The Temple

I'm reading through 1 Kings 6 and 7 this morning---the description of the temple Solomon built, and his home, the pillars, the Sea, and so on. In the back of my mind, I had David's piano song from yesterday, Steward Townsend's "How Deep the Father's Love for Us." What work and resources were contributed to create those structures--stones 15 feet wide, two cherubim that were fifteen feet high, guilded in gold... I tried to imagine the 11,000 gallons of water of the Sea, ten carts with 220 gallons each of water, moving those around.  The blood of the sacrifices on the huge pit. And a tribe of men completely devoted to all aspects of the care of this---easy to see why they needed it.  All of this part of the Jewish culture, central to it.

To think of Christ replacing it---to think of Him as the substitute sacrifice---brings it all back down to today for me.  My sin.  The need...the enormous need when looking at this broken world...to somehow make amends, to do what humanity cannot do--to heal and bind instead of breaking and tearing continually.  

It's been a beautiful and fearful thing to think about...Christ usurping all of the temple stuff---in the end, just stuff.

This was interesting:

1Ki 6:7  The stones used in the construction of the Temple were finished at the quarry, so there was no sound of hammer, ax, or any other iron tool at the building site. 

My commentaries suggest this was because Solomon did not view all the noise of construction fitting for such a project.  To think of all these men assembling this structure silently.  I wonder to what degree, to what extent?  Intriguing image.