⁵ Four thousand are to be gatekeepers and four thousand are to praise the Lord with the musical instruments^(A) I have provided for that purpose.”^(B)

⁶ David separated^(C) the Levites into divisions corresponding to the sons of Levi:^(D) Gershon, Kohath and Merari.

Gershonites

⁷ Belonging to the Gershonites:^(E)

Kohathites

¹² The sons of Kohath:^(F)

Merarites

²¹ The sons of Merari:^(Q)

²⁴ These were the descendants of Levi by their families—the heads of families as they were registered under their names and counted individually, that is, the workers twenty years old or more^(T) who served in the temple of the Lord. ²⁵ For David had said, “Since the Lord, the God of Israel, has granted rest^(U) to his people and has come to dwell in Jerusalem forever, ²⁶ the Levites no longer need to carry the tabernacle or any of the articles used in its service.”^{(V) 27} According to the last instructions of David, the Levites were counted from those twenty years old or more.

²⁸ The duty of the Levites was to help Aaron’s descendants in the service of the temple of the Lord: to be in charge of the courtyards, the side rooms, the purification^(W) of all sacred things and the performance of other duties at the house of God. ²⁹ They were in charge of the bread set out on the table,^(X) the special flour for the grain offerings,^(Y) the thin loaves made without yeast, the baking and the mixing, and all measurements of quantity and size.^{(Z) 30} They were also to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord. They were to do the same in the evening^(AA)

¹² All the Levites who were musicians^(A)—Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun and their sons and relatives—stood on the east side of the altar, dressed in fine linen and playing cymbals, harps and lyres. They were accompanied by 120 priests sounding trumpets.^(B)

¹³ The trumpeters and musicians joined in unison to give praise and thanks to the Lord. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, the singers raised their voices in praise to the Lord and sang:

Then the temple of the Lord was filled with the cloud,^(B)

²⁴ And the leaders of the Levites^(A) were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, Jeshua son of Kadmiel, and their associates, who stood opposite them to give praise and thanksgiving, one section responding to the other, as prescribed by David the man of God.^(B)

Dedication of the Wall of Jerusalem

²⁷ At the dedication^(A) of the wall of Jerusalem, the Levites were sought out from where they lived and were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate joyfully the dedication with songs of thanksgiving and with the music of cymbals,^(B) harps and lyres.^{(C) 28} The musicians also were brought together from the region around Jerusalem—from the villages of the Netophathites,^{(D) 29} from Beth Gilgal, and from the area of Geba and Azmaveth, for the musicians had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem. ³⁰ When the priests and Levites had purified themselves ceremonially, they purified the people,^(E) the gates and the wall.

³¹ I had the leaders of Judah go up on top of^[a] the wall. I also assigned two large choirs to give thanks. One was to proceed on top of^[b] the wall to the right, toward the Dung Gate.^{(F) 32} Hoshaiah and half the leaders of Judah followed them, ³³ along with Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam, ³⁴ Judah, Benjamin,^(G) Shemaiah, Jeremiah, ³⁵ as well as some priests with trumpets,^(H) and also Zechariah son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micaiah, the son of Zakkur, the son of Asaph, ³⁶ and his associates—Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah and Hanani—with musical instruments^(I) prescribed by David the man of God.^(J) Ezra^(K) the teacher of the Law led the procession. ³⁷ At the Fountain Gate^(L) they continued directly up the steps of the City of David on the ascent to the wall and passed above the site of David’s palace to the Water Gate^(M) on the east.

³⁸ The second choir proceeded in the opposite direction. I followed them on top of^[c] the wall, together with half the people—past the Tower of the Ovens^(N) to the Broad Wall,^{(O) 39} over the Gate of Ephraim,^(P) the Jeshanah^[d] Gate,^(Q) the Fish Gate,^(R) the Tower of Hananel^(S) and the Tower of the Hundred,^(T) as far as the Sheep Gate.^(U) At the Gate of the Guard they stopped.

⁴⁰ The two choirs that gave thanks then took their places in the house of God; so did I, together with half the officials, ⁴¹ as well as the priests—Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah and Hananiah with their trumpets— ⁴² and also Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malkijah, Elam and Ezer. The choirs sang under the direction of Jezrahiah. ⁴³ And on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.