But the bronze altar that Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, had made was in Gibeon in front of the tabernacle of the LORD; so Solomon and the assembly inquired of him there. – 2 Chronicles 1:5

Today’s Scripture Reading (September 1, 2019): 2 Chronicles 1

How is your geography? Let me ask you a couple of questions. First, in what city would you find the Las Vegas Strip? It sounds like an easy question. It is in Las Vegas, stupid. But that is not actually true. The Las Vegas Strip is located just south of Las Vegas in the unincorporated towns of Paradise and Winchester. So maybe we should start calling “The Las Vegas Strip,” “The Paradise Strip” or perhaps even “A Strip of Paradise.” (And no, I don’t think that will actually catch on.) Question two, what is the most powerful city in the Canadian province of Ontario? Again, it is a question that we have to pause to answer. The most populous city by a wide margin, and the Capital of the Canadian Province, is Toronto. But unlike the United States which sets its Capital city, Washington, in a District that is separated from the Fifty States and the nation’s Territories, the capital of Canada is Ottawa, which is a city within the province of Ontario, albeit near the border of the Canadian Province of Quebec. So it is probably a matter of your point of view as to where the power lies. There is no question that cultural influence resides in Toronto, but the most influential politicians of the nation are located a few hours north, in Ottawa.

The last question, during the reign of David, where was the religious center of Israel. Again, it is a harder question to answer than we might think. The Tabernacle was in Gibeon. And that fact alone should have made Gibeon the religious center of the nation. But the Tabernacle was missing one crucial piece. The Ark of the Covenant, which was considered to be the seat of God on Earth, was not resting in its appointed place in the Holy of Holies. It had been stolen from Israel by the Philistine a couple of generations earlier. The Ark had been returned by Philistines, but it was not brought back to the Tabernacle. Instead, it had been left in a couple of resting places before David decided to bring the Ark of the Covenant, not back to Gibeon, but Jerusalem. David had erected a tent in the Capital City to house the Ark. David intended to unite the political power of Israel with the nations spiritual power. But the immediate result was that the religious center in the country was divided. God’s seat on the Earth rested in Jerusalem, but the altar of God was in the Tabernacle in Gibeon.

So the question for Solomon was this; do I go to the Ark of the Covenant, the seat of God on Earth to inquire of him, or do I go to the altar in Gibeon? At both places, priests served before God, including someone who was recognized as the High Priest. The reality is that there might not have been a right answer to the question, but Solomon made the choice to go to Gibeon and inquire of God there.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 3