David’s Generosity

1 Chronicles 29

            1 Chronicles ends by relating David’s generosity, his personal generosity, toward the temple project. The previous lists of David’s donations seem to have been from his government coffers. Here David emphasizes that these gifts are from his personal resources. And they are substantial! More than that, he challenges the leaders of Israel to make similarly generous gifts, and they do! A lesson: those who would be leaders among God’s people will also be leaders in the matter of stewardship and faithfully and generously supporting the work of God’s kingdom. (We could talk about the tithe, the gift of 10% of one’s income, but let it suffice to say, it makes a handy reference for what generosity looks like.)

            Speaking of stewardship, that’s part of David’s confession, too. He spends the second half of the chapter talking about how everything we have is a gift from God. To quote the old hymn, “We give Thee but Thine own, Whate’er the gift may be; All that we have is Thine alone, A trust, O Lord, from Thee.” It’s good to be reminded that our stuff is not ultimately our stuff. God lends it to us to use for His purposes while we are on the earth. (The Bible reminds us a few times that our stuff is only good for this life; it’s no use in the next