1 Chronicles 28 Study Notes

28:1 For the Chronicler, the questions of who would be the next king and who would build the temple are synonymous. David called another meeting of all the leaders of Israel (the first meeting occurred in chap. 22) in which he reiterated his answer to both questions.

28:2 This last speech by David calls to mind the time many decades earlier when representatives of the tribes came to David and declared, “Here we are, your own flesh and blood” (11:1). Now David addressed the people as my brothers. He reminded the people that he had wanted to build the temple for God’s ark (17:1) and as a footstool for our God.

28:3 David disclosed to the people what he had already told Solomon—the reason he could not build the temple (22:8; see note at 22:6-10).

28:4-6 David knew he was king only because God had willed it, and that by the same sovereign will God had now chosen . . . Solomon as his successor.

28:7 David repeated the covenant that God had made with him—that through Solomon the house of David would continue on the throne (17:12). This was a blessing that Solomon should never take for granted. Having been called to be king by the Lord, Solomon must demonstrate his divine calling by keeping God’s commands and ordinances.

28:8 For the first time since God had given the promise to Abraham (Gn 15:8), the people were living in the entire territory that God had set aside for them. With a faithful king on the throne and the people following him, this state of affairs could last forever. However, the people as well as the king must keep all of God’s commands.

28:9 David turned to Solomon and exhorted him to single-minded devotion to the Lord. He reminded Solomon that nothing else would do because God knows our motivations and intentions (Ps 139:1-6). David directed Solomon’s commitment not just to the law, but to the Lord. The covenant that God had made with David about the continuation of his house on the throne did not overrule Solomon’s obligation to walk with the Lord.

28:10 David exhorted Solomon to be strong. Building the temple would bring about a revision of Israel’s system of worship. For hundreds of years, sacrifices had been permitted anywhere in the country under the direction of many different priests. With the coming of the temple, sacrifices would be restricted to Jerusalem only and priests who had been specifically designated for this purpose (Dt 12:5-7). Only a strong, powerful leader would be able to sell that idea to all twelve tribes. In fact, as soon as the leadership in Jerusalem became weak and the kingdom split, the sacrificial system fell apart as well (2Ch 13:9).

28:11-19 David made a public display of handing Solomon the information that is recorded in the previous six chapters. According to Richard Pratt, v. 19 “is one of the clearest expressions in the Old Testament of the manner in which divine inspiration took place.” David wrote the plans by the Lord’s hand on him.

28:20 The king pointed out that the Lord would be with Solomon for the entire building project and beyond. The Lord does not always guarantee success, even for those ministries to which he has called us, but he will always be present with us.