SUMMARY
DavidSecond king of Israel, David united the northern and southern kingdoms. More commissions SolomonThird king of Israel who was known for wisdom and building the first Temple. More as the divinely chosen templeThe Jerusalem temple, unlike the tabernacle, was a permanent structure, although (like the tabernacle) it was a place of worship and religious activity. On one occasion Jesus felt such activity was unacceptable and, as reported in all four Gospels, drove from the temple those engaged... More builder.
ANALYSIS
The temple site has been designated (chapter 21), the land has been consolidated and financing has been arranged (chapters 18-20), God’s permission has been obtained (chapter 17), and the ark stands in readiness in the HolyHoly is a term that originally meant set apart for the worship or service of God. While the term may refer to people, objects, time, or places, holiness in Judaism and Christianity primarily denotes the realm of the divine More City (chapters 13-16). Ever since God slew SaulThe first king of Israel. More and turned the kingdom over to David (10:14), David’s energies have been leading to this moment. All that remains is the commissioning of the divinely chosen temple builder (Solomon), because David cannot be the builder–much like MosesProphet who led Israel out of Egypt to the Promised Land and received the law at Sinai. More, who was denied entrance into the promised land. In fact, the transition from David to Solomon in Chronicles has been closely modeled on that from Moses to JoshuaThe successor of Moses, Joshua led the Israelites into Canaan. More, as the following additional parallels show:
- God’s presence (Deuteronomy 31:6, 8, 23; 1 Chronicles 22:11, 16)
- description of the task (Deuteronomy 31:7; 1 Chronicles 22:11)
- the commissioning that takes place both in private (Deuteronomy 31:23; 1 Chronicles 22:6) as well as before all the people (Deuteronomy 31:7; 1 Chronicles 28:8)
- the similar words of encouragement, especially when the parallel in Joshua 1:2-9 is taken into consideration.
The reason for denying David the role of temple builder finally appears in 1 Chronicles 22:8: David has “shed much blood.” The earlier history blamed David’s preoccupation with war as the reason; he just did not have the time (1 Kings 5:3-4)! In Chronicles the bloodshed associated with those wars is the problem, but in a ritual not a moral sense, since David fought them at God’s command. David is designated “warrior” (22:8; see also 28:3). In contrast, it is Solomon (“peaceful” in Hebrew) who will fulfill God’s promise of a son who would build the temple (17:11-14). David thus commissions his son, encouraging him to be faithful in the task.
