Passage Resources Hebrew/Greek Your Content
Previous Next
Add parallel Print Page Options
Close EHV

1 Kings 8
Evangelical Heritage Version

Solomon Brings the Ark Into the Temple

8 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, all the heads of tribes, and the leading fathers of the people of Israel to appear before him in Jerusalem, in order to bring up the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord from the City of David, that is, from Zion. 2 All the men of Israel assembled before King Solomon in the month of Ethanim,[a] during the festival.[b] It was the seventh month. 3 Then all the elders of Israel came, and the priests lifted up the ark. 4 They brought up the Ark of the Lord, the Tent of Meeting, and all the holy vessels which were in the tent. The priests and the Levites brought them up.

5 King Solomon, along with the whole congregation of Israel who had gathered with him in front of the ark, was sacrificing sheep and cattle, too many to be counted.

6 The priests brought the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord to its place in the inner sanctuary of the house, to the Most Holy Place, under the wings of the cherubim, 7 for the cherubim were spreading their wings over the place for the ark, so that the cherubim covered the ark and its poles with their wings. 8 The poles were so long that the ends of the poles could be seen from the Holy Place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen from outside. They are there to this day.

9 There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets, which Moses had placed there at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel when they came out of the land of Egypt.

10 When the priests came out from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the House of the Lord. 11 The priests were not able to take their positions to minister in the presence of the cloud, because the Glory of the Lord had filled the House of the Lord.

King Solomon’s Prayer

12 Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he dwells in thick darkness. 13 I have truly built a majestic house for you, a place for you to dwell forever.”

14 Then the king turned and blessed the whole congregation of Israel, while the whole congregation of Israel was standing there. 15 Then Solomon said:

Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel. What he said with his mouth to my father David, he has fulfilled with his hand.

The Lord said, 16 “From the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I did not choose a city from all the tribes of Israel in which to build a house for my Name to be there, ⎣nor did I choose any man to be a leader over my people Israel; but now I have chosen Jerusalem for my Name to be there,⎦[c] and I have chosen David to be over my people Israel.”

17 It was on my father David’s heart to build a house for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel.

18 However, the Lord said to my father David, “It was on your heart to build a house for my Name. That was a good thing to desire. 19 But you will not build the house. Your son, who will come from your own body, will build the house for my Name.”

20 So the Lord kept his word which he had spoken, and I arose in the place of my father David. I am seated on the throne of Israel, just as the Lord said. I have built this house for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 21 I have established a place there for the Ark, which contains the covenant of the Lord, which he made with our fathers when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.

22 Then Solomon stood in front of the altar in the presence of the whole congregation of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven.[d] 23 He said:

O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in the heavens above or on the earth below. You keep the covenant of mercy and faithfulness with your servants who walk before you with all their heart. 24 You have kept the word which you spoke to your servant, my father David. What you have said with your mouth you have fulfilled with your hand, as it is today.

25 Now, Lord God of Israel, guard for your servant, my father David, the promise you made to him when you said, “You will never fail to have a man sitting on the throne of Israel in my presence, if your sons guard their ways by walking in my law just as you have walked before me.”

26 Now, O God of Israel, let the words which you spoke to your servant, my father David, be confirmed.

27 But will God really dwell on the earth? In truth, the heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this house, which I have built! 28 But turn your face toward the prayer of your servant and toward his plea for mercy. O Lord my God, listen to the cry and the prayer which your servant offers before you today.

29 Let your eyes be open toward this house night and day, toward this place where you said, “My Name will be there,” to hear the prayer which your servant offers toward this place.

30 When you hear the plea for mercy of your servant and of your people Israel, which they pray toward this place, then hear in your dwelling place in heaven—hear and forgive.

The Petitions

31 When a man sins against his neighbor, and his neighbor places him under an oath, and the oath is presented before your altar in this house, 32 then hear from heaven and take action. Provide justice for your servants by declaring the wicked person guilty and bringing his ways down on his own head, and by declaring the righteous person innocent and dealing with him according to his righteousness.

33 When your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they sinned against you, and when they return to you and praise your Name and pray and seek your favor in this house, 34 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land which you gave to their fathers.

35 When the heavens are shut up, and there is no rain because they sinned against you, and when they pray toward this place, and they praise your Name and turn from their sin because you have humbled them, 36 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Yes, teach them the good way in which they are to walk, and provide rain for the land which you gave to your people as an inheritance.

37 When there is famine in the land, when there is plague, when there is blight or mildew or locusts or grasshoppers, when their enemies are in the land besieging their gates, in every disease, in every sickness, 38 hear every prayer and every plea for mercy which any individual presents or which your whole people Israel presents. When each one knows the affliction of his own heart, when he spreads out his hands toward this house, 39 hear in heaven, your dwelling place, and forgive. Then act and give to each person according to all his ways, because you know his heart (yes, you alone know the heart of every human being), 40 so that they may fear you all the days they live on the soil which you gave to our fathers.

41 Also for the foreigner, who is not one of your people Israel, but who comes from a distant land because of your Name 42 (for they will hear about your great Name, your mighty hand, and your outstretched arm, and they will come and pray toward this house), 43 for that foreigner, hear in heaven, which is your dwelling place, and do everything for which that foreigner cries out to you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your Name and fear you, just as your people Israel do, and because they know that your Name is proclaimed in this house which I have built.

44 When your people go out for battle against their enemy on whatever way you send them, and when they pray to the Lord facing toward the city which you have chosen and toward the house which I have built for your Name, 45 then from heaven hear their prayer and their plea for mercy, and provide justice for them.

46 When they sin against you (for there is no one who does not sin) and you become angry with them, and you give them up to their enemies, and their captors exile them to an enemy land, whether distant or near, 47 when they are in the land where they were exiled and they turn their hearts back, and they repent and pray to you in the land of their exile and say, “We have sinned and become guilty and done evil,” 48 when they return to you with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies where they were exiled, and they pray in the direction of their land, which you gave to their fathers, toward the city which you chose and toward the house which I have built for your Name, 49 then hear their prayers and their plea for mercy from heaven, your dwelling place, and provide justice for them. 50 Pardon your people who have sinned against you and all their rebellious deeds that they have committed against you. Have compassion by causing their enemies to show them compassion. 51 For they are your people and your possession, which you brought out of Egypt, from the midst of the iron-smelting furnace.

52 Let your eyes be open to the plea for mercy from your servant and to the plea for mercy from your people Israel. Hear them whenever they cry out to you. 53 For you singled them out for yourself as your possession from all the peoples of the earth, just as you said through Moses your servant when you brought our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord God.

The Dedication of the Temple

54 When Solomon finished offering all these prayers and pleas for mercy to the Lord, he got up from the altar of the Lord, where he had been kneeling with his hands spread out toward heaven. 55 Then he stood and blessed the whole congregation of Israel with a loud voice:

56 Blessed be the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel, just as he said he would. Not one word has failed[e] from all his good words which he spoke through Moses his servant. 57 May the Lord our God be with us, just as he was with our fathers. May he never leave us or abandon us. 58 May he turn our hearts to him, to walk in all his ways and to listen to his commands, regulations, and ordinances, which he commanded to our fathers. 59 May these words which I have prayed before the Lord be near the Lord our God day and night so that he provides justice for his servant and for his people Israel forever, 60 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God. There is no other. 61 May your hearts be fully committed to the Lord our God, in order to walk in his regulations and to keep his commands, just as is the case today.

62 Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices before the Lord. 63 Solomon sacrificed fellowship offerings to the Lord: twenty-two thousand cattle and one hundred twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the people of Israel dedicated the House of the Lord.

64 On that day the king consecrated the center of the courtyard which was in front of the House of the Lord, so that he could offer whole burnt offerings and grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings there, because the bronze altar which was before the Lord was too small to hold the whole burnt offerings and grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings.

65 At that time Solomon kept the festival, and all Israel kept the festival with him. They were a great congregation that had come from throughout the land, from Lebo Hamath to the Stream of Egypt before the Lord our God. ⎣⎦[f] The festival lasted seven days, and then seven days more, fourteen days in all. 66 On the eighth day he sent them home, and they blessed the king. Then they went home, and their hearts were glad because of all the good which the Lord had done for his servant David and for his people Israel.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 8:2 September/October
  2. 1 Kings 8:2 That is, the Festival of Shelters (traditionally Tabernacles)
  3. 1 Kings 8:16 The words in half-brackets do not appear in the Hebrew text, but they are present in the Greek Old Testament and in 2 Chronicles 6:5-6. The additional words fall between two occurrences of for my Name to be there.
  4. 1 Kings 8:22 At this point the parallel account in 2 Chronicles 6:12-13 has the additional words marked by half-brackets: and spread out his hands. ⎣13 Solomon had made a bronze platform and had placed it in the middle of the courtyard. It was seven and a half feet by seven and a half feet square, and four and a half feet tall. He stood on it. Then he knelt in the presence of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands⎦ toward heaven. These words fall between two occurrences of spread out his hands.
  5. 1 Kings 8:56 Literally fallen
  6. 1 Kings 8:65 The Greek Old Testament has the additional words between the half-brackets: before the Lord our God ⎣in the house which he built, eating and drinking and rejoicing before the Lord our God.⎦ These words fall between occurrences of before the Lord our God.
Close NET

1 Kings 8
New English Translation

Solomon Moves the Ark into the Temple

8 [a] Then Solomon convened in Jerusalem Israel’s elders, all the leaders of the Israelite tribes and families, so they could witness the transferal of the ark of the Lord’s covenant from the City of David (that is, Zion).[b] 2 All the men of Israel assembled before King Solomon during the festival[c] in the month of Ethanim[d] (the seventh month). 3 When all Israel’s elders had arrived, the priests lifted the ark. 4 The priests and Levites carried the ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting,[e] and all the holy items in the tent.[f] 5 Now King Solomon and all the Israelites who had assembled with him went on ahead of the ark and sacrificed more sheep and cattle than could be counted or numbered.[g]

6 The priests brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant to its assigned[h] place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, in the Most Holy Place, under the wings of the cherubim. 7 The cherubim’s wings extended over the place where the ark sat; the cherubim overshadowed the ark and its poles.[i] 8 The poles were so long their ends were visible from the Holy Place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen from beyond that point.[j] They have remained there to this very day. 9 There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets Moses had placed there in Horeb.[k] It was there that[l] the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites after he brought them out of the land of Egypt. 10 Once the priests left the Holy Place, a cloud filled the Lord’s temple. 11 The priests could not carry out their duties[m] because of the cloud; the Lord’s glory filled his temple.[n]

12 Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he lives in thick darkness. 13 O Lord,[o] truly I have built a lofty temple for you, a place where you can live permanently.” 14 Then the king turned around[p] and pronounced a blessing over the whole Israelite assembly as they stood there.[q] 15 He said, “The Lord God of Israel is worthy of praise because he has fulfilled[r] what he promised[s] my father David. 16 He told David,[t] ‘Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city from all the tribes of Israel to build a temple in which to live.[u] But I have chosen David to lead my people Israel.’ 17 Now my father David had a strong desire[v] to build a temple to honor the Lord God of Israel.[w] 18 The Lord told my father David, ‘It is right for you to have a strong desire to build a temple to honor me.[x] 19 But you will not build the temple; your very own son will build the temple for my honor.’[y] 20 The Lord has kept the promise he made.[z] I have taken my father David’s place and have occupied the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised. I have built this temple for the honor[aa] of the Lord God of Israel 21 and set up in it a place for the ark containing the covenant the Lord made with our ancestors[ab] when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.”

Solomon Prays for Israel

22 Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward the sky.[ac] 23 He prayed:[ad] “O Lord, God of Israel, there is no god like you in heaven above or on earth below! You maintain covenantal loyalty[ae] to your servants who obey you with sincerity.[af] 24 You have kept your word to your servant, my father David;[ag] this very day you have fulfilled what you promised.[ah] 25 Now, O Lord, God of Israel, keep the promise you made to your servant, my father David, when you said, ‘You will never fail to have a successor ruling before me on the throne of Israel,[ai] provided that your descendants watch their step[aj] and serve me as you have done.’[ak] 26 Now, O God of Israel, may the promise you made[al] to your servant, my father David, be realized.[am]

27 “God does not really live on the earth![an] Look, if the sky and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this temple I have built! 28 But respond favorably to[ao] your servant’s prayer and his request for help, O Lord my God. Answer[ap] the desperate prayer[aq] your servant is presenting to you[ar] today. 29 Night and day may you watch over this temple, the place where you promised you would live.[as] May you answer your servant’s prayer for this place.[at] 30 Respond to the request of your servant and your people Israel for this place.[au] Hear from inside your heavenly dwelling place[av] and respond favorably.[aw]

31 “When someone is accused of sinning against his neighbor and the latter pronounces a curse on the alleged offender before your altar in this temple, be willing to forgive the accused if the accusation is false.[ax] 32 Listen from heaven and make a just decision about your servants’ claims. Condemn the guilty party, declare the other innocent, and give both of them what they deserve.[ay]

33 “The time will come when[az] your people Israel are defeated by an enemy[ba] because they sinned against you. If they come back to you, renew their allegiance to you,[bb] and pray for your help[bc] in this temple, 34 then listen from heaven, forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them back to the land you gave to their ancestors.

35 “The time will come when[bd] the skies are shut up tightly and no rain falls because your people[be] sinned against you. When they direct their prayers toward this place, renew their allegiance to you,[bf] and turn away from their sin because you punish[bg] them, 36 then listen from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Certainly[bh] you will then teach them the right way to live[bi] and send rain on your land that you have given your people to possess.[bj]

37 “The time will come when the land suffers from a famine, a plague, blight and disease, or a locust[bk] invasion, or when their enemy lays siege to the cities of the land,[bl] or when some other type of plague or epidemic occurs. 38 When all your people Israel pray and ask for help,[bm] as they acknowledge their pain[bn] and spread out their hands toward this temple, 39 then listen from your heavenly dwelling place, forgive their sin,[bo] and act favorably toward each one based on your evaluation of his motives.[bp] (Indeed you are the only one who can correctly evaluate the motives of all people.)[bq] 40 Then they will obey[br] you throughout their lifetimes as[bs] they live on the land you gave to our ancestors.

41 “Foreigners, who do not belong to your people Israel, will come from a distant land because of your reputation.[bt] 42 When they hear about your great reputation[bu] and your ability to accomplish mighty deeds,[bv] they will come and direct their prayers toward this temple. 43 Then listen from your heavenly dwelling place and answer all the prayers of the foreigners.[bw] Then all the nations of the earth will acknowledge your reputation,[bx] obey[by] you as your people Israel do, and recognize that this temple I built belongs to you.[bz]

44 “When you direct your people to march out and fight their enemies,[ca] and they direct their prayers to the Lord[cb] toward his chosen city and this temple I built for your honor,[cc] 45 then listen from heaven to their prayers for help[cd] and vindicate them.[ce]

46 “The time will come when your people[cf] will sin against you (for there is no one who is sinless!) and you will be angry with them and deliver them over to their enemies, who will take them as prisoners to their own land,[cg] whether far away or close by. 47 When your people[ch] come to their senses[ci] in the land where they are held prisoner, they will repent and beg for your mercy in the land of their imprisonment, admitting, ‘We have sinned and gone astray;[cj] we have done evil.’ 48 When they return to you with all their heart and being[ck] in the land[cl] where they are held prisoner, and direct their prayers to you toward the land you gave to their ancestors, your chosen city, and the temple I built for your honor,[cm] 49 then listen from your heavenly dwelling place to their prayers for help[cn] and vindicate them.[co] 50 Forgive all the rebellious acts of your sinful people and cause their captors to have mercy on them.[cp] 51 After all,[cq] they are your people and your special possession[cr] whom you brought out of Egypt, from the middle of the iron-smelting furnace.[cs]

52 “May you be attentive[ct] to your servant’s and your people Israel’s requests for help and may you respond to all their prayers to you.[cu] 53 After all,[cv] you picked them out of all the nations of the earth to be your special possession,[cw] just as you, O Sovereign Lord, announced through your servant Moses when you brought our ancestors out of Egypt.”

54 When Solomon finished presenting all these prayers and requests to the Lord, he got up from before the altar of the Lord where he had kneeled and spread out his hands toward the sky.[cx] 55 When he stood up, he pronounced a blessing over the entire assembly of Israel, saying in a loud voice: 56 “The Lord is worthy of praise because he has made Israel his people secure[cy] just as he promised! Not one of all the faithful promises he made through his servant Moses is left unfulfilled![cz] 57 May the Lord our God be with us, as he was with our ancestors. May he not abandon us or leave us. 58 May he make us submissive,[da] so we can follow all his instructions[db] and obey[dc] the commandments, rules, and regulations he commanded our ancestors. 59 May the Lord our God be constantly aware of these requests of mine I have presented to him,[dd] so that he might vindicate[de] his servant and his people Israel as the need arises. 60 Then[df] all the nations of the earth will recognize that the Lord is the only genuine God.[dg] 61 May you demonstrate wholehearted devotion to the Lord our God[dh] by following[di] his rules and obeying[dj] his commandments, as you are now doing.”[dk]

Solomon Dedicates the Temple

62 The king and all Israel with him were presenting sacrifices to the Lord. 63 Solomon offered as peace offerings[dl] to the Lord 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep. Then the king and all the Israelites dedicated the Lord’s temple. 64 That day the king consecrated the middle of the courtyard that is in front of the Lord’s temple. He offered there burnt sacrifices, grain offerings, and the fat from the peace offerings, because the bronze altar that stood before the Lord was too small to hold all these offerings.[dm] 65 At that time Solomon and all Israel with him celebrated a festival before the Lord our God for two entire weeks. This great assembly included people from all over the land, from Lebo Hamath in the north to the Stream of Egypt[dn] in the south.[do] 66 On the fifteenth day after the festival started,[dp] he dismissed the people. They asked God to empower the king[dq] and then went to their homes, happy and content[dr] because of all the good the Lord had done for his servant David and his people Israel.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 8:1 tc The Old Greek translation includes the following words at the beginning of ch. 8: “It so happened that when Solomon finished building the Lord’s temple and his own house, after twenty years.”
  2. 1 Kings 8:1 tn Heb “Then Solomon convened the elders of Israel, the heads of the tribes, the chiefs of the fathers belonging to the sons of Israel to King Solomon [in] Jerusalem to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the City of David (it is Zion).”
  3. 1 Kings 8:2 sn The festival. This was the Feast of Tabernacles, see Lev 23:34.
  4. 1 Kings 8:2 sn The month Ethanim. This would be September-October in modern reckoning.
  5. 1 Kings 8:4 tn Heb “the tent of assembly.”sn The tent of meeting. See Exod 33:7-11.
  6. 1 Kings 8:4 tn Heb “and they carried the ark of the Lord…. The priests and the Levites carried them.”
  7. 1 Kings 8:5 tn Heb “And King Solomon and all the assembly of Israel, those who had been gathered to him, [were] before the ark, sacrificing sheep and cattle which could not be counted or numbered because of the abundance.”
  8. 1 Kings 8:6 tn The word “assigned” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
  9. 1 Kings 8:7 sn And its poles. These poles were used to carry the ark. See Exod 25:13-15.
  10. 1 Kings 8:8 tn Heb “they could not be seen outside.”
  11. 1 Kings 8:9 sn Horeb is another name for Mount Sinai.
  12. 1 Kings 8:9 tn Heb “in Horeb where.”
  13. 1 Kings 8:11 tn Heb “were not able to stand to serve.”
  14. 1 Kings 8:11 tn Heb “the house of the Lord.”
  15. 1 Kings 8:13 tn The words “O Lord” do not appear in the original text, but they are supplied for clarification; Solomon addresses the Lord in prayer at this point.
  16. 1 Kings 8:14 tn Heb “turned his face.”
  17. 1 Kings 8:14 tn Heb “and he blessed all the assembly of Israel, and all the assembly of Israel was standing.”
  18. 1 Kings 8:15 tn The Hebrew text reads, “by his hand he has fulfilled.”
  19. 1 Kings 8:15 tn The Hebrew text reads, “he promised by his mouth.”
  20. 1 Kings 8:16 tn Heb “saying.” The word is carried over from the end of verse 15.
  21. 1 Kings 8:16 tn Heb “to build a house for my name to be there.”sn To build a temple in which to live (Heb “to build a house for my name to be there”). In the OT, the word “name” sometimes refers to one’s reputation or honor. The “name” of the Lord sometimes designates the Lord himself, being indistinguishable from the proper name.
  22. 1 Kings 8:17 tn Heb “and it was with the heart of David my father.”
  23. 1 Kings 8:17 tn Heb “to build a house for the name of the Lord God of Israel.” The word “name” in the OT sometimes refers to one’s reputation or honor. The “name” of the Lord sometimes designates the Lord himself, being indistinguishable from the proper name.
  24. 1 Kings 8:18 tn Heb “Because it was with your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was with your heart.”
  25. 1 Kings 8:19 tn Heb “your son, the one who came out of your body, he will build the temple for my name.”
  26. 1 Kings 8:20 tn Heb “his word that he spoke.”
  27. 1 Kings 8:20 tn Heb “name.”
  28. 1 Kings 8:21 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 34, 40, 48, 53, 57, 58).
  29. 1 Kings 8:22 tn Or “heaven.”
  30. 1 Kings 8:23 tn Heb “said.”
  31. 1 Kings 8:23 tn Heb “one who keeps the covenant and the loyal love.” The expression is a hendiadys.
  32. 1 Kings 8:23 tn Heb “who walk before you with all their heart.”
  33. 1 Kings 8:24 tn Heb “[you] who kept to your servant David my father that which you spoke to him.”
  34. 1 Kings 8:24 tn Heb “you spoke by your mouth and by your hand you fulfilled, as this day.”
  35. 1 Kings 8:25 tn Heb “there will not be cut off from you a man from before me sitting on the throne of Israel.”
  36. 1 Kings 8:25 tn Heb “watch their way.” The Hebrew and English colloquialisms are similar. The related ideas “way” and “steps” represent behavior in a broad sense in each language.
  37. 1 Kings 8:25 tn Heb “guard their way by walking before me as you have walked before me.”
  38. 1 Kings 8:26 tn Heb “the words that you spoke.”
  39. 1 Kings 8:26 tn Or “prove to be reliable.”
  40. 1 Kings 8:27 tn Heb “Indeed, can God really live on the earth?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course not,” the force of which the translation above seeks to reflect.
  41. 1 Kings 8:28 tn Heb “turn to.”
  42. 1 Kings 8:28 tn Heb “by listening to.”
  43. 1 Kings 8:28 tn Heb “the loud cry and the prayer.”
  44. 1 Kings 8:28 tn Heb “praying before you.”
  45. 1 Kings 8:29 tn Heb “so your eyes might be open toward this house night and day, toward the place about which you said, ‘My name will be there.’”
  46. 1 Kings 8:29 tn Heb “by listening to the prayer which your servant is praying concerning this place.”
  47. 1 Kings 8:30 tn Heb “listen to the request of your servant and your people Israel which they are praying concerning this place.”
  48. 1 Kings 8:30 tn Heb “and you, hear inside your dwelling place, inside heaven.” The precise nuance of the preposition אֶל (ʾel), used here with the verb “hear,” is unclear. One expects the preposition “from,” which appears in the parallel text in 2 Chr 6:21. The nuance “inside; among” is attested for אֶל (see Gen 23:19; 1 Sam 10:22; Jer 4:3), but in each case a verb of motion is employed with the preposition, unlike 1 Kgs 8:30. The translation above (“from inside”) is based on the demands of the immediate context rather than attested usage elsewhere.
  49. 1 Kings 8:30 tn Heb “hear and forgive.”
  50. 1 Kings 8:31 tn Heb “and forgive the man who sins against his neighbor when one takes up against him a curse to curse him and the curse comes before your altar in this house.” In the Hebrew text the words “and forgive” conclude v. 30, but the accusative sign at the beginning of v. 31 suggests the verb actually goes with what follows in v. 31. The parallel text in 2 Chr 6:22 begins with “and if,” rather than the accusative sign. In this case “forgive” must be taken with what precedes, and v. 31 must be taken as the protasis (“if” clause) of a conditional sentence, with v. 32 being the apodosis (“then” clause) that completes the sentence.sn Be willing to forgive the accused if the accusation is false. At first it appears that Solomon is asking God to forgive the guilty party. But in v. 32 Solomon asks the Lord to discern who is guilty and innocent, so v. 31 must refer to a situation where an accusation has been made, but not yet proven. The very periphrastic translation reflects this interpretation.
  51. 1 Kings 8:32 tn Heb “and you, hear [from] heaven and act and judge your servants by declaring the guilty to be guilty, to give his way on his head, and to declare the innocent to be innocent, to give to him according to his innocence.”
  52. 1 Kings 8:33 tn Heb “when.” In the Hebrew text vv. 33-34 actually contain one lengthy conditional sentence, which the translation has divided into two sentences for stylistic reasons.
  53. 1 Kings 8:33 tn Or “are struck down before an enemy.”
  54. 1 Kings 8:33 tn Heb “confess [or perhaps, “praise”] your name.”
  55. 1 Kings 8:33 tn Heb “and they pray and ask for help.”
  56. 1 Kings 8:35 tn Heb “when.” In the Hebrew text vv. 35-36a actually contain one lengthy conditional sentence, which the translation has divided into two sentences for stylistic reasons.
  57. 1 Kings 8:35 tn Heb “they”; the referent (your people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  58. 1 Kings 8:35 tn Heb “confess [or perhaps, “praise”] your name.”
  59. 1 Kings 8:35 tn The Hebrew text has “because you answer them,” as if the verb is from עָנָה (ʿanah, “to answer”). However, this reference to a divine answer is premature, since the next verse asks for God to intervene in mercy. It is better to revocalize the consonantal text as תְעַנֵּם (teʿannem, “you afflict them”), a Piel verb form from the homonym עָנָה (ʿanah, “to afflict”).
  60. 1 Kings 8:36 tn The translation understands כִּי (ki) in an emphatic or asseverative sense.
  61. 1 Kings 8:36 tn Heb “the good way in which they should walk.”
  62. 1 Kings 8:36 tn Or “for an inheritance.”
  63. 1 Kings 8:37 tn Actually two Hebrew terms appear here, both of which are usually taken as referring to locusts. Perhaps different stages of growth or different varieties are in view.
  64. 1 Kings 8:37 tn Heb “in the land, his gates.”
  65. 1 Kings 8:38 tn Heb “every prayer, every request for help which will be to all the people, to all your people Israel.”
  66. 1 Kings 8:38 tn Heb “which they know, each the pain of his heart.”
  67. 1 Kings 8:39 tn The words “their sin” are added for clarification.
  68. 1 Kings 8:39 tn Heb “and act and give to each one according to all his ways because you know his heart.” In the Hebrew text vv. 37-39a actually contain one lengthy conditional sentence, which the translation has divided up for stylistic reasons.
  69. 1 Kings 8:39 tn Heb “Indeed you know, you alone, the heart of all the sons of mankind.”
  70. 1 Kings 8:40 tn Heb “fear.”
  71. 1 Kings 8:40 tn Heb “all the days [in] which.”
  72. 1 Kings 8:41 tn Heb “your name.” In the OT the word “name” sometimes refers to one’s reputation or honor. The “name” of the Lord sometimes designates the Lord himself, being indistinguishable from the proper name.
  73. 1 Kings 8:42 tn Heb “your great name.” See the note on the word “reputation” in the previous verse.
  74. 1 Kings 8:42 tn Heb “and your strong hand and your outstretched arm.”
  75. 1 Kings 8:43 tn Heb “and do all which the foreigner calls to [i.e., “requests of”] you.”
  76. 1 Kings 8:43 tn Heb “your name.” See the note on the word “reputation” in v. 41.
  77. 1 Kings 8:43 tn Heb “fear.”
  78. 1 Kings 8:43 tn Heb “that your name is called over this house which I built.” The Hebrew idiom “to call the name over” indicates ownership. See 2 Sam 12:28.
  79. 1 Kings 8:44 tn Heb “When your people go out for battle against their enemies in the way which you send them.”
  80. 1 Kings 8:44 tn Or perhaps “to you, O Lord.” See 2 Chr 6:34.
  81. 1 Kings 8:44 tn Heb “your name.” See the note on the word “reputation” in v. 41.
  82. 1 Kings 8:45 tn Heb “their prayer and their request for help.”
  83. 1 Kings 8:45 tn Heb “and accomplish their justice.”
  84. 1 Kings 8:46 tn Heb “they”; the referent (your people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  85. 1 Kings 8:46 tn Heb “the land of the enemy.”
  86. 1 Kings 8:47 tn Heb “they”; the referent (your people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  87. 1 Kings 8:47 tn Or “stop and reflect”; Heb “bring back to their heart.”
  88. 1 Kings 8:47 tn Or “done wrong.”
  89. 1 Kings 8:48 tn Or “soul.”
  90. 1 Kings 8:48 tn Heb “in the land of their enemies.”
  91. 1 Kings 8:48 tn Heb “your name.” See the note on the word “reputation” in v. 41.
  92. 1 Kings 8:49 tn Heb “their prayer and their request for help.”
  93. 1 Kings 8:49 tn Heb “and accomplish their justice.”
  94. 1 Kings 8:50 tn Heb “and forgive your people who have sinned against you, and all their rebellious acts by which they rebelled against you, and grant them mercy before their captors so they will show them mercy.”
  95. 1 Kings 8:51 tn Or “for.”
  96. 1 Kings 8:51 tn Heb “inheritance.”
  97. 1 Kings 8:51 tn The Hebrew term כּוּר (kur, “furnace,” cf. Akkadian kūru) is a metaphor for the intense heat of purification. A כּוּר was not a source of heat but a crucible (“iron-smelting furnace”) in which precious metals were melted down and their impurities burned away (see I. Cornelius, NIDOTTE 2:618-19). Thus Egypt served not as a place of punishment for the Israelites, but as a place of refinement to bring Israel to a place of submission to divine sovereignty.sn From the middle of the iron-smelting furnace. The metaphor of a furnace suggests fire and heat and is an apt image to remind the people of the suffering they endured while slaves in Egypt.
  98. 1 Kings 8:52 tn Heb “May your eyes be open.”
  99. 1 Kings 8:52 tn Heb “to listen to them in all their calling out to you.”
  100. 1 Kings 8:53 tn Or “For.”
  101. 1 Kings 8:53 tn Heb “your inheritance.”
  102. 1 Kings 8:54 tn Or “toward heaven.”
  103. 1 Kings 8:56 tn Heb “he has given a resting place to his people Israel.”
  104. 1 Kings 8:56 tn Heb “not one word from his entire good word he spoke by Moses his servant has fallen.”
  105. 1 Kings 8:58 tn Heb “to bend our hearts toward him.” The infinitive is subordinate to the initial prayer, “may the Lord our God be with us.” The Hebrew term לֵבָב (levav, “heart”) here refers to the people’s volition and will.
  106. 1 Kings 8:58 tn Heb “to walk in all his ways.”
  107. 1 Kings 8:58 tn Heb “keep.”
  108. 1 Kings 8:59 tn Heb “May these words of mine, which I have requested before the Lord, be near the Lord our God day and night.”
  109. 1 Kings 8:59 tn Heb “accomplish the justice of.”
  110. 1 Kings 8:60 tn Heb “so that.”
  111. 1 Kings 8:60 tn Heb “the Lord, he is the God, there is no other.”
  112. 1 Kings 8:61 tn Heb “may your hearts be complete with the Lord our God.”
  113. 1 Kings 8:61 tn Heb “walking in.”
  114. 1 Kings 8:61 tn Heb “keeping.”
  115. 1 Kings 8:61 tn Heb “as this day.”
  116. 1 Kings 8:63 tn Heb “peace offerings that he sacrificed.” “Peace offerings” could be “tokens of peace”; NIV, TEV “fellowship offerings.”
  117. 1 Kings 8:64 tn Heb “to hold the burnt sacrifices, grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings.”
  118. 1 Kings 8:65 tn Or “the Wadi of Egypt” (NAB, NIV, NRSV); CEV “the Egyptian Gorge.”
  119. 1 Kings 8:65 tn Heb “Solomon held at that time the festival, and all Israel was with him, a great assembly from Lebo Hamath to the Stream of Egypt, before the Lord our God for seven days and seven days, fourteen days.”
  120. 1 Kings 8:66 tn Heb “on the eighth day” (that is, the day after the second seven-day sequence).
  121. 1 Kings 8:66 tn Heb “they blessed the king.”
  122. 1 Kings 8:66 tn Heb “good of heart.”
Listen to 1 Kings 8
Close NIV

1 Kings 8
New International Version

The Ark Brought to the Temple(A)

8 Then King Solomon summoned into his presence at Jerusalem the elders of Israel, all the heads of the tribes and the chiefs(B) of the Israelite families, to bring up the ark(C) of the Lord’s covenant from Zion, the City of David.(D) 2 All the Israelites came together to King Solomon at the time of the festival(E) in the month of Ethanim, the seventh month.(F)

3 When all the elders of Israel had arrived, the priests(G) took up the ark, 4 and they brought up the ark of the Lord and the tent of meeting(H) and all the sacred furnishings in it. The priests and Levites(I) carried them up, 5 and King Solomon and the entire assembly of Israel that had gathered about him were before the ark, sacrificing(J) so many sheep and cattle that they could not be recorded or counted.

6 The priests then brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant(K) to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place,(L) and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim.(M) 7 The cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark and overshadowed(N) the ark and its carrying poles. 8 These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place in front of the inner sanctuary, but not from outside the Holy Place; and they are still there today.(O) 9 There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets(P) that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt.

10 When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud(Q) filled the temple of the Lord. 11 And the priests could not perform their service(R) because of the cloud, for the glory(S) of the Lord filled his temple.

12 Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud;(T) 13 I have indeed built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell(U) forever.”

14 While the whole assembly of Israel was standing there, the king turned around and blessed(V) them. 15 Then he said:

“Praise be to the Lord,(W) the God of Israel, who with his own hand has fulfilled what he promised with his own mouth to my father David. For he said, 16 ‘Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt,(X) I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built so that my Name(Y) might be there, but I have chosen(Z) David(AA) to rule my people Israel.’

17 “My father David had it in his heart(AB) to build a temple(AC) for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 18 But the Lord said to my father David, ‘You did well to have it in your heart to build a temple for my Name. 19 Nevertheless, you(AD) are not the one to build the temple, but your son, your own flesh and blood—he is the one who will build the temple for my Name.’(AE)

20 “The Lord has kept the promise he made: I have succeeded(AF) David my father and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the Lord promised, and I have built(AG) the temple for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 21 I have provided a place there for the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with our ancestors when he brought them out of Egypt.”

Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication(AH)

22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands(AI) toward heaven 23 and said:

“Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like(AJ) you in heaven above or on earth below—you who keep your covenant of love(AK) with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way. 24 You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it—as it is today.

25 “Now Lord, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises(AL) you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants are careful in all they do to walk before me faithfully as you have done.’ 26 And now, God of Israel, let your word that you promised(AM) your servant David my father come true.

27 “But will God really dwell(AN) on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven,(AO) cannot contain(AP) you. How much less this temple I have built! 28 Yet give attention to your servant’s prayer and his plea for mercy, Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence this day. 29 May your eyes be open(AQ) toward(AR) this temple night and day, this place of which you said, ‘My Name(AS) shall be there,’ so that you will hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place. 30 Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray(AT) toward this place. Hear(AU) from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.(AV)

31 “When anyone wrongs their neighbor and is required to take an oath and they come and swear the oath(AW) before your altar in this temple, 32 then hear from heaven and act. Judge between your servants, condemning the guilty by bringing down on their heads what they have done, and vindicating the innocent by treating them in accordance with their innocence.(AX)

33 “When your people Israel have been defeated(AY) by an enemy because they have sinned(AZ) against you, and when they turn back to you and give praise to your name, praying and making supplication to you in this temple,(BA) 34 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land you gave to their ancestors.

35 “When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain(BB) because your people have sinned(BC) against you, and when they pray toward this place and give praise to your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them, 36 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Teach(BD) them the right way(BE) to live, and send rain(BF) on the land you gave your people for an inheritance.

37 “When famine(BG) or plague(BH) comes to the land, or blight(BI) or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers,(BJ) or when an enemy besieges them in any of their cities, whatever disaster or disease may come, 38 and when a prayer or plea is made by anyone among your people Israel—being aware of the afflictions of their own hearts, and spreading out their hands(BK) toward this temple— 39 then hear(BL) from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive(BM) and act; deal with everyone according to all they do, since you know(BN) their hearts (for you alone know every human heart), 40 so that they will fear(BO) you all the time they live in the land(BP) you gave our ancestors.

41 “As for the foreigner(BQ) who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your name— 42 for they will hear(BR) of your great name and your mighty hand(BS) and your outstretched arm—when they come and pray toward this temple, 43 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know(BT) your name and fear(BU) you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.(BV)

44 “When your people go to war against their enemies, wherever you send them, and when they pray(BW) to the Lord toward the city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name, 45 then hear from heaven their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.(BX)

46 “When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin(BY)—and you become angry with them and give them over to their enemies, who take them captive(BZ) to their own lands, far away or near; 47 and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead(CA) with you in the land of their captors and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly’;(CB) 48 and if they turn back(CC) to you with all their heart(CD) and soul in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and pray(CE) to you toward the land you gave their ancestors, toward the city you have chosen and the temple(CF) I have built for your Name;(CG) 49 then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause. 50 And forgive your people, who have sinned against you; forgive all the offenses they have committed against you, and cause their captors to show them mercy;(CH) 51 for they are your people and your inheritance,(CI) whom you brought out of Egypt, out of that iron-smelting furnace.(CJ)

52 “May your eyes be open(CK) to your servant’s plea and to the plea of your people Israel, and may you listen to them whenever they cry out to you.(CL) 53 For you singled them out from all the nations of the world to be your own inheritance,(CM) just as you declared through your servant Moses when you, Sovereign Lord, brought our ancestors out of Egypt.”

54 When Solomon had finished all these prayers and supplications to the Lord, he rose from before the altar of the Lord, where he had been kneeling with his hands spread out toward heaven. 55 He stood and blessed(CN) the whole assembly of Israel in a loud voice, saying:

56 “Praise be to the Lord, who has given rest(CO) to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises(CP) he gave through his servant Moses. 57 May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us nor forsake(CQ) us. 58 May he turn our hearts(CR) to him, to walk in obedience to him and keep the commands, decrees and laws he gave our ancestors. 59 And may these words of mine, which I have prayed before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, that he may uphold the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel according to each day’s need, 60 so that all the peoples(CS) of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other.(CT) 61 And may your hearts(CU) be fully committed(CV) to the Lord our God, to live by his decrees and obey his commands, as at this time.”

The Dedication of the Temple(CW)

62 Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices(CX) before the Lord. 63 Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to the Lord: twenty-two thousand cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats. So the king and all the Israelites dedicated(CY) the temple of the Lord.

64 On that same day the king consecrated the middle part of the courtyard in front of the temple of the Lord, and there he offered burnt offerings, grain offerings and the fat(CZ) of the fellowship offerings, because the bronze altar(DA) that stood before the Lord was too small to hold the burnt offerings, the grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings.(DB)

65 So Solomon observed the festival(DC) at that time, and all Israel with him—a vast assembly, people from Lebo Hamath(DD) to the Wadi of Egypt.(DE) They celebrated it before the Lord our God for seven days and seven days more, fourteen days in all. 66 On the following day he sent the people away. They blessed the king and then went home, joyful and glad in heart for all the good(DF) things the Lord had done for his servant David and his people Israel.

Next
1 Kings 7
1 Kings 9
Next
dropdown
Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.

New English Translation (NET)

NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.

July Summer Surge

More on the NIV