Offerings for Building the Temple

29 Furthermore King David said to all the assembly: “My son Solomon, whom alone God has (A)chosen, is (B)young and inexperienced; and the work is great, because the [a]temple is not for man but for the Lord God. Now for the house of my God I have prepared with all my might: gold for things to be made of gold, silver for things of silver, bronze for things of bronze, iron for things of iron, wood for things of wood, (C)onyx stones, stones to be set, glistening stones of various colors, all kinds of precious stones, and marble slabs in abundance. Moreover, because I have set my affection on the house of my God, I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house, my own special treasure of gold and silver: three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of (D)Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the houses; the gold for things of gold and the silver for things of silver, and for all kinds of work to be done by the hands of craftsmen. Who then is (E)willing to [b]consecrate himself this day to the Lord?”

Then (F)the leaders of the fathers’ houses, leaders of the tribes of Israel, the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with (G)the officers over the king’s work, (H)offered willingly. They gave for the work of the house of God five thousand talents and ten thousand darics of gold, ten thousand talents of silver, eighteen thousand talents of bronze, and one hundred thousand talents of iron. And whoever had precious stones gave them to the treasury of the house of the Lord, into the hand of (I)Jehiel[c] the Gershonite. Then the people rejoiced, for they had offered willingly, because with a loyal heart they had (J)offered willingly to the Lord; and King David also rejoiced greatly.

David’s Praise to God

10 Therefore David blessed the Lord before all the assembly; and David said:

“Blessed are You, Lord God of Israel, our Father, forever and ever.
11 (K)Yours, O Lord, is the greatness,
The power and the glory,
The victory and the majesty;
For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours;
Yours is the kingdom, O Lord,
And You are exalted as head over all.
12 (L)Both riches and honor come from You,
And You reign over all.
In Your hand is power and might;
In Your hand it is to make great
And to give strength to all.

13 “Now therefore, our God,
We thank You
And praise Your glorious name.
14 But who am I, and who are my people,
That we should be able to offer so willingly as this?
For all things come from You,
And [d]of Your own we have given You.
15 For (M)we are [e]aliens and [f]pilgrims before You,
As were all our fathers;
(N)Our days on earth are as a shadow,
And without hope.

16 “O Lord our God, all this abundance that we have prepared to build You a house for Your holy name is from Your hand, and is all Your own. 17 I know also, my God, that You (O)test the heart and (P)have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things; and now with joy I have seen Your people, who are present here to offer willingly to You. 18 O Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep this forever in the intent of the thoughts of the heart of Your people, and fix their heart toward You. 19 And (Q)give my son Solomon a loyal heart to keep Your commandments and Your testimonies and Your statutes, to do all these things, and to build the [g]temple for which (R)I have made provision.”

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Chronicles 29:1 Lit. palace
  2. 1 Chronicles 29:5 Lit. fill his hand
  3. 1 Chronicles 29:8 Possibly the same as Jehieli, 1 Chr. 26:21, 22
  4. 1 Chronicles 29:14 Lit. of Your hand
  5. 1 Chronicles 29:15 sojourners, temporary residents
  6. 1 Chronicles 29:15 transients, temporary residents in an even more temporary sense
  7. 1 Chronicles 29:19 Lit. palace

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