Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORDThis phrase marks the commencement of the construction of the Temple, a significant event in Israel's history. Solomon, the son of David, fulfills the divine promise made to David that his son would build a house for God's name (
2 Samuel 7:12-13). The "house of the LORD" refers to the Temple, which would become the central place of worship for the Israelites, symbolizing God's presence among His people. The construction of the Temple signifies a new era of worship, transitioning from the portable Tabernacle to a permanent structure.
in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah
Mount Moriah holds deep historical and spiritual significance. It is traditionally identified as the location where Abraham was willing to sacrifice Isaac (Genesis 22:2), demonstrating faith and obedience. This connection underscores the Temple's role as a place of sacrifice and worship. Jerusalem, the city chosen by God, becomes the political and spiritual center of Israel. The choice of Mount Moriah for the Temple's location highlights the continuity of God's plan and the fulfillment of His promises.
where the LORD had appeared to his father David
This appearance refers to the divine encounter David had when he purchased the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite (1 Chronicles 21:18-28). The LORD's appearance to David at this site underscores its sanctity and divine selection as the Temple's location. It also reflects God's mercy, as the site was where the plague on Israel ceased after David's intercession. This divine encounter emphasizes the importance of obedience and repentance in the relationship between God and His people.
This was the place that David had prepared
David's preparation involved purchasing the threshing floor and gathering materials for the Temple's construction (1 Chronicles 22:2-5). Although David was not permitted to build the Temple due to his history as a warrior (1 Chronicles 28:3), his preparations laid the groundwork for Solomon's task. This preparation reflects David's devotion and desire to honor God, as well as the continuity of leadership and vision from David to Solomon.
on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite
The threshing floor of Ornan, a Jebusite, was a significant site due to its association with David's repentance and God's mercy (1 Chronicles 21:18-28). The purchase of this site by David transformed it from a place of judgment to one of worship and reconciliation. The Jebusites were the original inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the acquisition of this land signifies the transition of the city into the hands of the Israelites, further establishing Jerusalem as the center of Israelite worship and governance.
Persons / Places / Events
1.
SolomonThe son of King David and Bathsheba, Solomon was the third king of Israel, known for his wisdom and for building the first temple in Jerusalem.
2.
The House of the LORDRefers to the temple that Solomon built, which became the central place of worship for the Israelites and housed the Ark of the Covenant.
3.
JerusalemThe capital city of Israel, chosen by God as the place where His name would dwell. It holds significant historical and spiritual importance.
4.
Mount MoriahThe location where Solomon built the temple. It is also traditionally associated with the binding of Isaac by Abraham, highlighting its deep spiritual significance.
5.
Ornan the JebusiteThe original owner of the threshing floor where the temple was built. David purchased this site, which was later prepared for the temple construction.
Teaching Points
The Importance of Obedience and PreparationSolomon's building of the temple was a fulfillment of God's promise to David. It underscores the importance of obedience to God's instructions and the preparation that precedes fulfilling His plans.
Significance of Sacred SpacesThe temple on Mount Moriah highlights the importance of having dedicated spaces for worship and encountering God. It reminds us to honor and maintain our places of worship.
Legacy and Continuity of FaithThe connection between David's preparation and Solomon's building of the temple illustrates the continuity of faith and legacy. It encourages us to consider how our actions today can impact future generations.
God's Faithfulness to His PromisesThe construction of the temple is a testament to God's faithfulness in fulfilling His promises. It encourages believers to trust in God's timing and faithfulness.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of 2 Chronicles 3:1?
2.Why is Mount Moriah significant in 2 Chronicles 3:1 and biblical history?
3.How does Solomon's temple construction fulfill God's promise to David?
4.What does 2 Chronicles 3:1 teach about obedience to God's instructions?
5.How can we prioritize God's work in our lives like Solomon did?
6.What other biblical events occurred at Mount Moriah, and why are they important?
7.Why did Solomon build the temple on Mount Moriah according to 2 Chronicles 3:1?
8.How does 2 Chronicles 3:1 connect to Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac?
9.What is the significance of the threshing floor of Ornan in 2 Chronicles 3:1?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from 2 Chronicles 3?
11.What is the significance of Solomon's Temple dedication?
12.What is the significance of the Dome of the Rock?
13.What was the purpose of Solomon's Temple?
14.Where is the historical or archaeological evidence for these events in Genesis 22?What Does 2 Chronicles 3:1 Mean
Then Solomon began to build• The word “Then” connects directly to2 Chronicles 2, where Solomon secured materials and manpower; now planning turns to action (1 Kings 6:1).
• Solomon’s obedience fulfills God’s promise to David that a son, not David himself, would build the temple (2 Samuel 7:12-13).
• This moment marks a new era: Israel moves from a movable tabernacle (Exodus 40) to a permanent house for God’s name (Deuteronomy 12:10-11).
the house of the LORD• “House” speaks of a dwelling for God’s presence among His people (Exodus 25:8).
• It serves as the central place for sacrifice, worship, and prayer (1 Kings 8:27-30).
• The temple foreshadows Christ, in whom “all the fullness of Deity lives in bodily form” (Colossians 2:9) and who called His own body “the temple” (John 2:19-21).
in Jerusalem• God chose Jerusalem to place His name there permanently (2 Chronicles 6:6).
• Jerusalem’s role as the spiritual heart of Israel looks ahead to the New Jerusalem where God dwells with His people forever (Revelation 21:2-3).
• Locating the temple in the royal city unites throne and altar, king and priest, pointing to Jesus the ultimate Priest-King (Hebrews 7:1-2).
on Mount Moriah• Mount Moriah first appears inGenesis 22:2 as the site where Abraham offered Isaac, a picture of substitutionary sacrifice.
• By situating the temple here, God ties the promise to Abraham with the worship of Israel, weaving a continuous redemption story (Galatians 3:8-9).
• The geography underscores that God’s provision (“The LORD will provide,”Genesis 22:14) centers on atonement through blood, later fulfilled at Calvary.
where the LORD had appeared to his father David• God appeared to David after the census judgment (1 Chronicles 21:15-17), answering David’s prayer and stopping the plague.
• The divine appearance sanctified the location, turning a crisis site into a place of mercy (Psalm 30:1-3, a psalm traditionally linked to the temple’s dedication).
• This assures Israel that the coming temple rests on revealed, not human, choice.
This was the place that David had prepared• David gathered gold, silver, iron, stone, cedar, and skilled workers for the project (1 Chronicles 22:2-5).
• He organized Levites, priests, musicians, and gatekeepers (1 Chronicles 23–26), showing worship requires ordered service (1 Corinthians 14:40).
• David’s preparation models how present obedience paves the way for future generations’ faithfulness (Psalm 78:5-7).
on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite• A threshing floor is an exposed, elevated, wind-swept spot—ideal for separating wheat from chaff. God turns a common agricultural site into holy ground, illustrating His power to redeem the ordinary (1 Corinthians 1:27-29).
• David insisted on paying Ornan full price (1 Chronicles 21:24), teaching that true worship costs something (2 Samuel 24:24).
• The inclusion of a Jebusite highlights God’s mercy toward Gentiles and anticipates the temple becoming “a house of prayer for all nations” (Isaiah 56:7;Mark 11:17).
summary2 Chronicles 3:1 anchors Solomon’s temple in God’s unfolding plan. Every phrase points to divine initiative: the timing ordained through David, the site chosen through revelation, the mount already tied to covenant sacrifice, and the materials prepared in advance. The verse teaches that worship rests on God’s promises, demands wholehearted obedience, and signals His gracious intention to dwell with His people—ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ, the greater Temple.
(
a)
SITE AND DATE (
2Chronicles 3:1-2).
(1)At Jerusalem in mount Moriah.--Nowhere else in the Old Testament is the Temple site so specified. (Comp. "the land of Moriah," the place appointed for the sacrifice of Isaac,Genesis 22:2.)
Where the Lord appeared unto David his father.--So LXX.; rather, whoappeared unto David his father. Such is the meaning according to the common use of words. There is clearly an allusion to the etymology of MORIAH, which is assumed to signify "appearance of Jah." (Comp.Genesis 22:14.) Translate, "in the mount of the Appearance of Jah, who appeared unto David his father." The Vulgate reads: "in Monte Moria quidemonstratus fuerat David patri ejus;" butnir'ah never meansto be shown orpointed out. The Syriac, misunderstanding the LXX. (??????), renders "in the hill of the Amorites."
In the place that David had prepared.--This is no doubt correct, as the versions indicate. The Hebrew has suffered an accidental transposition.
In the threshingfloor of Ornan.--1Chronicles 21:28;1Chronicles 22:1. . . .
Verse 1. -
Mount Moriah. This name
מוריָה occurs twice in the Old Testament, viz. here and
Genesis 22:2, in which latter reference it is alluded to as "the
land of Moriah," and "one of the mountains" in it is spoken cf. Whether the name designates the same place in each instance is more than doubtful. In the present passage the connection of the place with David is marked. Had it been the spot connected with Abraham and the proposed sacrifice of Isaac, it is at least probable that this also would have been emphasized, and not here only, but in
2 Samuel 24:17-25 and
1 Chronicles 21:16-26; but in neither of these places is there the remotest suggestion of such fame of old belonging to it. Nor in later passages of history (
e.g. Nehemiah's rebuilding, and in the prophets, and the New Testament), where the opportunities would have been of the most tempting, is there found one single suggestion of the kind. There am also at fewest two reasons of a positive and intriusic character against Solomon's Moriah being Abraham's - in that this latter was a specially conspicuous height (
Genesis 22:4), and was a secluded and comparatively desolate place, neither of which features attach to Solomon's Moriah. Nevertheless the identity theory is stoutly maintained by names as good as those of Thomson ('Land and the Book,' p. 475); Tristram ('Land of Israel,' p. 152); Hengstenberg ('Genuineness of Pentateuch, 2:162, Ryland's tr.); Kurtz ('History of O. C.,' 1:271); and Knobel and Kalisch under the passage in Genesis - against Grove (in Dr. Smith's ' Bible Dictionary'); Stanley (' Sinai and Palestine,' p. 251;'Jewish Church,' 1. 49); De Wette, Bleek, and Tischendorf [see 'Speaker's Commentary,' under
Genesis 22:2]. Though there is some uncertainty as to the more exact form of the derivation of the name Moriah, it seems most probable that the meaning of it may be "the sight of Jehovah." Where
the Lord appeared unto David his father. The clause is no doubt elliptical, and probably it is not to be mended by the inserting of the words," the Lord," as in our Authorized Version. We do not read anywhere that the Lord did then and there appear to David, though we do read that "the angel of the Lord" appeared to him (
2 Samuel 24:16,
passim;
1 Chronicles 21:15, 19,
passim). Nor is it desirable to force the niph. preterite of the verb here, rightly rendered "appeared" or "was seen," into "was shown." We should prefer to solve the difficulty occasioned by the somewhat unfinished shape of the clause (or clauses) by reading it in close relation to
1 Chronicles 22:1. Then the vivid impressions that had been made both by works and words of the angel of the Lord caused David to feel and to say with emphasis, "This is the (destined) house of the Lord God," etc. In this light our present passage would read, in a parenthetic manner, "which (
i.e. the house, its Moriah position and all) was seen of David;" or with somewhat more of ease, "as was seen of David;" and the following "in the place," etc., will read in a breath with the preceding "began to build the house of the Lord at Jerusalem... in the place," etc.
David had prepared (so
1 Chronicles 22:2-4).
In the threshing-floor of Ornan (so
2 Samuel 24:18;
1 Chronicles 21:15, 16, 18, 21-28).
Parallel Commentaries ...
Hebrew
Then Solomonשְׁלֹמֹ֗ה(šə·lō·mōh)Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 8010:Solomon -- David's son and successor to his thronebeganוַיָּ֣חֶל(way·yā·ḥel)Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hifil - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 2490:To bore, to wound, to dissolve, to profane, to break, to begin, to playto buildלִבְנ֤וֹת(liḇ·nō·wṯ)Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 1129:To buildthe houseבֵּית־(bêṯ-)Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 1004:A houseof the LORDיְהוָה֙(Yah·weh)Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3069:YHWHin Jerusalemבִּיר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔ם(bî·rū·šā·lim)Preposition-b | Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 3389:Jerusalem -- probably 'foundation of peace', capital city of all Israelon Mountבְּהַר֙(bə·har)Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 2022:Mountain, hill, hill countryMoriah,הַמּ֣וֹרִיָּ֔ה(ham·mō·w·rî·yāh)Article | Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 4179:Moriah -- a mountain where Isaac was to be sacrificedwhere [the LORD]אֲשֶׁ֥ר(’ă·šer)Pronoun - relative
Strong's 834:Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order thathad appearedנִרְאָ֖ה(nir·’āh)Verb - Nifal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 7200:To seeto his fatherאָבִ֑יהוּ(’ā·ḇî·hū)Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 1:FatherDavid.לְדָוִ֣יד(lə·ḏā·wîḏ)Preposition-l | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 1732:David -- perhaps 'beloved one', a son of Jesse[This was] the place thatבִּמְק֣וֹם(bim·qō·wm)Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 4725:A standing, a spot, a conditionDavidדָּוִ֔יד(dā·wîḏ)Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 1732:David -- perhaps 'beloved one', a son of Jessehad preparedהֵכִין֙(hê·ḵîn)Verb - Hifil - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 3559:To be erecton the threshing floorבְּגֹ֖רֶן(bə·ḡō·ren)Preposition-b | Noun - feminine singular construct
Strong's 1637:A threshing-floor, open areaof Ornanאָרְנָ֥ן(’ā·rə·nān)Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 771:Ornan -- a Jebusitethe Jebusite.הַיְבוּסִֽי׃(hay·ḇū·sî)Article | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 2983:Jebusite -- inhabitant of Jebus
Links
2 Chronicles 3:1 NIV2 Chronicles 3:1 NLT2 Chronicles 3:1 ESV2 Chronicles 3:1 NASB2 Chronicles 3:1 KJV
2 Chronicles 3:1 BibleApps.com2 Chronicles 3:1 Biblia Paralela2 Chronicles 3:1 Chinese Bible2 Chronicles 3:1 French Bible2 Chronicles 3:1 Catholic Bible
OT History: 2 Chronicles 3:1 Then Solomon began to build the house (2 Chron. 2Ch iiCh ii ch 2 chr 2chr) 
