Reading 57 | The Bible in 100 Passages

Sunday, November 9, 2025  

Today's Scripture
1 Kings 8:1–13

Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the ancestral houses of the Israelites, before King Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion. All the people of Israel assembled to King Solomon at the festival in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month. And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests carried the ark. So they brought up the ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting, and all the holy vessels that were in the tent; the priests and the Levites brought them up. King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, who had assembled before him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and oxen that they could not be counted or numbered. Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, in the inner sanctuary of the house, in the most holy place, underneath the wings of the cherubim. For the cherubim spread out their wings over the place of the ark, so that the cherubim made a covering above the ark and its poles. The poles were so long that the ends of the poles were seen from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary; but they could not be seen from outside; they are there to this day. There was nothing in the ark except the two tablets of stone that Moses had placed there at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites, when they came out of the land of Egypt. And when the priests came out of the holy place, a cloud filled the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord.

Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in thick darkness. I have built you an exalted house, a place for you to dwell in forever.” (NRSV)

Reflection

The dedication of Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem was not merely the culmination of a seven-year building project; it was the culmination of centuries upon centuries of hopes surrounding the covenant promises given to Abraham. Prior to the construction of the temple, the tabernacle (a traveling tent shrine) served as the Israelites’ holiest place — a clear sign of God’s presence with the people. Having this fixed site of worship, though, was an unmistakable signal that there was something unique about this space — to quote God’s words to Moses in Exodus 3: “The place on which you are standing is holy ground.”

We feel similarly about our worship space. Fourth Church’s sanctuary inspires awe and reverence for the thousands upon thousands who come through our doors each year, and the beauty of the space certainly opens our hearts and minds to feel God’s presence with us. Yet the risk of sacred spaces and holy sites, both then and now, is that they can lead us to view God as being contained within their walls, separated from daily life in a way that is neither accurate nor helpful.

I am grateful there are places like our sanctuary, or Solomon’s Temple in antiquity, that invite us into moments of transcendence. Yet I also need to be challenged to remember God has blessed the world outside those walls as well. So, in the days and weeks ahead, may we be stretched to find reverence in people and places we might not initially expect, trusting God is indeed present and at work all around us.

Prayer

From places of beauty and wonder, to places of ugliness and fear, we trust that you are with us no matter what, O Lord. Help us seek your holiness in all that we do and in all whom we encounter. We pray this in Christ’s name. Amen.

Written by Matt Helms, Associate Pastor

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

Devotion index by date | I’d like to receive daily devotions by email