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1-2The sacred chest had been kept on Mount Zion, also known as the city of David. But Solomon decided to have the chest moved to the temple while everyone was in Jerusalem, celebrating the Festival of Shelters during Ethanim, the seventh month of the year.[#2 S 6.11-16; 1 Ch 15.25-29; Lv 23.34.; #8.1,2 The seventh month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-September to mid-October.]
Solomon called together the important leaders of Israel.
3-4Then the priests and the Levites carried to the temple the sacred chest, the sacred tent, and the objects used for worship.
5Solomon and a crowd of people stood in front of the chest and sacrificed more sheep and cattle than could be counted.
6The priests carried the chest into the most holy place and put it under the winged creatures,
7whose wings covered both the chest and the poles used for carrying it.
8The poles were so long that they could be seen from right outside the most holy place, but not from anywhere else. And they stayed there from then on.
9The only things kept in the chest were the two flat stones Moses had put there when the Lord made his agreement with the people of Israel at Mount Sinai, after bringing them out of Egypt.[#Dt 10.5.; #8.9 Hebrew “Horeb.”]
10Suddenly a cloud filled the temple as the priests were leaving the most holy place.[#Ex 40.34,35.]
11The Lord 's glory was in the cloud, and the light from it was so bright that the priests could not stay inside to do their work.
12Then Solomon prayed:[#Ps 18.11; 97.2.]
“Our Lord , you said that you
would live in a dark cloud.
13Now I have built a glorious temple
where you can live forever.”
14Solomon turned toward the people standing there. Then he blessed them
15-16and said:[#2 S 7.4-11; 1 Ch 17.3-10.]
22Solomon stood facing the altar with everyone standing behind him. Then he lifted his arms toward heaven
23and prayed:
54When Solomon finished his prayer at the altar, he was kneeling with his arms lifted toward heaven. He stood up,
55turned toward the people, blessed them, and said loudly:
62-63Solomon and the people dedicated the temple to the Lord by offering 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep as sacrifices to ask the Lord 's blessing.[#8.62,63 See Leviticus 3.1-17.]
64On that day, Solomon dedicated the courtyard in front of the temple and made it acceptable for worship. He offered the sacrifices there because the bronze altar in front of the temple was too small.
65Solomon and the huge crowd celebrated the Festival of Shelters at the temple for seven days. There were people from as far away as the Egyptian Gorge in the south and Lebo-Hamath in the north.[#8.65 One ancient translation; Hebrew “seven days and seven more days, fourteen days in all.”]
66Then on the eighth day, he sent everyone home. They said goodbye and left, very happy, because of all the good things the Lord had done for his servant David and his people Israel.