1 Kings 8

Revised Geneva Translation

8 Then King Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes (the chief fathers of the children of Israel) to him in Jerusalem, to bring up the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD from the City of David, which is Zion.

² And all the men of Israel assembled to King Solomon at the feast, in the month of Ethanim, which is the seventh month.

³ And all the elders of Israel came. And the priests took the Ark.

⁴ They bore the Ark of the LORD. And they bore the Tabernacle of the Congregation and all the holy vessels that were in the Tabernacle, those the priests and Levites brought up.

⁵ And King Solomon, and all the Congregation of Israel who were assembled to him, were with him before the Ark, offering sheep and oxen (which were too numerous to count or assess).

⁶ So, the priests brought the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD to its place, into the Oracle of the House, into the Most Holy Place, under the wings of the Cherubim.

⁷ For the Cherubim stretched out their wings over the place of the Ark. And the Cherubim covered the Ark and its poles above.

⁸ And they drew out the poles, so that the ends of the poles might appear out of the Sanctuary, before the Oracle. But they were not seen outside. And they are there to this day.

⁹ Nothing was in the Ark except the two Tables of stone which Moses had put there at Horeb, where the LORD made a Covenant with the children of Israel, when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.

¹⁰ And when the priests had come out of the Sanctuary, the cloud filled the House of the LORD,

¹¹ so that 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 spoke, “The LORD said that He would dwell in the dark cloud.

¹³ “I have built You a House to dwell in, a habitation for You to abide in forever.”

¹⁴ And the king turned his face and blessed all the Congregation of Israel. For all the Congregation of Israel stood.

¹⁵ And he said, “Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, Who spoke with His Mouth to David, my father, and has, with His Hand, fulfilled it, saying,

¹⁶ ‘Since the day that I brought My people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city of all the tribes of Israel to build a House, so that My Name might be there. But I have chosen David to be over My people, Israel.’

¹⁷ “And it was in the heart of David, my father, to build a House to the Name of the LORD God of Israel.

¹⁸ “And the LORD said to David, my father, ‘Insomuch as it was in your heart to build a House to My Name, you did well that you were so minded.

¹⁹ ‘Nevertheless, you shall not build the House. But your son, who shall come out of your loins, he shall build the House to My Name.’

²⁰ “And the LORD has made good His Word that He spoke. And I have risen up in the room of David, my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and have built the House for the Name of the LORD God of Israel.

²¹ “And I have prepared a place for the Ark in it, 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 Then Solomon stood before the Altar of the LORD, in the sight of all the Congregation of Israel, and stretched out his hands toward Heaven,

²³ and said, “O LORD God of Israel! There is no God like You in Heaven above or on the Earth beneath, You Who keep Covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk before You with all their heart;

²⁴ “You Who have kept with Your servant David, my father, that You have promised him. For You spoke with Your Mouth and have fulfilled it with Your Hand, as it is this day.

²⁵ “Therefore now, LORD God of Israel, keep with Your servant David, my father, that You have promised him, saying, ‘You shall not lack a man in My sight to sit upon the throne of Israel, so that your children attend to their way, so that they walk before Me, as you have walked in My sight.’

²⁶ “And now, O God of Israel, I pray, let Your Word be verified which You spoke to your servant David, my father.

²⁷ “Is it indeed true that God will dwell on the Earth? Behold, the heavens, and the heavens of heavens, are not able to contain You! How much more so is this House that I have built?

²⁸ “But have respect to the prayer of Your servant, and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to hear the cry and prayer which Your servant prays before You this day!

²⁹ “So that Your Eyes may be open toward this House, night and day, toward the place of which You have said, ‘My Name shall be there,’ so that You may listen to the prayer which Your servant prays in this place.

³⁰ “Hear, therefore, the supplication of Your servant, and of Your people Israel, who pray in this place! And hear in the place of Your habitation, in Heaven! And when You hear, have mercy!

³¹ “When a man shall trespass against his neighbor, and he lays upon him an oath, to cause him to swear. And the swearer shall come before Your Altar, into this House,

³² “then hear in Heaven and do, and judge Your servants, so that You condemn the wicked, to bring his way upon his head! And justify the righteous, to give to him according to his righteousness.

³³ “When Your people Israel shall be overthrown before the enemy, because they have sinned against You, and turn back to you and confess Your Name and pray and make supplication to You in this House,

³⁴ “then hear in Heaven and be merciful to the sin of Your people Israel! And bring them back to the land which You gave to their fathers.

³⁵ “When the sky shall be shut up, and there shall be no rain because they have sinned against You, and shall pray in this place, and confess Your Name, and turn from their sin, when You afflict them,

³⁶ “then hear in Heaven! And pardon the sin of Your servants and of Your people Israel (after You have taught them the good way in which they may walk) and give rain upon the land that You have given Your people to inherit!

³⁷ “When there shall be famine in the land, when there shall be pestilence, when there shall be blight, mildew, grasshopper or caterpillar; when their enemies shall besiege them in the cities of their land, any plague, any sickness,

³⁸ “whatever prayer, supplication shall be made by any man of all Your people Israel, when everyone shall know the plague in his own heart and stretch forth his hands in this House,

³⁹ “hear then in Heaven, in Your dwelling place, and be merciful, and do, and give every man according to all his ways, as You know his heart (for only You know the hearts of all the children of men),

⁴⁰ “so that they may fear You as long as they live in the land which You gave to our fathers!

⁴¹ “Moreover, regarding the stranger who is not of Your people Israel, who shall come out of a far country for Your Name’s sake

⁴² “(when they shall hear of Your great Name and of Your mighty Hand and of Your outstretched Arm), and shall come and pray in this House,

⁴³ “hear in Heaven (Your dwelling place) and do according to all that the stranger calls to You for, so that all the people of the Earth may know Your Name and fear You as do Your people Israel, and that they may know that Your Name is called upon in this House which I have built!

⁴⁴ “When Your people shall go out to battle against their enemy, by the way that You shall send them, and shall pray to the LORD, toward the way of the city which You have chosen, and the House that I have built for Your Name,

⁴⁵ “hear, then, their prayer in Heaven, and their supplication, and judge their cause.

⁴⁶ “When they sin against You (for there is no man who does not sin) and You are angry with them, and deliver them to the enemies, so that they carry them away prisoners to the land of the enemies, either far or near,

⁴⁷ “yet, if they turn back their heart in the land to which they are carried away captives and return and pray to You in the land of those who carried them away captives, saying, ‘We have sinned! We have transgressed and done wickedly!’

⁴⁸ “if they turn back to You with all their heart and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies who led them away captives, and pray to You toward the way of their land which You gave to their fathers, the city which You have chosen and the House which I have built for Your Name,

⁴⁹ “then hear their prayer and their supplication in Heaven, Your dwelling place, and judge their cause!

⁵⁰ “And be merciful to Your people who have sinned against You, and to all their iniquities in which they have transgressed against You. And cause it to be that those who led them away captives may have pity and compassion on them.

⁵¹ “For they are Your people, and Your inheritance, which You brought out of Egypt from the midst of the iron furnace.

⁵² “Let Your Eyes be open to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your people Israel, to listen to them in all that they call for to You.

⁵³ “For You separated them to Yourself from among all people of the Earth for an inheritance, as You said by the hand of Moses, Your servant, when You brought our fathers out of Egypt, O LORD God!”

⁵⁴ And when Solomon had finished praying all this prayer and supplication to the LORD, he rose from before the Altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees, and stretching of his hands to Heaven,

⁵⁵ and stood and blessed all the Congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying,

⁵⁶ “Blessed be the LORD Who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised! There has not failed one Word of all His good promise which He promised by the hand of Moses, His servant!

⁵⁷ “The LORD our God be with us, as He was with our fathers, so that He does not forsake us or leave us,

⁵⁸ “so that He may bow our hearts to Him, so that we may walk in all His ways, and keep His Commandments, and His Statutes, and His Laws which He Commanded our fathers!

⁵⁹ “And these, my words, which I have prayed before the LORD, be near to the LORD our God, day and night, so that He defends the cause of His servant, and the cause of His people Israel always, as the matter requires,

⁶⁰ “so that all the people of the Earth may know that the LORD is God! None other!

⁶¹ “Therefore, let your heart be perfect with the LORD our God, to walk in His Statutes and to keep His Commandments, as this day!”

⁶² Then the king, and all Israel with him, offered Sacrifice before the LORD.

⁶³ And Solomon offered a Sacrifice of Peace Offerings, which he offered to the LORD: twenty-two thousand oxen, and a hundred twenty thousand sheep. So, the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the House of the LORD.

⁶⁴ The same day, the king consecrated the middle of the court that was in front of the House of the LORD. For he made the Burnt Offerings and Meat Offerings and the fat of the Peace Offerings there, because the bronze Altar that was before the LORD was too little to receive the Burnt Offerings and the Meat Offerings and the fat of the Peace Offerings.

⁶⁵ And Solomon made a feast before the LORD our God at that time, and all Israel with him (a very great Congregation), from the entrance of Hamath to the river of Egypt, for seven days and seven days (fourteen days).

⁶⁶ And on the eighth day, he sent the people away. And they thanked the king and went to their tents joyous and with glad hearts, because of all the goodness that the LORD had done for David, His servant, and for Israel, His people.