2 Then doth Solomon assemble the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, princes of the fathers of the sons of Israel, unto Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of Jehovah from the city of David -- it `is' Zion.
And it is declared to king David, saying, `Jehovah hath blessed the house of Obed-Edom, and all that he hath, because of the ark of God;' and David goeth and bringeth up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the city of David with joy.
but the ark of God had David brought up from Kirjath-Jearim, when David prepared for it, for he stretched out for it a tent in Jerusalem;
For Jehovah hath fixed on Zion, He hath desired `it' for a seat to Himself, This `is' My rest for ever and ever, Here do I sit, for I have desired it. Her provision I greatly bless, Her needy ones I satisfy `with' bread, And her priests I clothe `with' salvation, And her pious ones do sing aloud. There I cause to spring up a horn for David, I have arranged a lamp for Mine anointed.
Jehovah is loving the gates of Zion Above all the tabernacles of Jacob.
and the Levites, the singers, to all of them, to Asaph, to Heman, to Jeduthun, and to their sons, and to their brethren, clothed in white linen, with cymbals, and with psalteries, and harps, are standing on the east of the altar, and with them priests, to a hundred and twenty, blowing with trumpets --
And all the work that Solomon made for the house of Jehovah is finished, and Solomon bringeth in the sanctified things of David his father, and the silver, and the gold, and all the vessels he hath put among the treasures of the house of God.
And David assembleth all the heads of Israel, heads of the tribes, and heads of the courses who are serving the king, and heads of the thousands, and heads of the hundreds, and heads of all the substance and possessions of the king, and of his sons, with the officers and the mighty ones, even to every mighty one of valour -- unto Jerusalem.
And they journey from the mount of Jehovah a journey of three days; and the ark of the covenant of Jehovah is journeying before them the journey of three days, to spy out for them a resting-place;
and they cast, they also, lots over-against their brethren the sons of Aaron, before David the king, and Zadok, and Ahimelech, and heads of the fathers, for priests and for Levites; the chief father over-against his younger brother.
And Shemaiah son of Nethaneel the scribe, of the Levites, writeth them before the king and the princes, and Zadok the priest, and Ahimelech son of Abiathar, and heads of the fathers, for priests and for Levites: one house of a father being taken possession of for Eleazar, and one being taken possession of for Ithamar.
And they bring in the ark of God, and set it up in the midst of the tent that David hath stretched out for it, and they bring near burnt-offerings and peace-offerings before God;
And it is David, and the elders of Israel, and the heads of the thousands, who are going to bring up the ark of the covenant of Jehovah from the house of Obed-Edom with joy;
Then doth Solomon assemble the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, princes of the fathers of the sons of Israel, unto king Solomon, to Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of Jehovah from the city of David -- it `is' Zion; and all the men of Israel are assembled unto king Solomon, in the month of Ethanim, in the festival -- `is' the seventh month. And all the elders of Israel come in, and the priests lift up the ark, and bring up the ark of Jehovah, and the tent of meeting, and all the holy vessels that `are' in the tent, yea, the priests and the Levites bring them up. And king Solomon and all the company of Israel who are met unto him `are' with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that are not counted nor numbered for multitude. And the priests bring in the ark of the covenant of Jehovah unto its place, unto the oracle of the house, unto the holy of holies, unto the place of the wings of the cherubs; for the cherubs are spreading forth two wings unto the place of the ark, and the cherubs cover over the ark, and over its staves from above; and they lengthen the staves, and the heads of the staves are seen from the holy `place' on the front of the oracle, and are not seen without, and they are there unto this day. There is nothing in the ark, only the two tables of stone which Moses put there in Horeb, when Jehovah covenanted with the sons of Israel in their going out of the land of Egypt. And it cometh to pass, in the going out of the priests from the holy `place', that the cloud hath filled the house of Jehovah, and the priests have not been able to stand to minister because of the cloud, for the honour of Jehovah hath filled the house of Jehovah.
And David captureth the fortress of Zion, it `is' the city of David.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on 2 Chronicles 5
Commentary on 2 Chronicles 5 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
2 Chronicles 5:1 contains the conclusion of the account of the preparation of the sacred utensils as in 1 Kings 7:51, and with it also the whole account of the building of the temple is brought to an end. The ו before את־הכּסף and את־הזּהב corresponds to the Lat. et - et , both - and also. As to David's offerings, cf. 1 Chronicles 18:10 and 1 Chronicles 18:11; and on the whole matter, compare also the remarks on 1 Kings 7:51.
The first part of the celebration was the transfer of the ark from Mount Zion to the temple (2 Chronicles 5:2-14), and in connection with this we have the words in which Solomon celebrates the entry of the Lord into the new temple (2 Chronicles 6:1-11). This section has been already commented on in the remarks on 1 Kings 8:1-21, and we have here, consequently, only to set down briefly those discrepancies between our account and that other, which have any influence upon the meaning. - In 2 Chronicles 5:3 the name of the month, האתנים בּירח (1 Kings 8:2), with which the supplementary clause, “that is the seventh month,” is there connected, is omitted, so that we must either change החדשׁ into בּחרשׁ , or supply the name of the month; for the festival is not the seventh month, but was held in that month.
Instead of הלויּם , we have in 2 Kings הכּהנים , the priests bare the ark; and since even according to the Chronicle (2 Chronicles 5:7) the priests bare the ark into the holy place, we must understand by הלויּם such Levites were also priests. - In 2 Chronicles 5:5, too the words הלויּם הכּהנים are inexact, and are to be corrected by 1 Kings 8:4, והלויּם הכּהנים . For even if the Levitic priests bare the ark and the sacred utensils of the tabernacle into the temple, yet the tabernacle itself (the planks, hangings, and coverings of it) was borne into the temple, to be preserved as a holy relic, not by priests, but only by Levites. The conj. ו before הלוים has probably been omitted only by a copyist, who was thinking of הלוים הכהנים (Joshua 3:3; Deuteronomy 17:9, Deuteronomy 17:18, etc.). - In 2 Chronicles 5:8 ויכסּוּ is an orthographical error for ויּסכּוּ , 1 Kings 8:7; cf. 1 Chronicles 28:18; Exodus 25:20. - In 2 Chronicles 5:9, too, מן־הארון has probably come into our text only by a copyist's mistake instead of מן־הקּדשׁ (1 Kings 8:8).
נתן אשׁר , who had given, i.e., laid in, is not so exact as שׁם הנּיח אשׁר (1 Kings 8:9), but may be justified by a reference to Exodus 40:20.
2 Chronicles 5:11-13 describe the part which the priests and Levitical singers and musicians took in the solemn act of transferring the ark to the temple-a matter entirely passed over in the narrative in 1 Kings 8:11, which confines itself to the main transaction. The mention of the priests gives occasion for the remark, 2 Chronicles 5:11 , “for all the priests present had sanctified themselves, but the courses were not to be observed,” i.e., the courses of the priests (1 Chron 24) could not be observed. The festival was so great, that not merely the course appointed to perform the service of that week, but also all the courses had sanctified themselves and co-operated in the celebration. In reference to the construction לשׁמור אין , cf. Ew. §321, b .
2 Chronicles 5:12
All the Levitic singers and musicians were also engaged in it, to make the festival glorious by song and instrumental music: “and the Levites, the singers, all of them, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, and their sons and brethren, clad in byssus, with cymbals, psalteries, and harps, stood eastward from the altar, and with them priests to 120, blowing trumpets.” The ל before כּלּם and the following noun is the introductory ל : “as regards.” On the form מחצררים , see on 1 Chronicles 15:24; on these singers and musicians, their clothing, and their instruments, see on 1 Chronicles 15:17-28 and 2 Chronicles 25:1-8.
2 Chronicles 5:13
2 Chronicles 5:13 runs thus literally: “And it came to pass, as one, regarding the trumpeters and the singers, that they sang with one voice to praise and thank Jahve.” The meaning is: and the trumpeters and singers, together as one man, sang with one voice to praise. כּאחד is placed first for emphasis; stress is laid upon the subject, the trumpeters and singers, by the introductory ל ; and היה is construed with the following infinitive ( להשׁמיע ): it was to sound, to cause to hear, for they were causing to hear, where ל c. infin. is connected with היה , as the participle is elsewhere, to describe the circumstances; cf. Ew. §237. But in order to express very strongly the idea of the unisono of the trumpet-sound, and the singing accompanied by the harp-playing, which lies in כּאחד , אחד קול is added to להשׁמיע . By וגו קול וּכהרים all that was to be said of the song and music is drawn together in the form of a protasis, to which is joined מלא והבּית , the apodosis both of this latter and also of the protasis which was interrupted by the parenthesis in 2 Chronicles 5:11 : “When the priests went forth from the holy place, for...(2 Chronicles 5:11), and when they lifted up the voice with trumpets and with cymbals, and the (other) instruments of song, and with the praise of Jahve, that He is good, that His mercy endureth for ever (cf. 1 Chronicles 16:34), then was the house filled with the cloud of the house of Jahve.” The absence of the article before ענן requires us thus to connect the יהוה בּית at the close of the verse with ענן ( stat . constr .), since the indefinite ענן (without the article) is not at all suitable here; for it is not any cloud which is here spoken of, but that which overshadowed the glory of the Lord in the most holy place.
2 Chronicles 5:14, again, agrees with 1 Kings 8:6, and has been there commented upon.