1 And David said, "This is the house of the LORD God, and this the altar of burnt offering for Israel."
2 David ordered that the foreigners living in the land of Israel be brought together, and he set stonecutters to cut squared stones to build the house of God.
3 David laid up large amounts of iron for nails for the doors of the gates and for the fittings, and more bronze than could be weighed,
4 and cedar logs past counting, because the Sidonians and Tyrians had brought David cedar logs in great quantity.
5 For David said, "My son Solomon is young and tender, and the house that is to be built for the LORD must be magnificent beyond measure, famous and glorious in all the lands. So I will get things ready for it." And David made ample preparation before he died.
6 He summoned his son Solomon and commanded him to build a house for the LORD God of Israel.
7 David told Solomon, "My son, I had it in my heart to build a house for the name of the LORD my God.
8 But the word of the LORD came to me: 'You have poured out a great deal of blood and fought great wars. You are not to build a house for my name, for you have poured out much blood on the ground in my sight.
9 But a son is going to be born to you; he will be a man of rest, and I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side. Solomon will be his name, and I will grant Israel peace and quietness in his days.
10 He is the one who will build a house for my name. He will be a son to me and I a father to him, and I will make the throne of his kingship over Israel firm forever.'
11 Now, my son, may the LORD be with you, and may you prosper and build the house of the LORD your God, just as he said you would.
12 Only may the LORD grant you discretion and understanding when he gives you charge over Israel, so that you keep the law of the LORD your God.
13 You will prosper if you take care to carry out the statutes and judgments that the LORD commanded Moses for Israel. Be strong and brave; do not fear and do not lose heart.
14 See, with great pains I have laid up for the house of the LORD a hundred thousand talents of gold and a million talents of silver, and more bronze and iron than can be weighed, so much is there. I have also laid up timber and stone, and you will add more.
15 And you have plenty of workers: stonecutters, workers in stone and wood, and every sort of expert in every kind of craft,
16 for gold, silver, bronze, and iron past counting. Get up and do it, and may the LORD be with you!"
17 David also ordered all Israel's leaders to help his son Solomon:
18 "The LORD your God is with you, is he not? Has he not given you rest all around? He has handed the inhabitants of the land over to me, and the land has been brought under the LORD and his people.
19 So now devote your heart and soul to seeking the LORD your God. Get up and build the sanctuary of the LORD God, so that the ark of the LORD's covenant and God's holy vessels can be brought into the house built for the LORD's name."