The Temple Is Set Apart to the Lord
1Solomon finished praying. Then fire came down from heaven. It burned up the burnt offering and the sacrifices. The glory of the Lord filled the temple. 2The priests couldn’t enter the temple of the Lord because his glory filled it. 3All the Israelites saw the fire coming down. They saw the glory of the Lord above the temple. So they got down on their knees in the courtyard with their faces toward the ground. They worshiped the Lord. They gave thanks to him and said,
“The Lord is good.
His faithful love continues forever.”
4Then the king and all the people offered sacrifices to the Lord. 5King Solomon sacrificed 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep and goats. So the king and all the people set the temple of God apart. 6The priests and Levites took their positions. The Levites played the Lord’s musical instruments. King David had made them for praising the Lord. They were used when he gave thanks to the Lord. He said, “His faithful love continues forever.” Across from where the Levites were, the priests blew their trumpets. All the people of Israel were standing.
7Solomon set the middle area of the courtyard apart to the Lord. It was in front of the Lord’s temple. There Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings. He also sacrificed the fat of the friendship offerings there. He did it there because the bronze altar he had made couldn’t hold it all. It couldn’t hold the burnt offerings, the grain offerings and the fat parts.
8At that time Solomon celebrated the Feast of Booths for seven days. The whole community of Israel was with him. It was a huge crowd. People came from as far away as Lebo Hamath and the Wadi of Egypt. 9On the eighth day they held a special service. For seven days they had celebrated by setting the altar apart to honor God. The feast continued for seven more days. 10Then Solomon sent the people home. It was the 23rd day of the seventh month. The people were glad. Their hearts were full of joy. That’s because the Lord had done good things for David and Solomon and his people Israel.
The Lord Appears to Solomon
11Solomon finished the Lord’s temple and the royal palace. He had done everything he had planned to do in the Lord’s temple and his own palace. 12The Lord appeared to him at night. The Lord said,
“I have heard your prayer. I have chosen this place for myself. It is a temple where sacrifices will be offered.
13“Suppose I close up the sky and there isn’t any rain. Suppose I command locusts to eat up the crops. And I send a plague among my people. 14But they make themselves humble in my sight. They pray and look to me. And they turn from their evil ways. Then I will listen to them from heaven. I will forgive their sin. And I will heal their land. After all, they are my people. 15Now my eyes will see them. My ears will pay attention to the prayers they offer in this place. 16I have chosen this temple. I have set it apart for myself. My Name will be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.
17“But you must walk faithfully with me, just as your father David did. Do everything I command you to do. Obey my rules and laws. 18Then I will set up your royal throne. I made a covenant with your father David to do that. I said to him, ‘You will always have a son from your family line to rule over Israel.’
19“But suppose all of you turn away from me. You refuse to obey the rules and commands I have given you. And you go off to serve other gods and worship them. 20Then I will remove Israel from my land. It is the land I gave them. I will turn my back on this temple. I will do it even though I have set it apart for my Name to be there. I will make all the nations hate it. They will laugh and joke about it. 21This temple will become a pile of stones. All those who pass by it will be shocked. They will say, ‘Why has the Lord done a thing like this to this land and temple?’ 22People will answer, ‘Because they have deserted the Lord. He is the God of their people who lived long ago. He brought them out of Egypt. But they have been holding on to other gods. They’ve been worshiping them. They’ve been serving them. That’s why the Lord has brought all this horrible trouble on them.’ ”
Salomo Bue Asɔredan No Ano
1Salomo wiee ne mpaebɔ no, ogya fi ɔsoro bɛhyew ɔhyew afɔre ne afɔrebɔde no, na Awurade anuonyam bɛhyɛɛ Asɔredan no ma. 2Asɔfo no mpo antumi anhyɛn Awurade Asɔredan no mu, efisɛ na Awurade anuonyam ahyɛ hɔ ma. 3Bere a Israelfo nyinaa huu sɛ ogya no reba fam, na Awurade anuonyam rehyɛ Asɔredan no ma no, wɔn nyinaa hwehwee fam de wɔn anim butubutuw hɔ, sɔree Awurade kamfoo no se,
“Oye!
Na nʼadɔe wɔ hɔ daa!”
4Afei, ɔhene no ne ne nkurɔfo no nyinaa bɔɔ afɔre maa Awurade. 5Ɔhene Salomo de anantwi mpem aduonu abien ne nguan mpem ɔha aduonu bae sɛ nʼafɔrebɔde. Enti ɔhene no ne manfo no nyinaa buee Onyankopɔn Asɔredan no ano. 6Asɔfo no gyinagyinaa wɔn afa, na saa ara na Lewifo a wɔreto dwom se, “Nʼadɔe wɔ hɔ daa!” no nso yɛe. Wɔde nnwontode a Dawid yɛe sɛ wɔmfa nkamfo Awurade no gyigyee nnwonto no ho. Asɔfo a wɔne Lewifo no di nhwɛanim no hyɛn ntorobɛnto, bere a na Israelfo no nyinaa gyinagyina hɔ no.
7Na afei, Salomo buee adiwo mfimfini a ɛwɔ Awurade Asɔredan no anim no ano, sɛnea ɛbɛyɛ a wobetumi abɔ ɔhyew afɔre na wɔahyew srade a efi asomdwoe afɔre mu no wɔ hɔ. Ɔyɛɛ saa, efisɛ kɔbere mfrafrae afɔremuka a na wasi no esua ma ɔhyew afɔre, atoko afɔre ne srade afɔre nyinaa no.
8Solomo dii Guankɔbea Afahyɛ toaa so nnanson na nnipadɔm fifi Israel mmusuakuw no nyinaa mu bae. Wofifi akyirikyiri te sɛ Lebo Hamat a ɛwɔ atifi fam kosi Misraim asuwa anafo fam no. 9Da a ɛto so awotwe7.9 Da a ɛto so awotwe—Ɛno ne Aponto Nnapɔnna da a edi akyiri (5.3; 3 Mose 23.36; 4 Mose 29.35) Nnanson…nnanson. Wɔyɛɛ dinto dwumadi no fi da a ɛto so awotwe kosi daa ɛto so dunan wɔ ɔsram no mu. Wɔde Aponto Nnapɔnna no toa so fi da a ɛto so dunum kosi da ɛto so aduonu abien. Mpata Afahyɛ no yɛ da a ɛto so du wɔ ɔsram ason no mu. (3 Mose 16; 1 Ah 8.65-66). no, wɔde afahyɛ no kɔɔ nʼawie, efisɛ na wɔde nnanson abue afɔremuka no ano na wɔde nnanson nso adi Guankɔbea Afahyɛ no. 10Afahyɛ no awiei no, Salomo maa obiara kɔɔ ne kurom. Wɔn nyinaa ani gyei, efisɛ na Awurade ne Dawid, Salomo ne nkurɔfo Israelfo adi no yiye.
Onyankopɔn Mmuae
11Na Salomo wiee Awurade Asɔredan no ne ahemfi no si. Owiee biribiara a ɔhyehyɛ too hɔ sɛ ɔbɛyɛ no. 12Afei, da bi anadwo, Awurade yii ne ho adi kyerɛɛ Salomo, na ɔka kyerɛɛ no se,
“Mate wo mpaebɔ, na mayi saa Asɔredan yi sɛ baabi a wɔmmɔ afɔre.
13“Ɛtɔ da a, ebia mɛto ɔsorosoro mu, enti osu rentɔ, anaa ebia mɛma mmoadabi abɛsɛe mo nnɔbae anaa ebia mɛma ɔyaredɔm aba mo so. 14Na sɛ me nkurɔfo a wɔde me din frɛ wɔn no bɛbrɛ wɔn ho ase, abɔ mpae, ahwehwɛ me, na wɔadan afi wɔn amumɔyɛsɛm ho a, mɛte wɔ ɔsoro, na mede wɔn bɔne akyɛ wɔn, asa wɔn asase yare. 15Mpae biara a wɔbɛbɔ wɔ ha no, metie, 16efisɛ mayi saa Asɔredan yi asi hɔ sɛ me fi daa daa. Mʼaniwa ne me koma bɛtena ha daa.
17“Na wo de, sɛ wudi mʼakyi sɛnea wʼagya Dawid yɛe, na wutie mʼahyɛde, di me mmara nyinaa so a, 18meremma obiara mfa wʼahengua nkɔ. Saa bɔ koro yi ara na mehyɛɛ wʼagya Dawid bere a mekaa se, ‘Meremma onipa a obedi Israel so hene mmɔ no no.’
19“Nanso, sɛ wugyaw me, na wubu mmara ne mʼahyɛde a mede ama mo no so, na wokɔsom anyame foforo a, 20ɛno de, metutu Israelfo ase afi mʼasase a mede ama wɔn yi so. Mɛpo saa Asɔredan a mayi asi hɔ a mede hyɛ me din anuonyam no. Mɛyɛ no ahohorade ama aman nyinaa ahu. 21Ɛwɔ mu, saa asɔredan yi yɛ fɛ de, nanso ɛbɛyɛ atantanne ama wɔn a wotwa mu wɔ ho no. Wobebisa se, ‘Adɛn nti na Awurade ama nneɛma a ɛyɛ hu sɛɛ aba nʼasase ne nʼAsɔredan yi so?’ 22Na mmuae bɛyɛ sɛ, ‘Efisɛ ne nkurɔfo poo Awurade, wɔn agyanom Nyankopɔn a oyii wɔn fii Misraim, kɔsom anyame foforo. Ɛno nti, na ɔmaa saa amanehunu yi nyinaa baa wɔn so.’ ”
