Hi daq,In this artwork what is wrong is that Solomon is facing the Temple building made with the hands of men; yet this is not the case according to the Scripture. Thus what this reveals, and almost all artwork concerning this occasion, is the fact that even to this day the same natural mindset of the natural man continues to prevail in the thinking that the temple building made with hands, made of wood, stones, gold, silver, brass, and iron, is somehow the dwelling place of God. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, this perception makes the Scripture out to have seemingly failed because the Most High has said that this first Temple, built by Solomon son of David, would be FOREVER the house of God. Therefore, if we perceive that this first temple building made with hands has been destroyed; then the Scripture is nullified in our minds whether we understand this or have not yet thought this through to its final implications, (but the Scripture is true though every man be a liar).
SOLOMON TURNS TO FACE THE PEOPLE:
1 Kings 8:12-14 KJV
12. Then spake Solomon, The Lord said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.
13. I have surely built thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever.
14. And the king turned his face about, and blessed all the congregation of Israel: (and all the congregation of Israel stood;)
Did Solomon merely "turn his face about" as the KJV renders it?
That is what the Hebrew implies and thankfully other translations render the statement more accurately:
1 Kings 8:14 RSV (Revised Standard Version)
14. Then the king faced about, and blessed all the assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel stood.
1 Kings 8:14 NJB (New Jerusalem Bible)
14. The king then turned round and blessed the whole assembly of Israel, while the whole assembly of Israel stood.
And from the 2 Chronicles 6:1-3 companion passage we read:
2 Chronicles 6:1-3 KJV
1. Then said Solomon, The Lord hath said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.
2. But I have built an house of habitation for thee, and a place for thy dwelling for ever.
3. And the king turned his face, and blessed the whole congregation of Israel: and all the congregation of Israel stood.
2 Chronicles 6:3 RSV
3. Then the king faced about, and blessed all the assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel stood.
2 Chronicles 6:3 NJB
3. Then the king turned round and blessed the whole assembly of Israel, while the whole assembly of Israel stood.
2 Chronicles 6:3 TUA - Transliterated Unaccented Bible
3. Wayaceb hamelek 'et- panayw waybarek 'et kal- qhalYisra'el, wkal- qhal Yisra'el `owmed.
Original Strong's Ref. #5437
Romanized cabab
Pronounced saw-bab'
a primitive root; to revolve, surround, or border; used in various applications, literally and figuratively (as follows):
KJV--bring, cast, fetch, lead, make, walk, X whirl, X round about, be about on every side, apply, avoid, beset (about), besiege, bring again, carry (about), change, cause to come about, X circuit, (fetch a) compass (about, round), drive, environ, X on every side, beset (close, come, compass, go, stand) round about, inclose, remove, return, set, sit down, turn (self) (about, aside, away, back).
"Wayaceb hamelek 'et- panayw" ~ "And turned round about the king to face them"…
2 Chronicles 2:2-3
2. But I have built an house of habitation for thee, and a place for thy dwelling for ever.
3. And turned round about the king to face them; and blessed the whole congregation of Israel: and all the congregation of Israel stood.
EVEN FROM OLD TIME ~ THE PEOPLE ARE THE TEMPLE!
Check and see for yourself in the contexts of the entire prayer of dedication from both passages: Solomon NEVER turns back around to face the newly built temple-building which was made with the hands of men, and with gold, and silver, and brass, and iron. If then the people are the Temple of the Most High then indeed the same Temple continues this very day, and forever, just as the Scripture states.
The Solomon Temple represents the Great Congregation Body of Messiah. :)
I enjoyed this post A LOT. Thank you!
It would be true to say that the great congregation (singular) is like the body of Christ (singular), but there is a huge difference, is there not, between the knowledge of God they had, and the knowledge of God we may have?