No 5

(Solomon’s temple)

As we saw in our last study on this subject, David wanted to build the house of God but because he had shed blood (1 Chron 22:8), Solomon was given the task by God (2 Sam 7:13). However, David made many preparations and amassed much material for the eventual temple that was to house the Shekinah glory of God. We see in 1 Chronicles 22 exactly what David gathered “2…..he set masons to hew wrought stones to build the house of God. 3 And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the joinings; and brass in abundance without weight. 4 Also cedar trees in abundance: for the Zidonians and they of Tyre brought much cedar wood to David. 14 a hundred thousand talents of gold, and a million talents of silver; and of brass and iron without weight”. This wasn’t to be just some ordinary house, it was to be the house of God; no expense was spared. When David declared Solomon king, he gave him instructions that had served him well during his lifetime. “I go the way of all the earth: be thou strong therefore, and shew thyself a man; 3 And keep the charge of the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest” 1 Kings 2: 2,3.

Solomon began building the temple with the help of Hiram, king of Tyre who was David’s good friend and who supplied him with cypress logs and hewn stones. The actual building began “in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel” 1 King 6:1. Solomon built the temple on Mount Moriah, north of the ancient city of David according to the plans that David had given him (1 Chronicles 28:11-13). Solomon made sure that the location of the temple was free from noise; it was to be a holy place “And the temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built.” 1 Kings 6:7. He made sure that the house of the Lord was worthy for Him to occupy it; it took him seven years to build it (1 Kings 6:38).