Bible Strands
1 Chronicles 18:16
Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was the scribe;
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Chronicler documents David’s official court structure during his reign, listing the military commander, religious leaders, and civil administrators who govern the united kingdom.
The words — כֹּהֲנִים (ko.ha.Nim) designates the established priestly office, and שַוְשָׁא (shav.Sha') identifies the specific royal scribe appointed to maintain court records.
The thread — This administrative list cross-references the Davidic government in 2 Samuel 8:17, 2 Samuel 20:25, and 1 Kings 4:3, where the Chronicler and Samuel record overlapping personnel with minor naming variations.
Why it lands — The verse records that David’s administration functions through fixed offices rather than arbitrary appointments, requiring the reader to observe the deliberate structure God authorized for His king’s household.
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 Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Abimelech the son of Abiathar, were the priests; and Shavsha was scribe;
Cross-references
- 2 Samuel 8:17 Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was the scribe;
- 2 Samuel 20:25 Sheva was the scribe; Zadok and Abiathar were priests;
- 1 Kings 4:3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, were secretaries; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder;
- 1 Kings 2:35 And the king appointed Benaiah son of Jehoiada in Joab’s place over the army, and he appointed Zadok the priest in Abiathar’s place.
- 1 Chronicles 24:6 The scribe, Shemaiah son of Nethanel, a Levite, recorded their names in the presence of the king and of the officers: Zadok the priest, Ahimelech son of Abiathar, and the heads of families of the priests and the Levites—one family being taken from Eleazar, and then one from Ithamar.