1 Kings 8
Living Bible
8 Then Solomon called a convocation at Jerusalem of all the leaders of Israel—the heads of the tribes and clans—to observe the transferring of the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord from the Tabernacle in Zion, the City of David, to the Temple. 2 This celebration occurred at the time of the Tabernacle Festival in the month of October. 3-4 During the festivities the priests carried the Ark to the Temple, along with all the sacred vessels that had previously been in the Tabernacle. 5 King Solomon and all the people gathered before the Ark, sacrificing uncounted sheep and oxen.
6 Then the priests took the Ark into the inner sanctuary of the Temple—the Most Holy Place—and placed it under the wings of the statues of the Guardian Angels. 7 The Angels had been constructed in such a manner that their wings spread out over the spot where the Ark would be placed; so now their wings overshadowed the Ark and its carrying poles. 8 The poles were so long that they stuck out past the Angels and could be seen from the next room, but not from the outer court; and they remain there to this day. 9 There was nothing in the Ark at that time except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed there at Mount Horeb at the time the Lord made his covenant with the people of Israel after they left Egypt.
10 Look! As the priests are returning from the inner sanctuary, a bright cloud fills the Temple! 11 The priests have to go outside because the glory of the Lord is filling the entire building!
12-13 Now King Solomon prayed this invocation:
“The Lord has said that he would live in the thick darkness;
But, O Lord, I have built you a lovely home on earth, a place for you to live forever.”
14 Then the king turned around and faced the people as they stood before him, and blessed them.
15 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,” he said, “who has done today what he promised my father David: 16 for he said to him, ‘When I brought my people from Egypt, I didn’t appoint a place for my Temple, but I appointed a man to be my people’s leader.’ 17 This man was my father David. He wanted to build a Temple for the Lord God of Israel, 18 but the Lord told him not to. ‘I am glad you want to do it,’ he said, 19 ‘but your son is the one who shall build my Temple.’ 20 And now the Lord has done what he promised; for I have followed my father as king of Israel, and now this Temple has been built for the Lord God of Israel. 21 And I have prepared a place in the Temple for the Ark that contains the covenant made by the Lord with our fathers, at the time that he brought them out of the land of Egypt.”
22-23 Then, as all the people watched, Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord with his hands spread out toward heaven and said, “O Lord God of Israel, there is no god like you in heaven or earth, for you are loving and kind and you keep your promises to your people if they do their best to do your will. 24 Today you have fulfilled your promise to my father David, who was your servant; 25 and now, O Lord God of Israel, fulfill your further promise to him: that if his descendants follow your ways and try to do your will as he did, one of them shall always sit upon the throne of Israel. 26 Yes, O God of Israel, fulfill this promise too.
27 “But is it possible that God would really live on earth? Why, even the skies and the highest heavens cannot contain you, much less this Temple I have built! 28 And yet, O Lord my God, you have heard and answered my request: 29 Please watch over this Temple night and day—this place you have promised to live in—and as I face toward the Temple and pray, whether by night or by day, please listen to me and answer my requests. 30 Listen to every plea of the people of Israel whenever they face this place to pray; yes, hear in heaven where you live, and when you hear, forgive.
31 “If a man is accused of doing something wrong and then, standing here before your altar, swears that he didn’t do it, 32 hear him in heaven and do what is right; judge whether or not he did it.
33-34 “And when your people sin and their enemies defeat them, hear them from heaven and forgive them if they turn to you again and confess that you are their God. Bring them back again to this land which you have given to their fathers.
35-36 “And when the skies are shut up and there is no rain because of their sin, hear them from heaven and forgive them when they pray toward this place and confess your name. And after you have punished them, help them to follow the good ways in which they should walk, and send rain upon the land that you have given your people.
37 “If there is a famine in the land caused by plant disease or locusts or caterpillars, or if Israel’s enemies besiege one of her cities, or if the people are struck by an epidemic or plague—or whatever the problem is— 38 then when the people realize their sin and pray toward this Temple, 39 hear them from heaven and forgive and answer all who have made an honest confession; for you know each heart. 40 In this way they will always learn to reverence you as they continue to live in this land that you have given their fathers.
41-42 “And when foreigners hear of your great name and come from distant lands to worship you (for they shall hear of your great name and mighty miracles) and pray toward this Temple, 43 hear them from heaven and answer their prayers. And all the nations of the earth will know and fear your name just as your own people Israel do; and all the earth will know that this is your Temple.
44 “When you send your people out to battle against their enemies and they pray to you, looking toward your chosen city of Jerusalem and toward this Temple that I have built in your name, 45 hear their prayer and help them.
46 “If they sin against you (and who doesn’t?) and you become angry with them and let their enemies lead them away as captives to some foreign land, whether far or near, 47 and they come to their senses and turn to you and cry to you saying, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong’; 48 if they honestly return to you and pray toward this land that you have given their fathers, and toward this city of Jerusalem that you have chosen, and toward this Temple that I have built for your name, 49 hear their prayers and pleadings from heaven where you live, and come to their assistance.
50 “Forgive your people for all of their evil deeds, and make their captors merciful to them; 51 for they are your people—your inheritance that you brought out from the Egyptian furnace. 52 May your eyes be open and your ears listening to their pleas. O Lord, hear and answer them whenever they cry out to you, 53 for when you brought our fathers out of the land of Egypt, you told your servant Moses that you had chosen Israel from among all the nations of the earth to be your own special people.”
54-55 Solomon had been kneeling with his hands outstretched toward heaven. As he finished this prayer, he rose from before the altar of Jehovah and cried out this blessing upon all the people of Israel:
56 “Blessed be the Lord who has fulfilled his promise and given rest to his people Israel; not one word has failed of all the wonderful promises proclaimed by his servant Moses. 57 May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our fathers; may he never forsake us. 58 May he give us the desire to do his will in everything, and to obey all the commandments and instructions he has given our ancestors. 59 And may these words of my prayer be constantly before him day and night, so that he helps me and all of Israel in accordance with our daily needs. 60 May people all over the earth know that the Lord is God and that there is no other god at all. 61 O my people, may you live good and perfect lives before the Lord our God; may you always obey his laws and commandments, just as you are doing today.”
62-63 Then the king and all the people dedicated the Temple by sacrificing peace offerings to the Lord—a total of 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep and goats! 64 As a temporary measure the king sanctified the court in front of the Temple for the burnt offerings, grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings: for the bronze altar was too small to handle so much. 65 The celebration lasted for fourteen days, and a great crowd came from one end of the land to the other. 66 Afterwards Solomon sent the people home, happy for all the goodness that the Lord had shown to his servant David and to his people Israel. And they blessed the king.
1 Kings 8
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Solomon’s Dedication of the Temple
8 At that time Solomon assembled the elders(A) of Israel,(B) all the tribal heads(C) and the ancestral leaders of the Israelites before him at Jerusalem in order to bring the ark of the Lord’s covenant from the city of David,(D) that is Zion.(E) 2 So all the men of Israel were assembled in the presence of King Solomon in the seventh month, the month of Ethanim,[a] at the festival.(F)
3 All the elders(G) of Israel came, and the priests(H) picked up the ark.(I) 4 The priests and the Levites brought the ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting,(J) and the holy utensils that were in the tent.(K) 5 King Solomon and the entire congregation of Israel, who had gathered around him and were with him in front of the ark, were sacrificing sheep and cattle that could not be counted or numbered, because there were so many.(L) 6 The priests brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the temple, to the most holy place(M) beneath the wings of the cherubim. 7 For the cherubim were spreading their wings over[b] the place of the ark, so that the cherubim covered the ark and its poles from above.(N) 8 The poles were so long that their ends were seen from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they were not seen from outside the sanctuary; they are there to this day.(O) 9 Nothing was in the ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had put there at Horeb,[c](P) where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites when they came out of the land of Egypt.(Q)
10 When the priests came out of the holy place, the cloud filled the Lord’s temple,(R) 11 and because of the cloud, the priests were not able to continue ministering, for the glory(S) of the Lord filled the temple.
12 Then Solomon said:
The Lord said that He would dwell in thick darkness.(T)
13 I have indeed built an exalted temple(U) for You,
a place for Your dwelling forever.(V)
14 The king turned around and blessed(W) the entire congregation of Israel while they were standing. 15 He said:
May the Lord God of Israel be praised!
He spoke directly to my father David,
and He has fulfilled the promise(X) by His power.
He said,
16 “Since the day I brought My people Israel out of Egypt,(Y)
I have not chosen a city to build a temple in
among any of the tribes of Israel,
so that My name(Z) would be there.
But I have chosen David to rule My people Israel.”(AA)
17 It was in the desire of my father David
to build a temple for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel.(AB)
18 But the Lord said to my father David,
“Since it was your desire to build a temple for My name,
you have done well to have this desire.(AC)
19 Yet you are not the one to build it;
instead, your son, your own offspring,
will build it for My name.”(AD)
20 The Lord has fulfilled what He promised.
I have taken the place of my father David,(AE)
and I sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised.(AF)
I have built the temple for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel.
21 I have provided a place there for the ark,
where the Lord’s covenant is
that He made with our ancestors
when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.(AG)
Solomon’s Prayer
22 Then Solomon stood(AH) before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire congregation of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven.(AI) 23 He said:
Lord God of Israel,
there is no God like You
in heaven above or on earth below,(AJ)
keeping the gracious covenant
with Your servants who walk before You
with their whole heart.(AK)
24 You have kept what You promised
to Your servant, my father David.
You spoke directly to him
and You fulfilled Your promise by Your power
as it is today.(AL)
25 Therefore, Lord God of Israel,
keep what You promised
to Your servant, my father David:
You will never fail to have a man
to sit before Me on the throne of Israel,(AM)
if only your sons guard their walk before Me
as you have walked before Me.(AN)
26 Now Lord[d] God of Israel,
please confirm what You promised
to Your servant, my father David.(AO)
27 But will God indeed live on earth?
Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain You,
much less this temple I have built.(AP)
28 Listen[e] to Your servant’s prayer and his petition,(AQ)
Lord my God,
so that You may hear the cry and the prayer
that Your servant prays before You today,
29 so that Your eyes may watch over this temple night and day,(AR)
toward the place where You said:
My name will be there,(AS)
and so that You may hear the prayer
that Your servant prays toward this place.
30 Hear the petition of Your servant(AT)
and Your people Israel,
which they pray toward this place.(AU)
May You hear in Your dwelling place in heaven.
May You hear and forgive.
31 When a man sins against his neighbor
and is forced to take an oath,[f](AV)
and he comes to take an oath
before Your altar in this temple,
32 may You hear in heaven and act.
May You judge Your servants,
condemning the wicked man by bringing
what he has done on his own head
and providing justice for the righteous
by rewarding him according to his righteousness.(AW)
33 When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy,
because they have sinned against You,(AX)
and they return to You and praise Your name,
and they pray and plead with You
for mercy in this temple,
34 may You hear in heaven
and forgive the sin of Your people Israel.
May You restore them to the land
You gave their ancestors.(AY)
35 When the skies are shut and there is no rain,
because they have sinned against You,(AZ)
and they pray toward this place
and praise Your name,
and they turn from their sins
because You are afflicting them,(BA)
36 may You hear in heaven
and forgive the sin of Your servants
and Your people Israel,
so that You may teach them the good way
they should walk in.(BB)
May You send rain on Your land
that You gave Your people for an inheritance.(BC)
37 When there is famine on the earth,
when there is pestilence,
when there is blight, mildew, locust, or grasshopper,(BD)
when their enemy besieges them
in the region of their fortified cities,[g]
when there is any plague or illness,
38 whatever prayer or petition
anyone from Your people Israel might have—
each man knowing his own afflictions[h](BE)
and spreading out his hands toward this temple(BF)—
39 may You hear in heaven, Your dwelling place,
and may You forgive, act, and repay the man,
according to all his ways, since You know his heart,
for You alone know every human heart,(BG)
40 so that they may fear(BH) You
all the days they live on the land(BI)
You gave our ancestors.
41 Even for the foreigner who is not of Your people Israel
but has come from a distant land(BJ)
because of Your name—
42 for they will hear of Your great name,
mighty hand,(BK) and outstretched arm,
and will come(BL) and pray toward this temple—
43 may You hear in heaven, Your dwelling place,
and do according to all the foreigner asks You for.
Then all the people on earth will know(BM) Your name,
to fear You as Your people Israel do
and know that this temple I have built
is called by Your name.
44 When Your people go out to fight against their enemies,[i]
wherever You send them,
and they pray to Yahweh
in the direction of the city You have chosen(BN)
and the temple I have built for Your name,
45 may You hear their prayer and petition in heaven
and uphold their cause.(BO)
46 When they sin against You—
for there is no one who does not sin(BP)—
and You are angry with them
and hand them over to the enemy,
and their captors deport them to the enemy’s country(BQ)—
whether distant or nearby—
47 and when they come to their senses[j]
in the land where they were deported
and repent and petition You in their captors’ land:
“We have sinned and done wrong;
we have been wicked,”(BR)
48 and when they return to You with their whole mind and heart
in the land of their enemies who took them captive,(BS)
and when they pray to You in the direction of their land
that You gave their ancestors,
the city You have chosen,(BT)
and the temple I have built for Your name,
49 may You hear in heaven, Your dwelling place,
their prayer and petition and uphold their cause.
50 May You forgive Your people
who sinned against You
and all their rebellions[k] against You,
and may You give them compassion
in the eyes of their captors,
so that they may be compassionate to them.(BU)
51 For they are Your people and Your inheritance;(BV)
You brought them out of Egypt,
out of the middle of an iron furnace.(BW)
52 May Your eyes be open to Your servant’s petition
and to the petition of Your people Israel,
listening to them whenever they call to You.
53 For You, Lord God, have set them apart as Your inheritance
from all the people on earth,
as You spoke through Your servant Moses
when You brought their ancestors out of Egypt.(BX)
Solomon’s Blessing
54 When Solomon finished praying this entire prayer and petition to the Lord, he got up from kneeling before the altar of the Lord, with his hands spread out toward heaven,(BY) 55 and he stood and blessed the whole congregation of Israel(BZ) with a loud voice: 56 “May the Lord be praised! He has given rest(CA) to His people Israel according to all He has said. Not one of all the good promises He made through His servant Moses has failed.(CB) 57 May the Lord our God be with us as He was with our ancestors. May He not abandon us or leave us(CC) 58 so that He causes us to be devoted[l] to Him,(CD) to walk in all His ways, and to keep His commands, statutes, and ordinances, which He commanded our ancestors. 59 May my words I have made my petition with before the Lord be near the Lord our God day and night, so that He may uphold His servant’s cause and the cause of His people Israel, as each day requires,(CE) 60 and so that all the peoples of the earth may know that Yahweh is God. There is no other!(CF) 61 Let your heart be completely devoted to the Lord our God(CG) to walk in His statutes and to keep His commands, as it is today.”
62 The king and all Israel with him were offering sacrifices in the Lord’s presence. 63 Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to the Lord: 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep.(CH) In this manner the king and all the Israelites dedicated(CI) the Lord’s temple.(CJ)
64 On the same day, the king consecrated the middle of the courtyard that was in front of the Lord’s temple because that was where he offered the burnt offering, the grain offering, and the fat of the fellowship offerings(CK) since the bronze altar before the Lord was too small to accommodate the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat of the fellowship offerings.(CL)
65 Solomon and all Israel with him—a great assembly, from the entrance of Hamath[m](CM) to the Brook of Egypt(CN)—observed the festival at that time(CO) in the presence of the Lord our God, seven days, and seven more days—14 days.[n](CP) 66 On the fifteenth day[o] he sent the people away. So they blessed the king and went home to their tents rejoicing and with joyful hearts for all the goodness that the Lord had done for His servant David and for His people Israel.(CQ)
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 8:2 = September–October
- 1 Kings 8:7 LXX; MT reads toward
- 1 Kings 8:9 = Sinai
- 1 Kings 8:26 Some Hb mss, LXX, Syr, Tg, Vg, 2Ch 6:16; other Hb mss omit Lord
- 1 Kings 8:28 Lit Turn
- 1 Kings 8:31 Lit and he lifts a curse against him to curse him
- 1 Kings 8:37 Lit besieges him in the land of his gates
- 1 Kings 8:38 Lit knowing in his heart of a plague
- 1 Kings 8:44 Some Hb mss, some ancient versions, 2Ch 6:34; other Hb mss read enemy
- 1 Kings 8:47 Lit they return to their heart
- 1 Kings 8:50 Lit rebellions that they have rebelled
- 1 Kings 8:58 Lit causes our hearts to be inclined
- 1 Kings 8:65 Or from Lebo-hamath
- 1 Kings 8:65 Temple dedication lasted seven days, and the Festival of Tabernacles lasted seven days.
- 1 Kings 8:66 Lit the eighth day
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