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Hosea 6:6 For I desired mercy and not sacrifice;
and the knowledge of God more than your burnt offerings.

Bible Chapter Studies

I CHRONICLES CHAPTER 23

I Chronicles 22 saw Israel’s second man-king: David, who is now 69-70 years old, and who has reigned and ruled the Nation for the past 40 years, beginning the preparations for his son Solomon to take the reins of the Nation, and to also build the Temple for Father YHVH.

The property—the threshing floor of Ornan—had been acquired in I Chronicles 21. So, in our last Chapter, we saw David accumulating gold and silver, the brass and iron in great abundance, also much needed lumber and marble, he also ensured that there were enough supervisors, craftsmen and laborers to complete the construction.

Not re-counted in this Book of the Chronicles when discussing the life and reign of David are the events which were detailed and chronicled in II Samuel. Events such as the rape of his daughter Tamar by her half brother Amnon; the rebellion and uprising of his own son—Tamar’s brother—Absalom, who tried to steal the throne from Father’s anointed: David, causing him to flee Jerusalem until the threat was halted. There was also the uprising of another of hs sons against him: Adonijah

Again, David is within the last year or so of his life here in the flesh and what he wants to ensure is that the transition to his son is smooth and seamless. So, he’ll ensure that everything is set and in place for Solomon, beginning with the Priesthood, and the Levites; and that is who we’ll be reading of in this Chapter.

With that introduction being said, let’s go to Father and ask Him for His Blessings on our Study of His Word: “Father, we come to you right now to thank you for inviting us to Your table in order that we might be able to partake of and receive Your Spiritual Meat, and Father, as we prepare to dine on the sustenance which sustains our inner man, we ask that You Oh LORD open our ears and eyes, that we might be able to hear and see your Truths, open our hearts and minds and prepare us in order that we may receive Your Truth. We Pray for Your Understanding of Your Word, we seek Your Knowledge in Your Word, and most importantly Father, we Pray for and desire Your Wisdom from Your Word, in Jesus’ Precious name we Pray, thank You Father, Amen.”

I Chronicles 10:1-
   II Chronicles 36:21
   HISTORY (UP TO THE
   CAPTIVITY.) (Division.)
11:1-II Chronicles 36:21
   THE HOUSE OF David
   ESTABLISHED. (Division.)
11:1-29:25 EVENTS IN
   DETAIL. (Introversion.)
11:1-29:30 DAVID. (Division.)
23:1 Solomon. First
   investiture.

I Chronicles 23:1 So when David (loving; or, well-beloved) (Daw-veedי) was old and full of days, he made Solomon (peaceful; or, peaceful) (shel-o-moי) his son king over Israel (he will rule as YAH; or, the prince that prevails with YAH) (Yis-raw-aleי) (secondary map). —>
Don’t allow this—the way our KJV 1611 translators translated this—to throw you off brethren as, if we were to take it literally, we could\would think that David turned the reins over to Solomon much sooner than when he passed-away and returned Home to Father. That is not what happened. We know this because of what we read in I Kings 1 and I Kings 2 where we read that David was old and frail and couldn’t stay warm so they brought a Shunammite girl in to lay beside him and assist with her body heat to keep the king warm. It was during this time that Adonijah tried to steal the throne from his brother Solomon, therefore Father’s Prophet Nathan and Bath-sheba went in to David and convinced him while on his death-bed, to turn the kingdom over to Solomon and put a stop to Adonijah’s attempted usurpation. What this is saying is that, David made it known throughout the kingdom that, Solomon would be the next king of the Nation of the House of Israel.

With that being said, what we’re reading here is, that, David still has a few more years left in him but—yes, he is close to returning Home to Father but—there are still things that need attending to with him being king over the Nation. He is older and wiser and will not be pushed the way he knows might happen to his son Solomon, so he is going to set things in concrete or stone so to speak, so nobody can take advantage of his young, 19 year old son.

David’s reign over the Nation and his actual death won’t come until the close of this First Book of the Chronicles five Chapters from now.

Full of days=This phrase refers to the fact that David was satisfied with all the years which Father had given him in his lifetime here in the flesh, Father truly had Blessed David. You could almost ask why, seeing that he had committed adultery and committed what Father considered murder of the husband of the woman he had committed adultery with. You would be correct in that, yes, David had committed both those sins, but he never served or worshiped other, false gods; David Honored, Served and Worshiped Father YHVH only all his days. Therefore, Father set him as the standard-bearer by which He compared all the other kings of the Nation.

David=I could spend days discussing David and his life; literally, an entire Book—II Samuel—covered most of what David accomplished as king of Israel. David was a man after Father’s own heart, and though he made a few mistakes, David always tried to please Father in all that he did; therefore, Father loved David; so much so that, He chose David as the Line to bring forth the Branch, The Bright Morning Star, Immanuel\Emmanuel, God in the Flesh: Jesus. Even though Father chose David, it doesn’t mean that David never sinned as, David indeed did sin. He committed adultery with the wife of one of his soldiers; and, then had that soldier murdered by ordering his being put on the front lines of the hottest part of the battle. David was not perfect; however, he was obedient in the end; and, in the end, he left judgment in Father’s hand. All the other kings of Judah and some of the kings of Israel will be judged; or, compared to David; and, the one thing which can always be said of David, is that, not one time had David ever fallen away into idolatry. But, what else can we take away from David? If you sin: repent to Father and then leave the correction and judgment in Father’s hands. † While researching the etymology of the name David we find that most Bible translators and commentator will render the name David as Beloved; but, as always with important names, the etymology of the name David is disputed. However, we can’t help noticing the distinct similarity of this name with the Hebrew root דוד (dwd) that yields דוד (dod), generally meaning beloved. This word is also the Hebrew word for uncle — I Chronicles 27:32, for instance, speaks of דוד־דויד, or “David’s uncle”: The distinct difference between the name דוד (David) and the word דוד (dod) is that in the name David the letter waw counts for a consonant, while in the word dod it counts for a vowel. A consonant and a vowel are completely different entities and they’ll never mean the same, no matter how many times you write them with the same symbol (in this case the waw). If the name was meant to mean Beloved, then it was perhaps given to David after he became king and beloved. In his father’s household he wasn’t much of a hit, after all. But then, if this name was meant to mean Beloved, why hasn’t history given us the tales of King Dod? Harris Archer Waltke (HAW) Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament lists David under dod but admits that “the name is conjectured to come from dod, beloved, but the etymology is uncertain. It has been compared with the Mari term dawidum, Lsquo;leader,’ but this too is unsure.” Brown Driver Briggs (BDB) Theological Dictionary too lists the name David under the derivations of the root dod, but also makes mention of A.H. Sayce’s note of a sun-god named Dodo — דודה — which was worshipped in East-Jordan Israel. Zion, now known as the city of David, was then apparently known as the city of the god Dod. But where Dod went the way of the dodo, king David is eternally remembered as the beloved king. And this is curious for more than one reason. But whatever the reason, Israel’s identity of a Kingdom is associated with a king whose name is not a regular Hebrew word, but which is spelled identical to the word for Beloved, and pronounced completely different. Perhaps, and this is a wild guess, the name Dod was altered to David to charge it with the tone of the word דוה (dawa), meaning infirmity.. † Now from the Strong’s Concordance, where we find that it is Hebrew word number: H1732, - דּוד, or דּויד, - dâvid, or dâvı̂yd, pronounced - daw-veed’, or daw-veed’ and means: From the same as H1730; loving; David, the youngest son of Jesse: - David. Total KJV occurrences: 1076.. † Now from the Smith’s Bible Dictionary, where we find that the description of David in the Smith’s Bible Dictionary is extensive and too long to post here; so, I’ll instead just post the link to it: David.

Solomon=Solomon was one of, if not the greatest king to rule Israel. Though his father David was and is the king by which all other kings were compared against, it was Solomon who Father came to in that dream where He asked Solomon “Ask what I shall give thee?” Solomon replied in I Kings 3: I Kings 3:6 And Solomon said “Thou hast shewed unto Thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before Thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with Thee; and Thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that Thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. [3:7] And now, O LORD my God, Thou hast made Thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in. [3:8] And Thy servant is in the midst of Thy People which Thou hast chosen, a great People, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. [3:9] Give therefore Thy servant an understanding heart to judge Thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this Thy so great a People?”. He took over the throne from his father when he was at the tender age of 19,—he wasn’t Israel’s youngest king, there were several others who had that distinction—and he reigned for forty years, from 920–880 B.C., he was 59 years old when he returned Home to Father in heaven. † Solomon accomplished a lot of things during his reign, and a lot of good things. For the first 20+ years he did very well: He built the Temple; the palatial complex; the House of the Cedar of Lebanon; the house for pharaoh's daughter: the queen; and he brought in much gold and other sundries. It wasn’t until he got the “big head” after he completed all his building and Father appeared to him, Blessing him with all the wisdom he had, and then wanting to show off that Father Given Wisdom. It was then he started succumbing to the lust of the flesh, and he started accumulating his wives and concubines, and then started worshipping and building altars for his foreign wives’ false gods, and causing Israel to worship them too. Remember, all of the things that Solomon and Israel did, bringing in the wealth of the world by ships, and it happened in a short span of only forty years. † The etymology name Solomon comes from the fertile and familiar root שלם (shalem), meaning to be unbroken or whole: The noun שלמה (shilluma) is identical to our name Sholomoh, and is used in Psalm 91:8 in the meaning of reward or recompense (of the wicked). This illustrates the perhaps anti-intuitive notion that a bad result of something that was bad to begin with, is still very good (or rather: just). Although Psalm 91 is anonymous and tradition demands that Solomon is the great peace-king, his name may have stemmed from David’s deep remorse and grief over losing Solomon’s older sibling. When Solomon is born, the prophet Nathan receives word from Father that this child is loved by Him. Hence He names him Jedidiah—The name Jedidiah is a combination of two elements: The second element of the name Jedidiah is יה, which is the commonly accepted abbreviated form of the Tetragrammaton יהוה, which is YHVH, or Yahveh, the sacred Name of Father. The first element of the name Jedidiah comes from the verb ידד (yadad) , meaning to love—as can be read in II Samuel 12:25, although this name is, sadly, never again used.. † Now from the Strong’s Concordance, we find that it is Hebrew word number: H8010, - שׁלמה, - shelômôh, pronounced - shel-o-moי, and means: From H7965; peaceful; Shelomoh, David’s successor: - Solomon. Total KJV occurrences: 293.. † Now from the Smith’s Bible Dictionary, where we read: The description of Solomon in the Smith’s Bible Dictionary is extensive and too long to post here; so, I’ll instead just post the link to it: Solomon.

Israel=The kingdom of Israel consists and comprises of both a People, and a territory. The People were and are our Father, our Creator ELOHIM’s Chosen People. Chosen only in the sense that they were the lineage through which He Himself will\would be born in the flesh as His Only Begotten Son: Jesus Christ. That lineage began with Adam, then his son Seth, down to Noah, then his son Shem, down to Abram, then his son Isaac, and the his son Jacob whom Father renamed Israel, on to his two sons Levi—actually, Levi’s son Amram amd his son Aaron and his descendants—and Judah—and his son Pharez, then his son Hezron, then his son Aram, then his Amminadab, then his son Nashon, then his son Salmon, then his son Boaz, then his son Obed, then his son Jesse, then his son David. Both lineages culminated and terminated at Mary—cousin to Elisabeth, wife of Zacharias, whom the Holy Spirit overshadowed while she was yet a virgin, and after Michael the arch angel had told would come to pass. When Father had changed Jacob’s name to Israel and then he had his twelve sons—Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Napthali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin—who went into captivity to Egypt for those 200 plus years, when Father led them out by the hand of Moses, they became known collectively as, the House of Israel. As for the territory, see the links of the 2 maps in the verse to understand the land mass which comprised the territory of Israel. † As to the etymology of the name Israel, according to Abarim Publications, the meaning of the name Israel is not clear; but, yet, it’s huge. The meaning of Israel is not singular and distinct; but, consists of many nuances and facets and bulges with theological significance. Judging from Genesis 32:28, the form ישראל (Israel) appears to be a compilation of two elements. The first one is the noun אל (EL), the common abbreviation of ELOHIM—from Dr. Bullinger’s Companion Bible Appendices: ELOHIM—the genus God. EL is essentially the Almighty, though the word is never so rendered. EL is ELOHIM in all His strength and power. It is rendered “God” as ELOHIM is, but EL is God the Omnipotent. ELOHIM is God the Creator putting His omnipotence into operation: The second part of our name appears to be related to the verb שרה (sara): However, even though Genesis 32:28 uses the enigmatic verb שרה — which is assumed to mean to struggle but which might something else entirely — it’s by no means certain that this verb is etymologically linked to our name Israel. When we say, “we named him Bob because that seemed like a good idea,” we certainly don’t mean to say that the name Bob means “good idea.” The first part of the name Israel looks a lot like the verb שרה that explains this name; but, this apparent link is possibly a mere case of word-play. In fact, the name Israel may have more to do with the verb ישר (yashar), meaning to be upright. Note that the difference between the letter שׂ (sin) as found in the name ישׂראל (Israel) and the letter שׁ (shin) as found in the verb ישׁר (yashar) didn’t exist in Biblical times and as it was invented more than a thousand years after the Bible was written: For a meaning of the name Israel, New Open Bible Study Edition (NOBSE) Study Bible Name List, Brown Driver Briggs (BDB) Theological Dictionary and Alfred Jones (Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names) unanimously go with the verb שרה of which the meaning is unsure. Undeterred, NOBSE reads God Strives, and BDB proposes El Persisteth or El Persevereth. Alfred Jones figures that the mysterious verb שרה might very well mean “to be princely,” and assumes that the name Israel consists of a future form of this verb, which hence would mean to become princely. And so Jones interprets the name Israel with He Will Be Prince With God.. † Now from the Strong’s Concordance, where we find that it is Hebrew word number: H3478, - ישׂראל, - Yiśrâ'êl, pronounced - Yis-raw-ale’, and means: From H8280 and H410; he will rule as God; Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity: - Israel. Total KJV occurrences: 2,576.. † Now from the Smith’s Bible Dictionary: The description of Israel in the Smith’s Bible Dictionary is extensive and too long to post here; so, I’ll instead just post the link to it: Israel.

23:2 Princes, Priests,
   Assemblage.

I Chronicles 23:2 And he gathered together all the princes of Israel, with the priests and the Levites (attached; or, joined) (lay-veeי).   —>
Here, David gathers together the leader or head—called “the princes”—of each Tribe in order to make it known what he, the king, wants to come to pass. In this gathering, he also had the High Priest, the Priesthood, and the Levites so that they too would know his desires.

What we read in these last five Chapters of this First Book of the Chronicles is written nowhere else in Father’s Word.

Levi (Levites)=Levi was Jacob’s third eldest son, he too was born of Leah. † Levi was confederate with his older brother Simeon in exacting revenge on the Hivites for Shechem’s raping their sister Dinah, and as such, during the Blessing by their father Jacob, Levi received the same as Simeon. Genesis 49:5 Simeon and Levi are brethren; instruments of cruelty are in their habitations. [49:6] O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall. [49:7 Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.. That being said; it was the descendants of Levi—namely Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, then Kohath’s grandchildren: Aaron, Miriam, Moses, and then Aaron’s sons and so forth—whom Father choose to bestow His Priesthood upon, Moses is included in this grouping as, he was Aaron and Miriam’s younger brother, and it was he whom Father choose to lead our forefathers up out of their bondage to the Egyptians. Yes, Levi’s descendants were indeed scattered throughout Israel; however, it was because they were the Priesthood and they became Father’s Inheritance: Numbers 18:20 And the LORD spake unto Aaron, “Thou shalt have no inheritance in their land, neither shalt thou have any part among them: I am thy part and thine inheritance among the children of Israel. [18:21 And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.   —>   There is no finer inheritance. † During the Blessing of Moses in Deuteronomy 33 we read: Deuteronomy 33:8 And of Levi he said, “Let Thy Thummim and thy Urim be with Thy holy one, Whom Thou didst prove at Massah, And with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah; [33:9] Who said unto his father and to his mother, ‘I have not seen him; ’ Neither did he acknowledge his brethren, Nor knew his own children: For they have observed Thy word, And kept Thy covenant. [33:10] They shall teach Jacob Thy judgments, and Israel Thy law: they shall put incense before Thee, and whole burnt sacrifice upon Thine altar. [33:11] Bless, LORD, his substance, And accept the work of his hands: Smite through the loins of them that rise against him, And of them that hate him, that they rise not again. ”   —>   Levi’s descendants would become the High Priest and Priest line; and, as such, the High Priest would bear the Urim and Thummim, the two stones which in the Hebrew language means “lights,” and “perfection.” “Lights” in the manner that brought all judgments of gilt to light, and “perfection” for moral perfection, and thus, innocence. The two stones were part of the Priest’s Breastplate and worn in a bag which was attached to the Breastplate. When any legal decision needed to be made, the Priest had to be present, especially concerning land or of the such. The Thummim stone would be cast down and the way the stone landed determined innocence or guilt. If a moral decision was to be made the Urim stone was cast, and the pointing determined it to be yes or no, guilt or innocence. The decisions were made on yes or no, right or wrong, and—though this is a bad analogy, it’ll still put it forth—it was sort of like flipping a coin to see what the answer would be; however, the reality was that Father had complete control over the two stones for, it was at His command that the Levites used this method to receive their answer, or judgment. The Levitical Priests were also Father’s choice that shall teach all of the tribes the full Commandments, Judgments, Laws, Ordinances and Statutes of our Father. † Now, as to the numbering of the Levites in the Book of Numbers, the Levites were left out of the numbering of the House of Israel, because Father numbered them separately in Numbers 3 where we read their numbers were: 22,300 males a month old and up; but, in Numbers 4, their numbers were 8,580 ages 30-50. † Levi’s encampment as they came out of Egypt and wandered in the wilderness, was in the midst of the camp, surrounded by all the other Tribes. † The sign on Levi’s Standard was Libra, or more anciently “the Altar.” † There is some controversy about the etymology of the name Levi, the Brown Driver Briggs (BDB) Theological Dictionary suggests that the name Levi was derived from the word Levite, instead of vice versa, and that the word Levite has to do with a Minaean word for priest. Another suggestion is that the name Levi (לוי) is derived from the name Leah (לאה) and means Weary, rather than something else. Harris Archer Waltke (HAW) Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament disagrees with this kind of ‘strong disclaimers’ and (as does New Open Bible Study Edition (NOBSE) Study Bible Name List) derives the name Levi from the verb לוה (lawa) meaning join, be joined. This is the verb that Leah uses when she names Levi, “Now this time my husband will be joined to me, because I have borne to him three sons” (Genesis 29:34).. † Now from the Strong’s Concordance, we find it is Hebrew word number: H3878, - לוי, - lêvı̂y, pronounced - lay-veeי, and means: From H3867; attached; Levi, a son of Jacob: - Levi. See also H3879, H3881 Total KJV occurrances: 66.. † Now from the Smith’s Bible Dictionary, where we read: “The name of the third son of Jacob by his wife Leah. The name, derived from lavah, “to adhere,” gave utterance to the hope of the mother that the affections of her husband, which had hitherto rested on the favored Rachel, would at last be drawn to her: “This time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have borne him three sons” Genesis 29:34. Levi, with his brother Simeon, avenged with a cruel slaughter the outrage of their sister Dinah [DINAH]. Levi, with his three sons, Gershon, Kohath and Merari, went down to Egypt with his father Jacob Genesis 47:11. When Jacob’s death draws near, and the sons are gathered round him, Levi and Simeon hear the old crime brought up again to receive its sentence. They no less than Reuben, the incestuous firstborn, had forfeited the privileges of their birthright Genesis 49:5-7 [LEVITES].”.

23:3-27:34 Princes and
   Priests. Appointments.
23:3-27:34 PRINCES AND
   PRIESTS. APPOINTMENTS.
   (Division)
23:3-26:28 Sacred.
23:3-26:28 SACRED
   APPOINTMENTS.
   (Introversion.)
23:3-5 The dedicated Tribe.

I Chronicles 23:3 Now the Levites were numbered from the age of thirty years and upward: and their number by their polls, man by man, was thirty and eight thousand.  —>
When Father brought our forefathers out of Egypt and told Aaron to take a head-count of the Levites in Numbers 4:3,23,35, and 47, the age requirement was 30 years of age; however, we read in Numbers 8:24 that, Father changed it to the age of 25 years of age; and we’ll see when we come to verse v23:27 below that, David changes it again to the age of 20 with some of his final words to his son Solomon.

Thirty years and upward= The age requirement was originally 30 years of age to 50 years old, but as I noted a second ago, David changed it to 20 years of age, so why the scribe changed it back to 30 in this verse is unclear. But, in any case, 38,000 is a pretty hefty number of Levites aged 30-50 years old.

I Chronicles 23:4 Of which, twenty and four thousand were to set forward the work of the house of the LORD; and six thousand were officers and judges:   —>   Set forward= This just means that these 24,000 Levites were the over-seers of Father’s Temple and surrounding area. They took care of it’s cleanliness, up-keep and whatnot, and also all the duties therein.

The other 6,000 mentioned here were those Levites—notice I said Levites, not priests, and that what these were, Levites—who were scattered all throughout Israel performing the duty of Judging matters in order that everybody did not have to travel to Jerusalem to have their case heard. Remember, during Moses’ time when his father in-law came to visit him, he recommended to Moses that he have help judging cases, and at that time Moses appointed 70 Levites to assist him.

I Chronicles 23:5 Moreover four thousand were porters; and four thousand praised the LORD with the instruments “which I made,” said David, “to praise therewith.”   —>   As we read a moment ago in the last verse, there were 38,000: 24,000 were the overseers of Father’s Temple; 6,000 were judges and scribes totalling 30,000; and now we have the remaining 8,000; 4,000 who were porters and 4,000 who were specifically tasked with offering up praise and worship of\to Father.

Four thousand were porters=Back in I Chronicles 9:21-22, there were 212 gatekeepers for Father’s Tabernacle, we also read in Nehemiah 11:19 that there were 172 which kept the gates in the villages, and when we come to I Chronicles 26, we’ll read of there being 93 chiefs dedicated and set aside for the Future Temple.

Porters=We’ll be reading more of these porters when we come to I Chronicles 26; but, these “porters” were the doorkeepers, and/or security forces for Father’s Temple. Now, some might question why Father’s Temple would need security but, I can think of several reasons and right off the top of my head, because of all the funds which were taken into the Treasuries, recall from our last Chapter I Chronicles 22:14, that David stated that he collected “an hundred thousand talents of gold, and a thousand thousand talents of silver; and of brass and iron without weight.”. I don’t care how you slice it, that was\is a huge temptation for some.

23:6 Division. Courses of
   the priests.

I Chronicles 23:6 And David divided them into courses among the sons of Levi, namely, Gershon (a refugee; or, exile) (gay-resh-omeי), Kohath (to ally oneself; allied; or, assembly) (keh-hawthי), and Merari (bitter; and, bitter, unhappy) (mer-aw-reeי).   —>   Gershon, Kohath and Merari were the three sons of the patriarch Levi, son of Jacob, who was the grandson of Abraham. All three of Levi’s sons were born to him prior to our forefathers going into captivity to the Egyptians, some 780+ years ago. So, we’we obviously not going to discuss his sons here in these next few verses and Chapters; but, their descendants.

Divided them into courses= Here we see David beginning to set the three sons of Levi for their specific tasks which will become more clear and detailed in our next Chapter.

Gershon=Gershon was Levi’s first born son with his wife whose name is never mentioned in Father’s Word. † Gershon is mentioned in 18 verses with 18 matches in Father’s Word, for the name and Strong’s Hebrew word associated with it: H1648; all of them are either of him in the genealogical listings, or of his descendants—the Gershonites H1649—again, either in the genealogical listings, of them receiving their inheritance of land, or of them receiving their service of the Tabernacle. † Of the man himself we know nothing about, except to say that he was part of the 70 Israelites who went down into Egypt to escape the famine which had encompassed all the land. We don’t know when he died and returned Home to Father, or what age he was when he did so. Let’s turn to Numbers 3 and read of the responsibility of Gershon’s descendants concerning their Ministerial\Priestly Duties: Numbers 3:25 And the charge of the sons of the Gershon in the tabernacle of the congregation shall be the tabernacle, and the tent, and the covering thereof, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. Numbers 3:26 And the hangings of the court, and the curtain for the door of the court,which is by the tabernacle, and by the altar round about, and the cords of it for all the service thereof.   —>   The duties and responsibilities of the Gershonites were the safeguarding, the setting up and taking down, and the carrying of the tent, and of all the coverings of the tent and doors etc.; in other words, all the canvas\cloth items concerning the tent and thereof belong to the Gershonites. † We can see the number of “and(s)” within these two verses (just like in Genesis 1, and many other places throughout Father’s Word) and can know that they are a polysyndeton; meaning, there is much more than just what is being said in these verses. † Levi’s encampment as they came out of Egypt and wandered in the wilderness was in the midst of the camp, surrounded by all the other Tribes, Gershon’s particular encampment was behind the Tabernacle, westward. † The etymology of the name Gershon is probably the same name as Gershom, derived of the verb גרש (garash), meaning to drive or cast out: The waw-nun extension denotes a personification of the root. Gershon means Expelled One or Exiled One, and the meaning may have more to do with the fact that he\his descendants were surpassed in fame by the younger brethren of Kohath, from whom descended Moses and Aaron, and then of course, the line of Father’s Priests.. † Now from the Strong’s Concordance, where we find that it is Hebrew word number: H1648, - גֵּרְשׁוֹן, or גֵּרְשׁוֹם, - gêreshôn or gêreshôm, pronounced – gay-resh-omeי or gay-resh-oneי, and means: From H1644; a refugee; Gereshon or Gereshom, an Israelite: - Gershon, Gershom. Total KVJ occurrences: 18.. † Now from the Smith’s Bible Dictionary, where we read: “The eldest of the three sons of Levi, born before the descent of Jacob’s family into Egypt Genesis 46:11; Exodus 6:16. But, though the eldest born, the families of Gershon were outstripped in fame by their younger brethren of Kohath, from whom sprang Moses and the priestly line of Aaron.”.

Kohath=Kohath was Levi’s second oldest son, younger than Gershon and older than Merrari. We also know that he had at least one sister whose name was Jochebed, and whom his son Amram will marry. (Think of the age difference between Levi’s daughter who married her nephew, Levi’s grandson, who bare Aaron, Miriam and Moses, that made Aaron, Miriam and Moses both Grand-children [grandchildren through Miriam] and great grand-children [great grand-children through Amram]) It was through Kohath, then to his son Aaron, that the High-Priest line would flow. † The name Kohath and the Strong’s Hebrew word number associated with it: H6955, are mentioned in 29 verses with 32 matches in Father’s Word, all of them are either of him in the genealogical listings, or of his descendants—the Kohathites, H6956—again, either in the genealogical listings, of them receiving their inheritance of land, or of them receiving their service of the Tabernacle. Of the man himself we know nothing about, except to say that he was part of the 70 Israelites who went down into Egypt to escape the famine which had encompassed all the land. † We know that Kohath’s father Levi was born in 1749B.C.; but we don’t know how old he was when he sired Kohath, we know that Levi died in 1612B.C. at the age of 137, we also know that Kohath died when he was 133 years old; further, we know that Moses was born in the year 1571B.C., Levi only missed Moses’ birth by 41 years, so it’s very well possible that Kohath was alive during Moses’ birth; and, most likely for sure the birth(s) of Moses’ older sister and brother: Miriam and Aaron. † Let’s turn to Numbers 3 and read of the responsibility of Kohath’s descendants concerning their Ministerial\Priestly Duties: Numbers 3:28 In the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, were eight thousand and six hundred, keeping the charge of the sanctuary.   —>   So, we see that the Kohathites charge was the Sanctuary, let’s skip down to verse v3:31 and read what else was their charge: Numbers 3:31 And their charge shall be the ark, and the table, and the candlestick, and the altars, and the vessels of the sanctuary wherewith they minister, and the hanging, and all the service thereof.   —>   Their duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to the sanctuary and the instruments thereof; but, they also have the responsibility for Father’s Ark. Whenever the encampment moves, these are all the things they are responsible for taking down, carrying and then setting up when they stop, plus carrying Father’s Ark. [3:32] And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall be chief over the chief of the Levites, and have the oversight of them that keep the charge of the sanctuary.   —>   This is obviously after Eleazar’s father—Kohath’s grandson—Aaron had died and returned Home to Father. Eleazar’s duties and responsibilities include not only being a priest but, also he is to ensure that the sanctuary is properly taken care of. † We know that Levi’s encampment as they came out of Egypt and wandered in the wilderness was in the midst of the camp, surrounded by all the other Tribes, Kohath’s particular encampment was beside the Tabernacle, southward. † We find while researching the etymology of the name Kohath that some commentators (New Open Bible Study Edition (NOBSE) Study Bible Name List, and the Jones’ Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names) relate this name to a root that may or may not be used in the Bible (yes, namely in Genesis 49:10, says Alfred Jones; no say most others) but which occurs in cognate languages: the verb קהת (qahath), meaning to collect or assemble. Others rumor about another unused root that means allegiance, or relations with the verb קהה (qaha), be blunt or dull, as used in Jeremiah 31:29 or Ecclesiastes 10:10. Jones’ Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names points towards the Shiloh prophecy of Genesis 49:10, one of two places in the Bible where the word קהת occurs not in the meaning of the name Kohath (the other being Proverbs 30:17). Jones generously translates this word here with gathering (“and to him shall the gathering of the people be”), but others are not so sure. The meaning of this word is somewhat disputed, reveals Harris Archer Waltke (HAW) Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Most popular translations derive it from the noun יקהה (yiqha), meaning obedience, from the assumed root יקה (yqh): The Septuagint, however, and with it some modern translations, connect this word to קוה (qawa), to wait for, hope, expect, and translate this word with expectation: The contexts of both occurrences of the illusive word קהת and thus the name Kohath, seem to favor the meaning of Obedience, which would also makes the most sense as meaning of the name of this famous Levite. For a meaning of the name Kohath, NOBSE Study Bible Name List appears to join Jones’ Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names, or goes with קוה (qawa) and reads Assembly. Jones’ Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names reads Congregation. Brown Driver Briggs (BDB) Theological Dictionary does not interpret our name and lists it alphabetically, and not under some specific root.. † Now from the Strong’s Concordance, where we find that it is Hebrew word number: H6955, - קְהָת, - qehâth, pronounced - keh-hawthי, and means: From an unused root meaning to ally oneself; allied; Kehath, an Israelite: - Kohath. Total KJV occurrences: 32.. † Now from the Smith’s Bible Dictionary where we read: “Second of the three sons of Levi, from whom the three principal divisions of the Levites derived their origin and their name Genesis 46:11; Exodus 6:16. In the journeyings of the tabernacle of the sons of Kohath (Kohathites) had charge of the most holy portions of the vessels Numbers 4:1. ... Of the personal history of Kohath we know nothing, except that he came down to Egypt with Levi and Jacob, Genesis 46:11 that his sister was Jochebed, Exodus 6:20 and that he lived to the age of 133 years Exodus 6:18.”.

Merari=Merari was the youngest son of Levi, he was brother to 2 other sons, Gershon and Kohath, and 1 sister Jochebed. † There are 38 verses with 39 matches in Father’s Word for the name Merari and it’s associated Strong’s Hebrew word number: H4847, all of them are either of him in the genealogical listings, or of his descendants—the Merarites H4847—again, either in the genealogical listings, of them receiving their inheritance of land, or of them receiving their service of the Tabernacle. Of the man Merari himself, we know nothing about, except to say that he was part of the 70 Israelites who went down into Egypt to escape the famine which had encompassed all the land. We don’t know when he died and returned Home to Father, or what age he was when he did so. † Let’s turn to Numbers 3 and read of the responsibility of Merari’s descendants concerning their ministerial\priestly duties: Numbers 3:36 And under the custody and charge of the sons of Merari shall be the boards of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and the sockets thereof, and all the vessels thereof, and all that serveth thereto, [3:37] And the pillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords.   —>   The duties and responsibilities of the Merarites are the safeguarding, setting up and taking down, and carrying of the boards for the tabernacle, the bars of the tent and doors etc., in other words, all the wood items and fasteners, plus all the tie back fasteners for holding the cloth doors open concerning the tent and the court thereof belong to the Merarites. Again, we can see the number of “and(s)” within these two verses (just like in Genesis 1) and can know that they are a polysyndeton, meaning there is much more than just what is being said in these verses. † We know that Merari’s father Levi’s encampment as they came out of Egypt and wandered in the wilderness was in the midst of the camp, surrounded by all the other Tribes, Merari’s particular encampment was beside the Tabernacle, northward. † The etymology of the name Merari looks like it has to do with the verb מרר (marar) meaning be bitter, strengthen, strong: The letter yod on which our name Merari ends may be due to a possessive form, and the name Merari may mean My Bitterness or My Strength. For a meaning of the name Merari, New Open Bible Study Edition (NOBSE) Study Bible Name List reads Bitter. Jones’ Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names reads Bitterness.. † Now from the Strong’s Concordance, where we find that it is Hebrew word number: H4847, - מְרָרִי, - merârı̂y, pronounced - mer-aw-reeי; and means: From H4843, bitter; Merari, an Israelite: - Merari. See also H4848. Total KJV occurrences: 39.. † Now from the Smith’s Bible Dictionary, where we read: “Third son of Levi and head of the third great division of the Levites, the Merarites Genesis 46:8,11. At the time of the exodus and the numbering in the wilderness, the Merarites consisted of two families, the Mahlites and the Mushites, Mahli and Mushi being either the two sons of the son and grandson of Merari I Chronicles 6:19,47. Their chief at that time was Zuriel. Their charge was the cords of the tabernacle and the court, and all the tools connected with setting them up. In the division of the land by Joshua, the merarites had twelve cities assigned to them, out of Reuben, Gad and Zebulun Joshua 21:7; 34-40; I Chronicles 6:63; 77-81. In the days of Hezekiah the Merarites were still flourishing II Chronicles 29:12,15.”.

23:7-11 Gershonites.

I Chronicles 23:7 Of the Gershonites were, Laadan, and Shimei.   —>   Over the next few verses and Chapters, I’ll not provide a detailed description of each of the names. I will give an overview of what the family was responsible for, i.e., concerning the Gershonites, we read in I Chronicles 26:21-22 that, they were responsible for the treasures of the House of the LORD. — Something to remember when discussing the Treasuries brethren, there were several treasuries scattered throughout the territories, therefore, there were several families who were responsible for the different treasuries. We find that they are also titled differently, i.e., Treasuries of the House of the LORD; Treasuries of the House of God; Treasuries of the Dedicated Things etc..

I Chronicles 23:8 The sons of Laadan; the chief was Jehiel, and Zetham, and Joel, three.

I Chronicles 23:9 The sons of Shimei; Shelomith, and Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the chief of the fathers of Laadan.

I Chronicles 23:10 And the sons of Shimei were, Jahath, Zina, and Jeush, and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei.

I Chronicles 23:11 And Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second: but Jeush and Beriah had not many sons; therefore they were in one reckoning, according to their father’s house.   —>   In addition to their current duties of being responsible for the Treasuries, we read in Numbers 3 that the Ministerial\Priestly Duties of the Gershonites also included: Numbers 3:25 And the charge of the sons of the Gershon in the tabernacle of the congregation shall be the tabernacle, and the tent, and the covering thereof, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. Numbers 3:26 And the hangings of the court, and the curtain for the door of the court,which is by the tabernacle, and by the altar round about, and the cords of it for all the service thereof.   —>   The duties and responsibilities of the Gershonites were the safeguarding, the setting up and taking down, and the carrying of the tent, and of all the coverings of the tent and doors etc.; in other words, all the animal skinned, canvas and\or cloth items concerning the tent and thereof, belong to the Gershonites.

23:12-20 Kohathites.

I Chronicles 23:12 The sons of Kohath; Amram (high people; or, an exalted people) (am-rawmי), Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four.   —>   I’ll only be covering Amram from this verse because, it is through Amram that Aaron, Miriam and Moses will be born, and both the seed-line to Jesus being born in the flesh, and the Priestly-line will continue.

Amram=Amram was the eldest son of Kohath, grandson of Levi, and brother to Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. † There are 12 verses with 14 matches in Father’s Word for the name Amram and its associated Strong’s Hebrew word number: H6019, all of them are either of him in the genealogical listings, or of his descendants—the Amramites H6020—again, either in the genealogical listings, of them receiving their inheritance of land, or of them receiving their service of the Tabernacle. † Of the man Amram himself, we know nothing about as there is nothing written of him in Father’s Word, except to say that he married his father’s sister—in other words, his aunt—Jochebed—thus making Miriam and Moses both grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Levi—that he fathered Aaron, Miriam and Moses, and then he died at the ripe old age of 137. † The etymology of the name Amram, as indicated by some scholars, clearly resembles the root group עמרss(יaram): The additional letter mem could be a remnant of a plural form, or even some other word. Still, other scholars insist that the name Amram doesn’t come from עמר, but consists of two elements: If the name Amram consists of two elements, the first element comes from the assumed root עמם: The second part of the name Amram comes from the root-verb רום (rum), meaning high or lofty: Jones’ Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names reads People Of Exaltation. New Open Bible Study Edition (NOBSE) Study Bible Name List reads A People Exalted. Brown Driver Briggs (BDB) Theological Dictionary lists the above mentioned possibility, but also insists on the existence of the root עמר III, which in cognate languages means to live, to live long or even to worship. BDB doesn’t translate the name, or explains where the letter mem may have come from, but it may be a remnant of a plural. That way the name Amram may also mean Long Lives or Worshippings.. † Now from the Strong’s Concordance, where we find that it is Hebrew word number: H6019, - עַמְרָם, - ‛amrâm, pronounced - am-rawmי, and means: Probably from H5971 and H7311; high people; Amram, the name of two Israelites: - Amram. Total KJV occurrences: 14.. † Now from the Smith’s Bible Dictionary, where we read: “A Levite of the family of the Kohathites, and father of Moses Exodus 6:18,20.”.

I Chronicles 23:13 The sons of Amram; Aaron (a teacher; or, lofty) (a-har-oneי) and Moses (Drawing out [of the water], that is, rescued; or, “drawn,” i.e. from the water) (mo-shehי): and Aaron was separated, that he should sanctify the most holy things, he and his sons for ever, to burn incense before the LORD, to minister unto Him, and to bless in His name for ever.   —>   Several things to look at in this verse brethren: first, as only the sons are addressed and\or mentioned, Aaron and Moses’ sister Miriam isn’t mentioned;

Aaron was separated=Yes, Aaron was separated, but we find that the word separated as used in this verse means: “selected,” and in the Strong’s Concordance, we find that it is Hebrew word number: H914, - בָּדַל, - bâdal, pronounced - baw-dalי, and means: A primitive root; to divide (in various senses literally or figuratively, separate, distinguish, differ, to select, etc.): - (make, put) difference, divide (asunder), (make) separate (self, -ation), sever (out), X utterly. Total KJV occurrences: 42.. It was Father Who chose and selected Aaron to be the first High Priest of His. It was Father Who also selected the sons of Kohath to be His Priests forever, and it is why we can have the saying “all priests are Levites; but, not all Levites are priests.” What do I mean by this, it’s simple really as, Levi had three sons but, only those descended through Kohath could\would become the priest line;

Holy=from Dr. Bullinger’s Companion Bible, page 76, where we read: “This is ever the cry and noblest praise of all of Father’s saints and can be compared with Exodus 15:11: Exodus 15:11 Who is like unto Thee, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like Thee, glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, doing wonders?. Holy means separated or set apart for Father. It is always rendered of the Hebrew word “Kodesh” from the Strong’s Concordance where we find that it is Hebrew word number: H6944, - קֹדֶשׁ, - qôdesh, pronounced - koי-desh, and means: From H6942; a sacred place or thing; rarely abstractly sanctity: - a consecrated (thing), a dedicated (thing), a hallowed (thing), a holiness, (X most) holy (X day, portion, thing), saint, sanctuary. Total KJV occurrences: 470., except in Psalms 42:4 where is it rendered “Hagag” H2287, - חָגַג, - châgag, pronounced - khaw-gagי, and means: A primitive root; compare H2283; H2328; properly to move in a circle, that is, (specifically) to march in a sacred procession, to observe a festival; by implication to be giddy: - celebrate, dance, (keep, hold) a (solemn) feast (holiday), reel to and fro. Total KJV occurrences: 16. = holy day, and Deuteronomy 33:8, Psalms 16:2, 86:2, 89:19, 145:17 where it is rendered “Hasid” H2623, - חָסִיד, - châsı̂yd, pronounced - khaw-seedי, and means: From H2616; properly kind; that is, (religiously) pious (a saint): - godly (man), good, holy (one), merciful, saint, [un-] godly. total KJV occurrences: 32. = favor or grace. “Kodesh” must have one identical meaning (as above) in all passages; and does not imply moral quality except when used of God Himself. It can also be rendered “consecrated,” “dedicated,” “hallowed,” “holiness,” “saint,” and “sanctuary.”.”

Aaron=Aaron was the oldest son of Amram and his wife Jochebed, he was brother to Miriam and Moses, and both grandson and great-grandson of Levi through Levi’s second oldest son Kohath, and Levi’s daughter—Kohath’s—sister Jochebed. † There are 331 verses with 350 matches for the name Aaron and its associated Strong’s Hebrew word number: 175 in Father’s Word. † We are introduced to Aaron in Father’s Word, after being introduced to his younger brother Moses, when Father instructs Moses to return to Egypt to tell pharaoh to let His People go and Moses tells Father that he is of slow speech and tongue, and Father becomes angry with Moses and tells him that his brother the Levite will meet him as he is returning, and will be glad in his heart to see him, and he’ll do the speaking for Moses, when Mosses cannot find the words. Aaron does indeed meet Moses as he returns to Egypt and he does assist him every step of the way while Moses tries to convince pharaoh to let the Israelites leave their bondage to the Egyptians. After pronouncing 10 plagues upon Egypt, the last being the first born of every human and animal who was not covered by the blood of the slain lamb, pharaoh had finally had enough, and he told Moses to take the Israelites to flee Egypt. We read in Exodus 6 that before they fled Egypt, Aaron had already taken to wife Elisheba who bare him his 4 sons: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. We further read in Exodus 6 that Aaron’s third oldest son Eleazar was also old enough and had already taken a wife before they fled Egypt. † We discover several things in Exodus 7, among them were that, Moses was 80 and Arron 83 when they were convincing pharaoh to let them leave Egypt—that made Miriam either 81 or 82—and that Father deemed, or elevated Aaron to Prophet status. Aaron was instrumental in the defeat of the Amalekites in that, as the war wore on, Moses’ arms grew heavy from holding them up—which, so long as he held them up, Israel was having the victory—and every time he lowered them, Aaron and Hur braced his arms until the going down of the sun and our forefather’s had the victory. We find in Exodus 24 Father calling Moses up onto Mount Sinai to give him the orders of the Priesthood and the Ten Commandments, while there Father tells Moses in Exodus 28 that Moses was to take Aaron and his sons from amongst all Israel, for they were to minister to Father as His Priests. Then sadly, we read in Exodus 32 that while Moses was still up receiving the Ten Commandments, certain men came to Aaron and convinced him that Moses wasn’t coming back down off the Mount; therefor, Aaron should fashion a new god for them to follow after, one made from gold, a golden calf such as they worshiped while in Egypt. I say sadly because, we read that Aaron complied without even putting up any resistence to their demands, or fight for his brother Moses. We read in Leviticus 8 of the consecration of Aaron and his sons as Father’s Priests. † We find while researching the etymology of the name Aaron that, the name is not a regular Hebrew word and that’s possibly because it originated elsewhere (probably Egypt). But, since most names in the Bible mean something and foreign names often were transliterated into Hebrew in such a way that they began to mean something in Hebrew, it’s interesting to see what the name Aaron may have meant to a Hebrew audience. Jones’ Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names derives Aaron from the Hebrew word הר (har) meaning mountain, hill (and a mountain is sometimes used as metaphor for a large group of people). From this perspective, the name Aaron is related to the Hebrew names Ararat and Haran. Another way of looking at the name Aaron (as does New Open Bible Study Edition (NOBSE) Study Bible Name List) is to follow the Hebrew root אורss(יor) meaning to be or become light: There may even be relations between the name Aaron and the word ארוןss(יaron), meaning chest or Ark (see the name Aran). This word is used for an offer chest (II Kings 12:10), a sarcophagus (Genesis 50:26) but mostly to indicate the Ark of the Covenant (Exodus 25:10). And finally we note the curious similarity between the name אהרן (Aaron; spelled with the letter ה) and the adjective אחרון (aharon; spelled with the letter ח), meaning hindermost, latter or last. See any of the אחר-names (like Aharah) for more details on this word.. † Now from the Strong’s Concordance, where we find that it is Hebrew word number: H175, - אַהֲרוֹן, - 'ahărôn, pronounced - a-har-oneי, and means: Of uncertain derivation; Aharon, the brother of Moses: - Aaron. Total KJV occurrences: 347.. † Now from the Smith’s Bible Dictionary, where we read: “The son of Amram and Jochebed, and the older brother of Moses and Miriam Numbers 26:59; 33:39. He was a Levite, and is first mentioned in Exodus 4:14. He was appointed by YHVH to be the interpreter Exodus 4:16, of his brother Moses, who was “slow of speech;” and accordingly he was not only the organ of communication with the Israelites and with Pharaoh Exodus 4:30;7:20, but also the actual instrument of working most of the miracles of the Exodus Exodus 7:19, etc.. On the way to Mount Sinai, during the battle with Amalek, Aaron with Hur stayed up the weary hands of Moses when they were lifted up for the victory of Israel Exodus 17:9. He is mentioned as dependent upon his brother and deriving all his authority from him. Left, on Moses’ departure into Sinai, to guide the people, Aaron is tried for a moment on his own responsibility, and he fails from a weak inability to withstand the demand of the people for visible “gods to go before them,” by making an image of YHVH, in the well-known form of Egyptian idolatry (Apis or Mnevis). He repented of his sin, and Moses gained forgiveness for him Deuteronomy 9:20. Aaron was not consecrated by Moses to the new office of the high priesthood Exodus 29:9. From this time the history of Aaron is almost entirely that of the priesthood, and its chief feature is the great rebellion of Korah and the Levites. Leaning, as he seems to have done, wholly on Moses, it is not strange that he should have shared his sin at Meribah and its punishment. See Moses Numbers 20:10-12. Aaron’s death seems to have followed very speedily. It took place on Mount Hor, after the transference of his robes and office to Eleazar Numbers 20:28. This mount is still called the “Mountain of Aaron. ” See Hor. The wife of Aaron was Elisheba Exodus 6:23, and the two sons who survived him Eleazar and Ithamar. The high priesthood descended to the former, and to his descendants until the time of Eli, who, although of the house of Ithamar, received the high priesthood and transmitted it to his children; with them it continued till the accession of Solomon, who took it from Abiathar and restored it to Zadok (of the house of Eleazar). See Abiathar.”.

Moses=Moses was the younger of two sons born to Amram and Jochebed, his older brother was Aaron, and he also had an older sister: Miriam. † Moses was a “type” for our LORD and Saviour Jesus Christ as, Father used him to be a Deliverer and Saviour to our forefathers to bring them out of their bondage to the Egyptians, and into the Promised Land which He had Promised Abraham He would do over 400 years previous. † There are 784 verses with 848 matches for the name Moses and its associated Strong’s Hebrew word number: 4872 in Father’s Word. † We are introduced to him at the time of his birth. He was born while our forefathers were in captivity and bondage to the Egyptians. The pharaoh, or king of Egypt, at the time of his birth had commanded that all the male children of the Israelites be killed as, our forefathers “were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.;” so, in the hopes of saving her son’s life, when he was 3 months old his mother fashioned an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and pitch, and had her daughter Miriam take her brother and set him in his ark in the reeds of the bank of the River Nile, where she watched what would be done to him. Shortly after setting him and his ark in the river, pharaoh’s daughter came down to the river to bathe herself and when she saw the little ark floating in the water, she had one of her maidens fetch it to bring it to her to see what it was. When she opened it, she saw that infant child lying inside and she had compassion on the babe. When Miriam saw that pharaoh’s daughter had compassion, Miriam exposed herself from where she was hiding and asked the young woman if she should go and get an Israelite woman to assist in the nursing of the child? To her delight, the woman said, “Go,” and Miriam ran to her mother and brought her to nurse her own son. Pharaoh’s daughter said to Jochebed, “Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages.,” and Jochebed took her son and nursed him until he grew and then returned him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son, and she named him Moses, hence his name being of foreign derivation, the Latin form of the original Moshe. Translated rather than transliterated, the name means: ““drawn,” i.e. from the water; in the Coptic it means “saved from the water”.” † Moses was born in 1571B.C. and lived a total of 120 years: 40 years in Egypt before being banished by pharaoh after it was discovered that he was not an Egyptian. Steven, in the Book of THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES, gives us this account: Acts 7:24 And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian: [7:25] For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not. [7:26] And the next day he shewed himself unto them as they strove, and would have set them at one again, saying, ‘Sirs, ye are brethren; why do ye wrong one to another?’ [7:27] But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, ‘Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us? [7:28] Wilt thou kill me, as thou diddest the Egyptian yesterday?’ [7:29] Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Madian, where he begat two sons.   —>   Moses married Ziporah while he was in exile and she bare him Gershom and Eliezer. Paul says this of the account of Moses in THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS: Hebrews 11:24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; [11:25] Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; [11:26] Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward. [11:27] By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing Him Who is invisible.; he lived 40 years in exile, again, let’s read Steven’s account: Acts 7:30 And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an Angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush. [7:31] When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the LORD came unto him, [7:32] ‘Saying, I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ Then Moses trembled, and durst not behold. [7:33] Then said the LORD to him, ‘Put off thy shoes from thy feet: for the place where thou standest is holy ground. [7:34] I have seen, I have seen the affliction of My people which is in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and am come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send thee into Egypt.’ [7:35] This Moses whom they refused, saying, ‘Who made thee a ruler and a judge?’ the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the Angel which appeared to him in the bush. [7:36] He brought them out, after that he had shewed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years.; and then, returning to Egypt to lead our forefathers out of Egypt: Acts 7:37 This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, ‘A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; Him shall ye hear.’ [7:38] This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the Angel Which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us: [7:39] To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt,   —>   Our forefathers did indeed try several times to turn back to Egypt and Father became so angry at them that He was going to destroy them and start anew with Moses being the father of the Nation; however, Moses would have none of it, he was a superb intercessor and convinced Father to give our forefathers chance after chance. † Where to begin and what to say concerning Father’s friend, Prophet, Law Giver, and writer of the first five Books of His Word. Surely, it would take a volume in and of itself to fully encapsulate and expound upon all the virtues of Moses the historian, orator, leader, statesman, legislator and patriot. Charlton Heston superbly captured the essence of the man in Cecil B. Demille’s 1956 Block Buster “The 10 COMMANDMENTS;” but, though Charlton did capture Moses’ essence, I’m sure he fell well short of the true character of the man. Moses lived a total of 120 years which were divided into 3 40 year segments and can be summed this way: the first 40 years was his birth until his flight from Egypt to Midian; the second 40 years were of his time in Midian finding himself and then finding Father and learning of Father’s Plan was for him; the third 40 years were of his return to Egypt to lead Father’s Chosen People out of Egypt; but, not before having to convince pharaoh to “let My People go.” Moses led our forefathers through the desert and then the wilderness a total of 40 years to the edge of The Promised Land which he himself got to look at and observe from the top of Mount Nebo; but, like everybody else who fled Egypt 20 years old and above, he didn’t get to enter into the Promised Land, for them it was because of their unbelief, for Moses it was because he struck the Rock when he was supposed to Speak to the Rock. † The etymology of the name Moses along with the original meaning of the name have been long disputed. Jones’ Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names derives it from the Egyptian word for water, mo, and the verb to save out of water, ‘uses.” Brown Driver Briggs (BDB) Theological Dictionary relates it to the Egyptian word mes, mesu, meaning child, son. Then, of course, there is the Hebrew verb משה (masha), which is identical to the name save for the Masoretic additions: Since it is highly unlikely that the Egyptian princess was speaking Hebrew when she said it, Moses was probably known by the Egyptian word for Draw Out. Then, when he began to play a role in a Hebrew text, his name must have been subsequently translated into Hebrew. Harris Archer Waltke (HAW) Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament devotes an article to the name Moses and notes that this name is a יQal active participle’ of the verb masha, and concludes that the name Moses doesn’t mean He Who Was Drawn Out, but rather He Who Draws Out. “The name is explained not because Moses is derived from masha but because it resembles it in sound” (says HAW Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament). HAW further states that the consensus today is that Moses has to do with the Egyptian word for child (as BDB Theological Dictionary reports). This in turn suggests that the emphasis in Exodus 2:10 should not be placed on the verb drew — ‘because I drew him out of the water’ — but on the princess who claims right to adopt and name Moses because she drew him out: And she named him because she drew him out of the water. Also note that the name Moses not only strongly resembles the verb that means to draw out, it obviously also resonates with the action of lending and borrowing, that is: receiving something that may be used at one’s discretion but of which no ownership can be claimed and which some day will have to be returned to the rightful owner.. † Now from the Strong’s Concordance, where we find that it is Hebrew word number: H4872, - מֹשֶׁה, - môsheh, pronounced - mo-shehי, and means: From H4871; drawing out (of the water), that is, rescued; Mosheh, the Israelitish lawgiver: - Moses. Total KJV occurrences: 766.. † Now from the Smith’s Bible Dictionary, where we find that the description of Moses in the Smith’s Bible Dictionary is extensive and is entirely too long to post here; so, I’ll instead just post the link to it: Moses.

I Chronicles 23:14 Now concerning Moses the man of God, his sons were named of the tribe of Levi.   —>   Man of God=I like and will defer to Dr. Bullinger in both his Appendices and in his Companion Bible Commentary; first from his appendix 49: “The first occurrence of this expression is in Deuteronomy 33:1, and is used of Moses. Its use in connection with Moses (Psalm 90, title), who was, par excellence, the prophet, like unto whom Christ was to be “raised up” (Deuteronomy 18:15-19), shows that it is to be understood of what Moses was, namely, “the prophet”. He was so called, not because he foretold, but because he spoke FOR God. This is the meaning of the word “prophet” as taught by its first occurrence in Genesis 20:7. The prophet was God’s “spokesman” (Exodus 4:16. Compare Exodus 7:1).” and now from his Companion Bible Commentary: “See Ps. 90—I’m inserting Dr. Bullinger’s Companion bible Commentary from Psalms 90 here: “There are seven specially so called: Moses (Deut. 33. 1); Samuel (1 Sam. 9. 6-10; cp. v. 14); David (Neh. 12. 24); Elijah (l Kings 17. 18); Elisha (2 Kings 4. 7); Shemaiah (2 Chron. 11. 2); Igdaliah (Jer. 35. 4); and four unnamed (1 Sam. 2. 27. l Kings 13. 1; 20. 28. 2 Chron. 25. 7).”— title. Ap. 49.”.

God=Hebrew ELOHIM—from Dr. Bullinger’s Companion Bible Appendices: ELOHIM—with the article, the one and only True God, the genus God. Father in His Role\title of Creator of All things.

His sons were named of the tribe of Levi=As we’ll discover in the next verse, Moses’ sons names are Gershom and Eleizer. His oldest is named after his great grand-father Levi’s brother: Gershon; and his younger son is named after his brother Aaron’s son: Eleazar.

I Chronicles 23:15 The sons of Moses were, Gershom, and Eliezer. —>
There is nothing of importance written in Father’s Word except who their sons were, as such, I’ll not be giving a detailed description for either of them; nor for any of the men named in the following verses.

I Chronicles 23:16 Of the sons of Gershom, Shebuel (this name should read Jonathan, see my commentary after the verse) was the chief.  —>  Shebuel= Dr. Bullinger notes in his Companion Bible that the Chaldee paraphrase asserts that this name “Shebuel”—which in Hebrew translates, “he returned to יEL, the True God”—was given to Jonathan, after he had returned to the fear of Father. Dr. Bullinger further directs us to his commentary in Judges 18:30 which reads: “Manasseh=This word is one of the four that has a suspended letter. Here the letter (נ), nun (n), is written partly in the line and partly above the line, to show that originally it formed no part of the word, but was put in to make it spell “Manasseh” instead of “Moses”. Jonathan was the grandson of Moses (his contemporary Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, being mentioned in 20. 28). This was done for two reasons: (1) to spare the honour of Moses’ memory and name; (2) to put the sin upon one who committed so gross a sin. The Talmud gives this latter as the reason. Jonathan’s name is omitted in 1 Chron. 23. 15, 16, and 26. 24. The Chald. paraphrase says that “Shebuel”, there substituted, is meant for Jonathan after his repentance and restoration. Shebuel = “he returned to God”. The A. V. follows Sept. and Chald. by putting “Manasseh” in the text; R.V. follows Vulg., and those codices and early editions which have “n” suspended, by putting “Moses” in the text and “Manasseh” in the margin.”.

I Chronicles 23:17 And the sons of Eliezer were, Rehabiah the chief. And Eliezer had none other sons; but the sons of Rehabiah were very many.

I Chronicles 23:18 Of the sons of Izhar; Shelomith the chief.

I Chronicles 23:19 Of the sons of Hebron; Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth.

I Chronicles 23:20 Of the sons of Uzziel; Michah the first, and Jesiah the second.   —>   That completes the descendants of Kohath. We now move on to the descendants of Merari.

23:21-23 Merarites.

I Chronicles 23:21 The sons of Merari; Mahli, and Mushi. The sons of Mahli; Eleazar, and Kish.

I Chronicles 23:22 And Eleazar died, and had no sons, but daughters: and their brethren the sons of Kish took them.

I Chronicles 23:23 The sons of Mushi; Mahli, and Eder, and Jeremoth, three.   —>   That concluded the descendants of Merari.

23:24-32 The service of
   the house.

I Chronicles 23:24 These were the sons of Levi after the house of their fathers; even the chief of the fathers, as they were counted by number of names by their polls, that did the work for the service of the house of the LORD, from the age of twenty years and upward.   —>   Again, we see that by some of David’s last words, the age requirement had been reduced to the age of 20 years old. There is much difference of opinion and speculation by the different scholars as to why the reduction in age. To this author, the one which makes most sense is this: when our Father first brought our forefathers up, out of Egypt and told Moses that He wanted His Priests to be of 25 years of age, it was because a 25 year old was already light-years ahead of a 20 year old in maturity, and given the fact that they had not ever performed Priestly duties while in Egypt, Father wanted to ensure the more mature were responsible. Now, as time wore on, the younger ones could watch and learn and be prepared for when they too became of age to preform their duties at the age of 20. Also, as David changed it at the end of his reign and rule, he knows that his son Solomon will be building Father’s Temple and as such, the Levites will no longer be required to move from location to location, therefore, the strength once needed to bare Father’s Tabernacle and Ark and all their content is no longer required, verse v23:26 below, I think supports my supposition on this.

I Chronicles 23:25 For David said, “The LORD God of Israel hath given rest unto His people, that they may dwell in Jerusalem for ever: —>
Biblical scholar Dr. James Moffatt, who does a superb job with pro-nouns in Father’s Word, translates this verse this way: “(For David said, “The Eternal the God of Israel has granted peace to His People, and He now dwells in Jerusalem for all time,”. This would have come to pass had not our forefathers—beginning with Israel’s third man-king David’s own son: Solomon—started to worship false gods and idols. Father sent Prophet after Prophet to warn them to put away their false gods, but they would’t listen to Him. So, first He divided the Nation into two separate Nations: The House of Israel and The House of Judah; when the House of Israel still wouldn’t stop, He after many years and warnings, sent them into captivity to the Assyrians where many years later they were scattered throughout the world. Then, some two hundred years later, He sent the House of Israel into captivity to the Babylonians for 70 years to try and get their attention to stop their worshiping false gods and idols. But, there shall come a day when He shall dwell in Jerusalem—again, His most favorite place in all His created universe—forever, we can read of this in the last verse of the The Book of Ezekiel, Ezekiel 48:35, which reads: Ezekiel 42:35 It was round about eighteen thousand measures: and the name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there.   —>   The LORD is there=YHVH SHAMMAH in Hebrew, denoting the fact that Father YHVH has gone thither and rests There, with all the Blessing, Peace, Security, and Glory of His Abiding Presence.

I Chronicles 23:26 And also unto the Levites; they shall no more carry the tabernacle, nor any vessels of it for the service thereof.”   —>    Jerusalem was where Father wanted His Children Israel, He caused David to purchase this very spot—it is bought and paid for, with I’m sure, a receipt in hand—and He desired that they no more move from location to location, to rest and abide right here.

I Chronicles 23:27 For by the last words of David the Levites were numbered from twenty years old and above:

I Chronicles 23:28 Because their office was to wait on the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of the LORD, in the courts, and in the chambers, and in the purifying of all holy things, and the work of the service of the house of God;   —>   Office= Office as used in this verse in the Strong’s Concordance is Hebrew word number: H4612, - מַעֲמָד, - ma‛ămâd, pronounced - mah-am-awdי, and means: From H5975; (figuratively) a position: - attendance, office, place, state. Total KJV occurrences: 5. In other words, their “station or assigned duties and responsibilities in and for life” was to assist the descendants of Aaron, i.e., the Priesthood all their days — think of it as their waiting on, or attending to Father.

I Chronicles 23:29 Both for the shewbread, and for the fine flour for meat offering, and for the unleavened cakes, and for that which is baked in the pan, and for that which is fried, and for all manner of measure and size; —>
Shewbread=Shewbread is made up of a combination of two to three Hebrew words in the Strong’s Concordance, the first is always Hebrew word number: H3899, - לֶחֶם, - lechem, pronounced - lekhי-em, and means: From H3898; food (for man or beast), especially bread, or grain (for making it): - ([shew-]) bread, X eat, food, fruit, loaf, meat, victuals. See also H1036. Total KJV occurrences: 298.; and the second is one of two words: either: H6440, - פָּנִים, - pânı̂ym, pronounced - paw-neemי, and means: Plural (but always used as a singular) of an unused noun (פָּנֶה pâneh, paw-neh'; from H6437); the face (as the part that turns); used in a great variety of applications (literally and figuratively); also (with prepositional prefix) as a preposition (before, etc.): -   + accept, a (be-) fore (-time), against, anger, X as (long as), at, + battle, + because (of), + beseech, countenance, edge, + employ, endure, + enquire, face, favour, fear of, for, forefront (-part), form (-er time, -ward), from, front, heaviness, X him (-self), + honourable, + impudent, + in, it, look [-eth] (-s), X me, + meet, X more than, mouth, of, off, (of) old (time), X on, open, + out of, over against, the partial, person, + please, presence, prospect, was purposed, by reason, of, + regard, right forth, + serve, X shewbread, sight, state, straight, + street, X thee, X them (-selves), through (+ -out), till, time (-s) past, (un-) to (-ward), + upon, upside (+ down), with (-in, + stand), X ye, X you. Total KJV occurrences: 2120.; or H4635, - מַעֲרֶכֶת, - ma‛ăreketh, pronounced - mah-ar-ehי-keth, and means: From H6186; an arrangement (that is), (concretely) a pile (of loaves): - row, shewbread. ; Total KJV occurrences: 9.. Dr. Bullenger says this in his Companion Bible: “Heb. bread of faces; faces being put for presence by Figure, denoting the Divine presence in which the bread stood, and from Whom all supplies, material and spiritual, came.,” and Dr. Smith says this in his Smith’s Bible Dictionary: “(Exodus 25:30; 35:13; 39:36) etc. literally “bread of the face” or “faces.” Shew-bread was unleavened bread placed upon a table which stood in the sanctuary together with the seven-branched candlestick and the altar of incense. See (Exodus 25:23-30) for description of this table. Every Sabbath twelve newly baked loaves, representing the twelve tribes of Israel, were put on it in two rows, six in each, and sprinkled with incense, where they remained till the following Sabbath. Then they were replaced by twelve new ones, the incense was burned, and they were eaten by the priests in the holy place, out of which they might not be removed, The title “bread of the face” seems to indicate that bread through which God is seen, that is, with the participation of which the seeing of God is bound up, or through the participation of which man attains the sight of God whence it follows that we have not to think of bread merely as such as the means of nourishing the bodily life, but as spiritual food as a means of appropriating and retaining that life which consists In seeing the face of God..”

Meat Offering=The “Meat Offering” is the Minchah in Hebrew and in the Strong’s Concordance it is Hebrew word number: H4503, - מִנְחָה, - minchâh, pronounced - min-khawי, and means: From an unused root meaning to apportion that is, bestow; a donation; euphemistically tribute; specifically a sacrificial offering (usually bloodless and voluntary): - gift, oblation, (meat) offering, present, sacrifice. Total KJV occurrences: 211.. Dr. Bullinger has an appendix in his Companion Bible which covers all the different Offerings, you’ll find Minchah under Appendix 43 II. 3..

Measure and size=The standards were committed to all the Levites. It wasn’t the Levites who offered the Offerings but, the Priests; however, the specific details of the measurements were given to the Levites and they were to assist and ensure the correct measurements were given to the Priests. Dealing with people Honesty is part of true religion. We can compare this with Leviticus 19:36; Deuteronomy 25:15; Proverbs 11:l,16,11,20,23; Micah 6:11; and if this is so in the secular world, how much more so in sacred things of Father?

I Chronicles 23:30 And to stand every morning to thank and praise the LORD, and likewise at even;   —>   What this is saying is, that, the Levites, i.e., the Levitical singers, the porters etc. were to be in attendance every morning and evening during those prescribed sacrifices.

Did you notice the semi-colon at the end of the verse, and the word “and” at the beginning of the next verse brethren? This indicates and means that the speaker was continuing his thought process and speaking into the next verse.

I Chronicles 23:31 And to offer all burnt sacrifices unto the LORD in the sabbaths, in the new moons, and on the set feasts, by number, according to the order commanded unto them, continually before the LORD:   —>   Again, it was only the priests who were to be offering hte sacrifices, but the Levites were to be in attendance while they were doing so.

Like the previous verse ended with a semi-colon, indicating it continued into this verse, this verse ends with a colon as, it too continues into the next verse.

I Chronicles 23:32 And that they should keep the charge of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the charge of the holy place, and the charge of the sons of Aaron their brethren, in the service of the house of the LORD.   —>   And there is their Charge. Let’s turn to Numbers 18 and read of the Charge given the Levites when our forefathers first came out of Egypt: Numbers 18:1 And the LORD said unto Aaron, “Thou and thy sons and thy father’s house with thee shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary: and thou and thy sons with thee shall bear the iniquity of your priesthood.   —>   Here Father is talking directly with His High Priest and laying the foundation of who will be in charge of His Sanctuary and His Priesthood. A lot of people who do not correctly discern or divide Father’s Word will get totally confused over this verse. To better understand the word iniquity in this verse you must first read the next few verses. We all know iniquity usually means sin, perversity, and\or evil, but here, it actually is meaning responsibility for the sanctuary and the priesthood. [18:2] And thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of thy father, bring thou with thee, that they may be joined unto thee, and minister unto thee: but thou and thy sons with thee, shall minister before the tabernacle of witness.   —>   It was only be Aaron and his sons who were allowed to be the High Priests and minister before Father and all the congregation, while the rest of the Levites would minister, or administer support to Aaron and his sons. [18:3] And they shall keep thy charge, and the charge of all the tabernacle: only they shall not come nigh the vessels of the sanctuary and the altar, that neither they, nor ye also, die.   —>   This is that part of the responsibility from verse v18:1 above where Father says they “shall bear the iniquity of...” If they allow the Levites or anybody else to come near the vessels of Father, that person and even possibly Aaron and his sons will die. Remember, these vessels have been sanctified and are holy or “set apart” for Father. [18:4] And they shall be joined unto thee, and keep the charge of the tabernacle of the congregation, for all the service of the tabernacle: and a stranger shall not come nigh unto you.   —>   Back in Numbers 3,, Father had already laid out who would keep the charge of the tabernacle and such, [Numbers 3:6] “Bring the tribe of Levi near, and present them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister unto him.   —>   So we see that, Moses was to bring the entire tribe of Levi and cause them to stand before Aaron and then start to perform their ministerial duties. In other words, they were to attend to, and see to, Aaron’s—the High Priest’s—needs. [3:7] And they shall keep his charge, and the charge of the whole congregation before the tabernacle of the congregation, and the charge of the children of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle.   —>   We’ll now read and see just what the duties of the tribe of Levi are. This “And they shall keep...” is a combination of Hebrew words H8104 and H853. Let’s check them both out: H8104, - שָׁמַר, - shâmar, pronounced - shaw-marי, and means: A primitive root; properly to hedge about (as with thorns), that is, properly to guard; generally to protect, attend to, etc.; to beware, be circumspect, take heed (to self), keep (-er, self), mark, look narrowly, observe, preserve, regard, reserve, save (self), sure, (that lay) wait (for), watch (-man) Total KJV occurrences: 486., meaning then, that they were to protect and hedge about something. What was that something? Add in word H853, - אֵת, - 'êth, pronounced - ayth, and means: apparently contracted from H226 in the demonstrative sense of entity; properly self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely) total KJV occurrences: 7302., namely, the Levites were to hedge about and attend to, the High Priest and Father’s Tabernacle. So, the hedging about and attending to were their responsibilities. Their “charge” included guarding and protecting the High Priest and Father’s Tabernacle itself, the word charge in the Strong’s Concordance is Hebrew word number: H4931, - מִשְׁמֶרֶת, - mishmereth, pronounced - mish-mehי-reth, and means: Feminine of H4929; watch that is, the act (custody) or (concretely) the sentry, the post; objectively preservation, or (concretely) safe; figuratively observance, that is, (abstractly) duty, or (objectively) a usage or party: - charge, keep, to be kept, office, ordinance, safeguard, ward, watch. Total KJV occurrences: 78.. So, their charge was to act as a guard or sentry, and as we know, they also had the responsibilities of ministering unto the tabernacle and the priests. [3:8] And they shall keep all the instruments of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the charge of the children of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle.   —>   Again, they were to maintain and keep all the instruments of the service of Father’s Tabernacle. [3:9] And thou shall give the Levites unto Aaron and to his sons; they are wholly given unto him out of the children of Israel.   —>   Aaron, his sons and their descendants were to be the priests of all the children of Israel, and they were the only ones who were allowed to be the priests. Remember, Aaron, Moses and Miriam were brothers and sister, they also were Levites; but, it was only Aaron’s descendants who were allowed to be the priests. Father is saying here that, the Levites were to minister to, and be in charge of, all things which pertain to His Tabernacle, including the service and the priests. They were to keep and bear the Ark of God, maintain the oil and wicks for the candles; wash all the instruments after the services, cut, stack and store the wood for the fires, set-up and take-down and carry the Tabernacle whenever they moved, the scribing of all the services and Father’s Word, etc. [3:10] And thou shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall wait on their priest’s office: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.”   —>   It was up to Aaron and his sons to ensure that no one other than Aaron and his descendants entered into the priesthood, and if anybody else tried, they were to be put to death. Sadly, we know from reading I Chronicles 2:55, that they fell down on the job; I Chronicles 2:55 And the families of the scribes which dwelt at Jabez; the Tirathites, the Shimeathites, and Suchathites. These are the Kenites that came of Hemath, the father of the house of Rechab.
—>   Why would Father become so angry about this? Well, we know He knows everything, and it should come to no surprise to anyone that He would know also what would happen in the future. So, let’s see just who these are — that are of the house of Rechab, we can find out about them in Jeremiah 35. Before we turn to there, let’s discuss beginning from I Chronicles 1 which starts with the Adamic genealogy from Adam. Then we pick it up in I Chronicles 2 with the descendants from Jacob, whom Father later renamed Israel but, as we just read above, when we come to I Chronicles 2:55, we then find others—who are the nethinims—who slipped in after Joshua 9—and are not of the Adamic seedline—which the Levites wrongly allowed to become the scribes of Father’s Word. These families of the scribes—the ones who wrote the manuscripts from which the King James Bible was transcribed from—are kenites, they are the sons of Cain, we know this because, the word “kenite” literally means - “Patronymic from H7014; a Kenite or member of the tribe of Kajin: - Kenite..” These kenites emphatically claim to be of our brother Judah, while at the same time, they also boldly proclaim that they are not of Israel or of any of the tribes of Israel, but of the house—or family—of Rechab, the land of the kenites and of Hamath. At the beginning of Jeremiah 35, what did Father say about these people when He told Jeremiah to test them? Remember, that it was Father that told Jeremiah to call these the sons of Jonadab into the temple, before they had taken over the priesthood, to show Jeremiah how far off the house of Judah had gone from being obedient to His Word. So, after the test of giving wine to these entire families, and not one taking the wine: Jeremiah 35:5 And I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites pots full of wine, and cups, and said unto them, “Drink ye wine.” [35:6] But they said, “We will drink no wine: for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying, ‘Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons forever: [35:7] Neither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have any: but all your days ye shall dwell in tents; that ye may live many days in the land where ye be strangers.’   —>   We then skip down and read in v[35:18]: [35:18] And Jeremiah (Father’s Prophet) said unto the house of the Rechabites, “Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Because ye have obeyed the commandments of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts, and done according unto all that he hath commanded you:   —>   Here, Father is about to commend these kenites for keeping their father’s word, and He will also make a pledge to them for their obedience to the letter of their law. [35:19] Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want a man to stand before Me for ever.’ ”   —>   Father has just told these kenites that they will always have someone to hold their lineage together so that they will fulfill the negative part of His plan, in a sense, this is also positive for Father as, they will fulfill an important part in carrying out the crucifixion of Jesus, and in doing so, they’ll condemn their own father satan to the fire of hell as recorded in Revelation 20:15. Father will neither interrupt nor destroy them, and yet, if one changes from the ways of their father satan, and turns to Father, He will gladly accept them. Father is also promising them that, because of their faithful obedience to their father’s Commandments they will always be successful in this age of the flesh. In other words, in a sense, He has blessed them in their flesh bodies, even to the point where they are the most successful people on the face of the earth today but, that is all that they will have — flesh. When you and I stay faithful to His Word and become Biblically literate, He will also bless us. Father Blesses everyone that is faithful and obedient to Him, and it is not a matter of what you know from His Word, but how obedient you are to what you do know. Father gave us these His Word for the sake of giving us an example of what we are to expect in this end generation of this earth age, for the events of the end times are passing us by fast. This is why He said the stranger that Aaron’s descendants allowed into the priesthood “shall be put to death.” Numbers 18:5 And ye shall keep the charge of the sanctuary, and the charge of the altar: that there be no wrath any more upon the children of Israel.   —>   The Levites alone were to stand as boldly as they did at the base of Mount Sinai and not allow anybody to try and take their duties from them and also put down any rebellion from anybody else.

Jan 2018

This Bible Study was written by Scott Reis and is provided in order to be used as a private Bible Study Tool. Therefore, it may be copied in whole or in part and shared for private Bible Study; however, it may not be reproduced and published as an original work.

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Hosea 6:6 For I desired mercy and not sacrifice;
and the knowledge of God more than your burnt offerings.

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Hosea 6:6 For I desired mercy and not sacrifice;and the knowledge of God more than your burnt offerings.

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I CHRONICLES CHAPTER 23

Hosea 6:6 For I desired mercy and not sacrifice;
and the knowledge of God more than your burnt offerings.