1 Then David said, This [shall be] the house of the LORD God, and this [shall be] the altar of the burnt offering for Israel.
2 And David commanded to gather together the strangers that [were] in the land of Israel, and he made them masons to hew wrought stones to build the house of God.
3 Likewise, David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the joinings, and brass in abundance without weight,
4 also cedar trees in abundance, for the Zidonians and those of Tyre brought much cedar wood to David.
5 And David said, Solomon, my son, [is] yet young and tender, and the house [that is] to be built for the LORD [must be] magnificent par excellence, of fame and of glory throughout all lands; I will [therefore] now make preparation for it. So David prepared abundantly before his death.
6 Then he called for Solomon, his son, and charged him to build a house for the LORD God of Israel.
7 And David said to Solomon, My son, as for me, it was in my heart to build a house unto the name of the LORD my God;
8 but the word of the LORD came to me, saying, Thou hast shed blood abundantly and hast made great wars; thou shalt not build a house unto my name because thou hast shed much blood upon the earth in my sight.
9 Behold, a son shall be born to thee, who shall be a man of rest, and I will give him rest from all his enemies round about, for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quietness unto Israel in his days.
10 He shall build a house for my name, and he shall be my son, and I [will be] his father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel for ever.
11 Now, my son, the LORD be with thee, and be thou prospered and build the house of the LORD thy God, as he has said of thee.
12 Only the LORD give thee wisdom and understanding and give thee commandments for Israel, and that thou keep the law of the LORD thy God.
13 Then shalt thou be prospered if thou shalt keep thyself to do the statutes and rights which the LORD charged Moses with concerning Israel; be strong and of good courage; dread not, nor be dismayed.
14 Now, behold, in my trouble I have prepared for the house of the LORD one hundred thousand talents of gold and a thousand thousand talents of silver, and the brass and iron are without weight, for it is in abundance. Likewise, I have prepared timber and stone, unto which thou shalt add.
15 Moreover [there are] workmen with thee in abundance, hewers and workers of stone and timber and all manner of expert men for every manner of work.
16 Of the gold, the silver, and the brass and the iron, [there is] no number. Arise [therefore], and go to work, and the LORD be with thee.
17 David, likewise, commanded all the princes of Israel to help Solomon, his son, [saying],
18 [Is] not the LORD your God with you who has given you rest on every side? For he has given the inhabitants of the land into my hand, and the land is subdued before the LORD and before his people.
19 Now set your heart and your soul to seek the LORD your God; arise therefore and build the sanctuary of the LORD God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD and the holy vessels of God into the house that is to be built unto the name of the LORD.: