1 Kings 8:6

6 The priests brought the ark of the Lord's covenant to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the temple, to the most holy place beneath the wings of the cherubim.^[a]

1 Kings 8:6 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 8:6

And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord
unto his place
Destined for it, the like to which it had in the tabernacle:

into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place;
that part of the house where the divine oracle was, the holy of holies; for though into it none but the high priest might enter, and he but once a year; yet in case of necessity, as for the repair of it, which the Jews ^F19 gather from hence, other priests might enter, as was the case now; an high priest could not carry in the ark himself, and therefore it was necessary to employ others; and besides, as yet the divine Majesty had not taken up his residence in it:

even under the wings of the cherubim;
the large ones which Solomon had made, ( 1 Kings 6:23 ) not those of Moses.

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FOOTNOTES:

F19 Vid. Maimon. Hilchot Beth Habechirah, c. 7. sect. 23.

1 Kings 8:6 In-Context

4 The priests and the Levites brought the ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting, and the holy utensils that were in the tent.

5 King Solomon and the entire congregation of Israel, who had gathered around him and were with him in front of the ark, were sacrificing sheep and cattle that could not be counted or numbered, because there were so many.

6 The priests brought the ark of the Lord's covenant to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the temple, to the most holy place beneath the wings of the cherubim.

7 For the cherubim were spreading their wings over the place of the ark, so that the cherubim covered the ark and its poles from above.

8 The poles were so long that their ends were seen from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they were not seen from outside [the sanctuary]; they are there to this day.

Footnotes

• [a]. 1 Kg 6:23; 2 Sm 6:2-17