Study Desk

Then he made love to his wife again, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. He named him Beriah, because there had been misfortune in his family.

All Israel was listed in the genealogies recorded in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. They were taken captive to Babylon because of their unfaithfulness.

They would spend the night stationed around the house of God, because they had to guard it; and they had charge of the key for opening it each morning.

Those who were musicians, heads of Levite families, stayed in the rooms of the temple and were exempt from other duties because they were responsible for the work day and night.

Saul died because he was unfaithful to the Lord ; he did not keep the word of the Lord and even consulted a medium for guidance,

And David became more and more powerful, because the Lord Almighty was with him.

"God forbid that I should do this!" he said. "Should I drink the blood of these men who went at the risk of their lives?" Because they risked their lives to bring it back, David would not drink it. Such were the exploits of the three mighty warriors.

Some of the tribe of Manasseh defected to David when he went with the Philistines to fight against Saul. (He and his men did not help the Philistines because, after consultation, their rulers sent him away. They said, "It will cost us our heads if he deserts to his master Saul.")

The whole assembly agreed to do this, because it seemed right to all the people.

When they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled.

The Lord 's anger burned against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God.

Then David was angry because the Lord 's wrath had broken out against Uzzah, and to this day that place is called Perez Uzzah.

As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the poplar trees, move out to battle, because that will mean God has gone out in front of you to strike the Philistine army."

Then David said, "No one but the Levites may carry the ark of God, because the Lord chose them to carry the ark of the Lord and to minister before him forever."

It was because you, the Levites, did not bring it up the first time that the Lord our God broke out in anger against us. We did not inquire of him about how to do it in the prescribed way."

Kenaniah the head Levite was in charge of the singing; that was his responsibility because he was skillful at it.

Because God had helped the Levites who were carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord , seven bulls and seven rams were sacrificed.

David thought, "I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, because his father showed kindness to me." So David sent a delegation to express his sympathy to Hanun concerning his father. When David's envoys came to Hanun in the land of the Ammonites to express sympathy to him,

But Joab did not include Levi and Benjamin in the numbering, because the king's command was repulsive to him.

But David could not go before it to inquire of God, because he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the Lord .