1 Kings 7:51-8:21

New King James Version

⁵¹ So all the work that King Solomon had done for the house of the Lord was finished; and Solomon brought in the things ^(A)which his father David had dedicated: the silver and the gold and the furnishings. He put them in the treasuries of the house of the Lord.

The Ark Brought into the Temple^(B)

8 Now ^(C)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, ^(D)that they might bring ^(E)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 ^(F)feast in the month of ^[a]Ethanim, which is the seventh month. ³ So all the elders of Israel came, ^(G)and the priests took up the ark. ⁴ Then they brought up the ark of the Lord, ^(H)the ^[b]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, ^(I)sacrificing sheep and oxen that could not be counted or numbered for multitude. ⁶ Then the priests ^(J)brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord to ^(K)its place, into the inner sanctuary of the temple, to the Most Holy Place, ^(L)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 ^(M)extended so that the ^[c]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 (N)Nothing was in the ark ^(O)except the two tablets of stone which Moses ^(P)put there at Horeb, ^(Q)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 ^(R)filled the house of the Lord, ¹¹ so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the ^(S)glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord.

^12 (T)Then Solomon spoke:

Solomon’s Speech at Completion of the Work^(X)

¹⁴ Then the king turned around and ^(Y)blessed the whole assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel was standing. ¹⁵ And he said: ^(Z)“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who ^(AA)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 ^(AB)My name might be there; but I chose ^(AC)David to be over My people Israel.’ ¹⁷ Now ^(AD)it was in the heart of my father David to build a ^[d]temple for the name of the Lord God of Israel. ^18 (AE)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 ^(AF)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 ^[e]filled the position of my father David, and sit on the throne of Israel, ^(AG)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 ^(AH)the covenant of the Lord which He made with our fathers, when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.”