Fire from Heaven
(Psalm 136:1–26)

1And Solomon had finished praying, and the fire came down from the heavens and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of YHWH filled the temple. 2And the priests were not able enter into the house of YHWH, because the glory of YHWH had filled the house of YHWH.

3And all the sons of Israel looked upon the descending of the fire and the glory of YHWH upon the temple, and they bowed their faces to the ground on the pavement, and they worshiped and gave thanks to YHWH:

“For He is good,

truly forever is His loving devotion.”

Sacrifices of Dedication
(1 Kings 8:62–66)

4And the king and all the people offered sacrifices before YHWH. 5And King Solomon offered a sacrifice of the herd, twenty-two thousand, and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. And the king and all the people dedicated the house of God.

6And the priests were standing over their charges, and the Levites with instruments of the song of YHWH that David the king had made to give thanks to YHWH: “For forever is His loving devotion,” of David praising by their hand, and the priests sounded trumpets opposite them, and all Israel was standing.

7And Solomon consecrated the middle of the court that was in front of the house of YHWH, for he offered there the burnt offerings and the fat of the peace offerings, because the bronze altar that Solomon had made was not able to receive the burnt offerings, and the present, and the fat.

8And Solomon kept the feast† at that time seven days, and all Israel with him, a very great assembly, from the entrance of Hamath to the Brook of Egypt. 9And on the eighth day they made a solemn assembly, for the dedication of the altar they observed seven days, and the feast seven days.

10And on the twenty-third day of the seventh month he sent away the people to their tents, joyful and glad of heart for the good that YHWH had done to David, and to Solomon, and to Israel His people.

Yahweh’s Response to Solomon
(1 Kings 9:1–9)

11And Solomon finished the house of YHWH and the house of the king. And all that came into the heart of Solomon to do in the house of YHWH and in his own house, he accomplished. 12And YHWH appeared to Solomon by night and said to him,

“I have heard your prayer, and I have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. 13If I shut up the heavens and there is no rain, or if I lay charge upon the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, 14and My people upon whom My name is called will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from the heavens and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

15Now My eyes will be open, and My ears attentive, to the prayer in this place. 16For now I have chosen and sanctified this house, that My name may be there even to forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there all the days.

17And you, if you walk before Me as David your father walked, and do according to all that I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and My ordinances, 18then I will establish the throne of your kingdom, as I cut with David your father, saying, ‘There shall not be cut off to you a man to rule in Israel.’

19And if you⁺ turn away and forsake My statutes and My commandments that I have set before you⁺, and walk and serve other gods, and worship them, 20then I will uproot them from My land that I have given them, and this house that I have sanctified for My name, I will cast out from before My face, and I will make it a proverb and a byword among all the peoples.

21And this house that is a heap of rubble,† all who pass by it will be astonished and say, ‘Why has YHWH done thus to this land and to this house?’ 22And they will answer, ‘Because that they have forsaken YHWH, God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and embraced other gods, and worshiped them and served them, upon thus He has brought upon them all this evil.’”