Seeing that his end was near, the king summoned the princes of Israel, with representative men from all parts of the kingdom, to receive this legacy in trust. He desired to commit to them his dying charge and secure their concurrence and support in the great work to be accomplished. Because of his physical weakness, it had not been expected that he would attend to this transfer in person; but the inspiration of God came upon him, and with more than his wonted fervor and power, he was able, for the last time, to address his people. He told them of his own desire to build the temple, and of the Lord's command that the work should be committed to Solomon his son. The divine assurance was, "Solomon thy son, he shall build My house and My courts; for I have chosen him to be My son, and I will be his Father. Moreover I will establish his kingdom forever, if he be constant to do My commandments and My judgments, as at this day." "Now therefore," David said, "in the sight of all Israel the congregation of the Lord, and in the audience of our God, keep and seek for all the commandments of the Lord your God: that ye may possess this good land, and leave it for an inheritance for your children after you forever." | |
Patriarker og profeter kapitel 73. 391. Fra side 750 i den engelske udgave. | tilbage |
Da kongen mærkede, at døden nærmede sig, sammenkaldte han Israels ledende mænd og repræsentanter fra alle dele af riget for at betro dem denne vigtige opgave. Han ønskede at meddele dem sin sidste vilje og at sikre sig deres samarbejde og støtte til det store arbejde, som forestod. På grund af hans fysiske svaghed havde man ikke ventet, at han selv ville komme til stede ved denne lejlighed, men Guds inspiration hvilede over ham, så at han fik styrke til at tale til sit folk for sidste gang med mere end sædvanlig glød og kraft. Han fortalte dem, at han selv havde ønsket at bygge templet, men at Herren havde givet den befaling, at arbejdet skulle overdrages til hans søn Salomo. Det guddommelige løfte lød: "Din søn Salomo er den, som skal bygge mit hus og mine forgårde, thi ham har jeg udvalgt til min søn, og jeg vil være ham en fader; jeg vil grundfæste hans kongedømme til evig tid, hvis han holder fast ved mine bud og lovbud og gør efter dem således som nu." "Og nu," sagde David, "for hele Israels, Herrens forsamlings, øjne og i vor Guds påhør siger jeg: Stræb at holde alle Herren Eders Guds bud, at I må eje dette herlige land og lade det gå i arv til Eders efterkommere til evig tid!" |