“Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.”
My Notes
What Does 1 Chronicles 29:12 Mean?
"Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all." David's prayer attributes everything to God: riches, honor, reign, power, might, greatness, and strength. Every category of human achievement is sourced in God's hand. Nothing the king possesses originates with the king. Everything comes from God and returns to God.
The five declarations build comprehensively: riches and honor (economic and social), reign over all (sovereignty), power and might (capacity to act), making great (elevating others), and giving strength (empowering). God isn't just the source of one category of blessing. He's the source of every category simultaneously.
The phrase "in thine hand" appears twice, emphasizing divine control: power and might are in God's hand. The capacity to make great and give strength is in God's hand. The hand that holds the power is the hand that distributes the greatness. Everything passes through God's grip before reaching anyone.
Reflection Questions
- 1.What success are you attributing to yourself that actually came from God's hand?
- 2.How does 'in thine hand' change your relationship to your own power and might?
- 3.What does giving back to God what came from God teach about the nature of generosity?
- 4.What would your version of David's prayer — comprehensive attribution to God — sound like?
Devotional
Riches — from You. Honor — from You. Sovereignty — Yours. Power — in Your hand. Might — in Your hand. Greatness — You give it. Strength — You distribute it. David's prayer is a comprehensive attribution: everything the kingdom possesses traces back to God's hand.
The prayer comes during the Temple offering collection (verses 1-9) — David has given his personal fortune and the leaders have given generously. And David's prayer says: what we just gave came from You in the first place. The offering that looked like human generosity is actually a return of divine provision. We gave back what was always Yours.
The 'in thine hand' repetition means nothing escapes God's grip: the power that builds kingdoms is in His hand. The might that wins wars is in His hand. The capacity to make someone great or give someone strength — all in the same hand. What you have came through His fingers. What you lack stayed in His palm.
The 'make great and give strength unto all' adds the universal dimension: God doesn't just make David great. He makes great AND gives strength to ALL. The capacity isn't hoarded for the chosen. It's distributed universally. Anyone who is great was made so by God's hand. Anyone who has strength received it from the same source.
David's prayer demolishes every claim of self-made success: you didn't earn the riches. You didn't build the honor. You didn't seize the power. It all came from the hand of a God who reigns over all. The only honest response to success is David's prayer: it came from You.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Both riches and honour come of thee,.... Whatever of either the children of men have is not owing to their merits, nor…
We have here,
I. The solemn address which David made to God upon occasion of the noble subscriptions of the princes…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture