Steve Webb  0:00  
We will have run the race well.

Steve Webb  0:54  
Second Chronicles chapter one. Solomon Son of David strengthened his hold on his kingdom, the Lord his God was with him and highly exalted Him. Then Solomon spoke to all Israel to the commanders of 1000s, and of hundreds to the judges, into every leader in all Israel, the heads of the families, Solomon and the whole assembly with him went to the high place that was in Debian because God's tent of meeting which the Lord servant Moses had made in the wilderness was there. Now David had brought the ark of God from key Earth grm, to the place he had set up for it, because he had pitched a tent for it in Jerusalem, but he put the bronze altar which Bezaleel son of Uriah son of her had made in front of the Lord's tabernacle, Solomon in the assembly inquired of him there. Solomon offered sacrifices there in the Lord's presence on the bronze altar. At the Tent of Meeting, he offered 1000 burnt offerings on it. That night God appeared to Solomon had said to him, ask, What should I give you? And Solomon said to God, you have shown great and faithful loved my father, David, and you have made me king in his place. Lord God, let your promise to my father now come true, for you have made me King over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth. Now grant me wisdom and knowledge so that I may lead these people for who can judge this great people of yours. God said to Solomon, since this was in your heart, and you have not requested riches, wealth, or glory, or for the life of those who hate you, and you have not even requested long life, but you have requested for yourself wisdom and knowledge, that you may judge my people over whom I have made you king, wisdom and knowledge are given to you. I will also give you riches, wealth and glory, unlike what was given to the kings who were before you, or will be given to those after you. So Solomon went to Jerusalem from a high place that was in Debian, in front of the tent of meeting, and he reigned over Israel. Solomon accumulated 1400, chariots and 12,000 horsemen, which he stationed in the chariot cities, and with the king in Jerusalem. The King made silver and gold as common in Jerusalem is stones, and he made cedar as abundant as Sycamore in the Judea and foothills. Solomon's horses came from Egypt in QE, the king's traders would get them from QE at the going price. A chariot could be imported from Egypt for 15 Pounds of silver, and a horse for about four pounds. In the same way, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites, and to the kings of Aram through their agents. 

Steve Webb  3:39  
Second Chronicles chapter two. Now Solomon decided to build a house for the name of the Lord in a royal palace for himself. So Solomon assigned 70,000 men to carry loads and 80,000 men to quarry stone in the mountains and 3600 to supervise them. Then Solomon sent word to hear him the king of Tyre saying, as you dealt with David, my father, and sent him cedars, to build him a house to dwell in, so do for me, Behold, I am about to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, dedicating it to him, to burn fragrant incense before Him and to set out the Showbread continually, and to offer burnt offerings morning and evening on Sabbath, and on new moons, and on the appointed feasts of the Lord our God, this being required forever in Israel. The house which I'm about to build will be great for greater desire God than all the gods, but who was able to build a house for him for the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain him. So who am I that I should build a house for him, except to burn incense before him? Now send me a skilled man to work in gold, silver, brass and iron, and in purple, crimson and violet fabrics, and who knows how to make engravings to work with a skilled men whom I have in Judah and Jerusalem, whom David my father provide it send me also cedar, Cypress and algum timber from Lebanon for I know that your servants know how to cut timber of Lebanon. And indeed my servants will work with your servants to prepare timber in abundance for me for the house which I am about to build will be great and wonderful. Now behold, I will give to your servants the woodsmen who cut the timber 20,000 cores of crushed wheat and 20,000 cores of barley, and 20,000 baths of wine, and 20,000 baths of oil. Then here I am king of Tyre answered in a letter sent to Solomon, because the Lord loves his people he has made you king over them. Then here I am, continued, bless it be the Lord the God of Israel, who has made heaven and earth who has given King David A wise son, endowed with discretion and understanding who will build a house for the Lord and a royal palace for himself. Now I am sending you I'm a by a skilled man endowed with understanding the son of a Dan ICT woman and aterian father, who knows how to work in gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone and wood, and in purple, Violet, linen and crimson fabrics, and who knows how to make all kinds of engravings and to execute any design which may be assigned to him to work with your skilled men, and with those of my Lord David your father. Now then let my Lord send to His servants wheat and barley oil and wine of which he has spoken. We will cut whatever timber you need from Lebanon and bring it to you on rafts by sea to Joppa so that you may carry it up to Jerusalem. Solomon numbered all the aliens who were in the land of Israel following the census which his father David had taken in 153,600 were found, he appointed 70,000 of them to carry loads and 80,000 to quarry stones in the mountains and 3600 supervisors to make the people work. 

Steve Webb  6:53  
Second Chronicles chapter three. Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David, at the place that David had prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan, the Jebusite he began to build on the second day in the second month of the fourth year of his reign. Now these are the foundations which Solomon laid for building the house of God. The length in cubits according to the old standard was 60 cubits and the width 20 cubits. The porch which was in front of the house was as long as the width of the house 20 cubits and the height 120. And inside he overlaid it with pure gold. He overlaid the main room with cypress wood and overlaid it with fine gold, and ornamented it with palm trees and chains. Further, he adorned the house with precious stones, and the gold was gold from our van. He also overlaid the house with gold, the beams the thresholds and its walls and its doors, and he carved cherub him on the walls. Now he made the room of the Holy of Holies. Its length across the width of the house was 20 cubits, and its width was 20 cubits, and he overlaid it with fine gold amounting to 600 talents. The weight of the nails was 50 shekels of gold. He also overlaid the upper rooms with gold. Then he made two sculpture cherub him in the room of the Holy of Holies and overlaid them with gold. The wingspan of the cherub him was 20 cubits, the wing of one of five cubits touched the wall of the house, and its other wing of five cubits touched the wing of the other cherub, the wing of the other cherub of five cubits touched the wall of the house. And its other wing of five cubits was attached to the wing of the first cherub. The wings of these cherub him extended 20 cubits and they stood on their feet facing the main room. He made the veil of violet, purple, crimson and find linen and he worked cheering him on it. He also made two pillars for the front of the house 35 cubits high, and the Capitol and the top of each was five cubits. He made chains in the inner sanctuary and placed them on the tops of the pillars, and he made 100 pomegranates and placed them on the chains. he erected the pillars in the front of the temple, one on the right and the other on the left, and named the one on the right Jaken and the one on the left Boaz. 

Steve Webb  9:21  
Second Chronicles chapter four. Solomon also made a bronze altar 30 feet long, 30 feet wide and 15 feet high. Then he cast a great round basin 15 feet across from rim to rim, called the sea. It was seven and a half feet deep and about 45 feet in circumference. It was encircled just below its rim by two rows of figures that resembled oxen. There were about six oxen per foot all the way around, and they were cast as part of the basin. The sea was placed on a base of 12 bronze oxen all facing outward, three faced North three faced East West, three faced south and three faced East and the sea rested on them. The walls of the sea were about three inches thick and its rim flared out like a cup and resembled a Water Lily Blossom, it could hold about 16,500 gallons of water. He also made 10 smaller basins for washing the utensils for the burnt offerings. He said five on the south side and five on the north, but the priests washed themselves in the sea. He then cast 10 Gold lampstands according to the specifications that had been given, and he put them in the temple, five replaced against the south wall and five replaced against the north wall. He also built 10 tables and placed them in the temple five along the south wall and five along the north wall. Then he molded 100 Gold basins. He then built a courtyard for the priests and also a large outer courtyard. He made doors for the courtyard entrances and overlaid them with bronze. The great bronze basin called the sea was placed near the southeast corner of the temple Hyrum a by also made the necessary washbasins shovels and bowls. So at last Hyrum a by completed everything King Solomon had assigned him to make for the temple of God, the two pillars, the two bowl shaped capitals on top of the pillars, the two networks of interwoven chains that decorated the capitals, the 400 pomegranates that hung from the chains on the capitals to rows of pomegranates for each of the chain networks that decorated the capitals on top of the pillars, the water carts holding the basins, the sea and the 12 oxen under it, the ash buckets, the shovels, the meat hooks, and all the related articles. Your ma buy made all these things of burnished bronze for the temple of the Lord, just as King Solomon had directed. The king had them cast in clay molds in the Jordan valley between Succoth and xiaofan. Solomon used such great quantities of bronze that its weight could not be determined. Solomon also made all the furnishings for the temple of God, the gold altar, the tables for the bread of the presence, the lampstands and their lamps of solid gold to burn in front of the Most Holy Place as prescribed. The flower decorations lamps and tongs all of the purest gold, the lamps, sniffers, bowls, ladles and incense burners, all of solid gold, the doors for the entrances to the most holy place, and the main room of the temple overlaid with gold 

Steve Webb  12:31  
Second Chronicles chapter five. So Solomon finished all his work on the temple of the Lord. Then he brought all the gifts his father David had dedicated the silver the gold in the various articles, and he stored them in the treasuries of the temple of God. Solomon then summoned to Jerusalem, the elders of Israel and all the heads of tribes, the leaders of the ancestral families of Israel, they were to bring the ark of the Lord's covenant to the temple from its location in the city of David also known as Zion. So all the men of Israel assembled before the king at the annual festival of shelters, which is held in early autumn, when all the elders of Israel arrived, the Levites picked up the ark, the priests and Levites brought up the Ark along with a special tent at all the sacred items that had been in it. There before the ark, King Solomon and the entire community of Israel sacrificed so many sheep, goats and cattle that no one could keep count. Then the priests carried the Ark of the Lord's covenant into the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place and placed it beneath the wings of the chairman. The chair have them spread their wings over the ark, forming a canopy over the Ark and its carrying poles. These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the holy place which is in front of the most holy place, but not from the outside. They are still there to this day. Nothing was in the ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Mount Sinai, where the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel when they left Egypt. Then the priests left the holy place. All the priests who were present had purified themselves, whether or not they were on duty that day, and the Levites who are musicians asef HeMan. Jude, youth in and all their sons and brothers were dressed in fine linen robes and stood at the east side of the altar, playing cymbals liars and harps. They were joined by 120 priests who were playing trumpets, the trumpeters and singers performed together in unison to praise and give thanks to the Lord, accompanied by trumpets, symbols and other instruments. They raised their voices and praised the Lord with these words. He is good, his faithful love endures forever. At that moment, a thick cloud filled the temple of the Lord. The priests could not continue their service because of the cloud, for the glorious presence of the Lord filled the temple of God.

Steve Webb  14:58  
Well, Solomon has now begun his reign as king, it seems that his first order of business was to strengthen his hold on the kingdom. in First Kings chapter two, we read that shortly before his father David died, he gave Solomon instructions on what he should do to accomplish this. And it looks like Solomon wasted no time. We read in chapter one that God was with him and highly exalted Him. God seems to be pleased with how Solomon began his reign, Solomon brought all of Israel together to make a very special sacrifice of 1000 bird offerings to God. And this seems to have been to show that he would seek God as a leader of the nation. That's a good thing, right? Well, that night, God came to Solomon in a dream. And he said, ask, What shall I give you? Of course, the implication is that he would have given Solomon anything that he asked for right? Can you imagine anything? Wow. Wouldn't it be great if God made that kind of offer to you? What would you ask for? But wait, he has made that offer? Don't believe me? Well, how about Matthew seven, seven, Ask and it will be given to you seek and you will find, knock and it will be open to you. And John 15 Seven, If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. First, John 514. Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything, according to His will, He hears us. Beloved, these promises apply to every believer. The question is, have we availed ourselves of them? We all know what Solomon's request was, he asked for wisdom and knowledge to lead Israel. Take note that he asked for both wisdom and knowledge. Knowledge without wisdom can be a very dangerous thing. For instance, it's one thing to know how to use a gun. But if I don't have the wisdom to know when to use it, that could be bad news. And after his request, God said, since this was in your heart, and you have not requested riches, wealth, or glory, or for the life of those who hate you, and you have not even requested long life, but you've requested for yourself, wisdom and knowledge that you may judge my people over whom I've made you, King, wisdom and knowledge are given you. I will also give you riches, wealth and glory, unlike what was given to the kings who were before you, or will be given to those after you. So Solomon made a good request, don't you agree? But did he make the best request? Let's think about this. Did he ask for a deep and abiding love for God and the desire to follow Him and lead the people in how to be devoted to God as his father had? Wouldn't this have been even better? Surely, as we've seen, David was a flawed man. But his love of God never waned. David ended his life still in love with God. As we shall see, this was not how Solomon ended his days. Solomon is thought to have been between 20 and 25 years old when he took the throne. Tell me what generally happens to young people when they attain great wealth? Quite often, it ruins them. Perhaps it would have been better if Solomon had asked for a heart devoted to God, maybe that would have been the best request. Adam Clark who lived from 1762 to 1832, was a Methodist theologian and Bible scholar. And he wrote these words about Solomon, instead of being the wisest of men, did he not become more brutish than any man? Did he not even lose the knowledge of his Creator and worship the abominations of the Moabites Zanoni ins and so forth? And was not such idolatry a proof of the grossest stupidity. How few proofs does his life give that the gracious purpose of God was fulfilled in him? He received much, but he would have received much more had he been faithful to the grace given. No character in the sacred writings disappoints us more than the character of Solomon. Yes, God gave Solomon great blessings. But as is always the case, Solomon had to decide to follow God and make right decisions in his life. Tragically, he often chose wrongly, beloved, we may not have the greatest riches, the most wisdom or the deepest knowledge. But if we asked for and cultivated continual thirst to know and love God, when we reached the end of our days, we will have run the race. Well. I'd love to hear your thoughts go to Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 265. Tomorrow is Psalms Wednesday and we'll read chapters 114 through 116. Do you love the Psalms as much as I do? I love to read and pray along with the psalms of praise boost

Steve Webb  20:00  
On this date in church history may 24 1930. Linguistic pioneer Frank C. Lubbock serving as a congregational missionary to the Philippines wrote in a letter, as one makes new discoveries about his friends by being with them, so one discovers the individuality of God if one entertains him continuously, and on this date in church history, May 24 1950. During its annual meeting in Boston, the northern Baptist Convention formally changed its name to the American Baptist Convention. And in 1972, the denomination renamed itself the American Baptist churches in the USA

Steve Webb  20:48  
let's pray. Our heavenly Father, Lord, how gracious and generous you are when we seek to know you better. You reveal yourself in your word, but also when you speak to us in the still small voice of the Holy Spirit. Help us Lord to be sensitive to that voice. Give us a continual never fading desire to know you and to follow you. I thank You, Lord for the Lifespring family and I asked you to bless them richly today. I pray this in Jesus name, amen. If you've got a prayer request or a praise that you'd like to share with the Lifespring family, go to prayer dot Lifespring media.com.

Steve Webb  21:33  
Comment on the show at Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 265. Email me at Steve at Lifespring media.com thanks to the team Kirsty Shanna San Pedro and Denise, by the way, be looking for your newsletter this week. I just sent a short article to Gursky a few minutes ago talking about the cardiac ablation procedure that I'm going to be having later in the week, right. So be sure you're signed up at news dot Lifespring media.com. If you're interested, please do support the show with your time talent or treasure go to Lifespring media.com/support. If you find value in the show, return some of that value to help the show keep going. I'm so glad we got to spend some time together today. Until tomorrow. May God bless you richly. My name is Steve Webb.

Unknown Speaker  22:16  
Bye

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