1 Kings 8:12

Then spake Solomon. Solomon was deeply impressed with the sublime manifestations of the nearness and the greatness of God. His words are broken and abrupt, as coming from a man deeply moved. He speaks with feelings of mingled awe and joy. These are not words that he had earlier carefully prepared, they are words of wonderment and praise that burst forth spontaneously as a result of the spectacle he has just seen.

Thick darkness. Witnessing the combined darkness and glory before him, the mingled shadow and light, Solomon was assured that the Lord was there (Eze. 48:35).

His thoughts went out to those previous occasions when like phenomena had been witnessed — when the Lord’s presence had been manifested on Sinai in a thick cloud (Ex. 19:9), and the cloud of glory filled the tabernacle in the wilderness (Ex. 40:34, 35) — and as a result he was able to recognize in the appearance of the cloud the sign that the divine presence had been granted to the Temple he had built. So his first words were in explanation of the phenomenon then being witnessed. This is evidence of the very presence of God; He is with us; we have nothing to fear, but we have everything to be thankful for on this glorious occasion.