Hilkiah was Hosah’s second son. Tabaliah was the third. Zechariah was the fourth. The total number of Hosah’s sons and relatives was 13.
The Assyrians called for King Hezekiah. Eliakim, Shebna and Joah went out to them. Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, was in charge of the palace. Shebna was the secretary. Joah, the son of Asaph, kept the records.
Hosah belonged to the family line of Merari. Hosah’s first son was Shimri. But Shimri wasn’t the oldest son. His father had made him the first.
Those groups of men guarded the gates. They worked under their leaders. They served at the Lord’s temple, just as their relatives had served.