Cries and Prayers

“But will God indeed dwell with man on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You, how much less this house that I have built! Yet have regard to the prayer of Your servant and to his plea, O LORD my God, listening to the cry and to the prayer that Your servant prays before You, that Your eyes may be open day and night toward this house, the place where You have promised to set Your name, that You may listen to the prayer that Your servant offers toward this place.”—2 Chronicles 6:18-20

In our passage for today, the Chronicler records for us the prayer King Solomon made at the dedication of the Jewish temple—it was the fulfillment of the dream of his father David, to construct a house for the Lord. He started building in 966 or 967 B.C., completing it seven years later. When it was completed it was an exquisite and breathtaking structure. On the outside it was beautifully constructed according to God’s specific requirements, with numerous basins for cleaning the priests, an altar on which to burn sacrifice, two bronze pillars and two ornate wood folding doors. The inside was covered in wood paneling that was overlaid with gold and adorned with cherubim, palm trees, and pomegranates throughout. In the inner sanctuary there was what was known as the Most Holy Place, which housed the Ark of the Covenant, the most sacred of Jewish objects. It was to be God’s manifest dwelling place where the Ark of the Covenant, which housed the stones upon which were written the Ten Commandments, rested. It was a monumental and glorious time of celebration—God was with His people and they were at rest.

At the dedication, Solomon acknowledged that the house he constructed couldn’t possibly contain God, because He was and is bigger than anything imaginable. Indeed, nothing in all of the universe could contain Him! Nevertheless, God chose to dwell among His people Israel and Solomon prayed that God’s eyes might be continually toward the temple—a plea for His presence, protection, and provision for His people. Solomon reminds God of His promise to cause His name to dwell there—that is to say that God would in some way show Himself to be God to all who called to Him there. He would show His love, grace, peace, justice, righteousness, and compassion to His people by being ready and willing to answer their cries when they prayed.

Thinking of God loving us so much that He is ready and willing to hear our requests from heaven is beyond belief, but He did. He faithfully dwelt among the Israelites, granting them victory and rest, as long as they depended upon Him. But, their time of rest and safety was short-lived. Rest became comfort and comfort led to carelessness, which resulted in their condemnation. The Israelites turned from God and embraced the false gods of the surrounding nation. Finally, God had enough and gave them over to the Babylonians to be judged. The Babylonians came against Israel, destroyed the temple in 586 B.C., and took the Israelites into captivity—a sad indictment upon a nation that had seen God do so much in their history.

All was not over for the Israelites, however. They turned back to the Lord while in captivity and He allowed them to return to Israel under the leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah. The temple was rebuilt in 516 B.C. and then expanded several years later under Herod in 20 B.C., only for it to be destroyed by the Romans under Titus in 70 A.D. It was never to be rebuilt again.

Why is the temple important? And why should we as believers in Christ care? Because the temple was where God manifestly dwelt. He interacted with the people through the sacrificial system—it was where sin was atoned for and forgiven. As believers in Christ, we are beneficiaries of Christ’s atoning death on the cross. We don’t have to go to the literal temple any longer because we have God’s Spirit in us, enabling us to be called God’s temples (see 1 Corinthians 6:19). As God had His ear attentive to Israel’s cry day and night, so too does He hear us when we cry to Him day and night (Romans 8:26-27). He is not in any way separated from us, requiring us to go somewhere to sense His presence, but He is in us, and He knows us intimately—better than we know ourselves.

Solomon was amazed that God would dwell in the temple that he had built, but it is even more amazing that God would dwell in us. How often do we fail to commune with God’s Spirit within us? How much have we failed to realize that He hears us when we call, going so far as to intercede for us in prayer when we don’t know what to say (Romans 8:26-27)?

May we take courage to pray, knowing that God’s ear is attentive to our prayer, encouraged by the knowledge that He is within us, prompting us to pour out our precious petitions and pleas in times of trial and weakness, so that He may hear and answer during our time of need. Amen.