1 Chronicles 15:1-29
15 And he continued building houses+ for himself in the City of David; and he went on to prepare a place+ for the ark of the [true] God and pitch a tent for it.
2 It was then that David said: “No one is to carry the ark of the [true] God but the Levites, for they are the ones whom Jehovah has chosen to carry the ark of Jehovah*+ and to minister+ to him to time indefinite.”
3 Then David congregated all Israel at Jerusalem+ to bring the ark+ of Jehovah up to its place that he had prepared for it.
4 And David proceeded to gather the sons of Aaron+ and the Levites;
5 of the sons of Koʹhath, U·riʹel+ the chief and his brothers, a hundred and twenty;
6 of the sons of Me·rarʹi,+ A·saiʹah+ the chief and his brothers, two hundred and twenty;
7 of the sons of Gerʹshom,+ Joel+ the chief and his brothers, a hundred and thirty;
8 of the sons of E·li·zaʹphan,+ She·maiʹah+ the chief and his brothers, two hundred;
9 of the sons of Heʹbron, Eʹli·el the chief and his brothers, eighty;
10 of the sons of Uzʹzi·el,+ Am·minʹa·dab the chief and his brothers, a hundred and twelve.
11 Furthermore, David called Zaʹdok+ and A·biʹa·thar+ the priests, and the Levites U·riʹel,+ A·saiʹah+ and Joel,+ She·maiʹah+ and Eʹli·el+ and Am·minʹa·dab,
12 and he went on to say to them: “YOU are the heads+ of the fathers of the Levites. Sanctify+ yourselves, YOU and YOUR brothers, and YOU must bring the ark of Jehovah the God of Israel up to the place that* I have prepared for it.
13 Because at the first time YOU did not,+ Jehovah our God broke through against us,+ for we did not search after him according to the custom.”+
14 So the priests and the Levites sanctified+ themselves to bring up the ark of Jehovah the God of Israel.
15 Then the sons of the Levites began to carry+ the ark of the [true] God, just as Moses had commanded by Jehovah’s word, upon their shoulders with the rods upon them.+
16 David now said to the chiefs of the Levites to station their brothers the singers+ with the instruments of song,+ stringed instruments+ and harps+ and cymbals,+ playing aloud to cause a sound of rejoicing to arise.
17 Accordingly the Levites stationed Heʹman+ the son of Joel and, of his brothers, Aʹsaph+ the son of Ber·e·chiʹah; and, of the sons of Me·rarʹi their brothers, Eʹthan+ the son of Kush·aʹiah;
18 and with them their brothers of the second division,+ Zech·a·riʹah,+ Ben and Ja·aʹzi·el and She·mirʹa·moth and Je·hiʹel and Unʹni, E·liʹab and Be·naiʹah and Ma·a·seiʹah and Mat·ti·thiʹah and E·liphʹe·le·hu and Mik·neʹiah, and Oʹbed-eʹdom+ and Je·iʹel the gatekeepers,
19 and the singers Heʹman,+ Aʹsaph+ and Eʹthan, with the copper cymbals to play aloud;+
20 and Zech·a·riʹah and Aʹzi·el+ and She·mirʹa·moth and Je·hiʹel and Unʹni and E·liʹab and Ma·a·seiʹah and Be·naiʹah with stringed instruments tuned to Alʹa·moth,*+
21 and Mat·ti·thiʹah+ and E·liphʹe·le·hu and Mik·neʹiah and Oʹbed-eʹdom and Je·iʹel and Az·a·ziʹah with harps+ tuned to Shemʹi·nith,*+ to act as directors;
22 and Chen·a·niʹah+ the chief of the Levites in carrying, he giving instruction* in carrying, for he was expert;+
23 and Ber·e·chiʹah and El·kaʹnah the gatekeepers+ for the Ark;
24 and Sheb·a·niʹah and Joshʹa·phat and Ne·thanʹel and A·maʹsai and Zech·a·riʹah and Be·naiʹah and E·li·eʹzer the priests loudly sounding the trumpets+ before the ark of the [true] God, and Oʹbed-eʹdom and Je·hiʹah the gatekeepers for the Ark.
25 And David+ and the older men of Israel+ and the chiefs+ of the thousands came to be the ones walking along to bring up the ark of the covenant of Jehovah from the house of Oʹbed-eʹdom+ with rejoicing.+
26 And it came about when the [true] God helped+ the Levites while carrying the ark of the covenant of Jehovah that they proceeded to sacrifice seven young bulls and seven rams.+
27 And David was dressed in a sleeveless coat of fine fabric, and also all the Levites carrying the Ark and the singers and Chen·a·niʹah+ the chief of the carrying by the singers;+ but upon David there was an ephʹod+ of linen.
28 And all the Israelites were bringing up the ark of the covenant of Jehovah with joyful shouting+ and with the sounding of the horn+ and with trumpets+ and with cymbals,+ playing aloud on stringed instruments and harps.+
29 And it came about that, when the ark of the covenant+ of Jehovah came as far as the City of David, Miʹchal,+ Saul’s daughter, herself looked down through the window and got to see King David skipping about and celebrating;+ and she began to despise+ him in her heart.
Footnotes
^ “Jehovah,” Al, Leningrad B 19A and many mss.
^ “The place that,” TVg and four Heb. mss; M omits.
^ “Alamoth,” an unexplained musical term. Lit., “young women.” Probably referring to the soprano voices of young women or the falsetto of boys.
^ “Sheminith.” Lit., “the eighth.” Possibly referring to the eighth key or a lower octave.
^ “He giving instruction.” In Heb. this is a verb in the infinitive absolute, indefinite as to time and impersonal.
