1 Kings 8

1 Then Solomon summoned before him in Jerusalem the elders of Israel, including all the heads of the tribes and the family leaders of the Israelites. He instructed them to bring up with them the Ark of the Lord's Agreement from Zion, the City of David.

At that time Solomon assembled before him in Jerusalem the elders of Israel—all the tribal heads and family leaders of the Israelites—to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD from Zion, the City of David.

2 All the men of Israel assembled before King Solomon at the festival which is held in the seventh month, the month of Ethanim.

And all the men of Israel came together to King Solomon at the feast in the seventh month, the month of Ethanim.

3 When all the elders of Israel had gathered, the priests picked up the Ark and brought the Ark of the Lord and the Tent of Meeting with all its holy items.

When all the elders of Israel had arrived, the priests took up the ark,

4 The priests and Levites carried them up.

and they brought up the ark of the LORD and the Tent of Meeting with all its sacred furnishings. So the priests and Levites carried them up.

5 In front of the Ark, King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel who had gathered there with him sacrificed many, many sheep and bulls—so numerous they couldn't be counted!

There, before the ark, King Solomon and the whole congregation of Israel who had assembled with him sacrificed so many sheep and oxen that they could not be counted or numbered.

6 Then the priests carried the Ark of the Lord's Agreement to its place in the inner sanctuary of the Temple, the Most Holy Place, underneath the wings of the cherubim.

Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place, beneath the wings of the cherubim.

7 The cherubim spread their wings over the place where the Ark was, covering the Ark and its carrying poles.

For the cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark and overshadowed the ark and its poles.

8 The poles were so long that the ends could be seen from the Holy Place in front of the inner sanctuary, but not from outside. They are there to this day.

The poles extended far enough that their ends were visible from the Holy Place in front of the inner sanctuary, but not from outside the Holy Place; and they are there to this day.

9 There was nothing in the Ark apart from the two tablets of stone that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the Lord had made an agreement with the Israelites after they came out of the land of Egypt.

There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the LORD had made a covenant with the Israelites after they had come out of the land of Egypt.

10 When the priests left the Holy Place, the cloud filled the Temple of the Lord.

And when the priests came out of the Holy Place, the cloud filled the house of the LORD

11 Due to the cloud, the priests could not stay there to carry out their service, for the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord's Temple.

so that the priests could not stand there to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD.

12 Then Solomon said: “Lord, you said that you would live in the thick cloud.

Then Solomon declared: “The LORD has said that He would dwell in the thick cloud.

13 Now I have built for you a majestic Temple, a place where you may live for ever.”

I have indeed built You an exalted house, a place for You to dwell forever.”

14 The king turned around to the whole assembly of Israel who were standing there, and blessed them,

And as the whole assembly of Israel stood there, the king turned around and blessed them all

15 saying, “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, who by his own power has fulfilled the promise he made to my father David when he said,

and said: “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who has fulfilled with His own hand what He spoke with His mouth to my father David, saying,

16 ‘Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt I have not chosen any town of the tribes of Israel as the place to build a Temple to honor me. But I have chosen David as king over my people Israel.’

‘Since the day I brought My people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city from any tribe of Israel in which to build a house so that My Name would be there. But I have chosen David to be over My people Israel.’

17 My father David really wanted to build a Temple to honor the Lord, the God of Israel.

Now it was in the heart of my father David to build a house for the Name of the LORD, the God of Israel.

18 But the Lord told my father David, ‘You had the desire to build a Temple to honor me, and it was good that you really wanted to do this.

But the LORD said to my father David, ‘Since it was in your heart to build a house for My Name, you have done well to have this in your heart.

19 But it won't be you who will build this Temple, but your son who is to be born to you—he will build the Temple to honor me.'

Nevertheless, you are not the one to build it; but your son, your own offspring, will build the house for My Name.’

20 Now the Lord has kept his promise that he made. I have succeeded my father David, and I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the Lord promised. I have built the Temple to honor the Lord, the God of Israel.

Now the LORD has fulfilled the word that He spoke. I have succeeded my father David, and I sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised. I have built the house for the Name of the LORD, the God of Israel.

21 I have provided a place there for the Ark, which contains the agreement of the Lord that he made with our forefathers when he led them out of the land of Egypt.”

And there I have provided a place for the ark, which contains the covenant of the LORD that He made with our fathers when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.”

22 Then Solomon stood in front of the altar of the Lord before the whole assembly of Israel and held out his hands toward heaven.

Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven,

23 He said, “Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below. You keep you agreement of trustworthy love with your servants, those who are totally committed to following you.

and said: “O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth below, keeping Your covenant of loving devotion with Your servants who walk before You with all their hearts.

24 You have kept the promise you made to your servant David, my father. You yourself promised, and by your own power you have fulfilled it today.

You have kept Your promise to Your servant, my father David. What You spoke with Your mouth You have fulfilled with Your hand this day.

25 So now, Lord, God of Israel, please also keep the promise you made to your servant, my father David, when you said: ‘You will never fail to have a descendant sit in my presence on the throne of Israel, as long as they make sure to follow me as you have done.’

Therefore now, O LORD, God of Israel, keep for Your servant, my father David, what You promised when You said: ‘You will never fail to have a man to sit before Me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants guard their way to walk before Me as you have done.’

26 Now, God of Israel, please keep the promise you made to our servant, my father David.

And now, O God of Israel, please confirm what You promised to Your servant, my father David.

27 But will God really live here on earth? The heavens, even highest heaven, cannot contain you, much less this Temple I have built!

But will God indeed dwell upon the earth? Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain You, much less this temple I have built.

28 Please hear the prayer of your servant and his request, Lord my God. Please hear the appeals and the prayers that your servant is presenting before you today.

Yet regard the prayer and plea of Your servant, O LORD my God, so that You may hear the cry and the prayer that Your servant is praying before You today.

29 May you watch over this Temple day and night, caring for the place where you said you would be honored. May you hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place,

May Your eyes be open toward this temple night and day, toward the place of which You said, ‘My Name shall be there,’ so that You may hear the prayer that Your servant prays toward this place.

30 and may you hear the request of your servant and your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Please hear from heaven where you live. May you hear and forgive.

Hear the plea of Your servant and of Your people Israel when they pray toward this place. May You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place. May You hear and forgive.

31 When someone sins against another and is required to take an oath before your altar in this Temple,

When a man sins against his neighbor and is required to take an oath, and he comes to take an oath before Your altar in this temple,

32 listen from heaven—act and judge your servants. Pay back the guilty; vindicate and reward those who do right.

then may You hear from heaven and act. May You judge Your servants, condemning the wicked man by bringing down on his own head what he has done, and justifying the righteous man by rewarding him according to his righteousness.

33 When your people Israel are defeated by an enemy because they have sinned against you, and if they come back in repentance to you, praying for forgiveness in this Temple,

When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and they return to You and confess Your name, praying and pleading with You in this temple,

34 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them back to the land you gave to them and their forefathers.

then may You hear from heaven and forgive the sin of Your people Israel. May You restore them to the land You gave to their fathers.

35 If the skies are closed shut and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you, if they pray toward this place and if they come back in repentance to you, turning away from their sin because you have punished them,

When the skies are shut and there is no rain because Your people have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and confess Your name, and they turn from their sins because You have afflicted them,

36 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Teach them the good way so that they can walk on it, and send rain on the earth that you have given to your people as their possession.

then may You hear from heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel, so that You may teach them the good way in which they should walk. May You send rain on the land that You gave Your people as an inheritance.

37 If there is famine in the land, or disease, or blight or mildew on the crops, or if there are locusts or caterpillars, or if an enemy comes to lay siege to the towns in the land—it can be whatever kind of plague or whatever kind of disease—

When famine or plague comes upon the land, or blight or mildew or locusts or grasshoppers, or when their enemy besieges them in their cities, whatever plague or sickness may come,

38 then whatever kind of prayer or whatever kind of appeal is made by anyone or all your people Israel, in fact anyone who, knowing their problems and pains, prays toward this Temple,

then may whatever prayer or petition Your people Israel make—each knowing his own afflictions and spreading out his hands toward this temple—

39 then hear from heaven, the place where you live, and forgive. Give according to the way they live their lives, for you know what people are really like inside, and you alone know the true character of people.

be heard by You from heaven, Your dwelling place. And may You forgive and act, and repay each man according to all his ways, since You know his heart—for You alone know the hearts of all men—

40 Then they will respect you and follow your ways all the time they live in the land you gave to our forefathers.

so that they may fear You all the days they live in the land that You gave to our fathers.

41 As for the foreigners who do not belong to your people Israel but who come from a distant land,

And as for the foreigner who is not of Your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of Your name—

42 having heard of your great nature and power and ability to help, when they come and pray toward this Temple,

for they will hear of Your great name and mighty hand and outstretched arm—when he comes and prays toward this temple,

43 then hear from heaven, the place where you live, and give them what they're asking. That way, everyone on earth will come to know and respect you, just as your own people Israel do. They will also know that this Temple I have built is dedicated to you.

then may You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place, and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to You. Then all the peoples of the earth will know Your name and fear You, as do Your people Israel, and they will know that this house I have built is called by Your Name.

44 When your people go to fight against their enemies, wherever you send them, and when they pray to you towards the city you have chosen and the house I have built to honor you,

When Your people go to war against their enemies, wherever You send them, and when they pray to the LORD in the direction of the city You have chosen and the house I have built for Your Name,

45 then hear from heaven what they are praying and asking for, and support their cause.

then may You hear from heaven their prayer and their plea, and may You uphold their cause.

46 If they sin against you—and there is nobody who does not sin—you may become angry with them and hand them over to an enemy who takes them away as prisoners to a foreign land, near or far away.

When they sin against You—for there is no one who does not sin—and You become angry with them and deliver them to an enemy who takes them as captives to his own land, whether far or near,

47 But if they think again in their land of captivity and repent and plead for mercy from you, saying, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly,’

and when they come to their senses in the land to which they were taken, and they repent and plead with You in the land of their captors, saying, ‘We have sinned and done wrong; we have acted wickedly,’

48 and they come back to you with complete sincerity in their thoughts and attitudes there in their land of captivity; and they pray towards the land you gave their forefathers, the city you chose, and the Temple I have built to honor you,

and when they return to You with all their heart and soul in the land of the enemies who took them captive, and when they pray to You in the direction of the land that You gave to their fathers, the city You have chosen, and the house I have built for Your Name,

49 then hear from heaven, the place where you live, respond and support their cause.

then may You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place, their prayer and petition, and may You uphold their cause.

50 Forgive your people who have sinned against you, all the rebellious acts they have committed against you. Please make those who have captured them show mercy to them.

May You forgive Your people who have sinned against You and all the transgressions they have committed against You, and may You grant them compassion in the eyes of their captors to show them mercy.

51 For they are your people—they belong to you! You led them out of Egypt, out of the middle of furnace used for smelting iron.

For they are Your people and Your inheritance; You brought them out of Egypt, out of the furnace for iron.

52 May you pay attention to the requests of your servant, and to the requests of your people Israel, and may you respond whenever they call out to you.

May Your eyes be open to the pleas of Your servant and of Your people Israel, and may You listen to them whenever they call to You.

53 For you set them apart from all the nations of the world as a people who belonged to you, just as you declared through your servant Moses when you led our fathers out of Egypt.”

For You, O Lord GOD, as Your inheritance, have set them apart from all the peoples of the earth, as You spoke through Your servant Moses when You brought our fathers out of Egypt.”

54 After Solomon finished praying all these prayers and requests to the Lord, he stood up before the altar of the Lord, where he had been kneeling with his hands held out toward heaven.

Now when Solomon had finished praying this entire prayer and petition to the LORD, he got up before the altar of the LORD, where he had been kneeling with his hands spread out toward heaven.

55 Solomon stood, and in a loud voice he blessed the whole assembly of Israel, saying,

And he stood and blessed the whole assembly of Israel in a loud voice, saying:

56 “Praise the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel in accordance with everything he promised. Not a single word has failed among all the good promises he made through his servant Moses.

“Blessed be the LORD, who has given rest to His people Israel according to all that He promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises He made through His servant Moses.

57 May the Lord our God be with us in the same way he was with our forefathers. May he never leave us or abandon us.

May the LORD our God be with us, as He was with our fathers. May He never leave us nor forsake us.

58 May he help us to come to him, to follow all his ways and to keep the commandments, statutes, and regulations he ordered our forefathers to observe.

May He incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways and to keep the commandments and statutes and ordinances He commanded our fathers.

59 May these words of mine I have used to make my request in the Lord's presence be before the Lord our God day and night. In that way he may support the cause of his servant and of his people Israel as is needed every day,

And may these words with which I have made my petition before the LORD be near to the LORD our God day and night, so that He may uphold the cause of His servant and of His people Israel as each day requires,

60 in order that everyone on the earth may know that the Lord is God, and that there is no other!

so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD is God. There is no other!

61 So make sure you are completely committed to the Lord our God just as you are today, and be careful to follow his statutes and to keep his commandments.”

So let your heart be fully devoted to the LORD our God, as it is this day, to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments.”

62 Then the king and together with all of Israel offered sacrifices before the Lord.

Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices before the LORD.

63 Solomon presented as friendship offerings to the Lord 22,000 bulls and 120,000 sheep. In this way the king and all the people of Israel dedicated the Lord's Temple.

And Solomon offered as peace offerings to the LORD 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep. So the king and all the Israelites dedicated the house of the LORD.

64 On that same day, the king dedicated the center of the courtyard in front of the Lord's Temple. There he presented burnt offerings, grain offerings, and the fat of the friendship offerings, since the bronze altar in the Lord's presence was too small to hold all these offerings.

On that same day the king consecrated the middle of the courtyard in front of the house of the LORD, and there he offered the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings, since the bronze altar before the LORD was too small to contain all these offerings.

65 Then Solomon together with all of Israel observed the festival before the Lord our God for seven days, and then another seven days—fourteen days in all. It was a large assembly of people, who came from as far away as Lebo-hamath to the Wadi of Egypt.

So at that time Solomon and all Israel with him—a great assembly of people from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of Egypt—kept the feast before the LORD our God for seven days and seven more days—fourteen days in all.

66 One day later Solomon sent the people home. They blessed the king and went home, full of joy and happy for all the good things that the Lord had done for his servant David and for his people Israel.

On the fifteenth day Solomon sent the people away. So they blessed the king and went home, joyful and glad in heart for all the good things that the LORD had done for His servant David and for His people Israel.