1 Chronicles 17:6 Meaning and Explanation
“Wheresoever I have walked with all Israel, spake I a word to any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to feed my people, saying, Why have ye not built me an house of cedars?”
King James Version (KJV)
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Read Full Chapter →God notes that in all His years with Israel He never once reproached its leaders for failing to build Him a cedar house.
What Does 1 Chronicles 17:6 Mean?
The LORD continues His gentle reasoning. Through all the generations of the judges, the leaders He appointed to shepherd His people, He never once demanded a cedar house for Himself. He asks David, in effect, where is the command I supposedly left unfulfilled? The temple David imagines was never a debt owed to God.
God reminds the king that His leaders were given to feed His people, to care for them as a shepherd cares for the flock. The LORD's first concern is not architecture but the tending of human souls. Before He asks for a house, He asks for faithful shepherds. This sets the stage for the surprising reversal to come, where God will be the builder and David the one who receives.
1 Chronicles 17:6 in the Original Language
ra'ah (רָעָה), 'to feed' -- to shepherd or tend a flock, the same word that pictures God's leaders as shepherds over His people.
Frequently Asked Questions About 1 Chronicles 17:6
What does 1 Chronicles 17:6 mean?
God notes that in all His years with Israel He never once reproached its leaders for failing to build Him a cedar house.