1 Chronicles 29 in Hebrew & English

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Tenakh Study · Read 1 Chronicles in Hebrew and English, one chapter per page. Our Tenakh study meets every Wednesday at 7 pm (Central Time) on Zoom. Text us for the Zoom link. Our Messianic Jewish notes appear below each passage; tap Commentary above to hide them. The full commentary on this chapter is on our 1 Chronicles commentary page.

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Tenakh Study · 1 Chronicles 29:1–30

1 Chronicles, Chapter 29

דברי הימים א כט

David tells the congregation of the gold, silver and stones he has given for the house of God, and the leaders offer willingly; David blesses Hashem before the assembly, Shlomo is made king a second time and anointed, with Tzadok as priest, and David dies after reigning forty years.

29:1Furthermore David the king said unto all the congregation, “Shlomo (Solomon) my son, whom alone God has chosen, is yet young and tender, and the work is great: for the palace is not for man, but for Hashem God.

אוַיֹּ֨אמֶר דָּוִ֤יד הַמֶּ֨לֶךְ֙ לְכָל־הַקָּהָ֔ל שְׁלֹמֹ֨ה בְנִ֥י אֶחָ֛ד בָּֽחַר־בּ֥וֹ אֱלֹהִ֖ים נַ֣עַר וָרָ֑ךְ וְהַמְּלָאכָ֣ה גְדוֹלָ֔ה כִּ֣י לֹ֤א לְאָדָם֙ הַבִּירָ֔ה כִּ֖י לַיהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהִֽים׃

29:2Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God the gold for things to be made of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and the bronze for things of bronze, the iron for things of iron, and wood for things of wood; onyx stones, and stones to be set, glistering stones, and of divers colours, and all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance.

בוּֽכְכָל־כֹּחִ֞י הֲכִינ֣וֹתִי לְבֵית־אֱלֹהַ֗י הַזָּהָ֣ב ׀ לַ֠זָּהָב וְהַכֶּ֨סֶף לַכֶּ֜סֶף וְהַנְּחֹ֣שֶׁת לַנְּחֹ֗שֶׁת הַבַּרְזֶל֙ לַבַּרְזֶ֔ל וְהָעֵצִ֖ים לָעֵצִ֑ים אַבְנֵי־שֹׁ֨הַם וּמִלּוּאִ֜ים אַבְנֵי־פ֣וּךְ וְרִקְמָ֗ה וְכֹ֨ל אֶ֧בֶן יְקָרָ֛ה וְאַבְנֵי־שַׁ֖יִשׁ לָרֹֽב׃

29:3Moreover, because I have set my affection to the house of my God, I have of my own proper good, of gold and silver, which I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house,

גוְע֗וֹד בִּרְצוֹתִי֙ בְּבֵ֣ית אֱלֹהַ֔י יֶשׁ־לִ֥י סְגֻלָּ֖ה זָהָ֣ב וָכָ֑סֶף נָתַ֤תִּי לְבֵית־אֱלֹהַי֙ לְמַ֔עְלָה מִכָּל־הֲכִינ֖וֹתִי לְבֵ֥ית הַקֹּֽדֶשׁ׃

29:4Even three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ofir (Ophir), and seven thousand talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the houses withal:

דשְׁלֹ֧שֶׁת אֲלָפִ֛ים כִּכְּרֵ֥י זָהָ֖ב מִזְּהַ֣ב אוֹפִ֑יר וְשִׁבְעַ֨ת אֲלָפִ֤ים כִּכַּר־כֶּ֨סֶף֙ מְזֻקָּ֔ק לָט֖וּחַ קִיר֥וֹת הַבָּתִּֽים׃

29:5The gold for things of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and for all manner of work to be made by the hands of artificers. And who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto Hashem?”

הלַזָּהָ֤ב לַזָּהָב֙ וְלַכֶּ֣סֶף לַכֶּ֔סֶף וּלְכָל־מְלָאכָ֖ה בְּיַ֣ד חָרָשִׁ֑ים וּמִ֣י מִתְנַדֵּ֔ב לְמַלֹּ֥אות יָד֛וֹ הַיּ֖וֹם לַיהוָֽה׃

Commentary · 29:1–5

“The palace is not for man, but for Hashem God”

Shlomo is “young and tender,” נַעַר וָרָךְ (na’ar va-rach); the sages say he was twelve when he began to reign (Seder Olam Rabbah 14). Rach is the word David used of himself at Chevron: “I am this day weak, though anointed king” (2 Samuel 3:39). The father who began tender hands the work to a tender son.

Hebrew lesson: בִּירָה (birah), “the palace.” A late word, from the Persian period: “Shushan the palace” (Esther 1:2). The Chronicler uses it of the Temple (29:1, 19), and the Talmud follows him: “the whole Sanctuary is called birah” (Yoma 2a). A birah is where a king lives, and this one “is not for man, but for Hashem God.”

Beyond what he set aside from the wars (chapter 22), David now gives “my own proper good,” his סְגֻלָּה (segulah), his private treasure. It is Hashem’s word for Israel: “you shall be a peculiar treasure unto Me” (Exodus 19:5). David gives Hashem his segulah because Israel is Hashem’s. Then the question that moves everything: “who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto Hashem?” (29:5). The Hebrew is “to fill his hand,” the Torah’s idiom for ordaining priests (Exodus 28:41), and the words Moshe used at the golden calf (Exodus 32:29). The gold once given to the calf is given to the House.

Read more in the full commentary →

The freewill offerings

29:6Then the chief of the fathers and princes of the tribes of Israel, and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with the rulers of the king’s work, offered willingly,

ווַיִּֽתְנַדְּבוּ֩ שָׂרֵ֨י הָאָב֜וֹת וְשָׂרֵ֣י ׀ שִׁבְטֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל וְשָׂרֵ֤י הָאֲלָפִים֙ וְהַמֵּא֔וֹת וּלְשָׂרֵ֖י מְלֶ֥אכֶת הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃

29:7And gave for the service of the house of God of gold five thousand talents and ten thousand drams, and of silver ten thousand talents, and of bronze eighteen thousand talents, and one hundred thousand talents of iron.

זוַֽיִּתְּנ֞וּ לַעֲבוֹדַ֣ת בֵּית־הָאֱלֹהִ֗ים זָהָ֞ב כִּכָּרִ֣ים חֲמֵֽשֶׁת־אֲלָפִים֮ וַאֲדַרְכֹנִ֣ים רִבּוֹ֒ וְכֶ֗סֶף כִּכָּרִים֙ עֲשֶׂ֣רֶת אֲלָפִ֔ים וּנְחֹ֕שֶׁת רִבּ֛וֹ וּשְׁמוֹנַ֥ת אֲלָפִ֖ים כִּכָּרִ֑ים וּבַרְזֶ֖ל מֵֽאָה־אֶ֥לֶף כִּכָּרִֽים׃

29:8And they with whom precious stones were found gave them to the treasure of the house of Hashem, by the hand of Yechi’el (Jehiel) the Gershuni (Gershonite).

חוְהַנִּמְצָ֤א אִתּוֹ֙ אֲבָנִ֔ים נָתְנ֖וּ לְאוֹצַ֣ר בֵּית־יְהוָ֑ה עַ֥ל יַד־יְחִיאֵ֖ל הַגֵּרְשֻׁנִּֽי׃

29:9Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to Hashem: and David the king also rejoiced with great joy.

טוַיִּשְׂמְח֤וּ הָעָם֙ עַל־הִֽתְנַדְּבָ֔ם כִּ֚י בְּלֵ֣ב שָׁלֵ֔ם הִֽתְנַדְּב֖וּ לַיהוָ֑ה וְגַם֙ דָּוִ֣יד הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ שָׂמַ֖ח שִׂמְחָ֥ה גְדוֹלָֽה׃

Commentary · 29:6–9

“With perfect heart they offered willingly”

Hebrew lesson: נָדַב (nadav), “to give freely.” The root appears seven times in the chapter. In the Torah it is the word of the Mishkan: “of every man that gives it willingly with his heart” (Exodus 25:2), until Moshe had to stop the people bringing (Exodus 36:5–7). A nedavah is the one offering that cannot be commanded. The Temple, like the Mishkan, is built out of what nobody was required to give.

The “drams” are אֲדַרְכֹנִים (adarkonim), darics, the Persian coin of the Chronicler’s readers, by which Ezra weighed the gold brought to the rebuilt House (Ezra 8:27). Rabbi Palvanov’s word that iron is “the element of King David,” from his class “Revelations from Jerusalem”, was spoken over this very list. He reads בַּרְזֶל (barzel) as an acronym of the four mothers of the tribes, Bilhah, Rachel, Zilpah and Leah; we take that lightly, as remez. The plain text supports the direction: the largest gift by far was the humblest metal, the one for nails and hinges. A House is held together by what no one admires.

The people rejoiced not at the total but “because with perfect heart they offered willingly.” The whole heart David asked of Shlomo shows up first in the people. “Not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).

Read more in the full commentary →

David blesses Hashem

29:10Wherefore David blessed Hashem before all the congregation: and David said, “Blessed be You, Hashem God of Israel our father, for ever and ever.

יוַיְבָ֤רֶךְ דָּוִיד֙ אֶת־יְהוָ֔ה לְעֵינֵ֖י כָּל־הַקָּהָ֑ל וַיֹּ֣אמֶר דָּוִ֗יד בָּר֨וּךְ אַתָּ֤ה יְהוָה֙ אֱלֹהֵי֙ יִשְׂרָאֵ֣ל אָבִ֔ינוּ מֵעוֹלָ֖ם וְעַד־עוֹלָֽם׃

29:11Yours, O Hashem, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is Yours; Yours is the kingdom, O Hashem, and You are exalted as head above all.

יאלְךָ֣ יְ֠הוָה הַגְּדֻלָּ֨ה וְהַגְּבוּרָ֤ה וְהַתִּפְאֶ֨רֶת֙ וְהַנֵּ֣צַח וְהַה֔וֹד כִּי־כֹ֖ל בַּשָּׁמַ֣יִם וּבָאָ֑רֶץ לְךָ֤ יְהוָה֙ הַמַּמְלָכָ֔ה וְהַמִּתְנַשֵּׂ֖א לְכֹ֥ל ׀ לְרֹֽאשׁ׃

29:12Both riches and honour come of You, and You reign over all; and in Your hand is power and might; and in Your hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.

יבוְהָעֹ֤שֶׁר וְהַכָּבוֹד֙ מִלְּפָנֶ֔יךָ וְאַתָּה֙ מוֹשֵׁ֣ל בַּכֹּ֔ל וּבְיָדְךָ֖ כֹּ֣חַ וּגְבוּרָ֑ה וּבְיָ֣דְךָ֔ לְגַדֵּ֥ל וּלְחַזֵּ֖ק לַכֹּֽל׃

29:13Now therefore, our God, we thank You, and praise Your glorious name.

יגוְעַתָּ֣ה אֱלֹהֵ֔ינוּ מוֹדִ֥ים אֲנַ֖חְנוּ לָ֑ךְ וּֽמְהַֽלְלִ֖ים לְשֵׁ֥ם תִּפְאַרְתֶּֽךָ׃

29:14But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of You, and of Your own have we given You.

ידוְכִ֨י מִ֤י אֲנִי֙ וּמִ֣י עַמִּ֔י כִּֽי־נַעְצֹ֣ר כֹּ֔חַ לְהִתְנַדֵּ֖ב כָּזֹ֑את כִּֽי־מִמְּךָ֣ הַכֹּ֔ל וּמִיָּדְךָ֖ נָתַ֥נּוּ לָֽךְ׃

29:15For we are strangers before You, and sojourners, as were all our fathers: our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is none abiding.

טוכִּֽי־גֵרִ֨ים אֲנַ֧חְנוּ לְפָנֶ֛יךָ וְתוֹשָׁבִ֖ים כְּכָל־אֲבֹתֵ֑ינוּ כַּצֵּ֧ל ׀ יָמֵ֛ינוּ עַל־הָאָ֖רֶץ וְאֵ֥ין מִקְוֶֽה׃

29:16O Hashem our God, all this store that we have prepared to build You a house for Your holy name comes of Your hand, and is all Your own.

טזיְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵ֔ינוּ כֹ֣ל הֶהָמ֤וֹן הַזֶּה֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר הֲכִינֹ֔נוּ לִבְנֽוֹת־לְךָ֥ בַ֖יִת לְשֵׁ֣ם קָדְשֶׁ֑ךָ מִיָּדְךָ֥ ה֖וּא (כתיב היא) וּלְךָ֥ הַכֹּֽל׃

29:17I know also, my God, that You try the heart, and have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things: and now have I seen with joy Your people, which are present here, to offer willingly unto You.

יזוְיָדַ֣עְתִּי אֱלֹהַ֔י כִּ֤י אַתָּה֙ בֹּחֵ֣ן לֵבָ֔ב וּמֵישָׁרִ֖ים תִּרְצֶ֑ה אֲנִ֗י בְּיֹ֤שֶׁר לְבָבִי֙ הִתְנַדַּ֣בְתִּי כָל־אֵ֔לֶּה וְעַתָּ֗ה עַמְּךָ֙ הַנִּמְצְאוּ־פֹ֔ה רָאִ֥יתִי בְשִׂמְחָ֖ה לְהִֽתְנַדֶּב־לָֽךְ׃

29:18O Hashem God of Avraham (Abraham), Yitzchak (Isaac), and of Israel, our fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of Your people, and prepare their heart unto You:

יחיְהוָ֗ה אֱ֠לֹהֵי אַבְרָהָ֞ם יִצְחָ֤ק וְיִשְׂרָאֵל֙ אֲבֹתֵ֔ינוּ שֳׁמְרָה־זֹּ֣את לְעוֹלָ֔ם לְיֵ֥צֶר מַחְשְׁב֖וֹת לְבַ֣ב עַמֶּ֑ךָ וְהָכֵ֥ן לְבָבָ֖ם אֵלֶֽיךָ׃

29:19And give unto Shlomo my son a perfect heart, to keep Your commandments, Your testimonies, and Your statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for the which I have made provision.”

יטוְלִשְׁלֹמֹ֣ה בְנִ֗י תֵּ֚ן לֵבָ֣ב שָׁלֵ֔ם לִשְׁמוֹר֙ מִצְוֺתֶ֔יךָ עֵדְוֺתֶ֖יךָ וְחֻקֶּ֑יךָ וְלַעֲשׂ֣וֹת הַכֹּ֔ל וְלִבְנ֖וֹת הַבִּירָ֥ה אֲשֶׁר־הֲכִינֽוֹתִי׃

Commentary · 29:10–19

“Yours, O Hashem, is the greatness”

These verses are said every morning. In Pesukei deZimra the congregation stands for Vayevarech David, 29:10–13, and in many congregations tzedakah is given at “Both riches and honour come of You, and You reign over all.” Verse 11 is sung when the Torah is taken from the Ark, and “Blessed be You, Hashem” is the formula of every berachah.

Anyone who has heard of the sefirot will recognize David’s words: gedulah, gevurah, tiferet, netzach, hod… mamlachah. Ariel Cohen Alloro says so in “Lord's Prayer, Our Father, Pater Nostre – אבינו שבשמים – Part 1 of 2”; we offer this as remez. What is beyond doubt is that David used every one of these words of Hashem alone: “Yours… Yours… Yours.” The same video shows that the close of the Lord’s Prayer, “For Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever” (Matthew 6:13), is David’s blessing. The oldest manuscripts of Matthew lack the line, but the Didache already closes the prayer with a doxology of this shape. Whoever first said it, it is a Jew answering Yeshua’s prayer with David’s words.

“Of Your own have we given You” (29:14). The Mishnah makes it the rule of all giving: “Give Him of what is His, for you and what is yours are His” (Pirkei Avot 3:7). That does not make the gift meaningless. It makes it honest. “There is none abiding” (29:15) is literally “there is no mikveh,” no hope; Jeremiah calls Hashem Mikveh Yisrael, “the hope of Israel” (Jeremiah 17:13). There is no hope in our days. There is hope in Him. And in 28:9 David commanded Shlomo a whole heart; now he asks Hashem to give it (29:19). A father can command; only Hashem can give.

Read more in the full commentary →

29:20And David said to all the congregation, “Now bless Hashem your God.” And all the congregation blessed Hashem God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads, and worshipped Hashem, and the king.

כוַיֹּ֤אמֶר דָּוִיד֙ לְכָל־הַקָּהָ֔ל בָּֽרְכוּ־נָ֖א אֶת־יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֑ם וַיְבָרֲכ֣וּ כָֽל־הַקָּהָ֗ל לַיהוָה֙ אֱלֹהֵ֣י אֲבֹֽתֵיהֶ֔ם וַיִּקְּד֧וּ וַיִּֽשְׁתַּחֲו֛וּ לַיהוָ֖ה וְלַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃

Shlomo is made king

29:21And they sacrificed sacrifices unto Hashem, and offered burnt offerings unto Hashem, on the morrow after that day, even a thousand bullocks, a thousand rams, and a thousand lambs, with their drink offerings, and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel:

כאוַיִּזְבְּח֣וּ לַיהוָ֣ה ׀ זְ֠בָחִים וַיַּעֲל֨וּ עֹל֜וֹת לַיהוָ֗ה לְֽמָחֳרַת֮ הַיּ֣וֹם הַהוּא֒ פָּרִ֨ים אֶ֜לֶף אֵילִ֥ים אֶ֛לֶף כְּבָשִׂ֥ים אֶ֖לֶף וְנִסְכֵּיהֶ֑ם וּזְבָחִ֥ים לָרֹ֖ב לְכָל־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

29:22And did eat and drink before Hashem on that day with great gladness. And they made Shlomo the son of David king the second time, and anointed him unto Hashem to be the chief governor, and Tzadok (Zadok) to be priest.

כבוַיֹּאכְל֨וּ וַיִּשְׁתּ֜וּ לִפְנֵ֧י יְהוָ֛ה בַּיּ֥וֹם הַה֖וּא בְּשִׂמְחָ֣ה גְדוֹלָ֑ה וַיַּמְלִ֤יכוּ שֵׁנִית֙ לִשְׁלֹמֹ֣ה בֶן־דָּוִ֔יד וַיִּמְשְׁח֧וּ לַיהוָ֛ה לְנָגִ֥יד וּלְצָד֖וֹק לְכֹהֵֽן׃

Commentary · 29:20–22

“They worshipped Hashem, and the king”

Our Statement of Faith quotes this verse under its fifth principle, We believe that Hashem alone is worthy of worship. The Hebrew, וַיִּקְּדוּ וַיִּשְׁתַּחֲווּ לַיהוָה וְלַמֶּלֶךְ, is one bow with two objects: to Hashem and to the king. The KJV says “worshipped,” but hishtachavah is a posture, not a theology: it is used of Yosef’s brothers bowing to Yosef (Genesis 43:26) and Israel to the golden calf (Exodus 32:8). Our Statement of Faith says it exactly: hishtachavah “can mean either covenantal honor or idolatrous worship depending on the context and the heart of the one bowing. The distinction is not in the outward gesture, but in whether the act is directed toward Hashem alone or whether it treats a created being as God.”

The congregation has just heard David say “Yours is the kingdom”; the king they bow to is the king who has just bowed. No one there thought Shlomo was God, and the next morning more than three thousand animals were offered, every one “unto Hashem.” The same Torah that says “you shall have no other gods before Me” commands honor to the king (Sanhedrin 22a; Kiddushin 32b), because the two acts are not the same act. One is avodah, worship; the other is kavod, honor.

Messianic reading. People bowed to Yeshua with this same word (Matthew 2:11; 28:9). Honor to the king Hashem appointed is part of worshipping Hashem, because it honors His choice. Yeshua kept the line himself: “You shall worship Hashem your God, and Him only shall you serve” (Matthew 4:10), and every knee bows to him “to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10–11). Our Statement of Faith puts it in a sentence: “we honor Yeshua because Hashem has appointed him.” We do not pray the Shema or the Amidah to him; all of it goes up to the Father who sent him.

Read more in the full commentary →

29:23Then Shlomo sat on the throne of Hashem as king instead of David his father, and prospered; and all Israel obeyed him.

כגוַיֵּ֣שֶׁב שְׁ֠לֹמֹה עַל־כִּסֵּ֨א יְהוָ֧ה ׀ לְמֶ֛לֶךְ תַּֽחַת־דָּוִ֥יד אָבִ֖יו וַיַּצְלַ֑ח וַיִּשְׁמְע֥וּ אֵלָ֖יו כָּל־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

29:24And all the princes, and the mighty men, and all the sons likewise of king David, submitted themselves unto Shlomo the king.

כדוְכָל־הַשָּׂרִים֙ וְהַגִּבֹּרִ֔ים וְגַ֕ם כָּל־בְּנֵ֖י הַמֶּ֣לֶךְ דָּוִ֑יד נָ֣תְנוּ יָ֔ד תַּ֖חַת שְׁלֹמֹ֥ה הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃

29:25And Hashem magnified Shlomo exceedingly in the sight of all Israel, and bestowed upon him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel.

כהוַיְגַדֵּ֨ל יְהוָ֤ה אֶת־שְׁלֹמֹה֙ לְמַ֔עְלָה לְעֵינֵ֖י כָּל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַיִּתֵּ֤ן עָלָיו֙ ה֣וֹד מַלְכ֔וּת אֲ֠שֶׁר לֹֽא־הָיָ֧ה עַל־כָּל־מֶ֛לֶךְ לְפָנָ֖יו עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

Commentary · 29:23–25

Shlomo on the throne of Hashem

“The second time” (29:22). The first came in a crisis, when Adoniyah had declared himself king and Shlomo was rushed to Gihon (1 Kings 1), a story Chronicles leaves out. The second is a covenant, with all Israel present and the anointing done “unto Hashem.” The Talmud teaches that kings of David’s house were anointed only when there was a dispute, Shlomo because of Adoniyah, Yo’ash because of Atalyah (Horayot 11b). Now “all the sons likewise of king David” submitted to him (29:24), Adoniyah included. King and priest, Shlomo and Tzadok, are appointed together, as Zechariah saw “the two anointed ones” (Zechariah 4:14).

“Shlomo sat on the throne of Hashem”: only Chronicles says this of a man (here, and 2 Chronicles 9:8). The throne is Hashem’s; Shlomo sits on it “as king,” and “instead of David his father.” A man on Hashem’s throne is not Hashem. He is Hashem’s king. Even the “royal majesty” (hod) given to Shlomo is the fifth of David’s five words, “Yours… is the majesty” (29:11), lent, as Moshe put of his hod on Yehoshua (Numbers 27:20).

Messianic reading. “The Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David” (Luke 1:32): the throne is given, not taken. Paul tells how it is finally handed back: “he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father… that God may be all in all” (1 Corinthians 15:24, 28). Shlomo held Hashem’s throne for Him. The Son of David will do the same.

Read more in the full commentary →

The reign and death of David

29:26Thus David the son of Yishai (Jesse) reigned over all Israel.

כווְדָוִיד֙ בֶּן־יִשָׁ֔י מָלַ֖ךְ עַל־כָּל־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

29:27And the time that he reigned over Israel was forty years; seven years reigned he in Chevron (Hebron), and thirty and three years reigned he in Yerushalayim (Jerusalem).

כזוְהַיָּמִ֗ים אֲשֶׁ֤ר מָלַךְ֙ עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אַרְבָּעִ֖ים שָׁנָ֑ה בְּחֶבְר֤וֹן מָלַךְ֙ שֶׁ֣בַע שָׁנִ֔ים וּבִירוּשָׁלִַ֥ם מָלַ֖ךְ שְׁלֹשִׁ֥ים וְשָׁלֽוֹשׁ׃

29:28And he died in a good old age, full of days, riches, and honour: and Shlomo his son reigned in his stead.

כחוַיָּ֨מָת֙ בְּשֵׂיבָ֣ה טוֹבָ֔ה שְׂבַ֥ע יָמִ֖ים עֹ֣שֶׁר וְכָב֑וֹד וַיִּמְלֹ֛ךְ שְׁלֹמֹ֥ה בְנ֖וֹ תַּחְתָּֽיו׃

29:29Now the acts of David the king, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of Shmuel (Samuel) the seer, and in the book of Natan (Nathan) the prophet, and in the book of Gad the seer,

כטוְדִבְרֵי֙ דָּוִ֣יד הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ הָרִאשֹׁנִ֖ים וְהָאֲחרֹנִ֑ים הִנָּ֣ם כְּתוּבִ֗ים עַל־דִּבְרֵי֙ שְׁמוּאֵ֣ל הָרֹאֶ֔ה וְעַל־דִּבְרֵי֙ נָתָ֣ן הַנָּבִ֔יא וְעַל־דִּבְרֵ֖י גָּ֥ד הַחֹזֶֽה׃

29:30With all his reign and his might, and the times that went over him, and over Israel, and over all the kingdoms of the countries.

לעִ֥ם כָּל־מַלְכוּת֖וֹ וּגְבוּרָת֑וֹ וְהָעִתִּ֗ים אֲשֶׁ֨ר עָבְר֤וּ עָלָיו֙ וְעַל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וְעַ֖ל כָּל־מַמְלְכ֥וֹת הָאֲרָצֽוֹת׃

Commentary · 29:26–30

“Full of days, riches, and honour”

The seven years in Chevron were really seven and a half (2 Samuel 5:5); the Talmud finds the missing half year in the months David was stricken after the matter of Bat-Sheva (Sanhedrin 107a–b). Even in the summary, the Chronicler’s silence about David’s sin leaves a shadow in the arithmetic. “A good old age” is what the Torah says of Avraham (Genesis 25:8), and the Chronicler adds “riches, and honour,” the two things David said come from Hashem alone (29:12). Kings tells of David’s deathbed words about Yo’av and Shimei; Chronicles has none of it. It paints the king at his best: the man who gathered, gave, prayed and handed over.

Paul says “David… fell on sleep” (Acts 13:36). Our Statement of Faith confesses that death is sleep until the resurrection, and David is Scripture’s own example. Yet Jews still sing דָּוִד מֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל חַי וְקַיָּם, “David king of Israel lives and endures” (Rosh Hashanah 25a). The king is asleep and the kingship is alive, because it was never his; it was Hashem’s, given to his seed “for ever.”

Three prophets wrote David’s life, Shmuel, Natan and Gad, and the Talmud takes this verse as the key to the book of Samuel: Shmuel wrote it, and Gad and Natan completed it (Bava Batra 15a). The book’s last verse speaks of “the times that went over him.” David had said, “My times are in Your hand” (Psalm 31:15), and the One who holds the times kept His word.

Read more in the full commentary →

Sources & method

Hebrew text: The Masoretic text with vowels (nikkud) and cantillation marks (ta’amim), from the Westminster Leningrad Codex (public domain) as published by the Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (CC BY 4.0). Where the written text (ketiv) differs from the reading (qere), the reading is shown and the written form follows in small type. A paragraph mark (ס or פ) inside a verse is shown in small type.
English translation: The King James Version (public domain), lightly modernized by Benei Avraham: “thee/thou/ye” become “you,” older verb forms are updated (“hath” to “has”), and archaic words are replaced only where the meaning would otherwise be unclear. People and places carry their Hebrew names, with the King James spelling in parentheses the first time on each page (e.g., Yehudah (Judah)). The Divine Name (יהוה, “the LORD” in the KJV) is written “Hashem”; “God” (Elohim) is unchanged, and “law” is “Torah” where the Hebrew is תּוֹרָה.
Verse numbers: Verse numbers follow the Hebrew Bible. In 1 Chronicles they differ from most English Bibles in chapters 5, 6 and 12; a note under the summary on those pages explains how.
Commentary: Written for our Wednesday Tenakh study from a Messianic Jewish perspective, in line with the Benei Avraham Statement of Faith. It reads the passage first in its Torah setting, then with the Sages, and then with the witness of the Brit Hadashah. Its sources include the Talmud and Midrash, Rashi, Radak, Rambam, the First Fruits of Zion End of Days lessons, and teachings of Rabbi Efraim Palvanov and Ariel Cohen Alloro. Numerical readings (gematria) are offered as hints, not proofs. The notes here are short versions of our full 1 Chronicles commentary, which is a draft for our teachers to review. They are shown by default; tap Commentary to hide them.
Quiz: Written by Benei Avraham for young readers (about 11 and up). Every answer is in the chapter on this page. Answers and scores are kept only in this browser (local storage) and can be cleared with Start over.
Hebrew font: SBL Hebrew, by the Society of Biblical Literature.

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1 Chronicles 29 (Divrei HaYamim Alef) in Hebrew and English

1 Chronicles, Chapter 29

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