1 Chronicles 29:1-9

Contributions for Building the Temple

1 Then King David said to all the assembly, "My son Solomon-God has chosen him alone-is young and inexperienced. The task is great, for the temple will not be for man, but for the Lord God.

2 So to the best of my ability I've made provision for the house of my God: gold for the gold [articles], silver for the silver, bronze for the bronze, iron for the iron, and wood for the wood, as well as onyx, [stones for] mounting,^[a] antimony,^[b] stones of various colors, all kinds of precious stones, and a great quantity of marble.

3 Moreover, because of my delight in the house of my God, I now give my personal treasures of gold and silver for the house of my God over and above all that I've provided for the holy house:

4 100 tons^[c] of gold (gold of Ophir) and 250 tons^[d] of refined silver for overlaying the walls of the buildings,

5 the gold for the gold [work] and the silver for the silver, for all the work to be done by the craftsmen. Now, who will volunteer to consecrate himself to the Lord today?"

6 Then the leaders of the households, the leaders of the tribes of Israel, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and the officials in charge of the king's work gave willingly.

7 For the service of God's house they gave 185 tons^[e] of gold and 10,000 gold drachmas,^[f]; 10,000 darics weighed about 185 pounds. 375 tons^[g] of silver, 675 tons^[h] of bronze, and 4,000 tons^[i] of iron.

8 Whoever had [precious] stones gave them to the treasury of the Lord's house under the care of Jehiel the Gershonite.

9 Then the people rejoiced because of their leaders'^[j] willingness to give, for they had given to the Lord with a whole heart.^[k] King David also rejoiced greatly.

1 Chronicles 29:1-9 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 CHRONICLES 29

This chapter relates how largely and liberally David, besides what he had before done, and his princes, offered towards defraying the expenses of building the temple, 1Ch 29:1-8 and the joy and thankfulness that he and his people expressed on that account, attended with prayers for Solomon, and offering sacrifices unto the Lord, 1Ch 29:9-21 and the chapter is closed, and so the book, with an account of the second unction of Solomon, the placing him on the throne, and the submission of all ranks of men unto him, and of the death of David, 1Ch 29:22-30.

Footnotes

• [a]. Or mosaic
• [b]. Ex 28:18 reads turquoise, which is spelled nearly the same in Hb.
• [c]. Lit 3,000 talents; about 113 tons
• [d]. Lit 7,000 talents; about 263 tons
• [e]. Lit 5,000 talents; about 188 tons
• [f]. The drachma, or daric, was a Persian gold coin, first minted by Darius I about 515 b.c.
• [g]. Lit 10,000 talents; about 378 tons
• [h]. Lit 18,000 talents; about 680 tons
• [i]. Lit 100,000 talents; about 3,750 tons.
• [j]. Lit because they
• [k]. 1 Ch 28:9