Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Acts 7:47

"But Solomon built him a house." — Acts 7:47 (ASV)

“But it was Solomon,” Stephen tersely says, “who built the house for him.” This brevity shows something of Stephen’s pejorative attitude toward the temple. And his contrast between the tabernacle (vv.44–46) and the temple (v.47) expresses his disapproval. Probably Stephen had in mind 2 Samuel 7:5–16 (cf. 1 Chronicles 17:4–14). There God spoke through the prophet Nathan of his satisfaction with his “nomadic” situation and declined David’s offer to build a house for his divine presence; but he went on to announce that David’s son would build such a house and promised to build a “house” (lineage) for David. Certainly 2 Samuel 7:5–16 was a foundational passage for much of early Christian thought (cf. Lk 1:32-33, alluding to 2 Samuel 7:12–16; Acts 13:17–22 to 7:6–16; Hebrews 1:5b to 7:14; and, possibly, 2 Corinthians 6:18 to 7:14). Obviously Stephen did not consider Solomon’s temple to be the final fulfillment of God’s words to David in 2Sa 7. Probably he understood the announcement of a temple to be a concession on God’s part and laid greater emphasis on the promise of the establishment of David’s seed and kingdom (cf. 2 Samuel 7:12–16).