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29 To the whole community, David the king said, “Shlomo my son is the only one God has chosen. But he is still young and inexperienced, whereas the work to be done is great; because the palace is not for anyone human, but for Adonai, God. Now I have used all my strength to prepare for the house of my God the gold needed for the articles of gold, the silver for the articles of silver, the bronze for the articles of bronze, the iron for the articles of iron, the wood for the articles of wood, onyx stones, gemstones to be set, brilliant stones of various colors, all kinds of precious stones, as well as marble in abundance. In addition, because my desire is set on the house of my God, since I have my own supply of gold and silver, I herewith give it to the house of my God — over and above everything I have prepared for the holy house — ninety-nine tons of gold from the gold of Ofir and 231 tons of refined silver to be used for overlaying the walls of the houses. The gold is for whatever is to be made of gold, and the silver is for whatever is to be made of silver; and they may be used for anything to be made by craftsmen. Therefore, who offers willingly to consecrate himself today to Adonai?”

Then the clan leaders, the leaders of the tribes of Isra’el, the captains of thousands and of hundreds, along with the supervisors over the king’s work offered willingly. They gave for the service of the house of God 165 tons of gold, 330 tons of silver, 594 tons of bronze and 3,300 tons of iron. Those who had precious stones gave them to the storehouse of the house of Adonai, supervised by Yechi’el the Gershuni.

The people were filled with joy, because they had given willingly — wholeheartedly they had given willingly to Adonai; and David the king too was completely filled with joy, 10 as he blessed Adonai before the entire community: “Blessed be you, Adonai, the God of Isra’el our father, forever and ever. 11 Yours, Adonai, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory and the majesty; for everything in heaven and on earth is yours. The kingdom is yours, Adonai; and you are exalted as head over all. 12 Riches and honor come from you, you rule everything, in your hand is power and strength, you have the capacity to make great and to give strength to all. 13 Therefore, our God, we thank you and praise your glorious name.

14 “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to give so willingly in this way? For all things come from you, so that we have given you what is already yours. 15 For in your presence we are temporary residents, just passing through, as all our ancestors were — our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope. 16 Adonai our God, all these supplies that we have prepared in order to build you a house for your holy name come from your own hand, all of it is already yours. 17 I know also, my God, that you test the heart and take pleasure in integrity. As for myself, I have given all these things willingly, in the integrity of my heart; and now, with joy, I have seen your people who are present here give willingly to you. 18 Adonai, God of Avraham, Yitz’chak and Isra’el our ancestors, guard forever the inclinations of the thoughts in the hearts of your people; direct their hearts to you; 19 and give to Shlomo my son wholeheartedness to obey your mitzvot, instructions and rules, to do all these things, and to build the palace for which I have made provision.”

20 Then David said to all the community, “Now bless Adonai your God.” All the community blessed Adonai, the God of their ancestors, bowing their heads and prostrating themselves before Adonai and before the king. 21 On the following day they presented sacrifices to Adonai and offered burnt offerings to Adonai — a thousand bulls, a thousand rams and a thousand lambs, with their drink offerings — and sacrifices in abundance for all Isra’el. 22 They ate and drank before Adonai that day with great joy.

Then, for the second time, they made Shlomo the son of David king, anointing him before Adonai to be king, and Tzadok to be cohen. 23 Shlomo sat on the throne of Adonai as king in place of David his father and prospered, and all Isra’el obeyed him. 24 All the leaders, the warrior-heroes and likewise the sons of King David submitted themselves to Shlomo the king. 25 Adonai gave Shlomo exceedingly great power, in full view of all Isra’el, and bestowed on him royal majesty such as had not been seen on any king before him in Isra’el.

26 Now David the son of Yishai ruled over all Isra’el. 27 The duration of his reign over Isra’el was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hevron, and he reigned thirty-three years in Yerushalayim. 28 Then he died, at a ripe old age, full of years, riches and honor; and Shlomo his son reigned in his place. 29 The activities of David the king, from first to last, are written in the records of Sh’mu’el the seer, Natan the prophet and Gad the seer, 30 with all his reign and his power, and the events that he, Isra’el and the kingdoms of other countries experienced.

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