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Preparation to Build Yahweh’s House
22 Then David said, “(A)This is the house of Yahweh God, and this is the altar of burnt offering for Israel.”
2 So David said to gather (B)the sojourners who were in the land of Israel, and (C)he [a]appointed [b]stonecutters to hew out stones to build the house of God. 3 And David (D)prepared large quantities of iron [c]to make the nails for the doors of the gates and for the clamps, and more (E)bronze than could be weighed; 4 and timbers of cedar logs beyond number, for (F)the Sidonians and Tyrians brought large quantities of cedar timber to David. 5 And David said, “My son (G)Solomon is young and inexperienced, and the house that is to be built for Yahweh shall be highly exalted, for a name and beauty throughout all lands. Therefore now I will make preparation for it.” So David made ample preparations before his death.
Solomon to Build Yahweh’s House
6 Then (H)he called for his son Solomon, and commanded him to build a house for Yahweh, the God of Israel. 7 And David said to Solomon, “(I)My son, [d]I had it within my heart to build a house to the name of Yahweh my God. 8 But the word of Yahweh came to me, saying, ‘(J)You have shed much blood and have [e]waged great wars; you shall not build a house for My name, because you have shed so much blood on the earth before Me. 9 Behold, a son will be born to you, who shall be a man of rest; and (K)I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side; for (L)his name shall be [f]Solomon, and I will give peace and quiet to Israel in his days. 10 (M)He shall build a house for My name, and he shall be a son to Me and I will be a father to him; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.’ 11 Now, my son, (N)Yahweh be with you that you may be successful, and build the house of Yahweh your God just as He has spoken concerning you. 12 (O)Only Yahweh give you insight and understanding, and give you command over Israel, so that you may (P)keep the law of Yahweh your God. 13 (Q)Then you will succeed, if you are careful to do the statutes and the judgments which Yahweh commanded Moses concerning Israel. (R)Be strong and courageous, do not fear nor be dismayed. 14 Now behold, [g]with great pains I have prepared for the house of Yahweh (S)100,000 [h]talents of gold and 1,000,000 talents of silver, and (T)bronze and iron beyond weight, for [i]they are in great quantity; also timber and stone I have prepared, and you may add to them. 15 Moreover, there are many of those who do the work with you, hewers of stone and craftsmen of stone and wood, and all men who are [j]wise in every kind of work. 16 Of the gold, the silver and the bronze and the iron there is no number. Arise and work, and may (U)Yahweh be with you.”
17 (V)David also commanded all the officials of Israel to help his son Solomon, saying, 18 “Is not Yahweh your God with you? And (W)has He not given you rest on every side? For He has given the inhabitants of the land into my hand, and the land is subdued before Yahweh and before His people. 19 Now (X)give your heart and your soul to seek Yahweh your God; arise, therefore, and build the sanctuary of Yahweh God, (Y)so that you may bring the ark of the covenant of Yahweh and the holy vessels of God into the house that is to be built (Z)for the name of Yahweh.”
Solomon Made King over Israel
23 (AA)Now David became old and full of days, (AB)and he made his son Solomon king over Israel. 2 And he gathered together all the leaders of Israel with the priests and the Levites.
The Work of the Levites
3 (AC)And the Levites were numbered from thirty years old and upward, and (AD)their number by [k]census of men was 38,000. 4 Of these, 24,000 were (AE)to direct the work of the house of Yahweh; and 6,000 were (AF)officers and judges, 5 and 4,000 were gatekeepers, and (AG)4,000 were praising Yahweh with the instruments which [l]David made for giving praise. 6 And David divided them into divisions (AH)according to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
The Sons of Gershon
7 Of the Gershonites were [m]Ladan and Shimei.
8 The sons of Ladan were Jehiel the first and Zetham and Joel, three.
9 The sons of Shimei were Shelomoth and Haziel and Haran, three.
These were the heads of the fathers’ households of Ladan.
10 The sons of Shimei were Jahath, [n]Zina, Jeush, and Beriah.
These four were the sons of Shimei.
11 Jahath was the first and Zizah the second; but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, so they became a father’s household, one [o]unit.
The Sons of Kohath
12 The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four.
13 (AI)The sons of Amram were Aaron and Moses. And (AJ)Aaron was separated in order to sanctify him as most holy, he and his sons forever, (AK)to offer offerings up in smoke before Yahweh, to minister to Him and to bless in His name forever.
14 But as for (AL)Moses the man of God, his sons were named among the tribe of Levi.
15 The sons of Moses were Gershom and Eliezer.
16 The [p]son of Gershom was [q]Shebuel the chief.
17 The [r]son of Eliezer was Rehabiah the chief; and Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very many.
18 The [s]son of Izhar was [t]Shelomith the chief.
19 The sons of Hebron were Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third and Jekameam the fourth.
20 The sons of Uzziel were Micah the first and Isshiah the second.
The Sons of Merari
21 The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli were Eleazar and Kish.
22 And Eleazar died and had no sons, but daughters only, so their brothers, the sons of Kish, took them up as wives.
23 The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth, three.
The Service of the Levites
24 (AM)These were the sons of Levi according to their fathers’ households, even the heads of the fathers’ households of those of them who were [u]counted, in the number of names by their [v]census, doing the work for the service of the house of Yahweh, (AN)from twenty years old and upward. 25 For David said, “Yahweh, the God of Israel, (AO)has given rest to His people, and He dwells in Jerusalem forever. 26 Also, (AP)the Levites will no longer need to carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings for its service.” 27 For by the last words of David the sons of Levi were numbered from twenty years old and upward. 28 For their station is to be on hand for the sons of Aaron with the service of the house of Yahweh, in the courts and in the chambers and in the cleansing of all holy things, even the work of the service of the house of God, 29 (AQ)and with the showbread, and (AR)the fine flour for a grain offering, and unleavened wafers, or (AS)what is made on the griddle, or (AT)what is well stirred, and (AU)all measures of volume and size. 30 And they are to stand every morning to thank and to praise Yahweh, and likewise at evening, 31 and to offer all burnt offerings to Yahweh, (AV)on the sabbaths, the new moons and (AW)the appointed times in the number set by the judgments concerning them, continually before Yahweh. 32 Thus (AX)they shall keep responsibility of the tent of meeting, and responsibility of the holy place, and (AY)responsibility of the sons of Aaron their [w]relatives, for the service of the house of Yahweh.
9 What then? (A)Are we [a]better? Not at all; for we have already charged that both (B)Jews and (C)Greeks are (D)all under sin; 10 as it is written,
“(E)There is none righteous, not even one;
11 There is none who understands,
There is none who seeks for God;
12 All have turned aside, together they have become worthless;
There is none who does good,
There is not even one.”
13 “(F)Their throat is an open tomb,
With their tongues they keep deceiving,”
“(G)The poison of asps is under their lips”;
14 “(H)Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness”;
15 “(I)Their feet are swift to shed blood,
16 Destruction and misery are in their paths,
17 And the path of peace they have not known.”
18 “(J)There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
19 Now we know that whatever the (K)Law says, it speaks to (L)those who are in the Law, so that every mouth may be shut and (M)all the world may become accountable to God; 20 because (N)by the works [b]of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for [c](O)through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.
The Righteousness of God through Faith
21 But now apart [d]from the Law (P)the righteousness of God has been manifested, being (Q)witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the (R)righteousness of God through (S)faith (T)in Jesus Christ for (U)all those [e]who believe; for (V)there is no distinction; 23 for all [f](W)have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified as a gift (X)by His grace through (Y)the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; 25 whom God displayed publicly as (Z)a [g]propitiation [h](AA)in His blood through faith, for a demonstration of His righteousness, [i]because in the (AB)forbearance of God He (AC)passed over the sins previously committed; 26 for the demonstration of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who [j]has faith in Jesus.
27 Where then is (AD)boasting? It is excluded. By (AE)what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. 28 [k]For (AF)we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works [l]of the Law. 29 Or (AG)is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, 30 since indeed (AH)God, (AI)who will justify the [m]circumcised [n]by faith and the [o]uncircumcised through that faith, (AJ)is one.
31 Do we then abolish [p]the Law through faith? (AK)May it never be! On the contrary, we (AL)establish the Law.
Yahweh Will Set the Needy in Safety
For the choir director. According to the [a]Sheminith. A Psalm of David.
12 Save, O Yahweh, for (A)the holy man ceases to be,
For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.
2 They (B)speak worthlessness to one another;
With a (C)flattering lip and with a double heart they speak.
3 May Yahweh cut off all flattering lips,
The tongue that (D)speaks great things;
4 Who (E)have said, “With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are [b]our own; who is lord over us?”
5 “Because of the (F)devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy,
Now (G)I will arise,” says Yahweh; “I will (H)set him in the [c]safety for which he [d]longs.”
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