I KINGS 8

The phrase “Solomon in all his glory” appears in the NT. What was so glorious about Solomon?

1. His wisdom as shown in his judging and his proverbs.

2. His grand building projects. Read I Kings 9:15. Skeptics doubted this account but in 1955, Yigael Yadin, an Israeli archeologist, began excavations at Hazor. In excavating the walls of the city, he came to the place where the city gate must have stood. He noted the great similarity of design between the previously excavated gates at Megiddo and Gezer. Since they were practically superimposable, he drew a design in the dirt and told the Arab workers to dig there. They were amazed when the uncovered gate was found almost exactly where he had indicated.

3. But Solomon's true source of greatness was in his belief that God would accomplish through him what he had promised. And he didn't just sit around passively and wait for things to happen. Solomon actively worked to bring about and use what God had promised.

4. Lastly, there was Solomon's prayerful attitude. See chapter 3 for one example.

All of the above was demonstrated in the re-building of the temple and the prayer he gave afterward. Start with reading I Kings 8:28. This prayer of dedication can be compared to two other prayers in the Bible.

Prayer of Dedication and the Lord's Prayer

There are a number of similarities to the Lord's Prayer given 1,000 years later (Matthew 6:9-13). In some ways our communication with God has not changed, but in other ways you can see our new status before God compared to an Old Testament relationship.

Our Father: In verse 23, Solomon addresses God as Lord with the people as servants. In verse 51, the special relationship between the Jewish people and God is mentioned, but it is mainly a corporate one, not necessarily an individual one.

Who art in Heaven: God's dwelling there is also stated in I Kings 8:30. Additionally, 8:27 explains that this is a spiritual realm which is larger than a mere physical location.

Hallowed by thy name: I Kings 8:41-43 can almost be read as a commentary on that phrase.

Thy kingdom come: The Jewish concept of kingdom can be seen in verse 48 to be a prayer to preserve the land, people, city, and house of God. A Christian understanding gives a wider perspective on the meaning of God's eternal kingdom.

Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven: This concept is very important to Solomon. He stresses in verses 36 and 48 the responsibility of the people to obey God's will and the fact that his will has already been clearly revealed to man.

Give us this day our daily bread: This aspect of prayer is seen in I Kings 8:35-40 in asking God to provide food and water. Also verse 59 is of interest: we must realize that we are dependent on Him day-by-day.

And forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors: The idea is apparently that forgiveness is conditional on our forgiving attitude toward others. I Kings 8:35-50 expresses the fact that God's forgiveness is dependent on the people's repentance.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: Solomon asks in verse 37 for deliverance from natural disasters, and human enemies. Christ's prayer goes to the root: the evil one.

For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen: These concluding words are not actually in the oldest manuscripts of Matthew's Gospel but were probably added by the early church as a fitting conclusion once the prayer started to be used as part of the liturgy. This wording probably came from I Chronicles 29:10b-11a: “Blessed are you O LORD, the God of our ancestor Israel forever and ever. Yours, O LORD, are the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty; for all that is in the heavens and on the earth is yours; yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all.” Incidentally, these words are also related to prayer, Solomon and the Temple. They were spoken by David when he was asking the people for support for his son Solomon in constructing the temple.

2. Parallel Versions in 1 Kings and Chronicles

It is also interesting to compare the parallel account found in Chronicles. First, consider the key differences in the literary settings of both.

Dedication of the Temple (I Kings 8:14-61)

A. Solomon blesses the assembly reminding them of God's fulfilled promise (14-21)

        B. Solomon prays to God before the altar with outstretched hand (22-27)

                C. “Hear the plea of your servant and your people Israel” (28-30)

                        D. Prayer (31-51)

                C'. “Hear the plea of your servant and your people Israel” (52-53)

        B'. Solomon prayed to God before the altar with outstretched hand (54)

A'. Solomon blesses assembly reminding them of God's fulfilled promise (55-61)

The emphasis in an odd-numbered chiasm such as this one is on the center element: Solomon's prayer.

But now look at how the same events are described in the parallel passage in II Chronicles.

The Temple (II Chronicles 2:1-8:10)

A. construction of the Temple (2:1-5:1)

B. feast and sacrifices (5:2-14)

C. Solomon's prayer (ch. 6)

C'. Divine Confirmation (7:1-3)

B'. feast and sacrifices (7:4-10)

A'. construction of the Temple (7:11-8:10)

This time it is an even-numbered chiasm so the emphasis is equally divided between Solomon's prayer 

and God's reply. One could look at this as de-emphasizing Solomon's words or as divine confirmation 

of them. In either case, this literary technique also has the effect of directing the reader's attention away 

from the center of the overall unit and toward the sections at its start and finish describing the Temple's 

construction and the various religious ceremonies to be held there – subjects of particular interest to the 

Chronicler.

Looking next at the actual wording of Solomon's prayer, the Chronicler's interest in the actual 

construction of the temple is again seen when he adds a verse (2 Chronicles 6:13) not paralleled in the I 

Kings account. That verse describes a “bronze platform” set in the middle of the court upon which 

Solomon could deliver his talk to the people. On the other hand, two key phrases appear in the I Kings 

account which are not found in the Chronicles parallel: “toward heaven” describing where Solomon 

spread his hand and “this day” in verse 28. As stated above, both of these appear again in the Lord's 

Prayer.