Then said Solomon, The LORD hath said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.
The declaration belongs to the dedication of the completed temple in the seventh month at the feast of tabernacles, after the wilderness tabernacle, the ark, and the holy furniture had been brought into the temple and the singers and trumpeters had praised the Lord for His goodness and enduring mercy. It was part of Solomon's vocal, public prayer after the temple was built, spoken aloud while kneeling on a brazen platform or scaffold before the assembled congregation of Israel so the people could hear him. The words of that prayer are recorded in the Bible as an example of public prayer.
Solomon's kneeling with outstretched hands showed dependence on God. The cloud filling the house so that the priests could not stand to minister signified the Lord's presence and glory filling the house of God, a significance Solomon recognized. In response, at the dedication Solomon declared that the Lord had said He would dwell in thick darkness.
He declared that he had built a house of habitation as a place for God to dwell in forever, so that the beautiful palace would be a dwelling place not for man but for the Lord God, formally dedicated to Jehovah and His worship.
The declaration belongs to the dedication of the completed temple in the seventh month at the feast of tabernacles, after the wilderness tabernacle, the ark, and the holy furniture had been brought into the temple and the singers and trumpeters had praised the Lord for His goodness and enduring mercy. It was part of Solomon's vocal, public prayer after the temple was built, spoken aloud while kneeling on a brazen platform or scaffold before the assembled congregation of Israel so the people could hear him. The words of that prayer are recorded in the Bible as an example of public prayer.
Solomon's kneeling with outstretched hands showed dependence on God. The cloud filling the house so that the priests could not stand to minister signified the Lord's presence and glory filling the house of God, a significance Solomon recognized. In response, at the dedication Solomon declared that the Lord had said He would dwell in thick darkness.
He declared that he had built a house of habitation as a place for God to dwell in forever, so that the beautiful palace would be a dwelling place not for man but for the Lord God, formally dedicated to Jehovah and His worship.