81 Now Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the chief fathers of the children of Israel, to King Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the City of David, which is Zion. 2 Therefore all the men of Israel assembled with King Solomon at the feast in the month of Ethanim, which is the seventh month. 3 So all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark. 4 Then they brought up the ark of the Lord, the tabernacle of meeting, and all the holy furnishings that were in the tabernacle. The priests and the Levites brought them up. 5 Also King Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel who were assembled with him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen that could not be counted or numbered for multitude. 6 Then the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the temple, to the Most Holy Place, under the wings of the cherubim. 7 For the cherubim spread their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubim overshadowed the ark and its poles. 8 The poles extended so that the ends of the poles could be seen from the holy place, in front of the inner sanctuary; but they could not be seen from outside. And they are there to this day. 9 Nothing was in the ark except the two tablets of stone which Moses put there at Horeb, when the Lord made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. 10 And it came to pass, when the priests came out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the Lord, 11 so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord.
12 Then Solomon spoke: "The Lord said He would dwell in the dark cloud. 13 I have surely built You an exalted house, And a place for You to dwell in forever." 14 Then the king turned around and blessed the whole assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel was standing. 15 And he said: "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who spoke with His mouth to my father David, and with His hand has fulfilled it, saying, 16 'Since the day that I brought My people Israel out of Egypt, I have chosen no city from any tribe of Israel in which to build a house, that My name might be there; but I chose David to be over My people Israel.' 17 Now it was in the heart of my father David to build a temple for the name of the Lord God of Israel. 18 But the Lord said to my father David, 'Whereas it was in your heart to build a temple for My name, you did well that it was in your heart. 19 Nevertheless you shall not build the temple, but your son who will come from your body, he shall build the temple for My name.' 20 So the Lord has fulfilled His word which He spoke; and I have filled the position of my father David, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised; and I have built a temple for the name of the Lord God of Israel. 21 And there I have made 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 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread out his hands toward heaven; 23 and he said: "Lord God of Israel, there is no God in heaven above or on earth below like You, who keep Your covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk before You with all their hearts. 24 You have kept what You promised Your servant David my father; You have both spoken with Your mouth and fulfilled it with Your hand, as it is this day. 25 Therefore, Lord God of Israel, now keep what You promised Your servant David my father, saying, 'You shall not fail to have a man sit before Me on the throne of Israel, only if your sons take heed to their way, that they walk before Me as you have walked before Me.' 26 And now I pray, O God of Israel, let Your word come true, which You have spoken to Your servant David my father. 27 But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this temple which I have built! 28 Yet regard the prayer of Your servant and his supplication, O Lord my God, and listen to the cry and the prayer which Your servant is praying before You today: 29 that Your eyes may be open toward this temple night and day, toward the place of which You said, 'My name shall be there,' that You may hear the prayer which Your servant makes toward this place. 30 And may You hear the supplication of Your servant and of Your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. Hear in heaven Your dwelling place; and when You hear, forgive. 31 "When anyone sins against his neighbor, and is forced to take an oath, and comes and takes an oath before Your altar in this temple, 32 then hear in heaven, and act, and judge Your servants, condemning the wicked, bringing his way on his head, and justifying the righteous by giving him according to his righteousness. 33 "When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and when they turn back to You and confess Your name, and pray and make supplication to You in this temple, 34 then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and bring them back to the land which You gave to their fathers. 35 "When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, when they pray toward this place and confess Your name, and turn from their sin because You afflict them, 36 then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel, that You may teach them the good way in which they should walk; and send rain on Your land which You have given to Your people as an inheritance. 37 "When there is famine in the land, pestilence or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers; when their enemy besieges them in the land of their cities; whatever plague or whatever sickness there is; 38 whatever prayer, whatever supplication is made by anyone, or by all Your people Israel, when each one knows the plague of his own heart, and spreads out his hands toward this temple: 39 then hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive, and act, and give to everyone according to all his ways, whose heart You know (for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men), 40 that they may fear You all the days that they live in the land which You gave to our fathers. 41 "Moreover, concerning a foreigner, who is not of Your people Israel, but has come from a far country for Your name's sake 42 (for they will hear of Your great name and Your strong hand and Your outstretched arm), when he comes and prays toward this temple, 43 hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to You, that all peoples of the earth may know Your name and fear You, as do Your people Israel, and that they may know that this temple which I have built is called by Your name. 44 "When Your people go out to battle against their enemy, wherever You send them, and when they pray to the Lord toward the city which You have chosen and the temple which I have built for Your name, 45 then hear in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause. 46 "When they sin against You (for there is no one who does not sin), and You become angry with them and deliver them to the enemy, and they take them captive to the land of the enemy, far or near; 47 yet when they come to themselves in the land where they were carried captive, and repent, and make supplication to You in the land of those who took them captive, saying, 'We have sinned and done wrong, we have committed wickedness'; 48 and when they return to You with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies who led them away captive, and pray to You toward their land which You gave to their fathers, the city which You have chosen and the temple which I have built for Your name: 49 then hear in heaven Your dwelling place their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause, 50 and forgive Your people who have sinned against You, and all their transgressions which they have transgressed against You; and grant them compassion before those who took them captive, that they may have compassion on them 51 (for they are Your people and Your inheritance, whom You brought out of Egypt, out of the iron furnace), 52 that Your eyes may be open to the supplication of Your servant and the supplication of Your people Israel, to listen to them whenever they call to You. 53 For You separated them from among all the peoples of the earth to be Your inheritance, as You spoke by Your servant Moses, when You brought our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord God."
54 And so it was, when Solomon had finished praying all this prayer and supplication to the Lord, that he arose from before the altar of the Lord, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven. 55 Then he stood and blessed all the assembly 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 through His servant Moses. 57 May the Lord our God be with us, as He was with our fathers. May He not leave us nor forsake us, 58 that He may incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways, and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, which He commanded our fathers. 59 And may these words of mine, with which I have made supplication before the Lord, be near the Lord our God day and night, that He may maintain the cause of His servant and the cause of His people Israel, as each day may require, 60 that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God; there is no other. 61 Let your heart therefore be loyal to the Lord our God, to walk in His statutes and keep His commandments, as at this day."
62 Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices before the Lord. 63 And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered to the Lord, twenty-two thousand bulls and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the Lord. 64 On the same day the king consecrated the middle of the court that was in front of the house of the Lord; for there he offered burnt offerings, grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings, because the bronze altar that was before the Lord was too small to receive the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings. 65 At that time Solomon held a feast, and all Israel with him, a great assembly from the entrance of Hamath to the Brook of Egypt, before the Lord our God, seven days and seven more days--fourteen days. 66 On the eighth day he sent the people away; and they blessed the king, and went to their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the good that the Lord had done for His servant David, and for Israel His people.
81 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the princes of the fathers' [houses] of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of Jehovah out of the city of David, which is Zion. 2 And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast, in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month. 3 And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark. 4 And they brought up the ark of Jehovah, and the tent of meeting, and all the holy vessels that were in the Tent; even these did the priests and the Levites bring up. 5 And 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. 6 And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of Jehovah unto its place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubim. 7 For the cherubim spread forth their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubim covered the ark and the staves thereof above. 8 And the staves were so long that the ends of the staves were seen from the holy place before the oracle; but they were not seen without: and there they are unto this day. 9 There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone which Moses put there at Horeb, when Jehovah made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. 10 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of Jehovah, 11 so that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud; for the glory of Jehovah filled the house of Jehovah.
12 Then spake Solomon, Jehovah hath said that he would dwell in the thick darkness. 13 I have surely built thee a house of habitation, a place for thee to dwell in for ever. 14 And the king turned his face about, and blessed all the assembly of Israel: and all the assembly of Israel stood. 15 And he said, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, who spake with his mouth unto David thy father, and hath with his hand fulfilled it, saying, 16 Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to build a house, that my name might be there; but I chose David to be over my people Israel. 17 Now it was in the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of Jehovah, the God of Israel. 18 But Jehovah said unto David my father, Whereas it was in thy heart to build a house for my name, thou didst well that it was in thy heart: 19 nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; but thy son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house for my name. 20 And Jehovah hath established his word that he spake; for I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as Jehovah promised, and have built the house for the name of Jehovah, the God of Israel. 21 And there have I set a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant of Jehovah, which he made with our fathers, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.
22 And Solomon stood before the altar of Jehovah in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven; 23 and he said, O Jehovah, the God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath; who keepest covenant and lovingkindness with thy servants, that walk before thee with all their heart; 24 who hast kept with thy servant David my father that which thou didst promise him: yea, thou spakest with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thy hand, as it is this day. 25 Now therefore, O Jehovah, the 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 on the throne of Israel, if only thy children take heed to their way, to walk before me as thou hast walked before me. 26 Now therefore, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my father. 27 But will God in very deed dwell on the earth? behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded! 28 Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O Jehovah my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer which thy servant prayeth before thee this day; 29 that thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place whereof thou hast said, My name shall be there; to hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall pray toward this place. 30 And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place: yea, hear thou in heaven thy dwelling-place; and when thou hearest, forgive. 31 If a man sin against his neighbor, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and he come [and] swear before thine altar in this house; 32 then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his own head, and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness. 33 When thy people Israel are smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee; if they turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray and make supplication unto thee in this house: 34 then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which thou gavest unto their fathers. 35 When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou dost afflict them: 36 then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, when thou teachest them the good way wherein they should walk; and send rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance. 37 If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, if there be blasting [or] mildew, locust [or] caterpillar; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be; 38 what prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, [or] by all thy people Israel, who shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house: 39 then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling-place, and forgive, and do, and render unto every man according to all his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;) 40 that they may fear thee all the days that they live in the land which thou gavest unto our fathers. 41 Moreover concerning the foreigner, that is not of thy people Israel, when he shall come out of a far country for thy name's sake 42 (for they shall hear of thy great name, and of thy mighty hand, and of thine outstretched arm); when he shall come and pray toward this house; 43 hear thou in heaven thy dwelling-place, and do according to all that the foreigner calleth to thee for; that all the peoples of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as doth thy people Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by my name. 44 If thy people go out to battle against their enemy, by whatsoever way thou shalt send them, and they pray unto Jehovah toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house which I have built for thy name; 45 then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause. 46 If they sin against thee (for there is no man that sinneth not), and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captive unto the land of the enemy, far off or near; 47 yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they are carried captive, and turn again, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captive, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have dealt wickedly; 48 if they return unto thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies, who carried them captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy name: 49 then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling-place, and maintain their cause; 50 and forgive thy people who have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee; and give them compassion before those who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them 51 (for they are thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron); 52 that thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them whensoever they cry unto thee. 53 For thou didst separate them from among all the peoples of the earth, to be thine inheritance, as thou spakest by Moses thy servant, when thou broughtest our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord Jehovah.
54 And it was so, that, when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto Jehovah, he arose from before the altar of Jehovah, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread forth toward heaven. 55 And he stood, and blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying, 56 Blessed be Jehovah, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by Moses his servant. 57 Jehovah our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us; 58 that he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his ordinances, which he commanded our fathers. 59 And let these my words, wherewith I have made supplication before Jehovah, be nigh unto Jehovah our God day and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause of his people Israel, as every day shall require; 60 that all the peoples of the earth may know that Jehovah, he is God; there is none else. 61 Let your heart therefore be perfect with Jehovah our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day.
62 And the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before Jehovah. 63 And Solomon offered for the sacrifice of peace-offerings, which he offered unto Jehovah, two and twenty thousand oxen, and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of Jehovah. 64 The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of Jehovah; for there he offered the burnt-offering, and the meal-offering, and the fat of the peace-offerings, because the brazen altar that was before Jehovah was too little to receive the burnt-offering, and the meal-offering, and the fat of the peace-offerings. 65 So Solomon held the feast at that time, and all Israel with him, a great assembly, from the entrance of Hamath unto the brook of Egypt, before Jehovah our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days. 66 On the eighth day he sent the people away; and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that Jehovah had showed unto David his servant, and to Israel his people.
81 Solomon 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. 2 So 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. 3 When all the elders of Israel arrived, the priests picked up the Ark. 4 The priests and Levites brought up the Ark of the Lord along with the special tent and all the sacred items that had been in it. 5 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! 6 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. 7 The cherubim spread their wings over the Ark, forming a canopy over the Ark and its carrying poles. 8 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. 9 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 the land of Egypt. 10 When the priests came out of the Holy Place, a thick cloud filled the Temple of the Lord . 11 The priests could not continue their service because of the cloud, for the glorious presence of the Lord filled the Temple of the Lord .
12 Then Solomon prayed, "O Lord, you have said that you would live in a thick cloud of darkness. 13 Now I have built a glorious Temple for you, a place where you can live forever! " 14 Then 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.'" 17 Then Solomon said, "My father, David, wanted to build this Temple to honor the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 18 But the Lord told him, 'You wanted to build the Temple to honor my name. Your intention is good, 19 but 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. 21 And 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."
22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire community of Israel. He lifted his hands toward heaven, 23 and 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. 24 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. 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.' 26 Now, 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! 28 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 today. 29 May 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. 30 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. 31 "If someone wrongs another person and is required to take an oath of innocence in front of your altar in this Temple, 32 then 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, 34 then 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, 36 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. 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- 38 and if your people Israel pray about their troubles, raising their hands toward this Temple, 39 then hear from heaven where you live, and forgive. Give your people what their actions deserve, for you alone know each human heart. 40 Then 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, 42 for they will hear of your great name and your strong hand and your powerful arm. And when they pray toward this Temple, 43 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. 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, 45 then 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. 47 But in that land of exile, they might turn to you in repentance and pray, 'We have sinned, done evil, and acted wickedly.' 48 If 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- 49 then hear their prayers and their petition from heaven where you live, and uphold their cause. 50 Forgive your people who have sinned against you. Forgive all the offenses they have committed against you. Make their captors merciful to them, 51 for 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. 53 For 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."
54 When 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. 55 He 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. 57 May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us or abandon us. 58 May 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. 59 And 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. 60 Then people all over the earth will know that the Lord alone is God and there is no other. 61 And may you be completely faithful to the Lord our God. May you always obey his decrees and commands, just as you are doing today."
62 Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices to the Lord . 63 Solomon 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 . 64 That 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. 65 Then Solomon and all Israel celebrated the Festival of Shelters 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. 66 After the festival was over, 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.
81 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes , the leaders of the fathers' households of the sons of Israel , to King Solomon in Jerusalem , to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the city of David , which is Zion . 2 All the men of Israel assembled themselves to King Solomon at the feast , in the month Ethanim , which is the seventh month . 3 Then all the elders of Israel came , and the priests took up the ark . 4 They brought up the ark of the Lord and the tent of meeting and all the holy utensils , which were in the tent , and the priests and the Levites brought them up. 5 And King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel , who were assembled to him, were with him before the ark , sacrificing so many sheep and oxen they could not be counted or numbered . 6 Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place , into the inner sanctuary of the house , to the most holy place , under the wings of the cherubim . 7 For the cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark , and the cherubim made a covering over the ark and its poles from above e . 8 But the poles were so long that the ends of the poles could be seen from the holy place before e the inner sanctuary , but they could not be seen outside ; they are there to this day . 9 There was nothing in the ark except the two tablets of stone which Moses put there at Horeb , where the Lord made a covenant with the sons of Israel , when they came out of the land of Egypt . 10 It happened that when the priests came from the holy place, the cloud filled the house of the Lord , 11 so that the priests could not stand to minister because e of the cloud , for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord .
12 Then Solomon said , "The Lord has said that He would dwell in the thick cloud . 13 " I have surely built You a lofty house , A place for Your dwelling forever ." 14 Then the king faced e about and blessed all the assembly of Israel , while all the assembly of Israel was standing . 15 He said , " Blessed be the Lord , the God of Israel , who spoke with His mouth to my father David and has fulfilled it with His hand , saying , 16 ' Since the day that I brought My people Israel from Egypt , I did not choose a 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 .' 17 " 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 said to my father David , 'Because e it was in your heart to build a house for My name , you did well that it was in your heart . 19 ' Nevertheless you shall not build the house , but your son who will be born e to you, he will build the house for My name .' 20 "Now the Lord has fulfilled His word which He spoke ; for I have risen in place of my father David and sit on the throne of Israel , as the Lord promised , and have built the house for the name of the Lord , the God of Israel . 21 "There I have set a place for the ark , in which is the covenant of the Lord , which He made with our fathers when He brought them from the land of Egypt ."
22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven . 23 He said , "O Lord , the God of Israel , there is no God like You in heaven above e or on earth beneath e , keeping covenant and showing lovingkindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart , 24 who have kept with Your servant , my father David , that which You have promised him; indeed, You have spoken with Your mouth and have fulfilled it with Your hand as it is this day . 25 "Now therefore, O Lord , the God of Israel , keep with Your servant David my father that which You have promised him, saying , ' You shall not lack a man to sit on the throne of Israel , if only your sons take heed to their way to walk before Me as you have walked .' 26 "Now therefore, O God of Israel , let Your word , I pray , be confirmed which You have spoken to Your servant , my father David . 27 "But will God indeed dwell on the earth ? Behold , heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You, how much e less this house which I have built ! 28 "Yet have regard to the prayer of Your servant and to his supplication , O Lord my God , to listen to the cry and to the prayer which Your servant prays before You today ; 29 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 ,' to listen to the prayer which Your servant shall pray toward this place . 30 " Listen to the supplication of Your servant and of Your people Israel , when they pray toward this place ; hear in heaven Your dwelling place ; hear and forgive . 31 " If a man sins against his neighbor and is made to take an oath , and he comes and takes an oath before Your altar in this house , 32 then hear in heaven and act and judge Your servants , condemning the wicked by bringing his way on his own head and justifying the righteous by giving him according to his righteousness . 33 " When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy , because they have sinned against You, if they turn to You again and confess Your name and pray and make supplication to You in this house , 34 then hear in heaven , and forgive the sin of Your people Israel , and bring them back to the land which You gave to their fathers . 35 " When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain , because they have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and confess Your name and turn from their sin when You afflict them, 36 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants and of Your people Israel , indeed , teach them the good way in which they should walk . And send rain on Your land , which You have given Your people for an inheritance . 37 " If there is famine in the land , if there is pestilence , if there is blight or mildew , locust or grasshopper , if their enemy besieges them in the land of their cities , whatever plague , whatever sickness there is, 38 whatever e prayer or supplication is made by any man or by all Your people Israel , each knowing the affliction of his own heart , and spreading his hands toward this house ; 39 then hear in heaven Your dwelling place , and forgive and act and render to each according to all his ways , whose heart You know , for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men , 40 that they may fear You all the days that they live in the land which You have given to our fathers . 41 "Also concerning the foreigner who is not of Your people Israel , when he comes from a far country for Your name's sake 42 (for they will hear of Your great name and Your mighty hand , and of Your outstretched arm ); when he comes and prays toward this house , 43 hear in heaven Your dwelling place , and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to You, in order that all the peoples of the earth may know Your name , to fear You, as do Your people Israel , and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by Your name . 44 "When Your people go out to battle against their enemy , by whatever way You shall send them, and they pray to the Lord toward the city which You have chosen and the house which I have built for Your name , 45 then hear in heaven their prayer and their supplication , and maintain 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 an enemy , so that they take them away captive to the land of the enemy , far off or near ; 47 if they take thought in the land where e they have been taken captive , and repent and make supplication to You in the land of those who have taken them captive , saying , ' We have sinned and have committed iniquity , we have acted wickedly '; 48 if they return to You with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies who have taken them captive , and pray to You toward their land which You have given 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 maintain their cause , 50 and forgive Your people who have sinned against You and all their transgressions which they have transgressed against You, and make them objects of compassion before those who have taken them captive , that they may have compassion on them 51 ( for they are Your people and Your inheritance which You have brought forth from Egypt , from the midst of the iron furnace ), 52 that Your eyes may be open to the supplication of Your servant and to the supplication of Your people Israel , to listen to them whenever they call to You. 53 "For You have separated them from all the peoples of the earth as Your inheritance , as You spoke through Moses Your servant , when You brought our fathers forth from Egypt , O Lord GOD ."
54 When Solomon had finished praying this entire prayer and supplication to the Lord , he arose from before the altar of the Lord , from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread toward heaven . 55 And he stood and blessed all the assembly 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 ; not one word has failed of all His good promise , which He promised through Moses His servant . 57 "May the Lord our God be with us, as He was with our fathers ; may He not leave us or forsake us, 58 that He may incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His ordinances , which He commanded our fathers . 59 "And may these words of mine, with which I have made supplication before the Lord , be near to the Lord our God day and night , that He may maintain the cause of His servant and the cause of His people Israel , as each day requires , 60 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God ; there is no one else . 61 " Let your heart therefore be wholly devoted to the Lord our God , to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments , as at this day ."
62 Now the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifice before the Lord . 63 Solomon offered for the sacrifice of peace offerings , which he offered to the Lord , 22,000 e e oxen and 120,000 e e sheep . So the king and all the sons of Israel dedicated the house of the Lord . 64 On the same day the king consecrated the middle of the court that was before the house of the Lord , because there he offered the burnt offering and the grain offering and the fat of the peace offerings ; for the bronze altar that was before the Lord was too small to hold the burnt offering and the grain offering and the fat of the peace offerings . 65 So Solomon observed the feast at that time , and all Israel with him, a great assembly from the entrance of Hamath to the brook of Egypt , before the Lord our God , for seven days and seven more days , even fourteen e days . 66 On the eighth day he sent the people away and they blessed the king . Then they went to their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the Lord had shown to David His servant and to Israel His people .
