Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
12 Jerusalem, praise the Lord;
Jerusalem, praise your God.
13 He makes your city gates strong
and blesses your children inside.
14 He brings peace to your country
and fills you with the finest grain.
15 He gives a command to the earth,
and it quickly obeys him.
16 He spreads the snow like wool
and scatters the frost like ashes.
17 He throws down hail like rocks.
No one can stand the cold he sends.
18 Then he gives a command, and it melts.
He sends the breezes, and the waters flow.
19 He gave his word to Jacob,
his laws and demands to Israel.
20 He didn’t do this for any other nation.
They don’t know his laws.
Praise the Lord!
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, commanders of the divisions serving the king, commanders of a thousand men and of a hundred men, leaders who took care of the property and animals that belonged to the king and his sons, 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 Agreement with the Lord. I wanted it to be God’s footstool. So I made plans to build a temple. 3 But God said to me, ‘You must not build a temple for worshiping me, because you are a soldier and have killed many people.’
4 “But the Lord, the God of Israel, chose me from my whole family to be king of Israel forever. He chose the tribe of Judah to lead, and from the people of Judah, he chose my father’s family. 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 to 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 its courtyards. 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, the assembly of the Lord, and in the hearing of God, I tell you these things: Be careful to obey all the commands of the Lord your God. Then you will keep this good land and pass it on to your descendants forever.
9 “And you, my son Solomon, accept the God of your father. Serve him completely and willingly, because the Lord knows what is in everyone’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 him, 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.”
10 Using the gift God gave me, I laid the foundation of that house like an expert builder. Others are building on that foundation, but all people should be careful how they build on it. 11 The foundation that has already been laid is Jesus Christ, and no one can lay down any other foundation. 12 But if people build on that foundation, using gold, silver, jewels, wood, grass, or straw, 13 their work will be clearly seen, because the Day of Judgment[a] will make it visible. That Day will appear with fire, and the fire will test everyone’s work to show what sort of work it was. 14 If the building that has been put on the foundation still stands, the builder will get a reward. 15 But if the building is burned up, the builder will suffer loss. The builder will be saved, but it will be as one who escaped from a fire.
16 Don’t you know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person, because God’s temple is holy and you are that temple.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.