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1 Chronicles 15:17

So the Levites appointed Heman the son of Joel; and of his brethren, Asaph the son of Berechiah; and of the sons of Merari their brethren, Ethan the son of Kushaiah;
1 Chronicles 15:17 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB So the Levites appointed Heman the son of Joel; and of his brothers, Asaph the son of Berechiah; and of the sons of Merari their brothers, Ethan the son of Kushaiah;
  • BSB So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel; from his brothers, Asaph son of Berechiah; from their brothers the Merarites, Ethan son of Kushaiah;
  • NKJV So the Levites appointed Heman the son of Joel; and of his brethren, Asaph the son of Berechiah; and of their brethren, the sons of Merari, Ethan the son of Kushaiah;
  • NASB So the Levites appointed Heman the son of Joel, and from his relatives, Asaph the son of Berechiah; and from the sons of Merari their relatives, Ethan the son of Kushaiah,
  • NLT So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel along with his fellow Levites: Asaph son of Berekiah, and Ethan son of Kushaiah from the clan of Merari.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

The Levites appointed Heman, Asaph, and Ethan as chief singers. These three founded the great families of temple musicians.

Overview

Heman, Asaph, and Ethan were set over the music, representing the three Levitical clans and becoming the heads of enduring guilds of temple singers. Several psalms bear their names (e.g., Psalm 73-83 for Asaph; Psalm 88, 89 for Heman and Ethan). Their appointment establishes the rich tradition of sung worship in Israel, a heritage of praise that continues to instruct and inspire God's people.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 8

  • 1 Chr 6:39And his brother Asaph, who stood on his right hand, even Asaph the son of Berachiah, the son of Shimea,
  • 1 Chr 6:44And their brethren the sons of Merari stood on the left hand: Ethan the son of Kishi, the son of Abdi, the son of Malluch,
  • 1 Chr 6:33And these are they that waited with their children. Of the sons of the Kohathites: Heman a singer, the son of Joel, the son of Shemuel,
  • Ps 83:1Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God.
  • Ps 73:1Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart.
  • 1 Chr 25:1–5Moreover David and the captains of the host separated to the service of the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who should prophesy with harps, with psalteries, and with cymbals: and the number of the workmen according to their service was:
  • 1 Chr 15:19So the singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, were appointed to sound with cymbals of brass;
  • 1 Sam 8:2Now the name of his firstborn was Joel; and the name of his second, Abiah: they were judges in Beersheba.

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Christ at the center

The genealogies and the everlasting covenant with David trace the single thread of promise running through the generations straight to the Christ in whom the line reaches its goal.

How 1 Chronicles 15:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.