וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִיד זֶה הוּא בֵּית ה' הָאֱלֹהִים וְזֶה־מִּזְבֵּחַ לְעֹלָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל

David said, after seeing the angel in a vision, and seeing the fire descend from heaven: This is the site where the House of the Lord God will eventually be built, and this is the altar of burnt offerings for Israel.

וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִיד לִכְנוֹס אֶת־הַגֵּרִים אֲשֶׁר בְּאֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיַּעֲמֵד חֹצְבִים לַחְצוֹב אַבְנֵי גָזִית לִבְנוֹת בֵּית הָאֱלֹהִים

David said to assemble the strangers, foreigners, who were in the Land of Israel, in order to task them with the preparatory stages of the construction of the Temple; and he appointed masons to hew hewn stones, in order to use them to build the House of God.

וּבַרְזֶל לָרֹב למִּסְמְרִים לְדַלְתוֹת הַשְּׁעָרִים וְלַמְחַבְּרוֹת הֵכִין דָּוִיד וּנְחֹשֶׁת לָרֹב אֵין מִשְׁקָל

David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the couplings, devices or beams that connected the parts of the building. Although none of the Temple vessels contained iron, it was used in the preparation of certain parts of the structure that required strength and height. And bronze in abundance without weight; there was so much bronze, they didn’t even weigh it.

וַעֲצֵי אֲרָזִים לְאֵין מִסְפָּר כִּי־הֵבִיאוּ הַצִּידֹנִים וְהַצֹּרִים עֲצֵי אֲרָזִים לָרֹב לְדָוִיד

And cedar trees without number, for the Sidonians and Tyrians brought cedar trees in abundance to David.

וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִיד שְׁלֹמֹה בְנִי נַעַר וָרָךְ וְהַבַּיִת לִבְנוֹת לַה' לְהַגְדִּיל לְמַעְלָה לְשֵׁם וּלְתִפְאֶרֶת לְכָל־הָאֲרָצוֹת אָכִינָה נָּא לוֹ

David said: Solomon my son is young and tender in years, and the House to be built for the Lord is to be raised upward, for renown and for splendor throughout all the lands. It will take time for Solomon to assume full control over the kingdom, and to be able to build such a marvelous structure. I will prepare now for him. David prepared materials for the Temple in abundance before his death.

וַיָּכֶן דָּוִיד לָרֹב לִפְנֵי מוֹתוֹ וַיִּקְרָא לִשְׁלֹמֹה בְנוֹ וַיְצַוֵּהוּ לִבְנוֹת בַּיִת לַה' אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל

He called for Solomon his son and commanded him to build a House for the Lord God of Israel. This is the first command that David gave his son after he was crowned king of Israel and became the official heir to the throne.

וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִיד לִשְׁלֹמֹה בְּנִי אֲנִי הָיָה עִם־לְבָבִי לִבְנוֹת בַּיִת לְשֵׁם ה' אֱלֹהָי

David said to Solomon: My son, I had it in my heart, I wanted, to build a House to the name of the Lord my God.

וַיְהִי עָלַי דְּבַר־ה' לֵאמֹר דָּם לָרֹב שָׁפַכְתָּ וּמִלְחָמוֹת גְּדֹלוֹת עָשִׂיתָ לֹא־תִבְנֶה בַיִת לִשְׁמִי כִּי דָּמִים רַבִּים שָׁפַכְתָּ אַרְצָה לְפָנָי

The word of the Lord was upon me, saying: You have shed blood in abundance, and have waged great wars; you shall not build a House to My name, because you have shed much blood on the earth before Me. No one is accusing you of murder, but you have killed many people. This explanation for why David was barred from building the Temple does not appear anywhere else.

הִנֵּה־בֵן נוֹלָד לָךְ הוּא יִהְיֶה אִישׁ מְנוּחָה וַהֲנִיחוֹתִי לוֹ מִכָּל־אוֹיְבָיו מִסָּבִיב כִּי שְׁלֹמֹה יִהְיֶה שְׁמוֹ וְשָׁלוֹם וָשֶׁקֶט אֶתֵּן עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּיָמָיו

Behold, a son is born to you, he will be a man of rest, not a warrior like you, and I will give him rest from all his surrounding enemies; for Solomon [Shelomo] shall be his name, and I will grant for Israel peace [shalom] and tranquility in his days.

הוּא־יִבְנֶה בַיִת לִשְׁמִי וְהוּא יִהְיֶה־לִּי לְבֵן וַאֲנִי־לוֹ לְאָב וַהֲכִינוֹתִי כִּסֵּא מַלְכוּתוֹ עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל עַד־עוֹלָם

He will build a House to My name; he, with his unique status, will be a son to Me, and I to him a father, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.

עַתָּה בְנִי יְהִי ה' עִמָּךְ וְהִצְלַחְתָּ וּבָנִיתָ בֵּית ה' אֱלֹהֶיךָ כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר עָלֶיךָ

After informing Solomon of what God had told him in a prophecy, David continues with his own blessing: Now, my son, may the Lord be with you and may you succeed in building the House of the Lord your God, as He has spoken in your regard. I have attended to matters of security so you will receive a kingdom where all potential enemies are subjugated to you, and the reins of power are under your control.

אַךְ יִתֶּן־לְךָ ה' שֵׂכֶל וּבִינָה וִיצַוְּךָ עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל וְלִשְׁמוֹר אֶת־תּוֹרַת ה' אֱלֹהֶיךָ

Yet may the Lord give you prudence and understanding to lead the country, and command you over Israel, to rule over them appropriately, to observe the Torah of the Lord your God.

אָז תַּצְלִיחַ אִם־תִּשְׁמוֹר לַעֲשׂוֹת אֶת־הַחֻקִּים וְאֶת־הַמִּשְׁפָּטִים אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה ה' אֶת־מֹשֶׁה עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל חֲזַק וֶאֱמָץ אַל־תִּירָא וְאַל־תֵּחָת

Then you will succeed, if you take care to perform the statutes and the ordinances that the Lord commanded Moses concerning Israel; be strong and courageous; do not fear, do not be frightened. In order for your reign to succeed, you must lead the people with wisdom and integrity, while observing the commandments of the Torah.

וְהִנֵּה בְעָנְיִי הֲכִינוֹתִי לְבֵית־ה' זָהָב כִּכָּרִים מֵאָה־אֶלֶף וְכֶסֶף אֶלֶף אֲלָפִים כִּכָּרִים וְלַנְּחֹשֶׁת וְלַבַּרְזֶל אֵין מִשְׁקָל כִּי לָרֹב הָיָה וְעֵצִים וַאֲבָנִים הֲכִינוֹתִי וַעֲלֵיהֶם תּוֹסִיף

Behold, in my affliction, an expression of modesty, I have prepared for the House of the Lord a weight of one hundred thousand talents of gold, a very large amount, and one million talents of silver. Although there were not many silver vessels in the Temple, this silver was also used for payments for purchases for the Temple service. And of bronze and of iron without weight, he did not have it weighed, for it is in abundance, and timber and stones I prepared, and you too should add to them, as presumably even that massive amount will not suffice for the needs of the Temple.

וְעִמְּךָ לָרֹב עֹשֵׂי מְלָאכָה חֹצְבִים וְחָרָשֵׁי אֶבֶן וָעֵץ וְכָל־חָכָם בְּכָל־מְלָאכָה

With you there are workmen in abundance, hewers and workers in stone and wood, and everyone who is wise, skillful, in all craftsmanship.

לַזָּהָב לַכֶּסֶף וְלַנְּחֹשֶׁת וְלַבַּרְזֶל אֵין מִסְפָּר קוּם וַעֲשֵׂה וִיהִי ה' עִמָּךְ

To the gold, the silver, the bronze, and the iron that have already been amassed, there is no number. Rise and take action, and may the Lord be with you.

וַיְצַו דָּוִיד לְכָל־שָׂרֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לַעְזֹר לִשְׁלֹמֹה בְנוֹ

David commanded all the princes of Israel to help Solomon his son in this great project, saying to them as follows:

הֲלֹא ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם עִמָּכֶם וְהֵנִיחַ לָכֶם מִסָּבִיב כִּי נָתַן בְּיָדִי אֵת יֹשְׁבֵי הָאָרֶץ וְנִכְבְּשָׁה הָאָרֶץ לִפְנֵי ה' וְלִפְנֵי עַמּוֹ

Isn’t the Lord your God with you? He has given you respite from your enemies all around, as He has delivered the inhabitants of the land into my hand, and the land is conquered before the Lord and before His people.

עַתָּה תְּנוּ לְבַבְכֶם וְנַפְשְׁכֶם לִדְרוֹשׁ לה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם וְקוּמוּ וּבְנוּ אֶת־מִקְדַּשׁ ה' הָאֱלֹהִים לְהָבִיא אֶת־אֲרוֹן בְּרִית־ה' וּכְלֵי קֹדֶשׁ הָאֱלֹהִים לַבַּיִת הַנִּבְנֶה לְשֵׁם־ה'

Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God and act for His sake. Rise and build the Temple of the Lord God, to bring the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord and the sacred vessels of God into the House that is being built for the name of the Lord. This is one of David’s exhortations to Solomon, although it does not deal with personal matters. David did all he could to prepare for the construction of the Temple and tended to all the organizational aspects that could be coordinated in advance. It is stated elsewhere that David, together with Samuel the prophet, prepared a plan for the service schedule in the future Temple. After amassing the raw materials, he commanded Solomon to accept the sacred task upon himself, and also encouraged the other leaders of Israel to participate in the building of the House of God.