Beginning

David’s Plans for the Temple

28 David commanded all the leaders of Israel to come to Jerusalem. There were the leaders of the tribes and the commanders of the divisions serving the king. There were the commanders of 1,000 men and of 100 men. There were the leaders who took care of the property and animals that belonged to the king and his sons. There were the men over the palace, the powerful men and all the brave warriors.

² King David stood up and said, “Listen to me, my relatives and my people. I wanted to build a place to keep the Ark of the Covenant with the Lord. I wanted it to be God’s footstool. And I made plans to build a temple for worship to God. ³ But God said to me, ‘You must not build a temple for worship to me. You must not do that because you are a soldier. You have killed many men.’

⁴ “But the Lord, the God of Israel, chose me from my whole family. He chose me to be king of Israel forever. The Lord chose the tribe of Judah to be a leader. And from the people of Judah, he chose my father’s family. And from that family God was pleased to make me king of Israel. ⁵ The Lord has given me many sons. And from those sons he has chosen Solomon. Solomon will be the new king of Israel. Israel is the Lord’s kingdom. ⁶ The Lord said to me, ‘Your son Solomon will build my Temple. And he will build the area around it. This is because I have chosen Solomon to be my son. And I will be his father. ⁷ He is obeying my laws and commands now. If he continues to obey them, I will make his kingdom strong forever.’”

⁸ David said, “Now, in front of all Israel and God, I tell you these things: Be careful to obey all the commands of the Lord your God. Then you may keep this good land. And you may pass it on to your descendants forever.

⁹ “And you, my son Solomon, accept the God of your father. Serve him completely. Be happy to serve him. Do this because the Lord knows what is in every person’s mind. He understands everything you think. If you go to him for help, you will get an answer. But if you turn away from the Lord, he will leave you forever. ¹⁰ Solomon, you must understand this. The Lord has chosen you to build the Temple as his holy place. Be strong and finish the job.”

¹¹ Then David gave his son Solomon the plans for building the Temple. Those plans were also for the porch around the Temple. They were for its buildings, its storerooms, its upper rooms and its inside rooms. They also were the plans for the place where the people’s sins were removed. ¹² David gave him plans for everything he had in mind. David gave him plans for the courtyards around the Lord’s Temple and all the rooms around it. He gave him plans for the Temple treasuries. And he gave him plans for the treasuries of the holy things used in the Temple. ¹³ David gave Solomon directions for the groups of the priests and Levites. David told him about all the work of serving in the Temple of the Lord. He told him about the things to be used in the Temple service. ¹⁴ Many things made of gold or silver would be used in the Temple. David told Solomon how much gold or silver should be used to make each thing. ¹⁵ David told him how much gold to use for each gold lampstand and its lamps. He told him how much silver to use for each silver lampstand and its lamps. The different lampstands were to be used where needed. ¹⁶ David told how much gold should be used for each table that held the holy bread. And he told how much silver should be used for the silver tables. ¹⁷ He told how much pure gold should be used to make the forks, bowls and pitchers. He told how much gold should be used to make each gold dish. He told how much silver should be used to make each silver dish. ¹⁸ David told how much pure gold should be used for the altar of incense. He also gave Solomon the plans for the chariot. This is where the golden creatures spread their wings over the Ark of the Covenant with the Lord.

¹⁹ David said, “All these plans were written with the Lord guiding me. He helped me understand everything in the plans.”

²⁰ David also said to his son Solomon, “Be strong and brave. Do the work. Don’t be afraid or discouraged. The Lord God, my God, is with you. He will help you until all the work is finished. He will not leave you. You will build the Temple of the Lord. ²¹ The groups of the priests and Levites are ready for all the work on the Temple of God. Every skilled worker is ready to help you with all the work. The leaders and all the people will obey every command you give.”

Gifts for Building the Temple

29 King David spoke to all the Israelites who were gathered. He said, “God chose my son Solomon. Solomon is young and hasn’t yet learned what he needs to know. But the work is important. This palace is not for people. It is for the Lord God. ² I have done my best to prepare for building the Temple of God. I have given gold for the things made of gold. I have given silver for the things made of silver. I have given bronze for the things made of bronze. I have given iron for the things made of iron. I have given wood for the things made of wood. I have given onyx for the settings and turquoise. I have given gems of many different colors. I have given valuable stones and white marble. I have given much of all these things. ³ I have already given this for the Temple. But now I am also giving my own treasures of gold and silver. I am doing this because I really want the Temple of my God to be built. ⁴ I have given about 220,000 pounds of pure gold from Ophir. And I have given about 520,000 pounds of pure silver. They will be used to cover the walls of the buildings. ⁵ They will also be used for all the gold and silver work. Skilled men may use the gold and silver to make things for the Temple. Now, who is ready to give himself to the service of the Lord today?”

⁶ The family leaders and the leaders of the tribes of Israel gave their valuable things. The commanders of 1,000 men and of 100 men gave their valuable things. And the leaders responsible for the king’s work gave their valuable things. ⁷ These are the things they gave for the Temple of God: about 380,000 pounds of gold, about 750,000 pounds of silver, about 1,350,000 pounds of bronze and about 7,500,000 pounds of iron. ⁸ People who had valuable gems gave them to the treasury of the Temple of the Lord. Jehiel, from the Gershon family, took care of the valuable gems. ⁹ The leaders gave freely and completely to the Lord. The people were happy to see their leaders give so gladly. King David was also very happy.

David’s Prayer

¹⁰ David praised the Lord in front of all of the people who were gathered. He said:

²⁰ Then David said to all the people who were gathered, “Praise the Lord your God.” So they all praised the Lord, the God their ancestors worshiped. They bowed to the ground to give honor to the Lord and the king.

Solomon Becomes King

²¹ The next day the people made sacrifices to the Lord. They offered burnt offerings to him. They offered 1,000 bulls, 1,000 male sheep and 1,000 male lambs. They also brought drink offerings. Many sacrifices were made for all the people of Israel. ²² That day the people ate and drank with much joy. And the Lord was with them.

And they made David’s son Solomon king for the second time. They poured olive oil on Solomon to appoint him king. And they poured oil on Zadok to appoint him as priest. They did this in the presence of the Lord. ²³ Then Solomon sat on the Lord’s throne as king. He took his father David’s place. Solomon was very successful. And all the people of Israel obeyed him. ²⁴ All the leaders and soldiers and King David’s sons accepted Solomon as king. They promised to obey him. ²⁵ The Lord made Solomon great before all the Israelites. The Lord gave Solomon much honor. No king of Israel before Solomon had such honor.

David’s Death

²⁶ David son of Jesse was king over all Israel. ²⁷ He was king for 40 years. He ruled in the city of Hebron for 7 years. And he ruled in Jerusalem for 33 years. ²⁸ David died when he was old. He had lived a good, long life. He had received many riches and honors. And David’s son Solomon became king after him.

²⁹ Everything King David did as king, from beginning to end, is recorded. Those things are written in the records of Samuel the seer. And they are in the records of Nathan the prophet and the records of Gad the seer. ³⁰ Those writings tell what David did as king of Israel. They tell about his power and all that happened to him. And they tell what happened to Israel and all the kingdoms around them.

Solomon Asks for Wisdom

1 Solomon was David’s son, and he became a powerful king. This was because the Lord his God was with him. The Lord made Solomon very great.

² Solomon spoke to all the people of Israel. He spoke to the commanders of 100 men and of 1,000 men. He spoke to the judges, to every leader in all Israel and to the leaders of the families. ³ Then Solomon and all the people gathered with him went to the place of worship. This was at the town of Gibeon. God’s Meeting Tent was there. Moses, the Lord’s servant, had made that Tent in the desert. ⁴ David had brought the Ark of the Covenant with God from Kiriath Jearim to Jerusalem. David had made a place for it there. He had set up a tent for it in Jerusalem. ⁵ Bezalel was Uri’s son, and Uri was Hur’s son. Bezalel had made a bronze altar. It was in Gibeon in front of the Holy Tent. So Solomon and the people worshiped the Lord there. ⁶ Solomon went up to the bronze altar before the Lord at the Meeting Tent. He offered 1,000 burnt offerings on the altar.

⁷ That night God appeared to Solomon. God said, “Solomon, ask for whatever you want me to give you.”

⁸ Solomon answered, “You have been very kind to my father David. You have chosen me to be the king in his place. ⁹ Now, Lord God, may your promise to my father David come true. You have made me king of a very large nation. There are so many of them they are like the dust of the earth. ¹⁰ Now give me wisdom and knowledge so I can lead these people in the right way. No one can rule them without your help.”

¹¹ God said to Solomon, “What you want is good. I have chosen you to be king of these people. You have not asked for wealth or riches or honor. You have not asked for your enemies to be killed. You have not asked for a long life. But you have asked for wisdom and knowledge to lead my people. ¹² So I will give you wisdom and knowledge. I will also give you more wealth, riches and honor than any king who has lived before you. And the kings who will live after you will not have as much.”

¹³ Then Solomon left the place of worship at Gibeon. He left the Meeting Tent and went back to Jerusalem. There King Solomon ruled over Israel.

Solomon’s Wealth

¹⁴ Solomon gathered horses and chariots. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses. He put some horses and chariots in the cities where the chariots were kept. And he kept some with him in Jerusalem. ¹⁵ In Jerusalem, Solomon gathered much silver and gold. He got so much it was as common as rocks. He also gathered much cedar wood. It became as plentiful as the sycamore trees on the western mountain slopes. ¹⁶ Solomon imported horses from Egypt and Kue. The king’s traders bought the horses in Kue. ¹⁷ They imported a chariot from Egypt for about 15 pounds of silver. And they imported a horse for nearly 4 pounds of silver. Then they sold the horses and chariots to all the kings of the Hittites and the Arameans.