Solomon's Dream Concerning YHWH's Hallowing Of His House In Which YHWH Warns That By Itself The House Means Nothing. Its Continued Hallowing Will Depend On A Full Response By The House Of David To The Davidic Covenant And Thus Subsequently to the Mosaic Covenant (1 Kings 9:1-10).
The importance of this passage, which provides us with YHWH's response to Solomon's dedication, is brought out by an inclusio formed by 1 Kings 9:1; 1 Kings 9:10, stressing the connection of the words with Solomon's successful completion of YHWH's House and the King's Palace Complex, which it is once again emphasised took up twenty years to build, taking us some way into the second half of his reign.
In it YHWH declares that He has hallowed (separated off totally to Himself) the House to put His Name there for ever, so that His eyes and heart would be there perpetually. In other words He has accepted it as taking the place of the Tabernacle and the Sacred Tent, where His Name had previously been (2 Samuel 6:2 and context). From then on there would be a sense in which His personal presence would ever be there as expressed through His eye and heart. But it was conditional. For if the house of David, and the people, failed to walk in the ways of David, the House would simply be cast out of His sight and become a place to be hissed at. The House in itself meant nothing apart from the loving and obedient response of the people.
The idea of the House being ‘hallowed' is typically Mosaic (although not Deuteronomic). In Exodus 29:42-44 YHWH speaks of ‘the door of the Tent of Meeting before YHWH, where I will meet with you, to speak there to you, and there I will meet with the children of Israel, and it will be hallowed by my glory, and I will hallow the Tent of Meeting, and the altar. Aaron also and his sons will I hallow to minister to me in the priest's office. And I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God. And they will know that I am YHWH their God, Who brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them. I am YHWH their God.'
We note in the passage in Exodus the same emphasis as we find here on the hallowing of YHWH's sanctuary; on YHWH's dwelling with His people; and on them knowing that He is YHWH their God Who brought them forth out of the land of Egypt. It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that Exodus 29:42-44 was in mind in these words spoken to Solomon.
A further more indirect reference is found in Leviticus 21:23, where YHWH speaks of ‘hallowing -- My sanctuaries' (i.e. the whole sanctuary including the inner court). These two are the only previous references to the ‘hallowing of the Sanctuary', an idea which is not found at all in Deuteronomy, where sanctifying is always by the people (Deuteronomy 5:12, of the Sabbath; Deuteronomy 15:19, of the firstborn; Deuteronomy 32:51, of Moses and Aaron failing to hallow God before the people), the concept which is found most regularly throughout the Law of Moses.
It will be noted in the chiasmus of the section that this dream concerning the ‘hallowing' of the House parallels the passage where the Ark was brought into the Temple and the cloud of YHWH descended on it, thus hallowing it with His presence.
Analysis.
a And it came about, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of YHWH, and the king's house, and all Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do, that YHWH appeared to Solomon the second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon (1 Kings 9:1-2).
b And YHWH said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your supplication, that you have made before me. I have hallowed this house, which you have built, to put my name there for ever, and my eyes and my heart will be there perpetually” (1 Kings 9:3).
c “And as for you, if you will walk before me, as David your father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, and will keep my statutes and my ordinances” (1 Kings 9:4).
d “Then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel for ever, according as I promised to David your father, saying, ‘There shall not fail you a man on the throne of Israel'.” (1 Kings 9:5).
c “But if you shall turn away from following me, you or your children, and not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but shall go and serve other gods, and worship them” (1 Kings 9:6).
b “Then I will cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them, and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight, and Israel will be a proverb and a byword among all peoples, and though this house is so high (or ‘this house shall be very high'), yet will every one who passes by it be astonished, and will hiss, and they will say, “Why has YHWH done thus to this land, and to this house?” “And they will answer, ‘Because they forsook YHWH their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshipped them, and served them. Therefore has YHWH brought all this evil on them” (1 Kings 9:7-9).
a And it came about at the end of twenty years, in which Solomon had built the two houses, the house of YHWH and the king's house (1 Kings 9:10).
Note that in ‘a' the emphasis is on the fact that this took place when both the Temple and the Palace Complex were complete, and in the parallel the same is emphasised. In ‘b' YHWH declares that He has hallowed the House, so that His presence would be there, but in the parallel warns that the hallowing of the House is totally dependent on their faithfulness to Him so that if they are unfaithful it will be cut off and will become a place of hissing. In ‘c' obedience in accordance with the ways of David is required, and in the parallel the possibility of the opposite is expressed. Centrally in ‘d' the dynasty of David will be permanently established for ever.
‘ And it came about, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of YHWH, and the king's house, and all Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do, that YHWH appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon.'
This point at which Solomon had completed his desire to build the Temple and the Palace Complex is to be the second major moment of his life, the first having been when YHWH spoke with him at Gibeon. This is in itself a reminder that in spite of his great wisdom he received few direct revelations from God, for this was only his second visitation in twenty years. In it God accepted the genuineness of his attempt to please Him and accepted his gesture, but on conditions. God was already aware, as Solomon was not, of the wayward tendencies in his life. If he was to enjoy the blessing promised to David, he must walk as David walked.
‘ And YHWH said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your supplication, that you have made before me. I have hallowed this house, which you have built, to put my name there for ever, and my eyes and my heart will be there perpetually.” '
YHWH began by declaring that He had heard Solomon's prayer and supplication that he had made ‘before Him' (in the Temple area). And as a result He had hallowed ‘this House' just as He had previously hallowed the Tabernacle (Exodus 29:42-44; Leviticus 21:23). ‘This House' is then defined as that in which Solomon had intended to ‘put His Name', that is, in which he would house the Ark of the Covenant of YHWH (2 Samuel 6:2). And YHWH's response is that as a result His eyes and His heart would be there perpetually. This connects up with the cloud of YHWH which had descended on the House in 1 Kings 8:10-11 once the Ark was brought into it, thus doubly hallowing the House, as similarly occurred in Exodus 40:34-38.
“My eyes --- will be there ---.” Solomon's prayer had been that the eyes of YHWH would be upon this House (1 Kings 8:29; 1 Kings 8:52), in order that He might hear His people's intercession, especially as regards forgiveness. Thus YHWH was promising that His eye would be there so that He would ever be ready to regard their genuine cry, and if necessary forgive. But the eye was regularly seen as the instrument of judgment (Deuteronomy 19:13; Deuteronomy 19:21; Deuteronomy 25:12; 2 Samuel 22:28; Psalms 11:4; Psalms 66:7). Thus it includes the thought that the eyes of YHWH would watch over His people, both in order to ensure that they were fulfilling His requirements (Deuteronomy 13:18; 2 Samuel 22:28; Psalms 11:4), and in order to demonstrate His continual compassion towards them (Genesis 6:8; Deuteronomy 11:12; Deuteronomy 32:10; Psalms 17:8; Psalms 32:8; Psalms 33:18; Psalms 34:15).
“My heart will be there.” If they were willing to hear Him and serve Him His heart would perform His will towards them. The heart was the seat of mind, will and emotion, and YHWH's heart represented His very self (Genesis 6:6; Genesis 8:21). He would be there ready to act on their behalf, both for good and for bad.
For the combination of ‘prayer and supplication' see 1 Kings 8:28; 1 Kings 8:38; 1Ki 8:45; 1 Kings 8:49; 1 Kings 8:54; Psalms 6:9; Psalms 55:1; Psalms 86:6; Psalms 143:1. For the hallowing of His House see Exodus 29:42-44; Leviticus 21:23. For man seen as putting YHWH's Name somewhere see 2 Samuel 6:2 in context. There may be a hint in the phrasing of dissatisfaction with an unsought for situation. This was where Solomon had set His Name, not where YHWH had sought to set His Name (Deuteronomy 12:5), even though, as in the case of the kingship, He would align Himself with man's genuine efforts and seal them as His own.
“ And as for you, if you will walk before me, as David your father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, and will keep my statutes and my ordinances, then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel for ever, according as I promised to David your father, saying, ‘There shall not fail you a man on the throne of Israel'.”
As so often in the Torah (Leviticus 26:3; Leviticus 26:14; Deuteronomy 28:1; Deuteronomy 28:15) contrasting choices are offered to Solomon. Here the call is to walk before YHWH as David walked, in both integrity of heart and in uprightness (compare the Davidic Psalms 25:1), which would involve doing all that YHWH commanded and keeping His statutes, and His ordinances. The consequence would then be that YHWH would establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel for ever, just as He had promised David (2 Samuel 7:13; 2 Samuel 7:16). This would fulfil His promise to David that, ‘there shall not fail you a man on the throne of Israel' (compare 1 Kings 2:4; 1 Kings 8:25).