The Furnishings for the Temple

4¹ Solomon also made a bronze altar 30 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 15 feet high. ² Then he cast a great round basin, 15 feet across from rim to rim, called the Sea. It was 7 feet deep and about 45 feet in circumference. ³ It was encircled just below its rim by two rows of figures that resembled oxen. There were about six oxen per foot all the way around, and they were cast as part of the basin. ⁴ The Sea was placed on a base of twelve bronze oxen, all facing outward. Three faced north, three faced west, three faced south, and three faced east, and the Sea rested on them. ⁵ The walls of the Sea were about three inches thick, and its rim flared out like a cup and resembled a water lily blossom. It could hold about 16,500 gallons of water. ⁶ He also made ten smaller basins for washing the utensils for the burnt offerings. He set five on the south side and five on the north. But the priests washed themselves in the Sea. ⁷ He then cast ten gold lampstands according to the specifications that had been given, and he put them in the Temple. Five were placed against the south wall, and five were placed against the north wall. ⁸ He also built ten tables and placed them in the Temple, five along the south wall and five along the north wall. Then he molded 100 gold basins. ⁹ He then built a courtyard for the priests, and also the large outer courtyard. He made doors for the courtyard entrances and overlaid them with bronze. ¹⁰ The great bronze basin called the Sea was placed near the southeast corner of the Temple.

¹¹ Huram-abi also made the necessary washbasins, shovels, and bowls. So at last Huram-abi completed everything King Solomon had assigned him to make for the Temple of God: ¹² the two pillars; the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars; the two networks of interwoven chains that decorated the capitals; ¹³ the 400 pomegranates that hung from the chains on the capitals (two rows of pomegranates for each of the chain networks that decorated the capitals on top of the pillars); ¹⁴ the water carts holding the basins; ¹⁵ the Sea and the twelve oxen under it; ¹⁶ the ash buckets, the shovels, the meat hooks, and all the related articles. Huram-abi made all these things of burnished bronze for the Temple of the Lord, just as King Solomon had directed. ¹⁷ The king had them cast in clay molds in the Jordan Valley between Succoth and Zarethan. ¹⁸ Solomon used such great quantities of bronze that its weight could not be determined. ¹⁹ Solomon also made all the furnishings for the Temple of God: the gold altar; the tables for the Bread of the Presence; ²⁰ the lampstands and their lamps of solid gold, to burn in front of the Most Holy Place as prescribed; ²¹ the flower decorations, lamps, and tongs-all of the purest gold; ²² the lamp snuffers, bowls, ladles, and incense burners-all of solid gold; the doors for the entrances to the Most Holy Place and the main room of the Temple, overlaid with gold.

5¹ So Solomon finished all his work on the Temple of the Lord . Then he brought all the gifts his father, David, had dedicated-the silver, the gold, and the various articles-and he stored them in the treasuries of the Temple of God.

Solomon Brings the Ark into the Temple

² Solomon then summoned to Jerusalem the elders of Israel and all the heads of tribes-the leaders of the ancestral families of Israel. 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. ³ So all the men of Israel assembled before the king at the annual Festival of Shelters, which is held in early autumn. ⁴ When all the elders of Israel arrived, the Levites picked up the Ark. ⁵ The priests and Levites brought up the Ark along with the special tent and all the sacred items that had been in it. ⁶ There, before the Ark, King Solomon and the entire community of Israel sacrificed so many sheep, goats, and cattle that no one could keep count! ⁷ Then 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. ⁸ The cherubim spread their wings over the Ark, forming a canopy over the Ark and its carrying poles. ⁹ These 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. ¹⁰ Nothing was in the Ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Mount Sinai, where the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel when they left Egypt.

¹¹ Then the priests left the Holy Place. All the priests who were present had purified themselves, whether or not they were on duty that day. ¹² And the Levites who were musicians-Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, and all their sons and brothers-were dressed in fine linen robes and stood at the east side of the altar playing cymbals, lyres, and harps. They were joined by 120 priests who were playing trumpets. ¹³ The trumpeters and singers performed together in unison to praise and give thanks to the Lord . Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments, they raised their voices and praised the Lord with these words: "He is good! His faithful love endures forever!" At that moment a thick cloud filled the Temple of the Lord . ¹⁴ The priests could not continue their service because of the cloud, for the glorious presence of the Lord filled the Temple of God.

The Dedication of the Temple

6¹ Then Solomon prayed, "O Lord, you have said that you would live in a thick cloud of darkness. ² Now I have built a glorious Temple for you, a place where you can live forever!" ³ Then the king turned around to the entire community of Israel standing before him and gave this blessing: ⁴ "Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, who has kept the promise he made to my father, David. For he told my father, ⁵ 'From the day I brought my people out of the land 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. Nor have I chosen a king to lead my people Israel. ⁶ But now I have chosen Jerusalem as the place for my name to be honored, and I have chosen David to be king over my people Israel.'" ⁷ Then Solomon said, "My father, David, wanted to build this Temple to honor the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. ⁸ But the Lord told him, 'You wanted to build the Temple to honor my name. Your intention is good, ⁹ but you are not the one to do it. One of your own sons will build the Temple to honor me.' ¹⁰ "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. ¹¹ There I have placed the Ark, which contains the covenant that the Lord made with the people of Israel."

¹² Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire community of Israel, and he lifted his hands in prayer. ¹³ Now Solomon had made a bronze platform 7 feet long, 7 feet wide, and 4 feet high and had placed it at the center of the Temple's outer courtyard. He stood on the platform, and then he knelt in front of the entire community of Israel and lifted his hands toward heaven. ¹⁴ He prayed, "O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in all of heaven and earth. You keep your covenant and show unfailing love to all who walk before you in wholehearted devotion. ¹⁵ You 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. ¹⁶ "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 my Law as you have done, one of them will always sit on the throne of Israel.' ¹⁷ Now, O Lord, God of Israel, fulfill this promise to your servant David. ¹⁸ "But will God really live on earth among people? Why, even the highest heavens cannot contain you. How much less this Temple I have built! ¹⁹ Nevertheless, listen to my prayer and my plea, O Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is making to you. ²⁰ May you watch over this Temple day and night, this place where you have said you would put your name. May you always hear the prayers I make toward this place. ²¹ May 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. ²² "If someone wrongs another person and is required to take an oath of innocence in front of your altar at this Temple, ²³ then hear from heaven and judge between your servants-the accuser and the accused. Pay back the guilty as they deserve. Acquit the innocent because of their innocence. ²⁴ "If your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they have sinned against you, and if they turn back and acknowledge your name and pray to you here in this Temple, ²⁵ then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and return them to this land you gave to them and to their ancestors. ²⁶ "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, ²⁷ then 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. ²⁸ "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- ²⁹ and if your people Israel pray about their troubles or sorrow, raising their hands toward this Temple, ³⁰ then hear from heaven where you live, and forgive. Give your people what their actions deserve, for you alone know each human heart. ³¹ Then they will fear you and walk in your ways as long as they live in the land you gave to our ancestors. ³² "In the future, foreigners who do not belong to your people Israel will hear of you. They will come from distant lands when they hear of your great name and your strong hand and your powerful arm. And when they pray toward this Temple, ³³ then 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. ³⁴ "If your people go out where you send them to fight their enemies, and if they pray to you by turning toward this city you have chosen and toward this Temple I have built to honor your name, ³⁵ then hear their prayers from heaven and uphold their cause. ³⁶ "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 a foreign land far away or near. ³⁷ But in that land of exile, they might turn to you in repentance and pray, 'We have sinned, done evil, and acted wickedly.' ³⁸ If they turn to you with their whole heart and soul in the land of their captivity 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- ³⁹ then hear their prayers and their petitions from heaven where you live, and uphold their cause. Forgive your people who have sinned against you. ⁴⁰ "O my God, may your eyes be open and your ears attentive to all the prayers made to you in this place. ⁴¹ "And now arise, O Lord God, and enter your resting place, along with the Ark, the symbol of your power. May your priests, O Lord God, be clothed with salvation; may your loyal servants rejoice in your goodness. ⁴² O Lord God, do not reject the king you have anointed. Remember your unfailing love for your servant David."

²⁴ The people surrounded him and asked, "How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly." ²⁵ Jesus replied, "I have already told you, and you don't believe me. The proof is the work I do in my Father's name. ²⁶ But you don't believe me because you are not my sheep. ²⁷ My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. ²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, ²⁹ for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father's hand. ³⁰ The Father and I are one." ³¹ Once again the people picked up stones to kill him. ³² Jesus said, "At my Father's direction I have done many good works. For which one are you going to stone me?" ³³ They replied, "We're stoning you not for any good work, but for blasphemy! You, a mere man, claim to be God." ³⁴ Jesus replied, "It is written in your own Scriptures that God said to certain leaders of the people, 'I say, you are gods!' ³⁵ And you know that the Scriptures cannot be altered. So if those people who received God's message were called 'gods,' ³⁶ why do you call it blasphemy when I say, 'I am the Son of God'? After all, the Father set me apart and sent me into the world. ³⁷ Don't believe me unless I carry out my Father's work. ³⁸ But if I do his work, believe in the evidence of the miraculous works I have done, even if you don't believe me. Then you will know and understand that the Father is in me, and I am in the Father."

³⁹ Once again they tried to arrest him, but he got away and left them. ⁴⁰ He went beyond the Jordan River near the place where John was first baptizing and stayed there awhile. ⁴¹ And many followed him. "John didn't perform miraculous signs," they remarked to one another, "but everything he said about this man has come true." ⁴² And many who were there believed in Jesus.