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Then David said: 'This is the house of the LORD God, and this is the altar of burnt-offering for Israel.'

And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the couplings; and brass in abundance without weight;

and cedar-trees without number; for the Zidonians and they of Tyre brought cedar-trees in abundance to David.

And David said: 'Solomon my son is young and tender, and the house that is to be builded for the LORD must be exceeding magnificent, of fame and of glory throughout all countries; I will therefore make preparation for him.' So David prepared abundantly before his death.

Then He called for Solomon his son, and charged him to build a house for the LORD, the God of Israel.

And David said to Solomon: 'My son, as for me, it was in my heart to build a house unto the name of the LORD my God.

Behold, a son shall be born to thee, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies round about; for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quietness unto Israel in his days.

He shall build a house for My name; and he shall be to Me for a son, and I will be to him for a father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel for ever.

Now, behold, in my straits I have prepared for the house of the LORD a hundred thousand talents of gold, and a thousand thousand talents of silver; and of brass and iron without weight, for it is in abundance; timber also and stone have I prepared; and thou mayest add thereto.

'Is not the LORD your God with you? and hath He not given you rest on every side? for He hath delivered the inhabitants of the land into my hand; and the land is subdued before the LORD, and before His people.

The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses; and Aaron was separated, that he should be sanctified as most holy, he and his sons for ever, to offer before the LORD, to minister unto Him, and to bless in His name for ever.

But as for Moses the man of God, his sons are named among the tribe of Levi.

These were the sons of Levi after their fathers' houses, even the heads of the fathers' houses, according to their muster, in the number of names by their polls, who did the work for the service of the house of the LORD, from twenty years old and upward.

For David said: 'The LORD, the God of Israel, hath given rest unto His people, and He dwelleth in Jerusalem for ever;

and also the Levites shall no more have need to carry the tabernacle and all the vessels of it for the service thereof.'

For by the last ordinances of David the sons of Levi were numbered from twenty years old and upward.

For their station was at the side of the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of the LORD, in the courts, and in the chambers, and in the purifying of all holy things, even the work of the service of the house of God;

for the showbread also, and for the fine flour for a meal-offering, whether of unleavened wafers, or of that which is baked on the griddle, or of that which is soaked, and for all manner of measure and size;

and that they should keep the charge of the tent of meeting, and the charge of the holy place, and the charge of the sons of Aaron their brethren, for the service of the house of the LORD.

Thus were they divided by lot, one sort with another; for they were princes of the sanctuary and princes of God, both of the sons of Eleazar, and of the sons of Ithamar.