Chronicles I 28

1 And David assembled all the chief [men] of Israel, the chief of the judges, and all the chief [men] of the courses [of attendance] on the person of the king, and the captains of thousands and hundreds, and the treasurers, and the lords of his substance, and of all the king's property, and of his sons, together with the eunuchs, and the mighty men, and the warriors of the army, at Jerusalem.

And so David called together all the leaders of Israel, the rulers of the tribes, and those in charge of the companies, who were ministering to the king, and also the tribunes and centurions, and those in charge of the substance and possessions of the king, and his sons, with the eunuchs and the powerful and those most experienced in the army, at Jerusalem.

2 And David stood in the midst of the assembly, and said, Hear me, my brethren, and my people: it was in my heart to build a house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and a place for the feet of our Lord, and I prepared [materials] suitable for the building:

And when the king had risen up and was standing, he said: “Listen to me, my brothers and my people. I thought that I would build a house, in which the ark of the covenant of the Lord, the footstool of our God, might rest. And so I prepared everything for its building.

3 but God said, You shall not build me a house to call my name upon it, for you are a man of war, and have shed blood.

But God said to me: ‘You shall not build a house to my name, because you are a man of war, and have shed blood.’

4 Yet the Lord God of Israel chose me out of the whole house of my father to be king over Israel for ever; and he chose Juda as the kingly [house], and out of the house of Juda [he chose] the house of my father; and among the sons of my father he preferred me, that I should be king over all Israel.

Now the Lord God of Israel chose me, out of the entire house of my father, so that I would be king over Israel forever. For from Judah he chose leaders; then from the house of Judah he chose the house of my father; and from the sons of my father, it pleased him to choose me as king over all of Israel.

5 And of all my sons, (for the Lord has given me many sons, ) he has chosen Solomon my son, to set him on the throne of the kingdom of the Lord over Israel.

Then too, among my sons (for the Lord has given me many sons) he chose Solomon my son, so that he would sit upon the throne of the kingdom of the Lord, over Israel.

6 And God said to me, Solomon your son shall build my house and my court: for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be to him a father.

And he said to me: ‘Solomon your son shall build my house and my courts. For I have chosen him to be to me as a son, and I will be to him as a father.

7 And I will establish his kingdom for ever, if he continue to keep my commandments, and my judgments, as [at] this day.

And I will make firm his kingdom, even unto eternity, if he will persevere in doing my precepts and judgments, as also today.’

8 And now [I charge you] before the whole assembly of the Lord, and in the audience of our God, keep and seek all the commandments of the Lord our God, that you may inherit the good land, and leave it for your sons to inherit after you for ever.

Now therefore, before the entire assembly of Israel, in the hearing of our God, keep and seek all the commandments of the Lord our God, so that you may possess the good land, and may bequeath it to your sons after you, even forever.

9 And now, [my] son Solomon, know the God of your fathers, and serve him with a perfect heart and willing soul: for the Lord searches all hearts, and knows every thought: if you seek him, he will be found of you; but if you should forsake him, he will forsake you for ever.

And as for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and a willing mind. For the Lord searches all hearts, and understands the thoughts of all minds. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you abandon him, he will cast you aside for eternity.

10 See now, for the Lord has chosen you to build him a house for a sanctuary, be strong and do [it].

Now therefore, since the Lord has chosen you, so that you would build the house of the Sanctuary, be strengthened and accomplish it.”

11 And David gave Solomon his son the plan of the temple, and its buildings, and its treasuries, and its upper chambers, and the inner store-rooms, and the place of the atonement,

Then David gave to his son Solomon a description of the portico, and the temple, and the storerooms, and the upper floor, and the innermost rooms, and the house of propitiation,

12 and the plan which he had in his mind of the courts of the house of the Lord, and of all the chambers round about, [designed] for the treasuries of the house of God, and of the treasuries of the holy things, and of the chambers for resting:

and indeed also of all the courts that he had planned, and the outer rooms on all sides, for the treasuries of the house of the Lord, and for the treasuries of the holy things,

13 and [the plan] of the courses of the priests and Levites, for all the work of the service of the house of the Lord, and of the stores of vessels for ministration of the service of the house of the Lord.

and for the divisions of the priests and the Levites: concerning all the works of the house of the Lord and all the items in the ministry of the temple of the Lord.

14 And [he gave him] the account of their weight, both of gold and silver [vessels].

There was gold by weight for every vessel of the ministry, and also silver by weight for the diversity of vessels and equipment.

15 He gave him the weight of the candlesticks, and of the lamps.

Then too, he distributed gold for the lampstands and their lamps, according to the measure of each of the lampstands with their lamps. Similarly also, he distributed silver by weight for the silver lampstands with their lamps, according to the diversity of their measure.

16 He gave him likewise the weight of the tables of show bread, of each table of gold, and likewise of the [tables of] silver:

Also, he gave gold for the tables of the presence, according to the diversity of the tables; similarly too, he gave silver for the other tables of silver.

17 also of the flesh hooks, and vessels for drink-offering, and golden bowls: and the weight of the gold and silver [articles], and censers, [and] bowls, according to the weight of each.

Also, he distributed from the purest gold for the small hooks and the bowls and the censors, as well as for the little lions of gold, in accord with the precise measure of the weight, for lion after lion. Similarly too, for the lions of silver, he set aside a different weight of silver.

18 And he showed him the weight [of the utensils] of the altar of incense, [which was] of pure gold, and the plan of the chariot of the cherubs that spread out their wings, and overshadowed the ark of the covenant of the Lord.

Then, for the altar on which the incense was burned, he gave the purest gold. And from the same he made the likeness of the chariot of the Cherubim, with extended wings, which is veiling the ark of the covenant of the Lord.

19 David gave all to Solomon in the Lord's handwriting, according to the knowledge given him of the work of the pattern.

“All these things,” he said, “came to me written by the hand of the Lord, so that I would understand all the works of the pattern.”

20 And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong, and play the man, and do: fear not, neither be terrified; for the Lord my God [is] with you; he will not forsake you, and will not fail you, until you have finished all the work of the service of the house of the Lord. And behold the pattern of the temple, even his house, and its treasury, and the upper chambers, and the inner store-rooms, and the place of propitiation, and the plan of the house of the Lord.

David also said to his son Solomon: “Act manfully, and be strengthened, and carry it out. You should not be afraid, and you should not be dismayed. For the Lord my God will be with you, and he will not send you away, nor will he abandon you, until you have perfected the entire work of the ministry of the house of the Lord.

21 And see, [here are] the courses of the priests and Levites for all the service of the house of the Lord, and [there shall be] with you [men] for every workmanship, and every one of ready skill in every are: also the chief men and all the people, [ready] for all your commands.

Behold, the divisions of the priests and the Levites, for every ministry of the house of the Lord, are standing before you. And they have been prepared, and so they know, both the leaders and the people, how to carry out all your precepts.”