May
22nd 2
Chronicles 4
Solomon furnishes the Temple
Solomon furnishes the Temple
1: Moreover he made
an altar of brass, twenty cubits the length thereof, and twenty
cubits the breadth thereof, and ten cubits the height thereof. 2:
Also he made a molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in
compass, and five cubits the height thereof; and a line of thirty
cubits did compass it round about. 3: And under it was the similitude
of oxen, which did compass it round about: ten in a cubit, compassing
the sea round about. Two rows of oxen were cast, when it was cast. 4:
It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three
looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and
three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them,
and all their hinder parts were inward. 5: And the thickness of it
was an handbreadth, and the brim of it like the work of the brim of a
cup, with flowers of lilies; and it received and held three thousand
baths. 6: He made also ten lavers, and put five on the right hand,and
five on the left, to wash in them: such things as they offered for
the burnt offering they washed in them; but the sea was for the
priests to wash in. 7: And he made ten candlesticks of gold according
to their form, and set them in the temple, five on the right hand,
and five on the left. 8: He made also ten tables, and placed them in
the temple, five on the right side, and five on the left. And he made
an hundred basons of gold. 9: Furthermore he made the court of the
priests, and the great court, and doors for the court, and overlaid
the doors of them with brass. 10: And he set the sea on the right
side of the east end, over against the south. 11: And Huram made the
pots, and the shovels, and the basons. And Huram finished the work
that he was to make for king Solomon for the house of God; 12: To
wit, the two pillars, and the pommels, and the chapiters which were
on the top of the two pillars, and the two wreaths to cover the two
pommels of the chapiters which were on the top of the pillars; 13:
And four hundred pomegranates on the two wreaths; two rows of
pomegranates on each wreath, to cover the two pommels of the
chapiters which were upon the pillars. 14: He made also bases, and
lavers made he upon the bases; 15: One sea, and twelve oxen under it.
16: The pots also, and the shovels, and the fleshhooks, and all their
instruments, did Huram his father make to king Solomon for the house
of the LORD of bright brass. 17: In the plain of Jordan did the king
cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zeredathah. 18:
Thus Solomon made all these vessels in great abundance: for the
weight of the brass could not be found out. 19: And Solomon made all
the vessels that were for the house of God, the golden altar also,
and the tables whereon the shewbread was set; 20: Moreover the
candlesticks with their lamps, that they should burn after the manner
before the oracle, of pure gold; 21: And the flowers, and the lamps,
and the tongs, made he of gold, and that perfect gold; 22: And the
snuffers, and the basons, and the spoons, and the censers, of pure
gold: and the entry of the house, the inner doors thereof for the
most holy place, and the doors of the house of the temple, were of
gold.
2 Chronicles 5
1: Thus all the
work that Solomon made for the house of the LORD was finished: and
Solomon brought in all the things that David his father had
dedicated; and the silver, and the gold, and all the instruments, put
he among the treasures of the house of God.
The
ark to the Temple
2: Then Solomon
assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the
chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto Jerusalem, to
bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of
David, which is Zion. 3: Wherefore all the men of Israel assembled
themselves unto the king in the feast which was in the seventh month.
4: And all the elders of Israel came; and the Levites took up the
ark. 5: And they brought up the ark, and the tabernacle of the
congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle,
these did the priests and the Levites bring up. 6: Also king Solomon,
and all the congregation of Israel that were assembled unto him
before the ark, sacrificed sheep and oxen, which could not be told
nor numbered for multitude. 7: And the priests brought in the ark of
the covenant of the LORD unto his place, to the oracle of the house,
into the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims: 8:
For the cherubims spread forth their wings over the place of the ark,
and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves thereof above. 9:
And they drew out the staves of the ark, that the ends of the staves
were seen from the ark before the oracle; but they were not seen
without. And there it is unto this day. 10: There was nothing in the
ark save the two tables which Moses put therein at Horeb, when the
LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out
of Egypt. 11: And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of
the holy place: (for all the priests that were present were
sanctified, and did not then wait by course: 12: Also the Levites
which were the singers, all of them of Asaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun,
with their sons and their brethren, being arrayed in white linen,
having cymbals and psalteries and harps, stood at the east end of the
altar, and with them an hundred and twenty priests sounding with
trumpets:) 13: It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers
were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking
the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and
cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For
he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was
filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD; 14: So that the
priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the
glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.
2
Chronicles 6 Solomon’s speech
1: Then said
Solomon, The LORD hath said that he would dwell in the thick
darkness. 2: But I have built an house of habitation for thee, and a
place for thy dwelling for ever. 3: And the king turned his face, and
blessed the whole congregation of Israel: and all the congregation of
Israel stood. 4: And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who
hath with his hands fulfilled that which he spake with his mouth to
my father David, saying, 5: Since the day that I brought forth my
people out of the land of Egypt I chose no city among all the tribes
of Israel to build an house in, that my name might be there; neither
chose I any man to be a ruler over my people Israel: 6: But I have
chosen Jerusalem, that my name might be there; and have chosen David
to be over my people Israel. 7: Now it was in the heart of David my
father to build an house for the name of the LORD God of Israel. 8:
But the LORD said to David my father, Forasmuch as it was in thine
heart to build an house for my name, thou didst well in that it was
in thine heart: 9: Notwithstanding thou shalt not build the house;
but thy son which shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build
the house for my name. 10: The LORD therefore hath performed his word
that he hath spoken: for I am risen up in the room of David my
father, and am set on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and
have built the house for the name of the LORD God of Israel. 11: And
in it have I put the ark, wherein is the covenant of the LORD, that
he made with the children of Israel.
Solomon’s
prayer
12: And he stood
before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation
of Israel, and spread forth his hands: 13: For Solomon had made a
brasen scaffold, of five cubits long, and five cubits broad, and
three cubits high, and had set it in the midst of the court: and upon
it he stood, and kneeled down upon his knees before all the
congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven, 14:
And said, O LORD God of Israel, there is no God like thee in the
heaven, nor in the earth; which keepest covenant, and shewest mercy
unto thy servants, that walk before thee with all their hearts: 15:
Thou which hast kept with thy servant David my father that which thou
hast promised him; and spakest with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it
with thine hand, as it is this day. 16: Now therefore, O LORD God of
Israel, keep with thy servant David my father that which thou hast
promised him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man in my sight to
sit upon the throne of Israel; yet so that thy children take heed to
their way to walk in my law, as thou hast walked before me. 17: Now
then, O LORD God of Israel, let thy word be verified, which thou hast
spoken unto thy servant David. 18: But will God in very deed dwell
with men on the earth? behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens
cannot contain thee; how much less this house which I have built! 19:
Have respect therefore to the prayer of thy servant, and to his
supplication, O LORD my God, to hearken unto the cry and the prayer
which thy servant prayeth before thee: 20: That thine eyes may be
open upon this house day and night, upon the place whereof thou hast
said that thou wouldest put thy name there; to hearken unto the
prayer which thy servant prayeth toward this place. 21: Hearken
therefore unto the supplications of thy servant, and of thy people
Israel, which they shall make toward this place: hear thou from thy
dwelling place, even from heaven; and when thou hearest, forgive. 22:
If a man sin against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him to
make him swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house;
23: Then hear thou from heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, by
requiting the wicked, by recompensing his way upon his own head; and
by justifying the righteous, by giving him according to his
righteousness. 24: And if thy people Israel be put to the worse
before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee; and shall
return and confess thy name, and pray and make supplication before
thee in this house; 25: Then hear thou from the heavens, and forgive
the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land
which thou gavest to them and to their fathers. 26: When the heaven
is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against
thee; yet if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and
turn from their sin, when thou dost afflict them; 27: Then hear thou
from heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people
Israel, when thou hast taught them the good way, wherein they should
walk; and send rain upon thy land, which thou hast given unto thy
people for an inheritance. 28: If there be dearth in the land, if
there be pestilence, if there be blasting, or mildew, locusts, or
caterpillers; if their enemies besiege them in the cities of their
land; whatsoever sore or whatsoever sickness there be: 29: Then what
prayer or what supplication soever shall be made of any man, or of
all thy people Israel, when every one shall know his own sore and his
own grief, and shall spread forth his hands in this house: 30: Then
hear thou from heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and render
unto every man according unto all his ways, whose heart thou knowest;
(for thou only knowest the hearts of the children of men:) 31: That
they may fear thee, to walk in thy ways, so long as they live in the
land which thou gavest unto our fathers. 32: Moreover concerning the
stranger, which is not of thy people Israel, but is come from a far
country for thy great name's sake, and thy mighty hand, and thy
stretched out arm; if they come and pray in this house; 33: Then hear
thou from the heavens, even from thy dwelling place, and do according
to all that the stranger calleth to thee for; that all people of the
earth may know thy name, and fear thee, as doth thy people Israel,
and may know that this house which I have built is called by thy
name. 34: If thy people go out to war against their enemies by the
way that thou shalt send them, and they pray unto thee toward this
city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy
name; 35: Then hear thou from the heavens their prayer and their
supplication, and maintain their cause. 36: If they sin against thee,
(for there is no man which sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them,
and deliver them over before their enemies, and they carry them away
captives unto a land far off or near; 37: Yet if they bethink
themselves in the land whither they are carried captive, and turn and
pray unto thee in the land of their captivity, saying, We have
sinned, we have done amiss, and have dealt wickedly; 38: If they
return to thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the
land of their captivity, whither they have carried them captives, and
pray toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, and
toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house which I
have built for thy name: 39: Then hear thou from the heavens, even
from thy dwelling place, their prayer and their supplications, and
maintain their cause, and forgive thy people which have sinned
against thee. 40: Now, my God, let, I beseech thee, thine eyes be
open, and let thine ears be attent unto the prayer that is made in
this place. 41: Now therefore arise, O LORD God, into thy resting
place, thou, and the ark of thy strength: let thy priests, O LORD
God, be clothed with salvation, and let thy saints rejoice in
goodness. 42: O LORD God, turn not away the face of thine anointed:
remember the mercies of David thy servant.
Today we read of
Solomon furnishing the Temple and brining in the Ark of the Covenant.
Then we have the speech of Solomon at the dedication of the Temple
and his prayer. The furniture of the temple included
The altar of brass.
It was 26ft x 26ft and 13ft high.
The molten sea (A
great bath made in one cast which meant that there
could be
no leaks) 13ft
across from lip to lip. 6ft 6” high. It stood
on 12 oxen made
of brass.
12 smaller lavers
or bathes for the washing of the priests.
10 candlesticks of
gold.
10 tables
100 basins of gold
There were many
other implements for temple service.
When everything was
finished they were all brought into the temple by Solomon. Then
Solomon assembled the elders of Israel to inspire them to bring in
the Ark of the Covenant to the temple. When the Ark was brought into
the temple the staves were drawn out indicating that the Ark had
finally found its home. Inside the Ark was just the slabs of stone on
which were written the commandments of God. The trumpets sounded and
the choir sang in perfect harmony. They praised the LORD for his
enduring mercy. Then the temple was filled with a cloud. No man was
able to stand in the presence of the LORD. Then Solomon made a
speech. First he explained in a sentence what the building of the
temple had all been about. It was a temple in which the Lord would
live forever. Then he blessed the whole congregation of Israel. Then
the entire congregation stood before the Lord. Then he blessed the
LORD God of Israel. He said that the LORD chose David to be his king
and Jerusalem to be his place on earth. He recounted what the LORD
said to his father that he had done well wanting to build the temple
but the task would be given to his son. Now he says God has done what
he directed us to do. Then Solomon turned from speaking to praying.
He knelt and opened his arms with his hands toward heaven saying.
There is no God like you because you keep your covenant and show
mercy to your servants who live before you with full open minds. You
have kept your word to David right up to this day. Now keep your
promise to David by forever providing a king from his royal line. Can
God live in the Temple? Even the whole universe cannot contain him.
Look on us and listen to us your people and when you hear our
confession forgive us our sin. Hear from heaven giving justice and
judgment to your people. And when you discipline your people and shut
the sky to rain. Because they have sinned against you and when they
call on you and confess your name and turn from their sin when you
punish them then hear from heaven and forgive the sins of your
people. And if there is a drought, a disease and blasting, mildew,
locusts and caterpillars and if enemies come into the land and if the
people become sick and when every man turns in desperation to you.
Will you hear them in your heaven and forgive them and judge every
man according to his deeds. Because you know what is in his mind.
Grant that your people might fear you and walk in your ways all their
lives in the land you gave to our fathers. And if they go to war
deliver them and if they sin (because all men sin) and if you send an
enemy to carry them away into foreign lands, and if they think about
why they are there and if they cry to you saying we have sinned and
done wicked things and if they return to you with all their minds and
soul in the land of captivity then hear in heaven and forgive them.
So ever keep your eyes and ears open to your people and may we always
keep our ears open to you. And so Solomon finished his prayer. In
this prayer we have such a clear OT theology of the Old Mosaic
Covenant. What did Christ found when he came to his people? He found
a nation sick, dying and full of every disease, with the Roman legion
dominating the countryside. They were far from their God and Christ
called on then to turn to the Lord their God.
- Make a note of the various items of furniture for the Temple
- Analise the Prayer of Solomon
- What difference do you notice between OT theology and NT theology?
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