5.2 Old Heavens and Old Earth

The pinnacle of the Old Heavens was likely experienced when Solomon built a house for the Lord. Even so, it was a shadow of things to come. As much as God told David that his son would build a house for Him, Jesus built the everlasting house for God. Even then, all roads pointed to the New Covenant, which was yet to be revealed.

1 Kings 6:14-28 describes the building of the house of the Lord, including the inner sanctuary, aka the Holy Place. As you read this, consider that the saints of God have become his habitation in replacement of the house that Solomon built. This is the New Covenant that God referred to when He said He would write his laws on our hearts and place His Spirit upon us. As you read about this house, consider how God has fashioned the inner temple of your heart using spiritual cedar beams and gold and how we are more precious than a house of wood and gold:

15 1 Kings 6:14-28

14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it.

15 He built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar: from the floor of the house to the walls of the ceiling, he covered them on the inside with wood; and he covered the floor of the house with cypress boards.

16 He built twenty cubits on the back part of the house with boards of cedar from the floor to the ceiling. He built them for it within, for an inner sanctuary, even for the most holy place.

17 In front of the temple sanctuary was forty cubits.

18 There was cedar on the house within, carved with buds and open flowers. All was cedar. No stone was visible.

19 He prepared an inner sanctuary in the middle of the house within, to set the ark of Yahweh's covenant there.

20 Within the inner sanctuary was twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in width, and twenty cubits in its height; and he overlaid it with pure gold; and he covered the altar with cedar.

21 So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold. He drew chains of gold across before the inner sanctuary, and he overlaid it with gold.

22 He overlaid the whole house with gold, until all the house was finished. He also overlaid the whole altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary with gold.

23 In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits high.

24 Five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub. From the tip of one wing to the tip of the other was ten cubits.

25 The other cherub was ten cubits. Both the cherubim were of one measure and one form.

26 One cherub was ten cubits high, and so was the other cherub.

27 He set the cherubim within the inner house. The wings of the cherubim were stretched out, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the middle of the house.

28 He overlaid the cherubim with gold.

Comparing the Old and the New is like comparing the death of the firstborn sons of Egypt with the death of God's firstborn Son. The concept of firstborn sons being holy to God was important. In the New, Jesus, the Son of God, was put to death as a sin offering. Even the blood of Pharaoh's son could not be a sin offering. It was more of a matter of sin awareness and judgment to allow God's purposes to be established.