1 Kings 8:6-13

8:6 The priests brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant to its assigned ¹  place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, in the most holy place, under the wings of the cherubs. 8:7 The cherubs’ wings extended over the place where the ark sat; the cherubs overshadowed the ark and its poles. ²  8:8 The poles were so long their ends were visible from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen from beyond that point. ³  They have remained there to this very day. 8:9 There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets Moses had placed there in Horeb. ⁴  It was there that ⁵  the Lord made an agreement with the Israelites after he brought them out of the land of Egypt. 8:10 Once the priests left the holy place, a cloud filled the Lord’s temple. 8:11 The priests could not carry out their duties ⁶  because of the cloud; the Lord’s glory filled his temple. ⁷ 

8:12 Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he lives in thick darkness. 8:13 O Lord, ⁸  truly I have built a lofty temple for you, a place where you can live permanently.”

[8:6]  ¹ tn The word “assigned” is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[8:7]  ² sn And its poles. These poles were used to carry the ark. See Exod 25:13-15.

[8:8]  ³ tn Heb “they could not be seen outside.”

[8:9]  ⁴ sn Horeb is another name for Mount Sinai.

[8:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “in Horeb where.”

[8:11]  ⁶ tn Heb “were not able to stand to serve.”

[8:11]  ⁷ tn Heb “the house of the Lord.”

[8:13]  ⁸ tn The words “O Lord” do not appear in the original text, but they are supplied for clarification; Solomon addresses the Lord in prayer at this point.