Albert Barnes Commentary 1 Chronicles 15
Albert Barnes Commentary
1 Chronicles 15
Albert Barnes Commentary
1 Chronicles 15
"And [David] made him houses in the city of David; and he prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched for it a tent." — 1 Chronicles 15:1 (ASV)
And pitched for it a tent — The old “tent” or “tabernacle” was still in existence at Gibeon (1 Chronicles 16:39; 2 Chronicles 1:3), but the ark had long been separated from it, and David probably thought that something newer and more magnificent was required. He therefore allowed the former tabernacle to keep its place and had another made and erected.
"Then David said, None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites: for them hath Jehovah chosen to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto him for ever." — 1 Chronicles 15:2 (ASV)
No one should carry the ark of God except the Levites—Compare the marginal references. We can easily understand that David, after the “breach upon Uzza” (1 Chronicles 13:11), had carefully considered all the legal requirements for moving the ark and was anxious that they should be strictly observed (Compare to 1 Chronicles 15:13).
"And David assembled all Israel at Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of Jehovah unto its place, which he had prepared for it." — 1 Chronicles 15:3 (ASV)
All Israel — This probably refers to chosen men, like the 30,000 mentioned in 2 Samuel 6:1. See 1 Chronicles 15:25.
"And David gathered together the sons of Aaron, and the Levites:" — 1 Chronicles 15:4 (ASV)
The children of Aaron — that is, the priests.
"of the sons of Kohath, Uriel the chief, and his brethren a hundred and twenty;" — 1 Chronicles 15:5 (ASV)
The sons of Kohath - The order of Levi’s sons according to birthright is Gershom, Kohath, and Merari (Genesis 46:11; Exodus 6:16). However, the Kohathites, from whom the priestly family of Aaron descended, had precedence in all respects.
They were especially entrusted with attending to and carrying the ark. Of the six Levitical families mentioned in 1 Chronicles 15:5–10, only one was descended from Gershom and one from Merari, while four (Uriel, Elizaphan, Hebron, and Uzziel) were from Kohath.
Jump to: