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Gifts for the Building of the House of God

29 Then King David said to all the people, “My son Solomon is the one God has chosen. He is still young and has not had much time to know what to do. It is a very big work because this beautiful house is not for man, but for the Lord God. I have given all that I have been able to give for the house of my God. I have given the gold for the things of gold, the silver for the things of silver, and the brass for the things of brass. I have given the iron for the things of iron, and the wood for the things of wood. I have given stones of much worth, stones for setting, silver-white stones, and stones of different colors. I have given all kinds of stones of much worth, and many smooth, special white stones. The house of my God means much to me. I have much gold and silver and I give it to the house of my God, together with all I have already given for the holy house. I gave gold weighing as much as 3,000 men, of the gold of Ophir. I gave fine silver weighing as much as 7,000 men, to cover the walls of the house. I gave gold for the things of gold, and silver for the things of silver for all the work done by the able men. Now who is willing to give himself and be set apart today to the Lord?”

Then the rulers of the families gave because they wanted to. The leaders of the family groups of Israel, the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and those who watched over the king’s work gave because they wanted to. For the work of the house of God, they gave gold weighing as much as 5,000 men, and 10,000 gold pieces. They gave silver weighing as much as 10,000 men. They gave brass weighing as much as 18,000 men, and iron weighing as much as 100,000 men. And whoever had stones of much worth gave them to the store-house of the house of the Lord, in the care of Jehiel the Gershonite. Then the people were filled with joy because they had been so willing to give. They gave their gift to the Lord with a whole heart. And King David was filled with great joy.

David’s Praise to God

10 So David praised the Lord in front of all the people. He said, “Honor and thanks be to You, O Lord God of Israel our father, forever and ever. 11 O Lord, You have great power, shining-greatness and strength. Yes, everything in heaven and on earth belongs to You. You are the King, O Lord. And You are honored as head over all. 12 Both riches and honor come from You. You rule over all. Power and strength are in Your hand. The power is in Your hand to make great and to give strength to all. 13 So now, our God, we thank You. We praise Your great and honored name.

14 “But who am I and who are my people, that we should be able to give so much? For all things come from You. We have given You only what already belongs to You. 15 We are strangers before You. We are just staying here for a time, as all our fathers did. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and without hope. 16 O Lord our God, from Your hand are all these many things that we have given to build You a house for Your holy name. It all belongs to You. 17 O my God, I know that You test the heart and are pleased with what is right. I have given these things because I have wanted to with a clean heart. And now I have seen with joy how Your people who are here give gifts to You because they want to. 18 O Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, our fathers, keep this forever in the thoughts of the hearts of Your people. Lead their hearts to You. 19 Give my son Solomon a perfect heart to keep Your Words and Your Laws and to obey them all. And so let him build the beautiful house I have planned and given for.”

20 Then David said to all the people, “Now praise the Lord your God.” And all the people gave praise to the Lord, the God of their fathers. They bowed low to the ground before the Lord and the king. 21 On the next day they killed animals and gave burnt gifts in worship to the Lord.

They gave 1,000 bulls, 1,000 rams and 1,000 lambs, with their drink gifts. They gave many gifts in worship for all Israel. 22 So they ate and drank that day with great joy before the Lord.

They made David’s son Solomon king a second time. They poured oil on him to set him apart as ruler for the Lord. And they set Zadok apart as religious leader. 23 Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord as king instead of his father David. Everything went well for him, and all Israel obeyed him. 24 All the leaders and the powerful men and all the sons of King David promised to be faithful to King Solomon. 25 The Lord brought much honor to Solomon in the eyes of all Israel. He gave him greater power than any king before him in Israel.

26 So David the son of Jesse ruled over all Israel. 27 And he ruled over Israel for forty years. He ruled in Hebron seven years, and in Jerusalem thirty-three years. 28 Then he died as an old man. He had lived many years, had many riches and much honor. And his son Solomon ruled in his place. 29 The acts of King David, from first to last, are written in the books of Samuel, Nathan, and Gad, the men of God. 30 They tell of all his rule, his power, and of the things which happened to him, to Israel, and to all the nations of the lands.

Gifts for Building the Temple

29 Then King David said to the whole assembly: “My son Solomon, the one whom God has chosen, is young and inexperienced.(A) The task is great, because this palatial structure is not for man but for the Lord God. With all my resources I have provided for the temple of my God—gold(B) for the gold work, silver for the silver, bronze for the bronze, iron for the iron and wood for the wood, as well as onyx for the settings, turquoise,[a](C) stones of various colors, and all kinds of fine stone and marble—all of these in large quantities.(D) Besides, in my devotion to the temple of my God I now give my personal treasures of gold and silver for the temple of my God, over and above everything I have provided(E) for this holy temple: three thousand talents[b] of gold (gold of Ophir)(F) and seven thousand talents[c] of refined silver,(G) for the overlaying of the walls of the buildings, for the gold work and the silver work, and for all the work to be done by the craftsmen. Now, who is willing to consecrate themselves to the Lord today?”

Then the leaders of families, the officers of the tribes of Israel, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, and the officials(H) in charge of the king’s work gave willingly.(I) They(J) gave toward the work on the temple of God five thousand talents[d] and ten thousand darics[e] of gold, ten thousand talents[f] of silver, eighteen thousand talents[g] of bronze and a hundred thousand talents[h] of iron. Anyone who had precious stones(K) gave them to the treasury of the temple of the Lord in the custody of Jehiel the Gershonite.(L) The people rejoiced at the willing response of their leaders, for they had given freely and wholeheartedly(M) to the Lord. David the king also rejoiced greatly.

David’s Prayer

10 David praised the Lord in the presence of the whole assembly, saying,

“Praise be to you, Lord,
    the God of our father Israel,
    from everlasting to everlasting.
11 Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power(N)
    and the glory and the majesty and the splendor,
    for everything in heaven and earth is yours.(O)
Yours, Lord, is the kingdom;
    you are exalted as head over all.(P)
12 Wealth and honor(Q) come from you;
    you are the ruler(R) of all things.
In your hands are strength and power
    to exalt and give strength to all.
13 Now, our God, we give you thanks,
    and praise your glorious name.

14 “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this?(S) Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.(T) 15 We are foreigners and strangers(U) in your sight, as were all our ancestors. Our days on earth are like a shadow,(V) without hope. 16 Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name comes from your hand, and all of it belongs to you. 17 I know, my God, that you test the heart(W) and are pleased with integrity. All these things I have given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you.(X) 18 Lord, the God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Israel, keep these desires and thoughts in the hearts of your people forever, and keep their hearts loyal to you. 19 And give my son Solomon the wholehearted devotion(Y) to keep your commands, statutes and decrees(Z) and to do everything to build the palatial structure for which I have provided.”(AA)

20 Then David said to the whole assembly, “Praise the Lord your God.” So they all praised the Lord, the God of their fathers; they bowed down, prostrating themselves before the Lord and the king.

Solomon Acknowledged as King(AB)

21 The next day they made sacrifices to the Lord and presented burnt offerings to him:(AC) a thousand bulls, a thousand rams and a thousand male lambs, together with their drink offerings, and other sacrifices in abundance for all Israel.(AD) 22 They ate and drank with great joy(AE) in the presence of the Lord that day.

Then they acknowledged Solomon son of David as king a second time, anointing him before the Lord to be ruler and Zadok(AF) to be priest. 23 So Solomon sat(AG) on the throne(AH) of the Lord as king in place of his father David. He prospered and all Israel obeyed him. 24 All the officers and warriors, as well as all of King David’s sons,(AI) pledged their submission to King Solomon.

25 The Lord highly exalted(AJ) Solomon in the sight of all Israel and bestowed on him royal splendor(AK) such as no king over Israel ever had before.(AL)

The Death of David(AM)

26 David son of Jesse was king(AN) over all Israel.(AO) 27 He ruled over Israel forty years—seven in Hebron(AP) and thirty-three in Jerusalem.(AQ) 28 He died(AR) at a good old age, having enjoyed long life, wealth and honor. His son Solomon succeeded him as king.(AS)

29 As for the events of King David’s reign, from beginning to end, they are written in the records of Samuel the seer,(AT) the records of Nathan(AU) the prophet and the records of Gad(AV) the seer, 30 together with the details of his reign and power, and the circumstances that surrounded him and Israel and the kingdoms of all the other lands.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Chronicles 29:2 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  2. 1 Chronicles 29:4 That is, about 110 tons or about 100 metric tons
  3. 1 Chronicles 29:4 That is, about 260 tons or about 235 metric tons
  4. 1 Chronicles 29:7 That is, about 190 tons or about 170 metric tons
  5. 1 Chronicles 29:7 That is, about 185 pounds or about 84 kilograms
  6. 1 Chronicles 29:7 That is, about 380 tons or about 340 metric tons
  7. 1 Chronicles 29:7 That is, about 675 tons or about 610 metric tons
  8. 1 Chronicles 29:7 That is, about 3,800 tons or about 3,400 metric tons