Today, I am reading and commenting on  1 Kings 9-10.

When Solomon had completed building the Temple and his own palace, God appeared to him a second time (the previous time being when Solomon asked God for the wisdom to rule over His people).  God responded to Solomon’s prayer dedicating the Temple.  God told Solomon that His eyes and heart would always be present there.  Then God told Solomon that if he, or his descendants turn away from God, the Temple would become a ruin which would stand as a monument to their unfaithfulness (and, as a corollary of that a monument to God’s faithfulness).  I want to note that when God referred to Solomon He used the second person plural pronoun, meaning that He was talking not just to King Solomon, but to all of the people of Israel.  I think it is worth noting that the Temple is indeed a heap of rubble which stands as a monument to this day.  Yes, the Temple was rebuilt twice after being destroyed by conquerors, but I still think that its current status represents a memorial to God’s promise to King Solomon, and reminder to all of us of the dangers of turning our backs on God.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.