Old Testament · 1 Kings

1 Kings 8

The Ark Enters the Temple

(2 Chronicles 5:1–14)

1Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the princes of the fathers of the sons of Israel, to king Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant^a of the LORD from the city of David, which is Zion. 2And all the men^b of Israel were assembled to king Solomon in the month of Ethanim, at the feast^c, it is the seventh month.

3And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests carried the ark. 4And they brought up the ark of the LORD, and the tent^d of appointed time (mo-ed), and all the holy vessels that were in the tent; and the priests and the Levites brought them up.

5And king Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, who were assembled to him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen that could not be counted nor numbered for multitude.

6And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place, to the inner sanctuary of the house, to the holy of holies, to under the wings of the cherubim. 7For the cherubim were spreading wings to the place of the ark, and the cherubim covered over the ark and over its staves from above.

8And they lengthened the staves, and the heads of the staves were seen from the holy place upon the face of the inner sanctuary, but they were not seen outside; and there they are to this day.

9There was nothing in the ark except the two tablets of stone that Moses placed there at Horeb, where the LORD cut a covenant with the sons of Israel when they came out of the land of Egypt.

10And it came to pass, when the priests came out from the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD. 11And the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD.

Solomon Blesses the LORD

(2 Chronicles 6:1–11)

12Then Solomon said: the LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.

13Building, I have built a house of lofty habitation for you, a place for your dwelling forever.

14And the king turned his face about and blessed all the assembly of Israel; and all the assembly of Israel was standing. 15And he said: Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who spoke with his mouth to David my father, and with his hand has fulfilled it, saying: 16From the day that I brought forth my people Israel from Egypt, I did not choose a city out of all the tribes of Israel to build a house, that my name might be there; but I chose David to be over my people Israel.

17And it was with the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. 18And the LORD said to David my father: Because it was with your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was with your heart; 19only you shall not build the house; but your son who comes forth from your loins, he shall build the house for my name.

20And the LORD has established his word that he spoke; and I have risen up in place of David my father, and I sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD spoke, and I have built the house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. 21And I have set there a place for the ark, where is the covenant of the LORD, which he cut with our fathers when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.

Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication

(2 Chronicles 6:12–42)

22And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of all the assembly of Israel, and spread forth his palms to the heavens. 23And he said: the LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you, in the heavens above or on the earth beneath, keeping the covenant and the kindness for your servants who walk before you with all their heart; 24who has kept for your servant David my father that which you spoke to him; and you spoke with your mouth, and with your hand you have fulfilled it, as this day.

25And now, O LORD, God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father that which you spoke to him, saying: There shall not be cut off for you a man from before me sitting on the throne of Israel, only if your sons take heed of their way, to walk before me as you have walked before me. 26And now, God of Israel, let your word, please, be confirmed, which you spoke to your servant David my father.

27But will God indeed dwell upon the earth? Behold, the heavens and the heavens of the heavens cannot contain you; how much less this house that I have built! 28Yet turn to the prayer of your servant and to his supplication, the LORD my God, to listen to the cry and to the prayer which your servant prays before you today;

29that your eyes may be open toward this house night and day, toward the place of which you said: My name shall be there; to listen to the prayer which your servant prays toward this place. 30And listen to the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel, which they pray toward this place; and you, hear in the place of your dwelling, in the heavens; and you hear and forgive.

31When a man sins against his neighbor, and an oath is laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath comes before your altar in this house; 32then you, hear in the heavens, and act, and judge your servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head, and justifying the righteous, to give to him according to his righteousness.

33When your people Israel are struck down before an enemy, because they have sinned against you, and they turn back to you and confess your name, and pray and make supplication to you in this house; 34then you, hear in the heavens, and forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them back to the ground^e which you gave to their fathers.

35When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain, because they have sinned against you, and they pray toward this place and confess your name, and turn from their sin because you afflict them; 36then you, hear in the heavens, and forgive the sin of your servants and your people Israel, for you teach them the good way in which they should walk; and give rain upon your land which you gave to your people for an inheritance.

37If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust, or caterpillar; if its enemy besieges it in the land of its gates, whatever plague, whatever sickness; 38every prayer, every supplication that is for any man^f, for all your people Israel, who shall know each man the plague of his own heart, and spreads forth his palms toward this house; 39then you, hear in the heavens, the place of your dwelling, and forgive, and act, and give to each man according to all his ways, whose heart you know — for you, you alone, know the heart of all the sons of man — 40that they may fear you all the days that they are living^g upon the face of the ground which you gave to our fathers.

41And also to the foreigner, who is not of your people Israel but comes from a distant land for the sake of your name— 42for they shall hear of your great name and your strong hand and your outstretched arm — and he comes and prays toward this house; 43you, hear in the heavens, the place of your dwelling, and act according to all that the foreigner calls to you for; that all the peoples of the earth may know your name, to fear you, as your people Israel, and to know that your name is called upon this house which I have built.

44When your people go out to battle against their enemy, by the way that you send them, and they pray to the LORD toward the city which you have chosen, and the house which I have built for your name; 45then you hear in the heavens their prayer and their supplication, and you maintain their judgment^h.

46When they sin against you — for there is no man who does not sin — and you are angry with them and give them before an enemy, and their captors carry them captive to the land of the enemy, far or near; 47and they take it back to their heart in the land where they are taken captive, and they turn back and make supplication to you in the land of their captors, saying: We have sinned and have done iniquity, we have done wickedly; 48and they turn back to you with all their heart and with all their soulⁱ in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and they pray to you toward their land which you gave to their fathers, the city which you have chosen, and the house which I have built for your name; 49then you hear in the heavens, the place of your dwelling, their prayer and their supplication, and you maintain their judgment, 50and forgive your people who have sinned against you, and all their transgressions which they have transgressed against you; and give them to compassion before their captors, that they may have compassion on them;

51for they are your people and your inheritance, whom you brought forth from Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron; 52that your eyes may be open to the supplication of your servant and to the supplication of your people Israel, to listen to them in all their calling to you. 53For you set them apart for yourself for an inheritance out of all the peoples of the earth, as you spoke by the hand of Moses your servant, when you brought our fathers out of Egypt, the Lord GOD.

Solomon’s Benediction

54And it came to pass, when Solomon finished praying to the LORD all this prayer and supplication, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his palms spread forth to the heavens. 55And he stood and blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying:

56Blessed be the LORD, who has given rest to his people Israel, according to all that he spoke; there has not fallen one word of all his good word which he spoke by the hand of Moses his servant.

57May the LORD our God be with us, as he was with our fathers; let him not leave us nor forsake us; 58to incline our heart to him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments^j and his statutes^k and his judgments, which he commanded^l our fathers.

59And let these my words, with which I have made supplication before the LORD, be near to the LORD our God day and night, to maintain the judgment of his servant and the judgment of his people Israel, the matter of a day in its day; 60that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD, he is God; there is none else.

61And let your heart be whole with the LORD our God, to walk in his statutes and to keep his commandments, as at this day.

Sacrifices of Dedication

(2 Chronicles 7:4–10)

62And the king and all Israel with him were sacrificing a sacrifice before the LORD. 63And Solomon sacrificed the sacrifice of the peace offerings which he sacrificed to the LORD: twenty-two thousand oxen and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the sons of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD.

64On that day the king consecrated the middle of the court that was before the house of the LORD; for there he made the burnt offering and the meal offering and the fat of the peace offerings; because the bronze altar that was before the LORD was too small to contain the burnt offering and the meal offering and the fat of the peace offerings.

65And Solomon made at that time the feast, and all Israel with him, a great assembly, from the entrance of Hamath to the brook of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven days, fourteen days.

66On the eighth day he sent the people away, and they blessed the king, and went to their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the good that the LORD had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people.