1 Chronicles 21; 1 Chronicles 22; 1 Chronicles 23

1 Chronicles 21

1 Satan was against Israel, and he caused David to count the people of Israel.

2 So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, "Go and count all the Israelites from Beersheba to Dan. Then tell me so I will know how many there are."

3 But Joab said, "May the Lord give the nation a hundred times more people. My master the king, all the Israelites are your servants. Why do you want to do this, my master? You will make Israel guilty of sin."

4 But the king commanded Joab, so Joab left and went through all Israel. Then he returned to Jerusalem.

5 Joab gave the list of the people to David. There were one million one hundred thousand men in all of Israel who could use the sword, and there were four hundred seventy thousand men in Judah who could use the sword.

6 But Joab did not count the tribes of Levi and Benjamin, because he didn't like King David's order.

7 David had done something God had said was wrong, so God punished Israel.

8 Then David said to God, "I have sinned greatly by what I have done! Now, I beg you to forgive me, your servant, because I have been very foolish."

9 The Lord said to Gad, who was David's seer,

10 "Go and tell David, 'This is what the Lord says: I offer you three choices. Choose one of them and I will do it.'"

11 So Gad went to David and said to him, "This is what the Lord says: 'Choose for yourself

12 three years of hunger. Or choose three months of running from your enemies as they chase you with their swords. Or choose three days of punishment from the Lord, in which a terrible disease will spread through the country. The angel of the Lord will go through Israel destroying the people.' Now, David, decide which of these things I should tell the Lord who sent me."

13 David said to Gad, "I am in great trouble. Let the Lord punish me, because the Lord is very merciful. Don't let my punishment come from human beings."

14 So the Lord sent a terrible disease on Israel, and seventy thousand people died.

15 God sent an angel to destroy Jerusalem, but when the angel started to destroy it, the Lord saw it and felt very sorry about the terrible things that had happened. So he said to the angel who was destroying, "That is enough! Put down your arm!" The angel of the Lord was then standing at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

16 David looked up and saw the angel of the Lord in the sky, holding his sword drawn and pointed at Jerusalem. Then David and the older leaders bowed facedown on the ground. They were wearing rough cloth to show their grief.

17 David said to God, "I am the one who sinned and did wrong. I gave the order for the people to be counted. These people only followed me like sheep. They did nothing wrong. Lord my God, please punish me and my family, but stop the terrible disease that is killing your people."

18 Then the angel of the Lord told Gad to tell David that he should build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

19 So David did what Gad told him to do, in the name of the Lord.

20 Araunah was separating the wheat from the straw. When he turned around, he saw the angel. Araunah's four sons who were with him hid.

21 David came to Araunah, and when Araunah saw him, he left the threshing floor and bowed facedown on the ground before David.

22 David said to him, "Sell me your threshing floor so I can build an altar to the Lord here. Then the terrible disease will stop. Sell it to me for the full price."

23 Araunah said to David, "Take this threshing floor. My master the king, do anything you want. Look, I will also give you oxen for the whole burnt offerings, the threshing boards for the wood, and wheat for the grain offering. I give everything to you."

24 But King David answered Araunah, "No, I will pay the full price for the land. I won't take anything that is yours and give it to the Lord. I won't offer a burnt offering that costs me nothing."

25 So David paid Araunah about fifteen pounds of gold for the place.

26 David built an altar to the Lord there and offered whole burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. David prayed to the Lord, and he answered him by sending down fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering.

27 Then the Lord commanded the angel to put his sword back into its holder.

28 When David saw that the Lord had answered him on the threshing floor of Araunah, he offered sacrifices there.

29 The Holy Tent that Moses made while the Israelites were in the desert and the altar of burnt offerings were in Gibeon at the place of worship.

30 But David could not go to the Holy Tent to speak with God, because he was afraid of the angel of the Lord and his sword. David said, "The Temple of the Lord God and the altar for Israel's burnt offerings will be built here."

1 Chronicles 22

1

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 Chronicles 23

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.