1Ki 8:12-21 | Clarke | STEP | Verse 12 The Lord said - he would dwell - It was under the appearance of a cloud that God showed himself present with Israel in the wilderness; see , . And at the dedication of the tabernacle in the wilderness, God manifested himself in the same way that he did here at the dedication of the temple; see , .

1 Kings 8:12-21

Verse 12

The Lord said - he would dwell - It was under the appearance of a cloud that God showed himself present with Israel in the wilderness; see Exo 14:19, Exo 14:20. And at the dedication of the tabernacle in the wilderness, God manifested himself in the same way that he did here at the dedication of the temple; see Exo 40:34, Exo 40:35. Verse 13

I have surely built thee a house - He was now fully convinced that the thing pleased God, and that he had taken this place for his settled habitation. Verse 14

Blessed all the congregation - Though this blessing is not particularly stated, yet we may suppose that it was such as the high priest pronounced upon the people: "The Lord bless thee, and keep thee! The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee! The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace!" (see Num 6:24-26), for Solomon seems now to be acting the part of the high priest. But he may have in view more particularly the conduct of Moses, who, when he had seen that the people had done all the work of the tabernacle, as the Lord had commanded them, he blessed them, Exo 39:43; and the conduct of his father David, who, when the ark had been brought into the city of David, and the burnt-offerings and peace-offerings completed, blessed the people in the name of the Lord, 2Sam 6:18. Verse 16

Since the day, etc. - Mention is here made, says Dr. Kennicott, of some one place and some one person preferred before all others; and the preference is that of Jerusalem to other places, and of David to other men. In consequence of this remark, we shall see the necessity of correcting this passage by its parallel in 2Chr 6:5, 2Chr 6:6, where the thirteen Hebrew words now lost in Kings are happily preserved. Let us compare the passages: -

I would just observe here, that I do not think these thirteen words ever made a part of Kings, and consequently, are not lost from it; nor do they exist here in any of the versions; but their being found in Chronicles helps to complete the sense. Verse 21

Wherein is the covenant of the Lord - As it is said, 1Kgs 8:9, that there was nothing in the ark but the two tables of stone, consequently these are called the Covenant, i.e., a sign of the covenant; as our Lord calls the cup the new covenant in his blood, that is, the sign of the new covenant: for This is my body implies, This is the sign or emblem of my body.