The gatekeepers

 

 

 

1 Chronicles 9:17-27

 

February 18, 2023

 

The gatekeepers were Shallum, Akkub, Talmon, Ahiman, and their kinsmen (Shallum was the chief);  until then they were in the king's gate on the east side as the gatekeepers of the camps of the Levites.  Shallum the son of Kore, son of Ebiasaph, son of Korah, and his kinsmen of his father's house, the Korahites, were in charge of the work of the service, keepers of the thresholds of the tent, as their fathers had been in charge of the camp of the Lord, keepers of the entrance.  And Phinehas the son of Eleazar was the chief officer over them in time past; the Lord was with him.  Zechariah the son of Meshelemiah was gatekeeper at the entrance of the tent of meeting.  All these, who were chosen as gatekeepers at the thresholds, were 212. They were enrolled by genealogies in their villages. David and Samuel the seer established them in their office of trust.  So they and their sons were in charge of the gates of the house of the Lord, that is, the house of the tent, as guards.  The gatekeepers were on the four sides, east, west, north, and south.  And their kinsmen who were in their villages were obligated to come in every seven days, in turn, to be with these,  for the four chief gatekeepers, who were Levites, were entrusted to be over the chambers and the treasures of the house of God.  And they lodged around the house of God, for on them lay the duty of watching, and they had charge of opening it every morning.

 

What thoughts enter your mind when you hear the word gatekeeper; could it be words like; porter, caretaker, doorkeeper, receptionist, or even concierge?  When I first began in sales it was with the Business  Products Division of 3M, and my job was selling copy machines.  Now it may be hard to believe but most businesses did not have copy machines, they had typewriters with a lot of carbon paper copies.  The receptionist was always back then a lady, and her job was to be the boss's gatekeeper, she made sure that the peddler did not bother the boss.  And they were good at doing so.  After many no he does not have time to see you, or we are not interested, I came up with a new approach.  Good morning, can you help me, I need help, I have been carrying this machine that will save you time and money, and I need to show it to the person who makes the decision.  It was key to getting past the gatekeeper, for most ladies have a mother's gift of helping and it worked. 

 

Now David and Samuel picked the brightest and most trusted men for this job, so shall we look at these 212 men to see what jobs they did.

 

 Some of them had charge of the utensils of service, for they were required to count them when they were brought in and taken out.  Others of them were appointed over the furniture and over all the holy utensils, also over the fine flour, the wine, the oil, the incense, and the spices.  Others, of the sons of the priests, prepared the mixing of the spices,  and Mattithiah, one of the Levites, the firstborn of Shallum the Korahite, was entrusted with making the flat cakes.  Also, some of their kinsmen of the Kohathites had charge of the showbread, to prepare it every Sabbath.

Now these, the singers, the heads of fathers' houses of the Levites, were in the chambers of the temple free from other service, for they were on duty day and night.  These were heads of fathers' houses of the Levites, according to their generations, leaders. These lived in Jerusalem.

 From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice