All these were of the sons of Obed-edom …: All these refers to the names mentioned in verses 4-7. In this context sons is to be taken in the sense of “descendants” (Contemporary English Version, New International Version, New Living Translation, New Century Version). Parole de Vie begins this verse with “These men of the family of Obed-Edom….”

Able men is literally “man of strength” (see the comments on 1 Chr 26.6). This phrase is in the singular, but since it comes after the plural word sons and brethren, it has a distributive meaning. The singular points to the fact that each man was competent. Bible en français courant and La Bible du Semeur say “persons of real ability.”

Qualified for the service is literally “with power for the work,” referring to the work of guarding the Temple. The Hebrew noun for “power” has a literal meaning of physical strength and energy. Perhaps this noun should be given the literal physical sense of strength, since the gatekeepers may have been physically strong in order to serve as guards. Compare Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje, which says “strong in order to work as Temple guards.” But the word in this context may mean simply that they had the physical stamina to do their work energetically. So New International Version says “with the strength to do the work.” Similar renderings are “carrying out their work energetically” (La Bible du Semeur) and “because of the energy they showed in their service” (Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). But this Hebrew noun may also be used figuratively and refer to ability. Revised English Bible, for example, says “fit for service in the temple.” New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh renders this expression and the previous one as “strong and able men for the service,” which is a helpful model.

Sixty-two of Obed-edom: This phrase will fit more naturally much earlier in the verse in many languages; for example, Contemporary English Version renders the whole verse as “There were 62 descendants of Obed-Edom who were strong enough to be guards at the temple.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Abi-ezer of Anathoth, a Benjaminite (verse 12): See 1 Chr 11.28. Of Anathoth is literally “the Anathothite.” Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje says “from the city of Anathoth.” Anathoth was a town about 3 kilometers (about 2 miles) northeast of Jerusalem. Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente does not translate of Anathoth, but there is no textual evidence for doing so. Perhaps this is an error in the Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente translation. A Benjaminite may be rendered “in the territory of the tribe of Benjamin” (Good News Translation, Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje).

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver: The gold and silver mentioned here are what David gave out of his own personal treasures. For talents see the comments on 1 Chr 19.6. A “talent” was the approximate equivalent of 34 kilograms or 75 pounds. Good News Translation expresses the amount of gold and silver here as “115 tons of the finest gold and 265 tons of pure silver.” New Century Version has “about two hundred twenty thousand pounds of pure gold from Ophir and about five hundred twenty thousand pounds of pure silver.” God’s Word is similar with “225,000 pounds of gold from Ophir and 525,000 pounds of refined silver.” In kilos this amounts to approximately 100,000 kilos of gold and 230,000 kilos of silver (so Biblia Dios Habla Hoy, Nueva Versión Internacional). These are vast amounts of gold and silver. The location of Ophir is unknown, though probably it was somewhere in the southern part of the Arabian peninsula. Ophir was famous for its gold (see 1 Kgs 9.28; 2 Chr 8.18; 9.10; Job 28.16; Psa 45.9; Isa 13.12). For gold of Ophir, Good News Translation and Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente say “finest gold,” and Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente has the following footnote: “This is the meaning of the Hebrew expression gold of Ophir; from this region, which was near the Red Sea, came gold of the highest quality.” Refined silver refers to silver that has been purified by having impurities removed by heating the silver. Good News Translation calls it “pure silver.”

For overlaying the walls of the house: House is literally “houses” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), which may refer to the entrance room, the main room, and the Most Holy Place of the Temple. In 1 Kgs 6 Revised Standard Version calls these rooms the vestibule, the nave, and the inner sanctuary. The plural “houses” apparently refers to the inside walls of the rooms in the Temple. Peregrino makes it clear that the walls of the house were “the interior walls of the temple,” and New American Bible says “the walls of the rooms.” Compare “the walls of the chambers of the house” (Klein). New International Version, Revised English Bible, and New Jerusalem Bible say “the walls of the buildings,” but this may incorrectly suggest buildings in addition to the Temple itself. Since the Septuagint and a few other ancient versions have “the walls of the temple,” this may be the basis for the singular word house in Revised Standard Version and New Revised Standard Version.

This verse seems to say that both silver and gold were used for “covering” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh) or “plating” (Braun) the walls of the Temple, but according to 2 Chr 3.4-9 only gold leaf was used for this purpose.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Solomon’s prayer for wisdom and knowledge is what David had asked for him according to 1 Chr 22.12.

Give me now wisdom and knowledge: This expression may sound rude or disrespectful in some languages if it is translated literally. The Hebrew particle translated now is actually the first word in this verse, and some versions render it “Therefore” (New Jerusalem Bible, New American Bible, Bible en français courant). In some languages the imperative form will have to be softened or made more polite by the addition of a word or expression meaning “please” as in Bible en français courant and Parole de Vie. Wisdom comes only with maturity and broad experience in life. Knowledge, on the other hand, can be gained relatively quickly through reading and listening. It is only a beginning point for becoming mature and wise. For this reason it may be more natural in some languages to reverse the order of these two nouns. Knowledge can also be used in a negative sense while wisdom nearly always describes a positive value. Here it is clear that Solomon is asking for the proper mental state to be a good ruler and make intelligent and beneficial decisions. In this context Solomon’s prayer for wisdom also includes the ability to build the Temple.

To go out and come in before this people is literally “and/so I may go out before this people and I may come.” This expression is likely to be misunderstood if it is translated literally. In some contexts it means “to lead the army into warfare,” but here the meaning is simply “to perform all the duties of a leader.” New Jerusalem Bible translates “to act as a leader of this people,” and Traduction œcuménique de la Bible has “so that I might know how to conduct myself in front of this people.” Some other possible models are “so I can lead these people in the right way” (New Century Version), “to lead this people” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh; similarly Revised English Bible), and “that I might fulfill this task at the head of this people” (Bible en français courant).

For who can rule this thy people, that is so great?: In this context the Hebrew conjunction rendered for has the meaning “otherwise, if I don’t receive wisdom and knowledge.” Good News Translation and Revised English Bible use the connector “Otherwise.” Other possible connectors are “because” (New Century Version) and “Without that” (Bible en français courant). Who can rule…? is a rhetorical question. Solomon knows that without God’s help no one can rule the people of Israel. Since Solomon clearly is expressing his own inability to rule the people without wisdom from God, Good News Translation changes the subject of this question from the third person to the first person, saying “how would I ever be able to rule…?” (similarly Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch). However, such a change seems to weaken the sense, since Solomon is not saying that only he is unable to rule the people, but rather that no one is able to do so without God’s help. The Hebrew verb rendered rule is literally “judge” (King James Version), but Revised Standard Version expresses it correctly in this context. The Hebrew adjective for great used to describe the people of Israel may be understood either in the sense of importance or number. However, the two ideas are not easily separated since a nation that has numerous members is also important by virtue of its numbers. Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente says “numerous,” and this is most likely the sense of the Hebrew in light of the statement at the end of verse 9. Alternative renderings for this rhetorical question are “how can anyone rule these numerous people of yours?” and “no one can possibly rule over these numerous people of yours.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

The weight of the nails was one shekel to fifty shekels of gold: For the weight of a shekel, see the comments on 2 Chr 1.17. Fifty shekels was the equivalent of about “More than a pound” (Contemporary English Version) or “twenty ounces” (Good News Translation), that is, one and a quarter pounds or about six-tenths of a kilogram. Bible en français courant expresses the metric equivalent as “five hundred grams,” and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch says “a half kilo.”

The precise sense of this clause is uncertain. According to the interpretation followed in Revised Standard Version, the ratio of the weight of the nails to that of the gold was one shekel of nails to fifty shekels of gold. Others understand the Hebrew to mean that all of the nails used had a combined weight of 20 ounces of gold. But 20 ounces is too little for the combined weight of all the nails that would have been needed since the gold leaf on the walls weighed around 25 tons, but this is the impression given by the Good News Translation rendering (also Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, Bible de Jérusalem, La Sainte Bible: La version Etablie par les moines de Maredsous). However, 20 ounces is also too much for the weight of one nail. According to the Septuagint, each nail weighed fifty shekels of gold. Peregrino follows this interpretation by saying “The nails, which were made of gold, weighed each one a half kilo.” But other interpretations of the Hebrew are also possible. Reina-Valera revisada says “The gold nails weighed from one to fifty shekels.”

A number of translations are ambiguous as to how this clause is to be understood. Compare the following: “The weight of the gold for the nails was fifty shekels” (Dillard) and “The weight of the nails was fifty shekels of gold” (New Revised Standard Version; similarly New American Bible, Osty-Trinquet). It is not clear in these translations whether each nail weighed fifty shekels, or whether all of the nails together weighed that amount.

Since gold is relatively soft, it seems unlikely that the nails were made of gold. More likely, gold leaf was used to cover the heads of the nails. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament gives a {B} rating to the Masoretic Text here and says the meaning is “the weight for the nails (= to cover the nails) was fifty shekels of gold.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch provides a good model for this meaning, saying “For the gold-plating of the nails, a half kilo was needed.” Compare also Contemporary English Version, which says “More than a pound of gold was used to cover the heads of the nails.” This seems quite reasonable since only the heads would be visible when the work was completed.

And he overlaid the upper chambers with gold: The meaning of the Hebrew expression rendered upper chambers is not clear. The following interpretations have been suggested:

• (1) Many versions take the Hebrew as referring to “upper rooms” in the Temple on the sides of the Temple (see 1 Kgs 6.5-6, 8-10; 1 Chr 28.11). Following this interpretation, Contemporary English Version has “The walls of the small storage rooms were also covered with gold.”

• (2) Some interpreters think that the writer was referring to upper rooms within the Most Holy Place, but this seems unlikely since no other passage in the Old Testament refers to such rooms there.

• (3) But another interpretation is also possible. According to 1 Kgs 6.20, the Most Holy Place was 20 cubits high. And according to the Masoretic Text of 1 Kgs 6.2, the Temple was 30 cubits high. This seems to suggest that either (a) the Most Holy Place was raised 10 cubits from the ground and that steps led up into it, or (b) there was an empty space of 10 cubits between the ceiling of the Most Holy Place and the ceiling of the Temple. Translators will find drawings of the Temple in some commentaries and biblical dictionaries that have steps leading up to the Most Holy Place. Other drawings, based on the second interpretation, show a loft, or empty space, above the Most Holy Place. If there was an empty space of 10 cubits between the ceiling of the Most Holy Place and the ceiling of the Temple, it may have been this place that was overlaid … with gold. This seems to be the basis for the La Bible du Semeur rendering, which reads “He also had the ceilings covered with gold” (similarly Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, El libro del Pueblo de Dios).

The implied subject of the verb overlaid is Solomon, but as in other such cases he almost certainly did not do the work himself. Rather, he had this work done by others. So in some languages it will be necessary to say “he had the upper chambers overlaid with gold” or to use a causative verb form.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

And they brought up the ark …: The Hebrew verb rendered brought up indicates that the ark and the other items were carried to the Temple. The movement in an upward direction is not important to the story and may be omitted if its inclusion would be unnatural in the receptor language (so Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, International Children’s Bible, New American Bible, Bible en français courant, Parole de Vie, La Bible du Semeur, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy).

The tent of meeting probably refers to the tent that had been at Gibeon, according to 2 Chr 1.3, not the tent that David had made for the Covenant Box in Jerusalem (see 1 Chr 15.1; 16.1; 2 Chr 1.4). In 1 Kings and 1-2 Chronicles, the tent of meeting always refers to the tent made by Moses (see the comments on 1 Chr 6.32). The narrative does not tell when this tent had been moved from Gibeon to Jerusalem, or perhaps it was still in Gibeon.

All the holy vessels that were in the tent: See the comments on 1 Chr 22.19. This phrase may be better translated “all the sacred furnishings in it” (New International Version; similarly Revised English Bible) or “all the holy utensils in it” (God’s Word). In some languages it may be necessary to say “all the objects that the priests used in their work.”

The priests and the Levites brought them up: Both the priests and the Levites were descendants of Levi. The Levites included all of the Temple personnel who were not priests (see the comments on 1 Chr 9.2). The Masoretic Text does not have the conjunction and between the priests and the Levites, although some Hebrew manuscripts as well as the ancient versions do have the conjunction. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament gives a {B} rating to the Masoretic Text here and claims that the author did not intend to refer to two different groups. Versions that follow this understanding say “the levitical priests” (New Jerusalem Bible, New American Bible, Bible en français courant, El libro del Pueblo de Dios) or “The priests, who were Levites” (New International Version). Some interpreters think the Revised Standard Version translation is correct since the author of 1-2 Chronicles elsewhere always makes a distinction between the priests and the Levites.

As in verse 2, Good News Translation adds “to the Temple” (so also New Living Translation, God’s Word). This completes the meaning, and such an addition may be required by the grammar of many languages.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Whatever prayer, whatever supplication is made by any man or by all thy people Israel: For whatever see the comments on the previous verse. Regarding the nouns prayer and supplication, see the comments on verse 19.

The passive verb is made will have to be changed into an active one in some languages. The agent is actually specified in the text as any man or … all thy people Israel. An active expression for this whole clause is “when any person in Israel or all your people truly feel sorry and sincerely pray.” In this context any man refers to an individual person, whether male or female, in contrast to the whole nation of Israel.

Each knowing his own affliction, and his own sorrow: Affliction renders the same Hebrew noun translated “plague” in the previous verse. The Hebrew word for sorrow can refer to mental anguish or physical “pain” (New Jerusalem Bible, New American Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). The precise meaning of this clause is not clear. The sense appears to be that each person will recognize that his own suffering is the result of God’s punishment of his sin. New Jerusalem Bible says “each being aware of his own affliction and pain.”

And stretching out his hands toward this house is literally “and he spreads the palms of his hands toward this house.” See the comments on verse 12. This gesture was commonly used in fervent prayer to God in the Old Testament but usually the hands were stretched out toward God in heaven rather than toward the Temple, his dwelling place on earth. This house clearly refers to the Temple, and in some languages it may be wise to make this explicit as Good News Translation has done.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .