1 Kings 8:8-18

8 And when the bars stood forth, and the highness of those appeared without the saintuary, before God's answering place, those bars appeared no further withoutforth; the which bars also were there unto this present day. (And when the bars were drawn out, the ends of them could be seen outside the sanctuary, in front of the Inner Temple, but those bars could not be seen otherwise; and these bars be there to this present day.)
9 And in the ark was none other thing, no but [the] two tables of stone, which Moses in Horeb had put in the ark, when the Lord made (a) bond of peace with the sons of Israel, when they went out of the land of Egypt. (And there was nothing else in the Ark, but the two stone tablets, which Moses had put in the Ark at Horeb, that is, at Mount Sinai, when the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites, when they went out of the land of Egypt.)
10 And it was done when the priests had gone out of the saintuary, a cloud filled the house of the Lord;
11 and the priests might not stand and minister, for the cloud; for why the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord.
12 Then Solomon said, The Lord said, that he would dwell in a cloud/in a mist.
13 I building have builded an house into thy dwelling place, into thy most steadfast throne without end. (I have built a house for thy dwelling place, to be thy most steadfast throne forevermore.)
14 And the king turned his face, and blessed all the church in Israel; for all the church of Israel stood. (And the king turned himself, and blessed all the congregation of Israel; for all the congregation of Israel stood there.)
15 And Solomon said, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, that spake with his mouth to David, my father, and performed (it) in his hands, and said, (And Solomon said, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who spoke with his mouth to my father David, and fulfilled his word with his hands, and said,)
16 From the day in which I led my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose not a city of all the lineages of Israel, that an house should be builded, and my name should be there; but I chose David, that he should be over my people Israel. (From the day in which I led my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose not a city out of all the tribes of Israel, where a House should be built, for my name to be honoured there; but I chose David, that he should rule over my people Israel.)
17 And David, my father, would build/would have builded an house to the name of the Lord God of Israel. (And my father David desired to build a House in honour of the name of the Lord God of Israel.)
18 And the Lord said to David, my father, That thou thoughtest in thine heart to build an house to my name, thou didest well, treating (also) this same thing in thy soul; (And the Lord said to my father David, That thou desiredest in thy heart to build a House in honour of my name, thou didest well, treating this in thy soul, that is, taking it to heart;)

1 Kings 8:8-18 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 8

This chapter gives an account of the introduction of the ark into the temple, 1Ki 8:1-9 of the glory of the Lord filling it, 1Ki 8:10,11 of a speech Solomon made to the people concerning the building of the temple, and how he came to be engaged in it, 1Ki 8:12-21, of a prayer of his he put up on this occasion, requesting, that what supplications soever were made at any time, or on any account, by Israelites or strangers, might be accepted by the Lord, 1Ki 8:22-53, and of his blessing the people of Israel at the close of it, with some useful exhortations, 1Ki 8:54-61, and of the great number of sacrifices offered up by him, and the feast he made for the people, upon which he dismissed them, 1Ki 8:62-66.

Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.