1 Chronicles 29
DOYLYChap. I. ver. 3. — went to the high place — at Gibeon;] See note at 1 Kings iii. 4. It is remarkable that the original tabernacle was at this time at Gibeon, while the ark was at Jerusalem. On what account they were
separated, so that the ark was without the tabernacle and its vessels, and the vessels, altar, and tabernacle without the seat of the Divine glory, it is by no means easy to explain. Bp. Patrick.
1 Chronicles 29:5
- — to consecrate his service] “To fill his hand,” as it is literally in the Hebrew; a phrase which signifies in that language “to make an offering.” Bp. Patrick.
1 Chronicles 29:9
- — and David the king also rejoiced &c.] It was a singular comfort to him in his old age to see the people so well disposed, and his exhortation so effectual on their heart; which inspired him with the pleasing hope that this great work could not fail of being speedily accomplished. Bp. Patrick.
1 Chronicles 29:10
- — Blessed be thou, Lord God of Israel &c.] Here follows a noble declaration of the sense king David had of the Divine excellences and perfections, with a thankful acknowledgment of the power, immensity, goodness, eternity, and majesty, which are the properties and attributes of God. Bp. Patrick.
This hymn of praise and thanksgiving, ver. 10—19, may thus be paraphrased: For ever blessed be the great God of Israel, the one Lord of heaven and earth, Supreme Governour of all things, Author of every blessing, and of every good and virtuous disposition! Praised be Thy goodness in bestowing earthly riches upon us, and then giving us an heart to pay back our tribute to Thee, to whom we owe all that we are or can enjoy! In thus doing, we are far from being or esteeming ourselves benefactors, for all things are Thine; we possess them here for a short duration, through Thy Divine favour and bounty, and our largest gifts and offerings are no more than returning to Thee what is Thy own. Graciously accept my sincere intentions toward Thy honour and service, and the unfeigned joy of my heart to find my subjects so well disposed to contribute their utmost toward so great a purpose. But grant that neither I nor they, nor the king my successor, nor any of their posterity after them, may vainly boast and deceive themselves, in the mere external work of building their temple, or in the outward pomp of its services, but may all with real and inward reverence of mind,
and by actions truly virtuous, glorify Thee their God, who art the searcher of hearts, and canst not be deceived by any false appearance. Pyle.
The piety of David shines forth with the greatest lustre in the prayer he made upon this occasion. Herein he acknowledges and adores the majesty of God; with great humility presents his offering before Him, and the offerings of the chief of the people; offers up ardent prayers for all the people, and for Solomon his son; and exhorts the whole congregation of Israel to join with him in blessing and praising God. The humble and ardent devotion, and the extraordinary spirit, which are diffused through every part of this excellent prayer, should wonderfully animate us to the same duties. Let us then discharge these duties with pleasure and a holy zeal: let us adore and praise the infinite power and majesty of God: let us with profound humility acknowledge, that we are in His sight but frail mortal creatures; that all we have comes from Him, and that, whatever we offer or do for His glory, we do but offer Him His own, and what He has first given unto us. Let us beseech Him to produce in us good dispositions, ever to maintain them in us, and to turn our hearts and thoughts towards Him; let us excite our neighbours to join their praises with ours; and let us continually animate one another to bless and glorify His holy name by our prayers and praises, by our obedient conduct, and by our steady application to His service. Osteroald.
1 Chronicles 29:14
- But who am I, and what is my people,] We here perceive, when David is making his most solemn acknowledgments to God for His great mercies towards him, how he abases himself before Him. In the same manner, in another place, Psalm cii. 10, after he had summoned all the powers and faculties of his soul to join in the praises of God, he interposes this seasonable meditation, “He hath not dealt with us after our sins.” The greater and more lively sense we have of the goodness of God towards us, the more we shall abhor ourselves in dust and ashes; nothing being more apt to
David’s sacrifice. He is made king. Before CHRIST 1015. d Ps. 59. 12. & 90. 9. Heb. 11. 13.
1 Chronicles 29:22
- — they made Solomon — king the second time.] It has been supposed by some, that the anointing of Solomon here mentioned took place after the death of David; but this cannot be understood without a very forced construction of the words of the sacred history; for it is here stated, that the persons who had been rejoicing and feasting were those who now made him king the second time. The most clear method of understanding the several accounts of the consecration of Solomon to be king seems to be this. He was first anointed (1 Kings 1. 21, 27.) on the aspiring of Adonijah to be king, in the presence of a few, when David wished to point out who was to succeed him; and this was concurrent or the same with the making him king, mentioned 1 Chron. xxiii. 1; but his second and more formal consecration was that here mentioned, when he was anointed publicly before all the nation in the midst of the princes and great commanders. Perhaps David now resigned the entire government into his hands, finding that he had not long to live. Bp. Patrick.
— and Zadok to be priest.] Zadok, it is meant, was appointed to be the next high priest when a vacancy should occur; for Abiathar continued in the office till the beginning of Solomon’s reign. Pyle.
1 Chronicles 29:23
- — on the throne of the Lord] Thus the throne of this kingdom is called, because the land was God’s peculiarly, and Israel His people, and Solomon reigned over them, not by inheritance, but by His special appointment. Bp. Patrick.
1 Chronicles 29:24
- — submitted themselves unto Solomon the king.] In the original, as in the margin, “gave the hand.” The putting of the protester’s hand into the hand of him who received the protestation, appears from Ockley’s History of the Saracens to have been in the East a customary token of acknowledgment and allegiance, and to have conveyed the notion of an oath between the parties. “Several Mahometan chiefs came to Ali, and desired him to accept the government. He resolved not to accept of their allegiance in private; for they proffered to give him their hands (the customary ceremony then in use among them on such occasions) at his own house, but would have it performed at the mosque. Telka and Zohein came, and offered him their hands, as a mark or token of their approbation. Ali bid them, if they did it, to be in good earnest, otherwise he would give his own hand to either of them that would accept of the government; which they refused, and gave him theirs.” Again: “Telka, just before he died, saw one of Ali’s men, and asked him, if he belonged to the emperor of the faithful? Being informed that he did, Give me then, said he, your hand,
David’s reign and death. Before CHRIST 1015. and Solomon his son reigned in his stead.
1 Chronicles 29:29
- — the book of Samuel the seer, &c.] In the Hebrew, the titles given to Samuel, Nathan, and Gad, which we translate “seer, prophet and seer,” are three distinct titles; but it is by no means easy to determine phet, and in the book of Gad the seer,