1 Kings 8:1-11

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.