1 Kings 8
8
1 Kings 8
1¶ Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the princes of the families of the sons of Israel, unto King Solomon in Jerusalem that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion.
2And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto King Solomon in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month, on the solemn day.
3And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark.
4And they brought up the ark of the Lord and the tabernacle of the testimony and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, which the priests and the Levites carried.
5And King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel that were assembled unto him were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be counted nor numbered for multitude.
6And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord unto his place, into the oracle of the house, in the holy of holies, under the wings of the cherubim.
7For the cherubim had their wings extended over the place of the ark, and the cherubim covered the ark and its staves from above.
8And they drew out the staves so that the ends of the staves could be seen out in the holy place in front of the oracle, but they could not be seen from outside, and thus they remained until today.
9 There was nothing in the ark except the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the Lord cut a covenant with the sons of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.
10And when the priests came out of the holy place, the cloud filled the house of the Lord.
11And the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord.
12¶ Then Solomon said, The Lord has said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.
13I have surely built thee a house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever.
14And the king turned his face about and blessed all the congregation of Israel, and all the congregation of Israel were standing.
15And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who spoke with his mouth unto David my father, and with his hand has fulfilled it, saying,
16Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel out of Egypt, I have chosen no city out of all the tribes of Israel in which to build a house, that my name might be there, but I chose David to be over my people Israel.
17And it was in the heart of David, my father, to build a house for the name of the Lord God of Israel.
18But the Lord said unto David, my father, Whereas it was in thy heart to build a house unto my name, thou didst well that it was in thy heart;
19nevertheless, thou shalt not build the house, but thy son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build a house unto my name.
20And the Lord has established his word that he spoke, and I have risen up in the place of David, my father, and sit on the throne of Israel as the Lord had said and have built a house for the name of the Lord God of Israel.
21And I have set there a place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord, which he made with our fathers when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.
22¶ And Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and extending his hands toward heaven,
23he said, Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in the heavens above or on earth beneath, who keeps the covenant and mercy with thy slaves that walk before thee with all their heart,
24who hast kept unto thy slave David, my father, what thou didst declare unto him; thou didst say it with thy mouth and hast fulfilled it with thy hand, as we see this day.
25Therefore, now, Lord God of Israel, fulfill unto thy slave David, my father, what thou didst promise him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel, if thy sons keep their way, that they walk before me as thou hast walked before me.
26And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be made firm, which thou didst speak unto thy slave David, my father.
27But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, the heavens, the heavens of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have built?
28Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy slave and to his supplication, O Lord my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy slave prays before thee today,
29that thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there that thou may hearken unto the prayer which thy slave shall make in this place.
30Therefore, thou shalt hearken unto the supplication of thy slave and of thy people Israel when they shall pray in this place and hear in thy dwelling place, from the heavens; please hear and forgive.
31When anyone shall have sinned against his neighbour, and an oath is laid upon him to cause him to swear and the oath comes before thy altar in this house,
32thou shalt hear from heaven and do and judge thy slaves, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head, and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness.
33When thy people Israel are smitten down before the enemy because they have sinned against thee and shall turn again to thee and confess thy name and pray and make supplication with humility unto thee in this house,
34then thou shalt hear in the heavens and forgive the sin of thy people Israel and bring them again unto the land which thou didst give unto their fathers.
35When heaven is shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against thee, if they pray in this place and confess thy name and turn from their sin when thou hast afflicted them,
36then thou shalt hear in the heavens and forgive the sin of thy slaves and of thy people Israel, teaching them the good way in which they should walk and shalt give rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance.
37When there is famine in the land or pestilence or blasting or mildew or locusts or caterpillars, if their enemy besieges them in the land of their gates, whatever plague, whatever sickness there is,
38every prayer and every supplication made by any man or by all thy people Israel, when anyone knows the plague of his own heart and spreads forth his hands toward this house,
39then thou shalt hear in the heavens, in the habitation of thy dwelling place, and forgive and do and give to each one according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the sons of men),
40that they may fear thee all the days that they live in the land which thou didst give unto our fathers.
41Likewise concerning a stranger, that is not of thy people Israel, but comes out of a far country for thy name’s sake
42(for they shall have heard of thy great name and of thy strong hand and of thy stretched out arm), when he shall come to pray in this house,
43thou shalt hear in the heavens, in the habitation of thy dwelling place, and do according to all that for which the stranger shall have called unto thee, that all peoples of the earth may know thy name and fear thee as do thy people Israel and that they may know that thy name is invoked upon this house, which I have built.
44If thy people go out to battle against their enemies by the way which thou shalt send them and shall pray unto the Lord toward the city which thou hast chosen and toward the house that I have built for thy name,
45thou shalt hear in the heavens their prayer and their supplication and do their judgment.
46If they have sinned against thee (for there is no man that does not sin) and thou should be angry with them and deliver them to the enemy so that they carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near,
47and they return unto their heart in the land where they were carried captives and return and make supplication unto thee in the land of those that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned and have done iniquity, we have committed wickedness;
48and so convert themselves unto thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies, who led them away captive and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou didst give unto their fathers, toward the city which thou hast chosen and the house which I have built for thy name,
49thou shalt hear in the heavens, in the habitation of thy dwelling place, their prayer and their supplication and do what is right unto them
50and forgive thy people that have sinned against thee and all their rebellions by which they have rebelled against thee and cause those who carried them captive to have mercy on them,
51for they are thy people and thy inheritance, which thou didst bring forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the iron furnace.
52Let thine eyes be open unto the supplication of thy slave and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto thee.
53For thou didst separate them from among all the peoples of the earth, to be thy inheritance, as thou didst speak by the hand of Moses, thy slave, when thou didst bring our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord GOD.
54¶ And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the Lord he arose from before the altar of the Lord, from kneeling on his knees with his hands extended toward heaven.
55And he stood and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying,
56Blessed be the Lord that has given rest unto his people Israel according to all that he had said; not one word has failed of all his good word, which he spoke by the hand of Moses, his slave.
57The Lord our God be with us as he was with our fathers; let him not leave us nor forsake us
58that he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his rights, which he commanded our fathers.
59And let these my words, with which I have made supplication before the Lord, be near unto the Lord our God day and night that he maintain the judgment of his slave and the cause of his people Israel at all times, as the matter shall require;
60that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God, and that there is no other.
61Let your heart, therefore, be perfect with the Lord our God, walking in his statutes and keeping his commandments, as at this day.
62¶ Then the king and all Israel with him, offered sacrifices before the Lord.
63And Solomon offered sacrifices of peace, which he offered unto the Lord, which were twenty-two thousand oxen and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the sons of Israel dedicated the house of the Lord.
64That same day the king sanctified the middle of the court that was before the house of the Lord, for there he offered the burnt offerings and the presents and the fat of the peace offerings because the brasen altar that was before the Lord was too small to receive the burnt offerings and the presents and the fat of the peace offerings.
65And at that time Solomon held a feast and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt, before the Lord our God, for seven days and another seven days, even fourteen days.
66On the eighth day he sent the people away, and they, blessing the king, went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the Lord had done unto David, his slave, and unto Israel his people.
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1 Kings 8: JUB
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The Jubilee Bible 2000 (JUB) by Ransom Press International
1 Kings 8
8
The Ark Brought to the Temple
1Solomon then summoned to Jerusalem the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes—the leaders of the ancestral families of the Israelites. They were to bring the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant to the Temple from its location in the City of David, also known as Zion. 2So all the men of Israel assembled before King Solomon at the annual Festival of Shelters, which is held in early autumn in the month of Ethanim.#8:2 Hebrew at the festival in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month. The Festival of Shelters began on the fifteenth day of the seventh month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This day occurred in late September, October, or early November.
3When all the elders of Israel arrived, the priests picked up the Ark. 4The priests and Levites brought up the Ark of the Lord along with the special tent#8:4 Hebrew the Tent of Meeting; i.e., the tent mentioned in 2 Sam 6:17 and 1 Chr 16:1. and all the sacred items that had been in it. 5There, before the Ark, King Solomon and the entire community of Israel sacrificed so many sheep, goats, and cattle that no one could keep count!
6Then the priests carried the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant into the inner sanctuary of the Temple—the Most Holy Place—and placed it beneath the wings of the cherubim. 7The cherubim spread their wings over the Ark, forming a canopy over the Ark and its carrying poles. 8These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place, which is in front of the Most Holy Place, but not from the outside. They are still there to this day. 9Nothing was in the Ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Mount Sinai,#8:9 Hebrew at Horeb, another name for Sinai. where the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel when they left the land of Egypt.
10When the priests came out of the Holy Place, a thick cloud filled the Temple of the Lord. 11The priests could not continue their service because of the cloud, for the glorious presence of the Lord filled the Temple of the Lord.
Solomon Praises the Lord
12Then Solomon prayed, “O Lord, you have said that you would live in a thick cloud of darkness. 13Now I have built a glorious Temple for you, a place where you can live forever!#8:13 Some Greek texts add the line Is this not written in the Book of Jashar?”
14Then the king turned around to the entire community of Israel standing before him and gave this blessing: 15“Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, who has kept the promise he made to my father, David. For he told my father, 16‘From the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I have never chosen a city among any of the tribes of Israel as the place where a Temple should be built to honor my name. But I have chosen David to be king over my people Israel.’”
17Then Solomon said, “My father, David, wanted to build this Temple to honor the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 18But the Lord told him, ‘You wanted to build the Temple to honor my name. Your intention is good, 19but you are not the one to do it. One of your own sons will build the Temple to honor me.’
20“And now the Lord has fulfilled the promise he made, for I have become king in my father’s place, and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the Lord promised. I have built this Temple to honor the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 21And I have prepared a place there for the Ark, which contains the covenant that the Lord made with our ancestors when he brought them out of Egypt.”
Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication
22Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire community of Israel. He lifted his hands toward heaven, 23and he prayed,
“O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in all of heaven above or on the earth below. You keep your covenant and show unfailing love to all who walk before you in wholehearted devotion. 24You have kept your promise to your servant David, my father. You made that promise with your own mouth, and with your own hands you have fulfilled it today.
25“And now, O Lord, God of Israel, carry out the additional promise you made to your servant David, my father. For you said to him, ‘If your descendants guard their behavior and faithfully follow me as you have done, one of them will always sit on the throne of Israel.’ 26Now, O God of Israel, fulfill this promise to your servant David, my father.
27“But will God really live on earth? Why, even the highest heavens cannot contain you. How much less this Temple I have built! 28Nevertheless, listen to my prayer and my plea, O Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is making to you today. 29May you watch over this Temple night and day, this place where you have said, ‘My name will be there.’ May you always hear the prayers I make toward this place. 30May you hear the humble and earnest requests from me and your people Israel when we pray toward this place. Yes, hear us from heaven where you live, and when you hear, forgive.
31“If someone wrongs another person and is required to take an oath of innocence in front of your altar in this Temple, 32then hear from heaven and judge between your servants—the accuser and the accused. Punish the guilty as they deserve. Acquit the innocent because of their innocence.
33“If your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they have sinned against you, and if they turn to you and acknowledge your name and pray to you here in this Temple, 34then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and return them to this land you gave their ancestors.
35“If the skies are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you, and if they pray toward this Temple and acknowledge your name and turn from their sins because you have punished them, 36then hear from heaven and forgive the sins of your servants, your people Israel. Teach them to follow the right path, and send rain on your land that you have given to your people as their special possession.
37“If there is a famine in the land or a plague or crop disease or attacks of locusts or caterpillars, or if your people’s enemies are in the land besieging their towns—whatever disaster or disease there is— 38and if your people Israel pray about their troubles, raising their hands toward this Temple, 39then hear from heaven where you live, and forgive. Give your people what their actions deserve, for you alone know each human heart. 40Then they will fear you as long as they live in the land you gave to our ancestors.
41“In the future, foreigners who do not belong to your people Israel will hear of you. They will come from distant lands because of your name, 42for they will hear of your great name and your strong hand and your powerful arm. And when they pray toward this Temple, 43then hear from heaven where you live, and grant what they ask of you. In this way, all the people of the earth will come to know and fear you, just as your own people Israel do. They, too, will know that this Temple I have built honors your name.
44“If your people go out where you send them to fight their enemies, and if they pray to the Lord by turning toward this city you have chosen and toward this Temple I have built to honor your name, 45then hear their prayers from heaven and uphold their cause.
46“If they sin against you—and who has never sinned?—you might become angry with them and let their enemies conquer them and take them captive to their land far away or near. 47But in that land of exile, they might turn to you in repentance and pray, ‘We have sinned, done evil, and acted wickedly.’ 48If they turn to you with their whole heart and soul in the land of their enemies and pray toward the land you gave to their ancestors—toward this city you have chosen, and toward this Temple I have built to honor your name— 49then hear their prayers and their petition from heaven where you live, and uphold their cause. 50Forgive your people who have sinned against you. Forgive all the offenses they have committed against you. Make their captors merciful to them, 51for they are your people—your special possession—whom you brought out of the iron-smelting furnace of Egypt.
52“May your eyes be open to my requests and to the requests of your people Israel. May you hear and answer them whenever they cry out to you. 53For when you brought our ancestors out of Egypt, O Sovereign Lord, you told your servant Moses that you had set Israel apart from all the nations of the earth to be your own special possession.”
The Dedication of the Temple
54When Solomon finished making these prayers and petitions to the Lord, he stood up in front of the altar of the Lord, where he had been kneeling with his hands raised toward heaven. 55He stood and in a loud voice blessed the entire congregation of Israel:
56“Praise the Lord who has given rest to his people Israel, just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the wonderful promises he gave through his servant Moses. 57May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us or abandon us. 58May he give us the desire to do his will in everything and to obey all the commands, decrees, and regulations that he gave our ancestors. 59And may these words that I have prayed in the presence of the Lord be before him constantly, day and night, so that the Lord our God may give justice to me and to his people Israel, according to each day’s needs. 60Then people all over the earth will know that the Lord alone is God and there is no other. 61And may you be completely faithful to the Lord our God. May you always obey his decrees and commands, just as you are doing today.”
62Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices to the Lord. 63Solomon offered to the Lord a peace offering of 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep and goats. And so the king and all the people of Israel dedicated the Temple of the Lord.
64That same day the king consecrated the central area of the courtyard in front of the Lord’s Temple. He offered burnt offerings, grain offerings, and the fat of peace offerings there, because the bronze altar in the Lord’s presence was too small to hold all the burnt offerings, grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings.
65Then Solomon and all Israel celebrated the Festival of Shelters#8:65a Hebrew the festival; see note on 8:2. in the presence of the Lord our God. A large congregation had gathered from as far away as Lebo-hamath in the north and the Brook of Egypt in the south. The celebration went on for fourteen days in all—seven days for the dedication of the altar and seven days for the Festival of Shelters.#8:65b Hebrew seven days and seven days, fourteen days; compare parallel text at 2 Chr 7:8-10. 66After the festival was over,#8:66 Hebrew On the eighth day, probably referring to the day following the seven-day Festival of Shelters; compare parallel text at 2 Chr 7:9-10. Solomon sent the people home. They blessed the king and went to their homes joyful and glad because the Lord had been good to his servant David and to his people Israel.
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
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