The Lord Is My Light and My Salvation

Of David.

David’s Charge to Israel

1 ⁱDavid assembled at Jerusalem all the officials of Israel, the ^jofficials of the tribes, the officers of the divisions that served the king, the ^kcommanders of thousands, the commanders of hundreds, the ^lstewards of all the property and livestock of the king and his sons, together with the palace officials, the ^mmighty men and all the seasoned warriors. 2 Then King David rose to his feet and said: “Hear me, my brothers and my people. ⁿI had it in my heart to build a house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the Lord and for the ^ofootstool of our God, and I made preparations for building. 3 But God said to me, ^p‘You may not build a house for my name, for you are a man of war and have shed blood.’ 4 Yet the Lord God of Israel ^qchose me from all my father’s house to be king over Israel ^rforever. ^sFor he chose Judah as leader, and in the house of Judah my father’s ^thouse, and among my father’s sons he took pleasure in me to make me king over all Israel. 5 And of ^uall my sons (for the Lord has given me many sons) he ^vhas chosen Solomon my son to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the Lord over Israel. 6 He said to me, ‘It is ^wSolomon your son who shall build my house and my courts, for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father. 7 I will establish his kingdom ^rforever ^xif he continues strong in keeping my commandments and my rules, as he is today.’ 8 Now therefore in the sight of all Israel, the assembly of the Lord, and in the hearing of our God, observe and seek out all the commandments of the Lord your God, that you may possess this good land and leave it for an inheritance to your children after you forever.

David’s Charge to Solomon

9 “And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve him with a ^ywhole heart and with a willing mind, ^zfor the Lord searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. ^aIf you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever. 10 Be careful now, for the Lord has chosen you to build a house for the sanctuary; ^bbe strong and do it.”

11 Then David gave Solomon his son the ^cplan of the ^dvestibule of the temple,¹ and of its houses, its treasuries, its upper rooms, and its inner chambers, and of the room for the ^emercy seat; 12 and the plan of all that he had in mind for the courts of the house of the Lord, all the surrounding chambers, ^fthe treasuries of the house of God, and the treasuries for dedicated gifts; 13 for the ^gdivisions of the priests and of the ^hLevites, and all the work of the service in the house of the Lord; for all the vessels for the service in the house of the Lord, 14 the weight of gold for all golden vessels for each service, the weight of silver vessels for each service, 15 the weight of the golden ⁱlampstands and their lamps, the weight of gold for each lampstand and its lamps, the weight of silver for a lampstand and its lamps, according to the use of each lampstand in the service, 16 the weight of gold for each table for the showbread, the silver for the silver tables, 17 and pure gold for the forks, the basins and the cups; for the golden bowls and the weight of each; for the silver bowls and the weight of each; 18 for the ^jaltar of incense made of refined gold, and its weight; also his plan for the golden chariot of the ^kcherubim that spread their wings and covered the ark of the covenant of the Lord. 19 “All this he made clear to me in writing from the hand of the Lord, ^lall the work to be done according to the plan.”

20 Then David said to Solomon his son, ^m“Be strong and courageous and do it. Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed, for the Lord God, even my God, is with you. He will not leave you or forsake you, until all the work for the service of the house of the Lord is finished. 21 And behold the ⁿdivisions of the priests and the Levites for all the service of the house of God; and with you in all the work will be ^oevery willing man who has skill for any kind of service; also the officers and all the people will be wholly at your command.”

Children and Parents

1 ^sChildren, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 ^t“Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), 3 “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” 4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, ^ubut bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Bondservants and Masters

5 ^vBondservants,¹ obey your earthly masters² with fear and trembling, ^wwith a sincere heart, ^xas you would Christ, 6 not by the way of eye-service, as ^ypeople-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, 7 rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, 8 ^zknowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, ^awhether he is a bondservant or is free. 9 Masters, do the same to them, ^band stop your threatening, knowing that ^che who is both their Master³ and yours is in heaven, and that ^dthere is no partiality with him.

The Whole Armor of God

10 Finally, ^ebe strong in the Lord and in ^fthe strength of his might. 11 ^gPut on ^hthe whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against ⁱthe schemes of the devil. 12 For ^jwe do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against ^kthe rulers, against the authorities, against ^lthe cosmic powers over ^mthis present darkness, against ⁿthe spiritual forces of evil ^oin the heavenly places. 13 Therefore ^ptake up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in ^qthe evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, ^rhaving fastened on the belt of truth, and ^shaving put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, ^tas shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up ^uthe shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all ^vthe flaming darts of ^wthe evil one; 17 and take ^sthe helmet of salvation, and ^xthe sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 praying ^yat all times ^zin the Spirit, ^awith all prayer and supplication. To that end, ^bkeep alert with all perseverance, making ^csupplication for all the saints, 19 and ^dalso for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth ^eboldly to proclaim ^fthe mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I ^gam an ambassador ^hin chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.

Final Greetings

21 ⁱSo that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, ^jTychicus the beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord will tell you everything. 22 I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may ^kencourage your hearts.

23 ^lPeace be to the brothers,⁴ and ^mlove with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace be with all who ⁿlove our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible.