Chapter XVI.
¹And they brought in the ark of God, and set it in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it: and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God.
1. the tent] Compare xv. 1, note.
they offered] In 2 Samuel vi. 17, David offered. The Chronicler associates the elders with David as in xv. 26.
burnt offerings] Compare Leviticus i. 1–9.
peace offerings] The “peace offering” (Hebrew shelem) was a thank-offering or an offering made in expiation of a vow; compare Proverbs vii. 14.
²And when David had made an end of offering the burnt offering and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord.
2. blessed the people] Compare 2 Chronicles vi. 3.
³And he dealt to every one of Israel, both man and woman, to every one a loaf of bread, and a portion of flesh¹, and a cake of raisins.
3. a loaf of bread] A flat round cake such as is still made in Egypt is meant.
a portion of flesh] margin “of wine.” The meaning of the Hebrew word is unknown. Of flesh is rightly in italics here as in 2 Samuel vi. 19.
a cake of raisins] Compare Isaiah xvi. 7 (Revised Version) where the same Hebrew word is used.
4–6 (compare verses 37, 38).
David’s Arrangements for Ministration
before the Ark.
⁴And he appointed certain of the Levites to minister before the ark of the Lord, and to celebrate and to thank and praise the Lord, the God of Israel:
4. to celebrate] The literal meaning is to call to mind; compare verse 12 (remember). Compare Psalms xxxviii., lxx. (titles).
⁵Asaph the chief, and second to him Zechariah, Jeiel¹, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Mattithiah, and Eliab, and Benaiah, and Obed-edom, and Jeiel, with psalteries and with harps; and Asaph with cymbals, sounding aloud;
5. Asaph] Compare xv. 17, note.
and Obed-edom] It is possible that the names Obed-edom, and Jeiel and Asaph (in the latter part of the verse) have been inserted by the interpolator who wrote xv. 19–21 and wished to accommodate these verses to the altered text in chapter xv.
⁶and Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests with trumpets continually, before the ark of the covenant of God.
6. Benaiah and Jahaziel] Two priests for the two trumpets.
Benaiah] In xxvii. 5, 6 a Benaiah son of Jehoiada the priest (Revised Version) is mentioned who may possibly be identified with the Benaiah who was one of the thirty heroes (xi. 24, 25). Compare also xii. 27.
7–36.
The Psalm of Praise.
⁷Then on that day did David first ordain¹ to give thanks unto the Lord, by the hand of Asaph and his brethren.
The psalm which follows consists of Psalms cv. 1–15, Psalms xcvi. 1b–13a, Psalms cvi. 1, 47, 48. It has been compiled from the Psalms just mentioned and placed here as an utterance such as would be appropriate to the situation. For detailed criticism as to the original form and present text of these Psalms, the reader must be referred to the commentaries on the Psalter. Only such comment is here given as seems called for in their present setting.
8–22 (= Psalms cv. 1–15).
⁸O give thanks unto the Lord, call upon his name;
Make known his doings among the peoples.
8, 9. These verses are perhaps based upon Isaiah xii. 4, 5.
⁹Sing unto him, sing praises unto him;
Talk¹ ye of all his marvellous works.
¹⁰Glory ye in his holy name:
Let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord.
9. Talk ye] margin Meditate. Meditation leads to fresh proclamation.
marvellous works] (compare verse 12). i.e. works beyond man’s expectation; compare Genesis xviii. 14, Is anything too hard (wonderful, Revised Version margin) for the Lord?
¹¹Seek ye the Lord and his strength;
Seek his face evermore.
11. and his strength] Perhaps (altering only the points of the Hebrew word) and be ye strong. So LXX. καὶ ἰσχύσατε (in Psalms cv. 4 καὶ κραταιώθητε). A promise is sometimes expressed in Hebrew by the imperative.
¹²Remember his marvellous works that he hath done;
His wonders, and the judgements of his mouth;
12. His wonders] in particular, the marvels of the deliverance from Egypt; Psalms cv. 27–36.
¹³O ye seed of Israel his servant,
Ye children of Jacob, his chosen ones.
13. of Israel] Psalms cv. 6, of Abraham.
¹⁴He is the Lord our God:
His judgements are in all the earth.
14. His judgements are in all the earth] Compare verses 20–22.
¹⁵Remember his covenant for ever,
The word which he commanded to a thousand generations;
¹⁶The covenant which he made with Abraham,
And his oath unto Isaac;
¹⁷And confirmed the same unto Jacob for a statute,
To Israel for an everlasting covenant:
15. Remember] Read (with Psalms cv. 8) He hath remembered. Compare Exodus xxiv. 3–8, xxxiv. 10–27.
¹⁸Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan,
The lot¹ of your inheritance:
18. The lot] The Hebrew word (“ḥebel”) means a portion not assigned by lot but measured by line; compare margin Canaan is co-extensive with Israel’s inheritance.
inheritance] All nations receive an inheritance from God; Deuteronomy xxxii. 8.
¹⁹When ye were but a few men in number;
Yea, very few, and sojourners in it;
19. When ye were] Psalms cv. 12, When they were.
sojourners] The patriarchs were not simply strangers, but strangers who made a long sojourn in Canaan.
²⁰And they went about from nation to nation,
And from one kingdom to another people.
20. kingdom ... people] The “kingdom” is Egypt (Genesis xii.); the “people” the Canaanite and Perizzite (Genesis xiii.).
²¹He suffered no man to do them wrong;
Yea, he reproved kings for their sakes;
21. he reproved kings] Genesis xx. 3–7.
²²Saying, Touch not mine anointed ones,
And do my prophets no harm.
22. my prophets] Genesis xx. 7.
23–33 (= Psalms xcvi. 1–13).
²³Sing unto the Lord, all the earth;
Shew forth his salvation from day to day.
²⁴Declare his glory among the nations,
His marvellous works among all the peoples.
23. Sing unto the Lord] In Psalms xcvi. 1, 2 this exhortation is thrice repeated; in Chronicles it is once given. Note that verse 2a of the Psalm is also omitted here.
²⁵For great is the Lord, and highly to be praised:
He also is to be feared above all gods.
25. to be feared above all gods] i.e. to be feared as being above all “that are called gods,” these being “things of nought” (verse 26, Revised Version margin). The real existence of false gods is not assumed.
²⁶For all the gods of the peoples are idols¹:
But the Lord made the heavens.
26. made the heavens] A fine epithet. Compare Jeremiah x. 11, The gods that have not made the heavens ... shall perish from the earth.
²⁷Honour and majesty are before him:
Strength and gladness are in his place.
27. are before him] i.e. are His, belong to Him as His attributes. Perhaps also before him refers to God’s abode in heaven, while the parallel expression in his place (Psalms xcvi. 6, in his sanctuary) refers to His temple on earth.
Strength and gladness] Psalms xcvi. 6, Strength and beauty. The reference seems to be to the strength and gladness (or beauty) which God bestows on Israel (Psalms lxviii. 35; Isaiah lxi. 3).
in his place] Read with Psalms xcvi. 6, in his sanctuary. Compare the two preceding notes.
²⁸Give unto the Lord, ye kindreds of the peoples,
Give unto the Lord glory and strength.
28. of the peoples] An expectation that the Gentiles will turn to the worship of the true God is expressed not rarely in the Psalms; compare Psalms xxii. 27, Psalms lxviii. 31, 32; and is, of course, one of the greatest contributions of Old Testament faith to the religious aspirations of humanity.
²⁹Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name:
Bring an offering, and come before him:
Worship the Lord in the beauty¹ of holiness.
29. before him] Psalms xcvi. 8, into his courts.
Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness] Render as margin, worship the Lord in holy attire (see Kirkpatrick on Psalms xxix. 2, Psalms xcvi. 9; and compare Exodus xxviii. 2). Compare 2 Chronicles xx. 21.
³⁰Tremble before him, all the earth:
The world also is stablished that it cannot be moved.
30. The world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved] In Psalms xcvi. 10 this clause is preceded by the words, Say among the nations, The Lord reigneth, and is followed by the words, He shall judge the peoples with equity.
³¹Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
And let them say among the nations, The Lord reigneth.
³²Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof;
Let the field exult, and all that is therein;
31. And let them say] Psalms xcvi. 10, Say [ye]. The clause is displaced in Chronicles; compare note on verse 30.
The Lord reigneth] i.e. the Lord is claiming His kingdom over the earth by coming to judge the earth; compare verse 33. Contrast Habakkuk i. 14, where the prophet complains that Jehovah is not asserting Himself as the ruler of men.
³³Then shall the trees of the wood sing for joy before the Lord,
For he cometh to judge the earth.
33. to judge the earth] The joy with which the coming judgement is greeted arises from the fact that the Hebrews regarded a judge as a champion of the oppressed and not as a precise interpreter of statutes.
34–36 (= Psalms cvi. 1, 47, 48).
³⁴O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good:
For his mercy endureth for ever.
34. his mercy endureth for ever] Compare Exodus xx. 6, “shewing mercy unto a thousand generations of them that love me” (Revised Version margin).
³⁵And say ye, Save us, O God of our salvation,
And gather us together and deliver us from the nations,
To give thanks unto thy holy name,
And to triumph in thy praise.
35. gather us together] A phrase which shows very clearly that the standpoint of the Psalmist is post-exilic.
³⁶Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
From everlasting even to everlasting.
And all the people said, Amen, and praised the Lord.
36. said, Amen, and praised the Lord] In the Psalms (cvi. 48) “say, Amen! Hallelujah! (i.e. Praise ye the Lord!).” This verse belongs not properly to the Psalm, but is the doxology marking the conclusion of the fourth “book” of the Psalms. Apparently then the Psalms had already been arranged in the five collections or “books,” into which they were finally divided, by the time of the Chronicler; but the argument is not conclusive since (1) the doxology may be really part of the Psalm, and (2) there is the possibility that verses 7–36 are a later insertion in Chronicles.
37–43.
The Service before the Ark and the
Service at Gibeon.
The description of the disposition of the Priests and Levites for the worship in Jerusalem and in Gibeon which was begun in verses 4–6 is here resumed. verses 37, 38 summarise verses 4–6.
³⁷So he left there, before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, Asaph and his brethren, to minister before the ark continually, as every day’s work required: ³⁸and Obed-edom with their brethren, threescore and eight; Obed-edom also the son of Jeduthun and Hosah to be doorkeepers:
38. Obed-edom with their brethren] A name or names seems to be missing after Obed-edom. The LXX. cuts the knot by reading simply “and his brethren.” Probably we should insert after Obed-edom the words “and Hosah” from the last part of the verse: see the following note.
Obed-edom also the son of Jeduthun] If the view of xv. 19–21 and xvi. 5 taken above be correct, these words also may be deleted as a harmonising gloss, added by someone who wished to insist on Obed-edom as a singer, and hence gave him a place in the line of Jeduthun, one of the three great choral guilds.
³⁹and Zadok. the priest, and his brethren the priests, before the tabernacle of the Lord in the high place that was at Gibeon,
39. Zadok the priest] As Zadok alone is here mentioned as “before the tabernacle,” the Chronicler perhaps implies that Abiathar (Ahimelech) the other high-priest was in charge of the Ark in Jerusalem. On Zadok and Abiathar, see xv. 11, note.
the tabernacle of the Lord in the high place that was at Gibeon] See prefatory note to chapter xiii.; and 2 Chronicles i. 3.
⁴⁰to offer burnt offerings unto the Lord upon the altar of burnt offering continually morning and evening, even according to all that is written in the law of the Lord, which he commanded unto Israel;
40. the altar of burnt offering] 2 Chronicles i. 5, 6.
morning and evening] Exodus xxix. 38, 39 (= Numbers xxviii. 3, 4).
⁴¹and with them Heman and Jeduthun, and the rest that were chosen, who were expressed by name, to give thanks to the Lord, because his mercy endureth for ever;
41. Jeduthun] Psalms xxxix., lxii., lxxvii. (titles). In vi. 33–47, xv. 17, 19 the names of the leading singers are given as Heman, Asaph, and Ethan. Here and in xxv. 1 ff. however Jeduthun seems to take the place of Ethan. Probably there was a variation in the tradition as to the third name, two families competing each for the honour of its own ancestor.
⁴²and with them Heman and Jeduthun with trumpets and cymbals for those that should sound aloud, and with instruments for the songs of God: and the sons of Jeduthun to be at the gate. ⁴³And all the people departed every man to his house: and David returned to bless his house.
42. and with them, etc.] The words with them are possibly repeated in error from verse 41. Render perhaps, And Heman and Jeduthun had trumpets and cymbals. For trumpets compare xv. 24 (note).
sons of Jeduthun] Perhaps a gloss connected with the statement in verse 38, where see note on Obed-edom also the son of Jeduthun.
to be at the gate] David’s organisation of the doorkeepers is given in xxvi. 1–19.
Chapter XVII.
1–27 (= 2 Samuel vii. 1–29).
God’s Answer to David’s expressed desire
to build a Temple. David’s Thanksgiving.
This passage is a reproduction with some omissions and variations of 2 Samuel vii. The text is generally smoother in Chronicles, and in some cases (e.g. in verse 6) we cannot doubt that the Chronicler has preserved an older and better reading than the present text of Samuel, whilst in other instances the Chronicler has consciously emended his text of Samuel.
¹And it came to pass, when David dwelt in his house, that David said to Nathan the prophet, Lo, I dwell in an house of cedar, but the ark of the covenant of the Lord dwelleth under curtains.
1. in his house] Samuel adds, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies round about. The Chronicler omits these words probably because his next three chapters (xviii.–xx.) are devoted to wars (compare 2 Samuel viii. and x.).
Nathan] The prophet of the court in the reign of David: see e.g. 2 Samuel xii.; 1 Kings i.
the ark of the covenant] So called because it contained the two tables of the covenant, 1 Kings viii. 9.
²And Nathan said unto David, Do all that is in thine heart; for God is with thee.
2. in thine heart] The heart according to Hebrew thought is the seat of intention and purpose.
³And it came to pass the same night, that the word of God came to Nathan, saying, ⁴Go and tell David my servant, Thus saith the Lord, Thou shalt not build me an house to dwell in:
3. the same night] Genesis xx. 3; 1 Samuel iii. 2, 3; 1 Kings iii. 5; Job iv. 12, 13.
⁵for I have not dwelt in an house since the day that I brought up Israel, unto this day; but have gone¹ from tent to tent, and from one tabernacle to another.
5. I brought up Israel] i.e. out of Egypt (so Samuel).
but have gone from tent to tent, and from one tabernacle to another] Samuel but have walked in a tent and in a tabernacle. The Hebrew text of Chronicles defies translation; that of Samuel is better.
⁶In all places wherein I have walked with all Israel, spake I a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to feed my people, saying, Why have ye not built me an house of cedar?
6. the judges] A better reading than the tribes (Samuel).
⁷Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote¹, from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be prince² over my people Israel: ⁸and I have been with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee; and I will make thee a name, like unto the name of the great ones that are in the earth.
7. sheepcote] Better as margin pasture.
⁹And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place, and be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness waste them any more, as at the first,
9. I will appoint, etc.] i.e. will establish them in Canaan with complete ascendancy over their enemies.
waste them] Samuel afflict them.
¹⁰and as from the day that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel; and I will¹ subdue all thine enemies. Moreover I tell thee that the Lord will build thee an house.
10. build thee an house] Samuel make thee an house, the house meant being a dynasty, and not a building.
¹¹And it shall come to pass, when thy days be fulfilled that thou must go to be with thy fathers, that I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall be of thy sons; and I will establish his kingdom.
11. that thou must go to be with] Samuel and thou shalt sleep with, the usual euphemism for “to die.”
¹²He shall build me an house, and I will establish his throne for ever.
12. me an house] Samuel an house for my name.
¹³I will be his father, and he shall be my son: and I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee:
13. my son] Here Samuel adds, If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the stripes of the children of men: this the Chronicler omits in order that not even a suggestion of the coming evil days might at this stage rest on David and his line.
from him that was before thee] Samuel from Saul whom I put away before thee. The reading in Chronicles is to be preferred.
¹⁴but I will settle him in mine house and in my kingdom for ever: and his throne shall be established for ever. ¹⁵According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.
14. I will settle him in mine house and in my kingdom for ever] Samuel And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee (but read before me). The reading in Samuel is no doubt the original. The change made in Chronicles neatly expresses the Chronicler’s conviction that the kingdom of Israel was not a human but a Divine institution, its true ruler being God Himself.
in mine house] Numbers xii. 7; compare 1 Timothy iii. 15.
¹⁶Then David the king went in, and sat before the Lord; and he said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that thou hast brought me thus far?
16. went in] i.e. into the tent which he had pitched for the Ark; xvi. 1.
sat before the Lord] So LXX. and 2 Samuel vii. 18. The Targum rightly paraphrases, “and tarried in prayer before Jehovah.”
¹⁷And this was a small thing in thine eyes, O God; but thou hast spoken of thy servant’s house for a great while to come, and hast regarded me according to the estate of a man of high degree, O Lord God.
17. and hast regarded me according to the estate of a man of high degree] In 2 Samuel vii. 19, and this too after the manner of men, or rather and this is the law for men (an exclamation), but the text both in Samuel and Chronicles is certainly corrupt. The Hebrew phrase is not quite the same in the two passages, and there is nothing in Samuel corresponding with the words of high degree, but the text of Chronicles seems to be derived from that of Samuel An emendation “and hast let me see the generations of men for ever,” i.e. the fortunes of my distant descendants, has met with some approval, but no really satisfactory translation or explanation has yet been given of the Hebrew.
¹⁸What can David say yet more unto thee concerning the honour which is done to thy servant? for thou knowest thy servant.
18. concerning the honour which is done to thy servant] Again an obscure text. Following Samuel we should probably omit these words.
thou knowest] Approvest, acceptest; compare Psalms i. 6, Psalms ci. 4; Jeremiah i. 5.
¹⁹O Lord, for thy servant’s sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou wrought all this greatness, to make known all these great things. ²⁰O Lord, there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears.
19. for thy servant’s sake] 2 Samuel vii. 21, for thy word’s sake, but the LXX. of 2 Samuel agrees with the text of Chronicles.
²¹And¹ what one nation in the earth is like thy people Israel, whom God went to redeem unto himself for a people, to make thee a name by great and terrible things, in driving out nations from before thy people, which thou redeemedst out of Egypt? ²²For thy people Israel didst thou make thine own people for ever; and thou, Lord, becamest their God.
21. what one nation in the earth is like thy people Israel] Better as margin, who is like thy people Israel, a nation that is alone in the earth. Compare Targum a people unique and chosen in the earth.
²³And now, O Lord, let the word that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant, and concerning his house, be established for ever, and do as thou hast spoken.
23. be established] Literally be made Amen (i.e. “sure”).
²⁴And¹ let thy name be established and magnified for ever, saying, The Lord of hosts is the God of Israel, even a God to Israel: and the house of David thy servant is established before thee.
24. And let thy name ... magnified] Better, as margin, Yea, let it be established, and let thy name be magnified.
even a God to Israel] delete as a dittography.
²⁵For thou, O my God, hast revealed to thy servant that thou wilt build him an house: therefore hath thy servant found in his heart to pray before thee. ²⁶And now, O Lord, thou art God, and hast promised this good thing unto thy servant:
25. hath ... found ... to pray] i.e. hath found words and courage to pray.
²⁷and now it hath pleased thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may continue for ever before thee: for thou, O Lord, hast blessed, and it is blessed for ever.
27. hast blessed, and it is blessed for ever] 2 Samuel vii. 29, thou, O Lord God, hast spoken it; and with thy blessing let the house of thy servant be blessed for ever.