Limitless Word
and the sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to their fathers’ households.
Numbers 3:20 · New American Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB The sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to their fathers’ houses.
  • KJV And the sons of Merari by their families; Mahli, and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to the house of their fathers.
  • BSB And the sons of Merari by their clans were Mahli and Mushi. These were the clans of the Levites, according to their families.
  • NKJV And the sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites by their fathers’ houses.
  • NLT The clans descended from Merari were named after two of his descendants, Mahli and Mushi. These were the Levite clans, listed according to their family groups.

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

Merari's sons were Mahli and Mushi, completing the Levitical families. The three clans of Levi are now fully named.

Overview

This finishes the listing of Levi's descendants by clan. With Gershon, Kohath, and Merari accounted for, the structure for assigning tabernacle duties is complete. The thoroughness of the record shows that every Levitical family had its place and purpose in serving God.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 9

  • Exod 6:19The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to their generations.
  • 1 Chr 6:19The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to their fathers’ households.
  • 1 Chr 25:3Of Jeduthun; the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Shimei, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the hands of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied in giving thanks and praising Yahweh with the harp.
  • 1 Chr 15:6of the sons of Merari, Asaiah the chief, and his brothers two hundred twenty;
  • Num 3:33Of Merari was the family of the Mahlites, and the family of the Mushites. These are the families of Merari.
  • 1 Chr 23:21–23The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish.
  • 1 Chr 6:44–47On the left hand their brothers the sons of Merari: Ethan the son of Kishi, the son of Abdi, the son of Malluch,
  • 1 Chr 6:29The sons of Merari: Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his son, Uzzah his son,
  • 1 Chr 24:27–30The sons of Merari: of Jaaziah, Beno, Shoham, Zaccur, and Ibri.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Numbers videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Numbers 3:20YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on NumbersMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.

How Numbers 3:20 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.