Solomon, along with the whole assembly with him, met at the high place in Gibeon because that's where God's Tent of Meeting that the LORD's servant Moses had constructed in the wilderness was located.

Nevertheless, David had brought the Ark of God from Kiriath-jearim to the place that David had prepared for it, after having erected a tent for it in Jerusalem.

Also, the bronze altar that Uri's son Bezalel, Hur's grandson had erected, was in place in front of the LORD's tent. Solomon and the assembly sought the LORD there.

Solomon approached the presence of the LORD at the bronze altar that had been placed at the Tent of Meeting and offered 1,000 burnt offerings on it.

Solomon replied to God, "You showed great gracious love to my father David, and have established me as king in his place.

Give me wisdom now, so I may go in and out among this people, because who can rule this great people that belongs to you?

God told Solomon, "Since you had this in mind, to ask neither to focus on riches, wealth, honor, or the lives of those who hate you, nor have you requested a long life, but instead you have asked for wisdom and knowledge for yourself, so that you may rule my people over whom I have established you as king,

So Solomon returned from the Tent of Meeting at the high place in Gibeon to Jerusalem, where he reigned over Israel.

Solomon amassed both chariots and horsemen: he owned 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, stationing them in armories and with the king in Jerusalem.

The king made silver and gold as common in Jerusalem as stones, and made cedar trees as plentiful as sycamore trees that grow in the Shephelah.

Now Solomon was determined to build a temple dedicated to the Name of the LORD as well as his own royal palace.

So Solomon conscripted 70,000 men to do heavy work, 80,000 men to quarry in the hill country, and 3,600 to supervise them.

"Just as you did with my father David, sending him cedars to build him a palace to live in, do the same for me. Look, I'm building a temple dedicated to the name of the LORD my God, to his glory, so we can burn fragrant incense in his presence, display rows of the bread of his presence continuously, and make burnt offerings in the morning, evening, on Sabbath days, during New Moon festivals, and during appointed festivals scheduled by the LORD our God. This is mandated forever in Israel.

But who can build a temple for him, since neither heaven nor the highest of the heavens can contain him? So who am I, that I should build a temple to him, except to burn incense in his presence?

"At any rate, send me an individual who is a skilled craftsman in gold, silver, bronze, and iron, as well as in purple, crimson, and blue materials, who knows how to craft engravings, so he may work with the craftsmen whom I have assembled in Judah and Jerusalem, as provided for by my father David.

to prepare an abundant amount of timber for me, because the Temple that I'm building is to be great and awesome.

"Now look! I will pay your servants, the lumberjacks who prepare the timber, 20,000 measures of barley, 20,000 baths of wine, and 20,000 baths of oil."

In a letter that he sent to Solomon, King Hiram of Tyre wrote, "Because he loves his people, the LORD has placed you as king over them."

He is the son of a mother from the tribe of Dan, and his father is from Tyre. He's skilled in working with gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, and timber, as well as in purple, blue, linen, and crimson materials. He is skilled in engravings, and can craft any design to which he may be assigned. He will work with your skilled artisans and with all of your craftsmen who have been assigned by my lord David, your father.

"So then, may my lord send to his servants the wheat, barley, oil, and wine about which he has spoken.

We'll cut down the timber you need from Lebanon and transport it to you on rafts by sea to Joppa, so you can move it to Jerusalem."

Solomon took a census of all the non-Israeli men who lived in the land of Israel, after the census that his father David had taken, and 153,600 were counted.

He conscripted 70,000 of them to do heavy work, 80,000 to quarry in the hill country, and 3,600 men to supervise the people.

So Solomon began construction of the LORD's Temple in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah where the LORD had appeared to his father David, that is, where David had prepared Ornan the Jebusite's threshing floor.

He began construction on the second day of the second month of the fourth year of his reign.

These are the foundations that Solomon set in place for God's Temple. The length in terms of the former standard measurements: 60 cubits; its width: 20 cubits.

A portico extended in front of the Temple for its entire width of 20 cubits, and was 120 cubits high. Inside he had it overlaid with pure gold.

The Temple was overlaid with gold, including the beams, thresholds, walls, and doors. Cherubim were engraved on the walls.

With respect to the Most Holy Place in the Temple, its length across the width of the Temple was 20 cubits, and its width extended 20 cubits.

He crafted two cherubim from wood, overlaid them with gold, and placed them in the Most Holy Place in the Temple.

The wingspan of the cherubim was 20 cubits; the wing of one, five cubits long, touched the wall of the Temple, and its other wing, five cubits long, touched the wing of the other cherub.

The wings of these cherubim extended for 20 cubits as they stood on their feet and faced the front of the Temple.

He constructed the veil from blue, purple, crimson, and fine linen, embroidering cherubim on it.

He crafted chains for the inner sanctuary and placed them on top of the pillars, attaching 100 pomegranates to each of the chains.

He set up the pillars at the front of the Temple, one on the south side of the entrance and the other on the north side of the entrance. He named the south pillar Jachin and the north pillar Boaz.

Underneath, figurines resembling oxen encircled the circular sea beneath it, ten oxen every cubit, and encircling the sea completely. The oxen were in two rows, cast all at the same time.

The sea stood on top of twelve oxen, three of which faced to the north, three of which faced to the west, three of which faced to the south, and three of which faced toward the east. The sea was placed on top of the oxen, with all of their hindquarters turned inwards.

It was a handbreadth thick, with its brim fashioned like the brim of a cup. Similar in shape to a lily blossom, it could hold 3,000 baths.

Solomon also made ten wash basins, placing five on the right side and five on the left. The basins were intended for use to rinse burnt offerings, and the sea was intended for use by the priests to wash in.

Solomon made ten gold lamp stands as he had been directed and set them in the Temple, five on the south side and five on the north side.

He also made ten tables and placed them in the Temple, five on the right side and five on the left side. He also constructed 100 gold basins.

Hiram-abi crafted the pots, shovels, and basins, thus completing the work that he did for King Solomon on the Temple of God;

that is, the two pillars, the bowls, the two capitals on top of the pillars, the two lattice works that covered the two bowls for the capitals that were on top of the pillars;

The king had them forged in the clay ground between Succoth and Zeredah in the Jordan plain.

Solomon made so many utensils in such great quantities that the weight of the bronze was never fully recorded.

the lamp stands and their lamps made of pure gold to burn in front of the inner sanctuary, as required,

the pure gold ornaments in the shape of flowers, the lamps, and the tongs (all made of the purest gold),

As soon as Solomon had completed the LORD's Temple, he installed the holy items that had belonged to his father David, including the silver, gold, and all the other items in the treasure rooms of God's Temple.

Then Solomon called Israel's elders together, including all the leaders of the tribes and families of Israel. They met in Jerusalem to transfer the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD from Zion, the City of David.

All the men of Israel assembled in front of the king during the Festival of Tents that takes place in the seventh month of the year.

and carried it, the tent where God met with his people, and all of the sacred implements that belonged in the tent. The Levitical priests carried these up to the City of David.

There was nothing in the ark except for the two tablets that Moses had placed there while Israel was encamped at Horeb, where the LORD made a covenant with the Israelis after he had brought them out of the land of Egypt.

the trumpeters and musicians played in union, praising and giving thanks to the LORD. They praised the LORD loudly and sang, "He is good, and his gracious love is eternal," accompanied by the trumpets, cymbals, and other musical instruments.) As they did this, a cloud filled the Temple, that is, the LORD's Temple,

Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that he lives shrouded in darkness.

Then Solomon prayed: "Blessed is the LORD God of Israel, who made a commitment to my father David and then personally fulfilled what he had promised when he said:

"From the day I brought out my people from the land of Egypt I never chose a city from all the tribes of Israel to build a temple where my name might reside. And I never chose any man to become Commander-in-Chief over my people Israel.

"The LORD has brought to fulfillment what he promised, and now here I stand, having succeeded my father David to sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised. I have built the Temple for the name of the Lord GOD of Israel.

I have placed in it the ark in which the covenant that the LORD made with the Israelis is stored."

Then Solomon took his place in front of the LORD's altar in the presence of the entire congregation of Israel and spread out his hands.

Solomon had a bronze platform constructed five cubits square and three cubits high. He had it erected in the middle of the courtyard, and stood on it. Then he knelt down on his knees in front of the entire congregation of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven,

"LORD God of Israel, there is no one like you, God of heaven and earth, who watches over his covenant, showing gracious love to your servants who live their lives in your presence with all their hearts. It is you, LORD God, who has kept your promise to my father, your servant David, that you made to him. Indeed, you made a commitment to my father David and then personally fulfilled what you had promised today.

"Now therefore, LORD God of Israel, keep your promise that you made to my father, your servant David, when you said, "You are to not lack a man to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants will watch their lives, to live according to my Law, just as you have lived in my presence.'

and yet, will God truly reside on earth with human beings? Look! Neither the sky nor the highest heaven can contain you! How much less this Temple that I have built!

Pay attention to the prayer of your servant and to his request, LORD my God, and listen to the cry and prayer that your servant is praying in your presence.

Let your eyes always look toward this Temple day and night, toward the location where you have said you would place your name. Listen to the prayer that your servant prays in this direction.

Listen to the requests from your servant and from your people Israel as they pray in this direction, and listen from the place where you reside from heaven! then hear and forgive.

"If a man sins against his neighbor and he is required to take an oath, and he then comes to take an oath in front of your altar in this Temple,

"If your people Israel are defeated in a battle with their enemy because they have sinned against you, when they return to you and confess to you, pray, and in this Temple they ask you to show grace to them,

"When the skies remain closed, and there is no rain because they have sinned against you, and they pray in the direction of this place, confessing your name and turning from their sin when you afflict them,

then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of your servants and of your people Israel. Indeed, teach them the best way to live and send rain on your land that you have given to your people as an inheritance.

"If a famine comes to the land, or if there comes plant diseases, mildew, locusts, or grasshoppers, or if their enemies attack them in their settlements of the land, no matter what the epidemic or illness is,

whatever prayer or request is made, no matter whether it's made by a single man or by all of your people Israel, each praying out of his own illness and anguish and stretching out their hands toward this Temple,

so they will fear you and live life your way as long as they live in the land that you have given to our ancestors.

"Now concerning the foreigner who is not from your people Israel, when he comes from a land far away for the sake of your great name, your mighty acts, and your obvious power, when they come and pray in the direction of this Temple,

"When your people go out to war against their enemies, no matter what way you send them, and they pray to you in the direction of this city that you have chosen and in the direction of the Temple that I have built for your name,

"When they sin against you because there isn't a single human being who doesn't sin and you become angry with them and deliver them over to their enemy, who takes them away captive to a land that's near or far away,

if they turn their hearts back to you in the land where they have been taken captive, repent, and pray to you even if they do so in the land where they have been taken captive confessing, "We have sinned, we have committed abominations, and practiced wickedness,'

if they return to you with all of their heart and with all of their soul in the land where they have been taken captive, as they pray in the direction of their land that you have given to their ancestors and to the city that you have chosen, and to the Temple that I have built for your name,

"And now, my God, please let your eyes be open and your ears attentive to the prayers that are uttered in this place.

"And now may the LORD God arise, to your place of rest, you, and the ark of your power! Let your priests, LORD God, be clothed with salvation, and cause your godly ones to find their joy in what is good.

"LORD God, do not turn your face away from your anointed one. Remember your gracious love to your servant David."

When all of the Israelis saw the fire coming down and the glory of the LORD resting on the Temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement, worshipped, and gave thanks to the LORD, "Because he is good; because his gracious love is eternal."

Then the king and all the people kept on offering sacrifices in the presence of the LORD.

The priests stood in waiting at their assigned places, along with the descendants of Levi who carried musical instruments used in service to the LORD that King David had made for giving thanks to the LORD because his gracious love is eternal whenever David, accompanied by priests sounding trumpets, offered praises while all of Israel stood in the assembly.

Solomon also dedicated the middle of the court in front of the LORD's Temple by offering there burnt offerings and fat from peace offerings because the bronze altar that Solomon had made could not contain the burnt offerings, grain offerings, and fat portion offerings.

On the day after the festival ended, they convened a solemn assembly, because they had been dedicating the altar for seven days and observing the festival for seven days.

On the twenty-third day of the seventh month, King Solomon sent the people back home, and they returned rejoicing and in good spirits because of the goodness that the LORD had shown to David, to Solomon, and to his people Israel.

And so Solomon completed the LORD's Temple, bringing to completion everything that he had planned on doing for the LORD's Temple and for his own palace.

when my people humble themselves the ones who are called by my name and pray, seek me, and turn away from their evil practices, I myself will listen from heaven, I will pardon their sins, and I will restore their land.

"Now therefore my eyes will remain open and my ears will remain listening to the prayers that are offered in this place.

then I will make your royal throne secure, just as I agreed to do for your father David when I said, "You are to not lack a man to rule over Israel.'

They will answer, "Because they abandoned the LORD God of their ancestors, who brought them from the land of Egypt, adopted other gods, worshipped them, and served them, therefore the LORD has brought all of this disaster on them.'"

It took Solomon 20 years to build the LORD's Temple and his own palace.

During this time, he also rebuilt the towns that Hiram had restored to him, and he settled Israelis in them.

Then he rebuilt Tadmor in the desert, along with supply centers that he had built in Hamath.

and he rebuilt Baalath and its supply centers that belonged to Solomon, along with all the cities that he utilized to garrison his chariots and cavalry forces. Solomon was pleased also to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in every territory that he controlled.

All of the survivors who remained living in the land but who were not Israelis (including Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites)

However, Solomon never made conscripted laborers from among the Israelis, but they did serve as his army, as his chief captains, and as commanders in charge of his chariots and cavalry.

Later, Solomon moved Pharaoh's daughter from the City of David to the palace that he had constructed to house her, because he reasoned, "My wife isn't going to live in the palace where King David of Israel lived, because wherever the ark of the LORD entered is holy."

Solomon offered burnt offerings to the LORD on the LORD's altar that he had built in front of the porch of the Temple,