Apr 8 - 2 Chronicles 1-5
2 Chronicles
1Then Solomon, the son of David, was strengthened in his reign, and the Lord his God was with him, and he magnified him on high2And Solomon instructed the whole of Israel, the tribunes, and the centurions, and the rulers, and the judges over all of Israel, and the leaders of the families3And he went away with the entire multitude to the high place of Gibeon, where the tabernacle of the covenant of the Lord was, which Moses, the servant of God, made in the wilderness4For David had brought the ark of God from Kiriath-jearim, to the place that he had prepared for it, and where he had pitched a tabernacle for it, that is, in Jerusalem5Also, the altar of brass, which Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, had constructed, was there before the tabernacle of the Lord. And so Solomon sought it, with the entire assembly6And Solomon ascended to the bronze altar, before the tabernacle of the covenant of the Lord, and he offered upon it one thousand victims7But behold, during that night God appeared to him, saying, "Request what you wish, so that I may give it to you.8And Solomon said to God: "You have shown great mercy to my father David. And you have appointed me as king in his place9Now therefore, O Lord God, let your word be fulfilled, which you promised to my father David. For you have made me king over your great people, who are as innumerable as the dust of the earth10Give to me wisdom and understanding, so that I may enter and depart before your people. For who is able worthily to judge this, your people, who are so great?11Then God said to Solomon: "Since this is the choice that pleased your heart, and you did not request wealth and substance and glory, nor the lives of those who hate you, nor even many days of life, since instead you requested wisdom and knowledge so that you may be able to judge my people, over whom I have appointed you as king12wisdom and knowledge are granted to you. And I will give to you wealth and substance and glory, so that none of the kings either before you or after you will be similar to you.13Then Solomon went from the high place of Gibeon to Jerusalem, before the tabernacle of the covenant, and he reigned over Israel14And he gathered to himself chariots and horsemen. And they brought to him one thousand four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. And he caused them to be in the cities of the chariots, and with the king in Jerusalem15And the king offered silver and gold in Jerusalem as if they were stones, and cedar trees as if they were sycamores, which grow in the plains in a great multitude16Then horses were brought to him from Egypt and from Kue, by the negotiators of the king, who went and bought for a price17a four-horse chariot for six hundred pieces of silver, and a horse for one hundred fifty. A similar offer to purchase was made known among all the kingdoms of the Hittites, and among the kings of Syria
1And Solomon resolved to build a house to the name of the Lord, and a palace for himself2And he numbered seventy thousand men to carry upon shoulders, and eighty thousand who were hewing stones in the mountains, and three thousand six hundred as their overseers3Also, he sent to Hiram, the king of Tyre, saying: "Just as you did for my father David, when you sent him cedar wood, so that he might build a house for himself, in which he then lived4do so also for me, so that I may build a house to the name of the Lord my God, so that I may consecrate it for the burning of incense before him, and for the smoke of aromatics, and for the perpetual bread of the presence, and for the holocausts, in morning and in evening, as well as on the Sabbaths and new moons and solemnities of the Lord our God forever, which have been commanded to Israel5For the house that I desire to build is great. For our God is great, above all gods6So then, who will be able prevail, so that he may build a worthy house for him? If heaven and the heavens of heavens cannot contain him, what am I that I would be able to build a house to him? But let it be for this only, so that incense may be burned before him7Therefore, send to me a learned man, who knows how to work with gold and silver, with brass and iron, with purple, scarlet, and hyacinth, and who knows how to carve engravings, along with these artisans that I have with me in Judea and Jerusalem, whom my father David has prepared8Then too, send to me cedar wood, and juniper, and pine from Lebanon. For I know that your servants know how to cut timber from Lebanon, and my servants will be with your servants9so that very much wood may be prepared for me. For the house that I desire to build is exceedingly great and glorious10In addition, I will give to your servants, the workers who will cut down the trees, for provisions: twenty thousand cor of wheat, and the same number of cor of barley, and twenty thousand measures of wine, as well as twenty thousand good measures of oil.11Then Hiram, the king of Tyre, said, by a letter that had been sent to Solomon: "Because the Lord loved his people, for this reason he appointed you to reign over them.12And he added, saying: "Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who gave to king David a son who is wise, and learned, and intelligent as well as prudent, so that he may build a house to the Lord, and a palace for himself13Therefore, I have sent my father Hiram to you; he is a prudent and very knowledgeable man14the son of a woman from the daughters of Dan, whose father was a Tyrian, who knows how to work with gold and silver, with brass and iron, and with marble and timber, as well as with purple, and hyacinth, and fine linen, and scarlet. And he knows how to carve every kind of engraving, and how to devise prudently whatever may be necessary to the work, with your artisans and with the artisans of my lord David, your father15Therefore, send the wheat and barley and oil and wine, which you, my lord, have promised, to your own servants16Then we will cut down as much wood from Lebanon as you will need, and we will convey them as rafts by sea to Joppa. Then it will be for you to transfer them to Jerusalem.17And so Solomon numbered all the new converts who were in the land of Israel, after the numbering that David his father had done, and they were found to be one hundred fifty thousand and three thousand six hundred18And he appointed seventy thousand of them, who would carry burdens on shoulders, and eighty thousand who would hew stones in the mountains, then three thousand and six hundred as overseers of the work of the people
1And Solomon began to build the house of the Lord, in Jerusalem on mount Moriah, as it had been shown to David his father, at the place which David had prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite2Now he began to build in the second month, in the fourth year of his reign3And these are the foundations, which Solomon set forth so that he might build the house of God: the length in cubits by the first measure sixty, the width in cubits twenty4Truly, at the front, the portico, which was extended in length according to the measure of the width of the house, was of twenty cubits. Then the height was of one hundred twenty cubits. And he overlaid it on the interior with the purest gold5Also, he covered the greater house with wooden panels of spruce, and he affixed layers of refined gold through it all. And he engraved in them palm trees, and the likeness of little chains interlaced with one another6Also, he paved the floor of the temple with the most precious marble, of great beauty7Now the gold, with which he covered in layers the house and its beams and posts and walls and doors, was highly refined. And he engraved cherubim on the walls8Also, he made the house of the Holy of Holies. Its length, in accord with the width of the temple, was of twenty cubits. And its width, similarly, was of twenty cubits. And he covered it with layers of gold, of about six hundred talents9Then he also made nails of gold, such that each nail weighed fifty shekels. Also, he covered the upper rooms in gold10Now he also made, in the house of the Holy of Holies, two cherubim as a work of statues. And he covered them with gold11The wings of the cherubim extended for twenty cubits, such that one wing had five cubits and it touched the wall of the house, and the other, having five cubits, touched the wing of the other cherub12Similarly, the wing of the other cherub was five cubits, and it touched the wall, and his other wing of five cubits also touched the wing of the other cherub13And so the wings of both cherubim were stretched out and extended for twenty cubits. Now they were standing upright on their feet, and their faces were turned toward the exterior house14Also, he made a veil from hyacinth, purple, scarlet, and fine linen. And he wove within it cherubim15And also, before the doors of the temple, there were two pillars, having a height of thirty-five cubits. But their heads were of five cubits16Then too, there were something like little chains on the oracle, and he placed these upon the heads of the pillars. And there were one hundred pomegranates, which he placed between the little chains17Also, he placed these pillars in the vestibule of the temple, one to the right, and the other to the left. The one that was on the right, he called Jachin; and the one that was on the left, Boaz
1Also, he made a brass altar of twenty cubits in length, and of twenty cubits in width, and of ten cubits in height2as well as a molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in its circumference. It had five cubits in height, and a line of thirty cubits went around it on all sides3Also, under it there was the likeness of oxen. And certain engravings encircled the cavity of the sea, along ten cubits of the outside, as if in two rows. Now the oxen were molten4And the sea itself was placed upon the twelve oxen, three of which were looking toward the north, and another three toward the west, then another three toward the south, and the three that remained toward the east, having the sea imposed upon them. But the posteriors of the oxen were toward the interior, under the sea5Now its thickness had the measure of the palm of a hand, and its brim was like the lip of a cup, or like the outturned petal of a lily. And it held three thousand measures6Also, he made ten basins. And he placed five on the right, and five on the left, so that they might wash in them all the things that they were to offer as holocausts. But the priests were to be washed in the sea7Then he also made ten gold lampstands, according to the form by which they had been ordered to be made. And he set them in the temple, five on the right, and five on the left8Moreover, there were also ten tables. And he placed them in the temple, five on the right, and five on the left. Also, there were one hundred gold bowls9Then too, he made the court of the priests, and a great hall, and doors in the hall, which he covered with brass10Now he placed the sea on the right side, facing the east, toward the south11Then Hiram made cooking pots and hooks and bowls. And he completed every work of the king in the house of God12that is, the two pillars, and the crossbeams, and the heads, and something like a little net, which would cover the heads above the crossbeams13and also four hundred pomegranates, and two little nets, so that two rows of pomegranates were joined to each net, which would cover the crossbeams and the heads of the pillars14He also made bases; and basins that he placed upon the bases15one sea, and twelve oxen under the sea16and cooking pots and hooks and bowls. Hiram, his father, made all the vessels for Solomon, in the house of the Lord, from the purest brass17The king cast these in the region near the Jordan, in the clay soil between Succoth and Zeredah18Now the multitude of the vessels was innumerable, so much so that the weight of the brass was unknown19And Solomon made all the vessels for the house of God, and the gold altar, and the tables upon which were the bread of the presence20and also, of the purest gold, the lampstands with their lamps, to shine before the oracle, according to the rite21and certain flowers, and lamps, and gold tongs. All these were made from the purest gold22Also, the vessels for the perfumes, and the censers, and the bowls, and the little mortars were from the purest gold. And he engraved the doors of the inner temple, that is, for the Holy of Holies. And the doors of the outer temple were of gold. And so, every work was completed that Solomon made in the house of the Lord
1Then Solomon brought in all the things that David his father had vowed, the silver, and the gold, and all the vessels, which he placed in the treasuries of the house of God2After this, he gathered together those greater by birth of Israel, and all the leaders of the tribes, and the heads of the families, from the sons of Israel, to Jerusalem, so that they might bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the City of David, which is Zion3And so, all the men of Israel went to the king, on the solemn day of the seventh month4And when all the elders of Israel had arrived, the Levites carried the ark5and they brought it in, along with all the equipment of the tabernacle. Then too, the priests with the Levites carried the vessels of the sanctuary, which were in the tabernacle6Now king Solomon, and the entire assembly of Israel, and all who had gathered together before the ark, were immolating rams and oxen without any number, for so great was the multitude of the victims7And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, that is, to the oracle of the temple, in the Holy of Holies, under the wings of the cherubim8so that the cherubim extended their wings over the place where the ark was positioned, and they covered the ark itself and its bars9But concerning the bars by which the ark was carried, because they were a little longer, the ends were able to be seen before the oracle. Yet truly, if anyone were a little ways toward the exterior, he would not be able to see them. And so the ark has been in that place, even to the present day10And there was nothing else in the ark, except the two tablets, which Moses had placed there at Horeb when the Lord gave the law to the sons of Israel, at the departure from Egypt11And having gone out from the Sanctuary, the priests (for all the priests who were able to be found there were sanctified, and in that time the turns and orders of the ministries had not yet been divided among them12with both the Levites and the singing men, that is, those who were under Asaph, and those who were under Heman, and those who were under Jeduthun, with their sons and brothers, clothed in fine linen, sounded out with cymbals, and psalteries, and harps, standing toward the eastern side of the altar. And with them were one hundred twenty priests, sounding out with trumpets13And when they all sounded out together, with trumpets, and voice, and cymbals, and pipes, and with various kinds of musical instruments, lifting their voice on high, the sound was heard from far away, so that when they had begun to praise the Lord, and to say, "Confess to the Lord, for he is good; for his mercy is eternal," the house of God was filled with a cloud14Neither were the priests able to stand and to minister, because of the cloud. For the glory of the Lord had filled the house of God