2 Chronicles 35:15

And the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place,.... In the court of the priests, singing and playing on their instruments while the sacrifices were offering: according to the commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jeduthun the king's seer; the same with Ethan; and everyone were seers, as Jarchi interprets it, that is, the three last: and the porters waited at every gate; such of the Levites as were in, that post and office: they might not depart from their service; to let people in and out, that came for their passover lamb, and share in their other offerings: for their brethren the Levites prepared for them; because they were not at leisure to prepare for themselves.

35:1-19 The destruction Josiah made of idolatry, was more largely related in the book of Kings. His solemnizing the passover is related here. The Lord's supper resembles the passover more than any other of the Jewish festivals; and the due observance of that ordinance, is a proof of growing piety and devotion. God alone can truly make our hearts holy, and prepare them for his holy services; but there are duties belonging to us, in doing which we obtain this blessing from the Lord.

And the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place, according to the commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jeduthun the king's {h} seer; and the porters waited at every gate; they might not depart from their service; for their brethren the Levites prepared for them. {h} Meaning, by this his prophet, because he appointed the psalms and prophecies which were to be sung.

(15) And the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place. —“At their post” or station ( 1Chronicles 23:28 ). The “sons” of Heman and Jeduthun are omitted for brevity. According to the commandment . . . king’s seer.—Comp. 1Chronicles 25:1-6. They might not depart.—Rather, they had no need to depart from their service (i.e., to leave their posts), in order to prepare their own passover and the subsequent meals, “for their brethren the Levites had prepared for them,” and brought it to them at their several stations.

15. And the singers …, were in their place—While the priests and people were so much engaged, the choir was not idle. They had to sing certain Psalms, namely, the hundred thirteenth to the hundred eighteenth inclusive, once, twice, and even a third time, during the continuance of each company of offerers. As they could not leave their posts, for the singing was resumed as every fresh company entered, the Levites prepared for them also; for the various bands relieved each other in turn, and while the general choir was doing duty, a portion of the tuneful brethren, relieved for a time, partook of the viands that were brought them.

And afterwards (אחר, postea, after the passover had been prepared for the laymen in the way described) the Levites prepared it for themselves and for the priests; for the latter, however, only because they were busied with the offering of the עלה and the חלבים till night. Most expositors understand by עלה the fat of the paschal lambs, which was burnt upon the altar, as in 2 Chronicles 35:12 ; and חלבים, the fat of oxen, which was likewise burnt upon the altar, "but was not, as it seems, designated by the expression העלה" (Berth.). This interpretation certainly at first sight seems likely; only one cannot see why only the fat of the oxen, and not that of the paschal lambs also, should be called חלבים, since in the law the parts of all thank-offerings (oxen, sheep, and goats) which were burnt upon the altar are called חלבים. We will therefore be more correct if we take והחלבים to be a more exact definition of העלה: the burnt-offering, viz., the fat which was offered as a burnt-offering; or we may take העלה here to denote the evening burnt-offering, and החלבים the fat of the paschal lambs.

But even if the first-mentioned interpretation were the only correct one, yet it could not thence be concluded that on the passover evening (the 14th Nisan) the fat not only of the 37,600 lambs and goats, but also of the 3800 oxen, were offered upon the altar; the words, that the priests were busied until night with the offering of the עלה and the חלבים, are rather used of the sacrificing generally during the whole of the seven days' festival. For the compressed character of the description appears in 2 Chronicles 35:15 , where it is remarked that neither the singers nor the porters needed to leave their posts, because their brethren the Levites prepared (the meal) for them. With the words, "according to the command of David," etc., cf. 1 Chronicles 25:1 and 1 Chronicles 25:6 .