Unit 9: King David and King Solomon OT9.16 Solomon Builds ......1 OT9.15 Solomon Builds the Temple...

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OT9.15 Solomon Builds the Temple ©Beverly Wilson 2019

Unit 9: King David and King Solomon OT9.16 Solomon Builds the Temple

Scripture: 1 Kings 5-8

Lesson Goal: Solomon was chosen by his father King David to become the third King of Israel. In this lesson we will learn how Solomon showed his love for God by building the Temple in Jerusalem.

Introduction: This lesson is found in the book of 1 Kings. This book tells the history of the kings of Israel and Judah. It is in the second group of Old Testament books called the historical books. These books begin with Joshua and go through Esther. Let's say these books--Joshua, Judges, Ruth, I Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther

Attention Getter: “Gifts” How do you feel when someone gives you a gift? Do you feel happy and excited? I feel so happy when I finally get something that I have wanted for a long time, don't you? Did you know that God is happy when we give Him gifts? Have you ever thought about what you could give to God? In this lesson we will learn how King Solomon showed his love for God by building the Temple in Jerusalem

Opening Prayer: Dear Father in heaven, thank you for this lesson about how Solomon built a temple to honor you. Thank you for the wonderful way that you have provided for us. You have given us food to eat and a warm bed to sleep in. We have families that love us. Most of all you have given us the best gift of all--salvation. Help us to believe in you and trust in you as our Savior. Lord, give us grateful hearts, running over with the desire to show you how much we love you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Memory Verse: The memory verse is 2 Corinthians 9:7 "God loves a cheerful giver."

Lesson Video: https://youtu.be/bI8qWN4_TJk King David was the greatest King of Israel because he loved the Lord his God with all his heart. One of King David’s desires was to build a temple building in Jerusalem where the Lord could be worshipped. However God did not allowed King David to build the temple because he had been a man of war. So King David prepared a plot of land on a high hill in the city of Jerusalem for his son to build the temple. He also gathered some of the building materials that he would need. He even collected a great amount of gold to be used in the construction. Just before David the king of Israel died, he told his son Solomon that he would be the next king. King David also told Solomon that he should build a temple for God. He gave him the instructions for building the temple. He said, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work, for the Lord is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work is finished.” Solomon was a young man when he became the King of Israel. He showed his love for God by worshipping Him and offering a thousand burnt offerings on the altar. That night the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream. God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”

https://youtu.be/bI8qWN4_TJk

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Solomon knew that he did not have the experience or wisdom to govern the nation of Israel so he asked God for wisdom. God was very pleased with Solomon so He gave him not only wisdom but great wealth, much knowledge, and much power. Soon King Solomon became very rich. As the king he could do anything he wanted with all his gold and silver, and food. But Solomon loved God and he was grateful for all the gifts God had given him. Solomon wanted to give a gift to God. He decided to use his riches to build a beautiful temple where people could worship God. Solomon knew that he would need big strong beams to build a temple. He knew that the only place where trees grew that were big enough to make these beams were the cedar trees in Lebanon. The cedar trees in Lebanon were owned by his friend King Hiram. So King Solomon sent word to King Hiram and made a deal to purchase logs from the trees. This was the deal. King Hiram needed wheat, barley and olive oil for food for his royal household so Solomon traded these for the trees. Solomon sent over 20,000 bushels of wheat to King Hiram and his family. Over 30,000 woodcutters were needed to work in shifts to cut the tall trees in Lebanon. King Hiram and King Solomon's men worked together to chop down the large hardwood trees. The cedar trees and juniper trees were then floated down the coast to Joppa. Next they were pulled ashore and then hauled overland to Jerusalem. These logs would be used to make the strong beams and frame for the temple building. The men worked ten months just to get the logs! This was a huge job! Building the temple was a big job so King Solomon knew that he needed a very dependable man to oversee the construction. So he put a man named Adoniram in charge of the workers. King Solomon and Adoniram would work and plan together every day to make sure the temple building was going on as planned. King Solomon also needed some large stones to use to build the walls of the temple. So he sent 80,000 stone cutters to the hills to cut huge blocks of stone. These blocks of stone were very heavy and they had to be moved to Jerusalem where the temple was to be built. Solomon then sent 70,000 men to carry the stones from the hills back to the city of Jerusalem. This was long hard work because there were no cranes or heavy trucks to move the stones. They all had to be carried by hand! When the big block stones arrived King Solomon told the workers to lay a strong foundation for the walls of the building. The blocks were already cut because King Solomon ordered that the place of the temple was to be very quiet. No hammer sounds or chisel noise or other iron tools were allowed! After the stone walls were laid, King Solomon had the inside of the temple walls lined with cedar boards. Everything inside the temple was covered with cedar so that no part of the stones could be seen. The panels reached from the floor to the ceiling of the temple. All the walls were then beautifully carved with angels, palm trees and flowers. The temple was three stories tall! It was 90 feet wide and 30 feet long and 45 feet tall. All along the top of the third story King Solomon had the workers put in narrow tall windows. These windows let in the sunshine so the inside of the temple was bright and beautiful. But King Solomon was not done yet! Next he sent for gold, silver, and bronze from all over the land to be brought to the city of Jerusalem to use in the temple. These were very precious metals and very valuable. All this gold and silver was melted down and used to line the whole inside of the temple! The temple walls, the floor, and the altar were all covered with pure gold. The inner sanctuary or the Holy Place was over laid inside with pure gold. The floors of the inner and outer rooms were also covered with gold.

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The temple had a special room called the "The Holy of Holies". This was the place where the Ark of the Covenant was to be kept. The Ark of the Covenant had two cherubim or angels on the top of it. The Ark of the Covenant and the angels were all covered with pure gold! Just outside the Holy of Holies was another room called the Holy Place. The walls in this room were also covered with gold. In this room was a special candlestick. Solomon had special craftsman make the candlestick. It was called the Golden Lampstand and it had seven places for light to burn. The lampstand sat next to a table called the Table of Shewbread with some special dishes. All of these were covered with beautiful gold! What a wonderful beautiful sight this was! Bright, shiny gold! Another piece of furniture in the Holy Place was the Altar of incense. The basins were made of pure gold along with wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, dishes and censers. On the walls inside the temple were carvings of gold floral work, large golden cherubim, golden lamps and tongs. Even the silver and gold furnishings that King David had dedicated when he was alive were brought into the temple. What a beautiful place it was! Inside the temple were special curtains that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. The weavers worked many long months making the drapes. The cloth was woven with gold thread. Then they were embroidered with silk thread that was dyed in rich colors. At the entrance to the temple King Solomon had his carpenters make doors of olive wood. The doors turned in carved sockets. He had the carvers engrave cherubim, palm trees, and flowers on the doors. Then all the doors were overlaid with gold that was spread evenly over the carvings! But Solomon was not done yet! He built a special porch with tall columns outside the temple. Top craftsmen were hired from King Hiram to make two large pillars for the portico of the temple. The portico or porch had a roof with long beams that rested on the columns. Outside the temple gate was a large wash basin which stood on top of twelve bronze bulls. Ten movable stands and basins were also crafted in bronze. This project took King Solomon and over 150,000 laborers over a period of seven years to build! The temple was like no other building that has ever been built! It was incredibly beautiful and very expensive to build! When the temple was done, King Solomon called all the leaders of the people of Israel together. He told them to come together for a great worship service. They would bring the Ark of the Covenant from the tabernacle into the temple. On the day of the dedication, everyone worshipped God. After offering a sacrifice, the priests carried the Ark of the Covenant to the temple. Solomon led all the people in a joyful parade to take the ark to the temple. The musicians blew their trumpets and played the cymbals. The people sang a song praising the Lord. They said, "For He is good and His mercy endures forever!" The procession led right into the temple. The Ark of the Covenant was put in the Most Holy Place beneath the wings of the cherubim. Then the priests left the Holy Place. After the ark was placed in the Temple, an amazing thing happened! Suddenly the Temple was filled with a cloud. The cloud of the glory of the Lord filled the place and it was so overwhelming that the priests were unable to perform their duties. Solomon knew the cloud was God's way of saying that He was there and that He was very, very pleased with this temple! Solomon stood in front of the temple and prayed to God. He turned to the people and blessed them. Then he spread his arms and knelt and prayed. Solomon thanked God for keeping His promises to all the people. He also asked God to take care of all the people forever.

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God listened to Solomon's prayer of dedication for the Temple and He promised to be with the Israelites. God said, “I have consecrated this temple by putting my Name there forever. If you obey me you will never fail to have a successor on the throne of Israel.” “But if you or your descendants turn away from me and worship other gods I will cut them off from the Promised Land and this temple will become a heap of rubble.” They offered 22,000 cattle and a 120,000 sheep and goats in a sacrifice. They thanked the Lord for His goodness and mercy and for helping them to complete such an important job. The people were so happy! They stayed at the temple and celebrated for 14 days! Because God had given Solomon so many wonderful gifts, Solomon wanted to give something to God to show his love and thanks. Building the temple was his gift to God. Solomon gave cheerfully all his riches! Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived. He knew that God is pleased when we give cheerfully to him. God has given you and me so many good things. What is something that you are glad God has given you? Are you glad for your family, your home, your food or for our church? We should remember to thank God for these things. It pleases God when we show Him our love and thanks! Have you ever thought about what you could give to God to show Him your thanks? We can give Him our time. We can spend time reading the Bible or praying. We can spend time visiting a sick friend or neighbor. Or we can help others such as our mom or dad. Did you know that God can use our money? God needs money to buy supplies that we need for church. He also needs money to help support our pastor and his family or to send to our missionaries. We can give money to help people in need. There are lots of ways that we can show our love and thanks to God. It is important to be a giving person but it more important to have a good attitude when we give to God. God wants us to be a cheerful giver. Being a cheerful giver means that we do not grumble or complain about giving. We gladly give of our time and money. God has given us the most valuable gift in the whole world. He has given us His Son to die on the cross for our sins. Because of the things that we have done that are wrong, the Bible says that we do not deserve to go to heaven. Our sins have to be punished. That is what Christ did for us on the cross. He loved us so much that He paid the punishment for our sins. When we believe in Jesus as our Savior and ask Him to save us He gives us the gift of salvation. We can go to heaven and be with him when we die. To show that we love him we can give him our love. We can give God our lives in service. This is the way we show our love and thanks. Remember show your love for God by being a cheerful giver!

Review Questions/ Game: “Gift Box” Preparation: Put each of the following questions into a small gift box or in a single decorated box. Say: “In this lesson we learned that Solomon loved God and wanted to

thank Him for all the wonderful gifts that He had given Israel. Solomon built the temple in Jerusalem as a way to show His thanks. The temple was a magnificent building that surpassed all the other structures of its day.”

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Procedure: Give each child a box to open and answer the enclosed question. Or, you can put them all into a single decorated box and let the children take turns pulling a question out of the box.

1. When King David chose Solomon to become the King of Israel what command did he give him? (King

David told Solomon that he should build a temple for God. He gave him the instructions for building the temple. He said, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work, for the Lord is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work is finished.”)

2. How did King David start the process of building the temple? (King David prepared a plot of land on a high hill in the city of Jerusalem for his son to build the temple. He also gathered some of the building materials that he would need. He even collected a great amount of gold to be used in the construction.)

3. What did King Solomon do to show that he wanted to obey God? (Solomon offered sacrifices to God.) 4. What kinds of problems did Solomon face when he became king? (He was young and needed to

know how to be a good king. Ruling a country is a big job and requires a lot of wisdom.) 5. What question did God ask King Solomon in a dream? (God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to

give you.”) 6. What did King Solomon ask God to do for him? (He asked God to give him the gift of wisdom.) 7. What did God give Solomon? (God was very pleased with Solomon so He gave him not only wisdom

but great wealth, much knowledge, and much power.) 8. What gift did King Solomon want to give God in thanks for all that God had done for him? (King

Solomon wanted to build a temple for God so all could come and worship Him.) 9. Where did Solomon get the wood to build the beams for the temple? (He knew that the only place

where trees grew that were big enough to make these beams were the cedar trees in Lebanon.) 10. Who owned the trees in Lebanon? (The cedar trees in Lebanon were owned by his friend King Hiram.

So King Solomon sent word to King Hiram and made a deal to purchase logs from the trees.) 11. What was the trade that King Solomon offered King Hiram for the logs? (King Hiram needed wheat,

barley and olive oil for food for his royal household so Solomon traded these for the trees. Solomon sent over 20,000 bushels of wheat to King Hiram and his family.)

12. How did Solomon get the logs from the trees in Lebanon to the city of Jerusalem? (Over 30,000 woodcutters were needed to work in shifts to cut the tall trees in Lebanon. King Hiram and King Solomon's men worked together to chop down the large hardwood trees. The cedar trees and juniper trees were then floated down the coast to Joppa. Next they were pulled ashore and then hauled overland to Jerusalem.)

13. How did Solomon get the stone building blocks for the temple walls? (He sent 80,000 stone cutters to the hills to cut huge blocks of stone. Solomon then sent 70,000 men to carry the stones from the hills back to the city of Jerusalem. This was long hard work because they all had to be carried by hand.)

14. What did the inside walls of the temple look like? (King Solomon had the inside of the temple walls lined with cedar boards. The panels reached from the floor to the ceiling of the temple. All the walls were then beautifully carved with angels, palm trees and flowers and then covered with a coating of pure gold.)

15. How large was the temple building? (The temple was three stories tall! It was 90 feet wide and 30 feet long and 45 feet tall.)

16. How was the temple lighted? (All along the top of the third story King Solomon had the workers put in narrow tall windows. These windows let in the sunshine so the inside of the temple was bright and beautiful.)

17. What material was used to cover all the furniture, utensils, and floor of the temple? (Everything was covered with pure gold.)

18. What separated the two rooms—the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies—in the temple? (Special curtains separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. The weavers worked many long months making the drapes. The cloth was woven with gold thread. Then they were embroidered with silk thread that was dyed in rich colors.)

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19. What was built outside the walls of the temple in the courtyard? (Outside the temple gate was a large wash basin which stood on top of twelve bronze bulls. Ten movable stands and basins were also crafted in bronze. There was also a large altar for burnt offerings.)

20. How long did King Solomon work on this project? (King Solomon and 150,000 laborers worked over a period of seven years to build the temple.)

21. What things did Solomon and the people do to dedicate the new temple to God? (King Solomon and all the leaders of the people of Israel came together for a great worship service. Solomon had a prayer of dedication. They had a large sacrifice of animals and then led a procession to bring the Ark of the Covenant from the tabernacle into the temple. The musicians blew their trumpets and played the cymbals. The people sang a song praising the Lord. They said, "For He is good and His mercy endures forever!")

22. What happened after the Levites placed the Ark of the Covenant in the Most Holy Place beneath the wings of the cherubim? (God descended upon the temple in a great cloud of his glory and the priests had to leave the Holy Place.)

23. What was the meaning of the cloud of the glory of the Lord? (Solomon knew the cloud was God's way of saying that He was there and that He was very, very pleased with this temple!)

24. What promise did God give to Solomon and the people on the day of the dedication? (God said, “I have consecrated this temple by putting my Name there forever. If you obey me you will never fail to have a successor on the throne of Israel. But if you or your descendants turn away from me and worship other gods I will cut them off from the Promised Land and this temple will become a heap of rubble.”)

25. How did Israel respond when they heard that God was pleased with the temple? (They offered 22,000 cattle and a 120,000 sheep and goats in a sacrifice. They thanked the Lord for His goodness and mercy and for helping them to complete such an important job. The people were so happy that they stayed at the temple and celebrated for 14 days!)

26. What are some good gifts that God has given us? (God has given us family, homes, food, church, and friends.)

27. How can we show our thanks to God for these gifts? (We can give Him our time by reading the Bible, praying, visiting a sick friend or neighbor, giving money to God, helping our mom or dad, and telling others about Jesus.)

28. What is the most important thing that we should remember about giving to God? (It is more important to have a good attitude or give cheerfully when we give to God. Being a cheerful giver means that we do not grumble or complain about giving.)

29. What is the greatest gift God has given us? (God has given us His Son to die on the cross for our sins. We can respond to His love by believing in Jesus as our Savior.)

30. What is the memory verse? (2 Corinthians 9:7 "God loves a cheerful giver." )

Memory Verse Activity: “File the Books in Order” Our memory verse is 2 Corinthians 9:7 "God loves a cheerful giver." Have students locate the verse in scripture and read it together several times.

Say: “This verse is saying that our attitude when we give is more important than the amount that we give. God has given us everything we have. Giving is only returning what rightfully belongs to Him.” Preparation: You will need Bibles and a set of 5 hardback text books for each team. Make a book cover for each book out of plain brown paper. On the spine of the book write the following phrases: (1) 2 Corinthians 9:7, (2) God, (3) loves, (4) a cheerful, and (5) giver. You will also need a book case which can be a empty box with top cut out or a simple book shelf that sits on a table.

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Procedure: Divide kids into two or three groups. Challenge each group to line the books up in the correct key passage order. The group who can complete the challenge first is the “winner.” Optional: This same activity can be used to teach the Books of Old Testament History-- Joshua, Judges, Ruth, I Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther.

Group Learning Activity: “Worship God” Streamers (Grades K-3) Preparation: You will need a paper bag, scissors, and 5 colors of crepe paper ribbon. You will also need a DVD of Worship style music. Choose one that has lots of quotes from the Psalms of praise such as “Praise Him for His Mercy Endures Forever.” Cut the crepe paper into 3-4 foot lengths. (You will need at least one per child.) Place all the streamers into the paper bag. Say: “In this lesson we learned that Solomon and the people of Israel were excited to have a place to worship God in the new temple. They sang and praised God in a parade as they followed King Solomon and the priests as they carried the Ark of the Covenant into the Holy of Holies. The musicians blew their trumpets and played the cymbals while the people sang praises to God. God was pleased with their songs of praise. Today we are going to have an activity of worship to God.” Procedure: Give each child a streamer. You can form groups according to the streamer colors. Play the DVD worship music. Guide each group to move around together waving their streamers as the music plays. You can suggest ways that children can use creative movements for waving their streamers. (You can move the streamer up and down in waves. You can turn around and around and let the streamer blow in the breeze.) Encourage students to sing the words to the DVD worship song. Collect the streamers to use later.

Group Learning Activity: “Worship God” Rhythm Band (Grades K-3) Preparation: Make simple homemade instruments for children to play to accompany the DVD worship music. Use the following directions.

Harps and lyres: Stretch rubber bands across any object that will allow the bands to be plucked. You can use small boxes, bowls, baskets, empty plastic bottles with the side cut out, or empty picture frames. Use different sizes of bands for a variety of sounds. Strum the harps and lyres with your fingers or cut a triangular pick from a heavy plastic lid or cardboard. Trumpets: Collect cardboard tubes of varying lengths to use as trumpets. Encourage children to hum or sing into one end of the tube. Use stickers or markers to make colored circles on the side of the tube to simulate the trumpet’s keys. You can also have students color and decorate heavy weight paper and then roll the papers into tubes and tape them together for trumpets. Cymbals: Use any almost flat item that will make a noise when clashed together. Choose items whose noise you can tolerate. Use pie pans, aluminum foil pie pans, lids to pots and pans, or wood blocks. Punch two holes about three inches apart in the center of the aluminum pans and string a seven-inch piece of ribbon through the holes. Tie the ends. Use the ribbon as handles for the cymbals. Tambourines: Place two foam or paper plates together insides facing each other. Use wide masking tape in various colors to seal the plates. Plates can be glued or stapled together. Cover the staples with tape. Punch several holes around the edges (hole punch, nail and hammers). String noise-makers (bells, buttons, bottle lids) on chenille stems or yarn and attach through the holes.

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Filled Shakers: Fill empty water bottles or prescription bottles with small items to make shakers. Small items can include pasta, rocks, unpopped popcorn, beads, sugar or salt, nuts or bolts, and so on. Glue and tape the lids in place so there is no risk of the contents spilling. Rattles: Enlist someone to drill holes in small thin pieces of wood. String wood pieces together loosely on yarn, adding beads on each end of the yarn. Tie the yarn ends together leaving enough yarn for a child to hold as he shakes the wood pieces. Add small bells, beads, or buttons between some of the wood pieces for more variety. Drums: Anything can become a drum so choose wisely. Drums can be loud, popular, and sometimes annoying. Use cereal boxes, coffee cans, or plastic jars/tubs with lids, plastic bowls, pots and pans, blocks of wood, empty cans with the lids removed (crimp or tape over the cut edges), upturned plant pots, clipboards, or tabletops. Use unsharpened pencils, chopsticks, markers, or wooden dowel rods as drumsticks. Allow children to drum with their hands also. Hummers: Wrap waxed paper over a clean comb, and place it gently against your lips and hum. The vibration will sound like a kazoo. This takes practice and may be a teacher only instrument. Provide many cut sheets of wax paper for kids to try again and again. Cover the ends of cardboard tubes with wax paper. Kids can hum into the tubes as kazoos.

Say: “In this lesson we learned that Solomon and the people of Israel were excited to have a place to worship God in the new temple. They sang and praised God in a parade as they followed King Solomon and the priests as they carried the Ark of the Covenant into the Holy of Holies. The musicians blew their trumpets and played the cymbals while the people sang praises to God. God was pleased with their songs of praise. Today we are going to have an activity of worship to praise God.” Procedure: Give each child a homemade instrument. Make sure the child knows how to play the instrument. Say: “Place your instruments in your laps until I give the hand motion to play. This (point finger at child) is the hand motion to play. Whenever I do this then you can play your instrument. When I put my hand down, stop playing, and put your instruments in your laps.” Play the DVD worship music. Encourage students who are playing instruments that do not require using the mouth to sing the words to the DVD worship song. Say: “When the people finished building the temple, they were very happy. Some of the people played instruments and other people sang songs. The people thanked and praised God. They all walked in a parade to follow King Solomon and the priests to the temple. Bands march in parades and play music. Let’s pretend to march in a parade and play our instruments.” Guide the children to march using a steady beat and play their instrument using that same beat.

Group Learning Activity: “Build a Temple” Relay Game (Grades K-4) Preparation: You will need a set of boxes from small to medium to large sizes for each team. The boxes should be uniform for each team. Using tape make arrows to designate a path for the teams to walk around the room instead of a straight line. If the boxes are heavy have the students carry them on both open palms. Say: “In this Bible lesson Solomon built a temple building as a gift to God. Solomon is known for building many buildings during his time as king, but this building was very special. The builders carefully cut the stone for the building and brought the stone to the building site. The builders took great care to build everything exactly right and very

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detailed. Today we are going to play a game that will help us to understand how hard and long it took the workers to complete this task.” Procedure: Create two teams. The first team member must carry the large box on the open palm of his hand as he walks the path. If he drops the box, he may pick it up and continue from his location. The first team member will hand the box to the second player, and the second player will walk the path. The cycle continues until each player has carried the large box around the path. The team will begin the process again, this time stacking the medium-sized box on the large box. In the final round, players will carry all three boxes. Winner is the team who carries and builds their stack of boxes first.

Group Learning Activity: “Solomon’s Temple” (Grades 3-5) Purpose: To help students understand the different parts of the temple and each part’s meaning. Preparation: You will need Bibles, spiritual journal page, pencils or pens and a copy of the temple diagram below with scripture references. Say: “In this lesson we learned that Solomon built a temple as a gift of thanks to God. The plan for the temple was given to him by his father King David. King David got the plan from God instructions in how to build the tabernacle. We are going to find the names of the different items that were in the temple in scripture.” Procedure: Have students look up the following scripture. Discuss the item that is described in the temple in each verse with the group.

• I Kings 8:22 “Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of

Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven.” The altar was used as the place where the animals were sacrificed. The blood of the animals was to represent how Jesus would someday come as the sacrifice for our sins. Death is the penalty for sin.

• 1 Kings 7:21 “He erected the pillars at the portico of the temple. The pillar to the south he named Jakin and the one to the north Boaz,” These were the two pillars on front of the temple. Jakin means “he establishes” and Boaz means “in him is strength.” Together these mean “God provides the strength.”

• 2 Chronicles 3:14 “He made the curtain of blue, purple and crimson yarn and fine linen, with cherubim worked into it.” This was the huge beautiful curtain that hung between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies and showed the separation between God and man. When Jesus died on the cross that curtain was torn from the top down to the bottom to show that now man could enter directly into the presence of God through His Son Jesus.

• 1 Kings 6:23 “For the inner sanctuary he made a pair of cherubim out of olive wood, each ten cubits high.” The golden cherubim represented the heavenly beings and showed the holiness of God. They also represented how God is the Ruler over all the dominions of earth and heaven. The cherubim guarded the presence of God.

• 1 Kings 8:6 “The priests then brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place, and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim.” The Ark of the Covenant was the golden box in which contained the Ten Commandment tablets, a jar of manna, and Aaron’s rod. This box represented God’s promises, God’s Laws, and His blessings on Israel. It must be carried only by the Levite priests.

• 1 Kings 7:38 “He then made ten bronze basins, each holding forty baths and measuring four cubits across, one basin to go on each of the ten stands.” These were basins of water that were used by

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the priests for cleaning their hands and feet and for the rinsing of the offerings. This was a picture of how we are washed by the water of God’s Word.

• 1 Kings 7:23 “He made the Sea of cast metal, circular in shape, measuring ten cubits from rim to rim and five cubits high. It took a line of thirty cubits to measure around it.” This was a huge ceremonial basin of water used for the washings of the offerings. This was very large and contained about 12,000 gallons of water. It was like a pool of water.

• 1 Kings 6:38 ‘In the eleventh year in the month of Bul, the eighth month, the temple was finished in all its details according to its specifications. He had spent seven years building it.” The building of the temple required seven years to complete. It was an incredibly beautiful building like none other on the earth at its time.

Have students record what they have learned about the importance of learning to use their Bibles in their spiritual journals. Challenge students to recite the names of the Books of the Old Testament without any assistance. Encourage them to practice saying the books of the Bible at home.

Craft Learning Activity: “Build the Temple” (Grades K-5) Preparation: You will need Bibles, sugar cubes, 12X 18 inch piece of cardboard, markers, and glue. On the cardboard place 7 sugar cubes in a row to define the width of the Temple and 21 sugar cubes for the length of the Temple. Leave out the center cube at one short end for the door. Use marker to trace around the cubes and then remove the cubes. Say: “In this lesson we learned that Solomon built the temple as a gift to God to show his thanks. Solomon had been instructed by his father King David that he was to build the temple according to a special plan God had given to his father. The plan of the temple follows the plan that God gave for building the tabernacle. Today we are going to build a model of the Temple as an art project.” Procedure: Distribute the sugar cubes, cardboard rectangles, and glue and markers. Children can work individually or in groups of 2 or 3 to glue a single layer of sugar cubes in the outline on the cardboard. Children glue in place four sugar cubes to create the first layer of the inner wall for the Most Holy Place. Students are then to build up the walls of the Temple by gluing more layers of sugar cubes on top of the first layer. As children work ask the following questions. Say: “Solomon’s temple was a beautiful sight. It took over seven years to build and was a magnificent building containing gold, silver, bronze, and cedar. This house for God was without equal. The temple had two rooms—the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. The Holy of Holies was the back room where the presence of God was. In this room was the Ark of the Covenant which was a golden box that contained the Ten Commandments tablets, Aaron’s rod, and a jar of manna. The outer room or the Holy Place contained the Altar of Incense which was kept burning all the time and represented the prayers of God’s people. Also in the Holy Place was the Table of Shewbread which contained twelve loaves of bread for the twelve tribes of Israel. It reminds us that Jesus is the Bread of Life. The Golden Lampstand was also in the Holy Place and had seven places to hold oil for burning. It reminds us of Jesus as the Light of the World. All these things in the temple were covered with a gold overlay and were very beautiful. God was pleased with Solomon’s gift of the temple.” Optional: Provide gold foil wrapping paper. Have children use the foil to cover the inside of the temple walls and floor and make the furniture. The foil can be used to make the outer doors.

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Say: “Why do people give gifts to one another? (People want to show love and celebrate when it is someone’s birthday or because it is Christmas.) Why do you think people give money or time to show love for God? (They are thankful to God for His many gifts to them. They want to obey God and show love for Him.) What is our memory verse? (2 Corinthians 9:7 "God loves a cheerful giver." ) God is happy when people give cheerfully. What does a cheerful giver look like? What does a cheerful giver act like? What are some ways we can give to show our love for God? (Give money for offering. Be kind to others. Help mom and dad.)

Craft Learning Activity: “Progressive Art Pictures” (Grades K-3) Preparation: You will need white drawing paper, crayons, markers, and CD or DVD instrumental music. Say: “In this lesson we learned that when the temple was built, the people worshipped and thanked God. Some people played instruments and other people sang. What are some things we can thank God for? (Encourage responses.) We are going to draw pictures of things we can thank God for.” Procedure: Distribute supplies and have students write their names on their papers. Instruct children that they are draw something they can thank God for while the instrumental music is playing. When the music stops then they must stop drawing. Then have children pass their papers to the right. Then students are to draw the same picture they did before on the new paper. Play the music, stopping the music after a few minutes. Assist students with passing papers and drawing again as the music starts. Continue until all the students get their original papers back. Encourage children to close their eyes or to pat their knees as they listen to the quiet instrumental music if they finish before the music stops. Say: “We can worship God at church. We can sing songs, play musical instruments, pray, and learn from the Bible at church. Let’s worship and thank God everyday!” Close in prayer.

Craft Learning Activity: “Walker Nail Aprons” (Grades 3-5) Preparation: You will need plain nail aprons and colored permanent marker pens and heavy weight paper. The nail aprons can be purchased from big box hardware and home improvement stores Say: “A nail apron is something that people who work in construction wear sometimes. They can put nails in the pockets and it is easy to grab them. Today we are going to make something different with our nail aprons. We are going to decorate our aprons to give to someone who uses a walker or a wheelchair. They can put tissues, hand wipes, small bottles of lotion, and other items inside it. Wherever they go, they will have the items they need with them. We are also going to share the gospel message on our walker aprons.” Procedure: Provide each kid with a nail apron and permanent markers. Help kids slide the heavyweight paper inside the apron pockets to prevent the markers from bleeding through both sides of the pocket fabric. Guide kids to decorate their aprons. Encourage kids to include the key phrases and Scripture references from the gospel plan in their designs. Have students use the following verses and scriptures to identify the key points in the gospel presentation to decorate their aprons:

• God rules. God created and is in charge of everything. (Genesis 1:1; Revelation 4:11; Colossians 1:16-17) • We sinned. Since Adam and Eve, everyone has chosen to disobey God. (Romans 3:23; 6:23)

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• God provided. God sent His Son, Jesus, to rescue us from the punishment we deserve. (John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8-9)

• Jesus gives. Jesus lived a perfect life, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again so we can be welcomed into God’s family. (Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 3:18)

• We respond. Believe that Jesus alone saves you. Repent. Tell God that your faith is in Jesus. (Romans 10:9-10,13)

Life Application Challenge: “Cheerful Giving” Say: “Solomon wisely gave what he had to build the Temple and show his love for God. We can ask God to make us wise too in how we give. Cheerfully giving is a wise way to life! God has given us many good things. We can give to others to show our love and thanks to Him. “

o What is something you are glad God has given you? o What can you give to others to show your love and thanks to God?

Encourage students to make a commitment to give to others this week with a cheerful heart. Say: “Let’s thank God for all the great things that He has given to us. Ask for volunteers to complete this sentence: “Thank you God for….”

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Unit 9: King David and King Solomon OT9.16 Solomon Builds ......1 OT9.15 Solomon Builds the Temple...

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Transcript of Unit 9: King David and King Solomon OT9.16 Solomon Builds ......1 OT9.15 Solomon Builds the Temple...