David's Bloody Hands won’t Build the Temple

I Chronicles.22.7-9

Amichai Lau-Lavie (he/him)

Jun 29, 2025

“Too often in the history of religion, people have killed in the name of the God of life, waged war in the name of the God of peace, hatred in the name of the God of love, and practiced cruelty in the name of the God of compassion. When this happens, God speaks, sometimes in a still, small, voice almost inaudible beneath the clamour of those claiming to speak on his behalf. what he says at those times is: Not in My Name.”

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks

Human history, as well as Jewish history, is full of famous leaders with blood on their hands, including the blood of innocents. In many cases the carnage is committed in the name of sacred duties and to protect some version of what’s divine.

What are the consequences? Often there aren’t any.

But in today’s chapter there is a rare and puzzling exception. The king who represents God admits his own failures and why his bloody hands, no matter what his intentions, will prevent him from building the temple of God.

King David will not get to build the temple that according to this book he worked so hard to prepare for. Instead of him it will be his son. And while it often takes a few generations to erect big public works the reason here is an explicit indictment not found in any other biblical source:

וַיֹּ֥אמֶר דָּוִ֖יד לִשְׁלֹמֹ֑ה בְּנִ֕י אֲנִי֙ הָיָ֣ה עִם־לְבָבִ֔י לִבְנ֣וֹת בַּ֔יִת לְשֵׁ֖ם יְהֹוָ֥ה אֱלֹהָֽי׃

וַיְהִ֨י עָלַ֤י דְּבַר־יְהֹוָה֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר דָּ֤ם לָרֹב֙ שָׁפַ֔כְתָּ וּמִלְחָמ֥וֹת גְּדֹל֖וֹת עָשִׂ֑יתָ לֹא־תִבְנֶ֥ה בַ֙יִת֙ לִשְׁמִ֔י כִּ֚י דָּמִ֣ים רַבִּ֔ים שָׁפַ֥כְתָּ אַ֖רְצָה לְפָנָֽי׃

David said to Solomon, “My son, I wanted to build a House for the name of YHWH my God. But the word of YHWH came to me, saying,‘You have shed much blood and fought great battles; you shall not build a House for My name, for you have shed much blood on the earth in My sight.

We’ve not read any such statement by YHWH to David in prior biblical versions so this may be new information - since the agenda of the Chronicler prefers to paint David as a pious hero with few faults.

Even this admission of bloodguilt makes him look good. But it still depicts him as someone who spilled a lot of blood - so how do these stories about him get reconciled?

Rabbi David Kimchi, the Italian Jewish commentator known as Radak wrote this commentary in the 12th Century, clearly naming David’s bloodguilt:

"You have shed blood abundantly" – We do not find that God said this to him, but David said this in his heart, that for this reason God prevented him from building the Temple. Or else Natan the prophet said this to him.. for there was innocent blood among the blood that he shed, like the blood of Uriya, and this happened before…Also among the blood of the nations that he shed, it is possible that there were good and pious people among them. Nevertheless, he was not punished for them because his intention was to destroy the wicked so that they do not attack Israel and to save himself when he was in the land of the Philistines, and therefore he spared no man or woman. But since he was involved in abundant bloodshed, God barred him from building a Temple, which is for peace and atonement of sin and the crown of prayer, as He forbade the waving of iron over the altar and in the Temple. Since iron is used for the production of tools of death, it should not be used for the production of tools of peace.”

Whatever the real reason - the baton for building the temple meant for peace is passed on to the prince whose name means peace. Or at least that’s the official version found here - and only here, as David recounts the promise that he heard in his heart from God - and why a son will be named for peace and will be the one to build the shrine of the sacred:

הִנֵּה־בֵ֞ן נוֹלָ֣ד לָ֗ךְ ה֤וּא יִֽהְיֶה֙ אִ֣ישׁ מְנוּחָ֔ה וַהֲנִיח֥וֹתִי ל֛וֹ מִכׇּל־אוֹיְבָ֖יו מִסָּבִ֑יב כִּ֤י שְׁלֹמֹה֙ יִֽהְיֶ֣ה שְׁמ֔וֹ וְשָׁל֥וֹם וָשֶׁ֛קֶט אֶתֵּ֥ן עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל בְּיָמָֽיו׃

But you will have a son who will be a man at rest, for I will give him rest from all his enemies on all sides; Solomon will be his name and I shall confer peace and quiet on Israel in his time.

We do not forget that while this transition is described as dedication to peace-making, the precious metals used to build the temple - which will be described in every detail in the chapters we have left -- came from combat and war-loot. So despite the prohibition - metal did become part of the construction and even is Solomon was not the warring king his father was - the memory of all those wars did not yet wash away.

And yet the yearning - then, and now -- for ‘peace and quiet’ in Israel and everywhere, under rulers who regulate life and prioritize serenity, with hands that have less blood on them and busy building futures that will cherish life, justice, hope and peace.

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Below the Bible Belt

David's Bloody Hands won’t Build the Temple

I Chronicles.22.7-9

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks

Human history, as well as Jewish history, is full of famous leaders with blood on their hands, including the blood of innocents. In many cases the carnage is committed in the name of sacred duties and to protect some version of what’s divine.

What are the consequences? Often there aren’t any.

But in today’s chapter there is a rare and puzzling exception. The king who represents God admits his own failures and why his bloody hands, no matter what his intentions, will prevent him from building the temple of God.

King David will not get to build the temple that according to this book he worked so hard to prepare for. Instead of him it will be his son. And while it often takes a few generations to erect big public works the reason here is an explicit indictment not found in any other biblical source:

וַיֹּ֥אמֶר דָּוִ֖יד לִשְׁלֹמֹ֑ה בְּנִ֕י אֲנִי֙ הָיָ֣ה עִם־לְבָבִ֔י לִבְנ֣וֹת בַּ֔יִת לְשֵׁ֖ם יְהֹוָ֥ה אֱלֹהָֽי׃

David said to Solomon, “My son, I wanted to build a House for the name of YHWH my God. But the word of YHWH came to me, saying,‘You have shed much blood and fought great battles; you shall not build a House for My name, for you have shed much blood on the earth in My sight.

I Chronicles.22.7-9

We’ve not read any such statement by YHWH to David in prior biblical versions so this may be new information - since the agenda of the Chronicler prefers to paint David as a pious hero with few faults.

Even this admission of bloodguilt makes him look good. But it still depicts him as someone who spilled a lot of blood - so how do these stories about him get reconciled?

Rabbi David Kimchi, the Italian Jewish commentator known as Radak wrote this commentary in the 12th Century, clearly naming David’s bloodguilt:

But you will have a son who will be a man at rest, for I will give him rest from all his enemies on all sides; Solomon will be his name and I shall confer peace and quiet on Israel in his time.

I Chronicles.22.7-9

And yet the yearning - then, and now -- for ‘peace and quiet’ in Israel and everywhere, under rulers who regulate life and prioritize serenity, with hands that have less blood on them and busy building futures that will cherish life, justice, hope and peace.

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