1 CHRONICLES - CHAPTER 22
David Prepares For the Temple
v1 David said, ‘We will build the temple of the LORD God here. Also, the altar for burnt sacrifices for Israel will be here.’ v2 David ordered the foreigners that lived in Israel to gather. Then he chose some of them to cut blocks of stone for the construction of God’s temple. v3 David provided a large amount of iron. This was to make nails and other bits for the doors of the gates. Also, he provided more bronze than people could weigh. v4 And he supplied more cedar wood than they could count. The people from the cities called Sidon and Tyre had brought a lot of this cedar wood to David.
COMMENTARY
VERSE 1
God had dealt with David at the place where Araunah used to prepare his grain. David had built an altar at this place. He had burned sacrifices to the LORD here. He knew that the LORD wanted his temple to be here. This was where the temple should be. The altar would be here and here the priests would sacrifice to God. David was already using this place on Mount Moriah as if it was the LORD’s temple. The actual temple was not yet here. But Solomon, his son, would build it (2 Chronicles 3:1).
VERSES 2-4
David used the foreigners who lived in Israel to carry out the initial work for the temple. Some of them had to cut stones and to shape them ready for the builders. They stored these stones until Solomon started to build the temple. Some of them worked with metals. They made nails and other things for the doors. There were workers in the woods who would prepare the wood for the temple.
David provided all the materials, such as iron, bronze, and wood. The wood came from Lebanon where the cedar trees were very tall and straight.
David Called For His Son
v5 And David said, ‘My son Solomon is young. He does not yet have experience for the task. The temple that he will build for the LORD must be great. It must be famous among the nations because of its greatness and its beauty. Therefore, I will prepare all that I can for it.’ So, David got large amounts of the materials ready before he died.
v6 Then David called for his son Solomon. David told Solomon that he (Solomon) must build a temple for the LORD, the God of Israel. v7 David said to Solomon, ‘My son, I had wanted to build a temple for the name of the LORD my God. v8 But the LORD sent his word to me. He said, “You have killed many people. You have fought many wars. You must not build a temple for my name. This is because you have spilt much blood on the earth. (In other words, you are responsible for the deaths of many people.) And I have seen what you have done. v9 But you will have a son who will be a man of peace and rest. I will give to him peace from all his enemies round him. His name will be Solomon. And I will give to Israel peace and quiet while he is king. v10 He will build a temple for my name. He will be my son, and I will be his father. I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel for all time.”
COMMENTARY
VERSE 5
We are not sure about the age of Solomon at this time. The date of his birth was probably about 990 BC. He became king in 970 or 971 BC. So he was 20 years old when he became king. He had a son, Rehoboam, who was then one year old. This chapter is about David’s actions near the end of his rule. So, it seems that Solomon was a youth under 20 years of age.
The temple had to be great, and it was. It had to be famous among the nations, and it was. But Solomon was young. So, David prepared all that he could. The LORD would not allow him to build the temple. But he got as much ready as he could.
VERSES 6-10
King David was preparing his son to be the next king. David had desired to build the temple for the LORD. But the LORD would not let him do it. This was the most important task for his son to do. So David explained to Solomon what God had said to him.
This temple must be for the name of the LORD. This means more than for the LORD’s honor. It means for the person of the LORD. It must be a place where the people could go to meet with God. It will be the most important place of worship for Israel.
The LORD refused to let David build the temple. The reason was that David was a man of wars. The problem was not just that he fought wars. But David had killed people other than in war such as Uriah (2 Samuel 11:15). He was guilty of cruelty as he was with the soldiers from Moab (2 Samuel 8:2).
Before he was born, God chose Solomon to be king after David. The LORD loved Solomon from birth. God promised that Solomon would rule in peace. As far as we know, Solomon fought only one battle. That battle was after he had built the temple (2 Chronicles 8:3).
In this passage, David repeats the words that Nathan spoke to him from the LORD (17:12-14). The LORD promised to be as a father to Solomon but Solomon had to be loyal to the LORD. Later in life, Solomon was not loyal to the LORD.
The ‘throne’ of Solomon’s kingdom means the kings from the family of David. God would establish their ‘throne’ for all time. This means that one of David’s descendants will be king for all time. That descendant is the Lord Jesus. (Both Mary and Joseph were descendants of David.) The Lord Jesus is sometimes called King David’s greater son because he is David’s most important descendant. And, although he is David’s descendant, he is more important (greater) than David. There will be no end to the rule of the Lord Jesus. His throne will always remain. His kingdom will never end (Luke 1:32-33).
David Encourages His Son To Do as God Had Said
v11 Now, my son, I ask the LORD to be with you. Then you will be successful, and you will build the temple for the LORD your God. He has said that you will carry out this task. v12 The LORD will give you command over Israel. I pray that he will also give to you wisdom and the skill to understand. This will help you to obey the law of the LORD your God. v13 Be careful to obey the rules and laws that the LORD gave to Moses for Israel. If you obey them, you will have success. Be strong and brave. Do not be afraid but always have courage.
v14 I have worked hard to provide for the temple of the LORD. I have supplied 100,000 talents of gold and 1,000,000 talents of silver. Here are vast quantities of bronze and iron; too much to weigh. And I have gathered a lot of wood and stone. You must add some more. v15 You have many workers. You have men who work with stone. You have men who build with bricks. You have men who work with wood. And you have men who are skilled in every kind of work. v16 They are skilled to work with gold, silver, bronze, and iron. You have more skilled workers than you can count. Now begin the work. And I pray that the LORD will be with you.’
COMMENTARY
VERSES 11-13
In these verses, David repeats to Solomon much of what God had said. God had said that Solomon would build the temple. God had said that he would make Solomon the king of Israel. So, David encourages his son to do as God had said. David is telling Solomon: ‘Build the temple and obey God.’
David prays that Solomon will be wise. And David prays that Solomon will obey the law of the LORD. Solomon will be successful only if he does obey the rules and laws of the LORD. He will need wisdom from the LORD to be able to govern the people. And he will need to be brave and to have courage so that he can rule Israel.
VERSES 14-16
We do not know the value of these metals at that time. But it must have been a very large sum. David had provided a vast quantity of all that the builders would need for the work. But Solomon must add some more. Perhaps David thought that more was necessary. But perhaps David was encouraging Solomon to make the task his own. Solomon would involve himself more in the task if he gave toward it.
David had organized the labor with men skilled in all the trades. This large number of workers was ready to start the work. Therefore, he told Solomon, ‘Get on with it. Build the temple of the LORD. It is what the LORD wants. And he will be with you.’ Solomon could not begin yet. But as soon as he became king, this was his first and most important task.
David Gives Order To All Leaders
v17 Then David ordered all the leaders of Israel to help his son Solomon. v18 David said to them, ‘The LORD your God is with you. He has given to you peace from all our enemies. He has handed over to me the people who live in this country. The LORD and his people control this country. v19 Now give your hearts and minds to obey the LORD your God. Begin to build the temple of the LORD God. Then bring the ark of the LORD’s special promise and God’s holy things to the temple. You will build the temple for the name of the LORD.’
COMMENTARY
VERSES 17-19
Finally, David praises God for all that he has achieved. The LORD has given peace to his people in Israel, defeated all their enemies, is with his people, and given them the country called Israel.
Now, the people must give themselves to the LORD and work with Solomon to build the LORD’s temple. That temple will be the place where the Israelites will worship the LORD their God.
The ark of God was in the tent that David had prepared for it, in Jerusalem. But the Israelites must bring the ark into the temple. David had already built his altar in the place where the Israelites would build the temple. Many of the holy things were in the tent at Gibeon. They must bring these things into the temple.
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