Tag Archive | gold

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 129

May9
Day 129.  Reading 2 Samuel 8-9 and 1 Chronicles 18
 
 
 
Read Today’s Scriptures. Rejoice in all God does for David and for us.
 
2 Samuel 8.

We are still in “the glory days of David’s rule” when he sought God and depended on Him alone.  (I dread next Tuesday – Day 133 – which tells of his great fall and the beginning of all the destruction that came later. Sigh.)

  • So… David defeated the Philistines and subdued them.
  • And he defeated Moab.

NOTE:  That business of measuring the captives, killing some, and setting some free, could have been one of two scenarios. 1) He killed 2 out of every 3 enemy soldiers, or 2) He saved 1/3 of the captives because they were young (coming up to just the first line), destroying only the adults. (Think of those signs with measuring lines on Disneyland rides, showing that only those taller can ride.)

  • David also defeated the king of Zobah, and many Syrian soldiers who tried to help him and set up a garrison at Damascus.  He brought back shields of gold and very much bronze.
  • A nearby king, glad to see the king of Zobah defeated, brought to David articles of silver, of gold, and of bronze.

NOTE:  Verse 11 says, “King David dedicated to the LORD the silver, gold, and bronze from the nations he subdued.”  Later, all this wealth in the LORD’s treasury would be used by Solomon to make the bronze vessels for the Temple. (1 Kings 7:15)

  • David made a name for himself when he returned from striking down 18K Edomites in the Valley of Salt. All of Edom became his servants.
  • And the LORD gave victory to David wherever he went.  
  • David reigned over all of Israel. He administered justice and equity to all his people. His officers are as follows:
  • Joab was the commander of the army.
  • Jehoshaphat was the recorder.
  • Zakok and Ahimelech were the priests.
  • Seraiah was the secretary.
  • Benaiah was in charge of his bodyguard, with the Cherethites and Pelethites. (Benaiah later became the commander of Solomon’s army after he killed Joab, at David’s request.)

1 Chronicles 18.

This chapter repeats 2 Samuel 8, with this addition from verse 8, read with 1 Kings 7:15, 23.

  • With the massive amounts of bronze that David collected and dedicated to the LORD, Solomon made 1) the two 27-foot (18 feet around) bronze pillars at the front of the Temple, 2) a huge bronze “sea” (compared to the Laver for the Tabernacle) which held 12,000 gallons of water to wash the priests and the sacrifices), and 3) the bronze vessels used in the Temple.

2 Samuel 9.

David and Mephibosheth:  How it all came about.

DAVID:  “Is there still any more left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”

ZIBA, a servant of the house of Saul:  “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in his feet.”

DAVID: “Where is he?”

ZIBA: “He is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar.”

(The king sent and brought him. Mephibosheth fell on his face before David. He probably thought he would be killed off as the others in Saul’s family had died.)
DAVID:  “Mephibosheth!”

MEPHIBOSHETH: “Behold I am your servant.”

DAVID: “Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat at my table always.”

MEPHIBOSHETH:  “What is your servant that you should show regard for a dead dog such as I?” (Meaning, wow, I don’t deserve that, but thanks!)

DAVID (to Ziba):  “All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s grandson. You and your sons (15) and your servants (20) shall till the land for him and shall bring in the produce, that your master’s grandson may have “bread to eat” (meaning his own wealth). But Mephibosheth, your master’s grandson shall always eat at my table.”

ZIBA: “According to all that my lord the king commands his servant, so will your servant do.”

And so, Mephibosheth ate at David’s table, like one of the king’s sons. He lived in Jerusalem. Also, he had a young son named Mica.  He was lame in both feet.

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This is a glorious picture of what God has done for us. WE, deformed by sin, did not deserve to be His children, have all our needs taken care of, and one day to sit at His table in heaven.  WE deserved death, as Mephibosheth would have under any other ruling king.  But David had promised Jonathan, whom he loved, to be kind to all his descendants, and we, for Jesus’s sake (like Mephibosheth for Jonathan’s sake), are now granted this royal “kindness” of salvation and a position in God’s kingdom because we trust in God’s promise (John 3:16),  Praise God!

 
 
 

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 172

Jun20

   Day 172—We are in the 6th month of Bible reading and continue in the History of Israel.

 Day 172 – 1 Kings 10-11, 2 Chronicles 9. (The Queen of Sheba pays a visit to Solomon, his great wealth, and his gradual turning from the LORD.)

News of Solomon’s wisdom and wealth had spread to Sheba (probably Ethiopia) and the Queen wanted to see for herself. She traveled about 1,200 miles to visit Solomon.  She came to hear about “the name of the LORD” and to test his wisdom with hard riddles.

The queen brought Solomon a ton-load of gifts (a hard task, for he had EVERYTHING!)  A very great quantity of mid-eastern spices (“never again came such an abundance of spices”) seemed to top the list, plus “very much” gold (about 4.5 tons) and precious stones. 

The queen told Israel’s king everything on her mind (nice that he let her speak first), and he answered all her questions.  These were riddles, trick questions, to “test” his advertised wisdom.  “There was nothing hidden to Solomon that he could not explain to her.” And she exclaims, 

“The report was true that I heard in my own land of your words and your wisdom,
but I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it.
And behold, the half was not told me.
Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report that I heard.
Happy are your men!
Happy are your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!
Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel!
Because the LORD loved Israel forever, He has made you king,
that you may execute justice and righteousness.”

I Kings 10:6-9

Besides what he got from the Queen of Sheba, King Hiram of Tyre brought Solomon gold from Ophir. The weight of the gold in one year was 666 talents (about 25 tons). He made and covered everything with gold, from his 600+ ceremonial shields to his own drinking cups. None were made of silver because silver was considered “nothing” in those days, “as common as stone in Jerusalem.”

Solomon also gathered 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen he stationed in his “chariot cities.”  “Solomon’s import of horses was from Egypt… A chariot could be imported from Egypt for 600 shekels of silver and a horse for 150, so, through the king’s traders,, they were exported.” 1 Kings 10:28-29

And Solomon built for himself a magnificent throne. It was made of ivory and overlaid with pure gold. It had six wide steps and a footstool of gold. On each side of the seat were armrests and two lions standing beside the armrests, while twelve more lions stood there, one on each end of the steps. “Nothing like it was ever made for any kingdom.”  “Thus, King Solomon excelled over all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.”

This reminds me of God’s promise to Solomon the night he asked God for wisdom to rule His people. (1 Kings 3:10-13) “Behold, I give you a discerning mind so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you. I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days.”

Unfortunately Solomon was not wise for himself.  i Kings 11:1  says that King Solomon loved many foreign women (Egyptian, Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, Hittite) from the nations which the LORD had said Israel was NOT to intermarry with BECAUSE THEY WOULD SURELY TURN AWAY THEIR HEARTS AFTER THEIR PAGAN GODS. 

“Solomon clung to these in love (700 wives and 300 concubines), and they TURNED AWAY HIS HEART. For in his old age, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God…..

……as was the heart of David, his father.

(Read Deuteronomy 17:14-17 for God’s rule for Israel’s kings, about riches, horses, and wives.)

Solomon built high places for the gods of Moab and Ammon on the mountain east of Jerusalem.  And the LORD was angry with him and said to him, (1 Kings 11:10b-11) “Since this has been your practice and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded you, I WILL SURELY TEAR THE KINGDOM FROM YOU AND GIVE IT TO ANOTHER.

And the LORD raised up an adversary against Solomon. Hadad the Edomite, and then Jeroboam from Ephraim.  One of God’s prophets told Jeroboam that he would tear 10 tribes from Solomon’s son, and reign in the North. 

 

“We Three (gifts of the) Kings”

Dec19

3Kings.moonMy favorite Christmas carol has always been We Three Kings, written by John H. Hopkins, but I know it’s not one of the most popular Christmas songs. I think everyone gets hung up on the “O-o-o, star of wonder” part, or maybe even the minor key in which it’s been written.

But the words! It’s the words that sell it for me.

The Bible does not say how many “kings” or “wise men”  or “Magi” came to worship Jesus. It only mentions the three gifts they brought; valuable tokens of their esteem, and very useful “cash” for Joseph & Mary to use as they fled with Jesus to Egypt to escape Herod’s murderous madness.

Herod, as you recall, was very jealous to hear that a new King had been born, and so inquired of the visitors when they first saw the star. Using that time frame he ordered all boys – age two and under – to be killed. Killed! Innocent babies, precious sons, destroyed!

But by this decree we can be pretty sure the visitors from the East did not make an appearance at the stable, but came to a house in Bethlehem, “where the Christ child lay.”  That’s where they presented the gifts, on bent knees. Gold. Frankincense. Myrrh.

And this is where THE WORDS to the carol, We Three Kings come in.  They explain what these3Kings.silohoet gifts represented; what they told of the life of Jesus, the Messiah.

  1. We three kings of Orient are; bearing GIFTS we traverse afar,  field and fountain, moor and mountain, following yonder star.

Refrain: O star of wonder, star of light, star with royal beauty bright, westward leading, still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect Light.

Okay, now let’s look at the GIFTS presented to the Christ child:

  1. Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain, GOLD I bring to crown him again, KING forever, ceasing never, over us all to reign.

GOLD to represent Jesus as King, the promised descendant of King David, one day to be hailed as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

  1. FRANKINCENSE to offer have I; incense owns a Deity nigh; prayer and praising, voices raising, worshiping GOD on high.

FRANKINCENSE was used in the worship of Almighty God, the Holy One of Israel. Not only is Jesus KING, He is also GOD

  1. MYRRH is mine; its bitter perfume breathes a life of gathering gloom;  sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying, sealed in the stone-cold tomb.

MYRRH was a very costly ointment used to mask the odor of a body when it is buried. When Mary Magdalene broke an alabaster jar of it and poured it over Jesus as an act of extreme love and devotion, Jesus said she had “anointed Him for burial.” Now look again at where verse four leaves Jesus: crucified and buried in a “stone-cold tomb.”

But hallelujah! Praise God!  See how verse five brings us to His resurrection!

  1. Glorious now behold him arise; KING and GOD and SACRIFICE, Alleluia, Alleluia, sounds through the earth and skies.

 We Three Kings is a carol of worship and praise. It’s why I love it. Jesus, my King, my God, my living Sacrifice for sin. The visitors traveled half way around the world to worship Jesus. Let US open our hearts and let our praises rise to the skies!

Star

 

Oh, and don’t get hung up on the Star of Wonder – wondering perhaps (sorry for the pun) if it actually moved before the travelers, or if it was a juxtaposition of several stars that alerted them to the birth, or if it was maybe a comet, or a “shooting star.”

If it bothers you, just remember that Jesus is called the Morning Star in Revelation 22:16, the Day Star in 2 Peter 1:19, and the Light of the World in John 1:5-9 and 8:12. Could it have been Jesus who drew these “wise” men to Himself?  A thought.