II Chronicles 3-4

“Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem …” (3:1). The amounts of silver, gold, precious stones, expensive wood, and other materials used for the Temple were astounding.  Expert craftsmen decorated surfaces with palm trees, pomegranates, and cherubim, and embroidered richly colored linens (all according to God’s plan, I Chron 28:19).  God can’t be contained by heaven or earth (1:6), but the structures, materials, and beauty provided the Israelites with a holy place, filled with symbolism and meaning, to worship the Creator.

Stonemasons, builders, metal-workers, artists: God’s plan called for everyone to offer their best work for His glory.