^6 (A)Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord ^(B)to its place in ^(C)the inner sanctuary of the house, in the Most Holy Place, underneath the wings of the cherubim. ⁷ For the cherubim spread out their wings over the place of the ark, so that the cherubim overshadowed the ark and its poles. ^8 (D)And the poles were so long that the ends of the poles were seen from the Holy Place before ^(E)the inner sanctuary; but they could not be seen from outside. And they are there to this day. ⁹ There was nothing in the ark except ^(F)the two tablets of stone that Moses put there at Horeb, where ^(G)the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. ¹⁰ And when the priests came out of the Holy Place, ^(H)a cloud filled the house of the Lord, ¹¹ so that 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

^12 (I)Then Solomon said, “The Lord^[a] has said that he would dwell ^(J)in thick darkness. ^13 (K)I have indeed built you an exalted house, ^(L)a place for you to dwell in forever.”

A Living Sacrifice

12 ^(A)I appeal to you therefore, brothers,^[a] by the mercies of God, ^(B)to present your bodies ^(C)as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.^{[b] 2 (D)}Do not be conformed to this world,^[c] but be transformed by ^(E)the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may ^(F)discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.^[d]

Gifts of Grace

³ For ^(G)by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you ^(H)not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, ^(I)each according to ^(J)the measure of faith that God has assigned. ⁴ For ^(K)as in one body we have many members,^[e] and the members do not all have the same function, ⁵ so we, ^(L)though many, ^(M)are one body in Christ, and individually ^(N)members one of another.

The Boy Jesus in the Temple

⁴¹ Now ^(A)his parents went ^(B)to Jerusalem every year at ^(C)the Feast of the Passover. ⁴² And when he was twelve years old, ^(D)they went up according to custom. ⁴³ And when the feast ^(E)was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. ^(F)His parents did not know it, ⁴⁴ but supposing him to be in the group they went a day's journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, ⁴⁵ and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. ⁴⁶ After three days they found him in the temple, ^(G)sitting among ^(H)the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. ⁴⁷ And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. ⁴⁸ And when his parents^[a] saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, ^(I)your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.” ⁴⁹ And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that ^(J)I must be in ^(K)my Father's house?”^{[b] 50} And ^(L)they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. ⁵¹ And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And ^(M)his mother treasured up all these things in her heart.

⁵² And Jesus ^(N)increased in wisdom and in stature^[c] and in ^(O)favor with God and man.

God Himself Is Judge

A Psalm of ^(A)Asaph.