In | Workbook: Does the LORD Really Dwell in His House? Part 2

You might think Solomon is contradicting himself. Instead, his comments are better understood as framing a complicated reality that it is represented in the Bible long before this dedication. The tension of God as both an eternal and historical presence runs throughout the Bible, and even into the tradition of Christian theology.

In the Old Testament, the dwelling of God in one physical house provides the ultimate test case for the way we think about an eternal and infinite God committing Himself to specific moments and places in the human story. 

This tension appears already in the Pentateuch. Some passages clearly suggest God dwells in the tabernacle: 

There is also a strong tendency to avoid language of God’s presence in books like Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings. Because of shared aspects in their perspective on God and the way He relates to humanity, these books are sometimes known as the “Deuteronomic” literature, or the “Deuteronomistic history.” 

While books like Leviticus or Exodus, or even Psalms, are happy to locate God in His dwelling place, these other “Deuteronomic” books avoid this language completely, as noted by Bible scholar Moshe Weinfeld:

There is not one example in the Deuteronomic literature of God’s dwelling in the temple or the building of a house for God. The temple is always the dwelling of His name, and the house is always built for His name.

So do Deuteronomy and Numbers contradict each other on this issue? Not exactly; much like Solomon’s prayer of dedication, they frame a complicated and mystical reality. God is too great for the Temple. We ought never lose sight of that. And yet somehow he dwells there anyway.

Source: Moshe Weinfeld, Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomic School, 1972, p. 193.