Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
1 Chronicles 6:49 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 49. 49But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar of the burnt offering, and on the altar of incense, and were appointed for all the work of the place most holy, and to make an atonement for Israel, according to all that Moses the servant of God had commanded.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
This verse opens the thought unit and establishes its first name, action, or speech: “But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar of the burnt offering, and on the altar of….” Its responsible meaning belongs to the complete movement “Aaron's sons carry altar and atonement duties.”
Read It With
- 1 Chronicles 6:49–53
Read 1 Chronicles 6:49 with 6:49–53. The selected wording supplies one opening in the thought unit and establishes its first name, action, or speech; the surrounding verses supply the relationships and outcome summarized here: Aaron's descendants are distinguished for offerings, incense, most-holy service, and atonement according to Moses.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Within “Aaron's sons carry altar and atonement duties,” 1 Chronicles 6:49 opens the thought unit and establishes its first name, action, or speech through the wording “But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar of the burnt offering, and on the altar of….” Its placement is governed by this reviewed relationship: After naming Levitical music and general service, the text specifies priestly work before listing distributed towns. 1 Chronicles 6:31–48 has just established this prior movement: Heman, Asaph, and Ethan and their ancestries are positioned for ordered song from the tabernacle period into Solomon's temple, while other Levites perform wider service. Together those details explain why “Aaron's sons carry altar and atonement duties” belongs here rather than merely following a database record.
Read 1 Chronicles 6:49–53 together
Why these verses belong together: 1 Chronicles 6:49–53 forms the complete movement “Aaron's sons carry altar and atonement duties”: Aaron's descendants are distinguished for offerings, incense, most-holy service, and atonement according to Moses.
Verse 49. 49 But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar of the burnt offering, and on the altar of incense, and were appointed for all the work of the place most holy, and to make an atonement for Israel, according to all that Moses the servant of God had commanded.
Verse 50. 50 And these are the sons of Aaron; Eleazar his son, Phinehas his son, Abishua his son,
Verse 51. 51 Bukki his son, Uzzi his son, Zerahiah his son,
Verse 52. 52 Meraioth his son, Amariah his son, Ahitub his son,
Verse 53. 53 Zadok his son, Ahimaaz his son.
Follow the Context
- Aaron's descendants are distinguished for offerings, incense, most-holy service, and atonement according to Moses.
- After naming Levitical music and general service, the text specifies priestly work before listing distributed towns.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
1 Chronicles 6:49 does not permit the wording “But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar of the burnt offering, and on the altar of…” to be read apart from the selected verse's context. The distinction does not create superior human worth, license clergy to absorb every role, or transfer ancient hereditary priesthood directly to modern leaders.
What Remains True
Worship requires ordered, truthful, skilled, and accountable service, while sacred office, beauty, or scale never determines a person's worth. This unit tests that truth through the narrated movement: Aaron's descendants are distinguished for offerings, incense, most-holy service, and atonement according to Moses. In 1 Chronicles 6:49, the concrete line “But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar of the burnt offering, and on the altar of…” keeps that truth accountable to the narrated evidence.
How It Can Shape Life
- The evidence to keep visible in this verse is “But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar of the burnt offering, and on the altar of….” In shared worship or institutional service, name every role, protect workers, use transparent assignments and finances, and refuse status systems that make inherited office equal superior worth. This response follows from the unit's own movement: Aaron's descendants are distinguished for offerings, incense, most-holy service, and atonement according to Moses.
Teach It Back
Explain why 1 Chronicles 6:49 distinguishes Aaron's sons for altar, incense, most-holy, and atonement service. Use 6:49–53, paraphrase “But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar of the burnt offering, and on the altar of…,” state one source or reconstruction limit, identify one person or group power can obscure, and reject one conclusion this verse does not authorize.
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Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read 1 Chronicles 6:49–53 — Aaron's sons carry altar and atonement dutiesSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.
Exact location: 1 Chronicles 6:49–53, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: 1 Chronicles
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Hebrew wording, morphology, names, clauses, regnal formulas, temple vocabulary, older-English controls, and translation limits.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/1Chr.xml, Masoretic words and morphology for 6:49–53
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible Full Notes: 1 Chronicles
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press; STEP Bible presentation, 2019 edition; current web presentation
Supports: Unit-bounded translation comparisons and only those lexical, textual, grammatical, numerical, historical, and parallel-passage notes attached to these verses.
Exact location: STEP Bible NET2full, 1 Chronicles 6:49–53, verse-attached translation and translator notes
Open source ↗