When all the work King Solomon had done for the temple of the LORD was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated—the silver and gold and the furnishings—and he placed them in the treasuries of the LORD’s temple. – 1 Kings 7:51

Today’s Scripture Reading (August 2, 2016): 1 Kings 7

On February 6, 1952, King George VI died. His death was not unexpected. The King had been sick for more than a year. His daughter, Elizabeth, had already started to assume most of the duties of a Monarch. She was the one that did the traveling and attended the public functions in the stead of her father. In fact, Elizabeth was in Kenya when her father died. The news was delivered to the Princess, and immediately she had some decisions to make. One of them was what her regnal name would be. She chose to keep Elizabeth, and would reign as Elizabeth II. She also decided that the House would not change – in other words, she would not take the name of her husband. The House of Windsor would continue, and not be the House of Mountbatten. At the time, Prince Philip complained that he was the only man in England who was not allowed to give his name to his children.

For the next sixteen months, Queen Elizabeth II reigned, but her coronation had not actually taken place; the crown of England had not yet been symbolically placed on her head. And again, even this was according to tradition. It was thought that a coronation should not take place during a time of mourning. King George VI had died and the coronation of the new queen could not take place until the time of mourning had ended.

And then another event took place that once again threatened the coronation of Elizabeth. Mary of Teck, Queen Mary, George VI’s mother, grew sick. Publically she was said to have had gastric problems, but her real problem was lung cancer. Ten weeks before the coronation of her granddaughter, Queen Mary died at the age of 85. But just before her death, Queen Mary made one last decree, the coronation of Elizabeth II was not to be delayed. Even as the nation mourned the Queen Mother, it was time to move on with a new monarch. So on June 2, 1953, with the family and nation still mourning the passing of a magnificent, humorous, sublime and grand queen (Sir Henry Channon’s description) Elizabeth II finally had the crown of England placed on her head.

For the Temple, this should be seen as the coronation moment. The construction had taken place, all of the implements that Solomon had made and been brought in and put into their place. And now all of the things that David had made for the Temple made their grand entrance into the Temple. David’s dream was complete, and the Temple was now ready to serve as the home of the God of Israel.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 8