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2 Samuel Chapter 24

Leave a Comment / 2 Samuel 24:1-25

2 Samuel 24:1-25

[1] Again the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”
[2] So the king said to Joab, the commander of the army, who was with him, “Go through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and number the people, that I may know the number of the people.”
[3] But Joab said to the king, “May the Lord your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are, while the eyes of my lord the king still see it, but why does my lord the king delight in this thing?”
[4] But the king’s word prevailed against Joab and the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army went out from the presence of the king to number the people of Israel.
[5] They crossed the Jordan and began from Aroer, and from the city that is in the middle of the valley, toward Gad and on to Jazer.
[6] Then they came to Gilead, and to Kadesh in the land of the Hittites; and they came to Dan, and from Dan they went around to Sidon,
[7] and came to the fortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites; and they went out to the Negeb of Judah at Beersheba.
[8] So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.
[9] And Joab gave the sum of the numbering of the people to the king: in Israel there were 800,000 valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were 500,000.
[10] But David’s heart struck him after he had numbered the people. And David said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O Lord, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have done very foolishly.”
[11] And when David arose in the morning, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying,
[12] “Go and say to David, ‘Thus says the Lord, Three things I offer you. Choose one of them, that I may do it to you.’”
[13] So Gad came to David and told him, and said to him, “Shall three years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you flee three months before your foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ pestilence in your land? Now consider, and decide what answer I shall return to him who sent me.”
[14] Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man.”
[15] So the Lord sent a pestilence on Israel from the morning until the appointed time. And there died of the people from Dan to Beersheba 70,000 men.
[16] And when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was working destruction among the people, “It is enough; now stay your hand.” And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
[17] Then David spoke to the Lord when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, “Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand be against me and against my father’s house.”
[18] And Gad came that day to David and said to him, “Go up, raise an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.”
[19] So David went up at Gad’s word, as the Lord commanded.
[20] And when Araunah looked down, he saw the king and his servants coming on toward him. And Araunah went out and paid homage to the king with his face to the ground.
[21] And Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the Lord, that the plague may be averted from the people.”
[22] Then Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up what seems good to him. Here are the oxen for the burnt offering and the threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood.
[23] All this, O king, Araunah gives to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “May the Lord your God accept you.”
[24] But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
[25] And David built there an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the Lord responded to the plea for the land, and the plague was averted from Israel.

2 SAMUEL 24: 1-25

🍁 2 Samuel 24: 1-9
David’s Census of Israel and Judah

Again, the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah

So the king said to Joab, the commander of the army, who was with him, “Go through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and number the people, that I may know the number of the people

But Joab said to the king, “May the Lord your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are, while the eyes of my lord the king still see it, but why does my lord the king delight in this thing?
But the king’s word prevailed against Joab and the commanders of the army
So Joab and the commanders of the army went out from the presence of the king to number the people of Israel

They crossed the Jordan and began from Aroer, and from the city that is in the middle of the valley, toward Gad and on to Jazer
Then they came to Gilead, and to Kadesh in the land of the Hittites; and they came to Dan, and from Dan they went around to Sidon, and came to the fortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites; and they went out to the Negeb of Judah at Beersheba

So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days
And Joab gave the sum of the numbering of the people to the king: in Israel there were 800,000 valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were 500,000

🍁 2 Samuel 24: 10-25
The Judgment on David’s Sin

But David’s heart struck him after he had numbered the people
And David said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done
But now, O Lord, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have done very foolishly

And when David arose in the morning, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer saying, Go and say to David, ‘Thus says the Lord, Three things I offer you Choose one of them, that I may do it to you
So Gad came to David and told him, and said to him, “Shall three years of famine come to you in your land?

Or will you flee three months before your foes while they pursue you?
Or shall there be three days’ pestilence in your land?
Now consider, and decide what answer I shall return to him who sent me

Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man

So the Lord sent a pestilence on Israel from the morning until the appointed time
And there died of the people from Dan to Beersheba 70,000 men

And when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was working destruction among the people, “It is enough; now stay your hand
And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite

Then David spoke to the Lord when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, “Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly
But these sheep, what have they done?
Please let your hand be against me and against my father’s house

🍁 2 Samuel 24: 18-25
The Altar on the Threshing Floor

And Gad came that day to David and said to him, “Go up, raise an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite
So David went up at Gad’s word, as the Lord commanded
And when Araunah looked down, he saw the king and his servants coming on toward him
And Araunah went out and paid homage to the king with his face to the ground

And Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?
David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the Lord, that the plague may be averted from the people

Then Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up what seems good to him
Here are the oxen for the burnt offering and the threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood
All this, O king, Araunah gives to the king
And Araunah said to the king, “May the Lord your God accept you

But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will buy it from you for a price
I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing

So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver
And David built there an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings
So the Lord responded to the plea for the land, and the plague was averted from Israel

Thank the Lord
We have concluded reading 24 chapters of 2 Samuel

Second Samuel continues where 1 Samuel left off.
Although David is a significant figure in 1 Samuel, that book focuses on Israel’s last judge, Samuel, and Israel’s first king, Saul.

In 2 Samuel, the attention is on David and his relationships with the Lord and with other people.
God establishes a covenant with David, promising that his throne will be established forever
(2 Sam 7).

Even when David commits horrendous sins, the covenant stands.
Throughout 2 Samuel, as all others fail, the Lord’s faithfulness is profoundly seen, as are the painful effects of sin on sinners, those around them, and those they lead.

Here are the contents we have read in the Book of 2 Samuel

The Report of Saul’s Death
The Song of the Bow
David Anointed King of Judah
Ishbosheth Made King of Israel
Israel and Judah at War
Sons of David
Abner Joins Forces with David
Joab Murders Abner
David’s Mourning for Abner
Ishbosheth Is Murdered
David Reigns over All Israel
The Conquest of Jerusalem
The Philistines Defeated
The Ark Brought to Jerusalem
God’s Covenant with David
David’s Thanksgiving to God
David’s Further Conquests
David’s Administration
David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth
The Ammonites and Syrians Defeated
David, Bathsheba, and Uriah
Nathan’s Parable and David’s Confession
The Death of David’s Son
Solomon Is Born
Rabbah Is Captured
Amnon and Tamar
Absalom Murders Amnon
Absalom Flees to Geshur
Absalom Returns to Jerusalem
Absalom’s Treason
David Escapes from Jerusalem
Mephibosheth’s Servant
Shimei Curses David
The Advice of Ahithophel
The Advice of Hushai
Hushai Warns David to Escape
Absalom’s Defeat and Death
David Hears of Absalom’s Death
David’s Mourning for Absalom
David Returns to Jerusalem
David and Mephibosheth Meet
David’s Kindness to Barzillai
The Quarrel About the King
The Rebellion of Sheba
David’s Government Officers
David Avenges the Gibeonites
Philistine Giants Destroyed
Praise for God’s Deliverance
David’s Last Words
David’s Mighty Men
David’s Census of Israel and Judah
The Judgment on David’s Sin
The Altar on the Threshing Floor

Praise the Lord

We shall continue to read 1 chapter a day with the book of 1 King
We encourage all members to tread on this journey together and explore further the events that follow and what we can learn from it

May the Lord guide and enlightened us along the way

God Bless

2 Samuel Chapter 24 Read More »

1 Kings Chapter 1

Leave a Comment / 1 Kings 1:1-53

1 Kings 1:1-53

[1] Now King David was old and advanced in years. And although they covered him with clothes, he could not get warm.
[2] Therefore his servants said to him, “Let a young woman be sought for my lord the king, and let her wait on the king and be in his service. Let her lie in your arms, that my lord the king may be warm.”
[3] So they sought for a beautiful young woman throughout all the territory of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king.
[4] The young woman was very beautiful, and she was of service to the king and attended to him, but the king knew her not.
[5] Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king.” And he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him.
[6] His father had never at any time displeased him by asking, “Why have you done thus and so?” He was also a very handsome man, and he was born next after Absalom.
[7] He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest. And they followed Adonijah and helped him.
[8] But Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei and David’s mighty men were not with Adonijah.
[9] Adonijah sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fattened cattle by the Serpent’s Stone, which is beside En-rogel, and he invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the royal officials of Judah,
[10] but he did not invite Nathan the prophet or Benaiah or the mighty men or Solomon his brother.
[11] Then Nathan said to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, “Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith has become king and David our lord does not know it?
[12] Now therefore come, let me give you advice, that you may save your own life and the life of your son Solomon.
[13] Go in at once to King David, and say to him, ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear to your servant, saying, “Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne”? Why then is Adonijah king?’
[14] Then while you are still speaking with the king, I also will come in after you and confirm your words.”
[15] So Bathsheba went to the king in his chamber (now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was attending to the king).
[16] Bathsheba bowed and paid homage to the king, and the king said, “What do you desire?”
[17] She said to him, “My lord, you swore to your servant by the Lord your God, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.’
[18] And now, behold, Adonijah is king, although you, my lord the king, do not know it.
[19] He has sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the sons of the king, Abiathar the priest, and Joab the commander of the army, but Solomon your servant he has not invited.
[20] And now, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, to tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him.
[21] Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon will be counted offenders.”
[22] While she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in.
[23] And they told the king, “Here is Nathan the prophet.” And when he came in before the king, he bowed before the king, with his face to the ground.
[24] And Nathan said, “My lord the king, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne’?
[25] For he has gone down this day and has sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the king’s sons, the commanders of the army, and Abiathar the priest. And behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’
[26] But me, your servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon he has not invited.
[27] Has this thing been brought about by my lord the king and you have not told your servants who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
[28] Then King David answered, “Call Bathsheba to me.” So she came into the king’s presence and stood before the king.
[29] And the king swore, saying, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my soul out of every adversity,
[30] as I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ even so will I do this day.”
[31] Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the ground and paid homage to the king and said, “May my lord King David live forever!”
[32] King David said, “Call to me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada.” So they came before the king.
[33] And the king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord and have Solomon my son ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon.
[34] And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet there anoint him king over Israel. Then blow the trumpet and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’
[35] You shall then come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne, for he shall be king in my place. And I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.”
[36] And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, “Amen! May the Lord, the God of my lord the king, say so.
[37] As the Lord has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.”
[38] So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on King David’s mule and brought him to Gihon.
[39] There Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the tent and anointed Solomon. Then they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!”
[40] And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise.
[41] Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished feasting. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “What does this uproar in the city mean?”
[42] While he was still speaking, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came. And Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are a worthy man and bring good news.”
[43] Jonathan answered Adonijah, “No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king,
[44] and the king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites. And they had him ride on the king’s mule.
[45] And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king at Gihon, and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you have heard.
[46] Solomon sits on the royal throne.
[47] Moreover, the king’s servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘May your God make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater than your throne.’ And the king bowed himself on the bed.
[48] And the king also said, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who has granted someone to sit on my throne this day, my own eyes seeing it.’”
[49] Then all the guests of Adonijah trembled and rose, and each went his own way.
[50] And Adonijah feared Solomon. So he arose and went and took hold of the horns of the altar.
[51] Then it was told Solomon, “Behold, Adonijah fears King Solomon, for behold, he has laid hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.’”
[52] And Solomon said, “If he will show himself a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the earth, but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.”
[53] So King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and paid homage to King Solomon, and Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”

Introduction
The book of 1 Kings provides an account of the death of David and the reign of his son Solomon
The decline and division of the Kingdom of Israel after Solomon and many of his successors turned to idol worship

King Ahab and his wife, Jezebel, established the worship of Baal throughout the Northern Kingdom

The Lord preserved Elijah and eventually led him to a widow in Zarephath, who fed him for many days

The prophet Elijah sealed the heavens, causing years of drought

It also recounts the ministry of the prophet Elijah among the northern ten tribes of Israel

1 Kings 1:1-53

[1] Now King David was old and advanced in years. And although they covered him with clothes, he could not get warm.
[2] Therefore his servants said to him, “Let a young woman be sought for my lord the king, and let her wait on the king and be in his service. Let her lie in your arms, that my lord the king may be warm.”
[3] So they sought for a beautiful young woman throughout all the territory of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king.
[4] The young woman was very beautiful, and she was of service to the king and attended to him, but the king knew her not.
[5] Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king.” And he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him.
[6] His father had never at any time displeased him by asking, “Why have you done thus and so?” He was also a very handsome man, and he was born next after Absalom.
[7] He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest. And they followed Adonijah and helped him.
[8] But Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei and David’s mighty men were not with Adonijah.
[9] Adonijah sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fattened cattle by the Serpent’s Stone, which is beside En-rogel, and he invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the royal officials of Judah,
[10] but he did not invite Nathan the prophet or Benaiah or the mighty men or Solomon his brother.
[11] Then Nathan said to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, “Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith has become king and David our lord does not know it?
[12] Now therefore come, let me give you advice, that you may save your own life and the life of your son Solomon.
[13] Go in at once to King David, and say to him, ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear to your servant, saying, “Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne”? Why then is Adonijah king?’
[14] Then while you are still speaking with the king, I also will come in after you and confirm your words.”
[15] So Bathsheba went to the king in his chamber (now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was attending to the king).
[16] Bathsheba bowed and paid homage to the king, and the king said, “What do you desire?”
[17] She said to him, “My lord, you swore to your servant by the Lord your God, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.’
[18] And now, behold, Adonijah is king, although you, my lord the king, do not know it.
[19] He has sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the sons of the king, Abiathar the priest, and Joab the commander of the army, but Solomon your servant he has not invited.
[20] And now, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, to tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him.
[21] Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon will be counted offenders.”
[22] While she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in.
[23] And they told the king, “Here is Nathan the prophet.” And when he came in before the king, he bowed before the king, with his face to the ground.
[24] And Nathan said, “My lord the king, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne’?
[25] For he has gone down this day and has sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the king’s sons, the commanders of the army, and Abiathar the priest. And behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’
[26] But me, your servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon he has not invited.
[27] Has this thing been brought about by my lord the king and you have not told your servants who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
[28] Then King David answered, “Call Bathsheba to me.” So she came into the king’s presence and stood before the king.
[29] And the king swore, saying, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my soul out of every adversity,
[30] as I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ even so will I do this day.”
[31] Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the ground and paid homage to the king and said, “May my lord King David live forever!”
[32] King David said, “Call to me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada.” So they came before the king.
[33] And the king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord and have Solomon my son ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon.
[34] And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet there anoint him king over Israel. Then blow the trumpet and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’
[35] You shall then come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne, for he shall be king in my place. And I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.”
[36] And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, “Amen! May the Lord, the God of my lord the king, say so.
[37] As the Lord has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.”
[38] So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on King David’s mule and brought him to Gihon.
[39] There Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the tent and anointed Solomon. Then they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!”
[40] And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise.
[41] Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished feasting. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “What does this uproar in the city mean?”
[42] While he was still speaking, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came. And Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are a worthy man and bring good news.”
[43] Jonathan answered Adonijah, “No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king,
[44] and the king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites. And they had him ride on the king’s mule.
[45] And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king at Gihon, and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you have heard.
[46] Solomon sits on the royal throne.
[47] Moreover, the king’s servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘May your God make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater than your throne.’ And the king bowed himself on the bed.
[48] And the king also said, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who has granted someone to sit on my throne this day, my own eyes seeing it.’”
[49] Then all the guests of Adonijah trembled and rose, and each went his own way.
[50] And Adonijah feared Solomon. So he arose and went and took hold of the horns of the altar.
[51] Then it was told Solomon, “Behold, Adonijah fears King Solomon, for behold, he has laid hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.’”
[52] And Solomon said, “If he will show himself a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the earth, but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.”
[53] So King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and paid homage to King Solomon, and Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”

1 KINGS 1: 1-53

🍁 1 Kings 1:1-27
Adonijah Presumes to Be King

Now King David was old and advanced in years
And although they covered him with clothes, he could not get warm
Therefore his servants said to him, “Let a young woman be sought for my lord the king, and let her wait on the king and be in his service

Let her lie in your arms, that my lord the king may be warm
So they sought for a beautiful young woman throughout all the territory of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king

The young woman was very beautiful, and she was of service to the king and attended to him, but the king knew her not

Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king And he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him

His father had never at any time displeased him by asking, “Why have you done thus and so?
He was also a very handsome man, and he was born next after Absalom

He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest And they followed Adonijah and helped him
But Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei and David’s mighty men were not with Adonijah

Adonijah sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fattened cattle by the Serpent’s Stone, which is beside En-rogel, and he invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the royal officials of Judah, but he did not invite Nathan the prophet or Benaiah or the mighty men or Solomon his brother

Then Nathan said to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, “Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith has become king and David our lord does not know it?

Now therefore come, let me give you advice, that you may save your own life and the life of your son Solomon
Go in at once to King David, and say to him, ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear to your servant, saying, “Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne? Why then is Adonijah king?
Then while you are still speaking with the king, I also will come in after you and confirm your words

So Bathsheba went to the king in his chamber (now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was attending to the king)
Bathsheba bowed and paid homage to the king, and the king said, “What do you desire?

She said to him, “My lord, you swore to your servant by the Lord your God, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne

And now, behold, Adonijah is king, although you, my lord the king, do not know it

He has sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the sons of the king, Abiathar the priest, and Joab the commander of the army, but Solomon your servant he has not invited

And now, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, to tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him
Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon will be counted offenders

While she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in
And they told the king, “Here is Nathan the prophet

And when he came in before the king, he bowed before the king, with his face to the ground
And Nathan said, “My lord the king, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne?
For he has gone down this day and has sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the king’s sons, the commanders of the army, and Abiathar the priest

And behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah
But me, your servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon he has not invited
Has this thing been brought about by my lord the king and you have not told your servants who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?

🍁 1 king 1: 28-53
David Proclaims Solomon King

Then King David answered, “Call Bathsheba to me
So she came into the king’s presence and stood before the king

And the king swore, saying, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my soul out of every adversity, as I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ even so will I do this day

Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the ground and paid homage to the king and said, “May my lord King David live forever

King David said, “Call to me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada
So they came before the king
And the king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord and have Solomon my son ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon

And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet there anoint him king over Israel
Then blow the trumpet and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!
You shall then come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne, for he shall be king in my place
And I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah

And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, “Amen!
May the Lord, the God of my lord the king, say so
As the Lord has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David

So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on King David’s mule and brought him to Gihon
There Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the tent and anointed Solomon

Then they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!
And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise

Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished feasting
And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “What does this uproar in the city mean?
While he was still speaking, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came
And Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are a worthy man and bring good news

Jonathan answered Adonijah, “No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king, and the king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites
And they had him ride on the king’s mule

And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king at Gihon, and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar
This is the noise that you have heard
Solomon sits on the royal throne

Moreover, the king’s servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘May your God make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater than your throne
And the king bowed himself on the bed

And the king also said, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who has granted someone to sit on my throne this day, my own eyes seeing it

Then all the guests of Adonijah trembled and rose, and each went his own way

And Adonijah feared Solomon
So he arose and went and took hold of the horns of the altar
Then it was told Solomon, “Behold, Adonijah fears King Solomon, for behold, he has laid hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not put his servant to death with the sword

And Solomon said, “If he will show himself a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the earth, but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die

So King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar
And he came and paid homage to King Solomon, and Solomon said to him, “Go to your house

1 Kings Chapter 1 Read More »

1 Kings Chapter 2

Leave a Comment / 1 Kings 2:1-46

1 Kings 2: 1-46

[1] When David’s time to die drew near, he commanded Solomon his son, saying,
[2] “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show yourself a man,
[3] and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn,
[4] that the Lord may establish his word that he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’
[5] “Moreover, you also know what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, how he dealt with the two commanders of the armies of Israel, Abner the son of Ner, and Amasa the son of Jether, whom he killed, avenging in time of peace for blood that had been shed in war, and putting the blood of war on the belt around his waist and on the sandals on his feet.
[6] Act therefore according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to Sheol in peace.
[7] But deal loyally with the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at your table, for with such loyalty they met me when I fled from Absalom your brother.
[8] And there is also with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse on the day when I went to Mahanaim. But when he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the Lord, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’
[9] Now therefore do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man. You will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol.”
[10] Then David slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David.
[11] And the time that David reigned over Israel was forty years. He reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
[12] So Solomon sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established.
[13] Then Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, “Do you come peacefully?” He said, “Peacefully.”
[14] Then he said, “I have something to say to you.” She said, “Speak.”
[15] He said, “You know that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel fully expected me to reign. However, the kingdom has turned about and become my brother’s, for it was his from the Lord.
[16] And now I have one request to make of you; do not refuse me.” She said to him, “Speak.”
[17] And he said, “Please ask King Solomonhe will not refuse youto give me Abishag the Shunammite as my wife.”
[18] Bathsheba said, “Very well; I will speak for you to the king.”
[19] So Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him on behalf of Adonijah. And the king rose to meet her and bowed down to her. Then he sat on his throne and had a seat brought for the king’s mother, and she sat on his right.
[20] Then she said, “I have one small request to make of you; do not refuse me.” And the king said to her, “Make your request, my mother, for I will not refuse you.”
[21] She said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as his wife.”
[22] King Solomon answered his mother, “And why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom also, for he is my older brother, and on his side are Abiathar the priest and Joab the son of Zeruiah.”
[23] Then King Solomon swore by the Lord, saying, “God do so to me and more also if this word does not cost Adonijah his life!
[24] Now therefore as the Lord lives, who has established me and placed me on the throne of David my father, and who has made me a house, as he promised, Adonijah shall be put to death today.”
[25] So King Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he struck him down, and he died.
[26] And to Abiathar the priest the king said, “Go to Anathoth, to your estate, for you deserve death. But I will not at this time put you to death, because you carried the ark of the Lord God before David my father, and because you shared in all my father’s affliction.”
[27] So Solomon expelled Abiathar from being priest to the Lord, thus fulfilling the word of the Lord that he had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.
[28] When the news came to Joabfor Joab had supported Adonijah although he had not supported AbsalomJoab fled to the tent of the Lord and caught hold of the horns of the altar.
[29] And when it was told King Solomon, “Joab has fled to the tent of the Lord, and behold, he is beside the altar,” Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, “Go, strike him down.”
[30] So Benaiah came to the tent of the Lord and said to him, “The king commands, ‘Come out.’” But he said, “No, I will die here.” Then Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, “Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me.”
[31] The king replied to him, “Do as he has said, strike him down and bury him, and thus take away from me and from my father’s house the guilt for the blood that Joab shed without cause.
[32] The Lord will bring back his bloody deeds on his own head, because, without the knowledge of my father David, he attacked and killed with the sword two men more righteous and better than himself, Abner the son of Ner, commander of the army of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, commander of the army of Judah.
[33] So shall their blood come back on the head of Joab and on the head of his descendants forever. But for David and for his descendants and for his house and for his throne there shall be peace from the Lord forevermore.”
[34] Then Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up and struck him down and put him to death. And he was buried in his own house in the wilderness.
[35] The king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada over the army in place of Joab, and the king put Zadok the priest in the place of Abiathar.
[36] Then the king sent and summoned Shimei and said to him, “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and dwell there, and do not go out from there to any place whatever.
[37] For on the day you go out and cross the brook Kidron, know for certain that you shall die. Your blood shall be on your own head.”
[38] And Shimei said to the king, “What you say is good; as my lord the king has said, so will your servant do.” So Shimei lived in Jerusalem many days.
[39] But it happened at the end of three years that two of Shimei’s servants ran away to Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath. And when it was told Shimei, “Behold, your servants are in Gath,”
[40] Shimei arose and saddled a donkey and went to Gath to Achish to seek his servants. Shimei went and brought his servants from Gath.
[41] And when Solomon was told that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and returned,
[42] the king sent and summoned Shimei and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by the Lord and solemnly warn you, saying, ‘Know for certain that on the day you go out and go to any place whatever, you shall die’? And you said to me, ‘What you say is good; I will obey.’
[43] Why then have you not kept your oath to the Lord and the commandment with which I commanded you?”
[44] The king also said to Shimei, “You know in your own heart all the harm that you did to David my father. So the Lord will bring back your harm on your own head.
[45] But King Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the Lord forever.”
[46] Then the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he went out and struck him down, and he died.
So the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.

1 KINGS 2: 1-46

🍁 1 Kings 2: 1-9
David’s Instructions to Solomon

When David’s time to die drew near, he commanded Solomon his son, saying, I am about to go the way of all the earth
Be strong, and show yourself a man, and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn, that the Lord may establish his word that he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel

Moreover, you also know what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, how he dealt with the two commanders of the armies of Israel, Abner the son of Ner, and Amasa the son of Jether, whom he killed, avenging in time of peace for blood that had been shed in war, and putting the blood of war on the belt around his waist and on the sandals on his feet
Act therefore according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to Sheol in peace

But deal loyally with the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at your table, for with such loyalty they met me when I fled from Absalom your brother

And there is also with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse on the day when I went to Mahanaim
But when he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the Lord, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword
Now therefore do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man
You will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol

🍁 1 Kings 2: 10-12
Death of David

Then David slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David
And the time that David reigned over Israel was forty years
He reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem
So Solomon sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established

🍁 1 Kings 2: 13-25
Solomon Executes Adonijah

Then Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon
And she said, “Do you come peacefully?
He said, “Peacefully

Then he said, “I have something to say to you
She said, “Speak

He said, “You know that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel fully expected me to reign
However, the kingdom has turned about and become my brother’s, for it was his from the Lord
And now I have one request to make of you; do not refuse me
She said to him, “Speak

And he said, “Please ask King Solomon, he will not refuse you to give me Abishag the Shunammite as my wife

Bathsheba said, “Very well; I will speak for you to the king

So Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him on behalf of Adonijah And the king rose to meet her and bowed down to her
Then he sat on his throne and had a seat brought for the king’s mother, and she sat on his right
Then she said, “I have one small request to make of you; do not refuse me
And the king said to her, “Make your request, my mother, for I will not refuse you

She said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as his wife

King Solomon answered his mother, “And why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah?
Ask for him the kingdom also, for he is my older brother, and on his side are Abiathar the priest and Joab the son of Zeruiah
Then King Solomon swore by the Lord, saying, “God do so to me and more also if this word does not cost Adonijah his life!
Now therefore as the Lord lives, who has established me and placed me on the throne of David my father, and who has made me a house, as he promised, Adonijah shall be put to death today
So King Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he struck him down, and he died

🍁 1 Kings 2: 26-35
Abiathar Exiled, Joab Executed

And to Abiathar the priest the king said, “Go to Anathoth, to your estate, for you deserve death
But I will not at this time put you to death, because you carried the ark of the Lord God before David my father, and because you shared in all my father’s affliction
So Solomon expelled Abiathar from being priest to the Lord, thus fulfilling the word of the Lord that he had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh

When the news came to Joab, for Joab had supported Adonijah although he had not supported Absalom
Joab fled to the tent of the Lord and caught hold of the horns of the altar

And when it was told King Solomon, “Joab has fled to the tent of the Lord, and behold, he is beside the altar,” Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, “Go, strike him down

So Benaiah came to the tent of the Lord and said to him, “The king commands, ‘Come out
But he said, “No, I will die here

Then Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, “Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me

The king replied to him, “Do as he has said, strike him down and bury him, and thus take away from me and from my father’s house the guilt for the blood that Joab shed without cause
The Lord will bring back his bloody deeds on his own head, because, without the knowledge of my father David, he attacked and killed with the sword two men more righteous and better than himself, Abner the son of Ner, commander of the army of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, commander of the army of Judah
So shall their blood come back on the head of Joab and on the head of his descendants forever
But for David and for his descendants and for his house and for his throne there shall be peace from the Lord forevermore

Then Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up and struck him down and put him to death. And he was buried in his own house in the wilderness
The king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada over the army in place of Joab, and the king put Zadok the priest in the place of Abiathar

🍁 1 Kings 2: 36-46
Shimei Executed

Then the king sent and summoned Shimei and said to him, “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and dwell there, and do not go out from there to any place whatever
For on the day you go out and cross the brook Kidron, know for certain that you shall die
Your blood shall be on your own head

And Shimei said to the king, “What you say is good; as my lord the king has said, so will your servant do
So Shimei lived in Jerusalem many days

But it happened at the end of three years that two of Shimei’s servants ran away to Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath
And when it was told Shimei, “Behold, your servants are in Gath
Shimei arose and saddled a donkey and went to Gath to Achish to seek his servants
Shimei went and brought his servants from Gath
And when Solomon was told that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and returned, the king sent and summoned Shimei and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by the Lord and solemnly warn you, saying, ‘Know for certain that on the day you go out and go to any place whatever, you shall die’?
And you said to me, ‘What you say is good; I will obey
Why then have you not kept your oath to the Lord and the commandment with which I commanded you?
The king also said to Shimei, “You know in your own heart all the harm that you did to David my father
So the Lord will bring back your harm on your own head
But King Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the Lord forever

Then the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he went out and struck him down, and he died
So the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon

1 Kings Chapter 2 Read More »

1 Kings Chapter 3

Leave a Comment / 1 Kings 3:1-28

1 Kings Chapter 3: 1-28

[1] Solomon made a marriage alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt. He took Pharaoh’s daughter and brought her into the city of David until he had finished building his own house and the house of the Lord and the wall around Jerusalem.

[2] The people were sacrificing at the high places, however, because no house had yet been built for the name of the Lord.

[3] Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of David his father, only he sacrificed and made offerings at the high places.

[4] And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place. Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.

[5] At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, “Ask what I shall give you.”

[6] And Solomon said, “You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant David my father, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you. And you have kept for him this great and steadfast love and have given him a son to sit on his throne this day.

[7] And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in.

[8] And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude.

[9] Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?”

[10] It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this.

[11] And God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right,

[12] behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you.

[13] I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days.

[14] And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.”

[15] And Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream. Then he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants.

[16] Then two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him.

[17] The one woman said, “Oh, my lord, this woman and I live in the same house, and I gave birth to a child while she was in the house.

[18] Then on the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. And we were alone. There was no one else with us in the house; only we two were in the house.

[19] And this woman’s son died in the night, because she lay on him.

[20] And she arose at midnight and took my son from beside me, while your servant slept, and laid him at her breast, and laid her dead son at my breast.

[21] When I rose in the morning to nurse my child, behold, he was dead. But when I looked at him closely in the morning, behold, he was not the child that I had borne.”

[22] But the other woman said, “No, the living child is mine, and the dead child is yours.” The first said, “No, the dead child is yours, and the living child is mine.” Thus they spoke before the king.

[23] Then the king said, “The one says, ‘This is my son that is alive, and your son is dead’; and the other says, ‘No; but your son is dead, and my son is the living one.’”

[24] And the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So a sword was brought before the king.

[25] And the king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other.”

[26] Then the woman whose son was alive said to the king, because her heart yearned for her son, “Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means put him to death.” But the other said, “He shall be neither mine nor yours; divide him.”

[27] Then the king answered and said, “Give the living child to the first woman, and by no means put him to death; she is his mother.”

[28] And all Israel heard of the judgment that the king had rendered, and they stood in awe of the king, because they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him to do justice.

1 KINGS 3: 1-28

🍁 1 Kings 3: 1-15
Solomon Requests Wisdom

Solomon made a marriage alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt. He took Pharaoh’s daughter and brought her into the city of David until he had finished building his own house and the house of the Lord and the wall around Jerusalem
The people were sacrificing at the high places, however, because no house had yet been built for the name of the Lord
Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of David his father, only he sacrificed and made offerings at the high places

And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place
Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar
At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, “Ask what I shall give you

And Solomon said, “You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant David my father, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you
And you have kept for him this great and steadfast love and have given him a son to sit on his throne this day
And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child
I do not know how to go out or come in
And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude
Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?

It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this
And God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, behold, I now do according to your word
Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you
I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days
And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days

And Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream
Then he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants

🍁 1 Kings 3: 16-28
Solomon’s Wise Judgment

Then two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him
The one woman said, “Oh, my lord, this woman and I live in the same house, and I gave birth to a child while she was in the house
Then on the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. And we were alone
There was no one else with us in the house; only we two were in the house
And this woman’s son died in the night, because she lay on him
And she arose at midnight and took my son from beside me, while your servant slept, and laid him at her breast, and laid her dead son at my breast
When I rose in the morning to nurse my child, behold, he was dead
But when I looked at him closely in the morning, behold, he was not the child that I had borne

But the other woman said, “No, the living child is mine, and the dead child is yours
The first said, “No, the dead child is yours, and the living child is mine Thus they spoke before the king

Then the king said, “The one says, ‘This is my son that is alive, and your son is dead’; and the other says, ‘No; but your son is dead, and my son is the living one
And the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So a sword was brought before the king
And the king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other

Then the woman whose son was alive said to the king, because her heart yearned for her son, “Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means put him to death
But the other said, “He shall be neither mine nor yours; divide him

Then the king answered and said, “Give the living child to the first woman, and by no means put him to death; she is his mother

And all Israel heard of the judgment that the king had rendered, and they stood in awe of the king, because they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him to do justice

1 Kings Chapter 3 Read More »

🎼I Would Have The Saviour With Me

Leave a Comment / Saviour

Greetings Bro & Sis In Christ
Blessed Sabbath!

I would have the Savior with me
So that I am not alone
I would feel His presence and His arm around me

Though my faith is weak
His words of comfort, no other voice can speak

My life go on through the tempest and sunshine
In the battle and the strife

The way, the Lord will guide
Till I reach the valley of Jordan
On the other side

Then my soul shall fear no ill
Let Him lead me where He will
I will go without a murmur
And His footsteps follow still

Joshua 1: 9
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

Psalms 32: 8
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.

2 Thessalonians 3: 3
But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.

Exodus 15:2
The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.

Psalms 118: 6
The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

Praise Hymn 62
I Would Have The Saviour With Me

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1 Kings Chapter 4

Leave a Comment / 1 Kings 4:1-34

1 Kings Chapter 4: 1-34

1 So King Solomon ruled over all Israel.

2 And these were his chief officials:
Azariah son of Zadok—the priest;

3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, sons of Shisha—secretaries;
Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud—recorder;

4 Benaiah son of Jehoiada—commander in chief;
Zadok and Abiathar—priests;

5 Azariah son of Nathan—in charge of the district governors;
Zabud son of Nathan—a priest and adviser to the king;

6 Ahishar—palace administrator;
Adoniram son of Abda—in charge of forced labor.

7 Solomon had twelve district governors over all Israel, who supplied provisions for the king and the royal household. Each one had to provide supplies for one month in the year.

8 These are their names:
Ben-Hur—in the hill country of Ephraim;

9 Ben-Deker—in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh and Elon Bethhanan;

10 Ben-Hesed—in Arubboth (Sokoh and all the land of Hepher were his);

11 Ben-Abinadab—in Naphoth Dor (he was married to Taphath daughter of Solomon);

12 Baana son of Ahilud—in Taanach and Megiddo, and in all of Beth Shan next to Zarethan below Jezreel, from Beth Shan to Abel Meholah across to Jokmeam;

13 Ben-Geber—in Ramoth Gilead (the settlements of Jair son of Manasseh in Gilead were his, as well as the region of Argob in Bashan and its sixty large walled cities with bronze gate bars);

14 Ahinadab son of Iddo—in Mahanaim;

15 Ahimaaz—in Naphtali (he had married Basemath daughter of Solomon);

16 Baana son of Hushai—in Asher and in Aloth;

17 Jehoshaphat son of Paruah—in Issachar;

18 Shimei son of Ela—in Benjamin;

19 Geber son of Uri—in Gilead (the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and the country of Og king of Bashan). He was the only governor over the district.

20 The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand on the seashore; they ate, they drank and they were happy.

21 And Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These countries brought tribute and were Solomon’s subjects all his life.

22 Solomon’s daily provisions were thirty cors[a] of the finest flour and sixty cors[b] of meal,

23 ten head of stall-fed cattle, twenty of pasture-fed cattle and a hundred sheep and goats, as well as deer, gazelles, roebucks and choice fowl.

24 For he ruled over all the kingdoms west of the Euphrates River, from Tiphsah to Gaza, and had peace on all sides.

25 During Solomon’s lifetime Judah and Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, lived in safety, everyone under their own vine and under their own fig tree.

26 Solomon had four[c] thousand stalls for chariot horses, and twelve thousand horses.[d]

27 The district governors, each in his month, supplied provisions for King Solomon and all who came to the king’s table. They saw to it that nothing was lacking.

28 They also brought to the proper place their quotas of barley and straw for the chariot horses and the other horses.

29 God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore.

30 Solomon’s wisdom was greater than the wisdom of all the people of the East, and greater than all the wisdom of Egypt.

31 He was wiser than anyone else, including Ethan the Ezrahite—wiser than Heman, Kalkol and Darda, the sons of Mahol. And his fame spread to all the surrounding nations.

32 He spoke three thousand proverbs and his songs numbered a thousand and five.

33 He spoke about plant life, from the cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of walls. He also spoke about animals and birds, reptiles and fish.

34 From all nations people came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, sent by all the kings of the world, who had heard of his wisdom.

1 Kings 4: 1-24

🍁 1 Kings 4: 1-19
Solomon’s Administration

King Solomon was king over all Israel
And these were his high officials: Azariah the son of Zadok was the priest
Elihoreph and Ahijah the sons of Shisha were secretaries
Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was in command of the army
Zadok and Abiathar were priests
Azariah the son of Nathan was over the officers
Zabud the son of Nathan was priest and king’s friend
Ahishar was in charge of the palace And Adoniram the son of Abda was in charge of the forced labor

Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his household
Each man had to make provision for one month in the year
These were their names:
Ben-hur, in the hill country of Ephraim
Ben-deker, in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-shemesh, and Elonbeth-hanan
Ben-hesed, in Arubboth (to him belonged Socoh and all the land of Hepher)
Ben-abinadab, in all Naphath-dor (he had Taphath the daughter of Solomon as his wife)
Baana the son of Ahilud, in Taanach, Megiddo, and all Beth-shean that is beside Zarethan below Jezreel, and from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, as far as the other side of Jokmeam
Ben-geber, in Ramoth-gilead (he had the villages of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead, and he had the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty great cities with walls and bronze bars)
Ahinadab the son of Iddo, in Mahanaim
Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he had taken Basemath the daughter of Solomon as his wife)
Baana the son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth
Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar
Shimei the son of Ela, in Benjamin
Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan
And there was one governor who was over the land

🍁 1 Kings 4: 20-34
Prosperity and Wisdom of Solomon’s Reign

Judah and Israel were as many as the sand by the sea
They ate and drank and were happy
Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt They brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life

Solomon’s provision for one day was thirty cors of fine flour and sixty cors of meal, ten fat oxen, and twenty pasture-fed cattle, a hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fattened fowl

For he had dominion over all the region west of the Euphrates from Tiphsah to Gaza, over all the kings west of the Euphrates
And he had peace on all sides around him
And Judah and Israel lived in safety, from Dan even to Beersheba, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, all the days of Solomon

Solomon also had 40,000 stalls of horses for his chariots, and 12,000 horsemen
And those officers supplied provisions for King Solomon, and for all who came to King Solomon’s table, each one in his month
They let nothing be lacking
Barley also and straw for the horses and swift steeds they brought to the place where it was required, each according to his duty

And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore, so that Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt
For he was wiser than all other men, wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol, and his fame was in all the surrounding nations
He also spoke 3,000 proverbs, and his songs were 1,005
He spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall. He spoke also of beasts, and of birds, and of reptiles, and of fish
And people of all nations came to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and from all the kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom

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1 Kings Chapter 5

Leave a Comment / 1 Kings 5: 1-18

1 Kings Chapter 5: 1-18

1 When Hiram king of Tyre heard that Solomon had been anointed king to succeed his father David, he sent his envoys to Solomon, because he had always been on friendly terms with David.

2 Solomon sent back this message to Hiram:

3 “You know that because of the wars waged against my father David from all sides, he could not build a temple for the Name of the LORD his God until the LORD put his enemies under his feet.

4 But now the LORD my God has given me rest on every side, and there is no adversary or disaster.

5 I intend, therefore, to build a temple for the Name of the LORD my God, as the LORD told my father David, when he said, ‘Your son whom I will put on the throne in your place will build the temple for my Name.’

6 “So give orders that cedars of Lebanon be cut for me. My men will work with yours, and I will pay you for your men whatever wages you set. You know that we have no one so skilled in felling timber as the Sidonians.”

7 When Hiram heard Solomon’s message, he was greatly pleased and said, “Praise be to the LORD today, for he has given David a wise son to rule over this great nation.”

8 So Hiram sent word to Solomon:
“I have received the message you sent me and will do all you want in providing the cedar and juniper logs.

9 My men will haul them down from Lebanon to the Mediterranean Sea, and I will float them as rafts by sea to the place you specify. There I will separate them and you can take them away. And you are to grant my wish by providing food for my royal household.”

10 In this way Hiram kept Solomon supplied with all the cedar and juniper logs he wanted,

11 and Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand cors of wheat as food for his household, in addition to twenty thousand baths of pressed olive oil. Solomon continued to do this for Hiram year after year.

12 The LORD gave Solomon wisdom, just as he had promised him. There were peaceful relations between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.

13 King Solomon conscripted laborers from all Israel—thirty thousand men.

14 He sent them off to Lebanon in shifts of ten thousand a month, so that they spent one month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor.

15 Solomon had seventy thousand carriers and eighty thousand stonecutters in the hills,

16 as well as thirty-three hundred foremen who supervised the project and directed the workers.

17 At the king’s command they removed from the quarry large blocks of high-grade stone to provide a foundation of dressed stone for the temple.

18 The craftsmen of Solomon and Hiram and workers from Byblos cut and prepared the timber and stone for the building of the temple.

1 Kings 5: 1-18

🍁Solomon Prepares to Build the Temple

Now Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, for Hiram always loved David
And Solomon sent word to Hiram
You know that David my father could not build a house for the name of the Lord his God because of the warfare with which his enemies surrounded him, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet

But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side
There is neither adversary nor misfortune

And so I intend to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord said to David my father, ‘Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, shall build the house for my name

Now therefore command that cedars of Lebanon be cut for me
And my servants will join your servants, and I will pay you for your servants such wages as you set, for you know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians

As soon as Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly and said, “Blessed be the Lord this day, who has given to David a wise son to be over this great people

And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, “I have heard the message that you have sent to me
I am ready to do all you desire in the matter of cedar and cypress timber

My servants shall bring it down to the sea from Lebanon, and I will make it into rafts to go by sea to the place you direct
And I will have them broken up there, and you shall receive it
And you shall meet my wishes by providing food for my household

So Hiram supplied Solomon with all the timber of cedar and cypress that he desired, while Solomon gave Hiram 20,000 cors of wheat as food for his household, and 20,000 cors of beaten oil
Solomon gave this to Hiram year by year

And the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him
And there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty

King Solomon drafted forced labor out of all Israel, and the draft numbered 30,000 men
And he sent them to Lebanon, 10,000 a month in shifts
They would be a month in Lebanon and two months at home
Adoniram was in charge of the draft
Solomon also had 70,000 burden-bearers and 80,000 stonecutters in the hill country, besides Solomon’s 3,300 chief officers who were over the work, who had charge of the people who carried on the work
At the king’s command they quarried out great, costly stones in order to lay the foundation of the house with dressed stones
So Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the men of Gebal did the cutting and prepared the timber and the stone to build the house

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1 Kings Chapter 6

Leave a Comment / 1 Kings 6:1-38

1 Kings 6:1-38

In the four hundred and eightieth year after the Israelites came out of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, the second month, he began to build the temple of the LORD.

2 The temple that King Solomon built for the LORD was sixty cubits long, twenty wide and thirty high.

3 The portico at the front of the main hall of the temple extended the width of the temple, that is twenty cubits, and projected ten cubits from the front of the temple. 4 He made narrow windows high up in the temple walls.

5 Against the walls of the main hall and inner sanctuary he built a structure around the building, in which there were side rooms.

6 The lowest floor was five cubits wide, the middle floor six cubits and the third floor seven.[g] He made offset ledges around the outside of the temple so that nothing would be inserted into the temple walls.

7 In building the temple, only blocks dressed at the quarry were used, and no hammer, chisel or any other iron tool was heard at the temple site while it was being built.

8 The entrance to the lowest floor was on the south side of the temple; a stairway led up to the middle level and from there to the third.

9 So he built the temple and completed it, roofing it with beams and cedar planks.

10 And he built the side rooms all along the temple. The height of each was five cubits, and they were attached to the temple by beams of cedar.

11 The word of the LORD came to Solomon:

12 “As for this temple you are building, if you follow my decrees, observe my laws and keep all my commands and obey them, I will fulfill through you the promise I gave to David your father.

13 And I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon my people Israel.”

14 So Solomon built the temple and completed it.

15 He lined its interior walls with cedar boards, paneling them from the floor of the temple to the ceiling, and covered the floor of the temple with planks of juniper.

16 He partitioned off twenty cubits at the rear of the temple with cedar boards from floor to ceiling to form within the temple an inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place.

17 The main hall in front of this room was forty cubits[i] long.

18 The inside of the temple was cedar, carved with gourds and open flowers. Everything was cedar; no stone was to be seen.

19 He prepared the inner sanctuary within the temple to set the ark of the covenant of the LORD there.

20 The inner sanctuary was twenty cubits long, twenty wide and twenty high. He overlaid the inside with pure gold, and he also overlaid the altar of cedar.

21 Solomon covered the inside of the temple with pure gold, and he extended gold chains across the front of the inner sanctuary, which was overlaid with gold.

22 So he overlaid the whole interior with gold. He also overlaid with gold the altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary.

23 For the inner sanctuary he made a pair of cherubim out of olive wood, each ten cubits high.

24 One wing of the first cherub was five cubits long, and the other wing five cubits—ten cubits from wing tip to wing tip.

25 The second cherub also measured ten cubits, for the two cherubim were identical in size and shape.

26 The height of each cherub was ten cubits.

27 He placed the cherubim inside the innermost room of the temple, with their wings spread out. The wing of one cherub touched one wall, while the wing of the other touched the other wall, and their wings touched each other in the middle of the room.

28 He overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29 On the walls all around the temple, in both the inner and outer rooms, he carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers.

30 He also covered the floors of both the inner and outer rooms of the temple with gold.

31 For the entrance to the inner sanctuary he made doors out of olive wood that were one fifth of the width of the sanctuary.

32 And on the two olive-wood doors he carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid the cherubim and palm trees with hammered gold.

33 In the same way, for the entrance to the main hall he made doorframes out of olive wood that were one fourth of the width of the hall.

34 He also made two doors out of juniper wood, each having two leaves that turned in sockets.

35 He carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers on them and overlaid them with gold hammered evenly over the carvings.

36 And he built the inner courtyard of three courses of dressed stone and one course of trimmed cedar beams.

37 The foundation of the temple of the LORD was laid in the fourth year, in the month of Ziv.

38 In the eleventh year in the month of Bul, the eighth month, the temple was finished in all its details according to its specifications. He had spent seven years building it.

1 KINGS 6: 1-38

🍁 Solomon Builds the Temple

In the four hundred and eightieth year after the people of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, he began to build the house of the Lord
The house that King Solomon built for the Lord was sixty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and thirty cubits high
The vestibule in front of the nave of the house was twenty cubits long, equal to the width of the house, and ten cubits deep in front of the house
And he made for the house windows with recessed frames

He also built a structure against the wall of the house, running around the walls of the house, both the nave and the inner sanctuary
And he made side chambers all around
The lowest story was five cubits broad, the middle one was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad
For around the outside of the house he made offsets on the wall in order that the supporting beams should not be inserted into the walls of the house
When the house was built, it was with stone prepared at the quarry, so that neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron was heard in the house while it was being built
The entrance for the lowest story was on the south side of the house, and one went up by stairs to the middle story, and from the middle story to the third

So he built the house and finished it, and he made the ceiling of the house of beams and planks of cedar
He built the structure against the whole house, five cubits high, and it was joined to the house with timbers of cedar

Now the word of the Lord came to Solomon, “Concerning this house that you are building, if you will walk in my statutes and obey my rules and keep all my commandments and walk in them, then I will establish my word with you, which I spoke to David your father
And I will dwell among the children of Israel and will not forsake my people Israel

So Solomon built the house and finished it
He lined the walls of the house on the inside with boards of cedar. From the floor of the house to the walls of the ceiling, he covered them on the inside with wood, and he covered the floor of the house with boards of cypress
He built twenty cubits of the rear of the house with boards of cedar from the floor to the walls, and he built this within as an inner sanctuary, as the Most Holy Place
The house, that is, the nave in front of the inner sanctuary, was forty cubits long
The cedar within the house was carved in the form of gourds and open flowers
All was cedar; no stone was seen

The inner sanctuary he prepared in the innermost part of the house, to set there the ark of the covenant of the Lord
The inner sanctuary was twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high, and he overlaid it with pure gold
He also overlaid an altar of cedar
And Solomon overlaid the inside of the house with pure gold, and he drew chains of gold across, in front of the inner sanctuary, and overlaid it with gold
And he overlaid the whole house with gold, until all the house was finished
Also the whole altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary he overlaid with gold

In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olivewood, each ten cubits high
Five cubits was the length of one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the length of the other wing of the cherub; it was ten cubits from the tip of one wing to the tip of the other
The other cherub also measured ten cubits; both cherubim had the same measure and the same form
The height of one cherub was ten cubits, and so was that of the other cherub
He put the cherubim in the innermost part of the house
And the wings of the cherubim were spread out so that a wing of one touched the one wall, and a wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; their other wings touched each other in the middle of the house
And he overlaid the cherubim with gold

Around all the walls of the house he carved engraved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, in the inner and outer rooms
The floor of the house he overlaid with gold in the inner and outer rooms

For the entrance to the inner sanctuary he made doors of olivewood; the lintel and the doorposts were five-sided
He covered the two doors of olivewood with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers
He overlaid them with gold and spread gold on the cherubim and on the palm trees
So also he made for the entrance to the nave doorposts of olivewood, in the form of a square, and two doors of cypress wood
The two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding
On them he carved cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, and he overlaid them with gold evenly applied on the carved work

He built the inner court with three courses of cut stone and one course of cedar beams

In the fourth year the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid, in the month of Ziv
And in the eleventh year, in the month of Bul, which is the eighth month, the house was finished in all its parts, and according to all its specifications
He was seven years in building it

1 Kings Chapter 6 Read More »

1 Kings Chapter 8

Leave a Comment / 1 Kings 8:1-66

1 Kings Chapter 8:1-29

1 Then King Solomon summoned into his presence at Jerusalem the elders of Israel, all the heads of the tribes and the chiefs of the Israelite families, to bring up the ark of the LORD’s covenant from Zion, the City of David.

2 All the Israelites came together to King Solomon at the time of the festival in the month of Ethanim, the seventh month.

3 When all the elders of Israel had arrived, the priests took up the ark,

4 and they brought up the ark of the LORD and the tent of meeting and all the sacred furnishings in it. The priests and Levites carried them up,

5 and King Solomon and the entire assembly of Israel that had gathered about him were before the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and cattle that they could not be recorded or counted.

6 The priests then brought the ark of the LORD’s covenant to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place, and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim.

7 The cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark and overshadowed the ark and its carrying poles.

8 These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place in front of the inner sanctuary, but not from outside the Holy Place; and they are still there today.

9 There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the LORD made a covenant with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt.

10 When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the LORD.

11 And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled his temple.

12 Then Solomon said, “The LORD has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud;

13 I have indeed built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever.”

14 While the whole assembly of Israel was standing there, the king turned around and blessed them.

15 Then he said:
“Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel, who with his own hand has fulfilled what he promised with his own mouth to my father David. For he said,

16 ‘Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built so that my Name might be there, but I have chosen David to rule my people Israel.’

17 “My father David had it in his heart to build a temple for the Name of the LORD, the God of Israel.

18 But the LORD said to my father David, ‘You did well to have it in your heart to build a temple for my Name.

19 Nevertheless, you are not the one to build the temple, but your son, your own flesh and blood—he is the one who will build the temple for my Name.’

20 “The LORD has kept the promise he made: I have succeeded David my father and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the LORD promised, and I have built the temple for the Name of the LORD, the God of Israel.

21 I have provided a place there for the ark, in which is the covenant of the LORD that he made with our ancestors when he brought them out of Egypt.”

22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven

23 and said:
“LORD, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way.

24 You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it—as it is today.

25 “Now LORD, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants are careful in all they do to walk before me faithfully as you have done.’

26 And now, God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David my father come true.

27 “But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!

28 Yet give attention to your servant’s prayer and his plea for mercy, LORD my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence this day.

29 May your eyes be open toward this temple night and day, this place of which you said, ‘My Name shall be there,’ so that you will hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place.

30 Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.

31 “When anyone wrongs their neighbor and is required to take an oath and they come and swear the oath before your altar in this temple,

32 then hear from heaven and act. Judge between your servants, condemning the guilty by bringing down on their heads what they have done, and vindicating the innocent by treating them in accordance with their innocence.

33 “When your people Israel have been defeated by an enemy because they have sinned against you, and when they turn back to you and give praise to your name, praying and making supplication to you in this temple,

34 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land you gave to their ancestors.

35 “When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you, and when they pray toward this place and give praise to your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them,

36 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Teach them the right way to live, and send rain on the land you gave your people for an inheritance.

37 “When famine or plague comes to the land, or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers, or when an enemy besieges them in any of their cities, whatever disaster or disease may come,

38 and when a prayer or plea is made by anyone among your people Israel—being aware of the afflictions of their own hearts, and spreading out their hands toward this temple—

39 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive and act; deal with everyone according to all they do, since you know their hearts (for you alone know every human heart),

40 so that they will fear you all the time they live in the land you gave our ancestors.

41 “As for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your name—

42 for they will hear of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm—when they come and pray toward this temple,

43 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.

44 “When your people go to war against their enemies, wherever you send them, and when they pray to the LORD toward the city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name,

45 then hear from heaven their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.

46 “When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you become angry with them and give them over to their enemies, who take them captive to their own lands, far away or near;

47 and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captors and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly’;

48 and if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and pray to you toward the land you gave their ancestors, toward the city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name;

49 then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.

50 And forgive your people, who have sinned against you; forgive all the offenses they have committed against you, and cause their captors to show them mercy;

51 for they are your people and your inheritance, whom you brought out of Egypt, out of that iron-smelting furnace.

52 “May your eyes be open to your servant’s plea and to the plea of your people Israel, and may you listen to them whenever they cry out to you.

53 For you singled them out from all the nations of the world to be your own inheritance, just as you declared through your servant Moses when you, Sovereign LORD, brought our ancestors out of Egypt.”

54 When Solomon had finished all these prayers and supplications to the LORD, he rose from before the altar of the LORD, where he had been kneeling with his hands spread out toward heaven.

55 He stood and blessed the whole assembly of Israel in a loud voice, saying:

56 “Praise be to the LORD, who has given rest to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he gave through his servant Moses.

57 May the LORD our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us nor forsake us.

58 May he turn our hearts to him, to walk in obedience to him and keep the commands, decrees and laws he gave our ancestors.

59 And may these words of mine, which I have prayed before the LORD, be near to the LORD our God day and night, that he may uphold the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel according to each day’s need,

60 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD is God and that there is no other.

61 And may your hearts be fully committed to the LORD our God, to live by his decrees and obey his commands, as at this time.”

62 Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices before the LORD.

63 Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to the LORD: twenty-two thousand cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats. So the king and all the Israelites dedicated the temple of the LORD.

64 On that same day the king consecrated the middle part of the courtyard in front of the temple of the LORD, and there he offered burnt offerings, grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings, because the bronze altar that stood before the LORD was too small to hold the burnt offerings, the grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings.

65 So Solomon observed the festival at that time, and all Israel with him—a vast assembly, people from Lebo Hamath to the Wadi of Egypt. They celebrated it before the LORD our God for seven days and seven days more, fourteen days in all.

66 On the following day he sent the people away. They blessed the king and then went home, joyful and glad in heart for all the good things the LORD had done for his servant David and his people Israel.

1 Kings 8: 1-66

🍁 1 Kings 8: 1-13
The Ark Brought into the Temple

Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the fathers’ houses of the people of Israel, before King Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion
And all the men of Israel assembled to King Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month

And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark
And they brought up the ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting, and all the holy vessels that were in the tent; the priests and the Levites brought them up

And King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, who had assembled before him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and oxen that they could not be counted or numbered
Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place in the inner sanctuary of the house, in the Most Holy Place, underneath the wings of the cherubim

For the cherubim spread out their wings over the place of the ark, so that the cherubim overshadowed the ark and its poles
And the poles were so long that the ends of the poles were seen from the Holy Place before the inner sanctuary; but they could not be seen from outside

And they are there to this day
There was nothing in the ark except the two tablets of stone that Moses put there at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt

And when the priests came out of the Holy Place, a cloud filled the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord

Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in thick darkness
I have indeed built you an exalted house, a place for you to dwell in forever

🍁 1 Kings 8: 14-21
Solomon’s Speech at Completion of the Work

Then the king turned around and blessed all the assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel stood
And he said, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who with his hand has fulfilled what he promised with his mouth to David my father, saying, ‘Since the day that I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel in which to build a house, that my name might be there

But I chose David to be over my people Israel
Now it was in the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel
But the Lord said to David my father, ‘Whereas it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that [house, but your son who shall be born to you shall build the house for my name

Now the Lord has fulfilled his promise that he made
For I have risen in the place of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised, and I have built the house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel
And there I have provided a place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with our fathers, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt

🍁 1 Kings 8: 22-53
Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication

Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven, and said, “O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you, in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing steadfast love to your servants who walk before you with all their heart; you have kept with your servant David my father what you declared to him

You spoke with your mouth, and with your hand have fulfilled it this day
Now therefore, O Lord, God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father what you have promised him, saying, ‘You shall not lack a man to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me as you have walked before me

Now therefore, O God of Israel, let your word be confirmed, which you have spoken to your servant David my father

But will God indeed dwell on the earth?
Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house that I have built
Yet have regard to the prayer of your servant and to his plea, O Lord my God, listening to the cry and to the prayer that your servant prays before you this day, that your eyes may be open night and day toward this house, the place of which you have said,

‘My name shall be there,’ that you may listen to the prayer that your servant offers toward this place
And listen to the plea of your servant and of your people Israel, when they pray toward this place
And listen in heaven your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive

If a man sins against his neighbor and is made to take an oath and comes and swears his oath before your altar in this house, then hear in heaven and act and judge your servants, condemning the guilty by bringing his conduct on his own head, and vindicating the righteous by rewarding him according to his righteousness

When your people Israel are defeated before the enemy because they have sinned against you, and if they turn again to you and acknowledge your name and pray and plead with you in this house, then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them again to the land that you gave to their fathers

When heaven is shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against you, if they pray toward this place and acknowledge your name and turn from their sin, when you afflict them, then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel, when you teach them the good way in which they should walk, and grant rain upon your land, which you have given to your people as an inheritance

If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence or blight or mildew or locust or caterpillar, if their enemy besieges them in the land at their gates, whatever plague, whatever sickness there is, whatever prayer, whatever plea is made by any man or by all your people Israel, each knowing the affliction of his own heart and stretching out his hands toward this house, then hear in heaven your dwelling place and forgive and act and render to each whose heart you know, according to all his ways (for you, you only, know the hearts of all the children of mankind), that they may fear you all the days that they live in the land that you gave to our fathers

Likewise, when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes from a far country for your name’s sake (for they shall hear of your great name and your mighty hand, and of your outstretched arm), when he comes and prays toward this house, ²²hear in heaven your dwelling place and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to you, in order that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your people Israel, and that they may know that this house that I have built is called by your name

If your people go out to battle against their enemy, by whatever way you you send them, and they pray to the Lord toward the city that you have chosen and the house that I have built for your name, then hear in heaven their prayer and their plea, and maintain their cause

If they sin against you for there is no one who does not sin and you are angry with them and give them to an enemy, so that they are carried away captive to the land of the enemy, far off or near, yet if they turn their heart in the land to which they have been carried captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captors, saying,

‘We have sinned and have acted perversely and wickedly, if they repent with all their mind and with all their heart in the land of their enemies, who carried them captive, and pray to you toward their land, which you gave to their fathers, the city that you have chosen, and the house that I have built for your name, then hear in heaven your dwelling place their prayer and their plea, and maintain their cause and forgive your people who have sinned against you, and all their transgressions that they have committed against you, and grant them compassion in the sight of those who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them

Let your eyes be open to the plea of your servant and to the plea of your people Israel, giving ear to them whenever they call to you

For you separated them from among all the peoples of the earth to be your heritage, as you declared through Moses your servant, when you brought our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord God

🍁 1 Kings 8: 54-61
Solomon Blesses the Assembly

Now as Solomon finished offering all this prayer and plea to the Lord, he arose from before the altar of the Lord, where he had knelt with hands outstretched toward heaven

And he stood and blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying, Blessed be the Lord who has given rest to his people Israel, according to all that he promised

Not one word has failed of all his good promise, which he spoke by Moses his servant
The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers

May he not leave us or forsake us, that he may incline our hearts to him, to walk in all his ways and to keep his commandments, his statutes, and his rules, which he commanded our fathers

Let these words of mine, with which I have pleaded before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, and may he maintain the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel, as each day requires, that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God; there is no other

Let your heart therefore be wholly true to the Lord our God, walking in his statutes and keeping his commandments, as at this day

🍁 1 Kings 8: 62-66
Solomon Dedicates the Temple

Then the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before the Lord
Solomon offered as peace offerings to the Lord 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep
So the king and all the people of Israel dedicated the house of the Lord

The same day the king consecrated the middle of the court that was before the house of the Lord, for there he offered the burnt offering and the grain offering and the fat pieces of the peace offerings, because the bronze altar that was before the Lord was too small to receive the burnt offering and the grain offering and the fat pieces of the peace offerings

So Solomon held the feast at that time, and all Israel with him, a great assembly, from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of Egypt, before the Lord our God, seven days

On the eighth day he sent the people away, and they blessed the king and went to their homes joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the Lord had shown to David his servant and to Israel his people.

1 Kings Chapter 8 Read More »

1 Kings Chapter 7

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1 Kings Chapter 7: 1-51

It took Solomon thirteen years, however, to complete the construction of his palace.

2 He built the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon a hundred cubits long, fifty wide and thirty high, with four rows of cedar columns supporting trimmed cedar beams.

3 It was roofed with cedar above the beams that rested on the columns—forty-five beams, fifteen to a row. 4 Its windows were placed high in sets of three, facing each other.

5 All the doorways had rectangular frames; they were in the front part in sets of three, facing each other.

6 He made a colonnade fifty cubits long and thirty wide. In front of it was a portico, and in front of that were pillars and an overhanging roof.

7 He built the throne hall, the Hall of Justice, where he was to judge, and he covered it with cedar from floor to ceiling.

8 And the palace in which he was to live, set farther back, was similar in design. Solomon also made a palace like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom he had married.

9 All these structures, from the outside to the great courtyard and from foundation to eaves, were made of blocks of high-grade stone cut to size and smoothed on their inner and outer faces.

10 The foundations were laid with large stones of good quality, some measuring ten cubits and some eight.

11 Above were high-grade stones, cut to size, and cedar beams.

12 The great courtyard was surrounded by a wall of three courses of dressed stone and one course of trimmed cedar beams, as was the inner courtyard of the temple of the LORD with its portico.
The Temple’s Furnishings

13 King Solomon sent to Tyre and brought Huram,

14 whose mother was a widow from the tribe of Naphtali and whose father was from Tyre and a skilled craftsman in bronze. Huram was filled with wisdom, with understanding and with knowledge to do all kinds of bronze work. He came to King Solomon and did all the work assigned to him.

15 He cast two bronze pillars, each eighteen cubits high and twelve cubits in circumference.

16 He also made two capitals of cast bronze to set on the tops of the pillars; each capital was five cubits high.

17 A network of interwoven chains adorned the capitals on top of the pillars, seven for each capital.

18 He made pomegranates in two rows encircling each network to decorate the capitals on top of the pillars. He did the same for each capital.

19 The capitals on top of the pillars in the portico were in the shape of lilies, four cubits high.

20 On the capitals of both pillars, above the bowl-shaped part next to the network, were the two hundred pomegranates in rows all around.

21 He erected the pillars at the portico of the temple. The pillar to the south he named Jakin and the one to the north Boaz.

22 The capitals on top were in the shape of lilies. And so the work on the pillars was completed.

23 He made the Sea of cast metal, circular in shape, measuring ten cubits from rim to rim and five cubits high. It took a line of thirty cubits[o] to measure around it.

24 Below the rim, gourds encircled it—ten to a cubit. The gourds were cast in two rows in one piece with the Sea.

25 The Sea stood on twelve bulls, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south and three facing east. The Sea rested on top of them, and their hindquarters were toward the center.

26 It was a handbreadth in thickness, and its rim was like the rim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held two thousand baths.

27 He also made ten movable stands of bronze; each was four cubits long, four wide and three high.[r]

28 This is how the stands were made: They had side panels attached to uprights.

29 On the panels between the uprights were lions, bulls and cherubim—and on the uprights as well. Above and below the lions and bulls were wreaths of hammered work.

30 Each stand had four bronze wheels with bronze axles, and each had a basin resting on four supports, cast with wreaths on each side.

31 On the inside of the stand there was an opening that had a circular frame one cubit deep. This opening was round, and with its basework it measured a cubit and a half. Around its opening there was engraving. The panels of the stands were square, not round.

32 The four wheels were under the panels, and the axles of the wheels were attached to the stand. The diameter of each wheel was a cubit and a half.

33 The wheels were made like chariot wheels; the axles, rims, spokes and hubs were all of cast metal.

34 Each stand had four handles, one on each corner, projecting from the stand.

35 At the top of the stand there was a circular band half a cubit deep. The supports and panels were attached to the top of the stand.

36 He engraved cherubim, lions and palm trees on the surfaces of the supports and on the panels, in every available space, with wreaths all around.

37 This is the way he made the ten stands. They were all cast in the same molds and were identical in size and shape.

38 He then made ten bronze basins, each holding forty baths[v] and measuring four cubits across, one basin to go on each of the ten stands.

39 He placed five of the stands on the south side of the temple and five on the north. He placed the Sea on the south side, at the southeast corner of the temple.

40 He also made the pots[w] and shovels and sprinkling bowls.
So Huram finished all the work he had undertaken for King Solomon in the temple of the LORD:

41 the two pillars;
the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars;
the two sets of network decorating the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars;

42 the four hundred pomegranates for the two sets of network (two rows of pomegranates for each network decorating the bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars);

43 the ten stands with their ten basins;

44 the Sea and the twelve bulls under it;

45 the pots, shovels and sprinkling bowls.
All these objects that Huram made for King Solomon for the temple of the LORD were of burnished bronze.

46 The king had them cast in clay molds in the plain of the Jordan between Sukkoth and Zarethan.

47 Solomon left all these things unweighed, because there were so many; the weight of the bronze was not determined.

48 Solomon also made all the furnishings that were in the LORD’s temple:
the golden altar;
the golden table on which was the bread of the Presence;

49 the lampstands of pure gold (five on the right and five on the left, in front of the inner sanctuary);
the gold floral work and lamps and tongs;

50 the pure gold basins, wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, dishes and censers;
and the gold sockets for the doors of the innermost room, the Most Holy Place, and also for the doors of the main hall of the temple.

51 When all the work King Solomon had done for the temple of the LORD was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated—the silver and gold and the furnishings—and he placed them in the treasuries of the LORD’s temple.

1 Kings 7: 1-51

🍁 1 Kings 7: 1-12
Solomon’s Other Buildings

Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished his entire house

He built the House of the Forest of Lebanon
Its length was a hundred cubits and its breadth fifty cubits and its height thirty cubits, and it was built on four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams on the pillars
And it was covered with cedar above the chambers that were on the forty-five pillars, fifteen in each row
There were window frames in three rows, and window opposite window in three tiers
All the doorways and windows had square frames, and window was opposite window in three tiers

And he made the Hall of Pillars; its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth thirty cubits
There was a porch in front with pillars, and a canopy in front of them

And he made the Hall of the Throne where he was to pronounce judgment, even the Hall of Judgment. It was finished with cedar from floor to rafters

His own house where he was to dwell, in the other court back of the hall, was of like workmanship
Solomon also made a house like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter whom he had taken in marriage

All these were made of costly stones, cut according to measure, sawed with saws, back and front, even from the foundation to the coping, and from the outside to the great court
The foundation was of costly stones, huge stones, stones of eight and ten cubits
And above were costly stones, cut according to measurement, and cedar
The great court had three courses of cut stone all around, and a course of cedar beams; so had the inner court of the house of the Lord and the vestibule of the house

🍁 1 Kings 7: 13-14
Hiram the Craftsman

And King Solomon sent and brought Hiram from Tyre
He was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in bronze
And he was full of wisdom, understanding, and skill for making any work in bronze
He came to King Solomon and did all his work

🍁 1 Kings 7: 15-22
The Bronze Pillars for the Temple

He cast two pillars of bronze Eighteen cubits was the height of one pillar, and a line of twelve cubits measured its circumference
It was hollow, and its thickness was four fingers
The second pillar was the same
He also made two capitals of cast bronze to set on the tops of the pillars
The height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits
There were lattices of checker work with wreaths of chain work for the capitals on the tops of the pillars, a lattice for the one capital and a lattice for the other capital
Likewise he made pomegranates in two rows around the one latticework to cover the capital that was on the top of the pillar, and he did the same with the other capital
Now the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars in the vestibule were of lily-work, four cubits
The capitals were on the two pillars and also above the rounded projection which was beside the latticework There were two hundred pomegranates in two rows all around, and so with the other capital
He set up the pillars at the vestibule of the temple
He set up the pillar on the south and called its name Jachin, and he set up the pillar on the north and called its name Boaz
And on the tops of the pillars was lily-work
Thus the work of the pillars was finished

🍁 1 Kings 7: 23-26
The Sea and the Oxen

Then he made the sea of cast metal It was round, ten cubits from brim to brim, and five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits measured its circumference

Under its brim were gourds, for ten cubits, compassing the sea all around
The gourds were in two rows, cast with it when it was cast
It stood on twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east
The sea was set on them, and all their rear parts were inward
Its thickness was a handbreadth, and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily
It held two thousand baths

🍁 1 Kings 7: 27-39
The Carts and the Lavers

He also made the ten stands of bronze
Each stand was four cubits long, four cubits wide, and three cubits high
This was the construction of the stands: they had panels, and the panels were set in the frames, and on the panels that were set in the frames were lions, oxen, and cherubim
On the frames, both above and below the lions and oxen, there were wreaths of beveled work

Moreover, each stand had four bronze wheels and axles of bronze, and at the four corners were supports for a basin
The supports were cast with wreaths at the side of each
Its opening was within a crown that projected upward one cubit
Its opening was round, as a pedestal is made, a cubit and a half deep
At its opening there were carvings, and its panels were square, not round
And the four wheels were underneath the panels
The axles of the wheels were of one piece with the stands, and the height of a wheel was a cubit and a half
The wheels were made like a chariot wheel; their axles, their rims, their spokes, and their hubs were all cast
There were four supports at the four corners of each stand
The supports were of one piece with the stands
And on the top of the stand there was a round band half a cubit high; and on the top of the stand its stays and its panels were of one piece with it
And on the surfaces of its stays and on its panels, he carved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, according to the space of each, with wreaths all around
After this manner he made the ten stands
All of them were cast alike, of the same measure and the same form

And he made ten basins of bronze Each basin held forty baths, each basin measured four cubits, and there was a basin for each of the ten stands
And he set the stands, five on the south side of the house, and five on the north side of the house
And he set the sea at the southeast corner of the house

🍁 1 Kings 7: 40-51
Furnishings of the Temple

Hiram also made the pots, the shovels, and the basins
So Hiram finished all the work that he did for King Solomon on the house of the Lord: the the two pillars, the two bowls of the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars, and the two latticeworks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars; and the four hundred pomegranates for the two latticeworks, two rows of pomegranates for each latticework, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars; the ten stands, and the ten basins on the stands; and the one sea, and the twelve oxen underneath the sea

Now the pots, the shovels, and the basins, all these vessels in the house of the Lord, which Hiram made for King Solomon, were of burnished bronze
In the plain of the Jordan the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan
And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because there were so many of them; the weight of the bronze was not ascertained

So Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of the Lord: the golden altar, the golden table for the bread of the Presence, the lampstands of pure gold, five on the south side and five on the north, before the inner sanctuary; the flowers, the lamps, and the tongs, of gold; the cups, snuffers, basins, dishes for incense, and fire pans, of pure gold; and the sockets of gold, for the doors of the innermost part of the house, the Most Holy Place, and for the doors of the nave of the temple

Thus all the work that King Solomon did on the house of the Lord was finished
And Solomon brought in the things that David his father had dedicated, the silver, the gold, and the vessels, and stored them in the treasuries of the house of the Lord

1 Kings Chapter 7 Read More »