1 Kings — Chapter 8

Dedication in the month Ethanim, the seventh month: Lapide notes the dedication of the Temple signified allegorically the dedication of the Church; tropologically, the dedication of the holy soul — especially of the Blessed Virgin, whom Peter Damian compares to Solomon's Temple in his sermon for the Nativity.

The Ark brought into the Temple — the Tabernacle of Moses also transferred: Lapide argues from Josephus, Ribera, Abulensis, Serarius, and Vilalpandus that both the Tabernacle of Moses from Gabaon and the Tabernacle of David from Sion were transferred into the Temple, so that no other place of divine worship would remain — a wise provision against superstition and idolatry.

A cloud filled the house of the Lord: God represented and simultaneously veiled His glory through the cloud. Lapide: \"Darkness is the veil of the Deity, just as a sacrament is. For it signifies that God is invisible and inaccessible to men.\" The priests could not stand to minister before the cloud — overcome by the divine majesty.

For the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord: Lapide: \"The cloud is called 'glory of the Lord' because it was the sign and symbol of God's glory. It was therefore luminous and splendid — a luminous darkness, if it may be so said — light in form of a dark cloud.\"

Solomon: \"I have built thee a house to dwell in, a settled place for thy throne for ever\": Lapide (following Cajetanus): The proper office of the Temple is not to provide God with a dwelling, but to provide men a direction of mind toward the eternal divine throne which is in the heavens. The Temple was built to direct men toward God who created heaven and earth and governs all.

Solomon stands before the altar with hands extended to heaven: Lapide notes Solomon prayed standing with both knees bent and both hands extended, as an example to all who pray: \"Let nobles and the glory-seeking note that Solomon, king of kings, prayed with both knees to the ground and both hands extended, and remained in this posture of supplication throughout his long prayer.\"

For heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house which I have built?: Lapide: God is immense, therefore He is everywhere and fills all things, and extends beyond all things through immeasurable spaces of void, wherein He could create thousands of millions of new worlds. Even pagan philosophers acknowledged this: Aratus wrote, \"Jupiter is whatever you see; all things are full of Jove.\"

And hear thou in the place of thy dwelling in heaven; and when thou hearest, be merciful: Solomon's prayer covers seven cases of supplication — oath-adjuration, military defeat, drought, famine and pestilence, the prayers of foreigners, war abroad, captivity. Lapide notes this comprehensive intercession as the model of all priestly and kingly prayer.

Moreover the stranger who is not of thy people Israel: Lapide: Solomon's prayer explicitly includes the Gentiles who come to pray in the Temple, that God may hear them so \"all peoples of the earth may learn to fear thy name.\" This is a type of the universal scope of the Church's intercession for all nations.

Solomon rises from prayer — \"for he had fixed both knees on the ground\": Lapide applies this to all Christians: Solomon king of kings kneeled on both knees; those who pray on one knee, leaving the other raised as if to challenge God, should take note and be ashamed.