1 Chronicles 23:5
in 1 Chronicles 234,000 are to be gatekeepers, and 4,000 are to praise the LORD with the instruments I have made for giving praise.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and four thousand were doorkeepers; and four thousand praised Jehovah with the instruments which I made, said David, to praise therewith.
KJV
Moreover four thousand were porters; and four thousand praised the Lord with the instruments which I made, said David, to praise therewith.
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This verse in 1 Chronicles 23
Commentary
6 notes on this verseMoreover four thousand were porters,.... At the east, north, and south gates of the temple, in their turns: and four thousand praised the Lord with the instruments; were singers in the temple, which in all made up 38,000: which I made, said David, to praise therewith; which instruments he devised and ordered to be made to praise the Lord with; see 2Ch 29:26.
This site's exposition
thirty years of age or older were counted
on 1 Chronicles 23:3-5
The Levites number thirty eight thousand, counted from age thirty, and David sorts them by task. The musicians play “the instruments I have made for giving praise”, and David claims the making as his own. Adam Clarke reads the phrase against Amos 6:5, which faults instruments made for luxury.
This site's exposition
the instruments I have made
Four thousand keep the gates, and four thousand praise the LORD. John Gill places the gatekeepers at the east, north and south gates of the house and says David devised the instruments. Adam Clarke held that David acted on his own judgment here and linked the instruments to Amos 6:5.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
) was to keep the charge of the tabernacle and of the holy place, that none might come nigh but such as were allowed, and those no nearer than was allowed them,
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
It was the happiness of Israel that they had among them such a considerable body of men who were obliged by their office to promote and keep up religion among them. If the worship of God go to decay in Israel, let it not be said that it was for want of due provision for the support of it, but that those who should have done it were careless and false.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Four thousand praised the Lord - David made this distribution according to his own judgment, and from the dictates of his piety; but it does not appear that he had any positive Divine authority for such arrangements. As to the instruments of music which he made they are condemned elsewhere; see Amo 6:5, to which this verse is allowed to be the parallel.
The words behind it
11 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאַרְבַּ֥עַת | vearbaat | and four | H702 → | 318 times |
| אֲלָפִ֖ים | ʾalafim | thousand<s> | H505 → | 505 times |
| שֹׁעֲרִ֑ים | shoarim | gatekeepers | H7778 → | 37 times |
| וְאַרְבַּ֤עַת | vearbaat | and four | H702 → | 318 times |
| אֲלָפִים֙ | ʾalafim | thousand<s> | H505 → | 505 times |
| מְהַֽלְלִ֣ים | mehalim | [those] praising | H1984 → | 165 times |
| לַיהוָ֔ה | layahweh | <to> Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| בַּכֵּלִ֕ים | bakelim | with <the> instruments | H3627 → | 325 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| עָשִׂ֖יתִי | ʾasiti | I made | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| לְהַלֵּֽל׃ | lehalel | to praise | H1984 → | 165 times |
וְאַרְבַּ֥עַתand four
vearbaatH702 →318 times
אֲלָפִ֖יםthousand<s>
ʾalafimH505 →505 times
שֹׁעֲרִ֑יםgatekeepers
shoarimH7778 →37 times
וְאַרְבַּ֤עַתand four
vearbaatH702 →318 times
אֲלָפִים֙thousand<s>
ʾalafimH505 →505 times
מְהַֽלְלִ֣ים[those] praising
mehalimH1984 →165 times
לַיהוָ֔ה<to> Yahweh
layahwehH3068 →6520 times
בַּכֵּלִ֕יםwith <the> instruments
bakelimH3627 →325 times
אֲשֶׁ֥רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
עָשִׂ֖יתִיI made
ʾasitiH6213 →2628 times
לְהַלֵּֽל׃to praise
lehalelH1984 →165 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 87:7Singers and pipers will proclaim, “All my springs of joy are in You.”
it leads to
- Psalms 36:9
For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light.
- John 1:16
From His fullness we have all received grace upon grace.
- Isaiah 12:3
With joy you will draw water from the springs of salvation,
- Revelation 22:17
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” Let the one who hears say, “Come!” And let the one who is thirsty come, and the one who desires the water of life drink freely.
- Revelation 21:6
And He told me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give freely from the spring of the water of life.
- Psalms 36:9
Through
Amos 6:5You improvise songs on the harp like David and invent your own musical instruments.
it leads to
- Isaiah 5:12
At their feasts are the lyre and harp, tambourines and flutes and wine. They disregard the actions of the LORD and fail to see the work of His hands.
- Amos 5:23
Take away from Me the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps.
- Amos 8:3
“In that day,” declares the Lord GOD, “the songs of the temple will turn to wailing. Many will be the corpses, strewn in silence everywhere!”
- Isaiah 5:12
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies2
On this verse
On this chapter
About 1 Chronicles
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.