2 ChroniquesChapitre 6

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Then Solomon said: "The LORD has said that he would dwell in thick darkness.

And I have built for you a lofty house, a place for you to dwell in forever."

Then the king turned and blessed the whole assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel stood.

He said: "Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who with his own mouth spoke to my father David and with his own hand has fulfilled it, saying:

'From the day I brought my people out of the land of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel in which to build a house for my name to be there, and I chose no man to be ruler over my people Israel.

But I have chosen Jerusalem for my name to be there, and I have chosen David to be over my people Israel.'

Now it was in the heart of my father David to build a house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.

But the LORD said to my father David, 'Because it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart.

Nevertheless, you are not the one to build the house; your son, who will come from your own body, he shall build the house for my name.'

Now the LORD has kept the promise he made: I have succeeded my father David and taken my seat on the throne of Israel, just as the LORD promised, and I have built the house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.

There I have placed the ark, which contains the covenant of the LORD that he made with the people of Israel."

Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of the whole assembly of Israel and spread out his hands.

He had made a bronze platform five cubits long, five cubits wide, and three cubits high, and had set it in the middle of the court. He stood on it, knelt down before the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven,

and said: "LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven or on earth, keeping covenant and showing steadfast love to your servants who walk before you with all their heart.

You have kept your promise to your servant, my father David; what you spoke with your mouth you have fulfilled with your hand this very day.

Now therefore, LORD, God of Israel, keep for your servant, my father David, what you promised him when you said, 'You shall never fail to have a man to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your sons guard their way and walk in my law as you have walked before me.'

And now, LORD, God of Israel, let your word that you spoke to your servant David be confirmed.

But will God really dwell with man on the earth? Look, the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain you—how much less this house that I have built!

Yet turn toward the prayer of your servant and his plea for mercy, LORD my God; hear the cry and the prayer that your servant prays before you.

May your eyes be open toward this house day and night, toward the place where you said you would put your name, to hear the prayer that your servant prays toward this place.

Hear the pleas of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, the place where you dwell—hear and forgive.

If someone sins against his neighbor and is required to swear an oath, and he comes and swears before your altar in this house,

then hear from heaven and act. Judge your servants: condemn the guilty by bringing his conduct down on his own head, and vindicate the righteous by rewarding him according to his righteousness.

If your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against you, and they turn back and confess your name and pray and plead with you in this house,

then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them back to the land you gave to them and to their fathers.

If the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against you, and they pray toward this place and confess your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them,

then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel, teaching them the good way in which they should walk, and send rain on your land, which you gave to your people as an inheritance.

When famine or plague comes to the land, or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers, or when their enemies besiege them in any of their cities—whatever disaster or disease may come—

and when any prayer or plea is made by any person or by all your people Israel, each one knowing his own affliction and pain, and spreading out his hands toward this house,

then hear from heaven, the place where you dwell, and forgive. Deal with each person, whose heart you know, according to all his ways—for you alone know the hearts of all people.

so that they may fear you and walk in your ways all the days they live in the land you gave to our fathers.

And as for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but comes from a distant land because of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm—when he comes and prays toward this house,

then hear from heaven, the place where you dwell, and do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you as your people Israel do, and may know that this house I have built bears your name.

When your people go out to war against their enemies, wherever you send them, and they pray to you toward this city that you have chosen and the house I have built for your name,

then hear from heaven their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.

When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you become angry with them and hand them over to an enemy who takes them captive to a land far or near,

and if they come to their senses in the land of their captivity and repent and plead with you there, saying, 'We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly,'

and if they turn back to you with all their heart and all their soul in the land of their captivity where they were taken, and pray toward their land that you gave to their fathers, toward the city you have chosen and the house I have built for your name,

then hear from heaven, the place where you dwell, their prayer and their pleas, and uphold their cause; and forgive your people who have sinned against you.

Now, my God, let your eyes be open and your ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place.

And now arise, LORD God, and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might. May your priests, LORD God, be clothed with salvation, and may your faithful ones rejoice in what is good.

LORD God, do not reject your anointed one. Remember your steadfast love for David your servant."

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Résumé2

Chapitre 6

Main Theme: Solomon's dedicatory prayer at the temple, in which he asks God to hear the people's prayers in various situations of distress.

Content: Solomon blesses the assembly and praises God for fulfilling His promise to David that his son would build the temple. From a bronze platform, he kneels and offers an extensive prayer, acknowledging that even the highest heavens cannot contain God. He asks that God will hear prayers directed toward the temple in seven situations: disputes involving oaths, military defeat, drought, famine and plague, individual cries for help, prayers from foreigners, war and captivity. The prayer concludes with a plea for God to come to His resting place with the ark of the covenant.

Key Words/Images:

Bronze Platform – A 5x5x3 cubit platform where Solomon kneels before the entire assembly in humble prayer.
The Heaven of Heavens – An expression indicating that God is too great to be contained by any earthly structure, even the temple itself.
Forgiveness and Repentance – A recurring theme: when the people sin and turn back, God will hear and forgive.
Ark of Strength – The ark of the covenant as a symbol of God's presence and power among His people.

Contexte historique

Historical and Cultural Context for 2 Chronicles 6

People

Solomon appears in this chapter in his role as king-priest, a function that was unusual in Israel. At the temple dedication, he assumes a leading liturgical role by blessing the people and leading the great dedicatory prayer. This reflects the close connection between kingship and cult in ancient Israel, even though priestly functions normally belonged to the priests (the sons of Aaron), with the Levites as their assistants. The special position of the Davidic dynasty is emphasized through repeated references to the promises given to David (verses 4–17).

Places

The Temple in Jerusalem stands central as the newly completed sanctuary. The chapter describes the inner court (עֲזָרָה, azarah) where the bronze platform stood (verse 13). Archaeological investigations have not been able to locate Solomon’s temple directly due to later structures on the Temple Mount, but the descriptions correspond with other known temple structures from the Iron Age in the Levant.

The Bronze Platform (כִּיּוֹר נְחֹשֶׁת, kijor nechoshet) on which Solomon stood during prayer is described as five cubits long and wide, and three cubits high (about 2.5 x 2.5 x 1.5 meters). This detail appears only in Chronicles, not in the parallel text of 1 Kings 8, and shows the Chronicler’s interest in cultic details.

Events and Customs

The Dedicatory Prayer represents one of the longest prayers in the Old Testament. The prayer’s structure follows a pattern with seven specific prayer themes: oath/curse at the altar (verses 22–23), military defeat (verses 24–25), drought (verses 26–27), famine, pestilence, and blight (verses 28–31), the foreigner’s prayer (verses 32–33), war (verses 34–35), and captivity/exile (verses 36–39). This sevenfold pattern reflects completeness in Hebrew thought.

The Prayer Posture described—kneeling with outstretched hands toward heaven (verse 13)—was common in the ancient Near East. Egyptian and Mesopotamian depictions show similar postures in worship. The fact that the king kneels publicly emphasizes that even the most powerful in the kingdom bows before God.

Key Terms

"To dwell in thick darkness" (לִשְׁכּוֹן בָּעֲרָפֶל, lishkon ba'arafel) in verse 1 refers to the theophany tradition where God reveals himself in cloud and darkness (cf. Exodus 20:21; Deuteronomy 4:11). The term עֲרָפֶל (arafel) denotes the dense darkness that surrounds God’s presence and protects people from direct contact with the holy.

"To set your name there" (לָשׂוּם שִׁמְךָ שָׁם, lasum shimkha sham, verse 20) expresses a theology that balances God’s transcendence with his presence. God’s "name" represents his accessible presence without limiting him to the building. This concept is also found in Assyrian royal inscriptions where kings "set their name" on conquered territories to mark authority.

"The heavens and the heaven of heavens" (שָׁמַיִם וּשְׁמֵי הַשָּׁמַיִם, shamajim ushemei hashamajim) in verse 18 reflects the ancient Near Eastern idea of multiple heavenly spheres. The expression emphasizes God’s absolute transcendence—even the highest heaven cannot contain him.

Personnages3

David7 Solomon2 Jacob1

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Mots-clés7

Solomon — King Solomon was the son of King David and Bathsheba, and he is known for his wisdom and for building the temple in Jerusalem.
Temple — A holy place for worship and offerings to God, built by King Solomon in Jerusalem as a permanent home for the Ark of the Covenant and God's presence.
Prayer — Communication between people and God, where one asks for help, gives thanks, or expresses thoughts and desires.
Ark of the Covenant — A sacred chest that contained the stone tablets with the Ten Commandments, Aaron's staff, and a golden jar of manna. It symbolized God's presence and covenant with the people of Israel.
Forgiveness — God's act of removing sin and guilt from those who repent and seek his grace.
Foreigner — A person who does not belong to the nation of Israel but may come to the temple to pray to God and seek his blessing.
Sin — An action or thought that breaks God's will and laws, leading to separation from God and his blessings.