Solomon Blesses the Lord

^12 (A)Then Solomon said, “The Lord^[a] has said that he would dwell ^(B)in thick darkness.

Solomon Blesses the People

6 ^(A)Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in thick darkness. ² But I have built you ^(B)an exalted house, a place for you to dwell in forever.” ³ Then the king turned around and blessed all the assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel stood. ⁴ And he said, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who with his hand has fulfilled what he promised with his mouth to David my father, saying, ⁵ ‘Since the day that I brought my people out of the land of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel in which to build a house, that my name might be there, and I chose no man as prince over my people Israel; ^6 (C)but I have chosen Jerusalem that my name may be there, ^(D)and I have chosen David to be over my people Israel.’ ^7 (E)Now it was in the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. ⁸ But the Lord said to David my father, ‘Whereas ^(F)it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart. ⁹ Nevertheless, it is not you who shall build the house, but your son who shall be born to you shall build the house for my name.’ ¹⁰ Now the Lord has fulfilled his promise that he made. For I have risen in the place of David my father and sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised, and I have built the house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. ¹¹ And there I have set the ark, ^(G)in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with the people of Israel.”

² and the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to ^(A)come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For ^(B)I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat.

A Kingdom That Cannot Be Shaken

¹⁸ For you have not come to ^(A)what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest

²² “These words the Lord spoke to all your assembly ^(A)at the mountain out of the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, with a loud voice; and he added no more. And ^(B)he wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me.

¹¹ And ^(A)you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while ^(B)the mountain burned with fire to the heart of heaven, wrapped in darkness, cloud, and gloom.