And David organized them in divisions corresponding to the sons of Levi: And renders the common Hebrew conjunction. Some modern versions simply begin a new paragraph here without this conjunction (so Good News Translation). However, others take it as a temporal connector by rendering it “then” (Contemporary English Version). Organized them is literally “divided them” (New American Bible). The verb may also be translated “separated” (New Century Version), “formed” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), or “arranged” (Moffatt). The pronoun them refers to “the Levites” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible), who were divided into groups according to their clans.

Gershom, Kohath, and Merari: The list in verses 7-24 includes the descendants of Gershom (verses 7-11), Kohath (verses 12-20), and Merari (verses 21-23). Compare 1 Chr 6.1-48. Translators need to consider what format will be most helpful in presenting this list clearly to the readers. New International Version provides a very clear layout of this list, which we recommend as a good model to follow.

Instead of the name Gershom, the Masoretic Text has “Gershon” as in 1 Chr 6.1 (see the comments there). In the Masoretic Text this name is often spelled Gershom in 1 Chronicles, but elsewhere in the Old Testament it is always spelled “Gershon.” New Revised Standard Version says “Gershon” here in verse 6. Good News Translation keeps the name “Gershon” for this son of Levi throughout the Old Testament, which we recommend.

For this whole verse American Bible has “David divided them into orders named after the sons of Levi, that is, after Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.” God’s Word says “David organized the Levites into divisions based on which of Levi’s sons (Gershon, Kohath, or Merari) they were descended from.” But this rendering has a rather complicated structure containing a passive verb. A better model is:

• David separated the Levites into three groups. Levi’s [three] sons, Gershon, Kohath and Merari, each led a group.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .