1 Esdras 1:2-4

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

² having placed the priests according to their divisions, arrayed in their vestments, in the temple of the Lord.^{(A) 3} He told the Levites, the temple servants of Israel, that they should sanctify themselves to the Lord and put the holy ark of the Lord in the house that King Solomon, son of David, had built,^{(B) 4} and he said,^[a] “You need no longer carry it on your shoulders. Now worship the Lord your God and serve his nation Israel; prepare yourselves by your families and kindred, in accordance with the directions of King David of Israel and the magnificence of his son Solomon.^(C)