1So all the work Solomon did for Yahweh's house was finished. Solomon brought in all the silver, gold, and other items that his father David had dedicated, and he put them in the treasuries of God's house.
2Then Solomon gathered the elders of Israel, all the tribal leaders, and the heads of the families of the Israelites in Jerusalem. Their purpose was to bring the ark of Yahweh's covenant up from David's City, also known as Zion.
3So all the men of Israel assembled before the king at the festival, which was in the seventh month.
4All the elders of Israel came. The Levites carried the ark;
5they brought up the ark, the Tent of Meeting, and all the holy items that were in the Tent. The Levitical priests brought these up.
6King Solomon and all the community of Israel who had gathered with him stood before the ark. They sacrificed so many sheep and cattle that they could not be counted.
7The priests brought the ark of Yahweh's covenant to its designated place in the inner sanctuary of the house, the Most Holy Place, beneath the wings of the cherubim.
8The cherubim spread their wings over the ark's location, covering the ark and its carrying poles.
9The poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the ark in front of the inner sanctuary, but not from outside. They are still there today.
10There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets Moses had placed there at Horeb, when Yahweh made a covenant with the Israelites after they left Egypt.
11When the priests came out of the Holy Place, (because all the priests present had consecrated themselves and were not observing their assigned groups),
12and all the Levite singers—Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, and their sons and relatives—dressed in fine linen, stood with cymbals, stringed instruments, and harps at the east side of the altar. With them were 120 priests blowing trumpets.
13The trumpeters and singers all played together in unison to praise and thank Yahweh. As they raised their voices with trumpets, cymbals, and musical instruments, praising Yahweh and saying, "For he is good; his faithful love endures forever!" then a cloud filled the house—Yahweh's house.
14Because of the cloud, the priests could not stand to perform their duties, for the glory of Yahweh filled God's house.