2 Chronicles 5

Chapter 5

1 So Solomon finished all his work on the Temple of the LORD. Then he brought all the gifts his father, David, had dedicated—the silver, the gold, and the various articles—and he stored them in the treasuries of the Temple of God.

The Ark Brought to the Temple

2 Solomon then summoned to Jerusalem the elders of Israel and all the heads of tribes—the leaders of the ancestral families of Israel. They were to bring the Ark of the LORD’s Covenant to the Temple from its location in the City of David, also known as Zion.

3 So all the men of Israel assembled before the king at the annual Festival of Shelters, which is held in early autumn.t
4 When all the elders of Israel arrived, the Levites picked up the Ark.5 The priests and Levites brought up the Ark along with the special tentt and all the sacred items that had been in it.

6 There, before the Ark, King Solomon and the entire community of Israel sacrificed so many sheep, goats, and cattle that no one could keep count!
7 Then the priests carried the Ark of the LORD’s Covenant into the inner sanctuary of the Temple—the Most Holy Place—and placed it beneath the wings of the cherubim.8 The cherubim spread their wings over the Ark, forming a canopy over the Ark and its carrying poles.9 These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Temple’s main room—the Holy Placet—but not from the outside. They are still there to this day.

10 Nothing was in the Ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Mount Sinai,t where the LORD made a covenant with the people of Israel when they left Egypt.
11 Then the priests left the Holy Place. All the priests who were present had purified themselves, whether or not they were on duty that day.12 And the Levites who were musicians—Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, and all their sons and brothers—were dressed in fine linen robes and stood at the east side of the altar playing cymbals, lyres, and harps. They were joined by 120 priests who were playing trumpets.

13 The trumpeters and singers performed together in unison to praise and give thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments, they raised their voices and praised the LORD with these words:
“He is good!
His faithful love endures forever!”
At that moment a thick cloud filled the Temple of the LORD.

14 The priests could not continue their service because of the cloud, for the glorious presence of the LORD filled the Temple of God.

2 CHRONICLES 5

1  t After the [Lord]'s temple was finished, Solomon put in its storage rooms everything that his father David had dedicated to the [Lord], including the gold and silver, and the objects used in worship.

Solomon Brings //the Sacred Chest //to the Temple

(1 Kings 8.1-13)

2-3  t The 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 to celebrate the Festival of Shelters during the seventh month.t
Solomon called together all the important leaders of Israel. 4-5 Then the priests and the Levites picked up the sacred chest, the sacred tent, and the objects used for worship, and they carried them to the temple.

6 Solomon and a crowd of people stood in front of the chest and sacrificed more sheep and cattle than could be counted.
7 The priests carried the chest into the most holy place and put it under the winged creatures, 8 whose wings covered both the chest and the poles used for carrying it.

9 The poles were so long that they could be seen from just outside the most holy place, but not from anywhere else. And they stayed there from then on.

10  t The 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, t after bringing them out of Egypt.

11-13  t The priests of every group had gone through the ceremony to make themselves clean and acceptable to the [Lord]. The Levite musicians, including Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, and their sons and relatives, were wearing robes of fine linen. They were standing on the east side of the altar, playing cymbals, small harps, and other stringed instruments. One hundred and twenty priests were with these musicians, and they were blowing trumpets.
They were praising the [Lord] by playing music and singing:
“The [Lord] is good,
and his love never ends.”
Suddenly a cloud filled the temple as the priests were leaving the holy place. 14 The [Lord]'s glory was in that cloud, and the light from it was so bright that the priests could not stay inside to do their work.