Psalms 127:1: A song of Ascent for Solomon: “Unless the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it.”

Solomon’s Temple was called Solomon’s Temple for good reason. There was more Solomon in building the Temple than God. Thus this was more Solomon’s temple than it was God’s temple with regard to the construction. Up until recently all we really knew about the first temple was what we were able to glean from Scripture. Since the return of the Jews to Israel and Israel gaining control of Jerusalem, there has been and continues to be extensive research going on with regard to Solomon’s Temple.

For one thing, we know that the temple was built on the backs of slave labor. We find that Solomon taxed the people to the point of rebellion to finance the temple. We have discovered that there was no silver used in the temple although it was commanded by God that certain things be made of silver, Solomon chose to make them of gold. Some of the things that were suppose to be made of gold, Solomon commanded they be made of brass or copper. This ended up being more of a monument to Solomon than to God. By the time of the dedication of the temple Solomon had married a number of pagan wives who brought idolatry into Israel. It was barely more than 5 years after his death that his son, Rehoboam took much of the gold from the temple to bribe the Egyptians. In less than one lifetime after the dedication of the temple, it was in decline.

Prophets arose to warn of coming judgment. The people would mock and say: “Why look at the temple, we are the people of God, do you honestly think God would allow this beautiful monument to Himself be destroyed? Come on use some common sense.” Common sense or not, it was destroyed.

Yet, when the temple was dedicated we learn that God’s presence filled it. The Talmud teaches that after this first temple was destroyed and the second temple was built, the second temple lacked four things that the first temple had. The second temple did not have the presence of God, the ark was gone. It did not have the fire of God. God sent fire from heaven that was never extinguished. The priest would feed this flame every day. But when the temple was destroyed the fire went out and God never sent another fire from heaven to replace it. The third thing that the second temple did not have was the Holy Spirit. The fourth was the prophetic power of the Urim and Thummim ceased.

The Talmud teaches that these four things would not return to the temple until the Messiah came and was glorified. To be glorified the Messiah had to come to earth as a human, He had to be persecuted and tortured, He had to be put to death and then He had to raise from the dead. He had to ascend to heaven and on the day of Pentecost He would be given His throne and His glorification would be complete. Sounds a little like Acts 2 to me.

Many traveled to the first temple to sincerely worship God and God’s glory filled the house despite the fact that it was not built according to His specifications and despite the fact that there was corruption among the priest.

“Unless the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it.” The word we translate as unless is the word im which is more commonly rendered as if. The syntax is a little confusing. You have two constructs together. “If Jehovah” and “he is not building.” It appears the KJV is right on target with the syntax, except there is not definite article on the word house and I would add the pronoun: “If Jehovah is not building His house.” The word house esoterically has the idea of the place of the heart. You know the old saying: “Home is where the heart is.” More clearly rendered you could say, “If Jehovah is not building a place within His heart…”

Then we add the last part, “they labor in vain who build it.” This gave me pause in my quest for the heart of God. The temple was meant to be a place where you entered the heart of God. Yet, man corrupted the place, Solomon filled it with his own designs and yet God still let his presence be known, even through it was in steady decline. The Apostle Paul tells us our bodies are the temple of God. The heart of God is meant to reside in us. Indeed we do labor to build and maintain this temple. Often our labors are to bring glory to God in ministry. Yet, like Solomon, we can not help but put a little of our own design into this temple. We can not help but build a monument to ourselves. Sure we seek to bring honor to God in our ministry, but deep inside we also want a little of that honor for ourselves, we want maybe to make a good living at it, or develop a reputation and a following. So what is so wrong with getting a little praise and honor for our labors? Maybe nothing is wrong with that except we do run the risk of a legacy that becomes Solomon’s Temple and not God’s Temple. If that is the case all our labors whether in ministry or at secular jobs are in vain. The word vain is shave which has the idea of desolate or waste. Our labors to build a place within God’s heart is all a waste.

I have a friend whose grandfather started and ran a ministry that God built. It was not built in vain and countless thousands found a life in Jesus through this work. My friend’s grandfather passed the mantel to him but he was off in college when his grandfather passed and other relatives took over the ministry. He recently called out his relative on some of the ungodly things that were taking place in what He termed as God’s ministry. The relative responded by calling the ministry his company. I fear that unless the Lord builds this ministry, all labors are in vain and we will witness the collapse of this once wonderful work of God.

For myself I keep looking at my little efforts to serve God and I keep calling it my ministry. I have been called to repentance on this and although it may sound arrogant or pious I must from this point forward refer to it as God’s ministry, God’s books and God’s devotional studies.

 

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