Bible Strands
1 Chronicles 15:3
And David assembled all Israel in Jerusalem to bring up the ark of the LORD to the place he had prepared for it.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — David gathers the entire nation in Jerusalem immediately after declaring that Levites alone may handle the ark. This assembly occurs at the moment of transitioning the ark from Kiriath-jeari to its designated location.
The words — The verb וַיִּקָּהֵל (va-yiqqahel, "he assembled") and the infinitive לְהַעֲלוֹת (le-haʿalōt, "to bring up") frame the narrative action, emphasizing both the mobilization of the people and the physical elevation of the ark.
The thread — This mobilization echoes 1 Chronicles 13:5, where David initially gathers Israel from Egypt to Lebanon to retrieve the ark, and parallels Solomon’s later assembly in 1 Kings 8:1 for the ark’s placement.
Why it lands — The text records David’s organized gathering and preparation of a specific place before the ark’s arrival. It requires a reader to acknowledge that approaching sacred objects demands structured preparation and adherence to established roles rather than independent initiative.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And David gathered all Israel together to Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the Lord unto his place, which he had prepared for it.
Cross-references
- 1 Kings 8:1 At that time Solomon assembled before him in Jerusalem the elders of Israel—all the tribal heads and family leaders of the Israelites—to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD from Zion, the City of David.
- 1 Chronicles 13:5 So David assembled all Israel, from the River Shihor in Egypt to Lebo-hamath, to bring the ark of God from Kiriath-jearim.
- 2 Samuel 6:12 Now it was reported to King David, “The LORD has blessed the house of Obed-edom and all that belongs to him, because of the ark of God.” So David went and had the ark of God brought up from the house of Obed-edom into the City of David with rejoicing.
- 1 Chronicles 15:1 David constructed buildings for himself in the City of David, and he prepared a place for the ark of God and pitched a tent for it.
- 2 Samuel 6:17 So they brought the ark of the LORD and set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it. Then David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.
- 1 Chronicles 15:12 And he said to them, “You are the heads of the Levitical families. You and your relatives must consecrate yourselves so that you may bring the ark of the LORD, the God of Israel, to the place I have prepared for it.