And they set aside the burnt offerings: The pronoun they refers to the Levites, which Contemporary English Version makes explicit. A literal translation of this clause may incorrectly suggest that the burnt offerings had already been made. Rather, as Good News Translation makes clear, the animals that had been killed and prepared to be burnt offerings were set aside. For burnt offerings, see the comments on 1 Chr 16.1 and 2 Chr 1.6. These offerings differed from the Passover sacrifices mentioned in the previous verse.

That they might distribute them according to the groupings of the fathers’ houses of the lay people: The animals to be sacrificed as burnt offerings were set aside so that they could be divided among the family groups. For fathers’ houses, see the comments on 1 Chr 5.24; for the lay people, see 2Chr 35.5. The word houses is not to be taken in its literal sense, but rather as a reference to family association. This whole clause may be rendered “to give to the different subdivisions of the family groups” (La Bible du Semeur) or “to give them to the laypeople according to their family divisions” (God’s Word).

To offer to the LORD, as it is written in the book of Moses: The Levites divided the animals for burnt offerings among the family groups of the lay people, so that they could offer them according to the Law. The book of Moses probably refers to the Pentateuch (see the comments on 2 Chr 25.4). The passive clause as it is written in the book of Moses will have to be made active in some languages. One possible model is “as Moses wrote in his book.” But it will be better not to state explicitly that Moses was the author by saying “as they have written in the book of Moses” or “as one reads in the book of Moses.”

And so they did with the bulls: Since this information was already included in what is said about “the animals for burnt offerings” earlier in this verse, Good News Translation does not repeat it here. But it is quite possible that the burnt offerings refers only to the smaller animals and that the bulls (literally “the bull”) are intentionally mentioned separately. This second interpretation is reflected in the New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh rendering “they did the same for the cattle.” In Hebrew the word for “bull” and the word for “morning” have the same consonants. Some Hebrew manuscripts and several ancient versions say that “and they did so in the morning.” Since verse 14 says that they continued until “night,” it is easy to see why the Hebrew word for “bull” was mistakenly read here as “morning.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .