1 Chronicles 15:1-29

The Book of 1 Chronicles

God rules History

1 Chronicles

Ian Mackervoy

Chapter 15

The *ark comes to Jerusalem – 1 Chronicles 15:1-29

v1 David built houses for himself in the city of David. And he prepared a place for God’s *ark. He set up a tent for it. v2 Then he said, ‘Only *Levites can carry God’s *ark. The *LORD chose them to carry it and to serve him for all time.’ v3 David called all the *Israelites to come to Jerusalem. They were to bring the *LORD’s *ark to the place that David had made for it. v4 Then David called together the *descendants of Aaron and the *Levites. v5 There were 120 people from Kohath’s *clan, with Uriel as their leader. v6 There were 220 people from Merari’s *clan, with Asaiah as their leader. v7 There were 130 people from Gershon’s *clan, with Joel as their leader. v8 There were 200 people from Elizaphan’s *clan, with Shemaiah as their leader. v9 There were 80 people from Hebron’s *clan, with Eliel as their leader. v10 And there were 112 people from Uzziel’s *clan, with Amminadab as their leader.

v11 Then David asked the priests Zadok and Abiathar to come to him. Also he called for Uriel, Asaiah, Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel, and Amminadab, who were *Levites. v12 David said to them, ‘You are the leaders of the families of Levi. You and the other *Levites must prepare yourselves for this holy task. Then bring the *ark of the *LORD, the God of *Israel, to the place that I have made for it. v13 Because you did not carry it the first time, the *LORD our God punished us. We did not ask him how we should do it in a proper manner.’ v14 Then the priests and *Levites prepared themselves to carry the *ark of the *LORD, the God of *Israel. v15 The *Levites carried the *ark on their shoulders with poles, as Moses had ordered them. The *LORD had said that this was how to carry it.

v16 David told the leaders of the *Levites to appoint their musicians. They would sing with their musical instruments. With *lyres, *harps, and *cymbals, they would sing songs of joy.

v17 The *Levites appointed Joel’s son Heman. They also chose his relatives Asaph and Ethan. Asaph was Berechiah’s son. Ethan was from the Merari *clan and he was Kushaiah’s son. v18 With them, there was a group of their relatives who belonged to the next rank. These were Zechariah, Jaaziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, and Jeiel. They were the *temple guards.

v19 The singers Heman, Asaph, and Ethan played *bronze *cymbals. v20 Zechariah, Jaaziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah played the *harps *set to *alamoth.

v21 Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah played the *lyres *set to *sheminith. They led the music. v22 Kenaniah, the music leader of the *Levites, led the people who sang. He did this because he was very good at it.

v23 Berekiah and Elkanah were guards for God’s *ark. v24 The priests Shebaniah, Joshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Eliezer would play *trumpets in front of God’s *ark. Obed-Edom and Jehiah were also guards for God’s *ark.

v25 David, *Israel’s leaders, and the leaders of 1000 soldiers went to get the *ark of the *LORD’s special promise. They all went to bring the *ark from Obed-Edom’s house with great joy. v26 God helped the *Levites who carried the *ark of the *LORD’s special promise. So, they *sacrificed 7 *bulls and 7 male sheep. v27 David wore clothes of fine *linen. All the *Levites who carried the *ark wore fine *linen clothes. The singers and Kenaniah, their leader, also wore fine *linen clothes. David also wore a special *linen shirt. v28 So, all the *Israelites brought up the *ark of the *LORD’s promise. They shouted. They played the instruments called horns and *trumpets. And they played *cymbals, *lyres, and *harps.

v29 The *ark of the *LORD’s special promise entered the city of David. As it came into the city, Saul’s daughter Michal watched from a window. She saw King David. He danced and he jumped for joy. And in her heart, she felt disgust for him.

Verse 1 David built a palace for himself and he built houses for his large family. Also, he prepared a place for the *ark of God. He erected a tent in which to put the *ark. He probably did this before he tried to bring the *ark to Jerusalem the first time (chapter 13). The *ark remained in the house of Obed-Edom for three months. David left the *ark there because he was afraid after the death of Uzzah. But God was kind to Obed-Edom and his family while the *ark was in his house. When David heard about God’s kindness to Obed-Edom, David again wanted to bring the *ark to Jerusalem.

Jerusalem was not in any one *tribe but was now the centre (capital city) of political *Israel. David wanted Jerusalem to be the centre of (the most important place for) religion in *Israel. For that purpose, the tent or the house of God had to be there. The *ark was the most important object in the tent of God. So, although David failed once, it was still necessary for him to bring the *ark to Jerusalem.

The original tent was still in the town called Gibeon. But David decided to erect a new tent for the *ark of God. *Worship of the *LORD continued at Gibeon as well as in Jerusalem (16:37-39).

Verse 2 David had learned the lesson of his failure to bring the *ark to Jerusalem. The *Levites should have carried the *ark as the law says (Deuteronomy 10:8). They should carry it on their shoulders and not on a cart. And nobody should ever touch the *ark (Numbers 4:5-15).

Verse 3-10 David called the leaders of the *Israelites to come to him in Jerusalem. They would be part of the procession that would bring the *ark from the house of Obed-Edom.

Then David called the *Levites to come to him. The sons of Levi were Gershon, Kohath and Merari. Their *descendants became separate *clans. The *clan or family of Kohath was the most important of these three families. God appointed the *descendants of Kohath to carry the *ark.

6 families of *Levites came to David. 4 of these were from Kohath (the *clans of Uriel, Elizaphan, Hebron and Uzziel). So, 862 *Levites plus their leaders came to bring the *ark to Jerusalem.

Verses 11-15 Zadok and Abiathar were the two chief priests. Zadok was a *descendant of Eleazar, who was a son of Aaron. Abiathar was a *descendant of Ithamar, who was also a son of Aaron. David called for these two priests and the 6 leaders of the *Levites.

David told the *Levites to make themselves ready to *worship God. They had to prepare themselves for this sacred task. They probably had to make special *sacrifices. And they made preparations like the preparations in Exodus chapter 19. On that occasion, the people had to wash their bodies and their clothes. And they could not have sex for three days (Exodus 19:14-15 and 19:22). After these preparations, the *Levites would be ready to carry the *ark of God. And they would bring it to the place that David had prepared for it.

The first time, the *Levites did not carry the *ark of God. They had not asked God how to do it. They should not have put it on an *ox cart. And Uzzah actually touched the *ark. God’s law forbade anyone to do that.

This time the priests and *Levites prepared themselves for the task. Then they carried the *ark by its poles on their shoulders. This was the proper way to carry the *ark of God (Numbers 4:5-15).

Verses 16-24 As David asked them, the *Levites appointed their musicians. They would lead the people in songs of joy. They must bring the *ark of God to Jerusalem with a glad procession.

Heman was the son of Joel and grandson of Samuel the *prophet. With him were Asaph and Ethan. These three were the chief musicians in the time of David.

‘*Alamoth’ was a kind of song or harmony in music. It was music for the female voices. So, these *harps would sound like the voices of girls. The word *alamoth is in the title of Psalms 46.

‘*Sheminith’ means an 8th, a range of 8 sounds in music. It is the lowest sounds that men can sing. So, the *lyres played the lower sounds while the *harps played the higher sounds. *Sheminith is in the titles of Psalms 6 and 12.

One of those who played the *lyres was Obed-Edom. He had kept the *ark of God in his house for the past three months. Also, he was a guard for the *ark (verse 18).

7 priests would play silver *trumpets in front of the *ark. It seems that the sound of the *trumpets was the signal to move. When the *Israelite camp moved in the desert, the priests sounded the *trumpets. When the people had to come together, the priests sounded the *trumpets. When the army had to go to war, the signal was the sound of the *trumpets. This was a rule that Moses gave to the *Israelites (see Numbers 10:1-10).

Verses 25-28 David and the principal men of the nation went to get the *ark from the home of Obed-Edom. They remembered how God had acted against Uzzah. Maybe they were afraid that God would act against them. But this time God helped the *Levites. God allowed them to carry the *ark. The *Levite musicians led them all with songs of joy. They *worshipped God and they made *sacrifices to him. When the *ark had gone 6 steps, David *sacrificed a *bull and a sheep (2 Samuel 6:13).

Among the musical instruments were horns. These came from the heads of male sheep. When a person blows into them, they make sounds.

David and the *Levites wore clothes of fine white *linen. When the priests and *Levites served the *LORD, they had to wear special clothes. These clothes were of fine white *linen. The white *linen was to show that they were clean and holy. (‘Clean’ usually means ‘not dirty’ but often in the Bible it means ‘ready to *worship God’.)

Verse 29 Saul’s daughter Michal was the first of David’s wives. She saw David as he danced. She saw him as he jumped for joy. Such behaviour was not what one would expect a king to do. Michal told David that he had disgusted her. David told her that he had danced to the *LORD. And because of her attitude, she could not have children (2 Samuel 6:20-23).

ark ~ the ark of the LORD or the ark of God; the Bible also calls it ‘the ark of God’s special promise’. It was a wooden box with gold all over the outside and inside. It had two models of gold cherubim on the top (see Exodus 25:10-22). The Israelites kept the ark in the most holy place; first in the LORD’s tent and then in the temple.
lord ~ someone with authority such as the king.
Lord ~ a title for God, to show that he is over all people and things.
LORD ~ ‘LORD’ is the special name that God gave to himself. The name probably means: ‘He is always God.’ This name has a relationship with God’s special promises to his people.
cherubim ~ special angels who were in the most holy place of the temple.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
temple ~ a special building for the worship of God. Or, a building for the worship of false gods. The Jews had a temple in Jerusalem for the worship of the real God.
angel ~ one of God’s special servants from heaven. God made angels to serve him and to take his messages.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
worship ~ acts to show honour to God (or to a false god). When people praise and thank God.
Jews ~ another name for the Israelites.
Levite ~ a person who belongs to the tribe of Levi.
tribe ~ The Israelites originally consisted of the 12 large families of the sons of Jacob. These families became the 12 tribes of Israel.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Israel ~ Israel is the special name that God gave to Jacob. His descendants were called Israel after him. So, Israel is the nation whose ancestors were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The country in which they live is called Israel.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
descendant ~ a future member of a family or nation.
lord ~ someone with authority such as the king.
Lord ~ a title for God, to show that he is over all people and things.
LORD ~ ‘LORD’ is the special name that God gave to himself. The name probably means: ‘He is always God.’ This name has a relationship with God’s special promises to his people.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
descendant ~ a future member of a family or nation.
clan ~ part of a tribe, a group of families.
tribe ~ The Israelites originally consisted of the 12 large families of the sons of Jacob. These families became the 12 tribes of Israel.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Israel ~ Israel is the special name that God gave to Jacob. His descendants were called Israel after him. So, Israel is the nation whose ancestors were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The country in which they live is called Israel.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
descendant ~ a future member of a family or nation.
Israel ~ Israel is the special name that God gave to Jacob. His descendants were called Israel after him. So, Israel is the nation whose ancestors were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The country in which they live is called Israel.
descendant ~ a future member of a family or nation.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
lyre ~ a kind of musical instrument with strings.
harp ~ a musical instrument that has many strings.
cymbals ~ a kind of musical instrument. A person hits two cymbals together to make a loud crash.
temple ~ a special building for the worship of God. Or, a building for the worship of false gods. The Jews had a temple in Jerusalem for the worship of the real God.
worship ~ acts to show honour to God (or to a false god). When people praise and thank God.
Jews ~ another name for the Israelites.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
bronze ~ a kind of metal. Its colour is brown, but it polishes well. It is very strong.
alamoth ~ a high range of sounds in music.
sheminith ~ a low range of sounds in music.
trumpet ~ a kind of musical instrument; it makes a loud sound when a person blows into it.
sacrifice ~ The priests killed a special animal when people offered it as a gift to God. They burned all or part of it on an altar. That animal was called a sacrifice. They offered a sacrifice when they asked God to forgive sins. When Jesus died, he was the perfect sacrifice for our sins. ‘To sacrifice’ means ‘to give a sacrifice’.
altar ~ the special table where the priests burned animals or other gifts to God (or to false gods).
sin ~ Sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. People are called sinners because they are guilty of sin.
bulls ~ the male farm animals of which the females are cows.
linen ~ a type of material that is like cotton. Linen is a very good quality material.
tribe ~ The Israelites originally consisted of the 12 large families of the sons of Jacob. These families became the 12 tribes of Israel.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Israel ~ Israel is the special name that God gave to Jacob. His descendants were called Israel after him. So, Israel is the nation whose ancestors were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The country in which they live is called Israel.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
descendant ~ a future member of a family or nation.
worship ~ acts to show honour to God (or to a false god). When people praise and thank God.
worship ~ acts to show honour to God (or to a false god). When people praise and thank God.
ox ~ a large and strong animal that farmers used to pull the plough. See also bull.
bulls ~ the male farm animals of which the females are cows.
prophet ~ a person who speaks for God. He can sometimes say what will happen in the future.
alamoth ~ a high range of sounds in music.
sheminith ~ a low range of sounds in music.