World English Bible · The united kingdom
1 Chronicles 28
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assembled all the princes of Israel, the princes of the tribes, the captains of the companies who the king by division, the captains of thousands, the captains of hundreds, and the over all the substance and possessions of the king and of his sons, with the officers and the , even all the of valor, to . Then the king stood up on his feet and said, "Hear me, my brothers and my people! As for me, it was in to build a house of rest for the , and for the of our ; and I had prepared for the building. But said to me, 'You shall not build a house for my name, because you are a man of war and have shed .' However , the of Israel, chose me out of all the house of to be king over Israel . For he has chosen Judah to be prince; and in the house of Judah, the house of ; and among the sons of he took pleasure in me to make me king over all Israel. Of all my sons (for has given me many sons), he has chosen my son to sit on of kingdom over Israel. He said to me, ', your son, shall build my house and my courts; for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his . I will establish if he continues to do my and my ordinances, as it is today.' Now therefore, in the sight of all Israel, , and in the audience of our , observe and seek out all of your , that you may possess this good land, and leave it for an to your children after you . You, my son, know the of your , and him with a perfect and with a willing ; for searches all , and understands all the imaginations of the . If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off . Take heed now, for has chosen you to build a house for . Be strong, and do it." Then gave to his son the plans for the porch of , for its houses, for its treasuries, for its upper rooms, for its inner rooms, for the place of the ; and the plans of all that he had by , for the courts of house, for all the surrounding rooms, for the treasuries of house, and for the treasuries of the dedicated things; also for the divisions of the priests and the , for all the work of the of house, and for all the vessels of in house— 14of gold by weight for the gold for all vessels of every kind of , for all the vessels of silver by weight, for all vessels of every kind of ; by weight also for the lamp stands of gold, and for its lamps, of gold, by weight for every lamp stand and for its lamps; and for the lamp stands of silver, by weight for every lamp stand and for its lamps, according to the use of every lamp stand; and the gold by weight for the tables of show bread, for every table; and silver for the tables of silver; and the forks, the basins, and the , of pure gold; and for the golden bowls by weight for every bowl; and for the silver bowls by weight for every bowl; and for the , refined gold by weight; and gold for the plans for the chariot, and the that spread out and cover the . "All this", said, "I have been made to understand in writing from hand, even all the works of this pattern." said to his son, "Be strong and courageous, and do it. Don't be afraid, nor be dismayed, for , even my , is with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you, until all the work for the of house is finished. Behold, there are the divisions of the priests and the for all the of house. Every willing man who has skill for any kind of shall be with you in all kinds of work. Also the captains and all the people will be entirely at your command."
A public domain modern English translation, free to read and share. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · The united kingdom, 1050 BC to 931 BC ›
Saul, David, and Solomon. A rare window when both Egypt and Mesopotamia are weak, which is how a small kingdom in the corridor between them could briefly become a regional power.
- The power vacuum
- This is the whole political explanation for the united kingdom. Egypt is fragmented, Assyria is recovering but still local, the Hittites are gone, and nobody is in a position to object to a strong state in the corridor. It lasts about a century, and Israel's golden age fits exactly inside it.
- Phoenicia
- Tyre under Hiram is the commercial power of the coast, and supplies the cedar, the craftsmen, and the shipping for Solomon's building programme. The alliance is trade, not charity: Israel had grain and a land route, Tyre had timber and ships.
- Egypt
- Weak enough that a pharaoh gives a daughter in marriage to an Israelite king, which is the opposite of Egyptian practice in stronger centuries. Late in the era it recovers under a new house, and Shishak will invade within five years of Solomon's death.
- Further afield
- Greece is still in its dark age but beginning to recover, and will adopt the Phoenician alphabet within a century or two. Carthage is founded by settlers from Tyre by tradition in 814 BC. In the Americas the Olmec centre shifts to La Venta.