2 Chronicles5

New Living Translation

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¹So 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.

²Solomon 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.

³So all the men of Israel assembled before the king at the annual Festival of Shelters, which is held in early autumn.

⁴When all the elders of Israel arrived, the Levites picked up the Ark.

⁵The priests and Levites brought up the Ark along with the special tent and all the sacred items that had been in it.

⁶There, before the Ark, King Solomon and the entire community of Israel sacrificed so many sheep, goats, and cattle that no one could keep count!

⁷Then 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.

⁸The cherubim spread their wings over the Ark, forming a canopy over the Ark and its carrying poles.

⁹These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place, which is in front of the Most Holy Place, but not from the outside. They are still there to this day.

¹⁰Nothing was in the Ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Mount Sinai, where the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel when they left Egypt.

¹¹Then the priests left the Holy Place. All the priests who were present had purified themselves, whether or not they were on duty that day.

¹²And 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.

¹³The 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.

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

Study Guide

Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for 2 Chronicles 5.

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Chapter Summary

In this chapter: The ark placed in the temple. (1–10). The temple filled with glory. (11–14).

vv1-10

The ark was a type of Christ, and, as such, a token of the presence of God. That gracious promise, Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world, does, in effect, bring the ark into our religious assemblies, if we by faith and prayer plead that promise; and this we should be most earnest for. When Christ is formed in a soul, the law written in the heart, the ark of the covenant settled there, so that it becomes the temple of the Holy Ghost, there is true satisfaction in that soul.

vv11-14

God took possession of the temple; he filled it with a cloud. Thus he signified his acceptance of this temple, to be the same to him that the tabernacle of Moses was, and assured his people that he would be the same in it. Would we have God dwell in our hearts, we must leave room for him; every thing else must give way. The Word was made flesh; and when he comes to his temple, like a refiner's fire, who may abide the day of his coming? May he prepare us for that day.

Key Words

allH3605Hebrew

כֹּל: properly, the whole; hence, all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a plural sense)

workH4399Hebrew

מְלָאכָה: properly, deputyship, i.e. ministry; generally, employment (never servile) or work (abstractly or concretely); also property (as the result of labor)

thatH834Hebrew

אֲשֶׁר: who, which, what, that; also (as an adverb and a conjunction) when, where, how, because, in order that, etc.

SolomonH8010Hebrew

שְׁלֹמֹה: Shelomah, David's successor

didH6213Hebrew

עָשָׂה: to do or make, in the broadest sense and widest application

houseH1004Hebrew

בַּיִת: a house (in the greatest variation of applications, especially family, etc.)

finishedH7999Hebrew

שָׁלַם: to be safe (in mind, body or estate); figuratively, to be (causatively, make) completed; by implication, to be friendly; by extension, to reciprocate (in various applications)

brought inH935Hebrew

בּוֹא: to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)

thingsH6944Hebrew

קֹדֶשׁ: a sacred place or thing; rarely abstract, sanctity

DavidH1732Hebrew

דָּוִד: David, the youngest son of Jesse