For in their trust these four were the chief doorkeepers they were Levites; and they were over the chambers and over the treasuries of the house of God;
The chapter lists the families who came back to Jerusalem after the exile, and then names the men who kept the doors of God's house. Four of them held the keys to its storerooms — so why does Scripture slow down for a task this ordinary, and what did God place in their hands?
This list belongs to a people who had lost everything and came back as a small remnant. One writer notes how exactly the chapter describes the men who guarded the doors:
Chapter 9 shows us the final ruin of the people: "Judah was carried away to Babylon because of their transgression" (v. 1). We then find the restoration of a feeble remnant, mentioned in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, waiting at Jerusalem for the promised Messiah... Finally, it defines the functions of the doorkeepers of the temple very exactly.
These rooms held the people's gifts, so that those who served the house could live:
All the work of the house of God, except the duties belonging only to the priests, fell to the Levites. Their support came from the tithes required of the people... The firstfruits for the priests, as well as the tithes for the Levites, were to be stored in the chambers of the house. (1 Chr. 9:26-33.)
The duty ran through the night and into the morning. Rossier, quoting an older translation, traces the trust back to David and Samuel and shows where these men slept:
David and Samuel had appointed the doorkeepers in their trust when the temple, called "the house of the tent" in verse 23, had not yet been built. But still more, these Levite doorkeepers were "over the chambers and over the treasuries of the house of God; for they stayed round about the house of God during the night, because the charge was upon them, and the opening of it every morning belonged to them" (vv. 26-27).
Older English Bibles used the word "office" here, and their margins carried a second reading. That reading changes who the verse speaks to:
Will you turn to 1 Chronicles 9:17-32. They were keepers of the gates of the tabernacle, keepers of the entry, doorkeepers of the tabernacle door, doorkeepers in the gates. And note, wherever you find the word "office," the margin reads, "trust." We will find this is not truth for officials, but for every child of God, as a trustee of Christ.
The same writer sees Christ in the door these men kept, notes where the four were stationed, and reads the stored items as pictures of Christ:
What is the door now but Christ? Their first service was to keep the door. They were placed in their divisions. The doorkeepers stood on four sides — east, west, north, and south. May every beloved servant of the Lord know the place the Lord has given him! Now we find four chief doorkeepers in their trust, "over the chambers and treasuries of the house of God," and their place is to lodge near the house of the Lord. And their charge, or trust, was to open these chambers of treasures of the Lord every morning... Have you ever understood the doorkeeper's trust — all the treasures of the house of the Lord? The opening of those treasures every morning. The fine flour — the perfection of Christ in His blessed humanity. The wine — the joy of heart in God. The oil — anointed with the Holy Spirit. The frankincense and spices — the infinite preciousness of Christ.
Scripture names these gatekeepers, and that tells us something about God:
In 1 Chronicles 26 we have the doorkeepers, for it is part of majesty to think of what is least. The Spirit of God stoops to arrange through David for the doorkeepers, just as truly as He did for the high priest, or for the different divisions of the priesthood. All has its place, and whatever has to do with the service of God is great in God's eyes. Indeed, it is only we who make so much of the differences between great and small. To God, the smallest thing has a value.
And the work was not optional. Remove the keepers of the storerooms and the whole round of service stops:
How many different tasks these humble servants carried on! Modest tasks, yes, but without them the entire order of the Lord's service would have been interrupted, or even stopped! Let us think of this. When the Lord entrusts a service to us, however small it may look, let us carry it out with zeal. Let us remind ourselves that it is necessary for the order of the house of God.
- Trust given. The word behind their "office" is trust. These four were trustees, and that trust reaches every believer, not only officials.
- Trust filled. They guarded real wealth: the firstfruits and tithes stored in the chambers. One writer reads each stored item as a picture of Christ Himself.
- Trust kept. Posted on the four sides of the house, they slept beside it. The night charge was theirs, and every morning they opened it.
- Trust needed. Modest duties, yet remove them and the whole order of service in God's house halts.
- Trust noticed. God arranged for gatekeepers as truly as for the high priest. It is part of His majesty to think of what is least.
for they stayed round about the house of God during the night, because the charge was upon them, and the opening thereof every morning [pertained] to them.
The list of returned exiles in this chapter ends with the Levites who kept the doors of the house of God, slept around it at night, and unlocked it each morning. Why does Scripture record a doorkeeper's night shift, and what does such a trust ask of anyone who serves God?
The chapter moves from a ruined nation to a small company brought home again.
reason: non-ESV verse quotation presented as Scripture; archaic wording
The office is older than the temple, and it covered far more than the door.
David and Samuel had appointed the doorkeepers to their trust before the temple was even built. These Levite doorkeepers were also over the rooms and over the treasuries of the house of God. Some of them had charge of the vessels used in the service, counting them as they brought them in and counting them as they brought them out.
The night watch and the morning unlocking shaped his whole day. One writer counts the cost of the post in hours:
The doorkeeper has to be first to let others in, and he has to stay till the last. He is there longer than anyone. Another reading of the words is, "I would choose rather to sit at the threshold." That gives us a different thought: he is content with the threshold, the lowest place, as long as he is in God's presence. Was God there? Then he would be there too.
Read as a list of chores, these duties look minor. Read as a system, nothing runs without them.
How many different duties these humble servants carried out! Small duties, yes — but without them the whole order of the Lord's service would have broken down, or even stopped! Let us think about this. When the Lord entrusts a service to us, however small it may look, let us carry it out with zeal. It is needed for the order of the house of God.
The same care that set out the priesthood also set out the doorkeepers.
In 1 Chronicles 26 we have the doorkeepers, for it is part of majesty to think of what is least. The Spirit of God stoops to arrange, through David, for the doorkeepers, just as truly as He did for the high priest, or for the different groups of priests. Everything has its place, and whatever has to do with the service of God is great in God's eyes. Indeed, it is only we who make so much of the differences between great and small. To God, the smallest thing has a value.
Rank the jobs in a great house, and this one comes last.
In any household, the first thought about the doorkeeper is that his is the lowest position. And that is true here too. If anyone wants to serve the Lord, he must take the lowest place.
Yet look at what his keys opened.
What is the door now but Christ? Their first service was to keep the door... their place was to stay near the house of the Lord. And their charge, or trust, was to open these rooms full of the Lord's treasures every morning... The fine flour — the perfection of Christ in His blessed humanity. The wine — the joy of heart in God. The oil — anointed with the Holy Spirit. The frankincense and spices — the infinite preciousness of Christ.
The door decides who comes in. That one decision reaches as far as the singing.
The singers gave the Lord His portion. Only the redeemed can sing the songs of Zion. So the doorkeepers must carry out their responsibilities faithfully, if the Lord is to have His portion. To let in people without God-given qualifications is to let in people who cannot sing. Carelessness in the doorkeepers will mean loss to the singers.
- Trust given. God put the doors, rooms, treasuries and vessels into the hands of named men, not officials in general.
- Trust kept at night. They stayed around the house through the dark hours, first in and last out. They were content at the threshold, because God was there.
- Trust opened at dawn. Each morning they unlocked the house's treasures — flour, wine, oil, frankincense — and one writer sees a picture of Christ in each one.
- Trust in small things. Small duties, yet the whole order of service depended on them. To God the smallest thing has value.
- Trust or loss. A careless doorkeeper costs the singers their song. Faithfulness at the lowest post guards the worship of the whole house.