1 Chronicles 22

1 And David said, “This is the house of the Lord God, and this is the altar for the whole burnt offering for Israel.”

2 And David gave the word to gather all the newcomers in the land of Israel, and he appointed stonecutters to cut dressed stones for the building of a house for God. [a] 3 And David made ready a great deal of iron for the nails of the doorways and the gates, and for the door-pivots; and bronze in abundance — there was no weighing it; [b] 4 and cedar wood past counting, for the Sidonians and the Tyrians brought cedar wood in abundance to David.

5 And David said, “Solomon my son is a tender young boy, and the house to be built for the Lord is to be for greatness on high, for a name and for glory in all the earth. I will make preparation for it.” And David made ready in abundance before his death. [c]

6 And he called Solomon his son and commanded him to build the house for the Lord God of Israel. 7 And David said to Solomon, “My child, it came into my soul to build a house for the name of the Lord God. 8 But the word of the Lord came upon me, saying, ‘You have poured out blood in abundance, and you have made great wars. You will not build a house for my name, because you have poured out much blood on the earth before me.

9 See, a son is being born to you. He will be a man of rest, and I will give him rest from all his enemies around him; for Solomon is his name, and I will give peace and quiet to Israel in his days. [d] 10 He will build a house for my name, and he will be a son to me and I will be a father to him, and I will set the throne of his kingdom upright in Israel forever.’

11 And now, my son, the Lord will be with you, and he will prosper you, and you will build a house for the Lord your God, as he spoke about you. 12 Only may the Lord give you wisdom and understanding, and make you strong over Israel, and may you keep and do the law of the Lord your God. 13 Then he will prosper you, if you take care to do the decrees and the judgments that the Lord commanded Moses for Israel. Be brave and strong. Do not be afraid and do not be frightened. [e]

14 And see — in my poverty I have made ready for the house of the Lord about 3,750 tons of gold and about 37,500 tons of silver, and bronze and iron past weighing, for it is in abundance; and I have made ready timber and stones. And you are to add to these. [f] 15 And with you, in abundance, are men who do the work: craftsmen and builders in stone and carpenters in wood, and every man skilled in every kind of work, [g] 16 in gold, in silver, in bronze and in iron — there is no counting it. Get up and do the work, and the Lord be with you.”

17 And David commanded all the leaders of Israel to help Solomon his son: 18 “Is the Lord not with you? And he has given you rest all around, for he has given into your hands those who live in the land, and the land has been made subject before the Lord and before his people. 19 Now give your hearts and your souls to seek the Lord your God. And rise up and build a holy place for the Lord your God, to bring in the ark of the covenant of the Lord and the holy vessels of God to the house that is being built for the name of the Lord.” [h]