The Chronicler drones on with more meaningless drivel about the genealogy of the Levite priests, and how David assigned them to responsibilities regarding the future temple. Why anybody would be interested in these meaningless lists of names hundreds of years after this ostensibly happened I have no idea. But it does prompt me to reflect on the origins of the hereditary priesthood.
If you've been putting up with this for a while you know that Aaron was the brother of Moses, they were of the tribe of Levi, and in Exodus Yahweh gave responsibility for maintaining the tabernacle and the ark to the Levites and for the sacrifice to the descendants of Aaron specifically. However, we also know that this is fiction. The Egyptian captivity, the 40 years wandering in the desert, and Joshua's conquest of Canaan never happened. I must say, however, that as preposterous as the story is, it is also richly imaginative fiction.
Because the priesthood obviously comes with privileges -- those being a major focus of Leviticus -- and emphasized at other points in Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomist History -- priests would obviously want to pass them on to their sons. how the sustaining mythology developed we will never know, but keep in mind that everything we have read so far was written by Levite priests and is therefore polemic in their interest, also reflecting their alliance with the warrior kings. They needed each other.
The source of this is lost -- there is nothing of this in the Book of Kings -- but the Chronicler (who was also a priest) does refer to a specific scribe who recorded this information so, if he's being honest, he had a signed account. Other than that, as I say, it's just a meaningless list of names.
24 These were the divisions of the descendants of Aaron:
The sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. 2 But Nadab and Abihu died before their father did, and they had no sons; so Eleazar and Ithamar served as the priests. 3 With the help of Zadok a descendant of Eleazar and Ahimelek a descendant of Ithamar, David separated them into divisions for their appointed order of ministering. 4 A larger number of leaders were found among Eleazar’s descendants than among Ithamar’s, and they were divided accordingly: sixteen heads of families from Eleazar’s descendants and eight heads of families from Ithamar’s descendants. 5 They divided them impartially by casting lots, for there were officials of the sanctuary and officials of God among the descendants of both Eleazar and Ithamar.
6 The scribe Shemaiah son of Nethanel, a Levite, recorded their names in the presence of the king and of the officials: Zadok the priest, Ahimelek son of Abiathar and the heads of families of the priests and of the Levites—one family being taken from Eleazar and then one from Ithamar.
7 The first lot fell to Jehoiarib,
the second to Jedaiah,
8 the third to Harim,
the fourth to Seorim,
9 the fifth to Malkijah,
the sixth to Mijamin,
10 the seventh to Hakkoz,
the eighth to Abijah,
11 the ninth to Jeshua,
the tenth to Shekaniah,
12 the eleventh to Eliashib,
the twelfth to Jakim,
13 the thirteenth to Huppah,
the fourteenth to Jeshebeab,
14 the fifteenth to Bilgah,
the sixteenth to Immer,
15 the seventeenth to Hezir,
the eighteenth to Happizzez,
16 the nineteenth to Pethahiah,
the twentieth to Jehezkel,
17 the twenty-first to Jakin,
the twenty-second to Gamul,
18 the twenty-third to Delaiah
and the twenty-fourth to Maaziah.
19 This was their appointed order of ministering when they entered the temple of the Lord, according to the regulations prescribed for them by their ancestor Aaron, as the Lord, the God of Israel, had commanded him.
The Rest of the Levites
20 As for the rest of the descendants of Levi:
from the sons of Amram: Shubael;
from the sons of Shubael: Jehdeiah.
21 As for Rehabiah, from his sons:
Ishiah was the first.
22 From the Izharites: Shelomoth;
from the sons of Shelomoth: Jahath.
23 The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the first,[a] Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third and Jekameam the fourth.
24 The son of Uzziel: Micah;
from the sons of Micah: Shamir.
25 The brother of Micah: Ishiah;
from the sons of Ishiah: Zechariah.
26 The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi.
The son of Jaaziah: Beno.
27 The sons of Merari:
from Jaaziah: Beno, Shoham, Zakkur and Ibri.
28 From Mahli: Eleazar, who had no sons.
29 From Kish: the son of Kish:
Jerahmeel.
30 And the sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder and Jerimoth.
These were the Levites, according to their families. 31 They also cast lots, just as their relatives the descendants of Aaron did, in the presence of King David and of Zadok, Ahimelek, and the heads of families of the priests and of the Levites. The families of the oldest brother were treated the same as those of the youngest.
Footnotes
- 1 Chronicles 24:23 Two Hebrew manuscripts and some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 23:19); most Hebrew manuscripts The sons of Jeriah:
1 comment:
A couple of comments:
First of all, the well-founded assertion that the Egyptian captivity never took place is monumental in its implications. In a way, the entire religion is based on the myth of enslavement in captivity in Egypt. The probability that this never occurred invalidate's the entire tradition's foundation.
On a more subjective note, I speak as someone who is genealogically a Kohen, having done nothing to earn that distinction except for having been born to my parents. As with primogeniture in medieval times, and indeed with all other forms of inheritance rights for first/borns, I find these traditions offensive and destructive. They promulgate male-dominated patriarchal systems, and cause conflct and inequality. With the fate of Homo sapiens and and an inhabitable earth hanging in the balance, I'm of the opinion that it's more important than ever women and men have equal power in decisions that affect societies and the planet.
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