8:1 Then Solomon convened in Jerusalem Israel’s elders, all the leaders of the Israelite tribes and families, so they could witness the transferral of the ark of the covenant of the LORD from the city of David (that is, Zion).¹ 8:2 All the men of Israel assembled before King Solomon during the festival² in the month Ethanim³ (the seventh month). 8:3 When all Israel’s elders had arrived, the priests lifted the ark. 8:4 The priests and Levites carried the ark of the LORD, the tent where God appeared to his people,⁴ and all the holy items in the tent.⁵ 8:5 Now King Solomon and all the Israelites who had assembled with him went on ahead of the ark and sacrificed more sheep and cattle than could be counted or numbered.⁶

8:6 The priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its assigned⁷ place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, in the most holy place under the wings of the cherubs. 8:7 The cherubs’ wings extended over the place where the ark sat; the cherubs overshadowed the ark and its poles.⁸ 8:8 The poles were so long the ends of them were visible from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen from beyond that point.⁹ They have remained there to this very day. 8:9 There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets Moses had placed there in Horeb. It was there that¹⁰ the LORD made an agreement with the Israelites after he brought them out of the land of Egypt. 8:10 Once the priests left the holy place, a cloud filled the LORD’s temple. 8:11 The priests could not carry out their duties¹¹ because of the cloud; the LORD’s glory filled his temple.

8:12 Then Solomon said, “The LORD has said that he lives in thick darkness. 8:13 O LORD,¹² Truly I have built a lofty temple for you, a place where you can live permanently.” 8:14 Then the king turned around¹³ and pronounced a blessing over the whole Israelite assembly as they stood there.¹⁴ 8:15 He said, “The LORD God of Israel is worthy of praise because he has fulfilled¹⁵ what he promised¹⁶ my father David. 8:16 He told David,¹⁷ ‘Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city from all the tribes of Israel to build a temple in which to live.¹⁸ But I have chosen David to lead my people Israel.’ 8:17 Now my father David had a strong desire to build a temple to honor the LORD God of Israel.¹⁹ 8:18 The LORD told my father David, ‘It is right for you to have a strong desire to build a temple to honor me.²⁰ 8:19 But you will not build the temple; your very own son will build the temple for my honor.’²¹ 8:20 The LORD has kept the promise he made. I have taken my father David’s place and have occupied the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised. I have built this temple for the honor of the LORD God of Israel, 8:21 and set up in it a place for the ark containing the covenant the LORD made with our ancestors when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.”

8:22 Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of the entire assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward the sky.²² 8:23 He prayed:²³ “O LORD God of Israel, there is no god like you in heaven above or on earth below. You maintain covenantal loyalty²⁴ to your servants who obey you with sincerity.²⁵ 8:24 You have kept your word to your servant, my father David;²⁶ this very day you have fulfilled what you promised.²⁷ 8:25 Now, O LORD God of Israel, keep the promise you made to your servant, my father David, when you said, ‘You will never fail to have a successor ruling before me on the throne of Israel,²⁸ provided that your descendents watch their step and serve me as you have done.’²⁹ 8:26 Now, O God of Israel, may the promise you made to your servant, my father David, be realized.³⁰

8:27 God does not really live on the earth!³¹ Look, if the sky and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this temple I have built! 8:28 But respond favorably to³² your servant’s prayer and his request for help, O LORD my God. Answer³³ the desperate prayer³⁴ your servant is presenting to you³⁵ today. 8:29 Night and day may you watch over this temple, the place where you promised you would live.³⁶ May you answer your servant’s prayer for this place.³⁷ 8:30 Respond to the request of your servant and your people Israel for this place.³⁸ Hear from inside your heavenly dwelling place³⁹ and respond favorably.⁴⁰

8:31 When someone is accused of sinning against his neighbor and the latter pronounces a curse on the alleged offender before your altar in this temple, be willing to forgive the accused if the accusation is false.⁴¹ 8:32 Listen from heaven and make a just decision about your servants’ claims. Condemn the guilty party, declare the other innocent, and give both of them what they deserve.⁴²

8:33 The time will come when⁴³ your people Israel are defeated by an enemy⁴⁴ because they sinned against you. If they come back to you, renew their allegiance to you,⁴⁵ and pray for your help⁴⁶ in this temple, 8:34 then listen from heaven, forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them back to the land you gave to their ancestors.

8:35 The time will come when⁴⁷ the skies are shut up tightly and no rain falls because your people⁴⁸ sinned against you. When they direct their prayers toward this place, renew their allegiance to you,⁴⁹ and turn away from their sin because you punish⁵⁰ them, 8:36 then listen from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Certainly⁵¹ you will then teach them the right way to live⁵² and send rain on your land that you have given your people to possess.⁵³

8:37 ⁵⁴The time will come when the land suffers from a famine, a plague, blight and disease, or a locust⁵⁵ invasion, or when their enemy lays siege to the cities of the land,⁵⁶ or when some other type of plague or epidemic occurs. 8:38 When all your people Israel pray and ask for help,⁵⁷ as they acknowledge their pain⁵⁸ and spread out their hands toward this temple, 8:39 then listen from your heavenly dwelling place, forgive their sin,⁵⁹ and act favorably toward each one based on your evaluation of their motives.⁶⁰ (Indeed you are the only one who can correctly evaluate the motives of all people.)⁶¹ 8:40 Then they will obey⁶² you throughout their lifetimes as⁶³ they live on the land you gave to our ancestors.

8:41 Foreigners, who do not belong to your people Israel, will come from a distant land because of your reputation.⁶⁴ 8:42 When they hear about your great reputation⁶⁵ and your ability to accomplish mighty deeds,⁶⁶ they will come and direct their prayers toward this temple. 8:43 Then listen from your heavenly dwelling place and answer all the prayers of the foreigners.⁶⁷ Then all the nations of the earth will acknowledge your reputation,⁶⁸ obey⁶⁹ you like your people Israel do, and recognize that this temple I built belongs to you.⁷⁰

8:44 When you direct your people to march out and fight their enemies,⁷¹ and they direct their prayers to the LORD toward his chosen city and this temple I built for your honor,⁷² 8:45 then listen from heaven to their prayers for help⁷³ and vindicate them.⁷⁴

8:46 The time will come when your people⁷⁵ will sin against you (for there is no one who is sinless!) and you will be mad at them and deliver them over to their enemies, who will take them as prisoners to their land, whether it be far away or close by. 8:47 When your people⁷⁶ come to their senses⁷⁷ in the land where they are held prisoner, they will repent and beg for your mercy in the land of their imprisonment, admitting, ‘We have sinned and gone astray⁷⁸, we have done evil.’ 8:48 When they return to you with all their heart and being⁷⁹ in the land where they are held prisoner, and direct their prayers to you toward the land you gave to their ancestors, your chosen city, and the temple I built for your honor,⁸⁰ 8:49 then listen from your heavenly dwelling place to their prayers for help⁸¹ and vindicate them.⁸² 8:50 Forgive all the rebellious acts of your sinful people and cause their captors to have mercy on them.⁸³ 8:51 After all⁸⁴ they are your people and your special possession⁸⁵ whom you brought out of Egypt, from the middle of the iron furnace.⁸⁶

8:52 May you be attentive⁸⁷ to your servant’s and your people Israel’s requests for help and may you respond to all their prayers to you.⁸⁸ 8:53 After all⁸⁹ you picked them out of all the nations of the earth to be your special possession,⁹⁰ just as you, O sovereign LORD, announced through your servant Moses when you brought our ancestors out of Egypt.”

8:54 When Solomon finished presenting all these prayers and requests to the LORD, he got up from before the altar of the LORD where he had kneeled and spread out his hands toward the sky.⁹¹ 8:55 When he stood up, he pronounced a blessing over the entire assembly of Israel, saying in a loud voice: 8:56 “The LORD is worthy of praise because he has made Israel his people secure⁹² just as he promised. Not one of all the faithful promises he made through his servant Moses is left unfulfilled.⁹³ 8:57 May the LORD our God be with us, as he was with our ancestors. May he not abandon us or leave us. 8:58 May he make us submissive,⁹⁴ so we can follow all his instructions⁹⁵ and obey⁹⁶ the commandments, rules, and regulations he commanded our ancestors. 8:59 May the LORD our God be constantly aware of these requests of mine I have presented to him,⁹⁷ so that he might vindicate⁹⁸ his servant and his people Israel as the need arises. 8:60 Then⁹⁹ all the nations of the earth will recognize that the LORD is the only genuine God.¹⁰⁰ 8:61 May you demonstrate wholehearted devotion to the LORD our God¹⁰¹ by following¹⁰² his rules and obeying¹⁰³ his commandments, as you are presently doing.”¹⁰⁴

8:62 The king and all Israel with him were presenting sacrifices to the LORD. 8:63 Solomon offered as tokens of peace¹⁰⁵ to the LORD 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep. Then the king and all the Israelites dedicated the LORD’s temple. 8:64 That day the king consecrated the middle of the courtyard that is in front of the LORD’s temple. He offered there burnt sacrifices, grain offerings, and the fat from the peace offerings, because the bronze altar that stood before the LORD was too small to hold all these offerings.¹⁰⁶ 8:65 At that time Solomon and all Israel with him celebrated a festival before the LORD our God for two entire weeks. This great assembly included people from all over the land, from Lebo Hamath in the north to the Stream of Egypt in the south.¹⁰⁷ 8:66 On the fifteenth day after the festival started,¹⁰⁸ he dismissed the people. They asked God to empower the king¹⁰⁹ and then went to their homes, happy and content because of all the good the LORD had done for his servant David and his people Israel.