David the king said to all the assembly, “Solomon my son, whom alone God has chosen, is yet young and tender, and the work is great; for the palace is not for man, but for Yahweh God. Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God the gold for the things of gold, the silver for the things of silver, the bronze for the things of bronze, iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood; also onyx stones, stones to be set, stones for inlaid work, of various colors, all kinds of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance. In addition, because I have set my affection on the house of my God, since I have a treasure of my own of gold and silver, I give it to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house, even three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, with which to overlay the walls of the houses; of gold for the things of gold, and of silver for the things of silver, and for all kinds of work to be made by the hands of artisans. Who then offers willingly to consecrate himself today to Yahweh?”
Then the princes of the fathers’ households, and the princes of the tribes of Israel, and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with the rulers over the king’s work, offered willingly; and they gave for the service of God’s house of gold five thousand talents and ten thousand darics, of silver ten thousand talents, of bronze eighteen thousand talents, and of iron one hundred thousand talents. People with whom precious stones were found gave them to the treasure of Yahweh’s house, under the hand of Jehiel the Gershonite. Then the people rejoiced, because they offered willingly, because with a perfect heart they offered willingly to Yahweh; and David the king also rejoiced with great joy. Therefore David blessed Yahweh before all the assembly; and David said, “You are blessed, Yahweh, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, Yahweh, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty! For all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, Yahweh, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all! In your hand is power and might! It is in your hand to make great, and to give strength to all! Now therefore, our God, we thank you, and praise your glorious name. But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from you, and we have given you of your own. For we are strangers before you, and foreigners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is no remaining. Yahweh our God, all this store that we have prepared to build you a house for your holy name comes from your hand, and is all your own. I know also, my God, that you try the heart, and have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things. Now I have seen with joy your people, who are present here, offer willingly to you. Yahweh, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this desire forever in the thoughts of the heart of your people, and prepare their heart for you; and give to Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for which I have made provision.”
Then David said to all the assembly, “Now bless Yahweh your God!” All the assembly blessed Yahweh, the God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads and prostrated themselves before Yahweh and the king.
They sacrificed sacrifices to Yahweh, and offered burnt offerings to Yahweh, on the next day after that day, even one thousand bulls, one thousand rams, and one thousand lambs, with their drink offerings and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel, and ate and drank before Yahweh on that day with great gladness. They made Solomon the son of David king the second time, and anointed him before Yahweh to be prince, and Zadok to be priest.
Then Solomon sat on the throne of Yahweh as king instead of David his father, and prospered; and all Israel obeyed him. All the princes, the mighty men, and also all of the sons of king David submitted themselves to Solomon the king. Yahweh magnified Solomon exceedingly in the sight of all Israel, and gave to him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel. Now David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel. The time that he reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and he reigned thirty-three years in Jerusalem. He died at a good old age, full of days, riches, and honor; and Solomon his son reigned in his place. Now the acts of David the king, first and last, behold, they are written in the history of Samuel the seer, and in the history of Nathan the prophet, and in the history of Gad the seer, with all his reign and his might, and the times that went over him, and over Israel, and over all the kingdoms of the countries.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv1, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, 18, 20, 21, 23, 24, 29, 30 And therefore is taught to be excellent in all…
And therefore is taught to be excellent in all points.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30 1Ch 29:1 Furthermore David the king said unto all…
1Ch 29:1 Furthermore David the king said unto all the congregation, Solomon my son, whom alone God hath chosen, [is yet] young and tender, and the work [is] great: for the palace [is] not for man, but for the LORD God.
Ver. 1. Solomon my son, whom alone God hath chosen.] And therefore ye ought to accept, since fatherly affection hath not miscarried me, as once it did Isaac toward Esau, to set him above the rest of my sons upon the throne; but God, in whose will ye ought to rest satisfied, hath done it.
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Is yet young and tender.] Puellus est et tenellus. Married he was, as appeareth by Rehoboam’s age, {1Ki 12:13} but not yet come to man’s estate: and young in comparison of some other of my sons, who are older than he: young also to undertake so great a work, &c. He was much about eighteen, at which age every Jew at this day is bound to marry, else he is accounted as one that liveth in sin. {a}
And the work is great.] See 1Ch 22:5.
{a} Leo Modena.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30 Is yet young and tender, comparatively; for he was…
Is yet young and tender, comparatively; for he was now married, as appears by comparing 2Ch 9:30; 12:13.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On vv1, 10, 23 We may here observe,
We may here observe,
I. How handsomely David spoke to the great men of Israel, to engage them to contribute towards the building of the temple. It is our duty to provoke one another to love and to good works, not only to do good ourselves, but to draw in others to do good too as much as we can. There were many very rich men in Israel; they were all to share in the benefit of the temple, and of those peaceable days which were to befriend the building of it; and therefore, though David would not impose on them, as a tax, what they should give towards it, he would recommend the present as a fair occasion for a free-will offering, because what is done in works of piety and charity should be done willingly and not by constraint; for God loves a cheerful giver. 1. He would have them consider that Solomon was young and tender, and needed help; but that he was the person whom God had chosen to do this work, and therefore was well worthy their assistance. It is good service to encourage those in the work of God that are as yet young and tender. 2. That the world was great, and all hands should contribute to the carrying of it on. The palace to be built was not for man, but for the Lord God; and the more was contributed towards the building the more magnificent it would be, and therefore the better would it answer the intention. 3. He tells them what great preparations had been made for this work. He did not intend to throw all the burden upon them, nor that it should be built wholly by contributions, but that they should show their good will, by adding to what was done (Ch1 29:2): I have prepared with all my might, that is, "I have made it my business." Work for God must be done with all our might, or we shall bring nothing to pass in it. 4. He sets them a good example. Besides what was dedicated to this service out of the spoils and presents of the neighbouring nations, which was for the building of the house (of which before, Ch1 22:14), he had, out of his own share, offered largely for the beautifying and enriching of it, 3000 talents of gold and 7000 talents of silver (Ch1 29:4, Ch1 29:5), and this because he had set his affection on the house of his God. He gave all this, not as Papists build churches, in commutation of penance, or to make atonement for sin, nor as Pharisees give alms, to be seen of men; but purely because he loved the habitation of God's house; so he professed (Psa 26:8) and here he proved it. Those who set their affection upon the service of God will think no pains nor cost too much to bestow upon it; and then our offerings are pleasing to God when they come from love. Those that set their affection on things above will set their affection on the house of God, through which our way to heaven lies. Now this he gives them an account of, to stir them up to do likewise. Note, Those who would draw others to do that which is good must themselves lead. Those especially who are advanced above others in place and dignity should particularly contrive how to make their light shine before men, because the influence of their example is more powerful and extensive than that of other people. 5. He stirs them up to do as he had done (Ch1 29:5): And who then is willing to concentrate his service this day unto the Lord? (1.) We must each of us, in our several places, serve the Lord, and consecrate our service to him, separate it from other things that are foreign and interfere with it, and direct and design it for the honour and glory of God. (2.) We must make the service of God our business, must fill our hands to the Lord, so the Hebrew phrase is. Those who engage themselves in the service of God will have their hands full; there is work enough for the whole man in that service. The filling of our hands with the service of God intimates that we must serve him only, serve him liberally, and serve him in the strength of grace derived from him. (3.) We must be free herein, do it willingly and speedily, do it this day, when we are in a good mind. Who is willing? Now let him show it.
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II. How handsomely they all contributed towards the building of the temple when they were thus stirred up to it. Though they were persuaded to it, yet it is said, They offered willingly, Ch1 29:6. So he said who knew their hearts. Nay, they offered with a perfect heart, from a good principle and with a sincere respect to the glory of God, Ch1 29:9. How generous they were appears by the sum total of the contributions, Ch1 29:7, Ch1 29:8. They gave like themselves, like princes, like princes of Israel. And a pleasant day's work it was; for, 1. The people rejoiced, which may be meant of the people themselves that offered: they were glad of the opportunity of honouring God thus with their substance, and glad of the prospect of bringing this good work to perfection. Or the common people rejoiced in the generosity of their princes, that they had such rulers over them as were forward to this good work. Every Israelite is glad to see temple work carried on with vigour. 2. David rejoiced with great joy to see the good effects of his psalms and the other helps of devotion he had furnished them with, rejoiced that his son and successor would have those about him that were so well affected to the house of God, and that this work, upon which his heart was so much set, was likely to go on. Note, It is a great reviving to good men, when they are leaving the world, to see those they leave behind zealous for religion and likely to keep it up. Lord, now let thou thy servant depart in peace.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv1–28 Furthermore, David the king said unto all the congregation,....…
Furthermore, David the king said unto all the congregation,.... Having finished what he had to say to Solomon, he addressed the congregation again:
Solomon my son, whom alone God hath chosen; both to be king, and to build the temple
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is yet young and tender; see Ch1 22:5.
and the work is great; both of governing so great a people, and of building so magnificent a temple, especially the latter is meant:
for the palace is not for man; for any mortal king, though ever so great:
but for the Lord God; the Targum is,"but for the Word of the Lord God,''who is the King of kings, and Lord of lords; and therefore is to be built as with the greatest exactness, according to the pattern he himself has given, so with the greatest splendour and magnificence.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 4, 5, 9, 10, 14, 15, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 29, 30 David exhorts them to contribute toward building and furnishing…
David exhorts them to contribute toward building and furnishing the temple, ver. 1-5. They do contribute accordingly, ver. 6-9. He offers up solemn prayers, praises and sacrifices to God, ver. 10-21. Solomon is enthroned, ver. 22-25. David finishes his course, ver. 26-30.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 5, 7, 11, 14, 15, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 24, 28, 29, 30 David enumerates the gifts which he designed for the…
CHAPTER XXIX
David enumerates the gifts which he designed for the building
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of the temple; and exhorts the princes and people to make
their offerings, 1-5.
They offer willingly, and to a great amount, 6-9.
David's thanksgiving and prayer to God on the occasion, 10-19.
The princes and people praise God, offer sacrifices and feasts
before him, make Solomon King, and do him homage, 20-24.
The Lord magnifies Solomon, 25.
Concluding account of David's reign, character, and death,
26-30.
NOTES ON CHAP. XXIX
Verse 1. The palace is not for man] "The palace is not prepared for the name of a son of man, but for the name of the Word of the Lord God." - T.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 5, 9, 10, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30 1Ch 29:1. Furthermore, David said unto all the congregation,…
1Ch 29:1. Furthermore, David said unto all the congregation, &c. — He excites them to assist his son by divers considerations, 1st, That he was a person chosen by God for this work. 2d, That nevertheless he much needed their help, because he was but a youth. 3d, That the work itself was to be very magnificent, suitable to the Divine Majesty, who was to dwell therein, or to be represented there, by a glorious light and splendour, the symbol of his presence. And the more that was contributed toward the fabric, the more magnificent it would be, and would better answer the end designed. And, 4th, That he had set them an example, and made great preparations for, and given great donations to, the work.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 28, 29, 30 The palace - The original word here used is…
The palace - The original word here used is the Hebrew form of a Persian word, and generally designates the residence of the Persian monarch Est 1:2, Est 1:5; Est 2:3, Est 2:8; Neh 1:1; Dan 8:2. It is only here and in 1Ch 29:19 that it is applied to the temple.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 24, 29, 30 Tender, not so much in years, for he was…
Tender, not so much in years, for he was 22, but in comparison with David, and with reference to so great a work. (Menochius)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 16, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 26 Moreover . . . I have of mine own…
Moreover . . . I have of mine own proper good, &c.--In addition to the immense amount of gold and silver treasure which David had already bequeathed for various uses in the service of the temple, he now made an additional contribution destined to a specific purpose--that of overlaying the walls of the house. This voluntary gift was from the private fortune of the royal donor, and had been selected with the greatest care. The gold was "the gold of Ophir," then esteemed the purest and finest in the world (Job 22:24; Job 28:16; Isa 13:12). The amount was three thousand talents of gold and seven thousand talents of refined silver.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv1, 4, 5, 15, 18, 22, 29 1. The palace is not for man — The…
1. The palace is not for man — The word here rendered palace (birah) is used in Neh_1:1, and Est_1:2, of the royal residence of the Persian kings; and in Neh_2:8, (where see note,) of a fortress or citadel erected near the temple of Zerubbabel. It is here used of the temple as of the royal residence of Israel’s Divine King.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 29, 30 Ch. 1Ch_29:1-5. David’s Challenge to Liberality
Ch. 1Ch_29:1-5. David’s Challenge to Liberality
1. Furthermore David] R.V. And David.
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congregation] or, assembly; the Hebrew word is cognate to the verb translated assembled in 1Ch_28:1.
whom alone God hath chosen] Cp. 1Ch_28:5.
the palace] Hebrew, bîrâh, a word applied to the Temple only here and 1Ch_29:19. in Neh_2:8 (cp. Ryle in loco) the building which afterwards became the Tower of Antonia (ἡ παρεμβολὴ, the castle, Act_21:37; Act_22:24) which overlooked the Temple is called the castle (bîrâh) which appertaineth to the house. In Neh_1:1 Shushan is described as a bîrâh, probably as being a fortress as well as a royal city.
The Temple is frequently called hçykâl (palace, great house) in the Old Testament, but the most frequent appellation is simply bayith (house).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv1–30 (1) Furthermore.—And. David reviews his own preparations, and asks…
XXIX.
CONTINUATION OF PROCEEDINGS IN THE ASSEMBLY.
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(1) Furthermore.—And. David reviews his own preparations, and asks the offerings of the assembly, which are cheerfully accorded (1Ch_29:1-9).
Alone.—Of all his brothers.
Young and tender.—1Ch_22:5.
The palace (bîrâh).—A word peculiar to the Chronicles, Nehemiah, Esther, and Daniel. It usually means the palace at Susa (comp. the Persian word bâru, “citadel”), and this is the only passage of Scripture in which it denotes the Temple. From its august associations, the word was well calculated to convey to the minds of the chronicler’s contemporaries some idea of the magnificence of the Temple of Solomon as he imagined it.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 Vers. 1-9. These verses continue the account of what…
Vers. 1-9. These verses continue the account of what David said to the whole congregation, respecting his son Solomon and his tender age in view of the great enterprise of building the temple; respecting the public preparations which had been already made, and the gifts of his own individual property these latter being alluded to, no doubt, for the sake of example. On the faith of them he grounds with tenfold effect his appeal to people and princes to join heartily in the work. The verses (6-9)also contain the statement of the hearty practical response which was made by the "chiefs of the fathers and princes of the tribes," and other varieties of givers, and of the consequent general joy.
The anxiety which David felt on account of the youth of Solomon (repeated from 1Ch_22:5) evidently pressed heavily on him. The additional expression here is to be noticed, whom alone God hath chosen . By this plea, full of truth as it was, we may suppose that David would shelter himself from any possible blame or reflection on the part of the people, from the charge of partiality on the part of his elder children, and any unjust slight to them, and also from any self-reproach, in that he was devolving such a responsible task on so young and tender a man. Palace. This word (hr; yBih"), by which the temple is designated here and in ver. 19, seems to be very probably a word of Persian derivation. It is found in Neh_1:1; in Dan_8:2; but very frequently in Esther, where it is used not only of "Shushan the palace", (Est_1:2 Est_2:3 Est_3:15) as the royal abode, but also of the special part of the city adjoining the palace proper. (Est_1:5 Est_2:5 Est_8:14 Est_9:6) The word is found also Neh_2:8; but there it carries the signification of the fortress of the temple. There may be some special appropriateness in its use here, in consideration of the circumstance of the fortifications and wall, which flanked the temple.
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Ver. 1.
God"s choosing, and man"s right attitude in the presence of it.
It is very evident that great anxiety pressed upon the mind of David whenever he thought of the youthfulness of Solomon side by side with the magnitude of the enterprise in store for him. Nervousness, however, does not paralyze David, but does make him thoughtful, provident, and careful (as far as he can see the way) to disarm, at all events, the more apparent and threatening dangers. The remoter, human calculation must fail to gauge, and must leave with humble trust and humbler confession of its own limited powers. Notice in this connection
I THE SIGNIFICANT ASSERTION ON THE PART OF DAVID OF GOD"S ACT OF CHOICE. Addressing all the congregation of the people, and consciously facing all the perils of the situation not blinding himself to them nor trying to cloke them from others David says, "Solomon my son, is yet young and tender, and the work is great;" but in the middle he finds opportunity to insert this suggestive qualification, "Whom alone God hath chosen.
1. God"s choice, God"s call, where they can be truly asserted, are the unchallengeable vindication of whatsoever may seem unusual, unreasonable, even unjust. He has legitimate power over all that he has made. He gives not account to any one of his doings. The things most unexpected are what he frequently brings to pass. This is David"s tacit answer to all his elder children, if they are murmuring in their hearts; this his pronounced vindication of himself before "all the congregation of the people," if they should censure him, that in one and the same breath he makes Solomon his chief heir and successor and responsible for so great a work, and yet betrays an unfeigned anxiety as to his fitness and competency for the position. It suffices to clear him of the suspicion of an unpaternal partiality, on the one hand, in his family, and in his nation on the other hand, of a weak and unpatriotic favouritism.
1. God"s choice his call, the persuasion of his decree is the one source of confidence to the innermost heart of the man, who must otherwise often be the tortured victim of anxiety, of doubt, of mystery. In human life there may often be not one word of worldly wisdom to be urged for a course for which the individual heart nevertheless may have not so truly its own reasons as God"s own reasons. The thing that conspicuously fails to justify itself before the eye of the whole world may find its sovereign raison detre in what was the dictate of an unmistakable inspiration. The grain of seed was of heavenly sowing. The spot where it fell was lighted by the light of God"s eye. The germinating and all the subsequent stages of growth to the very ripening of it were all watched and favoured by Divine tending. The result is secure. And that result stands
2. good and the fruits of it have spread far and wide, when all the criticism with which it was assailed has perished ignominiously. The strength of the martyr has, of course, been rooted in this, and the paradox has been times without number witnessed of the gentlest, meekest, and most self-surrendering standing the strongest, speaking the most dogmatically, and refusing to surrender a jot of what they held. So with healthiest communication God visits the very heart of mankind, and. in reaching one so deeply, so surely, influences millions, and colours the complexion of centuries succeeding. Whatever natural apprehension remained now on the mind of David, it was he who most felt of what a load of responsibility he was relieved when he could say of Solomon, "Whom alone God hath chosen.
3. The conviction of God"s choice, call, or decree being in questioninspires, not force, confidence, comfort only, but also reverence, unquestioning submission, implicit obedience. This proved already by the conduct of David and his own careful exhortation of Solomon and, so to say, education of him for his future place, is also abundantly evidenced in the tone of his present address to the people in alluding to the subject. Perhaps no aspect of the character of God given us by revelation has met with more irreverent, sceptical, and quibbling treatment than this from that part of the world "that knoweth not God." Yet, in strictest harmony as it is with all the original facts of the spontaneity of One who must needs be a sovereign Creator if he be any at all, the deepest things involved in the choice and the call and the decree of God must be the deepest, coolest springs of reverence, resignation, and loving obedience to the other part of the world. Then we sing
When my dim reason would demand Why that or this thou dost ordain, By some vast deep I seem to stand, Whose secrets I must ask in vain.
When doubts disturb my troubled breast,
And all is dark as night to me,
Here as on solid rock I rest
That so it seemeth good to thee.
Be this my joy, that evermore Thou rulest all things at thy will. Thy sovereign wisdom I adore And calmly, sweetly trust thee still.
II THE FIRM ASSERTION BEFORE THE NATION OF WHAT IT IS THAT GIFTS ANY WORK OF MAN WITH TRUE DIGNITY, WITH GENUINE IMPORTANCE. "The palace is for the Lord God." This is to put things in their right places God, heaven, immortality, the unperishing first of all.
1. A sound religious principle is bravely upheld before all. There is none ofthe bated breath and the semi-suppression offered to it which are so often offered to the principles of revealed religion.
2. A most neglected aspect of religious practice is here brought intoprominence. Truths and principles of religion, acknowledged by the lip, are too often ignored in practice. The prayers we say, the praise we sing, the adoration we ejaculate, are not unfrequently dishonoured to the degree of being rendered worthless through the next deed we do or fail to do. It is not the tender, the immature, the inexperienced, the incompetent who, untrusted in statesmanship, untrusted in the professions of human life, are to be indifferently or recklessly trusted with the affairs of "the kingdom." And even when God calls such, man, both prince and people, the skilled and the experienced, are only to hear more practically the call to rally round the Lord"s choice.
3. The non-performance of human work for God is sufficiently guardedfrom confusion with the non-meritoriousness of human work for God. The distinction, abundantly plain to all who have eyes to see, is often treated as though it were among the inscrutable mysteries. To such an extent is this pretence carried that the neglect of a high and conscientious performance of works for God is assumed to be warranted by the mere fact that no merit lives in them in their aspects Godward. Yet the leas of meritoriousness the more peremptory may be the demand that that humble quotum of duty be punctiliously and as heartily performed. How healthy, how natural to an unsophisticated conscience and judgment, sounds the tone of David"s language now, "The work is great: for the palace is not for man, but for the Lord God" I Will anything in modern days pass muster to be given to God, to the Church of Christ, to his work? Yet this is the spirit of much language we hear, of much more conduct we witness. In the gifts of the hand, in the gifts of the mind, and in the gifts of the heart, the weak and poor, the blind and blemished and lame, are too frequently presented to the temple of the Lord, to the Church of Christ, to the highest office of the ministry of Christ"s gospel. The work is not held great, just because it is of an ecclesiastical cast. It would have enlisted tenfold to a hundredfold interest or enthusiasm if it had been of a civic, of a patriotic, or of a domestic sort. So David thought not, did not, whether now in the last hours of mortal life or in the days. when. youth. "glowed, strength "abounded, and the heart loved to sing of" Jerusalem as its chief joy and God as its Strength and Portion for evermore.
HOMILIES BY J.R. THOMSON Ver. 1.
Youthful service.
1. David"s words bring before us a tender worker. Solomon was yetyoung, and his father seemed to regard him as peculiarly insufficient for the position Providence was preparing for him. Perhaps his character thus far was unformed; and it may have been his accession to the throne which was the occasion of his recognizing his responsibilities, and preparing himself for his kingly duties.
2. They bring before us also a great work. The young monarch was tobuild a palace, not for man, but for God; to carry out a magnificent and costly scheme a work which should be of lasting importance, both for Israel and the world. There was an apparent want of correspondence between a worker so tender and inexperienced, and a work so vast. Yet it was the Divine appointment that Solomon should build the temple; and events proved that, with God"s blessing, he was able to carry out the great undertaking. The lesson of this verse is that there is Divine authority for youthful consecration and service; that there is no real inconsistency between a tender worker and an important work.
I THERE IS A SUMMONS, ADDRESSED TO THE YOUNG, TO WORK FOR THE LORD, There was nothing peculiar or exceptional in the requirement made of Solomon. The kind of work entrusted to him was special; but there was nothing special in his call to work for the Lord. Every young person who hears the tidings of the gospel, who receives the Divine revelation, is under an obligation to work for Christ. When you enjoy the privileges, you are subjected to the claims, of religion. Jesus, who cells you to rejoice in his love, calls you to engage in his service. In detail, God by his providence will point out to you how you may glorify him; in principle, the service required of you will be the same as that required of Solomon. A cheerful mind, a willing heart, an unmurmuring submission, a lifelong devotion, these are what.Heaven delights in. A truly Christian life is, in any case, a great work. You have a palace to build for God; and all holy thoughts and righteous deeds and wise and kindly words are as stones in the edifice an edifice to be reared to God"s glory. How many are the admonitions we find in Scripture to youthful piety and consecration!
now thy Creator in the days of thy youth!" "My son, give me thine heart!" "Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My Father, thou art the Guide of my youth?
II THERE ARE MANY ADVANTAGES IN YOUTHFUL CONSECRATION TO THE LORD"S SERVICE.
1. It is advantageous to the worker. A sound basis is thus laid for a noble character. There is scope for development. A direction is given to the active nature which there will be no occasion to reverse or alter.
1. It is advantageous for the work. There is time for doing it thoroughly and consistently. The youthful worker can adapt himself to the work, and his interest in it will deepen as the years pass on. Youthful enterprise and energy will tend to its vigorous prosecution. Enthusiasm and perseverance
2. combined, under the guidance and with the blessing of the Holy Spirit of God, cannot fail to forward the sacred enterprise, to advance the rearing of the spiritual structure.
3. It is acceptable to him who provides the work and qualifies theworkman. God cannot but be pleased when his own work is taken in hand and carried on by those whom he himself has designed for it.
PRACTICAL CONCLUSION.
1. Let the young seriously consider the call of Heaven, readily accept thetrust, and prayerfully seek guidance and help for its fulfilment. God comes to you and says, "Son, go work to-day in my vineyard.
2. Let all Christians encompass youthful workers for Christ with interest,sympathy, and supplication. As David commended the young prince, his son, to the considerate sympathy and support of the mighty men, priests, and counsellors, so would we beg all mature and experienced servants of the Lord to uphold their younger friends and colleagues by affectionate interest and prayers. T.
HOMILIES BY W. CLARKSON Vers. 1-9.
The path of progress in Christian enterprise.
In the history of a nation or of a Church it frequently occurs that some great enterprise has to be carried through, like the building of the temple of the Lord on this great occasion. What, then, are the successive steps in the progress of the work?
I PERSUASIVENESS on the part of those who project it. David was in a position to command, to require, to enact. But he evidently felt that this was an occasion on which it was far better to persuade. After pleading the youthfulness of his son (ver. 1), the sacredness of the work (ver. 1), the energy he himself had shown in the matter ("With all my might," ver. 2), the affection he felt, and the personal sacrifices he had made (vers. 3, 4), the consideration he had shown for the various necessities of the case (ver. 5), he appealed to the congregation, "Who then is willing?" If King David, under the Law, thus resorted to persuasion rather than to enactment, much more may we under the gospel. The spirit of the gospel is the spirit of persuasion. We need not wish for "compulsory powers;" we should rejoice that the better way is given us of convincing by argument, of affecting by entreaty, of winning by earnestness. And, on the part of those who are influenced, there must be
II WILLINGNESS. "Who then is willing?" (ver. 5). "Then the chief of the fathers offered willingly" (ver. 6). Nothing is gained of any vital consequence until the heart is willing, until every barrier of indifference and objection is broken down, and our will consents to go in the path of service, of contribution, of activity.
III EAGERNESS. David had shown not only readiness, but eagerness. He "prepared with all his might" (ver. 2); he "set his affection to the house of his God" (ver. 3). The people were not only prepared to respond to the king without demur, they consented cordially; With perfect heart they offered willingly" (ver. 9). A very great step is taken when willingness passes into eagerness; when those whom we ask to serve not only come forward, but walk in the path of usefulness with elastic step, as those who have a heart as well as a hand in the undertaking.
IV SERVICEABLENESS AND SUITABLENESS. David gave of the spoils of war (ver. 2), and also of his own personal property (ver. 3), things which would be of practical value for the work before them goLd, silver, etc.; so did the people (vers. 7, 8). And not only generally serviceable, but specially suitable things he and they took care to offer; "Gold for things to be made of gold," etc. (ver. 2). David was mindful of the thought that commoner as well as rarer metals would be of use, and he furnished both. We must bring to the work of the Lord
(1) that which is practical and precious (gold and silver), than which we esteem as valuable for the purposes of human life; and
(2) that particular contribution which the special service demands not cleverness when kindness is wanted, not learning when sympathy is demanded, not counsel when money is the only thing that will avail, not refinement when rugged simplicity is the desirable thing, etc.; gold for the things of gold, brass for the things of brass, etc.
V GLADNESS. "Then the people rejoiced" (ver. 9). The outcome of devoted work for Christ and man is heartfelt joy. There is no deeper, stronger, purer joy than that of "consecrating our service unto the Lord" (ver. 5), and doing this with the "perfect heart" of entire willingness, giving ourselves freely and lavishly for him who gave himself for us. It is "more blessed to give than to receive." They who do not know the joy of the people at Jerusalem on this occasion, the joy of hearty devotedness, haw not ascended to the summit of human blessedness.
VI CONTAGIOUSNESS. David communicated his enthusiasm to the people. Their fire of devotion was caught from the flame that was burning on the altar of his heart. Similarly their joy was communicated to him. "The people rejoiced and David the king also rejoiced with great joy" (ver. 9). Unhappily, evil passions are extended through this channel of contagiousness; one mind passes on its sinful principles and unholy excitements. But, happily for the world, goodness is as diffusive as evil. We catch animation, zeal, consecration from one another; we light our lamps from the fire that burns in our brother"s heart; we pass on our joy in God till "all the congregation" "rejoice with great joy" in him and in the victory of his cause. C.
HOMILIES BY F. WHITFIELD Vers. 1-5.
David"s further address to the congregation.
David gives an explanation at the commencement of this chapter why he himself had prepared so much for the house of God, viz. that Solomon himself was as yet young and tender, and the work was great. But David assigns the true reason why the work was great, viz. that the house was "not for man, but for the Lord God." It is true that the house was a great one, and that the work was great in a natural point of view. But all such thoughts are lost or sink behind that which alone makes anything great the Lord God. There are two ways of estimating greatness one that strikes the mere outward sense, and one that looks at God. It may be that the building is only a hut, but if it is to the Lord it is infinitely greater than the grandest building ever erected by the art of man. And because it was for the Lord, David had prepared for it "with all his might." It is this motive which gives power and strength and delight and earnestness to all work. But it was not only as a king David had thus prepared. In this world men may separate the office from the person; but not so in the kingdom of God. God"s claims on men are not only official but personal; not only as kings, but as Christian men. David had prepared so much (see ver. 2) as Israel"s king, but he bad also prepared so much of "his own proper good" (see ver. 3). A minister of Christ has not only to walk worthy of his vocation as a minister, but also as a man; not only in the pulpit and parish, but as a man in all the private relations of life. Having fulfilled both of these relations to the house of God, he can now make his appeal to others. He has set the example: who will follow it? "Who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto the Lord?" "Those things which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do". (Php_4:9) And consecration is simply to "fill the hand" (see margin). "He has his hands full" is a familiar saying. Yes; it is every faculty of the man body, soul, and spirit taken up with the Lord and his work. No room for anything else. Not even a grain more can the hand hold. "To me to live is Christ." All our secular work done to him. Thus life becomes transfigured. And this is not for to-morrow. It is this day. " God asks for it now. Two of God"s requirements there are which admit of no to-morrow. One is the salvation of the soul: "Now is the accepted time; now is the day of salvation." Another is consecration-dedication to God:" Who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto the Lord?" It is not so much a command as an appeal It must come from the heart or it cannot be accepted. Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" (Isa 6) is made to the heart of the prophet. That heart had "seen the King," and out of the fulness of a love that had penetrated its inmost recesses it exclaimed, "Here am I, Lord; send me." So it was here. All the princes and rulers and congregation of Israel responded to this appeal from one whom they loved, and offered largely and "willingly." No wonder all was joy. The king, the princes, the congregation, were overflowing with joy. It was the response of a "perfect heart," a true, whole-hearted, joyous surrender of themselves and all they had to the Lord. This is the spring of all real joy. It is nowhere else an unconditional surrender of ourselves and all we have to him "who loved us and gave himself for us. W.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv1, 5, 10, 14, 15, 18, 20, 23, 29 Furthermore David the king said unto all the congregation.
1Ch_29:1-10
Furthermore David the king said unto all the congregation.
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Christian experience and Christian influence
I. The nearer a good man approaches his end, the more spiritually-minded he becomes.
II. The more spiritually-minded a good man becomes, the greater his influence upon others.
III. The greater influence a good man has upon others, the more certainly will Gods work be accomplished. (J. Wolfendale.)
The principles of Christian work
1. Personal consecration and example.
2. Willing co-operation by all.
3. Appropriateness of service and gifts.
4. Animated by a true spirit of enthusiasm and joy. (J. Wolfendale.)
A good example and the power of it
God is calling His people everywhere to undertake a work for His glory, which in importance and magnitude and grandeur infinitely transcends the work He laid upon Solomon--the evangelisation of the entire world--the building of that great spiritual temple which is to fill the earth and into which all nations and peoples are to be gathered.
I. The Divine call to this work is direct, imperative, and loud.
II. It is attested by signs and wonders as marvellous and impressive to the spiritually discerning as the miracles of apostolic times.
III. The call in this instance is to the entire Church of Christ, individually and collectively. The command, the obligation is universal and cannot be evaded. If you have not gold and silver to bestow, give yourself--heart, soul, mind, prayers, influence. If you cannot go to the heathen, send a substitute, give of your means, etc.
IV. The times demand large gifts, princely offerings.
V. Never had the power of example such potency as now. (J. M. Sherwood, D. D.)
Interest in Gods work
It is always well for us to take a loving and deep interest in the work of God. We may have at heart some end which we desire to achieve for Gods glory, and because we know that it springs from such a motive may proceed to carry it out without questioning whether we are to be the agents through which it is to be accomplished. But there may be others better fitted for the work than we are, whom God has in reserve. And what matters it whether we or others do the work, so long as it is done by men chosen of God? The work goes on, though the workmen die, are the words which Dean Stanley most appropriately had inscribed on Wesleys memorial in Westminster Abbey. Other men labour, and we enter into their labours. The work they sought to accomplish God denied to them, but lays upon us. (Dr. Egbert.)
Power of example
Before us was a narrow bridge, and between us and the bridge were several thousand sheep. They would have taken a long time going over, and would effectually have checked our entrance into the town, but for a clever plan for getting the sheep quickly over. A few sheep are trained as a sort of decoy. They are at first pet lambs, and then in time become pet sheep. They are kept by the authorities who have control of the bridge, and are let to the sheep-drovers for so much, in order to effect a speedy passage of the bridge. The keepers of the pets go first, then follow the three or four pets, and then away after them the three or four thousand of the mob, as they are called here. (H. T. Robjohns.)
The house of the Lord
I. The building is for the Lord God, because it is for the presentation of Gods worship. God claims to be worshipped. He deserves to be worshipped for--
(1) What he is in Himself.
(2) What He is to us. Worship takes the forms of adoration, thanksgiving, confession, petition, supplication, and intercession. By a very significant expression the Jews used to say when they went up to Jerusalem, that they were going to appear before the Lord. The chief attraction of every place of worship ought to be that you ere coming to meet with God.
II. The building is for the Lord because it is built for the proclamation of Gods truth.
III. The building is for the Lord because it is for the promotion of Gods purposes. Gods purposes are that men should be saved, sanctified, enlightened, comforted, strengthened, stimulated, and helped on to glory. (John Corbin.)
The palace for God
These words are not to be pressed unduly, nor their spirit sacrificed to the letter, in forgetfulness of the idiom of the language in which they are recorded. The patriotic king no more forgot his nations welfare in the sense of the sacredness of the work, than the prophet who first uttered the immortal words, I love mercy and not sacrifice, dreamed of extinguishing the altar fires and abolishing the office of the priesthood seven centuries before the fulness of time. Their principal meaning is obvious. An edifice was formed, a pattern was already, it is written, present to his minds eye. It was to be no regal palace, however stately, no home for oriental splendour and magnificence; it was to be consecrated for ever to the Jehovah to whom he and his people were bound by everlasting covenant. Yet the truth that no house made with hands could in any literal sense hold Him whom the heaven of heavens could not contain, was already deep in the conscience, and finding expression in the words of Gods truest servant. He who was revealed to the Psalmist, the Psalmist-king well knew, no roof of cedar, no walls of stone, no building however sacred, however sumptuous, could be His real home. It could be only so far His dwelling-place, when His unseen presence could be found and realised by those who sought Him--found best by those who could rise in spirit above that imageless temple, above that altar smoke, and all the machinery of ritual, to the Father of their spirits and the God of their salvation. There is a sense, therefore, in which we may, without irreverence, almost invert the words, and yet gain, rather than lose, their true significance. The palace is not for God, we might even say, as a literal dwelling-place. To Him, the marble, and the cedar, and the palm-tree, and the olive, and the brass, and the gold are as nothing. The palace in this sense is not for God, but it is for man--not for man as merely the foremost of creatures to draw the breath of life on the earth, but for man as the worshipper, as the servant, as the conscious and devout adorer of Him who has created him in His own image; for man as the place for worship which may reclaim, and purify, and uplift his fallen nature; which may bring him into communion with his Father and his God; a place where all that appeals to his highest earthly sense may enable him to forget the things of sense, and reach out to what eye hath not seen or ear heard. And for so bold an apparent inversion of the letter, in order to bring home to our minds the inner spirit of the words, I may surely plead the example of Him who taught His people that the seventh day, which was proclaimed at Sinai to be the Sabbath of the Lord our God, was, for all that, made for man, and that the Son of Man was Lord also of the Sabbath. (Dean Bradley.)
The importance of Church extension
To realise the importance of the work of Church extension, consider--
I. That religion is essential to the welfare of a nation (Psa_33:12; Isa_60:12).
II. It is a work that shall reach forward through many generations (1Ch_28:8).
III. It is your appointed privilege (1Ch_28:10).
IV. What is implied in the word sanctuary? (1Ch_28:10). A sanctuary is a place of refuge from impending evils. If a man erect a lighthouse, he is honoured for preventing a great loss of life. If he build a hospital he is revered as the benefactor of his race for the mitigation of pain. But he who builds a church, or assists in the work, does more. Under the Divine blessing he is instrumental in enlightening dark minds, comforting troubled consciences, and in saving immortal souls.
V. The temple was a type of the Christian Church.
VI. If David and Solomon were so zealous in providing means for having the type only, how much more anxious should we Be to put ourselves and others in possession of the substance?
VII. It is seldom that a great work can be accomplished by an individual. (1Ch_29:1).
VIII. It is for the glory of God (1Ch_29:1).
IX. Davids example (1Ch_29:2).
X. The affection we ought to bear to Gods house (1Ch_29:3). (H. Clissold, M. A.)
Davids desire to build a house for God
I. The God whom David worshipped. He worshipped God--
1. As the Supreme Being (1Ch_29:11).
2. As the God of his fathers (1Ch_29:10).
3. As personally appropriated: My God
II. Some of the reasons which led David to desire to build a house for his God.
1. Jealousy for the honour of God.
2. Love and gratitude to God.
3. The thought that others besides himself should worship therein. (J. Shillito.)
Attachment to the sanctuary
It is of one of the noble qualities of the religious life of the Jews I would speak--their love for the house of God.
I. The house of God. The house of worship is the house of God.
II. Because the ancient Jews loved the Lords house they made it beautiful. This was natural, lawful, and Divinely sanctioned. This impulse was recognised, called out, and approved by God.
III. It was a general affection exercised and expressed by all the people. (Henry J. VanDyke.)
Godly giving
I. The object. The work is great; for the palace is not for man, but for the Lord God.
1. In respect of the greatness of Him for whose use the palace is made.
2. The value of what is wrought there to all mankind.
3. The consequent expenditure.
II. The giving. Circumstances of Davids great collection and of ours are very different, but the principles are the same.
1. Definitely to the Lord. The money went into the hands of treasurers, but it was given to God.
2. Voluntary, Who is willing? They offered willingly.
3. Hearty and gladsome. Because I have set my affection to the house of my God, is Davids reason for giving (1Ch_29:3). And of all the givers it is said, The people rejoiced for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the Lord (1Ch_29:9).
4. With preparation. Mistake to give on sudden impulse only or to imagine that forethought, and method, and consideration are opposed to heartiness; intelligent, Christian love will lead to these in proportion as it is fervent. I have prepared with all my might (1Ch_29:2).
5. With devout acknowledgement. Both riches and honour come of Thee. All this store cometh of Thine hand, and is all Thine own (1Ch_29:11-16).
6. With fervent prayer (1Ch_29:18-19). (Homiletic Magazine.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain On v10 IN order to do justice to the chroniclers method…
THE LAST PRAYER OF DAVID
1Ch_29:10-19
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IN order to do justice to the chroniclers method of presenting us with a number of very similar illustrations of the same principle, we have in the previous book grouped much of his material under a few leading subjects. There remains the general thread of the history, which is, of course, very much the same in Chronicles as in the book of Kings, and need not be dwelt on at any length. At the same time some brief survey is necessary for the sake of completeness and in order to bring out the different complexion given to the history by the chroniclers alterations and omissions. Moreover, there are a number of minor points that are most conveniently dealt with in the course of a running exposition.
The special importance attached by the chronicler to David and Solomon has enabled us to treat their reigns at length in discussing his picture of the ideal king; and similarly the reign of Ahaz has served as an illustration of the character and fortunes of the wicked kings. We therefore take up the history at the accession of Rehoboam, and shall simply indicate very briefly the connection of the reign of Ahaz with what precedes and follows. But before passing on to Rehoboam we must consider "The Last Prayer of David," a devotional paragraph peculiar to Chronicles. The detailed exposition of this passage would have been out of proportion in a brief sketch of the chroniclers account of the character and reign of David, and would have had no special bearing on the subject of the ideal king. On the other hand, the "Prayer" states some of the leading principles which govern the chronicler in his interpretation of the history of Israel; and its exposition forms a suitable introduction to the present division of our subject.
The occasion of this prayer was the great closing scene of Davids life, which we have already described. The prayer is a thanksgiving for the assurance David had received that the accomplishment of the great purpose of his life, the erection of a temple to Jehovah, was virtually secured. He had been permitted to collect the materials for the building, he had received the plans of the Temple from Jehovah, and had placed them in the willing hands of his successor. The princes and the people had caught his own enthusiasm and lavishly supplemented the bountiful provision already made for the future work. Solomon had been accepted as king by popular acclamation. Every possible preparation had been made that could be made, and the aged king poured out his heart in praise to God for His grace and favor.
The prayer falls naturally into four subdivisions: 1Ch_29:10-13 are a kind of doxology in honor of Jehovah; in 1Ch_29:14-16 David acknowledges that Israel is entirely dependent upon Jehovah for the means of rendering Him acceptable service; in 1Ch_29:17 he claims that he and his people have offered willingly unto Jehovah; and in 1Ch_29:18-19 he prays that Solomon and the people may build the Temple and abide in the Law.
In the doxology God is addressed as "Jehovah, the God of Israel, our Father," and similarly in 1Ch_29:18 as "Jehovah, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel." For the chronicler the accession of David is the starting-point of Israelite history and religion, but here, as in the genealogies, he links his narrative to that of the Pentateuch, and reminds his readers that the crowning dispensation of the worship of Jehovah in the Temple rested on the earlier revelations to Abraham, Isaac, and Israel.
We are at once struck by the divergence from the usual formula: "Abraham. Isaac, and Jacob." Moreover, when God is referred to as the God of the Patriarch personally, the usual phrase is "the God of Jacob." The formula, "God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel," occurs again in Chronicles in the account of Hezekiahs reformation; it only occurs elsewhere in the history of Elijah in the book of Kings. {1Ki_18:36} The chronicler avoids the use of the name "Jacob," and for the most part calls the Patriarch "Israel." "Jacob" only occurs in two poetic quotations, where its omission was almost impossible, because in each case "Israel" is used in the parallel clause. {1Ch_16:13; 1Ch_16:17 Gen_32:28} This choice of names is an application of the same principle that led to the omission of the discreditable incidents in the history of David and Solomon. Jacob was the supplanter. The name suggested the unbrotherly craft of the Patriarch. It was not desirable that the Jews should be encouraged to think of Jehovah as the God of a grasping and deceitful man. Jehovah was the God of the Patriarchs nobler nature and higher life, the God of Israel, who strove with God and prevailed. In the doxology that follows the resources of language are almost exhausted in the attempt to set forth adequately "the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty the riches and honor the power and might," of Jehovah These verses read like an expansion of the simple Christian doxology, "Thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory," but in all probability the latter is an abbreviation from our text. In both there is the same recognition of the ruling omnipotence of God; but the chronicler, having in mind the glory and power of David and his magnificent offerings for the building of the Temple, is specially careful to intimate that Jehovah is the source of all worldly greatness: "Both riches and honor come of Thee and in Thy hand it is to make great and to give strength unto all."
The complementary truth, the entire dependence of Israel on Jehovah, is dealt with in the next verses. David has learnt humility from the tragic consequences of his fatal census; his heart is no longer uplifted with pride at the wealth and glory of his kingdom; he claims no credit for the spontaneous impulse of generosity that prompted his munificence. Everything is traced back to Jehovah: "All things come of Thee, and of Thine own have we given Thee." Before, when David contemplated the vast population of Israel and the great array of his warriors, the sense of Gods displeasure fell upon him; now, when the riches and honor of his kingdom were displayed before him, he may have felt the chastening influence of his former experience. A touch of melancholy darkened his spirit for a moment; standing upon the brink of the dim, mysterious Sheol, he found small comfort in barbaric abundance of timber and stone, jewels, talents, and darics; he saw the emptiness of all earthly splendor. Like Abraham before the children of Heth, he stood before Jehovah a stranger and a sojourner. {Gen_23:4; Cf. Psa_34:13; Psa_119:19} Bildad the Shuhite had urged Job to submit himself to the teaching of a venerable orthodoxy, because "we are of yesterday and know nothing, because our days upon earth are a shadow." {Job_8:9} The same thought made David feel his insignificance, in spite of his wealth and royal dominion: "Our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is no abiding."
He turns from these somber thoughts to the consoling reflection that in all his preparations he has been the instrument of a Divine purpose, and has served Jehovah willingly. Today he can approach God with a clear conscience: "I know also, my God, that Thou triest the heart and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things." He rejoiced, moreover, that the people had offered willingly. The chronicler anticipates the teaching of St. Paul that "the Lord loveth a cheerful giver." David gives of his abundance in the same spirit in which the widow gave her mite. The two narratives are mutually supplementary. It is possible to apply tile story of the widows mite so as to suggest that God values our offerings in inverse proportion to their amount. We are reminded by the willing munificence of David that the rich may give of his abundance as simply and humbly and as acceptably as the poor man gives of his poverty.
But however grateful David might be for the pious and generous spirit by which his people were now possessed, he did not forget that they could only abide in that spirit by the continued enjoyment of Divine help and grace His thanksgiving concludes with prayer. Spiritual depression is apt to follow very speedily in the train of spiritual exaltation; days of joy and light are granted to us that we may make provision for future necessity.
David does not merely ask that Israel may be kept in external obedience and devotion: his prayer goes deeper. He knows that out of the heart are the issues of life, and he prays that the heart of Solomon and the thoughts of the heart of the people may. be kept right with God. Unless the fountain of life were pure, it would be useless to cleanse the stream. Davids special desire is that the Temple may be built, but this desire is only the expression of his loyalty to the Law. Without the Temple the commandments, and testimonies, and statutes of the Law could not be rightly observed. But he does not ask that the people may be constrained to build the Temple and keep the Law in order that their hearts may be made perfect; their hearts are to be made perfect that they may keep the Law.
Henceforward throughout his history the chroniclers criterion of a perfect heart, a righteous life, in king and people, is their attitude towards the Law and the Temple. Because their ordinances and worship formed the accepted standard of religion and morality, through which mens goodness would naturally express themselves. Similarly, only under a supreme sense of duty to God and man may the Christian willingly violate the established canons of religious and social life.
We may conclude by noticing a curious feature in the wording of Davids prayer. In the nineteenth, as in the first, verse of this chapter the Temple, according to our English versions, is referred to as "the palace." The original word bira is probably Persian, though a parallel form is quoted from the Assyrian. As a Hebrew word it belongs to the latest and most corrupt stage of the language as found in the Old Testament; and only occurs in Chronicles, Nehemiah, Esther, and Daniel. In putting this word into the mouth of David, the chronicler is guilty of an anachronism, parallel to his use of the word "darics." The word bira appears to have first become familiar to the Jews as the name of a Persian palace or fortress in Susa; it is used in Nehemiah of the castle attached to the Temple, and in later times the derivative Greek name Baris had the same meaning. It is curious to find the chronicler, in his effort to find a sufficiently dignified title for the temple of Jehovah, driven to borrow a word which belonged originally to the royal magnificence of a heathen empire, and which was used later on to denote the fortress whence a Roman garrison controlled the fanaticism of Jewish worship. The chroniclers intention, no doubt, was to intimate that the dignity of the Temple surpassed that of any royal palace. He could not suppose that it was greater in extent or constructed of more costly materials; the living presence of Jehovah was its one supreme and unique distinction. The King gave honor to His dwelling-place.
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v1 CRITICAL NOTES.] We have in this chapter contributions of…
CRITICAL NOTES.] We have in this chapter contributions of the princes to the temple (1Ch_29:1-9); the public thanksgiving of David (1Ch_29:10-13); David’s prayer for Solomon (1Ch_29:14-19); Solomon’s succession to the throne (1Ch_29:20-25); the close of David’s reign and life (1Ch_29:26-30).
1Ch_29:1-9.—Contributions to the temple. Palace, a Persian word (cf. Est_1:2-5; Neh_1:1; Dan_8:2) applied to the temple (1Ch_29:19). 1Ch_29:2. Onyx (Gen_2:12); glistering, “coloured stones;” some dark stones, of a hue like that of the antimony by which women painted their eyes [Speak. Com.]. Marble, white stones or alabaster, found near Damascus. 1Ch_29:3. Proper good from private sources, not from spoils in war, &c. 1Ch_29:4. Ophir, brought by Arabian traders; overlay with veneer. 1Ch_29:5. Consecrate, literally “fill his hands.” 1Ch_29:6. Rulers, probably stewards of the king’s substance (ch. 1Ch_28:1; 1Ch_27:25-31). 1Ch_29:7. Drams, Heb. adarcon (Ezr_8:27), known as Persian daric, the same as the darkemon (Ezr_2:69; Neh_7:70), variously valued at 12s. 6d. and 25s. The writer does not intend to say that the Jews possessed darics in David’s time, but to express in language what would be intelligible to his readers, the value of gold subscribed, and to translate the terms of his document, whatever they were, into terms in use in his own day [Speak. Com.]. 1Ch_29:8. Jehiel, one of the temple treasurers (1Ch_26:21-22).
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1Ch_29:10-19.—David’s thanksgiving. Father, Israel (1Ch_29:18). 1Ch_29:11, cf. Rev_5:12. 1Ch_29:12. Power, physical and moral. 1Ch_29:15. Strangers (cf. Psa_105:12). Abiding, literally, “there is no hope”—i.e., of abiding or continuing here. 1Ch_29:17. Triest (cf. Psa_7:9; Psa_17:3; 1Sa_16:7). 1Ch_29:18. This, i.e., “preserve for ever this spirit of liberal and spontaneous giving in the hearts of thy people” [Speak. Com.]. Prepare, establish their hearts.
1Ch_29:20-25.—Solomon enthroned king. Worshipped, prostrated themselves to the ground; same outward reverence to God and king, with the respect due to each. 1Ch_29:21. l.e., with drink offerings appropriate to each kind of burnt offering, and required by law to accompany them (cf. Num_15:5; Num_15:7; Num_15:10). 1Ch_29:22. Second, for first see 1Ki_1:35-39. This a more formal and representative. 1Ch_29:23. Sat. Solomon actually reigned during some short time of his father’s life (1 Kings 1). 1Ch_29:24. All sons, even Adonijah (1Ki_1:53). 1Ch_29:25. Magnified (1Ki_3:13), Solomon’s grandeur traced to God.
1Ch_29:26-30.—Close of David’s reign and life. 1Ch_29:27. Time (cf. 1Ki_2:11). For more exact account of duration of reign, 2Sa_5:5. 1Ch_29:28. Age, in his seventy-first year. 1Ch_29:29. Book used by author; of this and book of Gad no account. Seer, a commoner title than that of Samuel. 1Ch_29:30. Went, a singular expression. “No other instance of this in Scripture. ‘The times that went over David’ were the events that happened to him. Compare his own words in Psa_31:15 : ‘My times are in thy hand’ ” [Speak. Com.].
HOMILETICS
CONTRIBUTIONS FOR BUILDING THE TEMPLE.—1Ch_29:1-10
David addresses all the congregation respecting his son’s tender age, his personal gifts, and efforts towards building the temple. He makes an earnest appeal, and meets with a ready response.
I. David’s example in giving. “I have prepared with all my might.”
1. Giving from his own resources. Public resources, such as spoils of war, numerous and most valuable. Private resources; his own “proper good” or private property; additional gifts; selected with great care “the gold of Ophir,” the purest and finest in the world (Job_22:24; Isa_13:12); bestowed for a specific purpose; the overlaying of the walls of the temple.
2. Giving in right order. The heart first, and then the substance. True religion touches the heart and conscience, and regulates the gifts. “I have set my affection to the house of my God” (1Ch_29:3).
3. Giving in true spirit. “I have prepared with all my might.” Might, intelligence, and ardour must be, thrown into God’s work, or nothing will be done. David casts not the burden upon princes and people, though the temple for them, but contributes to the utmost of his power, and sets them a noble example.
II. David’s appeal to others to give. “Who, then, is willing to consecrate his service?” (1Ch_29:5). He levies no tax, but asks for free-will offerings of the people. This the right way to build, support, and establish the house of God. This appeal founded on many things.
1. He reminds them of Solomon’s necessities. Young and tender, without much wisdom and experience, but under great responsibilities. Yet God had chosen him for the undertaking. Hence no reproach to David for partiality and preference of Solomon. Young people should ever be encouraged in good works.
2. He sets before them the greatness of the work. “The work is great.” Great not in outward appearance, but great in purpose. “The palace not for man, but for the Lord God.”
3. He stimulates them by his own example. “Now I have prepared.” Exhortation and appeal must be backed by personal effort and example to be efficient.
III. The response to David’s appeal (1Ch_29:6-9). They “offered willingly.” The response was:
1. Hearty response not only filled their hands, but offered “with perfect heart” (1Ch_29:9). “Of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering” (Exo_25:2).
2. Immediate response. No hesitation, no consultation nor delay. This damps ardour, and makes all work difficult.
3. Liberal response. Influenced by the persuasive address and powerful example of the King, they gave according to their abilities. Their united contributions amounted to the gross sum—of gold 5,000 talents and 10,000 drams, of silver 10,000 talents, besides brass and iron.
IV. The results of this response. “They rejoiced”—“were glad with great gladness.” David rejoiced to see the work on which his heart was set so earnestly carried on. Princes rejoiced under a sense of duty rightly performed, and God’s acceptance of it. People rejoiced in the generosity of their rulers. The selfish and niggardly are miserable; the sympathetic and self-denying are happy and cheerful. “The liberal soul shall be made fat”—
“The truly generous is the truly wise;
And he who loves not others lives unblest.”
CHRISTIAN EXPERIENCE AND CHRISTIAN INFLUENCE.—1Ch_29:1-10
The life of David fitted to encourage faith in God, and proves that a good man may begin a work which shall continue after his death. Learn from these verses—I. The nearer a good man approaches his end, the more spiritually minded he becomes. David intensely anxious about the work of God. Past experience of divine favour and anticipations of future good—consciousness of God’s presence and of God’s guidance give hope and assurance. The powers of the world to come influence and prepare for the end. II. The more spiritually minded a good man becomes, the greater his influence upon others. The force of his example, the authority of his teaching, backed by a consistent consecrated life, have more influence than the sceptre. Exalted in place and dignity, David shone in spiritual character, drew because he led, stimulated others because earnest himself. III. The greater influence a good man has upon others, the more certain will God’s work be accomplished. David died before the temple was built, but his influence lived. His persuasion, not enactment, won the hearts and prompted the efforts of the people. He rejoiced in the succession of his son to the throne, and in the offerings of the nation for the work of God.
A CALL TO EARLY DEVOTEDNESS.—1Ch_29:5
I. We shall explain what we regard as the consecration of service to God.
1. There must be correct views of the Divine character and claims;
2. A practical obedience to the will of God;
3. Active exertion to promote the Divine glory. II. We shall present the considerations which ought to urge to an engagement in the service of God.
1. We are placed under universal and imperative obligation to do so;
2. The influence his service has in preventing the degradation and promoting the dignity of our nature;
3. The true and solid pleasure his service communicates to the soul;
4. The glorious recompense by which the engagements of his service are consummated. III. We shall impress the question by which, to an engagement in the service of God, you are emphatically challenged [J. Parsons].
HOMILETIC HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS
1Ch_29:3. I have set my affection. The force of religious affection for one thing.
1. In its possession and government of the mind. To build the thought of his mind, the object of his life. “This one thing I do.”
2. In its command over the resources of our life. He prepared and gave with all his might gold and silver; the spoils of his enemies, and the treasures of his palace, devoted to the chosen work, not to transient pleasure, nor temporal interests. Such thought and pains, such concentration of purpose and affection rebuke the loiterers and half-hearted.
1Ch_29:5. Consecration.
1. Service. Every child of God is a servant, a worker, a commissioned officer. In performance of life’s duties are demanded—First: A settled purpose, a purpose arising from a survey of our being, relationships, and surroundings. Life’s great question, “What must I do?” Secondly: An active resolve. Will the motive power within. The energies of life in the will—rightly directed, obstacles like chaff before it. But religious service specified. Many receive but give not, unprofitable servants, &c.
2. A willing service. “Who is willing?” This is the principal quality in Christian service. Gigantic intellect, profusion of gifts, untiring activity, a great moral force, and all these put together without the heart, God will reject; but two mites and the heart He will accept. First: A willing service is the only efficient service. Things unwillingly done, badly done. Workers that need not be ashamed of their work, put their heart into it. Secondly: The willingness of our service is the only part of it which is absolutely required. What God wants is nowhere to be found except within the human breast. It is the only treasure God covets. “My son, give me thine heart.”
3. An immediate service. “This day.” Every Jew’s attention was fixed on the cherished object of David’s life. We are instructed to build a temple for God, have our work planned and we can begin “this day.” Look generally at the subject. First: Seasons for service are never absent. A farmer is busy summer and winter. Christians need lose no time, nor wait for opportunities. Some wait for special occasions which they never find. Ignorant to be taught, erring to lead home and poor always with us. Secondly: Efficiency and pleasure ensue when service is performed in its own time. Service of Jesus like a meal, must be taken at its proper time to produce enjoyment and strength. If morning prayer be said at night its unction is lost. Now is the gospel’s great time, “the accepted time.”
4. The highest service. “Unto the Lord.” Noble motives produce highest service. Some serve Satan, themselves, and the world; as the object, so the nature of the service. Every service receives its inspiration from the Master. The service of the Lord implies, First: That the mind is perpetually under the influence of divine truth. Holy thoughts: produce holy living. As we think, so we live; he who thinks Christ lives Christ. “Let this mind be also in you, &c.” Secondly: That holy thoughts are actuated by the presence of the Spirit in them. This communion is maintained by prayer. Best thoughts sent up to heaven to receive the Master’s living touch. The fire must be fanned into a flame by his breath. The praying heart has working hands. Thirdly: Entire consecration. We cannot serve two masters. God’s service enough to absorb our whole being. These are the steps—a Saviour from sin, an example to follow, efforts put forth, and a reward in expectation. “Not with eye service as men pleasers, but as servants of Christ, &c.” [Thos. Davies, D.D.].
1Ch_29:9. Liberality and joy. Liberality often brings temporal wealth, invariably in spiritual matters does it bring wealth and joy of soul. Every effort has reaction, and reaction the law of material and spiritual worlds. The soul of the miser is always miserable, and sinks lower into spiritual destitution. The good man lives like the sun, and shines to bless in the influence of ideas, wealth, and effort. “The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me; and I caused the widow’s heart to joy, &c.”
1Ch_29:1-9. The principles of Christian work.
1. Personal consecration and example.
2. Willing co-operation by all.
3. Appropriateness of service and gifts.
4. Animated by a true spirit of enthusiasm and joy.
“Let us do our work as well,
Both the unseen and the seen;
Make the house where gods may dwell,
Beautiful, entire, and clean”
[Longfellow].
HOMILETICS
THE LAST THANKSGIVING.—1Ch_29:10-20
Every sentence weighed and measured for the occasion. The scene grand and impressive. “David’s Psalms, towards the latter end of the book, are most of them Psalms of praise. The nearer we come to the world of everlasting praise the more we should speak the language and do the work of that world.”
I. The infinite perfections of God. Adores God and ascribes glory to him.
1. God in his unspeakable grandeur. “Thine, O Lord, is the greatness.” “Thou art great, and greatly to be feared;” the power, “in thine hand is power and might” (1Ch_29:12); the victory, “the victory (strength) of Israel” (1Sa_15:29); the majesty, “honour and majesty are before him (his inseparable attendants)” (Psa_96:6).
2. God in his universal dominion. “Thine is the kingdom, O Lord.” Exalted over all, ruling without rival.
3. God in his absolute ownership. “All that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine.” Proprietor, not Trustee, of all the universe. A title underived and not shared by another. His inheritance infinite and secure. He had no predecessor, will have no successor, and nothing will ever pass from him.
4. God in his covenant relation. “Lord God of Israel, our Father.” The expression more full in 1Ch_29:18. He was the tutelary God and fountain of blessing to the patriarchs, with whom he made special covenants.
5. God in his goodness to men (1Ch_29:12). “Riches and honour” come from him. He gives strength and makes great. The princes merited nothing by their generosity. All through the influence of his grace; therefore, no ground for boasting. “Let no flesh glory in his presence; for of him, and through him, and to him, are all things; to whom be glory for ever. Amen.”
II. The peculiar relations of man to the infinite God. The Psal—not only filled with devout reverence to God, in language of beauty and final piety; but a description of man as unworthy, dependent, and short-lived.
1. Man is a dependent creature. The more we think of God’s greatness, the more we feel this, “Who am I?”—(a) Dependent for substance to give. “Of thine own have we given thee.” (b) Dependent for the disposition to give it. He works in us to will and to do, &c. (c) Therefore, indebted to God for all things. Thanks due to him for heart and mind, substance and success.
2. Man is a short-lived creature. The earth abides, its inhabitants die. Life a pilgrimage; we are strangers and sojourners, not at rest, not at home. Life a shadow, transient, dark, and vain; ending in perfect darkness or perfect light. Life uncertain: “there is none abiding.” We can neither expect to stay long, nor work much while we do stay on earth. If, then, uncertain, what are the services of a poor short life? God favours us by their acceptance.
3. Man’s conduct is observed by God. “Thou triest the heart.” Seest the motives, as well as the gifts for thy cause. Takest pleasure in uprightness of heart. An act, a life may be misinterpreted or despised, but the good man is conscious of integrity (“I know”) and may appeal to God, who is acquainted with all our way. We can neither rejoice nor work without a sense of spiritual rectitude. “If our heart condemn us, God is greater than our hearts, and knoweth all things.”
GOD’S PROPRIETORSHIP AND MAN’S OBLIGATION TO HIM.—1Ch_29:13-16
I. God owns all things.
1. Absolutely. “Thine.”
2. Universally. “All that is in the heavens, &c.” (1Ch_29:11).
3. Perpetually. He will eternally keep his own.
II. Man’s Obligation to God.
1. To render thanks to God. Every gift from thee, therefore thank the Giver. “What shall we render to the Lord for all his benefits?”
2. To use rightly the gifts of God. Health, time, and money not to be abused—should be used carefully. Stewards should be found faithful. “Will a man rob God?” All essentially God’s, and should be willingly given to him.
“Lord, what my talents are I cannot tell,
Till thou shalt give me grace to use them well:
That grace impart; the bliss will then be mine,
But all the power and all the glory thine.”
THE SOJOURNERS AND THE SHADOW; OR, DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF LIFE.—1Ch_29:15
Those epithets do not apply to all men indiscriminately. Human life has varied aspects according to moral condition and future expectation.
I. All men are sojourners on earth. David uses language of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who lived as men without permanent home. All sojourners or pilgrims on earth, because all passing through it to a future beyond it. Stern law compels advance. We live and we must die. Not naturalised, no rights of inheritance, foreigners here; we should seek home, rest, and bliss in heaven.
II. All men sojourn in shadows on earth. “Our days on earth areas a shadow.”
1. Life itself is a shadow. In swiftness and uncertainty; darkness and perplexing changes. “Shadows in career,” says Geo. Herbert. We flee as a shadow and continue not (Job_14:2).
2. Men walk in shadows. “Every man walketh in a vain show (an image)” (Psa_39:6). “All shadows and pursuing shadows,” says Burke. Deluded by sense, refusing to see the only lasting substance; men live in lies, dream of false pleasure, and find everything fleeting and unsubstantial. After all discussions concerning the supreme good, some pointing to pleasure, some to virtue, and others to apathy, who can give a definite and decisive answer? Life without God is vain, and not worth living. “Who knoweth what is good for man in this life, all the days of his vain life which he spendeth as a shadow” (Heb. “the number of the days of the life of his vanity”) (Ecc_6:12).
III. Only some men are strangers on earth. Christians are strangers. They feel, dress, and act as such. “Confess that they are strangers and pilgrims on the earth.” But a large class of men to whom the world is perfectly congenial; who feel nothing strange, nothing unnatural. They are in their element; find their place and satisfaction in its pursuits and enjoyments. They desire no better country, but seem to fix their hearts and homes in this, through which they rapidly pass. What a foolish exchange; shadows for substance; trifles or eternity!
“All on earth is shadow,
All beyond is substance. How solid all
Where change is known no more!” [Young].
THE LAST PRAYER.—1Ch_29:18-19
After solemn recognition of God’s sovereign and universal proprietorship, an unqualified disclaimer of all merit, we have earnest and appropriate prayer for people and prince.
I. Prayer for the people. Praise should ever end in prayer for ourselves and others.
1. That they may be kept in the right mind. “Keep this for ever,” &c. This disposition of joyful, willing consecration of heart and gifts to thee. Let it not be transient and forgotten.
2. That the perpetuity of this right mind may be properly based. Promises are broken; appearances change and hopeful beginnings may fall through. The heart, the deepest source, must be fixed, framed, and established. “Prepare their heart unto thee.”
II. Prayer for Solomon. Blessings fit and most needful.
1. That he may obey God. “Give to Solomon, my son,” first of all sincerity, a perfect heart. Then help him “to keep thy commandments,” binding on conscience; “thy testimonies,” evidences of God’s character; “and thy statutes,” enactments for instruction of the people.
2. That he may build the temple of God. “And to build the palace.” Mark the order—right in heart first, then engagement in work. True to God, faithful in service. This prayer required now. We build temples, fortunes, and families—make “provision” for grand enterprises, but forget that materials, strength, and stability come from God. “Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it.”
HOMILETIC HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS
1Ch_29:10-20. David’s thanksgiving.
1. Its adoration of God.
2. Its acknowledgment of dependence upon him.
3. Its recognition of the influence of his grace.
4. Its solemn appeal to conscious integrity.
5. Its earnest prayer for king and people.
1Ch_29:12-14. The right value and right use of divine gifts.
1. We only give what has been given to us.
2. We only give what we must leave.
3. We have but a short time to give at all.
1Ch_29:14. Of thine own have we given thee.
1. Apply to temporal things. Money, time, &c.
2. Apply to spiritual things. Repentance, faith, and works, bestowed by God and due to him. “When ye have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants; we have done that which was our duty to do.”
1Ch_29:15. Apply to the Christian. Be vigilant in duty while here. Improve the world as much as possible while in it. Seek to persuade others to go with you to “a better country, even a heavenly one.” Our days on earth, &c.
1. The brevity of life. “Thou hast made my days as a hand-breadth.”
2. The vanity of life. “Every man at his best state is altogether vanity.”
3. The emptiness of life. “Every man walketh in a vain show.”
4. The end of life. “Make me to know mine end.” “Days are one of the shortest measures of time; but long enough to decipher man’s life by” [Trapp].
1Ch_29:19. To keep thy commandments, Not for wealth, power, nor learning. “Learn here,” says Trapp, “what to pray for in the behalf of our children. A child of many such prayers cannot easily miscarry.”
HOMILETICS
SOLOMON’S ELEVATION TO THE THRONE.—1Ch_29:20-25
The second time. The first done hastily, on account of Adonijah’s conspiracy (cf. 1Ki_1:35-39). This anointment deliberate, most solemn, and by a representative assembly.
I. The Divine choice of Solomon to the throne. “S. sat on the throne of the Lord.” Not David’s throne, nor Israel’s to give away. The Lords in a special sense. Hence the government called a Theocracy, God’s government, by Josephus. All thrones belong to him. He sets up, deposes, and determines the destiny of rulers. “By me kings rule and decree justice. By me princes rule, and nobles, even all the judges of the earth.”
II. The loyal obedience to Solomon on the throne. This most joyful and universal.
1. The people submitted. Represented by “all the princes and the mighty men,” they put the hand under Solomon’s thigh and bound themselves by oath to allegiance. “All Israel obeyed him.”
2. The royal family submitted. “All the sons likewise of King David.” Some of them were elder and of nobler birth or of nobler mothers. But now convinced by the national act and God’s choice that Solomon was to be king. Adonijah failed and died. God’s will done notwithstanding man’s claims and ambitious designs.
III. The prosperity of Solomon on the throne. “The Lord magnified Solomon exceedingly.” Notice—
1. The source of prosperity. Ascribed to the source of all greatness. A majesty “bestowed,” not humanly created.
2. The peace which attended the prosperity. No rival to disquiet, no foreign power to oppose. “All Israel obeyed him.”
3. A prosperity unequalled. “Such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel.” A fit type of Christ. “He was a king blessed of the King of kings” [Shakes.]. “I was great and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem.”
DAVID’S LATTER END.—1Ch_29:26-30
The writer now finishes a picture which presents the great king in meridian splendour. The brilliant life is closing and the evening is calm and peaceable.
I. The length of David’s reign. “The time that he reigned over Israel was forty years.” This divided into two eventful periods. About “seven years in Hebron” (2Sa_5:5), and “three and thirty in Jerusalem.” A reign of glory, yet falling short of the divine ideal; signalised by services which contributed to the exaltation of the kingdom and the glory of God; but darkened by crimes and calamities, and which gradually prepared for the reign of his successor.
II. The end of David’s life. “He died.” Then the mightiest men are mortal; the most useful withdrawn from ministry; and the world can get on without its greatest and best men. “The thing is not to leave a name behind us—a mere name. It is to leave behind influences that hearts will feel, memories that will be cherished at home, and that will be blessed by those whom we have served and helped in life” [Dr. Parker]. He died.
1. Rich in circumstances. “Full of riches and honour.” Enough of this world’s wealth by which he adorned the capital and prepared for the building of God.
2. In a good old age. Not so old as many predecessors, not exceeding seventy years. But his life not cut short, lasted the appointed term and filled with opportunities and work. In expressive Hebrew, “full of days.” Many days empty and many lives like a blank! Nothing done, everything lost!
3. Satisfied in mind. “Full (i.e., satisfied) of days” (cf. Gen_25:8; Job_42:17). Satisfied with days given both in number and character; filled with gratitude and submission.
4. Ready to depart. He had “served his generation by the will of God,” now ready to fall asleep. Having seen God’s salvation, he was wishful to depart in peace. A tranquil sunset!
III. The records of David’s kingdom. Not given in full. “The times” indicate—
1. His private life. “Times that went over him,” of joy and sorrow, of conflict and rest, &c. (cf. Job_24:1; Psa_31:16).
2. His civil career. “And over Israel.” National changes in political and ecclesiastical affairs.
3. His military enterprises. “Over all the kingdoms of the countries,” hostile or friendly. A sovereign who raised his country to power and dominion, beloved in life and honoured in death. His “royal majesty,” was not in the splendour of his palace and retinue; but in the unity and moral worth of his people, the excellency of his life and the legacy of his reign.
HOMILETIC HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS
1Ch_29:20. Bless the Lord. David was excellent at this—viz., stirring up others to join with him in praising God (see Psa_34:3; Psa_103:20) [Trapp]. Worship, its true nature: “Bless the Lord.” Its solemn expression: “Bowed down their heads.” Its sublime object: “Worshipped the Lord.” Its connection with civil reverence: “Worshipped the Lord and the king.”
1Ch_29:23. Solomon sat on the throne. The fulfilment of promise, the display of power and providence, and the type of the Lord Jesus. David died and Solomon reigned in his stead. Compare them—
1. As kings of Israel.
2. As servants of God.
3. As authors of inspired songs and literature.
1Ch_29:29-30. These words indicate—
1. The fragmentary record. The books mentioned are lost, except a few particulars in the books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles. They were sources used by the author.
2. The order in which events are given. In accordance with his design the writer signalises the religious aspect of the nation, has omitted many events from David’s history, and enlarged in details of arrangements of worship and preparations for the building of the temple. He writes partly as an excerpter and partly a supplementer.
1Ch_29:29. Three eminent men, personally acquainted with David through the principal part of his life—Samuel, Nathan, and Gad. “The three (Heb.) words, Roch, Nabi, and Chozeh, are here brought together and apparently contrasted” (cf. 1Sa_9:9) [Dr. Jamieson].
Life’s changing current.
1. Times make a deep mark upon the body, the least important portion of our complex nature.
2. Equally marked is the effect of “the times” as they pass over us upon our intellectual nature.
3. Not less striking or important is the stamp of time upon the history of our sensibilities.
4. The most important change is the one that refers to our moral and spiritual state.
5. Our social and relative condition is subject to the constant variations of time [Dr. S. T. Spear].
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 29
1Ch_29:6. Offered willingly. Rich men’s presents are gold and silver, or other costly things. Mine must be recommended by the affectionate pleasure with which I give them [The Ven. Bede when dying]. It is the comfort of poverty that our affections are valued, not our presents [Bp. Hall].
1Ch_29:14. Who am I? What I have done is worthy of nothing but silence and forgetfulness; but what God hath done for me is worthy of everlasting and thankful memory [Ibid.].
1Ch_29:15. Shadow. In this I see that we, all we that live, are but vain shadows, unsubstantial dreams [Sophocles].
1Ch_29:19. Give unto Solomon. No good man is jealous of his son, but desires to see his children more famous than himself [Theodoret].
1Ch_29:20-22. Worshipped. Devotion, when it does not lie under the check of reason, is apt to degenerate into enthusiasm [Addison]. All is holy where devotion kneels [Holmes].
1Ch_29:26-28. Died. The death-bed of saints often resembles the setting sun, whose rays are the brightest when it is nearest the horizon. “The tongues of dying men enforce attention like deep harmony” [Shakes.].
1Ch_29:30. Times. Amongst rational beings that life is longest, whether brief or protracted its outward turn, into which the largest amount of mind, of mental and moral activity, is condensed. It is possible for the longest life to be really briefer than the shortest, and the child or youth may die older, with more of life crowded into his brief existence, than he whose dull and stagnant being drags on to an inglorious old age [Caird].
“We must need weep the chance and change of life,
And mortal sorrows touch a mortal’s heart” [Virg. Æn. i: 462].
HOMILETIC COMMENTARY
ON THE
SECOND BOOK OF CHRONICLES
INTRODUCTION
SEE the general introduction of the first book for analysis and date. “The most remarkable feature in the historical books of Scripture, and especially of Kings and Chronicles, is their religious, theocratic character. Secular history gives the public changes which nations have undergone, with their causes and results. Church history traces the progress of sentiment, and of various influences in relation to the Church. But here, king, church, state are all represented as under God. The character of each king is decided by his fidelity to the religious obligations of his office. Of each it is said, ‘He walked in the ways of David his father,’ and so prospered, or of Jeroboam, who ‘made Israel to sin,’ and so failed. These books are valuable as the history of God and His law in the nation, and that nation a monarchy; as the Books of Joshua and Judges are the history of God and His law in an aristocracy or democracy, or as the earlier books are the history of God and His law in the family. In the Prophets and in the Acts of the Apostles we have glimpses of what is to be the history of God and His law in the world. Mark, therefore, the prominence given to the erection of the temple; the numerous references to the ancient law, especially when the two kingdoms were drawing near to their end, as if to account for their decay and approaching fall; the frequent interposition of prophets, now rebuking the people and now braving the sovereign; the deposition and succession of kings; and the connection everywhere traced between what seem to be mere political incidents and the fidelity or idolatry of the age. Were nations wise, these records would prove their best instructors. They are adapted to teach alike the world and the Church. The genealogical tables, though to us comparatively uninteresting, were highly important among the Jews, who were made by prophetic promises extremely observant in these particulars. These tables give the sacred line through which the promise was transmitted for nearly 3,500 years, a fact itself unexampled in the history of the human race” [Angus]. “This history of the Jewish monarchy, as it is more authentic, so it is more interesting and instructive than the histories of other monarchies. We had the story of the house of David before, in the first and second books of Kings, intermixed with that of the kings of Israel, which there took more room than that of Judah; but here we have it entire. Much is repeated here which we had before, yet many of the passages of the story are enlarged upon, and divers added which we had not before, especially relating to the affairs of religion; for it is a church history, and it is written for our learning, to let nations and families know that then, and then only, they can expect to prosper, when they keep in the way of their duty to God; for all along the good kings prospered and the wicked kings suffered. The truth of the word of God appears, ‘Those that honour me I will honour, but those that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.’ ”
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain On v1 1Ch 29:1
1Ch 29:1
There is a sense in which we might without irreverence almost invert these words, and yet gain rather than lose their true significance. "The palace is not for God," we might even say, as a literal resting-place. It is for man as the worshipper, as the servant, as the conscious and devout adorer, of Him Who created him after His own image; for man as a place for a worship which may reclaim, and purify, and uplift his fallen nature, which may bring him into communion with his Father and his God.
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I. We also may echo the words which the chronicler places in the mouth of David, and say that the work he planned was great—great in itself, greater in results achieved, outliving its own ruin and the destruction of its successor. Yet, like all human works, it contained elements of imperfection, germs of decay. The very existence of the Temple was made the plea for establishing rival sanctuaries, dedicated to another worship than that of Jehovah.
II. The second and the newer Temple found no rival, stood supreme in the nation’s heart. But a sevenfold darker spirit entered into the empty house of the Jewish Church. The material altar received their superstitious reverence. He who sanctified the altar was forgotten. In the name of, and as defenders of, that Temple, the Temple’s guardians condemned to death One greater than the Temple—-One who taught His people to look forward to a worship that should be confined to no temple’s walls, whose disciple breathed his Master’s spirit when he saw in vision a city of Jerusalem of which he could say, "I saw no temple therein; for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it."
G. G. Bradley, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xx., p. 289.
References: 1Ch 29:5.—Christian World Pulpit, vol. ix., p. 11, and vol. xx., p. 350; T. Kelly, Pulpit Trees, p. 306; F. E. Paget, Helps and Hindrances to the Christian Life, vol. ii., p. 254. 1Ch 29:9-29.—Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. iv., p. 349. 1Ch 29:10-13.—C. Wordsworth, Occasional Sermons, 3rd series, p. 17.
1Ch 29:11-12
The conclusion of the Lord’s Prayer is not to be considered altogether as an act of thanksgiving or an expression of God’s praise and glory; it is rather intended to imply on our part the reasons for our assurance that God will grant our petitions. It is attributing to God the power to aid us, and our grounds for confidence that He will do so.
I. To be allowed to give praise and glory to God is indeed a great privilege and blessing, and most becoming in us when God answers our prayers, but a full persuasion of His power is most essentially necessary in us, in order that our prayers may be answered. It may be observed throughout the Gospels how much our Lord required this faith and assurance of His power before He wrought any miracle—of His power especially, more than even a sense of His mercy and goodness. Where there was no belief in His power He worked no miracles.
II. In these words it is not a kingdom, power, and glory which we ascribe unto God, but the kingdom, the power, and the glory. There is very much in this. The kingdom means the one and only kingdom, or such a kingdom as that there is no other of the kind, or to be compared with it. The kingdoms of this world are but weak and poor shadows of the true kingdom; they are but as reflections of the sun in impure pools of water compared to the real sun itself in strength and brightness.
III. Although we are ready in words to assent to this—that the kingdom is God’s, and the power, and the glory—yet we are very slow to believe it as it must be received. We are inclined to think that it is something which is to be hereafter rather than that it is the case even now, that there is no kingdom and power but in the Cross of Christ, that sceptre of His kingdom by which He reigns in the hearts of His faithful subjects. To behold even now the glory of Christ in His humiliation and to be by beholding it conformed unto the same image—this is the best gift of the Spirit, for which we have always need to pray.
I. Williams, Plain Sermons on the Catechism, p. 122.
1Ch 29:14
I. The nature of the gift. It was a gift distinctly for the public good, a gift which brought back no profit to the giver save as he shared in the public good.
II. The source of David’s and the people’s joy. (1) Giving under the constraint of love is the most joyful exercise of the human powers. (2) The joy man takes in the accomplishment of a noble public object is the purest and loftiest of all human joys. (3) I suppose a vision passed before David’s sight of what that work would be to man, and would do for man, through ages. (4) Concord in good works realises perhaps more than anything in our experience the angelic benediction "Peace on earth and goodwill to men."
III. The reason of the praise. (1) It is God’s inspiration. (2) Praise and bless the Lord, who inspires this spirit, for it commands an abounding blessing.
J. Baldwin Brown, The Sunday Afternoon, p. 362.
1Ch 29:14
These words plainly express a truth which rises high above the occasion to which they immediately refer. All the blessings of this life, they tell us, are God’s gifts; and here is a motive for generous gifts, namely, that, give God what we may, it is already His own. "All things come of Thee."
I. This is true, first of all, of that which was in David’s mind—of material possessions, of property. Property is both originally, and as long as we hold it, the gift of God.
II. So it is with the powers of the mind. God gives them, and we hold them, so long as He pleases, and no longer. There are days when we feel that the higher and more original powers of the mind are just as little within our control as the weather, and the sense of this may well suggest from whom indeed we hold them, and how precariously.
III. "All things come of Thee." Need it be said that this especially applies to those powers by which our souls are raised to a higher level than unassisted nature knows of, and are enabled to hold communion with the Being who made us? Grace, which proceeds, as the word implies, from God’s bounty, is itself much more than mere favour, such as results in no form of active assistance. Grace is an operative, impelling, controlling force; it is a Divine presence in the regenerate man.
IV. "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights." This great truth should express itself in the spirit of sacrifice, resting on the conviction that whatever we give to God is already His. And the spirit of sacrifice is engaged constantly in twofold activity: it is either consenting with humble resignation, if not with glad acquiescence, to that which God exacts, or it is making some effort of its own to acknowledge the debt of which it is never unconscious.
H. P. Liddon, Penny Pulpit, No. 1101.
Reference: 1Ch 29:14.—Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. ix., p. 91.
1Ch 29:15
The shadow is a fit emblem of human life. From the hour it falls on the dial it moves round the little circle until the sun sinks, when in a moment it is gone. A few hours past, and its work is done. The shadow thrown by the brightest sunshine must vanish when the night comes. Thus it is with life.
I. God does not speak to us through nature without a purpose. We are not to ponder in our hearts on the analogy between human life and nature in its various phases for the pleasure of indulging in sentimental feelings. When Moses mused on the shortness of life, his prayer was, "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom." Life is short, so we must seek for wisdom to make the most of it. No more is required than that every man should do his best with the hours entrusted to his care.
II. The thought of life’s shortness should lead us to value time more highly. Our short life on earth should be a life of work, for we shall have all eternity to rest in. Learn to value time, first, because you have the work your "hand finds" to accomplish, and, secondly, because you have to "work out your own salvation." The great lesson which the frailty and shortness of life should teach us is the importance of preparing for the eternity beyond.
W. S. Randall, "Literary Churchman" Sermons, 1883, p. 174.
References: 1Ch 29:15.—J. Keble, Sermons for the Christian Year: Christmas and Epiphany, p. 202; W. M. Taylor, Old Testament Outlines, p. 88.
1Ch 29:18
I. David knew the transcendent importance to a human society of having always before them—in good times and in bad, in darkness and in light, in trouble and in joy—some memorial, imperishable and beautiful, of their fathers and of their God. This he held the Temple would be. But he was far too wise a man to think that the noblest monument was power of itself. He does not pray that the Temple may keep God in people’s hearts, but knowing well the uses of the Temple, he prays that God will keep it and the building of it in their hearts, and he proceeds, "and prepare their heart unto Thee."
II. The Temple can do nothing by itself. But God can make His people with the Temple to be far greater and nobler than ever they could be without it, and that is why God uses temples and all such things for lifting man from the dust to the heavens. It is not God’s way to effect anything for souls or for societies by external means, not even of a Divine nature. It is not God’s way to put down some glorious work, powerful in operation, upon the ground for men to gather round it, and be affected by it, and go away and be different men. The men must bring something there too. They must communicate something to each other. In all things, great and small, living men must live with and for men, in the assurance that life is the aim of God, not merely order.
Archbishop Benson, Boy Life: Sundays in Wellington College, p. 148.
References: 1Ch 29:20.—S. Minton, Church Sermons, vol. i., p. 119. 1Ch 29:21.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. vi., p. 40. 1Ch 29:28.—J. Edmunds, Fifteen Sermons, p. 151. 1Ch 29:29, 1Ch 29:30.—Christian World Pulpit, yo\. win., p. 193. 32—E. H. Plumptre, Expositor, 2nd series, vol. ii., p. 437.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Alexander MacLaren 1905 · Public Domain On v30 1 Chronicles
1 Chronicles
THE WAVES OF TIME
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1Ch 29:30.
This is a fragment from the chronicler’s close of his life of King David. He is referring in it to other written authorities in which there are fuller particulars concerning his hero; and he says, ‘the acts of David the King, first and last, behold they are written in the book of Samuel the seer . . . with all his reign and his might, and the times that went over him, and over all Israel, and over all the kingdoms of the countries.’
Now I have ventured to isolate these words, because they seem to me to suggest some very solemn and stimulating thoughts about the true nature of life. They refer, originally, to the strange vicissitudes and extremes of fortune and condition which characterised, so dramatically and remarkably, the life of King David. Shepherd-boy, soldier, court favourite, outlaw, freebooter and all but brigand; rebel, king, fugitive, saint, sinner, psalmist, penitent-he lived a life full of strongly marked alternations, and ‘the times that went over him’ were singularly separate and different from each other. There are very few of us who have such chequered lives as his. But the principle which dictated the selection by the chronicler of this somewhat strange phrase is true about the life of every man.
I. Note, first, ‘the times’ which make up each life.
Now, by the phrase here the writer does not merely mean the succession of moments, but he wishes to emphasise the view that these are epochs, sections of ‘time,’ each with its definite characteristics and its special opportunities, unlike the rest that lie on either side of it. The great broad field of time is portioned out, like the strips of peasant allotments, which show a little bit here, with one kind of crop upon it, bordered by another little morsel of ground bearing another kind of crop. So the whole is patchy, and yet all harmonises in effect if we look at it from high enough up. Thus each life is made up of a series, not merely of successive moments, but of well-marked epochs, each of which has its own character, its own responsibilities, its own opportunities, in each of which there is some special work to be done, some grace to be cultivated, some lesson to be learned, some sacrifice to be made; and if it is let slip it never comes back any more. ‘It might have been once, and we missed it, and lost it for ever.’ The times pass over us, and every single portion has its own errand to us. Unless we are wide awake we let it slip, and are the poorer to all eternity for not having had in our heads the eyes of the wise man which ‘discern both time and judgment.’ It is the same thought which is suggested by the well-known words of the cynical book of Ecclesiastes-’To every thing there is a season and a time’-an opportunity, and a definite period-’for every purpose that is under the sun.’ It is the same thought which is suggested by Paul’s words, ‘As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good to all men. In due season we shall reap if we faint not.’ There is ‘a time for weeping and a time for laughing, a time for building up and a time for casting down.’ It is the same thought of life, and its successive epochs of opportunity never returning, which finds expression in the threadbare lines about ‘a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune,’ and neglected, condemns the rest of a career to be hemmed in among creeks and shallows.
Through all the variety of human occupations, each moment comes to us with its own special mission, and yet, alas! to far too many of us the alternations do not suggest the question, what is it that I am hereby called upon to be or to do? what is the lesson that present circumstances are meant to teach, and the grace that my present condition is meant to force me to cultivate or exhibit? There is one point, as it were, upon the road where we may catch a view far away into the distance, and, if we are not on the lookout when we come there, we shall never get that glimpse at any other point along the path. The old alchemists used to believe that there was what they called the ‘moment of projection,’ when, into the heaving molten mass in their crucible, if they dropped the magic powder, the whole would turn into gold; an instant later and there would be explosion and death; an instant earlier and there would be no effect. And so God’s moments come to us; every one of them-if we had eyes to see and hands to grasp-a crisis, affording opportunity for something for which all eternity will not afford a second opportunity, if the moment be let pass. ‘The times went over him,’ and your life and mine is parcelled out into seasons which have their special vocation for and message to us.
How solemn that makes our life! How it destroys the monotony that we sometimes complain of! How it heightens the low things and magnifies the apparently small ones! And how it calls upon us for a sharpened attention, that we miss not any of the blessings and gifts which God is meaning to bestow upon us through the ministry of each moment! How it calls upon us for not only sharpened attention, but for a desire to know the meaning of each of the hours and of every one of His providences! And how it bids us, as the only condition of understanding the times, so as to know what we ought to do, to keep our hearts in close union with Him, and ourselves ever standing, as becomes servants, girded and ready for work; and with the question on our lips and in our hearts, ‘Lord, what wouldst Thou have me to do? and what wouldst Thou have me to do now?’ The lesson of the day has to be learned in a day, and at the moment when it is put in practice.
II. Another thought suggested by this text is, the Power that moves the times.
As far as my text represents-and it is not intended to go to the bottom of everything-these times flow on over a man, as a river might. But is there any power that moves the stream? Unthinking and sense-bound men-and we are all such, in the measure in which we are unspiritual-are contented simply to accept the mechanical flow of the stream of time. We are all tempted not to look behind the moving screen to see the force that turns the wheel on which the painted scene Is stretched. But, Oh! how dreary a thing it is if all that we have to say about life is, ‘The times pass over us,’ like the blind rush of a stream, or the movement of the sea around our coasts, eating away here and depositing its spoils there, sometimes taking and sometimes giving, but all the work of mere eyeless and purposeless chance or of natural causes.
Oh, brethren! there is nothing more dismal or paralysing than the contemplation of the flow of the times over our heads, unless we see in their flow something far more than that.
It is very beautiful to notice that this same phrase, or at least the essential part of it, is employed in one of the Psalms ascribed to David, with a very significant addition. He says, ‘My times are in Thy hand.’ So, then, the passage of our epochs over us is not merely the aimless flow of a stream, but the movement of a current which God directs. Therefore, if at any time it goes over our heads and seems to overwhelm us, we can look up through the transparent water and say, ‘Thy waves and Thy billows have gone over me,’ and so I die not of suffocation beneath them. God orders the times, and therefore, though, as the bitter ingenuity of Ecclesiastes, on the lookout for proofs of the vanity of life, complained, in a one-sided view, as an aggravation of man’s lot, that there is a time for everything, yet that aspect of change is not its deepest or truest. True it is that sometimes birth and sometimes death, sometimes joy and sometimes sorrow, sometimes building up and sometimes casting down, follow each other with monotonous uniformity of variety, and seem to reduce life to a perpetual heaping up of what is as painfully to be cast down the next moment, like the pitiless sport of the wind amongst the sandhills of the desert. But the futility is only apparent, and the changes are not meant to occasion ‘man’s misery’ to be ‘great upon him,’ as Ecclesiastes says they do. The diversity of the ‘times’ comes from a unity of purpose; and all the various methods of the divine Providence exercised upon us have one unchanging intention. The meaning of all the ‘times’ is that they should bring us nearer to God, and fill us more full of His power and grace. The web is one, however various may be the pattern wrought upon the tapestry. The resulting motion of the great machine is one, though there may be a wheel turning from left to right here, and another one that fits into it, turning from right to left there. The end of all the opposite motions is straight progress. So the varying times do all tend to the one great issue. Therefore let us seek to pursue, in all varying circumstances, the one purpose which God has in them all, which the Apostle states to be ‘even your sanctification,’ and let us understand how summer and winter, springtime and harvest, tempest and fair weather, do all together make up the year, and ensure the springing of the seed and the fruitfulness of the stalk.
III. Lastly, let me remind you, too, how eloquently the words of my text suggest the transiency of all the ‘times.’
They ‘passed over him’ as the wind through an archway, that whistles and comes not again. The old, old thought, so threadbare and yet always so solemnising and pathetic, which we know so well that we forget it, and are so sure of that it has little effect on life, the old, old thought, ‘this too will pass away,’ underlies the phrase of my text, How blessed it is, brethren! to cherish that wholesome sense of the transiency of things here below, only those who live under its habitual power can fairly estimate. It is thought to be melancholy. We are told that it spoils joys and kills interest, and I know not what beside. It spoils no joys that ought to be joys. It kills no interests that are not on other grounds unworthy to be cherished. Contrariwise, the more fully we are penetrated with the persistent conviction of the transiency of the things seen and temporal, the greater they become, by a strange paradox. For then only are they seen in their true magnitude and nobility, in their true solemnity and importance as having a bearing on the things that are eternal. Time is the ‘ceaseless lackey of eternity,’ and the things that pass over us may become, like the waves of the sea, the means of bearing us to the unmoving shore. Oh! if only in the midst of joys and sorrows, of heavy tasks and corroding cares, of weary work and wounded spirits, we could feel, ‘but for a moment,’ all would be different, and joy would come, and strength would come, and patience would come, and every grace would come, in the train of the wholesome conviction that ‘here we have no continuing city.’
Cherish the thought. It will spoil nothing the spoiling of which will be a loss. It will heighten everything the possession of which is a gain. It will teach us to trust in the darkness, and to believe in the light. And when the times are dreariest, and frost binds the ground, we shall say, ‘If winter comes, can spring be far behind?’ The times roll over us, like the seas that break upon some isolated rock, and when the tide has fallen and the vain flood has subsided, the rock is there. If the world helps us to God, we need not mind though it passes, and the fashion thereof.
But do not let us forget that this text in its connection may teach us another thought. The transitory ‘times that went over’ Israel’s king are all recorded imperishably on the pages here, and so, though condensed into narrow space, the record of the fleeting moments lives for ever, and ‘the books shall be opened, and men shall be judged according to their works.’ We are writing an imperishable record by our fleeting deeds. Half a dozen pages carry all the story of that stormy life of Israel’s king. It takes a thousand rose-trees to make a vial full of essence of roses. The record and issues of life will be condensed into small compass, but the essence of it is eternal. We shall find it again, and have to drink as we have brewed when we get yonder. ‘Be not deceived, God is not mocked, for whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap.’ ‘There is a time to sow,’ and that is the present life; ‘and there is a time to gather the fruits’ of our sowing, and that is the time when times have ended and eternity is here.
Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain On v1 David's Offerings, Thanksgiving, and Death
David's Offerings, Thanksgiving, and Death
1. The palace] The word in the original is more strictly applicable to the fortress which was attached to the Second Temple (Neh_2:8) and afterwards called the tower of Antonia, but here and in 1Ch_29:19 is employed of Solomon's Temple.
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3. Of mine own proper good] RV 'a treasure of mine own.'
4. Three thousand, etc.] The weights here named, as in many other places in Chronicles, are incredibly large, amounting in value to £21,320,000 of our money.
7. Drams] The dram (Gk. drachma) was ½ shekel; and the value (according to the early Hebrew weights) of all the gold mentioned in this v. would be about £30,760,000, and of the silver about £4,100,000.
10. And David said] David in his prayer recognised that it was not in his, or any man's, power to add to God's glory. The building of the Temple could only manifest his and his people's devotion and gratitude for the goodness which had bestowed such wealth upon them.
15. None abiding] better, 'no hope of abiding.'
20. Worshipped the.. king] cp. Psa_45:11. The same kind of prostrations were made both in divine worship and in paying respect to the sovereign.
22. The second time] The 'first time' is only described at length in 1Ki_1:39, though the writer of Chronicles alludes to it in 1Ch_23:1.
Zadok. to be priest] This seems to anticipate the promotion which Zadok received when Solomon, after David's death, deposed Abiathar: 1Ki_2:27.
30. The times that went over him] i.e. the fortunes that befell him.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On vv10, 29 Note the order:
blessed
Note the order:
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1Ch 29:3-8, giving, 1Ch 29:9, joy, 1Ch 29:10, blessing, 1Ch 29:11-19, prayer, 1Ch 29:20, worship:
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain On v1 CHAPTER 29 The Final Words and Actions of David…
CHAPTER 29 The Final Words and Actions of David and His Death
1. The exhortation (1Ch 29:1-5)
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2. The response (1Ch 29:6-9)
3. David’s praise and prayer (1Ch 29:10-20)
4. The sacrifices and enthronement of Solomon (1Ch 29:21-25)
5. The reign of David and his death (1Ch 29:26-30)
Then David spoke once more to the assembled princes and captains. What tenderness and concern as well as devotion his words reveal! “Solomon my son, whom alone God hath chosen, is yet young, and tender, and the work is great, for the palace is not for man, but for the LORD God.” Once more the aged king speaks of the vast preparations he had made for the house of God. He would also contribute largely from his own treasures. The gold and silver, precious and glistening stones amounted in value to many million dollars. The gold of Ophir mentioned was the purest and finest known in that day (Job 22:24; Job 28:16; Isa 13:12). And all he had done was “because I have set my affection to the house of my God.” He loved it so much and therefore he gave and consecrated such vast treasures. And here we may remember Him who was richer than David, who gave more than David ever could give. “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor that ye through His poverty might be rich” (2Co 8:9). After he had told of his own devotion he said, “And who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto the LORD?” The Hebrew is “to fill his hand today to Jehovah.” It means that whosoever gave willingly, as he himself had done, would fill his hand with a free will offering unto the Lord. Christian giving should always be looked upon in this light. It is giving unto the Lord. And David’s great liberality and example brought a great response. An immense offering was given.
“Drams” is in Hebrew “daric,” a Persian gold coin weighing about 130 grains. The word is found also in Ezr 8:27. It was probably called “daric” after Darius and therefore shows that Chronicles was written after the captivity.
“Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the LORD, and David, the King, also rejoiced with great joy.” The joy of giving took hold of all. “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Act 20:35). How great must have been the joy of the king as he beheld the fruits of his own devotion in the willingness of his people! And here again we must think once more of our Lord. It is His gracious example in giving Himself for us, His people, which will lead us on to sacrifice, to give, to spend and be spent. And how great His joy if His people follow thus after Him.
It is a great inspired outburst of David which follows. How He praises! Verses 10-13 are one of the greatest outbursts of praise and worship found in the Old Testament. Then what humility! “But who am I, and what is my people that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee ... all this store that we have prepared to build thee a house for thine holy name cometh of thine hand, and is all thine own.” A most beautiful sight is an aged saint whom God hath used and honored and who is humble. Alas! how many become lifted up and walk in pride. Then David prayed for the people and for his son Solomon. “And all the congregation blessed the LORD God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads, and worshipped the LORD, and the King” (verse 20). All foreshadows that day of which we read in Psa 110:3, “Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power.” That will be when the King, the Prince of Peace, will take His glorious throne, when He begins to rule.
After the large number of sacrifices had been brought and they had eaten before the Lord on that day with great gladness, Solomon was made king the second time, even as his father David passed through the same experience. This double event has no doubt a definite typical meaning in connection with our Lord in as much as both, David and Solomon, are types of the Lord Jesus Christ. When Solomon was made king the first time he was but anointed with oil (1Ki 1:39) and acclaimed as king, but he did not occupy the kingly throne. But when he was made king the second time he sat upon the throne “and all Israel obeyed him.” “The LORD magnified Solomon exceedingly in the sight of all Israel and bestowed upon him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel.” We see therefore (though no commentaries mention it) that these two occasions are typical of the first and the second coming of our Lord. Our Lord was anointed king when He came the first time, but He received not the throne. When He comes the second time He receives the throne and God will bestow upon Him “royal majesty” and “all Israel” will obey Him.
Then follows the record of the reign and death of David. There is no clash between the account of David’s last days in the closing chapters of the second book of Samuel and the opening chapters of First Kings. The record in Chronicles is in fullest keeping with the purpose and object of this book. Blessing and grace is manifested to the end, and David’s failings are passed over.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On vv1, 10 The offering of the Princes and of the People
The offering of the Princes and of the People
v. 1. Furthermore, David the king said unto all the congregation, assembled before him in its representatives, Solomon, my son, whom alone God hath chosen, and not one of the other sons who had attempted to gain the crown for themselves, is yet young and tender, still a young and inexperienced man, for this was before the Lord had endowed him with extraordinary wisdom, and the work is great; for the palace is not for man, but for the Lord God, and therefore it must be decidedly out of the ordinary in every respect.
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v. 2. Now, I have prepared with all my might, with all the effort he could summon, for the house of my God the gold for things to be made of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and the brass for things of brass, the iron for things of iron, and wood for things of wood; onyx stones, either sardonyx or beryl, and stones to be set, glistering stones, of a very dark glancing color, such as carbuncles or rubies, and of divers colors, mottled like agates, and all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance.
v. 3. Moreover, because I have set my affection to the house of my God, because his whole heart and mind was set on the fulfillment of this desire of his life, I have of mine own proper good, of his own private fortune, of gold and silver, which I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house, in addition to the precious metals set aside from the spoils of the various wars,
v. 4. even three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, celebrated for its purity, and seven thousand talents of refined silver to over lay the walls of the houses withal, this amount being estimated at $40,000,000:
v. 5. the gold for things of gold, and the silver for things of silver and for all manner of work to be made by the hands of artificers, the craftsmen and silversmiths. And who, then, is willing to consecrate his service, literally, "to fill his hand," this day unto the Lord? The meaning is that everyone following the king in his voluntary offering would be making a free-will sacrifice to Jehovah. Each believer, a priest to the Lord, would thus worship by presenting his sacrifice in person.
v. 6. Then the chief of the fathers and princes of the tribes of Israel and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with the rulers of the king’s work, inspired by the appeal of the king, offered willingly, they executed their priestly privilege in offering liberally,
v. 7. and gave for the service of the house of God, as their contribution for its erection and equipment, of gold five thousand talents and ten thousand drams, rather, darics, the author here using the name of a Persian coin with which he had become familiar during the exile to designate a smaller amount in weight, and of silver ten thousand talents, the total amount in precious metals being over $60,000,000, and of brass eighteen thousand talents, and one hundred thousand talents of iron.
v. 8. And they with whom precious stones were found gave them, literally, "whatever was found along with it of precious stones they gave," to the treasure of the house of the Lord, by the hand of Jehiel the Gershonite, who had charge of the treasuries of the Temple, 1Ch 26:21.
v. 9. Then the people rejoiced for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart, a heart which did not secretly begrudge the gift, they offered willingly to the Lord; and David the king also rejoiced with great joy. That is invariably the experience of believers: The more they give and the more willingly they give for the kingdom of the Lord, for its spread at home and abroad, the more pleasure they themselves have of their action. A congregation in which this spirit prevails is happy above others and usually will show much more spiritual life than one in which the work of the Lord is carried on with an unwilling heart, even if the quota is reached.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 3, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 29 whom alone God has chosen
whom alone God has chosen
"the one whom God has chosen"
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gold for the things to be made of gold ... to be made of wood
This can be stated in active form. AT: "gold so the craftsmen may make the gold things, silver so they may make the silver things, bronze so they may make the bronze things, iron so they may make the iron things, and wood so they may make the wooden things" (See: Active or Passive)
onyx stones ... stones to be set ... stones for inlaid work of various colors
Each of these phrases refer to different types of stones intended for different purposes.
onyx stones
These are stones with black and white lines that are used to make jewelry.
stones to be set
This can be stated in active form. AT: "stones for the craftsmen to set" or "stones for mounting"
inlaid work
This refers to the beautiful and decorative designs or patterns formed by the stones.
translationWords
king
assembly
Solomon
bronze
precious
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 6, 7, 10, 18, 21, 26, 29, 30 29:1-9 David persuaded the assembly of Israel’s leaders (28:1)…
29:1-9 David persuaded the assembly of Israel’s leaders (28:1) to offer gifts to the Lord for the Temple. David’s own generous gift provided an example of the amounts leaders should consider. The Chronicler emphasizes that the heavy expense of building the Temple was not shouldered by Solomon alone; Solomon added to the contributions made by David and the leaders of Israel (see 22:14).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.