2 Chronicles 4–6

Equipment for the Temple

4^*King Solomon had a bronze altar made, which was 9 metres square and 4.5 metres high. ²He also made a round tank of bronze, 2.2 metres deep, 4.4 metres in diameter, and 13.2 metres in circumference. ³All round the outer edge of the rim of the tankⁱ were two rows of decorations, one above the other. The decorations were in the shape of bulls, which had been cast all in one piece with the rest of the tank. ⁴The tank rested on the backs of twelve bronze bulls that faced outwards, three facing in each direction. ⁵The sides of the tank were 75 millimetres thick. Its rim was like the rim of a cup, curving outwards like the petals of a flower. The tank held about 60,000 litres. ^6*They also made ten basins, five to be placed on the south side of the Temple and five on the north side. They were to be used to rinse the parts of the animals that were burnt as sacrifices. The water in the large tank was for the priests to use for washing.

^7–8*They made ten gold lamp-stands according to the usual pattern, and ten tables, and placed them in the main room of the Temple, five lamp-stands and five tables on each side. They also made a hundred gold bowls.

⁹They made an inner courtyard for the priests, and also an outer courtyard. The doors in the gates between the courtyards were covered with bronze. ¹⁰The tank was placed near the south-east corner of the Temple.

¹¹Huram also made pots, shovels, and bowls. He completed all the objects that he had promised King Solomon he would make for the Temple:

¹²The two columns;

The two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the columns;

The design of interwoven chains on each capital;

¹³The 400 bronze pomegranates arranged in two rows round the design of each capital;

¹⁴The ten^j carts;

The ten basins;

The tank;

¹⁵The twelve bulls supporting the tank;

¹⁶The pots, shovels, and forks.

Huram the master craftsman made all these objects^k out of polished bronze, as King Solomon had commanded, for use in the Temple of the Lord.

¹⁷The king had them all made in the foundry between Sukkoth and Zeredah^l in the Jordan Valley. ¹⁸So many objects were made that no one determined the total weight of the bronze used.

¹⁹King Solomon also had gold furnishings made for the Temple: the altar and the tables for the bread offered to God; ²⁰the lamp-stands and the lamps of fine gold that were to burn in front of the Most Holy Place, according to plan; ²¹the flower decorations, the lamps, and the tongs; ²²the lamp snuffers, the bowls, the dishes for incense, and the pans used for carrying live coals. All these objects were made of pure gold. The outer doors of the Temple and the doors to the Most Holy Place were overlaid with gold.

5^*When King Solomon finished all the work on the Temple, he placed in the temple storerooms all the things that his father David had dedicated to the Lord—the silver, gold, and other articles.

The Covenant Box Is Brought to the Temple

^2*Then King Solomon summoned all the leaders of the tribes and clans of Israel to assemble in Jerusalem, in order to take the Lord’s Covenant Box from Zion, David’s City,^m to the Temple. ³They all assembled at the time of the Festival of Shelters. ⁴When all the leaders had gathered, then the Levites lifted the Covenant Box ⁵and carried it to the Temple. The priests and the Levites also moved the Tent of the Lord’s presence and all its equipment to the Temple. ⁶King Solomon and all the people of Israel assembled in front of the Covenant Box and sacrificed a large number of sheep and cattle—too many to count. ⁷Then the priests carried the Covenant Box of the Lord into the Temple and put it in the Most Holy Place, beneath the winged creatures. ⁸Their outstretched wings covered the Box and the carrying poles. ⁹The ends of the poles could be seen by anyone standing directly in front of the Most Holy Place, but from nowhere else. (The poles are still there today.) ^10*There was nothing inside the Covenant Box except the two stone tablets which Moses had placed there at Mount Sinai, when the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel as they were coming from Egypt.

The Glory of the Lord

¹¹All the priests present, regardless of the group to which they belonged, had consecrated themselves. ¹²And all the Levite musicians—Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, and the members of their clans—were wearing linen clothing. The Levites stood near the east side of the altar with cymbals and harps, and with them were 120 priests playing trumpets. ^13*The singers were accompanied in perfect harmony by trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments, as they praised the Lord, singing:

“Praise the Lord, because he is good,

And his love is eternal.”

As the priests were leaving the Temple, it was suddenly filled with a cloud shining with the dazzling light of the Lord’s presence, ^14*and they could not continue the service of worship.

Solomon’s Address to the People

6Then King Solomon prayed,

“Lord, you have chosen to live in clouds and darkness.

²Now I have built a majestic temple for you,

a place for you to live in for ever.”

³All the people of Israel were standing there. The king turned to face them and asked God’s blessing on them. ^4*He said, “Praise the Lord God of Israel! He has kept the promise he made to my father David when he said to him, ^5*‘From the time I brought my people out of Egypt until now, I did not choose any city in the land of Israel as the place to build a temple where I would be worshipped, and I did not choose anyone to lead my people Israel. ^6*But now I have chosen Jerusalem as the place where I will be worshipped, and you, David, to rule my people.’ ”

^7*And Solomon continued, “My father David planned to build a temple for the worship of the Lord God of Israel, ^8*but the Lord said to him, ‘You were right in wanting to build a temple for me, ^9*but you will never build it. It is your son, your own son, who will build my temple.’

¹⁰“Now the Lord has kept his promise: I have succeeded my father as king of Israel, and I have built a temple for the worship of the Lord God of Israel. ¹¹I have placed in the Temple the Covenant Box, which contains the stone tablets of the covenant which the Lord made with the people of Israel.”

Solomon’s Prayer

¹²Then in the presence of the people Solomon went and stood in front of the altar and raised his arms in prayer. ¹³(Solomon had made a bronze platform and put it in the middle of the courtyard. It was 2.2 metres square and 1.3 metres high. He mounted this platform, knelt down where everyone could see him, and raised his hands towards heaven.) ¹⁴He prayed, “Lord God of Israel, in all heaven and earth there is no god like you. You keep your covenant with your people and show them your love when they live in wholehearted obedience to you. ¹⁵You have kept the promise you made to my father David; today every word has been fulfilled. ^16*Now, Lord God of Israel, keep the other promise you made to my father when you told him that there would always be one of his descendants ruling as king of Israel, provided that they carefully obeyed your Law just as he did. ¹⁷So now, Lord God of Israel, let everything come true that you promised to your servant David.

^18*“But can you, O God, really live on earth among men and women? Not even all heaven is large enough to hold you, so how can this Temple that I have built be large enough? ¹⁹Lord my God, I am your servant. Listen to my prayer and grant the requests I make to you. ^20*Watch over this Temple day and night. You have promised that this is where you will be worshipped, so hear me when I face this Temple and pray. ²¹Hear my prayers and the prayers of your people Israel when they face this place and pray. In your home in heaven hear us and forgive us.

²²“When a person is accused of wronging another and is brought to your altar in this Temple to take an oath that he is innocent, ²³O Lord, listen in heaven and judge your servants. Punish the guilty one as he deserves and acquit the one who is innocent.

²⁴“When your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they have sinned against you and then when they turn to you and come to this Temple, humbly praying to you for forgiveness, ²⁵listen to them in heaven. Forgive the sins of your people and bring them back to the land which you gave to them and to their ancestors.

²⁶“When you hold back the rain because your people have sinned against you and then when they repent and face this Temple, humbly praying to you, ²⁷O Lord, listen to them in heaven and forgive the sins of your servants, the people of Israel, and teach them to do what is right. Then, O Lord, send rain on this land of yours, which you gave to your people as a permanent possession.

²⁸“When there is famine in the land or an epidemic or the crops are destroyed by scorching winds or swarms of locusts, or when your people are attacked by their enemies, or when there is disease or sickness among them, ²⁹listen to their prayers. If any of your people Israel, out of heartfelt sorrow, stretch out their hands in prayer towards this Temple, ³⁰hear their prayer. Listen to them in your home in heaven and forgive them. You alone know the thoughts of the human heart. Deal with each person as he deserves, ³¹so that your people may honour you and obey you all the time they live in the land which you gave to our ancestors.

³²“When foreigners who live in a distant land hear how great and powerful you are and how you are always ready to act, and then they come to pray at this Temple, ³³listen to their prayers. In heaven, where you live, hear them and do what they ask you to do, so that all the peoples of the world may know you and obey you, as your people Israel do. Then they will know that this Temple I have built is where you are to be worshipped.

³⁴“When you command your people to go into battle against their enemies and they pray to you, wherever they are, facing this city which you have chosen and this Temple which I have built for you, ³⁵listen to their prayers. Hear…