From Splendor to Shadow

The Surpassing Beauty of the Temple

Of unrivaled splendor was the palatial building Solomon erected for God and His worship. Garnished with precious stones and lined with carved cedar and burnished gold, the temple with its rich furnishings was a fit emblem of the living church of God on earth, which through the ages has been building with materials that have been likened to “gold, silver, [and] precious stones,” “polished after the similitude of a palace.” 1 Corinthians 3:12; Psalm 144:12. Christ is “the chief Cornerstone; in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord.” Ephesians 2:20, 21. SS 18.3

At last the temple was completed. “All that came into Solomon's heart to make in the house of the Lord,” he had “prosperously effected.” 2 Chronicles 7:11. Now, in order that the palace crowning Mount Moriah might indeed be a dwelling place “not for man, but for the Lord God” (1 Chronicles 29:1), there remained the solemn ceremony of dedicating it. SS 19.1

The spot on which the temple was built had long been regarded as consecrated. Here Abraham had revealed his willingness to sacrifice his only son in obedience to the command of Jehovah, who renewed the glorious Messianic promise of deliverance through the sacrifice of the Son of the Most High. See Genesis 22:9, 16-18. Here, when David offered offerings to stay the avenging sword of the destroying angel, God had answered him by fire. See 1 Chronicles 21:26. And now once more worshipers were here to meet their God and renew their vows of allegiance to Him. SS 19.2