Day 231 Bible Reading: 1 Chronicles 27-29

2 Chronicles 27: The Maintenance of State Officials

[Contents Overview]

Beginning with this chapter, the writer of Chronicles turns his attention to King David's reign, which focused on the national defense and local administration, and the general duties he performed. First, he describes the army, organized into twelve divisions, and its officers (vv. 1-15). He then describes David's organization of the local administration in each tribe (vv. 16-24), the officials who managed the king's property (vv. 25-31), and finally the servants who worked around the king (vv. 32-34). In this chapter, we see that King David is leaving his son Solomon a perfect kingdom, not only religiously, but in every other way.

1 Chronicles 28: David's Request to Build the Temple

[Overview]

This chapter is the closing section of David's life, wrapping up his final days. It includes his last will and testament, his final offering for the building of the temple, and his final prayer of thanksgiving. However, in David's final moments, we do not find a sense of loneliness or desolation. Rather, we find him thankful to God. Firstly, David establishes Solomon as his successor and asks him to build the temple (vv. 1-10). He then gives Solomon the plans for the temple (vv. 11-19) and gives him encouragement (vv. 20-21). In this chapter, we see King David's steadfast faith as he obeys God's will and fulfils God's plan, even to the very end.

1 Chronicles 29: The Temple and David's Death

[Overview]

The preceding chapters and this chapter bring the book to a close and are the conclusion of David's 40-year reign. First, King David asks the people for their co-operation and contributions to the building of the temple (vv. 1-5). The princes of Israel are then described as giving their wealth to God in response to his inspiring exhortation (vv. 6-9), followed by a prayer of thanksgiving from a joyful King David (vv. 10-19), and the joyful sacrifices of all Israel (vv. 20-22). The account of Solomon's ascension to the throne (vv. 23-25) and David's death (vv. 26-30) concludes the history of David. The book deliberately emphasizes the orthodoxy of King David by showing that his attention is focused on the temple and the faith of Jehovah.