Building the Temple

1 Kings 5-7

            The Temple is described very similarly to the Tabernacle. It is bigger: 90 feet long compared to 45. But the relative dimensions are the same—3 times as long as it is wide. In chapter 7, Solomon has furnishings made, notably an altar for incense, a table for bread, and lampstands. Apparently the only part of the original Tabernacle that survived the full 480 years from the exodus was the ark of the covenant. It’s clear that the Temple is meant to be a permanent replacement for the tent in which the Lord had dwelt all those years. (More on the theology of the temple tomorrow.)

            Personally, I found Solomon’s introductory letter to Hiram king of Tyre most interesting. In it, Solomon notes that David couldn’t build the temple because he never had rest from his enemies. We heard that David wanted to build the temple in 2 Samuel 7, and we’ll read in 1 Chronicles 22 that David made many preparations for the temple’s eventual construction. But the Lord had said that Solomon would be the one to build it, and now he can because the kingdom has rest from its enemies (5:4). I find it interesting that the name Solomon in Hebrew (Shlomo) sounds a great deal like the Hebrew word for peace (shalom).

            So, flash forward a thousand years, and the book of John describes Jesus as a new tabernacle (1:14) and as a second temple (2:19-22). And tellingly, Jesus, who is in His very body the gracious presence of God, is also the source of true peace. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (14:27).

            When we talked so much about the tabernacle and the sacrifices in Leviticus, it was hard not to focus on the bloodiness of the whole thing. To be sure, there is bloodiness with Jesus; His passion and crucifixion are hardly tidy! But the focus should also include the peace that is created between God and humans, first in the sacrifices of Israel and finally in the sacrifice of Jesus.

            In find this sometimes, too, when I teach about the Lord’s Supper and the Real Presence of Jesus, that we eat and drink the body and blood of the Lord. People’s first reaction is often, “Gross!” (I explain that we eat and drink in a supernatural way, which is a topic for a different time.) But the larger point is to see the blessings that the Lord bestows through this holy supper, namely, forgiveness of sins, as Jesus says in the Words of Institution, and all that goes along with the forgiveness of sins.

            The temple is built by King Peace in a time of peace and its blessing is to establish and maintain peace between God and humans.