Finally, to some of the Kohathites was committed the preparation of the shew-bread, which required to be laid on the table fresh every Sabbath; cf. Lev 24:5-8. The suffix אחיהם refers back to the Levites of the father's-house of Korah in 1Ch 9:32.
Verses 33-34
1Ch 9:33-34 1Ch 9:33, 1Ch 9:34 contain subscriptions to the section vv. 14-32. Since the enumeration of the Levites dwelling in Jerusalem in 1Ch 9:14-16 began with the Levitic singer families, so here we find that the singers are mentioned in the first subscription, “these are the singers, heads of fathers'-houses of the Levites,” with an additional remark as to their service: “In the cells free, for day and night it is incumbent upon them to be in service,” which is somewhat obscure. פּטוּרים, from פּטר, in later Hebrew, let loose, set free. Rashi and Kimchi have already translated it, immunes ab aliis nempe ministeriis, or ab omni alio officio. Adopting this linguistically assured translation, we must supply with בּלּשׁכת, dwelling or waiting in the cells of the courts of the temple, freed from every other business in order that they may apply themselves wholly to their service, for they are wholly busied therewith day and night. Day and night is not to be pressed, but signifies perpetually, continually. Bertheau translates בּמּלאכה עליהם, “they were over them in the service,” i.e., had to take the oversight of the singers subordinate to them. but this can hardly be correct; and the passage quoted to justify this translation, 2Ch 34:12, proves nothing, because there מפקד is used along with it. We therefore prefer to take עליהם in the signification “it is incumbent upon them,” although we should then expect המּלאכה instead of בּמּלאכה; cf. 1Ch 9:27. Yet בּמּלאכה can in this connection quite well be used elliptically or concisely for “to be in service,” i.e., to carry on their musical duties. The second subscription (1Ch 9:34) refers to all the Levites, and is similar in contents and form to that in 1Ch 8:28.
Verses 35-44
1Ch 9:35-44The family of King Saul. - This register has already occurred in 1Ch 8:29-38, along with those of other families of the tribe of Benjamin, and is repeated here only to connect the following history of the kingship with the preceding genealogical lists. It forms here the introduction to the narrative of Saul's death in 1Ch 10:1-14, which in turn forms the transition to the kingship of David. The deviations of this register from that in 1Ch 8:29-38, show that it has been derived from another document in more complete preservation than that in 1 Chron 8, which had been handed down in connection with other genealogies of the
