ThenSolomonassembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, untokingSolomon in Jerusalem, thattheymightbring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.
And theybrought up the ark of the LORD, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holyvesselsthatwere in the tabernacle, eventhose did the priests and the Levitesbring up.
And kingSolomon, and all the congregation of Israel, thatwereassembledunto him, werewith him before the ark, sacrificingsheep and oxen, thatcould not be told nor numbered for multitude.
And the priestsbrought in the ark of the covenant of the LORDunto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the mostholyplace, evenunder the wings of the cherubims.
And theydrew out the staves, that the ends of the staveswereseen out in the holyplacebefore the oracle, and theywere not seenwithout: and therethey are untothis day.
There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, whichMoses put there at Horeb, when the LORDmade a covenantwith the children of Israel, whentheycame out of the land of Egypt.
Since the day that I broughtforth my peopleIsrael out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to build an house, that my namemight be therein; but I choseDavid to be over my peopleIsrael.
And the LORDhathperformed his wordthat he spake, and I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORDpromised, and havebuilt an house for the name of the LORD God of Israel.
And I have set there a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant of the LORD, which he madewith our fathers, when he broughtthem out of the land of Egypt.
And he said, LORD God of Israel, there is no God likethee, in heavenabove, or on earthbeneath, who keepestcovenant and mercywith thy servantsthatwalkbeforetheewith all theirheart:
Who hastkeptwith thy servantDavid my fatherthatthoupromisedst him: thouspakestalsowith thy mouth, and hastfulfilled it withthinehand, as it is this day.
Therefore now, LORD God of Israel, keepwith thy servantDavid my fatherthatthoupromisedst him, saying, Thereshall not failthee a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel; so that thy childrentakeheed to their way, thattheywalkbefore me as thouhastwalkedbefore me.
Yet havethourespectunto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to hearkenunto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servantprayethbeforethee to day:
Thatthineeyes may be opentowardthishousenight and day, eventoward the place of whichthouhastsaid, My nameshall be there: thatthoumayesthearkenunto the prayerwhich thy servantshallmaketowardthisplace.
And hearkenthou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy peopleIsrael, whentheyshallpraytowardthisplace: and hearthou in heaven thy dwellingplace: and whenthouhearest, forgive.
Thenhearthou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head; and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness.
When thy peopleIsrael be smittendownbefore the enemy, becausetheyhavesinnedagainstthee, and shallturnagain to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, and makesupplicationuntothee in thishouse:
Whenheaven is shut up, and there is no rain, becausetheyhavesinnedagainstthee; if theypraytowardthisplace, and confess thy name, and turnfromtheir sin, whenthouafflictestthem:
Thenhearthou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy peopleIsrael, thatthouteachthem the good way whereintheyshouldwalk, and giverainupon thy land, whichthouhastgiven to thy people for an inheritance.
If there be in the landfamine, if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust, or if there be caterpillar; if theirenemybesiegethem in the land of theircities; whatsoeverplague, whatsoeversicknessthere be;
Whatprayer and supplicationsoever be made by any man, or by all thy peopleIsrael, whichshallknowevery man the plague of his own heart, and spreadforth his handstowardthishouse:
Thenhearthou in heaven thy dwellingplace, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whoseheartthouknowest; (for thou, eventhouonly, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;)
Hearthou in heaven thy dwellingplace, and do according to all that the strangercalleth to thee for: that all people of the earth may know thy name, to fearthee, as do thy peopleIsrael; and thatthey may knowthatthishouse, which I havebuilded, is called by thy name.
If thy people go out to battleagainsttheirenemy, whithersoeverthoushaltsendthem, and shallprayunto the LORDtoward the citywhichthouhastchosen, and toward the housethat I havebuilt for thy name:
If they sin againstthee, (for there is no man thatsinneth not,) and thou be angrywiththem, and deliverthem to the enemy, so thattheycarrythemawaycaptivesunto the land of the enemy, far or near;
Yet if theyshallbethinkthemselves in the landwhithertheywerecarriedcaptives, and repent, and makesupplicationuntothee in the land of themthatcarriedthemcaptives, saying, We havesinned, and havedoneperversely, we havecommittedwickedness;
And so returnuntotheewith all theirheart, and with all theirsoul, in the land of theirenemies, which led themawaycaptive, and prayuntotheetowardtheirland, whichthougavestuntotheirfathers, the citywhichthouhastchosen, and the housewhich I havebuilt for thy name:
And forgive thy peoplethathavesinnedagainstthee, and all theirtransgressionswhereintheyhavetransgressedagainstthee, and givethemcompassionbeforethem who carriedthemcaptive, thatthey may havecompassion on them:
Thatthineeyes may be openunto the supplication of thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy peopleIsrael, to hearkenuntothem in all thattheycall for untothee.
For thoudidstseparatethemfromamong all the people of the earth, to be thineinheritance, as thouspakest by the hand of Moses thy servant, whenthoubroughtest our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord GOD.
And it was so, thatwhenSolomon had made an end of praying all thisprayer and supplicationunto the LORD, he arosefrombefore the altar of the LORD, fromkneeling on his kneeswith his handsspread up to heaven.
Blessed be the LORD, thathathgivenrestunto his peopleIsrael, according to all that he promised: therehath not failed one word of all his goodpromise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.
That he may incline our heartsunto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.
And let these my words, wherewith I havemadesupplicationbefore the LORD, be nighunto the LORD our God day and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause of his peopleIsrael at all times, as the mattershallrequire:
And Solomonoffered a sacrifice of peaceofferings, which he offeredunto the LORD, two and twentythousandoxen, and an hundred and twentythousandsheep. So the king and all the children of Israeldedicated the house of the LORD.
The same day did the kinghallow the middle of the courtthat was before the house of the LORD for there he offeredburntofferings, and meatofferings, and the fat of the peaceofferings: because the brasenaltarthat was before the LORD was too little to receive the burntofferings, and meatofferings, and the fat of the peaceofferings.
And at thattimeSolomonheld a feast, and all Israelwith him, a greatcongregation, from the entering in of Hamathunto the river of Egypt, before the LORD our God, sevendays and sevendays, evenfourteendays.
On the eighth day he sent the peopleaway: and theyblessed the king, and wentuntotheirtentsjoyful and glad of heart for all the goodnessthat the LORD had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people.