And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month.

1 KINGS 8:2KJV
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1 Kings 8:2 (KJV)

What does 1 Kings 8:2 mean?

1 Kings 8:2 describes how all the men of Israel gathered together to meet King Solomon during a major festival held in the seventh month, called Ethanim. This verse sets the scene for a large national assembly at a special time in Israel’s calendar.

This gathering happens as Solomon is preparing to dedicate the newly built temple in Jerusalem. The verse highlights the unity of the people, who come from across Israel to join their king for this important religious event. The mention of the "feast" and the "seventh month" points to the Feast of Tabernacles, a significant annual celebration.

The Hebrew behind 1 Kings 8:2

  • "assembled" (קָהַל, qāhal): This word means to gather together as a group, often for a formal or religious purpose. Here, it emphasizes the collective action and unity of the people coming together.
  • "feast" (חַג, ḥag): This term refers to a pilgrimage festival. In this context, it likely means the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot), one of the most important celebrations in ancient Israel.
  • "Ethanim" (אֵתָנִים, ’Êtānîm): This is the old Hebrew name for the seventh month, later called Tishrei. Naming the month helps anchor the event in the Jewish calendar and connects it to traditional observances.

Why 1 Kings 8:2 matters

  • The verse clarifies that the temple dedication was timed to coincide with a major festival, ensuring maximum participation from the people of Israel.
  • By using the word for a formal assembly, the verse shows this was not a casual gathering but a significant, organized event in Israel’s religious life.
  • The setting in the seventh month links the temple dedication to the broader themes of harvest, thanksgiving, and God’s provision celebrated during the Feast of Tabernacles.

Where else these words appear

“month” Hebrew H3391 · used in 13 verses

  • Exodus 2:2 And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months.
  • 1 Kings 6:38 And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it.
  • Job 29:2 Oh that I were as in months past, as in the days when God preserved me;

“assembled” Hebrew H6950 · used in 39 verses

  • Exodus 32:1 And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.
  • Numbers 20:10 And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock?
  • 2 Chronicles 5:2 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.

“feast” Hebrew H2282 · used in 55 verses

  • Exodus 10:9 And Moses said, We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds will we go; for we must hold a feast unto the LORD.
  • Deuteronomy 16:14 And thou shalt rejoice in thy feast, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite, the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are within thy gates.
  • Psalms 81:3 Blow up the trumpet in the new moon, in the time appointed, on our solemn feast day.

“seventh” Hebrew H7637 · used in 94 verses

  • Genesis 2:2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
  • Leviticus 23:16 Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD.
  • 1 Kings 18:44 And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not.