It seems rather funny to me that Solomon’s blessing on the people basically told of how blessed they were that God had fulfilled His promise to David in establishing Solomon his son as their king. That looks like a blessing for Solomon himself. However, in our land blessed with a stable government and a peaceful means for transferring power from one President to another, we have the luxury of taking firm leadership and a stable government for granted. Israel’s monarchy didn’t get the best start, and David’s dynasty was barely established at that point; they did not enjoy the luxury of taking a stable government for granted. This reminder offers us an opportunity to thank God for the blessings He has given us through our government, and even go a step further to pray for our leaders.
The Temple also felt more stable than the Tabernacle as a dwelling place for God in their midst. The building made of stone, cedar and gold was definitely more permanent than a tent made of animal skins. When God’s glory filled the Temple, He obviously approved of the place as He had the Tabernacle. He was good to give them the visible confirmation of His acceptance of the Temple and Jerusalem as the city where He would place His name, and of His presence in their midst. This would have cemented the relationship with God in the people’s eyes.
Notice that Solomon refers to the covenant between God and His chosen people as a covenant of love. The terms of the covenant are documented in the Law, but those rules are not the covenant. Rather, the covenant is about relationship, specifically a love relationship between God and His chosen people. Is that how you see your relationship with God?
If the relationship is a love relationship, why did Solomon have to pray the prayer he prayed, asking God to remember His people and respond to them in a loving way when they appealed to Him in the future? He didn’t presume upon God’s promises. He knew God was faithful beyond what the Covenant required Him to be, but he didn’t presume upon God’s faithfulness. He knew God loved His people and sought a love relationship with them, but he didn’t presume upon God’s love. He appealed to Him because He is a faithful and loving God. We also cannot presume upon God’s love and faithfulness. Are you presuming upon God because you have entered into relationship with Him by accepting His salvation? This is a great opportunity to speak to Him today about your relationship, and seek His input about it. If anything needs to be made right, now is a great time for confession and commitment. He wants to give each of us all the help we need to enjoy the intimacy with Him that He created us for and redeemed us for. We can always go deeper in our intimacy with Him; why not use this as an opportunity to seek that? If we neglect to do so, we risk stepping back from Him as Solomon did.