Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible
1 Kings 8:63-66
The Great Sacrificial Offering And Feast (1 Kings 8:63).
This special feast of dedication commenced seven days prior to the Feast of Tabernacles (thus incorporating the Day of Atonement). Large scale offerings were made during it, and they were of such a dimension that the bronze altar, which was apparently the one thing that had been brought from the Tabernacle for current use, was of insufficient size for the purpose of both offering the burnt offering and burning the fat of the multitudinous wellbeing (peace) offerings. The consequence was that the middle of the Inner court had to be especially hallowed so as to assist with the burning of the fat. What in fact was probably hallowed for the purpose may well have been the great rock (eighteen metres (sixty feet) by fourteen metres (forty five feet) by around one and a half metres (five feet)) which we know from later tradition was situated in the Inner court area, and which later gave its name to the present ‘Dome of the Rock', for when examined this bore the marks of having been used for sacrifices. But that is by no means certain.
The Feast of Tabernacles then followed, and at the end of ‘the eight day' of that feast the people returned to their temporary booths full of rejoicing at what had occurred. They would return home on the morrow in the same spirit.
Analysis.
a And Solomon offered for the sacrifice of peace-offerings, which he offered to YHWH, two and twenty thousand oxen, and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep (1 Kings 8:63 a).
b So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of YHWH (1 Kings 8:63 b).
c The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of YHWH, for there he offered the burnt-offering, and the meal-offering, and the fat of the peace-offerings, because the brazen altar that was before YHWH was too small to receive the burnt-offering, and the meal-offering, and the fat of the peace-offerings (1 Kings 8:64).
b So Solomon held the feast at that time, and all Israel with him, a great assembly, from Libo-Hamath to the wadi of Egypt, before YHWH our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days (1 Kings 8:65).
a On the eighth day he sent the people away, and they blessed the king, and went to their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that YHWH had shown to David his servant, and to Israel his people (1 Kings 8:66).
Note that in ‘a' large-scale sacrifices were offered of ‘wellbeing' offerings, and in the parallel they returned home from the feast with rejoicing. In ‘b' the king and the people dedicated the house of YHWH, and in the parallel a special seven day feast of dedication was held prior to the feast of Tabernacles. Centrally in ‘c' the central inner court was sanctified for the offering of sacrifices because the brazen altar was insufficient for the number of sacrifices.
‘ And Solomon offered for the sacrifice of peace-offerings, which he offered to YHWH, two and twenty thousand oxen, and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of YHWH.'
As we gather from the previous verse and from the following verse ‘Solomon' signifies ‘him and all the people', with Solomon prominent in the process. The daily burnt offerings and meal offerings would have to be offered, but on top of those were offered a multitude of sacrifices of peace (wellbeing - shelamim) offerings in honour of YHWH. Of these offerings only the fat was burned, the remainder, apart from what was given to the priests, contributing toward their feasting. They numbered twenty two sacrificial units of oxen and one hundred and twenty sacrificial units of sheep (the sacrificial units may have been literally in ‘thousands' (eleph) or they may have been related to the size of the ‘wider families' (eleph)). How large a number this came to we do not necessarily know, but the huge crowds gathered on this special occasion, urged on by the king, would require huge amounts of meat.
Similar huge offerings at feasts for the dedication of new buildings have been testified to at Nimrud, Ashur and Nineveh, accompanied by similar feasting and rejoicing.
‘ The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of YHWH, for there he offered the burnt-offering, and the meal-offering, and the fat of the peace-offerings, because the brazen altar that was before YHWH was too small to receive the burnt-offering, and the meal-offering, and the fat of the peace-offerings.'
In fact so huge were the numbers of offerings and sacrifices that the bronze altar, which had been brought from the Tabernacle (which would explain why no altar was made earlier), and which was five cubits (just over to metres or seven and a half feet) by five cubits, was insufficient for the task. The brazen altar would be required for the morning and evening burnt offerings and meal offerings, and for the special burnt offerings and sin offerings of the Feast of Tabernacles (see Numbers 29:12), thus to handle the fat from the multitudinous wellbeing offerings as well would have proved too much for it. So the middle of the Inner court was hallowed especially for the purpose. This Inner court probably contained the massive stone described above, which may well have been co-opted as an emergency altar. It may have been this experience that resulted in the making of a bronze altar twenty cubits by twenty cubits by ten cubits in height as described in 2 Chronicles 4:1.
‘ So Solomon held the feast at that time, and all Israel with him, a great assembly, from Libo-Hamath to the wadi of Egypt, before YHWH our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days.'
The number of people present at the feast is emphasised. There were more than attended the usual annual feasts. (No doubt Solomon's invitation had been hard to refuse). For they formed ‘a great assembly', coming from as far north as Libo-Hamath, a city attested to in the Egyptian execration texts and situated roughly a hundred and sixty miles north of Dan (Dan was the most northern part of Israel prior to the time of David. Compare ‘from Dan to Beersheba'). It was seen as the ‘ideal' boundary of Israel (Numbers 34:8; Joshua 13:5; Amos 6:14). And from as far down as the Wadi of Egypt. Alternately some prefer to translate lebo-Hamath as ‘the approaches to Hamath', recognising that Hamath itself was a friendly vassal state (2 Samuel 8:10). And this was for a feast of extra length, commencing seven days before the Feast of Tabernacles and going on until ‘the eighth day' of the Feast of Tabernacles, thus lasting for fourteen days.
The Wadi of Egypt, many miles south of Gaza, was the southernmost area of occupation prior to reaching Egypt and was known by the Assyrians as Nahal (Wadi) Musri.
‘ On the eighth day he sent the people away, and they blessed the king, and went to their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that YHWH had shown to David his servant, and to Israel his people.'
And on ‘the eighth day' of the Feast of Tabernacles (Numbers 29:35; Leviticus 23:36; compare John 7:37), presumably towards sunset, Solomon gave permission for the feast to end and the people to go home, and they returned to their ‘tents' (their temporary booths) full of rejoicing ready, for the homeward journey on the morrow. The rejoicing at the Feast of Tabernacles was proverbial for it signified the end of the agricultural year, but this was a special joy for it included the thought of what YHWH had done for Israel in the goodness that He had shown towards David, and therefore to Israel His people.
“Blessed the king.” Gave him praise and thanked God for him because of what he had done for Israel. (They were hardly likely to do anything else, but they did have good reason to be joyful, especially at the end of such a prolonged feast).