The whole number of the heads of fathers’ houses of mighty men of valor was two thousand six hundred: The army was commanded by 2,600 officers. The whole number is literally “All the number.” Several versions say “The total number” (New International Version, Revised English Bible, Nouvelle Bible Segond). These officers were the heads of fathers’ houses (see the comments on 1 Chr 5.24), which may be rendered “clan leaders” (New Living Translation) or “family leaders” (New International Version, Bible en français courant, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente). Good News Translation omits this phrase, but it should be kept. For mighty men of valor, see the comments on 1 Chr 12.21. This whole verse may be rendered “There were a total of 2,600 clan leaders who were in charge of the mighty fighting men” or “2,600 chiefs of family groups commanded the valiant warriors” (La Bible du Semeur).

Revised English Bible interprets this verse to mean that the 2,600 family leaders were not actually commanders but rather suppliers of the mighty soldiers. Its translation reads “The total number of heads of families which supplied seasoned warriors was two thousand six hundred.” But the difficulty with the Revised English Bible translation is that verse 13 says the army was under the command of these family leaders.

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 .