Divisions of the Gatekeepers

1 As for the divisions of the gatekeepers: of the Korahites, Meshelemiah the son of Kore, of the sons of Asaph. 2 And Meshelemiah had sons: ^gZechariah the firstborn, Jediael the second, Zebadiah the third, Jathniel the fourth, 3 Elam the fifth, Jehohanan the sixth, Eliehoenai the seventh. 4 And ^hObed-edom had sons: Shemaiah the firstborn, Jehozabad the second, Joah the third, Sachar the fourth, Nethanel the fifth, 5 Ammiel the sixth, Issachar the seventh, Peullethai the eighth, ⁱfor God blessed him. 6 Also to his son Shemaiah were sons born who were rulers in their fathers’ houses, for they were men of great ability. 7 The sons of Shemaiah: Othni, Rephael, Obed and Elzabad, whose brothers were able men, Elihu and Semachiah. 8 All these were of the sons of Obed-edom with their sons and brothers, able men qualified for the service; sixty-two of Obed-edom. 9 And Meshelemiah had sons and brothers, able men, eighteen. 10 And ^jHosah, of the sons of Merari, had sons: Shimri the chief (for though he was not the firstborn, his father made him chief), 11 Hilkiah the second, Tebaliah the third, Zechariah the fourth: all the sons and brothers of Hosah were thirteen.

12 These divisions of the gatekeepers, corresponding to their chief men, had duties, just as their brothers did, ministering in the house of the Lord. 13 And they cast lots by fathers’ houses, ^ksmall and great alike, for their gates. 14 The lot for the east fell to Shelemiah. They cast lots also for his son Zechariah, a shrewd counselor, and his lot came out for the north. 15 Obed-edom’s came out for the south, and to his sons was allotted ^lthe gatehouse. 16 For Shuppim and ^jHosah it came out for the west, at the gate of Shallecheth on the road that goes up. Watch corresponded to watch. 17 On the east there were six each day,¹ on the north four each day, on the south four each day, as well as two and two at the gatehouse. 18 And for the ⁿcolonnade² on the west there were four at the road and two at the colonnade. 19 These were the divisions of the gatekeepers among the Korahites and the sons of Merari.

Treasurers and Other Officials

20 And of the Levites, Ahijah had charge of ^othe treasuries of the house of God and the treasuries of the dedicated gifts. 21 The sons of Ladan, the sons of the Gershonites belonging to Ladan, the heads of the fathers’ houses belonging to Ladan the Gershonite: ^pJehieli.³

22 ^qThe sons of Jehieli, Zetham, and Joel his brother, were in charge of the treasuries of the house of the Lord. 23 ^rOf the Amramites, the Izharites, the Hebronites, and the Uzzielites— 24 and ^sShebuel the son of Gershom, son of Moses, was chief officer in charge of the treasuries. 25 His brothers: from ^tEliezer were his son Rehabiah, and his son ^uJeshaiah, and his son Joram, and his son Zichri, and his son ^vShelomoth. 26 This Shelomoth and his brothers were in charge of all the treasuries of the dedicated gifts that David the king and the heads of the fathers’ houses and the officers of the thousands and the hundreds and the commanders of the army ^whad dedicated. 27 From spoil won in battles they dedicated gifts for the maintenance of the house of the Lord. 28 Also all that ^xSamuel the seer and Saul the son of Kish and Abner the son of Ner and Joab the son of Zeruiah had dedicated—all dedicated gifts were in the care of ^vShelomoth⁴ and his brothers.

29 Of the Izharites, Chenaniah and his sons were appointed to ^yexternal duties for Israel, ^zas officers and judges. 30 Of the Hebronites, ^aHashabiah and his brothers, 1,700 men of ability, had the oversight of Israel westward of the Jordan for all the work of the Lord and for the service of the king. 31 Of the Hebronites, ^bJerijah was chief of the Hebronites of whatever genealogy or fathers’ houses. (In the fortieth year of David’s reign search was made and men of great ability among them were found at ^cJazer in Gilead.) 32 King David appointed him and his brothers, 2,700 men of ability, heads of fathers’ houses, to have the oversight of the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of the Manassites for everything pertaining to God and for ^dthe affairs of the king.

Military Divisions

1 This is the number of the people of Israel, the heads of fathers’ houses, the commanders of thousands and hundreds, and their officers who served the king in all matters concerning the divisions that came and went, month after month throughout the year, each division numbering 24,000:

2 ^eJashobeam the son of Zabdiel was in charge of the first division in the first month; in his division were 24,000. 3 He was a ^fdescendant of Perez and was chief of all the commanders. He served for the first month. 4 ^gDodai the Ahohite⁵ was in charge of the division of the second month; in his division were 24,000. 5 The third commander, for the third month, was ^hBenaiah, the son of Jehoiada the chief priest; in his division were 24,000. 6 This is the Benaiah ⁱwho was a mighty man of the thirty and in command of the thirty; Ammizabad his son was in charge of his division.⁶ 7 ^jAsahel the brother of Joab was fourth, for the fourth month, and his son Zebadiah after him; in his division were 24,000. 8 The fifth commander, for the fifth month, was ^kShamhuth the Izrahite; in his division were 24,000. 9 Sixth, for the sixth month, was ^lIra, the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite; in his division were 24,000. 10 Seventh, for the seventh month, was ^mHelez the Pelonite, of the sons of Ephraim; in his division were 24,000. 11 Eighth, for the eighth month, was ⁿSibbecai the Hushathite, of the Zerahites; in his division were 24,000. 12 Ninth, for the ninth month, was ^oAbiezer of Anathoth, a Benjaminite; in his division were 24,000. 13 Tenth, for the tenth month, was ^pMaharai of Netophah, of the Zerahites; in his division were 24,000. 14 Eleventh, for the eleventh month, was ^qBenaiah of Pirathon, of the sons of Ephraim; in his division were 24,000. 15 Twelfth, for the twelfth month, was ^rHeldai the Netophathite, of ^sOthniel; in his division were 24,000.

Leaders of Tribes

16 Over the tribes of Israel, for the Reubenites, Eliezer the son of Zichri was chief officer; for the Simeonites, Shephatiah the son of Maacah; 17 for Levi, ^tHashabiah the son of Kemuel; for Aaron, ^uZadok; 18 for Judah, Elihu, one of David’s brothers; for Issachar, Omri the son of Michael; 19 for Zebulun, Ishmaiah the son of Obadiah; for Naphtali, Jeremoth the son of Azriel; 20 for the Ephraimites, Hoshea the son of Azaziah; for the half-tribe of Manasseh, Joel the son of Pedaiah; 21 for the half-tribe of Manasseh in Gilead, Iddo the son of Zechariah; for Benjamin, Jaasiel the son of Abner; 22 for Dan, Azarel the son of Jeroham. These were the ^vleaders of the tribes of Israel. 23 David did not count those below twenty years of age, for the ^wLord had promised to make Israel as many as the stars of heaven. 24 Joab the son of Zeruiah began to count, but ^xdid not finish. Yet ^ywrath came upon Israel for this, and the number was not entered in the chronicles of King David.

25 Over the king’s treasuries was ^zAzmaveth the son of Adiel; and over the treasuries in the country, in the cities, in the villages, and in the towers, was Jonathan the son of Uzziah; 26 and over those who did the work of the field for tilling the soil was Ezri the son of Chelub; 27 and over the vineyards was Shimei the Ramathite; and over the produce of the vineyards for the wine cellars was Zabdi the Shiphmite. 28 Over the olive and ^asycamore trees in the Shephelah was Baal-hanan the Gederite; and over the stores of oil was Joash. 29 Over the herds that pastured in ^bSharon was Shitrai the Sharonite; over the herds in the valleys was Shaphat the son of Adlai. 30 Over the camels was Obil the Ishmaelite; and over the donkeys was Jehdeiah the Meronothite. Over the flocks was Jaziz the ^cHagrite. 31 All these were stewards of King David’s property.

32 Jonathan, David’s uncle, was a counselor, being a man of understanding and a scribe. He and Jehiel the son of Hachmoni attended the king’s sons. 33 ^dAhithophel was the ^eking’s counselor, and Hushai the Archite was the king’s friend. 34 Ahithophel was succeeded by Jehoiada the son of ^fBenaiah, and ^gAbiathar. Joab was ^hcommander of the king’s army.

Who Shall Dwell on Your Holy Hill?

A Psalm of David.

Who Is the Greatest?

1 ^tAt that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them 3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you ^uturn and ^vbecome like children, you ^wwill never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 ^xWhoever humbles himself like this child is the ^wgreatest in the kingdom of heaven.

5 ^y“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, 6 but ^zwhoever causes one of these ^alittle ones who believe in me to sin,¹ it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.

Temptations to Sin

7 “Woe to the world for ^btemptations to sin!^{2 c}For it is necessary that temptations come, ^dbut woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! 8 ^eAnd if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into ^fthe eternal fire. 9 ^eAnd if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the ^fhell³ of fire.

The Parable of the Lost Sheep

10 “See that you do not despise ^gone of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven ^htheir angels always ⁱsee the face of my Father who is in heaven.⁴ 12 ^jWhat do you think? ^kIf a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? 13 And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. 14 So ^lit is not the will of my⁵ Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.

If Your Brother Sins Against You

15 ^m“If your brother sins against you, ⁿgo and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have ^ogained your brother. 16 But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established ^pby the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17 If he refuses to listen to them, ^qtell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, ^rlet him be to you as ^sa Gentile and ^sa tax collector. 18 Truly, I say to you, ^twhatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed⁶ in heaven. 19 Again I say to you, if two of you ^uagree on earth about anything they ask, ^vit will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are ^wgathered in my name, ^xthere am I among them.”

The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant

21 Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often ^ywill my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? ^zAs many as seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.

23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished ^ato settle accounts with his servants.⁷ 24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ^bten thousand ^ctalents.⁸ 25 ^dAnd since he could not pay, his master ordered him ^eto be sold, with his wife and ^fchildren and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 So the servant^{9 g}fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and ^dforgave him the debt. 28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred ^hdenarii,¹⁰ and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. 31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. 32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 ⁱAnd should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 ^jAnd in anger his master delivered him to the jailers,^{11 k}until he should pay all his debt. 35 ^lSo also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother ^mfrom your heart.”