John Gill Commentary 1 Kings 8

Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel
The judges in the several cities, or senators of the great sanhedrim, as others; though it is a question whether as yet there was such a court:

and all the heads of the tribes ;
the princes of the twelve tribes:

the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel ;
the principal men of the ancient families in every tribe:

unto King Solomon in Jerusalem ;
these he summoned together to himself there where the temple was built:

that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the
city of David, which is Zion ;
from where David brought it, when he had taken that fort, so called, and dwelt in it; and from this mountain Solomon proposed to bring it up to the temple, on a higher mountain, Moriah, not far from one another.

And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto King
Solomon at the feast
Not of tabernacles, as the Targum on (2 Chronicles 5:3) and so Jarchi; though that was in the same month next mentioned, and began on the fifteenth of it, and held seven days; therefore this must be the feast of the dedication of the temple, and which was kept before that; since both lasted fourteen days, and the people were dismissed on the twenty third of the month.

Now not only the above principal persons convened, but a vast number of the common people came to see the solemnity of removing the ark, and of dedicating the temple, and to attend the feast of it, and the more, since in a few days was the time for all the males in Israel to appear there.

in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month ;
it was, as the Targum says, originally the first month; but upon the children of Israel coming out of Egypt in Ab or Nisan, that became the first month, and this was the seventh from that; and is the same with Tisri, which answers to part of September, and part of October, here called Ethanim; which some render the month of the ancients, others of strong ones; either because of the many feasts that were in it, as some say; or because it was the time of ingathering all the increase and fruits of the earth, which strengthen and support man's life; or rather of "never failing", i.e. waters, showers falling in this month, and the rivers full of water ^F12 ; so September is "septimus imber", according to Isidore ^F13 , and the three following months are alike derived; this, by the Egyptians, was called Theuth, and was with them the first month in the year ^F14 ; so Porphyry says ^F15 , with the Egyptians the beginning of the year was not Aquarius, as with the Romans, but Cancer; and so the month of September was the first with the Ethiopians ^F16 , and with most people ^F17 ; though with the Chinese about the middle of Aquarius ^F18 .

Now, though the temple was finished in the eighth month, (1 Kings 6:38) , it was not dedicated until the seventh in the following year; it required time to finish the utensils and vessels, and put them in their proper place, and for the drying of the walls.

FOOTNOTES:

• F12: Vid. Hackman. Praecidan. Sacr. p. 130, 131.
• F13: Origin. l. 5. c. 33.
• F14: Lactant. de Fals. Felig. l. 1. c. 6.
• F15: De Antro Nymph. prope finem.
• F16: Ludolf. Lexic. Ethiopic. p. 65. & Hist. Ethiop. l. 3. c. 6.
• F17: Julian. Opera, par. 1. orat. 4. p. 290, 291.
• F18: Martin. Sinic. Hist. l. 1. p. 22.

And all the elders of Israel came
To Zion, the city of David:

and the priests took up the ark ;
from thence; in (2 Chronicles 5:4) it is said the Levites did it, whose business it was, (Deuteronomy 31:25) , and so the priests might be called; for every priest was a Levite, though every Levite was not a priest, and the priests did at all times bear the ark; see (Joshua 3:15) (6:4) (2 Samuel 15:29) .

And they brought up the ark of the Lord
From the city of David to the temple:

and the tabernacle of the congregation ;
not the tent David made for the ark, though that might be brought also, but the tabernacle of Moses, which had been many years at Gibeon; but now removed to Zion, and from thence to the temple, where it was laid up, as having been a sacred thing; that it might not be put to common or superstitious uses, and to prevent the being of more places than one for worship:

and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle ;
as the candlestick, shewbread table, incense altar

even those did the priests and the Levites bring up ;
some brought one, and some another; the priests brought the ark, and the Levites the vessels.

And King Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel, that were
assembled together
On this solemn occasion:

were with him before the ark ;
while it was in the court of the priests, before it was carried into the most holy place:

sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered for
multitude ;
the phrase seems to be hyperbolical, and designed to denote a great number.