2 Chronicles 5:1-14
1 Thus all the work that Solomon made for the house of the LORD was finished: and Solomon brought in all the things that David his father had dedicated; and the silver, and the gold, and all the instruments, put he among the treasures of the house of God.
2 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.
3 Wherefore all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto the king in the feast which was in the seventh month.
4 And all the elders of Israel came; and the Levites took up the ark.
5 And they brought up the ark, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, these did the priests and the Levites bring up.
6 Also king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel that were assembled unto him before the ark, sacrificed sheep and oxen, which could not be told nor numbered for multitude.
7 And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, to the oracle of the house, into the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims:
8 For the cherubims spread forth their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves thereof above.
9 And they drew out the staves of the ark, that the ends of the staves were seen from the ark before the oracle; but they were not seen without. And there it is unto this day.
10 There was nothing in the ark save the two tables which Moses put therein at Horeb, when the LORDa made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of Egypt.
11 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place: (for all the priests that were present were sanctified, and did not then wait by course:
12 Also the Levites which were the singers, all of them of Asaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun, with their sons and their brethren, being arrayed in white linen, having cymbals and psalteries and harps, stood at the east end of the altar, and with them an hundred and twenty priests sounding with trumpets:)
13 It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD;
14 So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.
A.M. 2999. B.C. 1005.
Solomon brings the dedicated treasures into the house, and the ark into the sanctuary, 2 Chronicles 5:1. While the priests and Levites sing praise, the glory of God fills the house, 2 Chronicles 5:11.
NOTES ON CHAPTER 5.
2 Chronicles 5:1. Solomon brought in all the things that David his father had dedicated What remained of the things that David had provided, Solomon would not employ to his own use, but laid them up in the treasures of the temple. And the silver and the gold The remainder of those vast sums, mentioned 1 Chronicles 22:14. Solomon assembled the elders of Israel Of this and the following verses, see notes on 1 Kings 8:1, &c.
2 Chronicles 5:5. They brought up the ark The ark was a type of Christ, and a token of the presence of God. That gracious promise, Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world, does in effect bring the ark into our religious assemblies, if we claim it by faith and prayer. And this we should be earnest for: the temple itself, if Christ leave it, is a desolate place. These did the priests bring in, &c. As many of them as were fit for use, it is probable, were still used. The rest were carefully laid up, as monuments of antiquity.
2 Chronicles 5:9. There it is unto this day When these records were first written, not when they were reviewed and copied by Ezra: for neither the ark nor the staves were seen or remained after the captivity.
2 Chronicles 5:11. The priests did not then wait by course According to David's appointment, (1 Chronicles 24:25.,) which was only for the ordinary service: but in extraordinary solemnities, such as this, they all came together.
2 Chronicles 5:13. To make one sound They sung and sounded their trumpets all so exactly in time, and in the same note, that it seemed but as one sound. For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever Probably they sung the whole of Psalms 136., which begins thus, O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good, &c., &c.; every verse of which ends with, For his mercy endureth for ever. The house was filled with a cloud That is, with such a cloud as had formerly been in the most holy place of the tabernacle, and was the token of the gracious presence and blessing of the Divine Majesty among them.
2 Chronicles 5:14. The priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud This wonderful cloud of the divine glory was a grand distinguishing particular between the Jews and other nations, and an indubitable testimony that God did indeed reveal himself to them, and took them under his protection and care. Other nations had temples dedicated to their gods; but the records of none of them signify, or give any the least intimation, that there was ever any such appearance among them publicly, or in the sight of all the people, as this which is here spoken of, and represented as a convincing token that God was among them, accepted their offerings, and took possession of the house which they had erected for his service. The glory of the Lord had filled the house And this beautified it more than all the gold with which it was overlaid, or the precious stones with which it was garnished. Yet even that was no glory, in comparison of the glory of the gospel dispensation.