Read 1 Chronicles 28
David’s Plans for the Temple
28 David summoned all the officials of Israel to assemble at Jerusalem: the officers over the tribes, the commanders of the divisions in the service of the king, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, and the officials in charge of all the property and livestock belonging to the king and his sons, together with the palace officials, the warriors and all the brave fighting men.
2 King David rose to his feet and said: “Listen to me, my fellow Israelites, my people. I had it in my heart to build a house as a place of rest for the ark of the covenant of the Lord, for the footstool of our God, and I made plans to build it. 3 But God said to me, ‘You are not to build a house for my Name,because you are a warrior and have shed blood.’
4 “Yet the Lord, the God of Israel, chose me from my whole family to be king over Israel forever. He chose Judah as leader, and from the tribe of Judah he chose my family, and from my father’s sons he was pleased to make me king over all Israel. 5 Of all my sons—and the Lord has given me many—he has chosen my son Solomon to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the Lordover Israel. 6 He said to me: ‘Solomon your son is the one who will build my house and my courts, for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father. 7 I will establish his kingdom forever if he is unswerving in carrying out my commands and laws, as is being done at this time.’
8 “So now I charge you in the sight of all Israel and of the assembly of the Lord, and in the hearing of our God: Be careful to follow all the commandsof the Lord your God, that you may possess this good land and pass it on as an inheritance to your descendants forever.
9 “And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the Lordsearches every heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will rejectyou forever. 10 Consider now, for the Lord has chosen you to build a house as the sanctuary. Be strong and do the work.”
11 Then David gave his son Solomon the plans for the portico of the temple, its buildings, its storerooms, its upper parts, its inner rooms and the place of atonement. 12 He gave him the plans of all that the Spirit had put in his mind for the courts of the temple of the Lord and all the surrounding rooms, for the treasuries of the temple of God and for the treasuries for the dedicated things. 13 He gave him instructions for the divisions of the priests and Levites, and for all the work of serving in the temple of the Lord, as well as for all the articles to be used in its service. 14 He designated the weight of gold for all the gold articles to be used in various kinds of service, and the weight of silver for all the silver articles to be used in various kinds of service: 15 the weight of gold for the gold lampstands and their lamps, with the weight for each lampstand and its lamps; and the weight of silver for each silver lampstand and its lamps, according to the use of each lampstand; 16 the weight of gold for each table for consecrated bread; the weight of silver for the silver tables; 17 the weight of pure gold for the forks, sprinkling bowls and pitchers; the weight of gold for each gold dish; the weight of silver for each silver dish; 18 and the weight of the refined gold for the altar of incense. He also gave him the plan for the chariot, that is, the cherubim of gold that spread their wings and overshadow the ark of the covenant of the Lord.
19 “All this,” David said, “I have in writing as a result of the Lord’s hand on me, and he enabled me to understand all the details of the plan.”
20 David also said to Solomon his son, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work for the service of the temple of the Lord is finished. 21 The divisions of the priests and Levites are ready for all the work on the temple of God, and every willing person skilledin any craft will help you in all the work. The officials and all the people will obey your every command.”
Go Deeper
First Chronicles 28 is the beginning of the last speech that King David gives to the leaders of Israel before he dies. Knowing that their king’s days were numbered, there would have been two questions that the rulers of Israel would have had in mind: “Who will build the temple?” and “Which one of David’s many sons will become king?” David answers both of these questions in this chapter.
When seeking advice on who to date, what job to take, how to raise children, or whether or not we should buy that pair of shoes, the world will almost always tell us to do what we “feel” like doing. “Follow your heart” is the motto of the world. According to Psychology Today, when put under a time-constraint, people are much more likely to make risky decisions when we feel happy versus when we feel sad. Our emotions have a profound impact on the decisions we make.
In verse 2, David tells us that he “had it in his heart” to build the Temple as the dwelling place of God’s presence on the earth. Does David follow his heart in this task? No. Instead, he obeys what God speaks to him, and appoints his son, Solomon, to be his successor and the architect of the Temple. Conventional wisdom tells us that we can make rational decisions when we give ourselves the time to think through the pros and cons, but Christians have more than just logic to inform our decisions.
Just like David, we have the Word to God to inform us. The Bible, both explicitly and through biblical principles, instructs us on how to date, choose a vocation, raise children, and spend money. It is full of wisdom that applies to every decision we will have to make in this complex world, but that may not always be apparent. This is why it is important for believers to study the Word. The Bible is still living and active (Hebrews 4:12), but because of our vastly different context than its original audience, we may have to do some digging to understand how it applies to us. Study Bibles and online commentaries, such as Blue Letter Bible and Enduring Word, can be helpful in this pursuit. God does not leave us to make decisions by our heart alone, but in His kindness has preserved the Bible to be “a lamp in a dark world” (Psalm 119:93).
Questions
- What stuck out to you most in this chapter as you read it? Why?
- When has “following your heart” led you astray? What did you learn from that experience?
- How can you utilize God’s Word as you go about making decisions this week (both small and large)?
Featured Resources
Interested in further resources to help you study God’s Word? Check out a few of these used by the Bible Reading Plan team:
- SonicLight-The study notes of Dr. Thomas Constable, a former professor at Dallas Theological Seminary. Dr. Constable’s notes for each book of the Bible are updated annually and are available for free.
- BibleRef-A free online commentary to help you develop a greater understanding of each passage you read. They do a fantastic job of providing extra insight, but they don’t have a full commentary for every book of the Bible (yet).
- Enduring Word-The teaching notes of David Guzik, pastor of Calvary Chapel Santa Barbara, who has taught through the Bible verse-by-verse. There’s a free app as well!
- The Bible Project-A website full of videos to help you understand each book of the Bible (as well as some comprehensive themes and ideas). Especially helpful if you’re writing for a book you don’t have a lot of familiarity with!
- GotQuestions.org-A website containing answers to over 500,000 questions about the Bible, ranging from interpretation of specific verses to larger, more complex theological topics. This site is extremely helpful when you’re addressing a complicated topic/subject!
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3 thoughts on “1 Chronicles 28”
What stood out to me to was David’s attitude and posture before the Lord and the people. God had clearly designated who would build the temple and it wasn’t him. David could have sulked, felt rejected and given up. Instead he went to work making sure all the needed preparations were ready for Solomon including the plans, materials and skilled workers. David, both king and mighty warrior, showed great humility as he charged his son and fellow Israelites to carefully follow God and his precepts and give glory and honor to him. This is what truly marked David as a man after God’s own heart. Today, I’m challenged to acknowledge, seek, serve and consider God’s ways over mine to honor the one who brought me out of darkness into his glorious light.
David wanted all to know that God had made the plans for the future. God had told David how and exact measurements, weights, details about the temple. God also told David who was to carry on his throne. David wanted Solomon to understand that this kingship was not easy, but with God, he could succeed. We just know more of the story about Solomon. He had all the wisdom but his heart was not all with or for God. I pray for wisdom a lot, and today I see that, yes I need the wisdom but it also has to come along with the desire of my heart to serve God completely with my heart, soul, mind and strength. ALL together!!! Luke 6:45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. Knowing what to do and doing it are two totally different things. Proverbs 4:23 Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life. Deuteronomy 6:4-7 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. We need to be speaking, learning and talking to God all the day long.
God thank You that You are what I think about all day. Thank You that I can bring my thoughts captive back to You and Your word so that I can and do with Love, the wisdom that You require of me for this day. God I am so thankful for all that You have taught me through Chronicles thus far in Jesus name amen
WOOHOO!!!!
It was extremely beneficial to read and ponder. I am definitely convicted and want to see this renew my mind and make biblical changes in how I make decisions.