1 Chronicles 22; 1 Chronicles 23; 1 Chronicles 24; John 8:28-59

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2 So David ordered all foreigners living in Israel to gather together. From that group David chose stonecutters to cut stones to be used in building the Temple of God.

3 David supplied a large amount of iron to be used for making nails and hinges for the gate doors. He also supplied more bronze than could be weighed,

4 and he supplied more cedar logs than could be counted. Much of the cedar had been brought to David by the people from Sidon and Tyre.

5 David said, "We should build a great Temple for the Lord, which will be famous everywhere for its greatness and beauty. But my son Solomon is young. He hasn't yet learned what he needs to know, so I will prepare for the building of it." So David got many of the materials ready before he died.

6 Then David called for his son Solomon and told him to build the Temple for the Lord, the God of Israel.

7 David said to him, "My son, I wanted to build a temple for worshiping the Lord my God.

8 But the Lord spoke his word to me, 'David, you have killed many people. You have fought many wars. You cannot build a temple for worship to me, because you have killed many people.

9 But, you will have a son, a man of peace and rest. I will give him rest from all his enemies around him. His name will be Solomon, and I will give Israel peace and quiet while he is king.

10 Solomon will build a temple for worship to me. He will be my son, and I will be his father. I will make his kingdom strong; someone from his family will rule Israel forever.'"

11 David said, "Now, my son, may the Lord be with you. May you build a temple for the Lord your God, as he said you would.

12 He will make you the king of Israel. May the Lord give you wisdom and understanding so you will be able to obey the teachings of the Lord your God.

13 Be careful to obey the rules and laws the Lord gave Moses for Israel. If you obey them, you will have success. Be strong and brave. Don't be afraid or discouraged.

14 "Solomon, I have worked hard getting many of the materials for building the Temple of the Lord. I have supplied about seven and one-half million pounds of gold, about seventy-five million pounds of silver, so much bronze and iron it cannot be weighed, and wood and stone. You may add to them.

15 You have many workmen -- stonecutters, bricklayers, carpenters, and people skilled in every kind of work.

16 They are skilled in working with gold, silver, bronze, and iron. You have more craftsmen than can be counted. Now begin the work, and may the Lord be with you."

17 Then David ordered all the leaders of Israel to help his son Solomon.

18 David said to them, "The Lord your God is with you. He has given you rest from our enemies. He has handed over to me the people living around us. The Lord and his people are in control of this land.

19 Now give yourselves completely to obeying the Lord your God. Build the holy place of the Lord God; build the Temple for worship to the Lord. Then bring the Ark of the Agreement with the Lord and the holy items that belong to God into the Temple."

1 After David had lived long and was old, he made his son Solomon the new king of Israel.

2 David gathered all the leaders of Israel, along with the priests and Levites.

3 He counted the Levites who were thirty years old and older. In all, there were thirty-eight thousand Levites.

4 David said, "Of these, twenty-four thousand Levites will direct the work of the Temple of the Lord, six thousand Levites will be officers and judges

5 four thousand Levites will be gatekeepers, and four thousand Levites will praise the Lord with musical instruments I made for giving praise."

6 David separated the Levites into three groups that were led by Levi's three sons: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

7 From the people of Gershon, there were Ladan and Shimei.

8 Ladan had three sons. His first son was Jehiel, and his other sons were Zetham and Joel.

9 Shimei's sons were Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran. These three sons were leaders of Ladan's families.

10 Shimei had four sons: Jahath, Ziza, Jeush, and Beriah.

11 Jahath was the first son, and Ziza was the second son. But Jeush and Beriah did not have many children, so they were counted as if they were one family.

12 Kohath had four sons: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.

13 Amram's sons were Aaron and Moses. Aaron and his descendants were chosen to be special forever. They were chosen to prepare the holy things for the Lord's service, to offer sacrifices before the Lord, and to serve him as priests. They were to give blessings in his name forever.

14 Moses was the man of God, and his sons were counted as part of the tribe of Levi

15 Moses' sons were Gershom and Eliezer.

16 Gershom's first son was Shubael.

17 Eliezer's first son was Rehabiah. Eliezer had no other sons, but Rehabiah had many sons.

18 Izhar's first son was Shelomith.

19 Hebron's first son was Jeriah, his second was Amariah, his third was Jahaziel, and his fourth was Jekameam

20 Uzziel's first son was Micah and his second was Isshiah.

21 Merari's sons were Mahli and Mushi. Mahli's sons were Eleazar and Kish

22 Eleazar died without sons; he had only daughters. Eleazar's daughters married their cousins, the sons of Kish.

23 Mushi's three sons were Mahli, Eder, and Jerimoth.

24 These were Levi's descendants listed by their families. They were the leaders of families. Each person who was twenty years old or older was listed. They served in the Lord's Temple.

25 David had said, "The Lord, the God of Israel, has given rest to his people. He has come to live in Jerusalem forever.

26 So the Levites don't need to carry the Holy Tent or any of the things used in its services anymore."

27 David's last instructions were to count the Levites who were twenty years old and older.

28 The Levites had the job of helping Aaron's descendants in the service of the Temple of the Lord. They cared for the Temple courtyard and side rooms, and they made all the holy things pure. Their job was to serve in the Temple of God.

29 They were responsible for putting the holy bread on the table, for the flour in the grain offerings, for the bread made without yeast, for the baking and mixing, and for the measuring.

30 The Levites also stood every morning and gave thanks and praise to the Lord. They also did this every evening.

31 The Levites offered all the burnt offerings to the Lord on the special days of rest, at the New Moon festivals, and at all appointed feasts. They served before the Lord every day. They were to follow the rules for how many Levites should serve each time.

32 So the Levites took care of the Meeting Tent and the Holy Place. And they helped their relatives, Aaron's descendants, with the services at the Temple of the Lord.

1 These were the groups of Aaron's sons: Aaron's sons were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

2 But Nadab and Abihu died before their father did, and they had no sons. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as the priests.

3 David, with the help of Zadok, a descendant of Eleazar, and Ahimelech, a descendant of Ithamar, separated their family groups into two different groups. Each group had certain duties.

4 There were more leaders from Eleazar's family than from Ithamar's -- sixteen leaders from Eleazar's family and eight leaders from Ithamar's family.

5 Men were chosen from Eleazar's and Ithamar's families by throwing lots. Some men from each family were chosen to be in charge of the Holy Place, and some were chosen to serve as priests.

6 Shemaiah son of Nethanel, from the tribe of Levi, was the secretary. He recorded the names of those descendants in front of King David, the officers, Zadok the priest, Ahimelech son of Abiathar, and the leaders of the families of the priests and Levites. The work was divided by lots among the families of Eleazar and Ithamar. The following men with their groups were chosen.

7 The first one chosen was Jehoiarib. The second was Jedaiah.

8 The third was Harim. The fourth was Seorim.

9 The fifth was Malkijah. The sixth was Mijamin.

10 The seventh was Hakkoz. The eighth was Abijah.

11 The ninth was Jeshua. The tenth was Shecaniah.

12 The eleventh was Eliashib. The twelfth was Jakim.

13 The thirteenth was Huppah. The fourteenth was Jeshebeab.

14 The fifteenth was Bilgah. The sixteenth was Immer.

15 The seventeenth was Hezir. The eighteenth was Happizzez.

16 The nineteenth was Pethahiah. The twentieth was Jehezkel.

17 The twenty-first was Jakin. The twenty-second was Gamul.

18 The twenty-third was Delaiah. The twenty-fourth was Maaziah.

19 These were the groups chosen to serve in the Temple of the Lord. They obeyed the rules given them by Aaron, just as the Lord, the God of Israel, had commanded him.

20 These are the names of the rest of Levi's descendants: Shubael was a descendant of Amram, and Jehdeiah was a descendant of Shubael.

21 Isshiah was the first son of Rehabiah.

22 From the Izhar family group, there was Shelomoth, and Jahath was a descendant of Shelomoth.

23 Hebron's first son was Jeriah, Amariah was his second, Jahaziel was his third, and Jekameam was his fourth.

24 Uzziel's son was Micah. Micah's son was Shamir.

25 Micah's brother was Isshiah, and Isshiah's son was Zechariah.

26 Merari's descendants were Mahli and Mushi. Merari's son was Jaaziah.

27 Jaaziah son of Merari had sons named Shoham, Zaccur, and Ibri.

28 Mahli's son was Eleazar, but Eleazar did not have any sons.

29 Kish's son was Jerahmeel.

30 Mushi's sons were Mahli, Eder, and Jerimoth. These are the Levites, listed by their families.

31 They were chosen for special jobs by throwing lots in front of King David, Zadok, Ahimelech, the leaders of the families of the priests, and the Levites. They did this just as their relatives, the priests, Aaron's descendants, had done. The families of the oldest brother and the youngest brother were treated the same.

28 So Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, you will know that I am he. You will know that these things I do are not by my own authority but that I say only what the Father has taught me.

29 The One who sent me is with me. I always do what is pleasing to him, so he has not left me alone."

30 While Jesus was saying these things, many people believed in him.

31 So Jesus said to the Jews who believed in him, "If you continue to obey my teaching, you are truly my followers.

32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free."

33 They answered, "We are Abraham's children, and we have never been anyone's slaves. So why do you say we will be free?"

34 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, everyone who lives in sin is a slave to sin.

35 A slave does not stay with a family forever, but a son belongs to the family forever.

36 So if the Son makes you free, you will be truly free.

37 I know you are Abraham's children, but you want to kill me because you don't accept my teaching.

38 I am telling you what my Father has shown me, but you do what your father has told you."

39 They answered, "Our father is Abraham." Jesus said, "If you were really Abraham's children, you would do the things Abraham did.

40 I am a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God, but you are trying to kill me. Abraham did nothing like that.

41 So you are doing the things your own father did." But they said, "We are not like children who never knew who their father was. God is our Father; he is the only Father we have."

42 Jesus said to them, "If God were really your Father, you would love me, because I came from God and now I am here. I did not come by my own authority; God sent me.

43 You don't understand what I say, because you cannot accept my teaching.

44 You belong to your father the devil, and you want to do what he wants. He was a murderer from the beginning and was against the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he shows what he is really like, because he is a liar and the father of lies.

45 But because I speak the truth, you don't believe me.

46 Can any of you prove that I am guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don't you believe me?

47 The person who belongs to God accepts what God says. But you don't accept what God says, because you don't belong to God."

48 The Jews answered, "We say you are a Samaritan and have a demon in you. Are we not right?"

49 Jesus answered, "I have no demon in me. I give honor to my Father, but you dishonor me.

50 I am not trying to get honor for myself. There is One who wants this honor for me, and he is the judge.

51 I tell you the truth, whoever obeys my teaching will never die."

52 The Jews said to Jesus, "Now we know that you have a demon in you! Even Abraham and the prophets died. But you say, 'Whoever obeys my teaching will never die.'

53 Do you think you are greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died, too. Who do you think you are?"

54 Jesus answered, "If I give honor to myself, that honor is worth nothing. The One who gives me honor is my Father, and you say he is your God.

55 You don't really know him, but I know him. If I said I did not know him, I would be a liar like you. But I do know him, and I obey what he says.

56 Your father Abraham was very happy that he would see my day. He saw that day and was glad."

57 The Jews said to him, "You have never seen Abraham! You are not even fifty years old."

58 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, before Abraham was even born, I am!"

59 When Jesus said this, the people picked up stones to throw at him. But Jesus hid himself, and then he left the Temple.