: You are not the one to build Me a house in which to dwell.

⁵For I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought Israel up out of Egypt until this day, but I have moved from tent to tent and dwelling to dwelling.

⁶In all My journeys with all the Israelites, have I ever asked any of the leaders I appointed to shepherd My people, ‘Why haven’t you built Me a house of cedar?’

⁷Now then, you are to tell My servant David that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be the ruler over My people Israel.

⁸I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make for you a name like that of the greatest in the land.

⁹And I will provide a place for My people Israel and will plant them so that they may dwell in a place of their own and be disturbed no more. No longer will the sons of wickedness oppress them as they did at the beginning

¹⁰and have done since the day I appointed judges over My people Israel. And I will subdue all your enemies. Moreover, I declare to you that the LORD will build a house for you.

¹¹And when your days are fulfilled and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom.

¹²He will build a house for Me, and I will establish his throne forever.

¹³I will be his Father, and he will be My son. And I will never remove My loving devotion from him as I removed it from your predecessor.

¹⁴But I will set him over My house and My kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever.”

¹⁵So Nathan relayed to David all the words of this entire revelation.

¹⁶Then King David went in, sat before the LORD, and said, “Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my house, that You have brought me this far?

¹⁷And as if this was a small thing in Your eyes, O God, You have spoken about the future of the house of Your servant and have regarded me as a man of great distinction, O LORD God.

¹⁸What more can David say to You for honoring Your servant? For You know Your servant,

¹⁹O LORD. For the sake of Your servant and according to Your own heart, You have accomplished this great thing and made known all these great promises.

²⁰O LORD, there is none like You, and there is no God but You, according to everything we have heard with our own ears.

²¹And who is like Your people Israel—the one nation on earth whom God went out to redeem as a people for Himself? You made a name for Yourself through great and awesome wonders by driving out nations from before Your people, whom You redeemed from Egypt.

²²For You have made Your people Israel Your very own forever, and You, O LORD, have become their God.

²³And now, O LORD, let the word You have spoken concerning Your servant and his house be established forever. Do as You have promised,

²⁴so that Your name will be established and magnified forever when it is said, ‘The LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, is God over Israel.’ And may the house of Your servant David be established before You.

²⁵For You, my God, have revealed to Your servant that You will build a house for him. Therefore Your servant has found the courage to pray before You.

²⁶And now, O LORD, You are God! And You have promised this goodness to Your servant.

²⁷So now You have been pleased to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue forever before You. For You, O LORD, have blessed it, and it will be blessed forever.”