Genealogy: The Priestly Line
6 [a]The sons of Levi were [b]Gershon, Kohath and Merari. 2 The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. 3 The children of Amram were Aaron, Moses and Miriam. And the sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. 4 Eleazar [c]became the father of Phinehas, and Phinehas became the father of Abishua, 5 and Abishua became the father of Bukki, and Bukki became the father of Uzzi, 6 and Uzzi became the father of Zerahiah, and Zerahiah became the father of Meraioth, 7 Meraioth became the father of Amariah, and Amariah became the father of Ahitub, 8 and Ahitub became the father of Zadok, and Zadok became the father of Ahimaaz, 9 and Ahimaaz became the father of Azariah, and Azariah became the father of Johanan, 10 and Johanan became the father of Azariah (it was he who served as the priest in the house which Solomon built in Jerusalem), 11 and Azariah became the father of Amariah, and Amariah became the father of Ahitub, 12 and Ahitub became the father of Zadok, and Zadok became the father of [d]Shallum, 13 and Shallum became the father of Hilkiah, and Hilkiah became the father of Azariah, 14 and Azariah became the father of Seraiah, and Seraiah became the father of Jehozadak; 15 and Jehozadak went along when the Lord carried Judah and Jerusalem away into exile [e]by Nebuchadnezzar.
16 [f]The sons of Levi were [g]Gershom, Kohath and Merari. 17 These are the names of the sons of Gershom: Libni and Shimei. 18 The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. 19 The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. And these are the families of the Levites according to their fathers’ households. 20 Of Gershom: Libni his son, Jahath his son, Zimmah his son, 21 Joah his son, Iddo his son, Zerah his son, Jeatherai his son. 22 The sons of Kohath were Amminadab his son, Korah his son, Assir his son, 23 Elkanah his son, Ebiasaph his son and Assir his son, 24 Tahath his son, Uriel his son, Uzziah his son and Shaul his son. 25 The sons of Elkanah were Amasai and Ahimoth. 26 As for Elkanah, the sons of Elkanah were Zophai his son and Nahath his son, 27 Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, Elkanah his son. 28 The sons of Samuel were Joel the firstborn, and Abijah the second. 29 The sons of Merari were Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his son, Uzzah his son, 30 Shimea his son, Haggiah his son, Asaiah his son.
31 Now these are those whom David appointed over the service of song in the house of the Lord, after the ark rested there. 32 They ministered with song before the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, until Solomon had built the house of the Lord in Jerusalem; and they [h]served in their office according to their order. 33 These are those who [i]served with their sons: From the sons of the Kohathites were Heman the singer, the son of Joel, the son of Samuel, 34 the son of Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Eliel, the son of Toah, 35 the son of Zuph, the son of Elkanah, the son of Mahath, the son of Amasai, 36 the son of Elkanah, the son of Joel, the son of Azariah, the son of Zephaniah, 37 the son of Tahath, the son of Assir, the son of Ebiasaph, the son of Korah, 38 the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, the son of Israel. 39 Heman’s brother Asaph stood at his right hand, even Asaph the son of Berechiah, the son of Shimea, 40 the son of Michael, the son of Baaseiah, the son of Malchijah, 41 the son of Ethni, the son of Zerah, the son of Adaiah, 42 the son of Ethan, the son of Zimmah, the son of Shimei, 43 the son of Jahath, the son of Gershom, the son of Levi. 44 On the left hand were their [j]kinsmen the sons of Merari: Ethan the son of Kishi, the son of Abdi, the son of Malluch, 45 the son of Hashabiah, the son of Amaziah, the son of Hilkiah, 46 the son of Amzi, the son of Bani, the son of Shemer, 47 the son of Mahli, the son of Mushi, the son of Merari, the son of Levi. 48 Their [k]kinsmen the Levites were [l]appointed for all the service of the tabernacle of the house of God.
Obviously these family trees aren’t complete, but rather meant to highlight certain families and individuals of importance. Something I had never noticed, was that Samuel (whose mother was previous barren) came from the family of the Levites, and so it wasn’t real unusual for him to serve in the tabernacle with Eli. Of course, the unusual part was that he did so at such a young age.
His grandson Heman must have been quite a notable singer to get special mention. Along with him was Asaph who wrote many of the psalms we see in the Bible, not his real brother, but a kinsman of the tribe of Levi. And lastly was Ethan of the sons of Merari, which rounds out the three households of Levi. All of these were dedicated to serving in the tabernacle, that is, the entire tribe of Levi had been appointed by God in the days of Aaron & Moses. They likewise were also of the family of Kohath just like Heman and Samuel.
You might not be of a priestly heritage, and indeed that wouldn’t do you much good anymore, but God has appointed each of us for a special purpose. There is no one that is missing from His plan, no one overlooked or forgotten. It is amazing how God works all thing together, and uses us even when we might not think much of our family background or talents. God has given each a gift to be used for His glory, and that is not a think to be taken for granted.
As in the parable that Jesus told, we are to make good use of those talents, and not just hide them out of fear. Love is to be our motivation, rather than fear, and it should move us to do whatever God has asked of us. And if we don’t know what He is asking, we need to ask Him to show us what part it is we are to play. Seek Him and you will find your purpose and place in this world, and in His kingdom.