In this section of the ninth chapter, we examine the arrangements of the gatekeepers and the Levites in the Temple: who they were, how they inherited their positions, how many there were, how they were divided into watches, and who was appointed over the chambers, the treasuries, and the vessels. Afterwards, Scripture returns to the lineage of Shaul in order to reach the central theme of the Book of Divrei HaYamim - the kingdom of David.
וְהַשֹּׁעֲרִים שַׁלּוּם וְעַקּוּב וְטַלְמֹן וַאֲחִימָן וַאֲחִיהֶם שַׁלּוּם הָרֹאשׁ׃ - And the gatekeepers were Shallum, and Akkub, and Talmon, and Achiman, and their brethren; Shallum was the chief.
Metzudas David explains: this Shallum mentioned first in the list - Scripture comes to teach that he was the chief over them all. That is, "and their brethren; Shallum was the chief" does not refer to an additional Shallum, but rather informs us that the Shallum mentioned at the outset was appointed over all of them.
וְעַד־הֵנָּה בְּשַׁעַר הַמֶּלֶךְ מִזְרָחָה הֵמָּה הַשֹּׁעֲרִים לְמַחֲנוֹת בְּנֵי לֵוִי׃ - And until now they were in the king's gate eastward; they were the gatekeepers for the camps of the sons of Levi.
Radak explains: "And until now" means still - just as they were during the First Temple, so they still stand at the king's gate to the east. These were appointed over the gate through which the king would enter, which was on the eastern side, and that same appointment continued in the Second Temple as well. The Malbim adds that these gatekeepers held this as an inheritance from their ancestors: in David's time as well, they were the gatekeepers at the eastern king's gate. That is, not only were the Levites in general stationed there, but the very same families that had merited the role then returned to their original standing. As we will see later regarding the divisions of the gatekeepers among the Korachites: Shelemiah son of Kore of the sons of Asaph, "and the lot eastward fell to Shelemiah."
וְשַׁלּוּם בֶּן־קוֹרֵא בֶּן־אֶבְיָסָף בֶּן־קֹרַח וְאֶחָיו לְבֵית־אָבִיו הַקָּרְחִים עַל מְלֶאכֶת הָעֲבוֹדָה שֹׁמְרֵי הַסִּפִּים לָאֹהֶל וַאֲבֹתֵיהֶם עַל־מַחֲנֵה ה' שֹׁמְרֵי הַמָּבוֹא׃ - And Shallum the son of Kore, the son of Ebyasaph, the son of Korach, and his brethren of the house of his father, the Korachites, were over the work of the service, keepers of the thresholds of the Tent, and their fathers were over the camp of the Lord, keepers of the entry.
The commentary attributed to Rashi explains: Shallum the son of Kore and his brethren of his ancestral house, the Korachites, were keepers of the thresholds of the Tent of Meeting. That is to say, they would not allow any person to approach the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, except for the Kohanim engaged in their service. They stood at the threshold and barred entry.
Radak notes regarding the genealogy: "Ebyasaph" is Evyasaf the son of Korach, who was already mentioned earlier, yet Shallum the son of Kore is not mentioned there. It is possible that he was among the descendants of Heman, and Scripture here abbreviated the genealogy without listing the entire lineage. "Keepers of the thresholds of the Tent" - they were the guardians of the doorposts of the Holy of Holies, just as their ancestors from the family of Korach, who belonged to the Kehathite family, were responsible for the Ark, the Kapporet (cover), and the screening Parochet (curtain). According to this, it refers specifically to the Holy of Holies, since the Kehathites were appointed over the innermost vessels: the Ark, the Kapporet that covered the Ark, and the screening Parochet of the Holy of Holies - and this is what is called "the camp of the Lord." They guarded so that no one would enter inside, as was said regarding the Kehathites themselves: "neither shall they go in to see when the holy things are covered, lest they die."
וּפִינְחָס בֶּן־אֶלְעָזָר נָגִיד הָיָה עֲלֵיהֶם לְפָנִים ה' עִמּוֹ׃ - And Pinchas the son of Elazar was ruler over them in the past; Hashem was with him.
Radak explains: "He was ruler over them" - over the Korahite family. "Nagid" (ruler) means an appointed leader, and "in the past" means already in the days of their forefathers. Just as his father Elazar had been appointed over them, as it is written, "And the oversight of Elazar the son of Aharon the Kohen," so too after him, his son Pinchas was ruler over them. "Hashem was with him" - he was greater than the descendants of Itamar, and therefore all his days he was ruler over them, holding a position higher than that of the descendants of Itamar.
Some of Chazal explain that Pinchas is Eliyahu. One should not be surprised by this, for Pinchas lived for many days. In the era of the Concubine of Givah, Pinchas was still alive, as it is written there, "and Pinchas the son of Elazar," and three hundred years had already passed since the Exodus from Egypt - so we see him living for three hundred years.
Chazal expound that the Shechinah departed from him because he did not annul the vow of Yiftach. And this is why it says, "he was ruler over them" - it does not say "he is ruler over them," but "he was." Chazal say: it is not written "he is over them," but rather "he was." Not only that, but it also says, "in the past Hashem was with him" - when? At the time he arose and protested the act of Zimri, and the Holy One, Blessed be He, granted him "My covenant of peace" - then Hashem was with him, and that was "in the past" alone. But at the time of the Concubine of Givah, it is written that he did not protest, and therefore, as it were, Hashem departed from him, like one with whom He is no longer present. In the episode of Zimri, he had the strength to protest and he protested, whereas at the time of the Concubine of Givah, he was apparently already elderly, lacked the strength, and did not protest - and see how many thousands of Israel died before they defeated the sons of Binyamin.
Radak cites another explanation in the name of "some commentators": "Pinchas the son of Elazar was ruler over them" does not refer to Pinchas the Kohen, but to a different Pinchas who was a Levi. And what is stated, "in the past Hashem was with him," comes to teach that with that Pinchas who lived in the past, Hashem was with him, but this present Pinchas did not attain Ruach HaKodesh. According to this, on the contrary, the verse informs us that this is not Pinchas the son of Elazar the son of Aharon the Kohen who attained the Kehunah, but a Levi; and the difference between them is that the earlier Pinchas had Hashem with him, while this one did not attain Ruach HaKodesh. However, Radak concludes: the correct interpretation is what I explained initially - that this refers to the well-known Pinchas the son of Elazar.
זְכַרְיָה בֶּן מְשֶׁלֶמְיָה שֹׁעֵר פֶּתַח לְאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד׃ - Zechariah the son of Meshelemiah was gatekeeper of the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
Metzudat David explains that this was his role - gatekeeper of the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. And the Malbim adds that his watch was on the northern side, as we will see later in chapter 26.
כֻּלָּם הַבְּרוּרִים לְשֹׁעֲרִים בַּסִּפִּים מָאתַיִם וּשְׁנֵים עָשָׂר הֵמָּה בְחַצְרֵיהֶם הִתְיַחְשָׂם הֵמָּה יִסַּד דָּוִיד וּשְׁמוּאֵל הָרֹאֶה בֶּאֱמוּנָתָם׃ - All those chosen to be gatekeepers at the thresholds were two hundred and twelve; they were registered by genealogy in their villages; these David and Shmuel the Seer had established in their trust.
וְהֵם וּבְנֵיהֶם עַל־הַשְּׁעָרִים לְבֵית־ה' לְבֵית הָאֹהֶל לְמִשְׁמָרוֹת׃ - So they and their children had oversight of the gates of the House of Hashem, the house of the tent, by watches.
Radak explains: David and Shmuel instituted the watches of the Kehunah and the Levi'im, establishing that there should not be fewer than two hundred and twelve - and that is the count written here. "Be'emunatam" (in their trust/permanence) means that they founded, upheld, and established the matter permanently, similar to the word "kiyyem" (fulfilled/sustained) in Megillat Esther. Emunah is an expression of endurance and permanence: "And I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness (be'emunah)" - an enduring betrothal; and similarly, "And the faithfulness (emunat) of your times shall be," and "faithful guardian." Even "Amen" is an expression of truth, stability, and enduring reality - one who says Amen as if affirms and establishes the matter. Thus, they founded and upheld the arrangement so that it would endure forever.
Our Sages say regarding ba'emunatam ("in their trust"): there was great integrity there, for one watch would not encroach upon another's domain. Nor did all two hundred and twelve gatekeepers serve simultaneously; rather, they would come from week to week, and the watches were fixed - every seven days the watch rotated. This is what is written later: "And their brothers in their villages were to come every seven days," for they rotated every seven days, one shift replacing the previous one, totaling twenty-four watches from time to time. Each individual was genealogically registered, each watch to its ancestral house, and according to their lineage - says Radak - was their place of residence: each watch lived concentrated in the cities where their ancestral house dwelt, rather than having part of a watch residing in one city and part in another.
The Malbim explains haberurim as "chosen," from the root meaning to select: they selected and chose them to be the gatekeepers. The Malbim calculates: when you divide two hundred and twelve by the seven days of the week, it works out to approximately thirty appointees each day. For not all two hundred and twelve served every day; rather, the watch was divided into seven - one-seventh on the first day, one-seventh on the second day, and so forth.
And how is the number thirty divided? The Malbim explains: there were twenty-four Levite gatekeepers, and besides them, another six who had specialized roles - one in charge of the chambers, one over the treasuries, one over the utensils with which they served in the Mikdash, one over the vessels, fine flour, and wine, one over the baked pans (chavitim), and one over the arranged bread, which is the Showbread (Lechem HaPanim). All these are detailed in the subsequent verses one by one, and the Malbim simply organizes and summarizes: twenty-four on watch and another six with specialized roles - making thirty per day.
"Whom David instituted" - and they remained, says the Malbim, in their faithfulness and established position, "they and their sons over the gates of the House of the Lord," even later when the Temple was built. For David established this order at a time when there was still only a Tabernacle and tent, before the Temple existed, and the verse comes to state that they retained their standing and office, and subsequently their families served in the Beis HaMikdash.
לְאַרְבַּע רוּחוֹת יִהְיוּ הַשֹּׁעֲרִים מִזְרָח יָמָּה צָפוֹנָה וָנֶגְבָּה׃ - In the four directions were the gatekeepers: toward the east, west, north, and south.
In all four directions there were gatekeepers, people appointed to stand at the gate and keep watch. And what was the purpose of this watch? As has already been stated, it brings honor to the House of the Lord to have gatekeepers. When a person arrives at a royal palace and sees no guard at the gate - even if he is told there is nothing there to steal - it diminishes the dignity of the place. When arriving at a palace, one expects to see a guard, even if there is no practical necessity; it is a mark of honor that someone guards the entrance and does not allow unauthorized approach. So too here: the guarding of the Mikdash was a mark of honor, not out of concern that someone might enter and steal.
וַאֲחֵיהֶם בְּחַצְרֵיהֶם לָבוֹא לְשִׁבְעַת הַיָּמִים מֵעֵת אֶל־עֵת עִם־אֵלֶּה׃ - And their brethren in their villages were to come every seven days from time to time to be with these.
The commentary attributed to Rashi explains "every seven days" to mean at the end of seven days, for at the conclusion of every seven days the watch was rotated, which took place on Shabbat. This is the meaning of "from time to time" - from Shabbat to Shabbat. And the Malbim explains that every week, different Levites arrived to assume the watches.
Based on this, one can understand: there were twenty-four Levites for the watches, and another six appointed over the other responsibilities enumerated by the Malbim - chambers, treasuries, work implements, vessels, and the like - totaling thirty. If you calculate this, the gatekeepers each week amounted to one hundred and sixty-eight, which is twenty-four per day multiplied by seven days. In Chapter 23, we will see that there were four thousand gatekeepers, and the watches rotated over twenty-four weeks, since there were twenty-four watches and each watch served a week. If you multiply twenty-four by one hundred and sixty-eight, you get four thousand and thirty-two. Why then does it say four thousand there? It is a round figure (lo dak) - for the text often cites the round number without specifying the exact details.
Now let us account for the difference between one hundred and sixty-eight and two hundred and twelve: we counted twenty-four gatekeepers per day, but in practice there were thirty, since there were another six functionaries whom we enumerated - chambers, treasuries, utensils of service, and the like. When you multiply them as well by seven and by twenty-four watches, you get a total of one thousand and fifty-six Levites who were appointed over the House of Hashem.
And why does the Malbim do all this calculation? To show you that it aligns with the tally in the Book of Nechemiah, chapter 11, where it is written that the gatekeepers were one hundred and seventy-two, whereas here they are one hundred and sixty-eight. But if you subtract the four overseers - Shallum, Akkub, Talmon, and Achiman - from one hundred and seventy-two, you arrive at exactly one hundred and sixty-eight. Thus, Nechemiah did not include the overseers of the treasuries, the utensils, and the other matters mentioned here, and therefore mentioned only one hundred and sixty-eight Levites; whereas here two hundred and twelve are mentioned, because Scripture adds the overseers of the utensils as well.
And if you ask: but the calculation yields only two hundred and ten (seven times thirty), so why two hundred and twelve? The Malbim explains: there are two additional men - one overall overseer over the gatekeepers, and one overall overseer over the officers. Thus, in practice there were two hundred and ten, and with the two head overseers - two hundred and twelve.
כִּי בֶאֱמוּנָה הֵמָּה אַרְבַּעַת גִּבֹּרֵי הַשֹּׁעֲרִים הֵם הַלְוִיִּם וְהָיוּ עַל־הַלְּשָׁכוֹת וְעַל הָאוֹצָרוֹת בֵּית הָאֱלֹהִים׃ - For in trust were the four chief gatekeepers; they are the Levites, and they were over the chambers and over the treasuries of the House of God.
The Radak explains that these four were the overseers in charge of the others who guarded the gates, as there were not only four guards. And the Malbim explains "for in trust were they" - they were trustworthy, and therefore these same gatekeepers were also appointed over the chambers; for to be appointed over the chambers requires a trustworthy person, since money, gold, and precious vessels were kept there. And for each role, a single overseer was sufficient, because they were trustworthy and did not need additional people to ensure that they would not take or steal while alone. In contrast, regarding charity we learned that two collectors are always appointed and one does not rely on a single person, because when there are two, one keeps watch over the other.
וּסְבִיבוֹת בֵּית־הָאֱלֹהִים יָלִינוּ כִּי־עֲלֵיהֶם מִשְׁמֶרֶת וְהֵם עַל־הַמַּפְתֵּחַ וְלַבֹּקֶר לַבֹּקֶר׃ - And they lodged around the House of God, for the watch was upon them, and they were in charge of the key every morning.
"And they lodged around the House of God" - because the guarding took place at night, according to the Rambam's view. This is a dispute among the Rishonim: some say the guarding was also by day, while the Rambam holds it was at night. Therefore, they would lodge around the House of God in order to guard at night. "For the watch was upon them" - meaning it was their role to guard. "And they were in charge of the key every morning" - for their duty was to open the gates every morning, as we learned in Tractate Shekalim and Tractate Yoma, that opening the gates in the morning was the duty of the Levites.
וּמֵהֶם עַל־כְּלֵי הָעֲבוֹדָה כִּי־בְמִסְפָּר יְבִיאוּם וּבְמִסְפָּר יוֹצִיאוּם׃ - And some of them were over the utensils of service, for by count they brought them in and by count they took them out.
וּמֵהֶם מְמֻנִּים עַל־הַכֵּלִים וְעַל כׇּל־כְּלֵי הַקֹּדֶשׁ וְעַל־הַסֹּלֶת וְהַיַּיִן וְהַשֶּׁמֶן וְהַלְּבוֹנָה וְהַבְּשָׂמִים׃ - And some of them were appointed over the utensils and over all the sacred vessels, and over the fine flour and the wine and the oil and the frankincense and the spices.
The Radak explains that "the utensils" mentioned here, which are not the utensils of service, are the cooking vessels; "the sacred vessels" are the Tables, the Menorahs, and the like; "the fine flour" - the flour and oil for meal offerings, and the wine for libations; and the frankincense - which was placed in the bowls, alongside the arrangement of the Showbread, in two bowls upon the Table.
The Malbim explains differently: "the service vessels" are the sacred service utensils; "the instruments" are not cooking utensils but musical instruments; and "all the holy vessels" does not refer to the tables and the Menorahs, but rather to the weavers of the Parochet (Curtain) and the weavers of the priestly garments. This aligns with what we learned in the Mishnah in Shekalim, Chapter 5, that there were fifteen appointed overseers in the Temple, each with his assigned duty, including those whose role was to weave the curtains and the priestly garments.
וּמִן־בְּנֵי הַכֹּהֲנִים רֹקְחֵי הַמִּרְקַחַת לַבְּשָׂמִים׃ - And some of the sons of the Kohanim prepared the mixture of spices.
They were the compounders of the mixture. "To compound" means to blend and crush - they would mix and pound the spices of the incense (Ketoret).
וּמַתִּתְיָה מִן־הַלְוִיִּם הוּא הַבְּכוֹר לְשַׁלֻּם הַקָּרְחִי בֶּאֱמוּנָה עַל מַעֲשֵׂה הַחֲבִתִּים׃ - And Mattithiah, one of the Levites, who was the firstborn of Shallum the Korhite, had the trusted charge over the preparation of the flat cakes.
Mattithiah from the Levites was the firstborn of Shallum the Korhite, and his responsibility was "in trust." The Metzudat David explains: with firm permanence, meaning it was a permanent appointment to oversee the preparation of the flat cakes (chavitin). These were the meal offerings made from a tenth of an ephah, which the Kohen Gadol offered each day, half in the morning and half in the evening, and Mattithiah was the overseer appointed to remind and urge that the offering be brought on time. "The work of flat cakes" refers to an offering prepared in a flat pan.
וּמִן־בְּנֵי הַקְּהָתִי מִן־אֲחֵיהֶם עַל־לֶחֶם הַמַּעֲרָכֶת לְהָכִין שַׁבַּת שַׁבָּת׃ - And some of their brethren, of the sons of the Kehathites, were in charge of the showbread, to prepare it every Shabbat.
From the brethren of the sons of Korah mentioned above, who were also of the descendants of Kehat - since Korah belonged to the Kehathite family - some were appointed over the showbread (Lechem HaMa'arechet), which was placed upon the Table. The term ma'arechet stems from the concept of arranging and ordering, as they would arrange the showbread upon the Table; therefore it was called Lechem HaMa'arechet.
וְאֵלֶּה הַמְשֹׁרְרִים רָאשֵׁי אָבוֹת לַלְוִיִּם בַּלְּשָׁכֹת פְּטוּרִים כִּי־יוֹמָם וָלַיְלָה עֲלֵיהֶם בַּמְּלָאכָה׃ - And these are the singers, heads of fathers' houses of the Levites, in the chambers, exempt from other service, for day and night they were engaged in the work.
The Malbim explains that they were exempt from all other work: they resided in the chambers, and day and night this work rested upon them - to teach the craft of song and music. Thus, their assignment was of such nature that it exempted them from all other tasks.
אֵלֶּה רָאשֵׁי הָאָבוֹת לַלְוִיִּם לְתֹלְדוֹתָם רָאשִׁים אֵלֶּה יָשְׁבוּ בִירוּשָׁלָ͏ִם׃ - These were heads of fathers' houses of the Levites, throughout their generations, leaders; these dwelt in Jerusalem.
Those whom we mentioned above were "heads according to their generations" - meaning they were the heads over the descendants of their fathers' houses. This leadership, the Malbim explains, was passed down as an inheritance from father to son: if the father was the head of the ancestral house, his son after him was likewise the head of the ancestral house over all those under him, and likewise the grandson, from generation to generation. And these dwelt in Jerusalem.
וּבְגִבְעוֹן יָשְׁבוּ אֲבִי־גִבְעוֹן יְעִיאֵל וְשֵׁם אִשְׁתּוֹ מַעֲכָה׃ - "And in Gibeon dwelt the father of Gibeon, Jeiel, whose wife's name was Maacah."
Radak explains that all those we are about to see were already mentioned above; however, Scripture interrupted the sequence to speak of the Kohanim and the Levi'im who dwelt in Jerusalem, each in his watch, and now it returns to record the genealogy in order. Its ultimate purpose is to reach the point where the kingship belonged to Shaul and from Shaul passed to David - which is the primary theme of the Book of Divrei HaYamim: to make known and detail the kingdom of David. This leads directly into the next chapter, Chapter 10, which will transition to the events of Shaul and David. Thus, the names we read here are a repetition of what we saw earlier, in order to arrive ultimately at Shaul, from whom the monarchy transitioned to David, and from there onward Scripture proceeds to describe the history of the kings of Judah in chronological order until the exile.
The Malbim notes: "And in Gibeon dwelt" - we already mentioned this above in Chapter 8, and it is not immediately apparent why it was repeated a second time, nor why it transcribed here only up to Atzel, whereas above it also recorded "and the sons of his brother Eshek." Regarding this, Chazal said that from Atzel to Atzel, they possessed four hundred camel-loads of homiletical interpretations - as we explained above, that from the mention of "Atzel" above until here, to understand why it was necessary to repeat and reiterate these matters requires four hundred camel-loads of drashot. Some of the textual variations between the two passages have already been noted above, so there is no need to repeat them.
וּבְנוֹ הַבְּכוֹר עַבְדּוֹן וְצוּר וְקִישׁ וּבַעַל וְנֵר וְנָדָב׃ - "And his firstborn son was Abdon, then Zur, Kish, Baal, Ner, and Nadab."
These men were also the sons of the father of Gibeon, and they dwelt together with him in Gibeon.
וּגְדוֹר וְאַחְיוֹ וּזְכַרְיָה וּמִקְלוֹת׃ וּמִקְלוֹת הוֹלִיד אֶת־שִׁמְאָם וְאַף־הֵם נֶגֶד אֲחֵיהֶם יָשְׁבוּ בִירוּשָׁלַ͏ִם עִם־אֲחֵיהֶם׃ - "And Gedor, Ahio, Zechariah, and Mikloth. And Mikloth begot Shimeam; and they also dwelt opposite their brethren in Jerusalem, alongside their brethren."
"And they also" - even though they dwelt in Gibeon, at times they dwelt in Jerusalem opposite their brethren, those whom we saw had settled in Jerusalem; according to this, "neged" means opposite. The Malbim, however, explains "neged acheihem" differently: contrary to their brethren.
וְנֵר הוֹלִיד אֶת־קִישׁ וְקִישׁ הוֹלִיד אֶת־שָׁאוּל וְשָׁאוּל הוֹלִיד אֶת־יְהוֹנָתָן וְאֶת־מַלְכִּישׁוּעַ וְאֶת־אֲבִינָדָב וְאֶת־אֶשְׁבָּעַל׃ - "And Ner begot Kish, and Kish begot Shaul, and Shaul begot Yehonatan, Malchi-shua, Abinadab, and Eshbaal."
וּבֶן־יְהוֹנָתָן מְרִיב בָּעַל וּמְרִי־בַעַל הוֹלִיד אֶת־מִיכָה׃ - "And the son of Yehonatan was Merib-baal, and Merib-baal begot Micah."
We have already seen these names above and cited the homiletic expositions regarding them, so let us review them briefly. "Eshbaal" is Ish-bosheth, and "Merib-baal" is Mephibosheth. And why does Scripture refer to him as "Bosheth"? Because "Baal" denotes lordship and mastery; therefore, Scripture refers to it by the derogatory term "Bosheth" (shame), so that one does not think that it possesses any true ownership or mastery.
Rabbi Yitzchak bar Shmuel of Narbonne said: From the time Israel worshipped the Baal, the Baal was referred to as "Bosheth", as it is written, "to burn incense to shame" (le-vosheth) - meaning, to burn incense to the Baal. And why was it called "Bosheth"? Because it brings shame upon its worshippers: a person places his hopes in it, prays and cries out to it, yet receives no answer - which brings him disgrace, and hence "Ish-bosheth". Gideon, too, was called Jerubbaal because the Baal contended with him (yarav bo ha-Baal), and he was also called Jerubbesheth, as it is written in the Book of Shmuel, "Who struck down Avimelech son of Jerubbesheth?" - proving that Jerubbesheth is Jerubbaal, for Baal and Bosheth are one and the same: whether "let Bosheth contend with him" or "let Baal contend with him", it is the exact same thing.
וּבְנֵי מִיכָה פִּיתֹן וָמֶלֶךְ וְתַחְרֵעַ׃ וְאָחָז הוֹלִיד אֶת־יַעְרָה וְיַעְרָה הוֹלִיד אֶת־עָלֶמֶת וְאֶת־עַזְמָוֶת וְאֶת־זִמְרִי וְזִמְרִי הוֹלִיד אֶת־מוֹצָא׃ - "The sons of Micah: Pithon, Melech, and Tahrea. And Ahaz fathered Ya'rah, and Ya'rah fathered Alemeth, Azmaveth, and Zimri; and Zimri fathered Moza."
וּמוֹצָא הוֹלִיד אֶת־בִּנְעָא וּרְפָיָה בְנוֹ אֶלְעָשָׂה בְנוֹ אָצֵל בְּנוֹ׃ - "And Moza fathered Binea; Rephaiah was his son, Eleasah his son, Azel his son."
"Rephaiah was his son" - the son of Binea, and likewise each one listed here is the son of the preceding one in direct succession.
וּלְאָצֵל שִׁשָּׁה בָנִים וְאֵלֶּה שְׁמוֹתָם עַזְרִיקָם בֹּכְרוּ וְיִשְׁמָעֵאל וּשְׁעַרְיָה וְעֹבַדְיָה וְחָנָן אֵלֶּה בְּנֵי אָצַל׃ - "And Azel had six sons, and these are their names: Azrikam, Bocheru, Ishmael, Sheariah, Obadiah, and Hanan; these were the sons of Azel."
With this, we have concluded the ninth chapter, and it can be said that we have completed the most challenging part of the Book of Divrei HaYamim - the section dealing with the genealogies, the names, and the lineage records that Ezra found. We have examined the orders of the gatekeepers who inherited their post from their ancestors, the threshold guards of the Tent, the roster of the watches established by David and Samuel "in their trust" (be-emunatam) - an expression denoting lasting permanence - and those appointed over the chambers, the treasuries, the sacred vessels, the pans, and the showbread, all carrying out their duties with faithfulness. Finally, Scripture returned to the lineage of Saul in order to transition into the primary focus of the book. From here on, the rough terrain becomes smooth: the upcoming section is far more narrative, describing David's reign and how he assumed the kingship following the end of Saul's dynasty.