Read 2 Chronicles 3
Solomon Builds the Temple
3 Then Solomon began to build the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David. It was on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, the place provided by David.2 He began building on the second day of the second month in the fourth year of his reign.
3 The foundation Solomon laid for building the temple of God was sixty cubits long and twenty cubits wide (using the cubit of the old standard).4 The portico at the front of the temple was twenty cubits long across the width of the building and twenty cubits high.
He overlaid the inside with pure gold. 5 He paneled the main hall with juniper and covered it with fine gold and decorated it with palm tree and chain designs. 6 He adorned the temple with precious stones. And the gold he used was gold of Parvaim. 7 He overlaid the ceiling beams, doorframes, walls and doors of the temple with gold, and he carved cherubim on the walls.
8 He built the Most Holy Place, its length corresponding to the width of the temple—twenty cubits long and twenty cubits wide. He overlaid the inside with six hundred talents of fine gold. 9 The gold nails weighed fifty shekels.He also overlaid the upper parts with gold.
10 For the Most Holy Place he made a pair of sculptured cherubim and overlaid them with gold. 11 The total wingspan of the cherubim was twenty cubits. One wing of the first cherub was five cubits long and touched the temple wall, while its other wing, also five cubits long, touched the wing of the other cherub. 12 Similarly one wing of the second cherub was five cubits long and touched the other temple wall, and its other wing, also five cubits long, touched the wing of the first cherub. 13 The wings of these cherubimextended twenty cubits. They stood on their feet, facing the main hall.
14 He made the curtain of blue, purple and crimson yarn and fine linen, with cherubim worked into it.
15 For the front of the temple he made two pillars, which together were thirty-five cubits long, each with a capital five cubits high. 16 He made interwoven chains and put them on top of the pillars. He also made a hundred pomegranates and attached them to the chains. 17 He erected the pillars in the front of the temple, one to the south and one to the north. The one to the south he named Jakin and the one to the north Boaz.
Go Deeper
In this chapter, King Solomon begins the temple project that his father (King David) prepared for him to accomplish. First Chronicles 28:19 states, “All this, David said, I have in writing as a result of the Lords’ hand on me, and He enabled me to understand all the details of the plan.” The construction of the temple has long been awaited by the people of Israel. This magnificent structure would represent the presence of God in their midst.
Solomon’s efforts to construct the house of God spared no expense in decorating every section of it with extravagant materials. The design included nothing but the finest of materials that would be used to build and decorate the house of God. This temple would represent the heavenly King’s earthly palace, displaying His holiness and glory.
There are so many details described in the building of the temple that point us to Jesus. The location of the temple is significant. Not only was it the place where the Lord had appeared to David, but it is also the place where Abraham offered Isaac, and the Lord provided a ram instead. (Genesis 22) It is also believed by scholars to be near, if not on the set of hills where Jesus’ cross was placed.
Another detail is that the Most Holy Place was separated by a heavy veil. Only the High Priest could enter once a year to offer atonement (payment) for the sins of the people of God. At Jesus’ death, the temple veil was torn from top to bottom, forever representing our access to God through Jesus’ sacrifice of His life. Hebrews 9 describes Jesus, as our high priest, entering once for all by His blood, securing our eternal redemption.
Now there is no need for an ornate temple to represent God’s presence. As believers in Jesus, we are God’s temple and His Spirit dwells in us. However, pondering the holiness, beauty, perfection, and excellence of God may deepen our desire to reflect His character. Our response to His presence in our lives may prompt awe, worship, praise, and surrender. He alone is holy, holy, holy, and worthy.
Questions
- How does beauty stir your awe of our Holy God?
- How do your gifts to serve Christ reflect His presence in you?
- How will you express your thanks for God’s presence in you?
Watch This
The construction of the temple was an important milestone in the Old Testament. To learn more about the temple and its significance, check out this video from The Bible Project!
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4 thoughts on “2 Chronicles 3”
God is in the details. Wow this is hard for me to imagine but I am sure, oh so beautiful. God told David how it was to be, then David told Solomon and he executed it. He got only the best of the best to perform their expert artistic work on this temple. God, David, and Solomon thought the details were worth only the best. We are now the temple. Do we treat ourselves with that respect of worthiness to hold God’s Holy Spirit? Our light, our love, our glory of the Lord should shine out of us. Vivacious, enthusiastic, effervesce, bubble all over with Holy Spirit ( WOOHOO!!!). God is so good, beyond words good, so greatly to be praised and glorified. We should all be shouting or at least bubbling a little about how great is our GOD!!! We are more precious than all that gold, fine wood and jewels Solomon had to God. He just wants YOU to love HIM all the days of your life and tell others how great He is.
God please forgive me for not showing and being Your temple as I should. Thank You for guiding me to doing better. How GREAT YOU ARE!!! I am so thankful for Your Word and details. I am thankful for the details in my life now in Jesus name amen
WOOHOO!!! WOOHOO!!!
My takeaway was that the ornate temple was a symbol of God’s holiness. It inspired respect and awe for God. A symbol of religious authority, God’s covenant with Israel and forgiveness. I pray that I may seek God’s Word daily for instruction and not be swayed by my own agenda. May all my worship be to honor and glorify you, Lord. Amen
One of the most enlightening revelations as we read the Old Testament books is that God has always been present in his world. His fingerprints all over history preparing for the ultimate presentation of his beloved son who would bring redemption to broken mankind. And he is still present and remains sovereign over ever detail throughout eternity. When we see glimpses of his nature and character throughout scripture, it’s both thrilling and humbling that he invited us into his presence. Through reading The Awe of God, I’m reminded of what knowing God on an intimate level looks like. It’s choosing to know him as deeply as he has chosen to know me.
I am not a visual learner – which means, for one thing, I really struggle with descriptive written passages like this one. It takes every bit of my imagination (and a whole lot of my patience!) for me to slow down, take in all the details, and truly “see“ with my mind’s eye the picture the author is attempting to portray.
This is the main reason I struggle to read J.R.R. Tolkien. I love his work – but I get so bored and frustrated when he “takes three whole pages to describe a tree!“
How wonderful it was then, to see at last Tolkien’s words brought to life in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. To view in a single magnificent scene what often took pages of laborious reading to even begin to imagine. I am deeply grateful to Peter Jackson for bringing such moments to life on the big screen. Here’s a guy who had no trouble turning written description into actual images! I bet when he read LOTR, he could see it all clearly in his mind’s eye – and found that experience so compelling he was determined help others see it, too.
How many descriptions and images are we given in Scripture that can only point to God’s vision – but never quite fully portray it? Even God‘s word, as perfect and God-breathed as it is, can only inform us in part. Through His Word, we are permitted – for now – to “see through a mirror dimly.” And in His Word we receive hope for the day we WILL see all things clearly – and know all things fully (1 Corinthians13:12).
There will come a time for all believers when we will see clearly God in all His splendor. And we will marvel, celebrate and worship together!
“Creator God, forgive me when I grow bored and frustrated by the story you are trying to tell me. Give me the patience and imagination I need to catch hold of your vision. May I find it so compelling I determine to help others see it, too. Fill me with hope for the day I will truly see all things in full.
Amen.”
To God be the glory!