Ep. 96. 1 Kings 5-6, 2 Chronicles 2-4 | Building of the Temple

EPISODE 96

BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE: 1 KINGS 5-6; 2 CHRON 2-4

As a guy who really enjoys the details, I am grateful for the specific time stamp placed on the temple building. "In the four hundred and eightieth year after the people of Israel came out of the land of Egypt.” If you're keeping track of the timeline, the people left Egypt in Exodus 12. They spent forty years wandering in the wilderness. There were six years of conquest—another 350 years (roughly) of the Judges. Forty years of King Saul, forty more years of King David, and now we are in the fourth year of Solomon.

Solomon drafts forced labor to work on the temple. Solomon's workers spent seven and a half years building the temple and another fourteen years building his own palace. Though this temple was far and away more extravagant than the Tabernacle Moses had constructed, it didn't hold the same sort of weight. We remember that God warned Moses to make the Tabernacle according to God's specifications. We know the Tabernacle was a foreshadow and representation of the things of heaven. I do get caught up in the sheer opulence of the temple of Solomon, with every single surface covered in gold. It must have been quite a sight to see. And, of course, it was the target of the enemies of Judah during warfare.

Of most importance, in my opinion, is the location of the temple. Mount Moriah was famously where Abraham offered his son, Isaac, as a sacrifice to God. He named the mountain, "On the mount of the Lord it will be provided." This was the same mountain where David had built an altar and worshipped the Lord after God struck the people with a plague. This would also be the place where our Savior was crucified. Truly, on the mountain of the Lord, it was provided.

ADDITIONAL READING: Exodus 25:9,40; Genesis 22; 1 Chronicles 21; Hebrews 8:5