1 Chronicles 26:13

13 And they cast lots, small and great alike, by their fathers' houses, {for their gates}.

1 Chronicles 26:13 Meaning and Commentary

1 Chronicles 26:13

And they cast lots
To determine at which gate each should stand, who at this gate, and who at the other

as well the small as the great, according to the house of their
fathers, for every gate;
meaning, not little ones and grown persons in a family, but the smaller and poorer families, and the larger and richer ones, had their places assigned them at the several gates, as the lot directed; they did not go according to the dignity and precedence of their families, but according to lot.

1 Chronicles 26:13 In-Context

11 Hilkiah the second, Tabaliah the third, Zechariah the fourth: all the sons and brothers of Hosah [were] thirteen.

12 These working groups of gatekeepers, corresponding to the chief men, had responsibilities like their brothers to serve in the house of Yahweh.

13 And they cast lots, small and great alike, by their fathers' houses, {for their gates}.

14 And the lot fell to the east to Shelemiah. As for Zechariah his son, {a wise counselor}, they cast lots. And his lot came out for the north.

15 To Obed-Edom [went out] the south, and to his sons, the storehouses.

Footnotes

• [a]. Literally "for gate and gate"