Day 128: 1 Chronicles 16 - 21
Bible in a year reading for day 128.
1 Chronicles 16
- 36 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.” Then all the people said, “Amen!” and “Praise the LORD!”
- 37 So David left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to minister there regularly according to the daily requirements,
- 38 along with Obed-edom and his sixty-eight relatives. Obed-edom son of Jeduthun, and also Hosah, were to be gatekeepers.
- 39 And David left Zadok the priest and his fellow priests before the tabernacle of the LORD at the high place in Gibeon
- 40 to regularly present burnt offerings to the LORD on the altar of burnt offerings, morning and evening, according to all that was written in the Law of the LORD, which He had commanded Israel to keep.
- 41 With them were Heman, Jeduthun, and the rest of those chosen and designated by name to give thanks to the LORD, for “His loving devotion endures forever.”
- 42 Heman and Jeduthun had with them trumpets and cymbals for the music and instruments for the songs of God. And the sons of Jeduthun were stationed at the gate.
- 43 Then all the people departed for their homes, and David returned home to bless his household.
1 Chronicles 17
- 1 After David had settled into his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the LORD is under a tent.”
- 2 And Nathan replied to David, “Do all that is in your heart, for God is with you.”
- 3 But that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying,
- 4 “Go and tell My servant David that this is what the LORD says: You are not the one to build Me a house in which to dwell.
- 5 For I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought Israel up out of Egypt until this day, but I have moved from tent to tent and dwelling to dwelling.
- 6 In all My journeys with all the Israelites, have I ever asked any of the leaders I appointed to shepherd My people, ‘Why haven’t you built Me a house of cedar?’
- 7 Now then, you are to tell My servant David that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be the ruler over My people Israel.
- 8 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make for you a name like the greatest in the land.
- 9 And I will provide a place for My people Israel and will plant them so that they may dwell in a place of their own and be disturbed no more. No longer will the sons of wickedness oppress them as they did at the beginning
- 10 and have done since the day I appointed judges over My people Israel. And I will subdue all your enemies. Moreover, I declare to you that the LORD will build a house for you.
- 11 And when your days are fulfilled and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom.
- 12 He will build a house for Me, and I will establish his throne forever.
- 13 I will be his Father, and he will be My son. And I will never remove My loving devotion from him as I removed it from your predecessor.
- 14 But I will set him over My house and My kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever.”
- 15 So Nathan relayed to David all the words of this entire vision.
- 16 Then King David went in, sat before the LORD, and said, “Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my house, that You have brought me this far?
- 17 And as if this was a small thing in Your eyes, O God, You have spoken about the future of the house of Your servant and have regarded me as a man of great distinction, O LORD God.
- 18 What more can David say to You for so honoring Your servant? For You know Your servant,
- 19 O LORD. For the sake of Your servant and according to Your own heart, You have accomplished this great thing and revealed all Your greatness.
- 20 O LORD, there is none like You, and there is no God but You, according to everything we have heard with our own ears.
- 21 And who is like Your people Israel—the one nation on earth whom God went out to redeem as a people for Himself? You made a name for Yourself through great and awesome wonders by driving out nations from before Your people, whom You redeemed from Egypt.
- 22 For You have made Your people Israel Your very own forever, and You, O LORD, have become their God.
- 23 And now, O LORD, let the word You have spoken concerning Your servant and his house be established forever. Do as You have promised,
- 24 so that Your name will be established and magnified forever when it is said, ‘The LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, is God over Israel.’ And may the house of Your servant David be established before You.
- 25 For You, my God, have revealed to Your servant that You will build a house for him. Therefore Your servant has found the courage to pray before You.
- 26 And now, O LORD, You are God! And You have promised this goodness to Your servant.
- 27 So now You have been pleased to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue forever before You. For You, O LORD, have blessed it, and it will be blessed forever.”
1 Chronicles 18
- 1 Some time later, David defeated the Philistines, subdued them, and took Gath and its villages from the hand of the Philistines.
- 2 David also defeated the Moabites, and they became subject to David and brought him tribute.
- 3 As far as Hamath, David also defeated King Hadadezer of Zobah, who had marched out to establish his dominion along the Euphrates River.
- 4 David captured from him a thousand chariots, seven thousand charioteers, and twenty thousand foot soldiers, and he hamstrung all the horses except a hundred he kept for the chariots.
- 5 When the Arameans of Damascus came to help King Hadadezer of Zobah, David struck down twenty-two thousand men.
- 6 Then he placed garrisons in Aram of Damascus, and the Arameans became subject to David and brought him tribute. So the LORD made David victorious wherever he went.
- 7 And David took the gold shields that belonged to the officers of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem.
- 8 And from Tibhath and Cun, cities of Hadadezer, David took a large amount of bronze, with which Solomon made the bronze Sea, the pillars, and various bronze articles.
- 9 When King Tou of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of Hadadezer king of Zobah,
- 10 he sent his son Hadoram to greet King David and bless him for fighting and defeating Hadadezer, who had been at war with Tou. Hadoram brought all kinds of articles of gold and silver and bronze,
- 11 and King David dedicated these to the LORD, along with the silver and gold he had carried off from all these nations—from Edom and Moab, and from the Ammonites, Philistines, and Amalekites.
- 12 Moreover, Abishai son of Zeruiah struck down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
- 13 He placed garrisons in Edom, and all the Edomites were subject to David. So the LORD made David victorious wherever he went.
- 14 Thus David reigned over all Israel and administered justice and righteousness for all his people:
- 15 Joab son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder;
- 16 Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was the scribe;
- 17 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials at the king’s side.
1 Chronicles 19
- 1 Some time later, Nahash king of the Ammonites died and was succeeded by his son.
- 2 And David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, because his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent messengers to console Hanun concerning his father. But when David’s servants arrived in the land of the Ammonites to console him,
- 3 the princes of the Ammonites said to Hanun, “Just because David has sent you comforters, do you really believe he is showing respect for your father? Have not his servants come to you to explore the land, spy it out, and overthrow it?”
- 4 So Hanun took David’s servants, shaved their beards, cut off their garments at the hips, and sent them away.
- 5 When someone came and told David about his men, he sent messengers to meet them, since the men had been thoroughly humiliated. The king told them, “Stay in Jericho until your beards have grown back, and then return.”
- 6 When the Ammonites realized that they had become a stench to David, Hanun and the Ammonites sent a thousand talents of silver to hire for themselves chariots and horsemen from Aram-naharaim, Aram-maacah, and Zobah.
- 7 So they hired for themselves thirty-two thousand chariots, as well as the king of Maacah with his troops, who came and camped near Medeba while the Ammonites came from their cities and marched out for battle.
- 8 On hearing this, David sent Joab and the entire army of mighty men.
- 9 The Ammonites marched out and arrayed themselves for battle at the entrance to the city, while the kings who had come stayed by themselves in the open country.
- 10 When Joab saw the battle lines before him and behind him, he selected some of the best men of Israel and arrayed them against the Arameans.
- 11 And he placed the rest of the forces under the command of his brother Abishai, who arrayed them against the Ammonites.
- 12 “If the Arameans are too strong for me,” said Joab, “then you will come to my rescue. And if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will come to your rescue.
- 13 Be strong and let us fight bravely for our people and for the cities of our God. May the LORD do what is good in His sight.”
- 14 So Joab and his troops advanced to fight the Arameans, who fled before him.
- 15 When the Ammonites saw that the Arameans had fled, they too fled before Joab’s brother Abishai, and they entered the city. So Joab went back to Jerusalem.
- 16 When the Arameans saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they sent messengers to bring more Arameans from beyond the Euphrates, with Shophach the commander of Hadadezer’s army leading them.
- 17 When this was reported to David, he gathered all Israel, crossed the Jordan, advanced toward the Arameans, and arrayed for battle against them. When David lined up to engage them in battle, they fought against him.
- 18 But the Arameans fled before Israel, and David killed seven thousand of their charioteers and forty thousand foot soldiers. He also killed Shophach the commander of their army.
- 19 When Hadadezer’s subjects saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with David and became subject to him. So the Arameans were unwilling to help the Ammonites anymore.
1 Chronicles 20
- 1 In the spring, at the time when kings march out to war, Joab led out the army and ravaged the land of the Ammonites. He came to Rabbah and besieged it, but David remained in Jerusalem. And Joab attacked Rabbah and demolished it.
- 2 Then David took the crown from the head of their king. It was found to weigh a talent of gold and was set with precious stones, and it was placed on David’s head. And David took a great amount of plunder from the city.
- 3 David brought out the people who were there and put them to work with saws, iron picks, and axes. And he did the same to all the Ammonite cities. Then David and all his troops returned to Jerusalem.
- 4 Some time later, war broke out with the Philistines at Gezer. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Sippai, a descendant of the Rephaim, and the Philistines were subdued.
- 5 Once again there was a battle with the Philistines, and Elhanan son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.
- 6 And there was still another battle at Gath, where there was a man of great stature with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot—twenty-four in all. He too was descended from Rapha,
- 7 and when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of David’s brother Shimei killed him.
- 8 So these descendants of Rapha in Gath fell at the hands of David and his servants.
1 Chronicles 21
- 1 Then Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel.
- 2 So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, “Go and count the Israelites from Beersheba to Dan and bring me a report, so that I may know their number.”
- 3 But Joab replied, “May the LORD multiply His troops a hundred times over. My lord the king, are they not all servants of my lord? Why does my lord want to do this? Why should he bring guilt on Israel?”
- 4 Nevertheless, the king’s word prevailed against Joab. So Joab departed and traveled throughout Israel, and then he returned to Jerusalem.
- 5 And Joab reported to David the total number of the troops. In all Israel there were 1,100,000 men who drew the sword, including 470,000 in Judah.
- 6 But Joab did not include Levi and Benjamin in the count, because the king’s command was detestable to him.