Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
1 Kings 9:1 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 1. 1And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he was pleased to do,
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
This verse opens the thought unit and establishes its first action or speech: “And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and….” Its responsible meaning belongs to the complete movement “God answers Solomon with promise and warning.”
After the houses are finished, the LORD appears a second time
This verse is one part of that explanation in 1 Kings 9:1–9. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- 1 Kings 9:1–9
Read 1 Kings 9:1 with 9:1–9. The selected wording supplies one opening in the thought unit and establishes its first action or speech; the surrounding verses supply the causes, responses, and outcome summarized here: Marks completion of temple, palace, and Solomon's other desired projects; supplies covenant abandonment and other worship as the narrator's theological answer to catastrophe.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Within “God answers Solomon with promise and warning,” 1 Kings 9:1 opens the thought unit and establishes its first action or speech through the wording “And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and….” Its placement is governed by this reviewed relationship: The divine answer responds to Solomon's prayer by joining heard petition and consecrated house to continued covenant obedience and an explicit warning against apostasy.
Read 1 Kings 9:1–9 together
Why these verses belong together: God answers Solomon with promise and warning is the complete reviewed scene, prayer, oracle, list, or regnal notice bounded at 9:1–9:9.
Verse 1. 1 And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he was pleased to do,
Verse 2. 2 That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon.
Verse 3. 3 And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.
Verse 4. 4 And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:
Verse 5. 5 Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
Verse 6. 6 But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them:
Verse 7. 7 Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people:
Verse 8. 8 And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?
Verse 9. 9 And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD brought upon them all this evil.
Follow the Context
- Marks completion of temple, palace, and Solomon's other desired projects
- Supplies covenant abandonment and other worship as the narrator's theological answer to catastrophe
What This Verse Is Not Saying
1 Kings 9:1 does not permit the wording “And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and…” to be read apart from the selected verse's context. The unit does not contain God inside architecture, make building scale proof of spiritual health, or hide the labor, extraction, political power, and covenant conditions behind sacred splendor.
What Remains True
Sacred beauty and public worship remain subordinate to God's freedom, covenant faithfulness, justice, and the dignity of people who build and serve. This unit tests that truth through marks completion of temple, palace, and Solomon's other desired projects; supplies covenant abandonment and other worship as the narrator's theological answer to catastrophe. In 1 Kings 9:1, the concrete line “And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and…” keeps that truth accountable to the narrated evidence.
Teach It Back
In 70–220 words, explain 1 Kings 9:1's role in 9:1–9. Paraphrase “And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and…,” identify one agent or affected person, state one material source or historical limit, and name one conclusion the context does not authorize.
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Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read 1 Kings 9:1–9 — God answers Solomon with promise and warningSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage.
Exact location: 1 Kings 9:1–9, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: 1 Kings
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Hebrew wording and morphology used for lexical, grammatical, name, clause, and older-English checks; this is not a critical apparatus or historical proof.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/1Kgs.xml, Masoretic words and morphology for 9:1–9
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: 1 Kings with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: Only printed unit-level translation, lexical, grammatical, textual, historical, and verse-numbering notes; silence is not evidence.
Exact location: NET Bible 1 Kings PDF, printed pp. 602–604, translation and translator notes for 9:1–9
Open source ↗