#546 The Oddity

And David the king said to all the assembly, “Solomon my son, whom alone God has chosen, is young and inexperienced, and the work is great, for the palace will not be for man but for the Lord God. 2 So I have provided for the house of my God, so far as I was able, the gold for the things of gold, the silver for the things of silver, and the bronze for the things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood, besides great quantities of onyx and stones for setting, antimony, colored stones, all sorts of precious stones and marble.3 Moreover, in addition to all that I have provided for the holy house, I have a treasure of my own of gold and silver, and because of my devotion to the house of my God I give it to the house of my God:4 3,000 talents[a] of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and 7,000 talents of refined silver, for overlaying the walls of the house,[b] 5 and for all the work to be done by craftsmen, gold for the things of gold and silver for the things of silver. Who then will offer willingly, consecrating himself[c]today to the Lord?”

6 Then the leaders of fathers' houses made their freewill offerings, as did also the leaders of the tribes, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and the officers over the king's work. 7 They gave for the service of the house of God 5,000 talents and 10,000 darics[d] of gold, 10,000 talents of silver, 18,000 talents of bronze and 100,000 talents of iron. 8 And whoever had precious stones gave them to the treasury of the house of the Lord, in the care of Jehiel the Gershonite. 9 Then the people rejoiced because they had given willingly, for with a whole heart they had offered freely to the Lord. David the king also rejoiced greatly.

David Prays in the Assembly

10 Therefore David blessed the Lord in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. 11 Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. 12 Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. 13 And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name.

14 “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. 15 For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding.[e] 16 O Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand and is all your own. 17 I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you. 18 O Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep forever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of your people, and direct their hearts toward you. 19 Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision.”

20 Then David said to all the assembly, “Bless the Lord your God.” And all the assembly blessed the Lord, the God of their fathers, and bowed their heads and paid homage to the Lord and to the king. 21 And they offered sacrifices to the Lord, and on the next day offered burnt offerings to the Lord, 1,000 bulls, 1,000 rams, and 1,000 lambs, with their drink offerings, and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel. 22 And they ate and drank before the Lord on that day with great gladness.

Solomon Anointed King

And they made Solomon the son of David king the second time, and they anointed him as prince for the Lord, and Zadok as priest.

23 Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord as king in place of David his father. And he prospered, and all Israel obeyed him. 24 All the leaders and the mighty men, and also all the sons of King David, pledged their allegiance to King Solomon. 25 And the Lord made Solomon very great in the sight of all Israel and bestowed on him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel.

The Death of David

26 Thus David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel. 27 The time that he reigned over Israel was forty years. He reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 28 Then he died at a good age, full of days, riches, and honor. And Solomon his son reigned in his place.29 Now the acts of King David, from first to last, are written in the Chronicles of Samuel the seer, and in the Chronicles of Nathan the prophet, and in the Chronicles of Gad the seer, 30 with accounts of all his rule and his might and of the circumstances that came upon him and upon Israel and upon all the kingdoms of the countries. 1 Chronicles 29 ESV

What an honest statement, though he is my son he is young, inexperienced. This is not just ordinary work, as if being king was not strange enough, he must also build the Lord's house. This is a most sacred undertaking, for Christ will compare it to himself, that this which requires so much care, will be torn down and raised up again. It is His foot stool for even the heavens cannot contain or express the full glory of the One Who created them. Solomon has the idea to do this passed down from his father, the honor from God, the mind and ability from God. David has taken great pains to insure that all is planned and prepared ahead of time as God has revealed to him. It is his honor to honor his God. Solomon is receiving a work that has been prepared for him, an honor that has been passed down to him from his father's relationship with God. 

And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 16 And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. 17 And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” 18 And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. 19 And when evening came they[b] went out of the city. Mark 11: 15-19

Do you not know that you[c] are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple. 1 Corinthians 3: 16-17

David has set the example of the significance of this work, in that out of his abundance, he has given over and abundantly. He does not excise a tax from the people, this is not a force of  man's will, kings cannot cause others to give cheerfully, wisely and of a changed heart. This is what I have done and what is on my own heart, who will join me? The Lord loves a cheerful giver, and this speaks volumes against so many cult types of governments that pose as the god and father of their people. Many kings will spend much on the affairs of state, the grandeur of empire and to their own honor, but this king recognizes that it is the greatest gift to give back to God's honor, for no man, no kingdom exists without Him. We cannot even give unto God or other what He has not given already to us. "Who am I and what is my people?" How is it that we are allowed, granted that we may do this willingly? We are like shadows, only existing because of something more real and permanent. The length of our days is held so tightly by our minds and then disregarded by the breadth of eternity, the measurable against the immeasurable. All that we have to do this work with comes from God's hand, so we should have our hands open to receive His work. There is nothing here in David's discourse that even alludes to a burden, it is pure joy and a blessing to give. I cannot even find words sufficient for what he is saying here, to explain what is not just felt, but real, better than comfort or riches, exceeding your broken desires and expectations. He owes us nothing, and we have nothing to give Him that is not from Him. Oh Lord, grant to my son a whole heart, don't let him forsake this. The knowledge of God comes from God, the desire of God comes from a changed heart, which comes from God. You don't have to build the house, you want to build the house, and this is only part of the house for God is bringing up One from His own house in your house. This will all point to the Son of David, the Christ. Talk about an honor, long after you are buried, one will come up from your seed, from your city and your God, and He will conquer sin and the grave. 

And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50 And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way. Mark 10: 46-52

Bless the Lord, for He is every blessing. Bless the Lord for here we share in the sacrifice, we eat at His table, and breathe at His word. If you lift Him up, then you understand, you see a bit more, hear a little better, because He is closer to His place in Your mind. To Him belongs everything, this should include my whole being, for what am I or what do I have that He has not given me, and what should I have in opposition to His holiness that He has also for a time withheld. What shall I have if I find Christ, but that which was given again to me, that which I did not make or earn? What can I give Him that does not belong to Him already? I have been a thief all along.