King Solomon was the second child of David and Bathsheba, the youngest of David's sons mentioned in scripture and the only one worthy of assuming the throne. His wisdom is legendary, attracting global rulers to sit at his feet. His crowning glory, though, was the building of the temple that his father David envisioned during his reign.
It was built with cedar and cypress, adorned with carvings of gourds and flowers, all overlaid with gold, even the floor. Cherubim of gilded olivewood stood guard over the inner sanctuary, wings extending from wall to wall. Pillars of bronze decorated pomegranates and lilies stood at the vestibule. The vessels for use in the temple were cast in gold.
When the temple was completed, Solomon assembled all of Israel and brought the ark of the covenant into the Holy of Holies. A cloud, dark and thick, descended as God's presence filled the temple. And Solomon, the wise king of Israel, the builder of the dwelling place of the Almighty, lifted his hands to the heavens and prayed one of the most gorgeous prayers in all of scripture.
Solomon bowed his head and prayed first a prayer of thanksgiving for all that God had done, remembering promises that God made generations ago which were now brought to fruition. Solomon prayed to the God who keeps covenant and shows steadfast love for all people. The prayer was a prayer of thanksgiving for the privilege of building the temple, despite acknowledging that even the universe is not large enough to contain God, no edifice is sufficient to hold the glory of God, no manmade vessel as beautiful as God or as valuable as the mercy of God.
Solomon's prayer was in confidence to a God who is forgiving and just. Knowing that humanity is sinful, Solomon acknowledges that God alone brings reconciliation and, when humanity must bear the burden for the consequences of sin, Solomon prays for God to show mercy in those times as well.
Solomon included in his prayer a petition for the foreigners who will pray toward the temple, a petition that is unexpected and, I suspect, controversial. The king of God's elect, the builder of God's dwelling place on earth-a place reserved for those considered clean-prays for those who are foreign, unclean, unwelcome within the confines of the temple. He prays that they may have their prayers answered and come to know the God of Israel in all of God's majesty and mercy.
In this year of great global unrest and a contentious election year, I wonder how we could model our praying after Solomon's prayer. What could our prayers look like if we were bold enough to acknowledge that the God of Israel, the God of our churches, is indeed the God of all people? What difference would it make if in our public worship spaces lifted our prayers for the people of Syria, the innocent civilians as well as ISIS and those compelled to perpetrate the violence? What would it look like for life together in this nation if we lifted in prayer the names of Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and prayed for those in our political parties? How would we begin to frame those prayers for peace and reconciliation? As we just begin to study together issues around racism and mass incarceration, how do we frame prayers for a more just society for all of God's people? How would such prayers change the world? How would they change us?
Prayer is a powerful resource that calls us to remember the nature of God to be forgiving, reconciling, merciful and just. In prayer we remember that we are God's people. God has named and claimed us and calls us to be a people who cling to the promises of God. We are blessed to have the presence of God in the midst of us when we gather and when we are sent into the world. Prayer reminds us that we are forgiven and reconciled to God and to one another through Jesus Christ. Prayer reminds us that we are a loved people, called to be Christ's loving presence in the world.
Solomon's prayer is a beautiful model focusing our attention on God's faithfulness and mercy throughout the generations. It is a model inviting us to be in awe of the living God who continues to call us in this day and place to reach out to the stranger, the foreigner, the poor and the destitute, the sick and the dying, the young and the old. It is God's desire still, and always, that all people should be drawn to worship God's holy name.
