1 Tawarikh 28:9-21

28:9 “And you, Solomon my son, obey ¹  the God of your father and serve him with a submissive attitude and a willing spirit, ²  for the Lord examines all minds and understands every motive of one’s thoughts. If you seek him, he will let you find him, ³  but if you abandon him, he will reject you permanently. 28:10 Realize ⁴  now that the Lord has chosen you to build a temple as his sanctuary. Be strong and do it!”

28:11 David gave to his son Solomon the blueprints for the temple porch, ⁵  its buildings, its treasuries, ⁶  its upper areas, its inner rooms, and the room ⁷  for atonement. 28:12 He gave him ⁸  the blueprints of all he envisioned ⁹  for the courts of the Lord’s temple, all the surrounding rooms, the storehouses of God’s temple, and the storehouses for the holy items.

28:13 He gave him the regulations ¹⁰  for the divisions of priests and Levites, for all the assigned responsibilities within the Lord’s temple, and for all the items used in the service of the Lord’s temple.

28:14 He gave him ¹¹  the prescribed weight for all the gold items to be used in various types of service in the Lord’s temple, for all the silver items to be used in various types of service, ¹²  28:15 for the gold lampstands and their gold lamps, including the weight of each lampstand and its lamps, for the silver lampstands, including the weight of each lampstand and its lamps, according to the prescribed use of each lampstand, 28:16 for the gold used in the display tables, including the amount to be used in each table, for the silver to be used in the silver tables, 28:17 for the pure gold used for the meat forks, bowls, and jars, for the small gold bowls, including the weight for each bowl, for the small silver bowls, including the weight for each bowl, 28:18 and for the refined gold of the incense altar.

He gave him ¹³  the blueprint for the seat ¹⁴  of the gold cherubim that spread their wings ¹⁵  and provide shelter for the ark of the Lord’s covenant.

28:19 David said, ¹⁶  “All of this I put in writing as the Lord directed me and gave me insight regarding the details of the blueprints.” ¹⁷ 

28:20 David said to his son Solomon: “Be strong and brave! Do it! Don’t be afraid and don’t panic! ¹⁸  For the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not leave you or abandon you before all the work for the service of the Lord’s temple is finished. 28:21 Here are the divisions of the priests and Levites who will perform all the service of God’s temple. All the willing and skilled men are ready to assist you in all the work and perform their service. ¹⁹  The officials and all the people are ready to follow your instructions.” ²⁰ 

[28:9]  ¹ tn Heb “know.”

[28:9]  ² tn Heb “with a complete heart and a willing being.”

[28:9]  ³ tn Heb “he will allow himself to be found by you.”

[28:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “see.”

[28:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “for the porch.” The word “temple” was supplied in the translation for clarity.

[28:11]  ⁶ tn Or “storerooms.”

[28:11]  ⁷ tn Heb “house.”

[28:12]  ⁸ tn The words “he gave him” are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

[28:12]  ⁹ tn Heb “the pattern of all which was in the spirit with him.”

[28:13]  ¹⁰ tn The words “he gave him the regulations” are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

[28:14]  ¹¹ tn The words “he gave him” are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

[28:14]  ¹² tn Heb “for the gold, by the weight, for the gold, for all the items of service and service, for all the items of silver by weight for all the items of service and service.”

[28:18]  ¹³ tn The words “he gave him” are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

[28:18]  ¹⁴ tc The Hebrew text reads מֶרְכָּבָה (merkavah, “chariot”), but the final he (ה) is probably dittographic – note the prefixed he (ה) on the immediately following word. It is preferable to read מֶרְכָּב (merkav, “seat”).

[28:18]  ¹⁵ tc The Hebrew text does not have “their wings,” but the word כְּנָפַיִם (kÿnafayim, “wings”) has probably been accidentally omitted by homoioteleuton. Note that the immediately preceding לְפֹרְשִׂים (lÿforsim) also ends in mem (ם).

[28:19]  ¹⁶ tn The words “David said” are supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.

[28:19]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the whole in writing from the hand of the Lord upon me, he gave insight [for] all the workings of the plan.”

[28:20]  ¹⁸ tn Or perhaps, “don’t be discouraged.”

[28:21]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “and with you in all work, for every willing [one] in skill for all service.”

[28:21]  ²⁰ tn Heb “and the officials and all the people to all your words.”