2 Chron 7:1-7, 11
SS Lesson for 05/11/2025
Devotional Scripture: Ps 138:1-8
Today’s lesson, regarding the construction of the temple, is both similar to and different from the Borglums’ project. They are similar in that neither man who envisioned the projects in the first place lived to see their respective completions. They are different in that while the father oversaw almost all the work in the Borglums’ project, the opposite was true regarding the temple construction. King David wanted to build a magnificent temple for the Lord, but the honor went to his son Solomon instead. While David laid the groundwork, it was to be Solomon’s legacy to oversee and complete the project. The books of 1 and 2 Chronicles emphasize the importance of the reigns of David (1010-970 BC) and Solomon (970-930 BC) as their lives related to the temple’s coming into existence. The chronicler explains how those kings instituted most of the ongoing practices of the temple, especially those of sacrifice, prayer, and singing. All three of those elements are present in the parallel books of 1 and 2 Kings, but much more so in the Chronicles. In 1 Chronicles 22:8, King David explained to his son Solomon that God had forbidden David from building the temple due to the amount of blood he had shed. After David’s extensive preparations (22:5), the honor was to fall to Solomon instead. He spent seven years completing the temple his father dreamed of building (1 Kings 6:38). The year of its completion was, therefore, 963 BC. The book of 2 Chronicles links father and son in several passages not included in 1 Kings (examples: 2 Chronicles 2:3, 7; 3:1; 6:42; 7:10; 8:14). The dedication ceremony for the temple included a lengthy and eloquent prayer by the king (2 Chronicles 6). In that prayer, Solomon asked the Lord to remember his covenant with his people and his promise to David. He prayed for forgiveness of future sin. He pled for the temple to be a beacon of God’s great name and mighty hand. He closed his prayer by inviting everyone else to celebrate the same divine mercy that he had recognized. Solomon thereby challenged himself and his hearers to a life of worship and sacrifice.
When all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed their faces to the ground on the pavement, and worshiped and praised the Lord, saying: "For He is good, For His mercy endures forever."
(Scriptural Text from the New King James Version; cross-references from the NIV)
1 When Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.
2 And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord's house.
3 When all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed their faces to the ground on the pavement, and worshiped and praised the Lord, saying: "For He is good, For His mercy endures forever."
2 Great is the Lord in Zion; he is exalted over all the nations.
22 He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in. 23 He brings princes to naught and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.
27 "But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!
8 O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.
15 The nations will fear the name of the Lord, all the kings of the earth will revere your glory.
5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.
8 Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
7 The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him,
17 "Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments."
9 The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.
25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;
19 How great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you, which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you.
29 "You warned them to return to your law, but they became arrogant and disobeyed your commands. They sinned against your ordinances, by which a man will live if he obeys them. Stubbornly they turned their backs on you, became stiff-necked and refused to listen. 30 For many years you were patient with them. By your Spirit you admonished them through your prophets. Yet they paid no attention, so you handed them over to the neighboring peoples. 31 But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.
45 for their sake he remembered his covenant and out of his great love he relented.
11 As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.
10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
6 Praise be to the Lord, for he has heard my cry for mercy.
10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
4 Then the king and all the people offered sacrifices before the Lord.
5 King Solomon offered a sacrifice of twenty-two thousand bulls and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the people dedicated the house of God.
6 And the priests attended to their services; the Levites also with instruments of the music of the Lord, which King David had made to praise the Lord, saying, "For His mercy endures forever," whenever David offered praise by their ministry. The priests sounded trumpets opposite them, while all Israel stood.
7 Furthermore Solomon consecrated the middle of the court that was in front of the house of the Lord; for there he offered burnt offerings and the fat of the peace offerings, because the bronze altar which Solomon had made was not able to receive the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat.
11 Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord and the king's house; and Solomon successfully accomplished all that came into his heart to make in the house of the Lord and in his own house.
3 For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own,
43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything — all she had to live on."
8 Then the word of the Lord came to him: 9 "Go at once to Zarephath of Sidon and stay there. I have commanded a widow in that place to supply you with food." 10 So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, "Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?" 11 As she was going to get it, he called, "And bring me, please, a piece of bread." 12 "As surely as the Lord your God lives," she replied, "I don't have any bread — only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it — and die." 13 Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son.
29 Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, 30 because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me.
12 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship.
15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise — the fruit of lips that confess his name.
2 Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.
9 Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. 10 Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
13 The trumpeters and singers joined in unison, as with one voice, to give praise and thanks to the Lord. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, they raised their voices in praise to the Lord and sang: "He is good; his love endures forever." Then the temple of the Lord was filled with a cloud,
58 Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,
7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
4 Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.
3 We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing.
GOD'S GLORIOUS ANSWER (vv.1-3)
God wonderfully demonstrated His approval of the temple and of Solomon's prayer by sending fire from heaven to consume the burnt offering and the sacrifices (spoken of in ch.5:6), and filled the temple with His glory (vv.1-2). When the children of Israel saw this. they were prostrated in lowly worship, praising the Lord, and particularly emphasising "For He is good, for His mercy endures forever" (v.3). This was a wonderful beginning of a new era in Israel's history, though it is sorrowful that the freshness of joy in the Lord very soon wore off, so that both Solomon and Israel departed far from their early condition.
THE DEDICATION OF THE TEMPLE (vv.4-11)
The Lord had accepted the offerings without number (ch.5:6;7:1) by sending fire to consume them, and now in order to dedicate the temple Solomon and the people offered 22,000 bulls and 20,000 sheep. The priests would have abundant work to do with these offerings, and the Levites accompanied this by playing musical instruments that David had introduced when offering praise to the Lord (v.6).
Since the copper altar was not large enough to accommodate all the offerings, Solomon consecrated the middle of the court in front of the temple, to offer the burnt offerings (v.7).
Keeping the feast for a full week, they ended this with a special assembly on the eighth day before Solomon sent the people to their homes on the 23rd day of the seventh month (v.16). This feast therefore (the Feast of Tabernacles) pictured the coming glory of the millennial blessing of Israel, though the joy at that time, great as it was, did not last long compared to the joy of the Lord's reign in the millennium.
Though they were long in building, both the temple and the house of Solomon were eventually finished (v.11). The work was not in vain, as is sometimes the case with those who have not before counted the cost, but what God builds is always perfectly finished. The temple pictures the Father's house in glory, while Solomon's house is a picture of the Church in her condition and circumstances on earth, where God's order is to be maintained among His saints.
THE LORD'S SECOND APPEARANCE TO SOLOMON (vv.12-22)
The Lord had first appeared to Solomon (ch.1:7) to offer him what he might ask. Now He appears to assure him that He has heard his prayer and to encourage him to put God first in the rule of his kingdom. This was the same night after the dedication, and the Lord sought to impress on Solomon the importance of single hearted obedience to His Word. He had chosen the temple for Himself as a house of sacrifice and He would have special consideration for those who looked toward the temple.
The Lord then spoke of specifically answering Solomon's prayer in regard to His governmental chastening of Israel by His withholding rain or sending locusts or pestilence. If Israel would humble themselves and pray, seeking God's face, turning from the evil of their ways, then God would indeed hear from heaven, forgive them and heal their land (vv.13-14).
God affirms again that He had both chosen and sanctified the temple. that is, He had set it apart for Himself, that His name might be there forever, His eyes and His heart there perpetually (v.16). Yet after this the temple was destroyed and there has been no temple in Jerusalem for centuries! Why is this? Because Israel was guilty of themselves desecrating the temple. Though it was rebuilt in the days of Ezra, then destroyed again and rebuilt by Herod, the Lord Jesus declared before His crucifixion, when His disciples showed him the buildings of the temple, "Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another that shall not be thrown down" (Matthew 24:1-2). This was fulfilled before long, and Israel has been without any temple for nearly 2000 years!
But God anticipated all this even in 2 Chronicles 7:1-22, for he speaks conditionally to Solomon in verse 17 and the verses following. "As for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, and do according to all that I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and My judgments, then I will establish the throne of your kingdom, as I covenanted with David. But if Solomon turned away, forsaking the commandments of the Lord and serving and worshipping other gods, he could expect God's serious judgment in uprooting Israel from the land, casting the temple out of His sight, making it a proverb and byword among all the nations.
Was such a warning necessary for Solomon? Absolutely so! For he very soon fell into the trap of marrying many women of foreign nations and adopting the false worship of their various idols (1 Kings 11:1-8). Eventually the judgment of God fell on Israel for this: their land became desolate, their temple was destroyed and the people taken captive by the Babylonians. Then indeed everyone who observed the ruin of the land and the temple were astonished and questioned why the Lord had done this after expressing His approval of the house and greatly blessing Israel (v.21).
Solomon was warned then that the answer would be, "Because they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and embraced other gods, and worshiped them and served them; therefore He has brought all this calamity upon them" (v.22). Yet Second Chronicles does not speak of Solomon's shameful failure in turning from the Lord as does 1 Kings, for Chronicles emphasises the grace of God rather than His government as in the books of Kings.
(Adapted from URL:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/lmg/2-chronicles-7.html)
The temple became the center of ancient Israel’s religious life. It was the place where they could meet God. Sacrifices and prayers would occur at that temple for generations. While Solomon could not have foreseen the details of the long history of worship that followed his actions, his trust in God was proven by his prayer, worship, and actions. These reflected confidence in God’s holiness, power, and enduring love. Solomon prayed to God to remember his promises to his father and to previous generations. The king’s prayer was integral to his worship. His focus on completing the temple before he started his own house showed his heart (contrast Haggai 1:2-4). Unfortunately, this interconnection of faithful prayer, worship, and actions would not last. It didn’t last for the people (2 Chronicles 36:15-21), and it didn’t last for Solomon himself (1 Kings 11:4-11). Will it last for you?