And the children of Israel, according to their number, the heads of fathers’ houses, the captains of thousands and hundreds and their officers, served the king in every matter of the military divisions. These divisions came in and went out month by month throughout all the months of the year, each division having twenty-four thousand.
Parallel translations
- WEB Now the children of Israel after their number, the heads of fathers’ households and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and their officers who served the king, in any matter of the divisions which came in and went out month by month throughout all the months of the year — of every division were twenty-four thousand.
- KJV Now the children of Israel after their number, to wit, the chief fathers and captains of thousands and hundreds, and their officers that served the king in any matter of the courses, which came in and went out month by month throughout all the months of the year, of every course were twenty and four thousand.
- BSB This is the list of the Israelites—the heads of families, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and their officers who served the king in every matter concerning the divisions on rotating military duty each month throughout the year. There were 24,000 men in each division:
- NASB Now this is the number of the sons of Israel, the heads of fathers’ households, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and their officers who served the king in all the affairs of the divisions which came in and went out month by month throughout the months of the year, each division numbering twenty-four thousand:
- NLT This is the list of Israelite generals and captains, and their officers, who served the king by supervising the army divisions that were on duty each month of the year. Each division served for one month and had 24,000 troops.
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
This introduces the twelve army divisions of 24,000 men each, rotating monthly in service to the king. It shows David's well-ordered standing militia.
Overview
The Chronicler describes a national militia organized into twelve divisions, each serving one month of the year under its own commander. This rotation balanced readiness with the people's ordinary livelihood. The order and shared duty of David's kingdom display the wisdom God gave him to govern, and prefigure the orderly service of Christ's people, who serve in their appointed times and gifts.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Mic 5:2But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, being small among the clans of Judah, out of you one will come out to me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings out are from of old, from ancient times.
- 2 Chr 26:11–13Moreover Uzziah had an army of fighting men, who went out to war by bands, according to the number of their reckoning made by Jeiel the scribe and Maaseiah the officer, under the hand of Hananiah, one of the king’s captains.
- 1 Kgs 4:7Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his household. Each man had to make provision for a month in the year.
- 1 Chr 28:1David assembled all the princes of Israel, the princes of the tribes, the captains of the companies who served the king by division, the captains of thousands, the captains of hundreds, and the rulers over all the substance and possessions of the king and of his sons, with the officers and the mighty men, even all the mighty men of valor, to Jerusalem.
- 1 Sam 8:12He will appoint them to him for captains of thousands, and captains of fifties; and he will assign some to plow his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and the instruments of his chariots.
- 2 Chr 17:12–19Jehoshaphat grew great exceedingly; and he built fortresses and store cities in Judah.
- 1 Kgs 4:27Those officers provided food for king Solomon, and for all who came to king Solomon’s table, every man in his month. They let nothing be lacking.
- Deut 1:15So I took the heads of your tribes, wise men, and known, and made them heads over you, captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds, and captains of fifties, and captains of tens, and officers, according to your tribes.
- 1 Chr 13:1David consulted with the captains of thousands and of hundreds, even with every leader.
- Exod 18:25Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.
- 1 Kgs 5:14He sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses; for a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home; and Adoniram was over the men subject to forced labor.
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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.
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Original language
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