1 Kings 8:[1, 6, 10-11], 22-30, 41-43
[Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the ancestral houses of the Israelites, before King Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion. Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, in the inner sanctuary of the house, in the most holy place, underneath the wings of the cherubim. And when the priests came out of the holy place, a cloud filled the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord.]
Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread out his hands to heaven. He said, “O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and steadfast love for your servants who walk before you with all their heart, the covenant that you kept for your servant my father David as you declared to him; you promised with your mouth and have this day fulfilled with your hand. Therefore, O Lord, God of Israel, keep for your servant my father David that which you promised him, saying, ‘There shall never fail you a successor before me to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your children look to their way, to walk before me as you have walked before me.’ Therefore, O God of Israel, let your word be confirmed, which you promised to your servant my father David.
“But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Even heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, much less this house that I have built! Regard your servant’s prayer and his plea, O Lord my God, heeding the cry and the prayer that your servant prays to you today; that your eyes may be open night and day toward this house, the place of which you said, ‘My name shall be there,’ that you may heed the prayer that your servant prays toward this place. Hear the plea of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place; O hear in heaven your dwelling place; heed and forgive.
“Likewise when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes from a distant land because of your name —for they shall hear of your great name, your mighty hand, and your outstretched arm—when a foreigner comes and prays toward this house, then hear in heaven your dwelling place, and do according to all that the foreigner calls to you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your people Israel, and so that they may know that your name has been invoked on this house that I have built.
In the minds of the people and the mind of Solomon, what an event this is. This day was long coming. I try to imagine a project that I have worked on that is finally finished. Or a road or bridge in town that is finally done and being opened for use. The whole town gathers for the event.
This was a structure that took a debated 7-9 years. It was part of a promise and part of a covenant from God. It took dedication and sacrifice. So this was no ordinary day. This was not just another building. This was a temple. A temple that was still standing strong over 400 years later till Nebuchadnezzar destroyed it and set it ablaze.
Everyone whose anyone was at Jerusalem celebrating. Solomon says somethings that show his understanding of God to not be so simple and yet still simple at the same time. He makes the point that even though this temple is constructed for God’s presence to be there, he realizes that even the Heaven’s can’t contain Him.
Though he was not a priest or a prophet, Solomon was a man of great wisdom. I don’t think that it takes great wisdom to come to the understanding that God is not contained in any building we build no matter how great we think it is. But I think that Solomon is expressing this understanding publicly at the dedication of the temple for all to hear and that is wisdom. He wants everyone to know that he has no delusions that the creator of the universe is now contained in little project that man made.
God makes covenants with His people. God keeps his covenants and promises. We don’t make covenants with God nor do we keep our promises very well either.
Solomon then prays something that almost seems scandalous. He prays that the foreigner’s prayers will be heard by God. Perhaps because Solomon had wives that were foreigners and he was shaped by that. Solomon puts no conditions on their prayers but only that they be granted. Perhaps this was a political showing. But perhaps Solomon was truly understanding of prayer…and truly understanding of God. He prays for foreigners’ prayers at the dedication of the Jewish temple in the holy city of Jerusalem on the holiest of mountains! And he asks God to be generous and compassionate to his enemies. Solomon may not be a priest or prophet but he seems to have a wise understanding of his God.