= 1 Kings 8 * Please see [[nsv:license|License]] for Copyright notice and Licensing information. * [ [[1_Kings_7|Previous]] | [[1_Kings_9|Next]] ] == 1 Kings 8 1 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion. 2 And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month. 3 And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark. 4 And they brought up the ark of the Lord, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, even those did the priests and the Levites bring up. 5 And king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered for multitude. 6 And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims. 7 For the cherubims spread forth their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves thereof above. 8 And they drew out the staves, that the ends of the staves were seen out in the holy place before the oracle, and they were not seen without: and there they are unto this day. 9 There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, 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 were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the Lord, 11 So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord. 12 Then spake Solomon, The Lord said that he would dwell in the thick darkness. 13 I have surely built thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever. 14 And the king turned his face about, and blessed all the congregation of Israel: (and all the congregation of Israel stood;) 15 And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, which spake with his mouth unto David my father, and hath with his hand fulfilled it, saying, 16 Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to build an house, that my name might be therein; but I chose David to be over my people Israel. 17 And it was in the heart of David my father to build an house for the name of the Lord God of Israel. 18 And the Lord said unto David my father, Whereas it was in thine heart to build an house unto my name, thou didst well that it was in thine heart. 19 Nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; but thy son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house unto my name. 20 And the Lord hath performed his word that he spake, and I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised, and have built an house for the name of the Lord God of Israel. 21 And I have set there a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant of the Lord, which he made with our fathers, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt. 22 And Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven: 23 And he said, Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart: 24 Who hast kept with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him: thou spakest also with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thine hand, as it is this day. 25 Therefore now, Lord God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel; so that thy children take heed to their way, that they walk before me as thou hast walked before me. 26 And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my father. 27 But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded? 28 Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O Lord my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee to day: 29 That thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place. 30 And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place: and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place: and when thou hearest, forgive. 31 If any man trespass against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house: 32 Then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head; and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness. 33 When thy people Israel be smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee, and shall turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, and make supplication unto thee in this house: 34 Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which thou gavest unto their fathers. 35 When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou afflictest them: 36 Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, that thou teach them the good way wherein they should walk, and give rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance. 37 If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust, or if there be caterpiller; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be; 38 What prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house: 39 Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;) 40 That they may fear thee all the days that they live in the land which thou gavest unto our fathers. 41 Moreover concerning a stranger, that is not of thy people Israel, but cometh out of a far country for thy name's sake; 42 (For they shall hear of thy great name, and of thy strong hand, and of thy stretched out arm;) when he shall come and pray toward this house; 43 Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for: that all people of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel; and that they may know that this house, which I have builded, is called by thy name. 44 If thy people go out to battle against their enemy, whithersoever thou shalt send them, and shall pray unto the Lord toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house that I have built for thy name: 45 Then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause. 46 If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near; 47 Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness; 48 And so return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy name: 49 Then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling place, and maintain their cause, 50 And forgive thy people that have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee, and give them compassion before them who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them: 51 For they be thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron: 52 That thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto thee. 53 For thou didst separate them from among all the people of the earth, to be thine inheritance, as thou spakest by the hand of Moses thy servant, when thou broughtest our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord God. 54 And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the Lord, he arose from before the altar of the Lord, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven. 55 And he stood, and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying, 56 Blessed be the Lord, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant. 57 The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us: 58 That he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers. 59 And let these my words, wherewith I have made supplication before the Lord, be nigh unto the Lord our God day and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause of his people Israel at all times, as the matter shall require: 60 That all the people of the earth may know that the Lord is God, and that there is none else. 61 Let your heart therefore be perfect with the Lord our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day. 62 And the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before the Lord. 63 And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered unto the Lord, two and twenty thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the Lord. 64 The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of the Lord: for there he offered burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings: because the brasen altar that was before the Lord was too little to receive the burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings. 65 And at that time Solomon held a feast, and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt, before the Lord our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days. 66 On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the Lord had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people. == Notes == Cross Reference == Commentary == Rashi ==== Verse 1 The leaders of the paternal families of the Bnei Yisroel. Of the children of Yisroel.1The literal translation is, “to the children of Yisroel.” From the city of Dovid. Dovid had placed it there when he brought it from the house of Oved Edom.2See II Shmuel 6:10-12, 17. ==== Verse 2 In the month Eisonim. [Targum] Yonoson rendered, “In the month which people of the ancient times called the first month, on the festival, and at present it is the seventh month,” i.e., since the Torah was given, and it is written in the month of Nissan which it is the first of the months, [therefore,] Tishrei3Although the construction of the Beis Hamikdosh was completed in the eighth month of the previous year [see above 6:38], Shlomo postponed its dedication until the following Tishrei. is called the seventh [month].4איתן means “mighty” and ירח האיתנים refers to the month of Tishrei which has the strongest spiritual effect for people to improve themselves because of the holidays celebrated during Tishrei—Ralbag. Alternatively, איתנים alludes to the Patriarchs. See Maseches Rosh Hashana 11a. ==== Verse 4 The Tent of Meeting. Which Moshe made and Shlomo stored this away as soon as the first Beis [Hamikdosh] was built, as we have learned in the Tosefta of Maseches Sotah.5 13:1 That were in the Tent. Which Dovid pitched for the Ark.6See II Shmuel 6:17 ==== Verse 6 The wings of the cherubim. Those which Shlomo made, which are standing on their feet on the ground; and these are not the cherubim of the cover which was on the Ark. ==== Verse 7 Over the place of the Ark. From wall to wall as it is stated above7I Melochim 6:27. regarding this subject. ==== Verse 8 The ends of the poles were seen. In the curtain which was at the entrance in the “Amoh Troksin.” One might think they tore through it [i.e., the curtain] and protruded [on the other side], it states, “but they could not be seen from outside.” How is this possible? They were pushing and bulging8These were new poles made by Shlomo to replace the ones made by Moshe. Shlomo’s poles were 20 amohs long vs. Moshe’s poles which were 10 amohs in length. Shlomo made them longer to enable more Kohanim to participate in carrying the Ark.—Ralbag similar to two breasts of a woman, as the matter is stated, “He lies between my breasts.”9I.e., “the Divine Presence dwelt between the Holy Ark’s poles.”10Shir Hashirim 1:13.11Maseches Yoma 54a. ==== Verse 10 After the Kohanim went out of the Kodesh. As the Kohanim who carried the Ark into the Holy of Holies were leaving, the Divine Presence immediately came to rest in the Sanctuary. ==== Verse 12 Then Shlomo declared. When he saw the cloud, he said, “Now I see that the Divine Presence is in the house which I built, for thus did He promise to come and dwell in it from the midst of a cloud and thick darkness.” And where did He say [this promise]? “For in the cloud will I appear upon the Ark cover.”12Vayikra 16:2. Thus is this taught in Sifri. ==== Verse 13 A dwelling place for You forever. From when it was chosen it would no longer be permissible [to offer sacrifices] on improvised altars, and the Divine Presence no longer dwelled in any other place. ==== Verse 15 Who spoke with His mouth. That He would grant him a son who would build the Beis [Hamikdosh].13“With His mouth,” refers to the “voice” of prophecy which was given through Noson, the prophet, and repeated directly to Dovid. See II Shmuel 7:12-17. And fulfilled it with His hand. He has fulfilled His word with His good power.14The literal meaning of ובידו מלא is, “and fulfilled with His hand.” Here it refers to God’s omnipotence, that He alone is able to fulfill any promise He makes, the hand symbolizing strength.—Radak ==== Verse 16 Since the day, etc. This is what He spoke to my father Dovid. ==== Verse 22 And Shlomo stood before the Altar of Adonoy. [As] it is written, “and Shlomo made a copper basin and had set it in the midst of the court, etc. and upon it he stood, and knelt on his knees.”15Even though a king of Yisroel is allowed to sit in the Beis Hamikdosh [See II Shmuel 7:18], Shlomo chose to stand.16II Divrei Hayomim 6:13. ==== Verse 23 Preserver of the covenant. He waits and stores away [reward] to keep the covenant and [is based on] mercy, to fulfill His promise.17Which He made with our Patriarchs.—Radak ==== Verse 24 You preserved. [שמרת is] a expression meaning the fulfillment of a promise. ==== Verse 27 Will. [This is] an expression of wonder. Cannot contain You. Cannot contain You.18The root of יכלכלוך is “כול”, meaning to contain, as in, “each basin could hold [=יכיל],” in 7:38 above. ==== Verse 31 Should a person sin against his fellow man. One who has intimate relations with a married woman. And is liable that a curse. Just as the water examines her, so does the water examine him.19Rashi explains אלה as “a curse,” i.e., the waters examines “him” i.e., the husband, as well. In this instance, אלה does not mean “oath”, because the husband of a Sotah is not subject to an oath. And is liable. An expression of a creditor. And the curse comes before your altar. “And the Kohein shall stand the woman before Adonoy.”20Bamidbar 5:18 ==== Verse 32 To set his [evil] way upon his head. “And her abdomen will swell, etc.”21Ibid. v. 27.22Alternatively, if one swears falsely in the Beis Hamikdosh, his punishment should be swift and obvious, so that people recognize the unique level of sanctity of the Beis Hamikdosh, and they would perceive that the Beis Hamikdosh as God’s chosen place.—Radak And to justify the righteous one. “Then she will be cleared, and shall bear seed.”23Bamidbar 5:28. Thus it is expounded in the Tosefta of Maseches Sotah.24 1:3. ==== Verse 33 And praise Your Name. For a person is obliged to bless God for the bad.25Maseches Berachos 54a. ==== Verse 35 For You to answer them. So that You may answer them; “כי” is an expression of “so that.”“ ==== Verse 37 Rot. When the wheat does not grow up on the stalk to make an ear.26You will hear and answer them even though they did not repent wholeheartedly, i.e., their repentance was not out of love.—Metzudas Dovid ==== Verse 43 According to all that the stranger calls out to You. And relating to the Jew it states, “and give to each one according to all his ways,”27Alternatively, when the wheat does not reach its normal color but turns to a pale yellow.—Metzudas Tzion because the Jew recognizes the Holy One Blessed Is He, and he knows that He has the ability in His power [to answer]; and if his prayers are not heard, he will blame the matter on himself and an account of his sins. But the non-Jew complains and says, “a house [i.e., Beis Hamikdosh], whose fame reaches to the ends of the world, I have exhausted myself on many roads, and have come and prayed in it and found no substance in it, just as there is no substance in idol worship.” Therefore, “according to all that the stranger calls out to You,”28Above v. 39. but a Jew, if You see that he uses his wealth to destroy his friend, do not give him. ==== Verse 44 By way of the city. Facing towards Yerusholayim. ==== Verse 45 And render their judgment. [I.e.,] their vengeance against their enemies. ==== Verse 51 The smelting pot of iron. The earthenware29Alternatively, give a non-Jew anything he asks for, as incentive that he turn to God with his prayers, and to publicize God’s Presence in the Beis Hamikdosh.—Ralbag utensils used to purify gold of its impurities is called כור.30The phrase “of iron” refers to the purpose of the pot, not the material of which it is made. The pot itself is earthenware. ==== Verse 56 Like all that He had said. And where did He speak? “And He will grant you rest from all your enemies.”31A crucible used for melting gold.—Metzudas Tzion The oppression suffered by the Bnei Yisroel in Egypt is likened to a furnace which purifies metal, because Bnei Yisroel underwent a process of spiritual purification. ==== Verse 59 To do justice to His servant and the justice of His people. To avenge their humiliation from their enemy.32Devarim 12:10. ==== Verse 64 The inside of the Courtyard. These words are to be taken literally, according to Rabbi Yehudah; [i.e.,] he hallowed the floor of the court with the [same] sanctity of the Altar, [enabling one] to offer sacrifices on the floor.33Alternatively, משפט means “needs,” and the translation of the verse is, “to provide the needs of His servant and the needs of His people.”—Metzudas Tzion For the copper altar. The stone altar that he [Shlomo] constructed in lieu of the copper altar.34Maseches Zevochim 59a. Too small to contain the burnt-offerings and the meal offerings. For they brought many. Rabbi Yose said to him [Rabbi Yehudah], “Is it not already written, ‘Shlomo offered a thousand burnt-offerings upon that altar,’35According to Ralbag, the copper was primarily made of stone but was plated with copper. which Moshe had made,” and when you compute the number of amohs and the number of burnt offerings, this one of stones was larger than Moshe’s, for on Moshe’s altar the place used for the sacrifice, was one amoh by one amoh, but this one’s place used for the sacrifice was twenty-four [amohs] by twenty-four [amohs]. Therefore Shlomo’s [altar] was 576 times as large as Moshe’s.36I Melochim 3:4. If so, what is the meaning of, “the king sanctified the middle of the Courtyard?” [It means] that he set the stone altar into it, firmly connected to the floor.37See Maseches Zevochim 59b. Was too small to contain. He is referring to Moshe’s [altar], like a person says to his friend, “So and so is a dwarf,” [i.e.,] he is disqualified to perform the service.38Ibid. ==== Verse 65 [Stretching] from the entrance of Chamos. Located in the north of Eretz Yisroel. To the Brook of Egypt. Which is opposite it, in the south, [as is delineated] in [the section entitled], “These are the travels.”39See Bamidbar 34:5, 8. There, Targum Yonoson Ben Uziel identifies the “Brook of Egypt” [מצרים נחלה] as the Nile River. Seven days. Of inauguration. And seven [more] days. Of Succos.40The Rabbis in Maseches Mo’ed Katan 9a, deduce from the redundancy of this phrase [“seven days and seven more days”], that one is not permitted to combine one שמחה with another, e.g., one is not allowed to celebrate a wedding on Chol Hamoed. It is found that they ate and drank on Yom Kippur.41See Maseches Mo’ed Katan 9a and Rashi there.42They began to celebrate on the eighth of Tishrei and continued for the next fourteen days. Thus, the third day of the dedication was Yom Kippur, the tenth of Tishrei. ==== Verse 66 For Dovid His servant. To make known that He forgave them their sins, as we find in [Maseches] Mo’ed Katan.43 9a. When Shlomo wished to bring the Ark into the Holy of Holies, the gates clung to one another. And for Yisroel His people. That He forgave them the sin of Yom Kippur,44I.e., for having eaten on Yom Kippur. and a Bas Kol emanated and declared, “All of you are prepared for the life of the World to Come.”45Maseches Mo’ed Katan 9a.