1Ch 23:28-32 | KD | STEP | Their appointed place or post was at the hand of the sons of Aaron, i.e., they were ready to the priest’s hand, to aid him in carrying on the service of the house of God. “Over the courts and the cells (of the courts; cf. ), and the purifying of every holy thing,” i.e., of the temple rooms and the temple vessels. On ל before כּל־קדשׁ, used for mediate connection after the stat. const. , cf. Ew. §289, b . עבדת וּמעשׂה, and for the performance of the service of the house of God. Before מעשׂה, על is to be supplied from the preceding. The individual services connected with the worship are specialized in , and introduced by the preposition ל. For the bread of the pile, i.e., the shew-bread (see on Lev 24:8.), viz., to prepare it; for the laying of the bread upon the table was the priest’s business. For fine meal (סלת, see on ) for the meat-offering and unleavened cakes (המּצּות רקיקי, see on ), and for the pans, i.e., that which was baked in pans (see on ), and for that which was roasted (מרבּכת, see on ), and for all measures of capacity and measures of length which were kept by the Levites, because meal, oil, and wine were offered along with the sacrifices in certain fixed quantities (cf. e.g., ; ), and the Levites had probably to watch over the weights and measures in general ( ).

‏ 1 Chronicles 23:28-32

Their appointed place or post was at the hand of the sons of Aaron, i.e., they were ready to the priest’s hand, to aid him in carrying on the service of the house of God. “Over the courts and the cells (of the courts; cf. 1Ch 9:26), and the purifying of every holy thing,” i.e., of the temple rooms and the temple vessels. On ל before כּל־קדשׁ, used for mediate connection after the stat. const., cf. Ew. §289, b. עבדת וּמעשׂה, and for the performance of the service of the house of God. Before מעשׂה, על is to be supplied from the preceding. The individual services connected with the worship are specialized in 1Ch 23:29-31, and introduced by the preposition ל. For the bread of the pile, i.e., the shew-bread (see on Lev 24:8.), viz., to prepare it; for the laying of the bread upon the table was the priest’s business. For fine meal (סלת, see on Lev 2:1) for the meat-offering and unleavened cakes (המּצּות רקיקי, see on Lev 2:4), and for the pans, i.e., that which was baked in pans (see on Lev 2:5), and for that which was roasted (מרבּכת, see on Lev 6:14), and for all measures of capacity and measures of length which were kept by the Levites, because meal, oil, and wine were offered along with the sacrifices in certain fixed quantities (cf. e.g., Exo 29:40; Exo 30:24), and the Levites had probably to watch over the weights and measures in general (Lev 19:35). 1Ch 23:30 “On each morning and evening to praise the Lord with song and instruments.” These words refer to the duties of the singers and musicians, whose classes and orders are enumerated in 1 Chron 25. The referring of them to the Levites who assisted the priests in the sacrificial worship (Berth.) needs no serious refutation, for וּלהלּל הודות is the standing phrase for the sacred temple music; and we can hardly believe that the Levites sang psalms or played on harps or lutes while the beasts for sacrifices were slaughtered and skinned, or the meat-offerings baked, or such duties performed. 1Ch 23:31 “And for all the bringing of offerings to Jahve on sabbaths, the new moons, and the feasts, in the number according to the law concerning them (i.e., according to the regulations that existed for this matter), continually before Jahve.” It was the duty of the Levites to procure the necessary number of beasts for sacrifice, to see to their suitableness, to slaughter and skin them, etc. תּמיד refers to עלות, the burnt-offerings for Jahve, which are תּמיד, because they must always be offered anew on the appointed days. 1Ch 23:32

In conclusion, the whole duties of the Levites are summed up in three clauses: they were to keep the charge of the tabernacle, the charge of the sacred things, i.e., of all the sacred things of the worship, and the charge of the sons of Aaron, i.e., of all that the priests committed to them to be done; cf. Num 18:3., where these functions are more exactly fixed.