1 Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. 2 It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.
Psalm 127:1–2 (ESV)
Through the Bible: 1 Chronicles 26-29, Psalm 127
I won’t lie– today’s reading was a tough slog. 1 Chronicles ends the way it begins. With lots and lots (and lots and lots) of hard-to-pronounce names. But just as I was about to write off the entire day as one I simply check off rather than one I could learn from, I began to see just how brilliant David was with what we would refer to today as nation building.
Flip (or scroll) through these chapters, and pay attention to the chapter headings. It seems as though David is building the system of government that would help Solomon and every king of Israel to follow be successful. Think about our modern day Cabinet secretaries:
- Chapter 26: Divisions of the Gatekeepers (Department of Homeland Security)
- Chapter 26: Treasurers and Other Officials (Department of the Treasury, Department of State)
- Chapter 27: Military Divisions (Department of Defense)
- Chapter 27: Leaders of Tribes (state governors)
The parallels aren’t exact, of course, but the overall picture is unmistakable. David was putting systems and mechanisms in place. He was creating structures that could outlive him.
The moment I thought of that phrase, I began to think of a lyric from the musical Hamilton:
God help and forgive me
I wanna build something that is gonna outlive me.
If you’ve followed my blog for awhile, you’ll know that it doesn’t take much to make me think of Hamilton. I saw the musical Hamilton. Then I read the Ron Chernow’s book about Alexander Hamilton that inspired the musical. Which made me watch the musical again. Which made me read the book again.
And in my quiet time this morning, I began to think of all the other parallels between David and Hamilton.
Both David and Hamilton arose from humble beginnings. David was the forgotten youngest son of a family of shepherds. Hamilton was an orphaned immigrant from the Caribbean.
Both distinguished themselves as leaders at a remarkably young age. David killed a giant and became King Saul’s right hand man. Hamilton distinguished himself in battle and became George Washington’s right hand man.
Both were prodigious writers. David wrote a third of the Psalms. Alexander Hamilton wrote fifty-one of the eighty-five Federalist Papers.
Both were instrumental in creating a new government. The idea of the United States was brand new. The idea of a United Kingdom of Israel was only forty years old, after four hundred years of tribal leaders (the Judges).
Both derailed their own careers and reputations through sexual sin. David with Bathsheba, Hamilton with Maria Reynolds. While David tried to hide his sin, Hamilton published the “Reynolds Pamphlet” to confess his sin to the whole world. Significantly, neither man went to God first.
Both experienced the unbearable grief of losing a beloved son. David lost Absalom; Hamilton lost Philip.
The parallels aren’t perfect, of course. David was a shepherd, king, and poet. Hamilton was an immigrant, statesman, and revolutionary.
But both men understood something important: nations do not survive on charisma alone. Eventually, someone has to build structures. Systems. Institutions. Things that still function after the great leader is gone.
That is what David is doing in these final chapters of 1 Chronicles. He is preparing for a future he himself will never fully see. Solomon will build the Temple. Solomon will sit on the throne. Solomon will inherit the kingdom. But David spends his final years organizing worship, appointing leaders, establishing treasuries, assigning gatekeepers, preparing military divisions, and putting everything in place for the next generation.
And perhaps that is one of the great tests of wisdom and maturity: learning to build things you may never personally benefit from.
That is hard for us. We want immediate results. Immediate recognition. Immediate success. We want to plant seeds and eat fruit on the same day. But much of faithful living is building something that will outlive us. Or, to quote another line from Hamilton:
Legacy– what is a legacy?
It’s planting seeds in a garden you never get to see.
Parents do that when they raise children.
Teachers do that when they shape students.
Pastors do that when they disciple churches.
Christians do that every time they invest in the Kingdom of God instead of merely themselves.
In the end, though, there is an important difference between David and Hamilton. Hamilton spent his life trying to secure a legacy that history would remember. David eventually learned that the greatest legacy was not his own name, but the glory of God.
Near the end of these chapters, David prays:
“Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty…” (1 Chronicles 29:11)
That may be the final lesson of these chapters. Build faithfully. Lead wisely. Prepare the next generation. Create things that outlive you. But never forget whose kingdom you are actually building.
And if you start humming show tunes during your morning devotion, just roll with it.
Other Posts for this day:
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