Chapter 7

  Now when Solomon's prayers were ended, fire came down from heaven, burning up all the offerings; and the house was full of the glory of the Lord.  

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  And the priests were not able to go into the house of the Lord, for the Lord's house was full of the glory of the Lord.  

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  And all the children of Israel were looking on when the fire came down, and the glory of the Lord was on the house; and they went down on their knees, with their faces to the earth, worshipping and praising the Lord, and saying, He is good; for his mercy is unchanging for ever.  

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  Then the king and all the people made offerings before the Lord.  

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  King Solomon made an offering of twenty-two thousand oxen, and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the people kept the feast of the opening of the house of God.  

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  And the priests were in their places, and the Levites with their instruments of music for the Lord's song, which David the king had made for the praise of the Lord whose mercy is unchanging for ever, when David gave praise by their hand; and the priests were sounding horns before them; and all Israel were on their feet.  

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  Then Solomon made holy the middle of the open square in front of the house of the Lord, offering the burned offerings there, and the fat of the peace-offerings; for there was not room on the brass altar which Solomon had made for all the burned offerings and the meal offerings and the fat.  

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  So Solomon kept the feast at that time for seven days, and all Israel with him, a very great meeting, for the people had come together from the way into Hamath and from as far as the river of Egypt.  

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  And on the eighth day they had a holy meeting; the offerings for making the altar holy went on for seven days, and the feast for seven days.  

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  And on the twenty-third day of the seventh month, he sent the people away to their tents, full of joy and glad in their hearts, because of all the good which the Lord had done to David and to Solomon and to Israel his people.  

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  So Solomon came to the end of building the house of the Lord and the king's house; and everything which it was in his mind to make in the house of the Lord and for himself had been well done.  

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  Now the Lord came to Solomon in a vision by night, and said to him, I have given ear to your prayer, and have taken this place for myself as a house where offerings are to be made.  

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  If, at my word, heaven is shut up, so that there is no rain, or if I send locusts on the land for its destruction, or if I send disease on my people;  

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  If my people, on whom my name is named, make themselves low and come to me in prayer, searching for me and turning from their evil ways; then I will give ear from heaven, overlooking their sin, and will give life again to their land.  

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  Now my eyes will be open and my ears awake to the prayers made in this place.  

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  For I have taken this house for myself and made it holy, so that my name may be there for ever; and my eyes and my heart will be there at all times.  

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  And as for you, if you will go on your way before me as David your father did, doing whatever I have given you orders to do and keeping my laws and my decisions:  

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  Then I will make strong the seat of your kingdom, as I gave my word to David your father, saying, You will never be without a man to be ruler in Israel.  

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  But if you are turned away from me, and do not keep my orders and my laws which I have put before you, but go and make yourselves servants to other gods, giving them worship:  

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  Then I will have this people uprooted out of my land which I have given them; and this house, which I have made holy for my name, I will put away from before my eyes, and make it an example and a word of shame among all peoples.  

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  And this house will become a mass of broken walls, and everyone who goes by will be overcome with wonder, and will say, Why has the Lord done so to this land and to this house?  

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  And their answer will be, Because they were turned away from the Lord, the God of their fathers, who took them out of the land of Egypt, and took for themselves other gods and gave them worship and became their servants: that is why he has sent all this evil on them.  

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