1 Chronicles 29

Chapter 29

Gifts for Building the Temple

1 Then King David turned to the entire assembly and said, “My son Solomon, whom God has clearly chosen as the next king of Israel, is still young and inexperienced. The work ahead of him is enormous, for the Temple he will build is not for mere mortals—it is for the LORD God himself!

2 Using every resource at my command, I have gathered as much as I could for building the Temple of my God. Now there is enough gold, silver, bronze, iron, and wood, as well as great quantities of onyx, other precious stones, costly jewels, and all kinds of fine stone and marble.
3 “And now, because of my devotion to the Temple of my God, I am giving all of my own private treasures of gold and silver to help in the construction. This is in addition to the building materials I have already collected for his holy Temple.4 I am donating more than 112 tons of goldt from Ophir and 262 tons of refined silvert to be used for overlaying the walls of the buildings

5 and for the other gold and silver work to be done by the craftsmen. Now then, who will follow my example and give offerings to the LORD today?”
6 Then the family leaders, the leaders of the tribes of Israel, the generals and captains of the army,t and the king’s administrative officers all gave willingly.7 For the construction of the Temple of God, they gave about 188 tons of gold,t 10,000 gold coins,t 375 tons of silver,t 675 tons of bronze,t and 3,750 tons of iron.t8 They also contributed numerous precious stones, which were deposited in the treasury of the house of the LORD under the care of Jehiel, a descendant of Gershon.

9 The people rejoiced over the offerings, for they had given freely and wholeheartedly to the LORD, and King David was filled with joy.

David’s Prayer of Praise

10 Then David praised the LORD in the presence of the whole assembly:

“O LORD, the God of our ancestor Israel,t may you be praised forever and ever!11 Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O LORD, and this is your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things.12 Wealth and honor come from you alone, for you rule over everything. Power and might are in your hand, and at your discretion people are made great and given strength.13 “O our God, we thank you and praise your glorious name!14 But who am I, and who are my people, that we could give anything to you? Everything we have has come from you, and we give you only what you first gave us!15 We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone so soon without a trace.16 “O LORD our God, even this material we have gathered to build a Temple to honor your holy name comes from you! It all belongs to you!17 I know, my God, that you examine our hearts and rejoice when you find integrity there. You know I have done all this with good motives, and I have watched your people offer their gifts willingly and joyously.18 “O LORD, the God of our ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, make your people always want to obey you. See to it that their love for you never changes.19 Give my son Solomon the wholehearted desire to obey all your commands, laws, and decrees, and to do everything necessary to build this Temple, for which I have made these preparations.”

20 Then David said to the whole assembly, “Give praise to the LORD your God!” And the entire assembly praised the LORD, the God of their ancestors, and they bowed low and knelt before the LORD and the king.

Solomon Named as King

21 The next day they brought 1,000 bulls, 1,000 rams, and 1,000 male lambs as burnt offerings to the LORD. They also brought liquid offerings and many other sacrifices on behalf of all Israel.

22 They feasted and drank in the LORD’s presence with great joy that day.

And again they crowned David’s son Solomon as their new king. They anointed him before the LORD as their leader, and they anointed Zadok as priest.23 So Solomon took the throne of the LORD in place of his father, David, and he succeeded in everything, and all Israel obeyed him.24 All the officials, the warriors, and the sons of King David pledged their loyalty to King Solomon.

25 And the LORD exalted Solomon in the sight of all Israel, and he gave Solomon greater royal splendor than any king in Israel before him.

Summary of David’s Reign

26 So David son of Jesse reigned over all Israel.27 He reigned over Israel for forty years, seven of them in Hebron and thirty-three in Jerusalem.

28 He died at a ripe old age, having enjoyed long life, wealth, and honor. Then his son Solomon ruled in his place.
29 All the events of King David’s reign, from beginning to end, are written in The Record of Samuel Seer, The Record of Nathan the Prophet, and The Record of Gad the Seer.

30 These accounts include the mighty deeds of his reign and everything that happened to him and to Israel and to all the surrounding kingdoms.

1 Chronicles 29

The People Contribute to the Project

1 King David said to the entire assembly: “My son Solomon, the one whom God has chosen, is just an inexperienced young man,t and the task is great, for this palace is not for man, but for the Lord God.2 So I have made every effortt to provide what is needed for the temple of my God, including the gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood,t as well as a large amount of onyx, settings of antimony and other stones, all kinds of precious stones, and alabaster.3 Now, to show my commitment to the temple of my God, I donate my personal treasure of gold and silver to the temple of my God, in addition to all that I have already supplied for this holy temple.4 This includes 3,000 talentst of gold from Ophir and 7,000 talents of refined silver for overlaying the walls of the buildings,

5 for gold and silver items, and for all the work of the craftsmen. Who else wants to contribute to the Lord today?”
6 The leaders of the families, the leaders of the Israelite tribes, the commanders of units of a thousand and a hundred, and the supervisors of the king’s work contributed willingly.7 They donated for the service of God’s temple 5,000 talentst and ten thousand daricsts of gold, 10,000 talents of silver, 18,000 talents of bronze, and 100,000 talents of iron.8 All who possessed precioust stones donated them to the treasury of the Lord’s temple, which was under the supervision of Jehiel the Gershonite.

9 The people were delighted with their donations, for they contributed to the Lord with a willing attitude;t King David was also very happy.t

David Praises the Lord

10 David praised the Lord before the entire assembly:t
“O Lord God of our father Israel, you deserve praise forevermore!11 O Lord, you are great, mighty, majestic, magnificent, glorious, and sovereignt over all the sky and earth! You have dominion and exalt yourself as the rulert of all.12 You are the source of wealth and honor;t you rule over all. You possess strength and might to magnify and give strength to all.t

13 Now, our God, we give thanks to you and praise your majestic name!
14 “But who am I and who are my people, that we should be in a position to contribute this much?t Indeed, everything comes from you, and we have simply given back to you what is yours.t15 For we are resident foreigners and nomads in your presence, like all our ancestors;t our days are like a shadow on the earth, without security.t16 O Lord our God, all this wealth, which we have collected to build a temple for you to honor your holy name, comes from you; it all belongs to you.17 I know, my God, that you examine thoughtst and are pleased with integrity. With pure motivest I contribute all this; and now I look with joy as your people who have gathered here contribute to you.18 O Lord God of our ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, maintain the motives of your people and keep them devoted to you.t

19 Make my son Solomon willing to obey your commands, rules, and regulations, and to complete building the palace for which I have made preparations.”t

20 David told the entire assembly: “Praise the Lord your God!” So the entire assembly praised the Lord God of their ancestors; they bowed down and stretched out flat on the ground before the Lord and the king.

David Designates Solomon King

21 The next day they made sacrifices and offered burnt sacrifices to the Lord (1,000 bulls, 1,000 rams, 1,000 lambs), along with their accompanying drink offerings and many other sacrifices for all Israel.

22 They held a feastt before the Lord that day and celebrated.t
Then they designated Solomon, David’s son, as king a second time;s before the Lord they anointed him as ruler and Zadok as priest.23 Solomon sat on the Lord’s throne as king in place of his father David; he was successful and all Israel was loyal to him.t24 All the officers and warriors, as well as all of King David’s sons, pledged their allegiance to King Solomon.t

25 The Lord greatly magnified Solomon before all Israel and bestowed on him greater majesty than any king of Israel before him.t

David’s Reign Comes to an End

26 David son of Jesse reigned over all Israel.27 He reigned over Israel forty years; he reigned in Hebron seven years and in Jerusalems thirty-three years.28 He died at a good old age, having enjoyed long life, wealth, and honor.t His son Solomon succeeded him.29 King David’s accomplishments, from start to finish, are recorded in the Annals of Samuel the prophet, the Annals of Nathan the prophet, and the Annals of Gad the prophet.t

30 Recorded there are all the facts about his reign and accomplishments, and an account of the events that involved him, Israel, and all the neighboring kingdoms.t