Day 209 of 365

¹Now the children of Israel after their number, the heads of fathers' households and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and their officers who served the king, in any matter of the divisions which came in and went out month by month throughout all the months of the year-of every division were twenty-four thousand.

²Over the first division for the first month was Jashobeam the son of Zabdiel: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

³He was of the children of Perez, the chief of all the captains of the army for the first month.

⁴Over the division of the second month was Dodai the Ahohite, and his division; and Mikloth the ruler: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

⁵The third captain of the army for the third month was Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada the priest, chief: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

⁶This is that Benaiah, who was the mighty man of the thirty, and over the thirty: and of his division was Ammizabad his son.

⁷The fourth captain for the fourth month was Asahel the brother of Joab, and Zebadiah his son after him: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

⁸The fifth captain for this fifth month was Shamhuth the Izrahite: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

⁹The sixth captain for the sixth month was Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

¹⁰The seventh captain for the seventh month was Helez the Pelonite, of the children of Ephraim: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

¹¹The eighth captain for the eighth month was Sibbecai the Hushathite, of the Zerahites: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

¹²The ninth captain for the ninth month was Abiezer the Anathothite, of the Benjamites: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

¹³The tenth captain for the tenth month was Maharai the Netophathite, of the Zerahites: and in his division were Twenty-four thousand.

¹⁴The eleventh captain for the eleventh month was Benaiah the Pirathonite, of the children of Ephraim: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

¹⁵The twelfth captain for the twelfth month was Heldai the Netophathite, of Othniel: and in his division were twenty-four thousand.

¹⁶Furthermore over the tribes of Israel: of the Reubenites was Eliezer the son of Zichri the ruler: of the Simeonites, Shephatiah the son of Maacah:

¹⁷of Levi, Hashabiah the son of Kemuel: of Aaron, Zadok:

¹⁸of Judah, Elihu, one of the brothers of David: of Issachar, Omri the son of Michael:

¹⁹of Zebulun, Ishmaiah the son of Obadiah: of Naphtali, Jeremoth the son of Azriel:

²⁰of the children of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Azaziah: of the half-tribe of Manasseh, Joel the son of Pedaiah:

²¹of the half-tribe of Manasseh in Gilead, Iddo the son of Zechariah: of Benjamin, Jaasiel the son of Abner:

²²of Dan, Azarel the son of Jeroham. These were the captains of the tribes of Israel.

²³But David did not take the number of them from twenty years old and under, because the Lord had said he would increase Israel like the stars of the sky.

²⁴Joab the son of Zeruiah began to number, but did not finish; and there came wrath for this on Israel; neither was the number put into the account in the chronicles of king David.

²⁵Over the king's treasures was Azmaveth the son of Adiel: and over the treasures in the fields, in the cities, and in the villages, and in the towers, was Jonathan the son of Uzziah:

²⁶Over those who did the work of the field for tillage of the ground was Ezri the son of Chelub:

²⁷and over the vineyards was Shimei the Ramathite: and over the increase of the vineyards for the winecellars was Zabdi the Shiphmite:

²⁸and over the olive trees and the sycamore trees that were in the lowland was Baal Hanan the Gederite: and over the cellars of oil was Joash:

²⁹and over the herds that fed in Sharon was Shitrai the Sharonite: and over the herds that were in the valleys was Shaphat the son of Adlai:

³⁰and over the camels was Obil the Ishmaelite: and over the donkeys was Jehdeiah the Meronothite: and over the flocks was Jaziz the Hagrite.

³¹All these were the rulers of the substance which was king David's.

³²Also Jonathan, David's uncle, was a counselor, a man of understanding, and a scribe: and Jehiel the son of Hachmoni was with the king's sons:

³³Ahithophel was the king's counselor: and Hushai the Archite was the king's friend:

³⁴and after Ahithophel was Jehoiada the son of Benaiah, and Abiathar: and the captain of the king's army was Joab.

¹David assembled all the princes of Israel, the princes of the tribes, and the captains of the companies who served the king by division, and the captains of thousands, and the captains of hundreds, and the rulers over all the substance and possessions of the king and of his sons, with the officers, and the mighty men, even all the mighty men of valor, to Jerusalem.

²Then David the king stood up on his feet, and said, "Hear me, my brothers, and my people! As for me, it was in my heart to build a house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and for the footstool of our God; and I had prepared for the building.

³But God said to me, 'You shall not build a house for my name, because you are a man of war, and have shed blood.'

⁴However the Lord, the God of Israel, chose me out of all the house of my father to be king over Israel forever. For he has chosen Judah to be prince; and in the house of Judah, the house of my father; and among the sons of my father he took pleasure in me to make me king over all Israel.

⁵Of all my sons (for the Lord has given me many sons), he has chosen Solomon my son to sit on the throne of the Lord's kingdom over Israel.

⁶He said to me, 'Solomon, your son, shall build my house and my courts; for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father.

⁷I will establish his kingdom forever, if he continues to do my commandments and my ordinances, as at this day.'

⁸Now therefore, in the sight of all Israel, the assembly of the Lord, and in the audience of our God, observe and seek out all the commandments of the Lord your God; that you may possess this good land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children after you forever.

⁹You, Solomon my son, know the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts, and understands all the imaginations of the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.

¹⁰Take heed now; for the Lord has chosen you to build a house for the sanctuary. Be strong, and do it."

¹¹Then David gave to Solomon his son the pattern of the porch of the temple, and of its houses, and of its treasuries, and of the upper rooms of it, and of the inner rooms of it, and of the place of the mercy seat;

¹²and the pattern of all that he had by the Spirit, for the courts of the house of the Lord, and for all the surrounding rooms, for the treasuries of God's house, and for the treasuries of the dedicated things;

¹³also for the divisions of the priests and the Levites, and for all the work of the service of the house of the Lord, and for all the vessels of service in the house of the Lord;

¹⁴of gold by weight for the gold, for all vessels of every kind of service; for all the vessels of silver by weight, for all vessels of every kind of service;

¹⁵by weight also for the lampstands of gold, and for its lamps, of gold, by weight for every lampstand and for its lamps; and for the lampstands of silver, by weight for every lampstand and for its lamps, according to the use of every lampstand;

¹⁶and the gold by weight for the tables of show bread, for every table; and silver for the tables of silver;

¹⁷and the forks, and the basins, and the cups, of pure gold; and for the golden bowls by weight for every bowl; and for the silver bowls by weight for every bowl;

¹⁸and for the altar of incense refined gold by weight; and gold for the pattern of the chariot, the cherubim, that spread out, and covered the ark of the covenant of the Lord.

¹⁹"All this," said David, "I have been made to understand in writing from the hand of the Lord, even all the works of this pattern."

²⁰David said to Solomon his son, "Be strong and courageous, and do it. Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed; for the Lord God, even my God, is with you. He will not fail you, nor forsake you, until all the work for the service of the house of the Lord is finished.

²¹Behold, there are the divisions of the priests and the Levites, for all the service of God's house. There shall be with you in all kinds of work every willing man who has skill, for any kind of service. Also the captains and all the people will be entirely at your command."

¹David the king said to all the assembly, "Solomon my son, whom alone God has chosen, is yet young and tender, and the work is great; for the palace is not for man, but for the Lord God.

²Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God the gold for the things of gold, and the silver for the things of silver, and the brass for the things of brass, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood; onyx stones, and stones to be set, stones for inlaid work, and of various colors, and all kinds of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance.

³In addition, because I have set my affection on the house of my God, since I have a treasure of my own of gold and silver, I give it to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house,

⁴even three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, with which to overlay the walls of the houses;

⁵of gold for the things of gold, and of silver for the things of silver, and for all kinds of work to be made by the hands of artisans. Who then offers willingly to consecrate himself this day to the Lord?"

⁶Then the princes of the fathers' households, and the princes of the tribes of Israel, and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with the rulers over the king's work, offered willingly;

⁷and they gave for the service of God's house of gold five thousand talents and ten thousand darics, and of silver ten thousand talents, and of brass eighteen thousand talents, and of iron a hundred thousand talents.

⁸They with whom precious stones were found gave them to the treasure of the house of the Lord, under the hand of Jehiel the Gershonite.

⁹Then the people rejoiced, because they offered willingly, because with a perfect heart they offered willingly to the Lord: and David the king also rejoiced with great joy.

¹⁰Therefore David blessed the Lord before all the assembly; and David said, "You are blessed, Lord, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever.

¹¹Yours, Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty! For all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, Lord, and you are exalted as head above all.

¹²Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all; and in your hand is power and might; and it is in your hand to make great, and to give strength to all.

¹³Now therefore, our God, we thank you, and praise your glorious name.

¹⁴But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.

¹⁵For we are strangers before you, and foreigners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is no remaining.

¹⁶The Lord our God, all this store that we have prepared to build you a house for your holy name comes from your hand, and is all your own.

¹⁷I know also, my God, that you try the heart, and have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things. Now have I seen with joy your people, that are present here, offer willingly to you.

¹⁸The Lord, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this forever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of your people, and prepare their heart for you;

¹⁹and give to Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for which I have made provision."

²⁰David said to all the assembly, "Now bless the Lord your God!" All the assembly blessed the Lord, the God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads and prostrated themselves before the Lord and the king.

²¹They sacrificed sacrifices to the Lord, and offered burnt offerings to the Lord, on the next day after that day, even one thousand bulls, one thousand rams, and one thousand lambs, with their drink offerings, and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel,

²²and ate and drink before the Lord on that day with great gladness. They made Solomon the son of David king the second time, and anointed him to the Lord to be prince, and Zadok to be priest.

²³Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord as king instead of David his father, and prospered; and all Israel obeyed him.

²⁴All the princes, the mighty men, and also all of the sons of king David submitted themselves to Solomon the king.

²⁵The Lord magnified Solomon exceedingly in the sight of all Israel, and bestowed on him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel.

²⁶Now David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel.

²⁷The time that he reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and he reigned thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

²⁸He died in a good old age, full of days, riches, and honor: and Solomon his son reigned in his place.

²⁹Now the acts of David the king, first and last, behold, they are written in the history of Samuel the seer, and in the history of Nathan the prophet, and in the history of Gad the seer,

³⁰with all his reign and his might, and the times that went over him, and over Israel, and over all the kingdoms of the countries.

¹Deliver me from my enemies, my God. Set me on high from those who rise up against me.

²Deliver me from the workers of iniquity. Save me from the bloodthirsty men.

³For, behold, they lie in wait for my soul. The mighty gather themselves together against me, not for my disobedience, nor for my sin, Lord.

⁴I have done no wrong, yet they are ready to attack me. Rise up, behold, and help me!

⁵You, Lord God of Hosts, the God of Israel, rouse yourself to punish the nations. Show no mercy to the wicked traitors. Selah.

⁶They return at evening, howling like dogs, and prowl around the city.

⁷Behold, they spew with their mouth. Swords are in their lips, "For," they say, "who hears us?"

⁸But you, Lord, laugh at them. You scoff at all the nations.

⁹Oh, my Strength, I watch for you, for God is my high tower.

¹⁰My God will go before me with his loving kindness. God will let me look at my enemies in triumph.

¹¹Do not kill them, or my people may forget. Scatter them by your power, and bring them down, Lord our shield.

¹²For the sin of their mouth, and the words of their lips, let them be caught in their pride, for the curses and lies which they utter.

¹³Consume them in wrath. Consume them, and they will be no more. Let them know that God rules in Jacob, to the ends of the earth. Selah.

¹⁴At evening let them return. Let them howl like a dog, and go around the city.

¹⁵They shall wander up and down for food, and wait all night if they aren't satisfied.

¹⁶But I will sing of your strength. Yes, I will sing aloud of your loving kindness in the morning. For you have been my high tower, a refuge in the day of my distress.

¹⁷To you, my strength, I will sing praises. For God is my high tower, the God of my mercy.

¹When you sit to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before you;

²put a knife to your throat, if you are a man given to appetite.

³Do not be desirous of his dainties, seeing they are deceitful food.

⁴Do not weary yourself to be rich. In your wisdom, show restraint.

⁵Why do you set your eyes on that which is not? For it certainly sprouts wings like an eagle and flies in the sky.

⁶Do not eat the food of him who has a stingy eye, and do not crave his delicacies:

⁷for as he thinks about the cost, so he is. "Eat and drink!" he says to you, but his heart is not with you.

⁸The morsel which you have eaten you shall vomit up, and lose your good words.

⁹Do not speak in the ears of a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words.

¹⁰Do not move the ancient boundary stone. Do not encroach on the fields of the fatherless:

¹¹for their Defender is strong. He will plead their case against you.

¹²Apply your heart to instruction, and your ears to the words of knowledge.

¹³Do not withhold correction from a child. If you punish him with the rod, he will not die.

¹⁴Punish him with the rod, and save his soul from Sheol.

¹⁵My son, if your heart is wise, then my heart will be glad, even mine:

¹⁶yes, my heart will rejoice, when your lips speak what is right.

¹⁷Do not let your heart envy sinners; but rather fear the Lord all the day long.

¹⁸Indeed surely there is a future hope, and your hope will not be cut off.

¹⁹Listen, my son, and be wise, and keep your heart on the right path!

²⁰Do not be among ones drinking too much wine, or those who gorge themselves on meat:

²¹for the drunkard and the glutton shall become poor; and drowsiness clothes them in rags.

²²Listen to your father who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old.

²³Buy the truth, and do not sell it. Get wisdom, discipline, and understanding.

²⁴The father of the righteous has great joy. Whoever fathers a wise child delights in him.

²⁵Let your father and your mother be glad! Let her who bore you rejoice!

²⁶My son, give me your heart; and let your eyes keep in my ways.

²⁷For a prostitute is a deep pit; and a wayward wife is a narrow well.

²⁸Yes, she lies in wait like a robber, and increases the unfaithful among men.

²⁹Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?

³⁰Those who stay long at the wine; those who go to seek out mixed wine.

³¹Do not look at the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly.

³²In the end, it bites like a snake, and poisons like a viper.

³³Your eyes will see strange things, and your mind will imagine confusing things.

³⁴Yes, you will be as he who lies down in the midst of the sea, or as he who lies on top of the rigging:

³⁵"They hit me, and I was not hurt! They beat me, and I do not feel it! When will I wake up? I can do it again. I can find another."