God Speaks
Solomon son of David took firm control of his kingdom, for the Lord his God was with him and made him very powerful.
2 Solomon called together all the leaders of Israel—the generals and captains of the army, the judges, and all the political and clan leaders. 3 Then he led the entire assembly to the place of worship in Gibeon, for God’s Tabernacle was located there. (This was the Tabernacle that Moses, the Lord’s servant, had made in the wilderness.)
4 David had already moved the Ark of God from Kiriath-jearim to the tent he had prepared for it in Jerusalem. 5 But the bronze altar made by Bezalel son of Uri and grandson of Hur was there at Gibeon in front of the Tabernacle of the Lord. So Solomon and the people gathered in front of it to consult the Lord. 6 There in front of the Tabernacle, Solomon went up to the bronze altar in the Lord’s presence and sacrificed 1,000 burnt offerings on it.
7 That night God appeared to Solomon and said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!”
8 Solomon replied to God, “You showed great and faithful love to David, my father, and now you have made me king in his place. 9 O Lord God, please continue to keep your promise to David my father, for you have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth! 10 Give me the wisdom and knowledge to lead them properly, for who could possibly govern this great people of yours?”
11 God said to Solomon, “Because your greatest desire is to help your people, and you did not ask for wealth, riches, fame, or even the death of your enemies or a long life, but rather you asked for wisdom and knowledge to properly govern my people— 12 I will certainly give you the wisdom and knowledge you requested. But I will also give you wealth, riches, and fame such as no other king has had before you or will ever have in the future!”
13 Then Solomon returned to Jerusalem from the Tabernacle at the place of worship in Gibeon, and he reigned over Israel.
14 Solomon built up a huge force of chariots and horses. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses. He stationed some of them in the chariot cities and some near him in Jerusalem. 15 The king made silver and gold as plentiful in Jerusalem as stone. And valuable cedar timber was as common as the sycamore-fig trees that grow in the foothills of Judah. 16 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Cilicia; the king’s traders acquired them from Cilicia at the standard price. 17 At that time chariots from Egypt could be purchased for 600 pieces of silver, and horses for 150 pieces of silver. They were then exported to the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.
Source: New Living Translation: BibleGateway.com
We Respond
[TBR-152: II Chronicles 1 and Psalm 72 (June 1, 2023) [Since this psalm is covered in the PTTB archives, it will be omitted here.)
Reflection: Consider the following questions regarding II Chronicles 1:
1. What does this chapter tell me about God?
2. What does this chapter tell me about the human beings He created?
Here is one possible answer to each of these questions. Ask the Holy Spirit if there are any others for you personally to ponder.
1. God delights to bless people that ask for things that further His plans, purposes, and principles, and that blesses people.
2. People generally ask God for wealth, riches, fame, or even death to their enemies or a long life (mostly self-centered prayers).
Prayer:
3. How might I pray regarding II Chronicles 1?
Dear awesome God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, thank You for graciously granting me the privilege of calling You Father. Give me the courage and wisdom to take a firm stance for righteousness in my sphere of influence. Please raise up God-fearing leaders in each of the seven mountains of influence (in my nation and around the world). Draw people to gather together and use instruments of worship freely as You direct. Please give people around the world dreams and/or visions of Jesus to start them on their journey of following You. May we all ask You for the right things as Solomon did. When You give us more than we could think or imagine, help us to use it wisely for the benefit of Your people and Your kingdom and bring You glory, LORD. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
4. What action does the LORD want me to take in response to II Chronicles 1? With the help of God’s Holy Spirit:
- I will pay attention to what I am asking from God. I will strive to be more other- and Kingdom focused.
- I will thank God for the forgiveness I have in Christ for the wrong things I have requested in the past.
- I will follow Solomon’s example and ask God for wisdom and knowledge to guide the people in my sphere of influence well.
- I will apply the wisdom God gives me to fulfill His plans and purposes, not my own.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.