2 Chronicles 2:4

4 I'm about to build a house of worship in honor of God, a holy place for burning perfumed incense, for setting out holy bread, for making Whole-Burnt-Offerings at morning and evening worship, and for Sabbath, New Moon, and Holy Day services of worship - the acts of worship required of Israel.

2 Chronicles 2:4 Meaning and Commentary

2 Chronicles 2:4

Behold, I build an house to the name of the Lord my God
Am about to do it, and determined upon it, see ( 2 Chronicles 2:1 ) ,

to dedicate it to him;
to set it apart for sacred service to him:

and to burn before him sweet incense;
on the altar of incense:

and for the continual shewbread;
the loaves of shewbread, which were continually on the shewbread table; which, and the altar of incense, both were set in the holy place in the tabernacle, and so to be in the temple:

and for the burnt offerings morning and evening; the daily sacrifice:
on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts of the
Lord our God:
at which seasons, besides the daily sacrifice, additional burnt offerings were offered, and all on the brasen altar in the court: this is an ordinance

for ever unto Israel:
to offer the above sacrifices, even for a long time to come, until the Messiah comes; and therefore Solomon suggests, as Jarchi and Kimchi think, that a good strong house ought to be built.

2 Chronicles 2:4 In-Context

2 Solomon assigned 70,000 common laborers, 80,000 to work the quarries in the mountains, and 3,600 foremen to manage the workforce.
3 Then Solomon sent this message to King Hiram of Tyre: "Send me cedar logs, the same kind you sent David my father for building his palace.
4 I'm about to build a house of worship in honor of God, a holy place for burning perfumed incense, for setting out holy bread, for making Whole-Burnt-Offerings at morning and evening worship, and for Sabbath, New Moon, and Holy Day services of worship - the acts of worship required of Israel.
5 "The house I am building has to be the best, for our God is the best, far better than competing gods.
6 But who is capable of building such a structure? Why, the skies - the entire cosmos! - can't begin to contain him. And me, who am I to think I can build a house adequate for God - burning incense to him is about all I'm good for!
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.