John 10:22
New English Translation
Jesus at the Feast of Dedication
22 Then came the feast of the Dedication[a] in Jerusalem.
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- John 10:22 tn That is, Hanukkah or the ‘Festival of Lights.’ The Greek name for the feast, τὰ ἐγκαίνια (ta enkainia), literally means “renewal” and was used to translate Hanukkah which means “dedication.” The Greek noun, with its related verbs, was the standard term used in the LXX for the consecration of the altar of the Tabernacle (Num 7:10-11), the altar of the temple of Solomon (1 Kgs 8:63; 2 Chr 7:5), and the altar of the second temple (Ezra 6:16). The word is thus connected with the consecration of all the houses of God in the history of the nation of Israel.sn The feast of the Dedication (also known as Hanukkah) was a feast celebrating annually the Maccabean victories of 165-164 b.c.—when Judas Maccabeus drove out the Syrians, rebuilt the altar, and rededicated the temple on 25 Kislev (1 Macc 4:41-61). From a historical standpoint, it was the last great deliverance the Jewish people had experienced, and it came at a time when least expected. Josephus ends his account of the institution of the festival with the following statement: “And from that time to the present we observe this festival, which we call the festival of Lights, giving this name to it, I think, from the fact that the right to worship appeared to us at a time when we hardly dared hope for it” (Ant. 12.7.6 [12.325]).
1 Kings 8:65
New English Translation
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[a] in the south.[b]
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- 1 Kings 8:65 tn Or “the Wadi of Egypt” (NAB, NIV, NRSV); CEV “the Egyptian Gorge.”
- 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.”
2 Chronicles 7:8-10
New English Translation
8 At that time Solomon and all Israel with him celebrated a festival for seven days. This great assembly included people from Lebo Hamath in the north to the Stream of Egypt in the south.[a] 9 On the eighth day they held an assembly, for they had dedicated the altar for seven days and celebrated the festival for seven more days. 10 On the twenty-third day of the seventh month, Solomon[b] sent the people home. They left[c] happy and contented[d] because of the good the Lord had done for David, Solomon, and his people Israel.
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- 2 Chronicles 7:8 tn Heb “Solomon held the festival at that time for seven days, and all Israel was with him, a very great assembly from Lebo Hamath to the wadi of Egypt.”
- 2 Chronicles 7:10 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Solomon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- 2 Chronicles 7:10 tn The words “they left” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- 2 Chronicles 7:10 tn Heb “good of heart.”
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