1 Kings 8:22-61
1599 Geneva Bible
22 ¶ Then Solomon stood before (A)the altar of the Lord in the sight of all the Congregation of Israel, and stretched out his hands toward heaven,
23 And said, O Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, thou that keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee, with [a]all their heart,
24 Thou that hast kept with thy servant David my father, that thou hast promised him: for thou spakest with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thine hand, as appeareth this day.
25 Therefore, now Lord God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father that thou hast promised him, saying, (B) Thou shalt not want a man in my sight to sit upon the throne of Israel: so that thy children take heed to their way, that they walk before me, as thou hast walked in my sight.
26 And now, O God of Israel, I pray thee, let thy word be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my father.
27 [b]Is it true indeed that God will dwell on the earth? behold, the heavens, and the heavens of heavens are not able to contain thee: how much more unable is this house that I have built?
28 But have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O Lord my God, to hear the cry and prayer which thy servant prayeth before thee this day:
29 That thine eyes may be open toward this house, night and day, even toward the place whereof thou hast said, (C)My Name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant prayeth in this place.
30 Hear thou therefore the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel which pray in this place, and hear thou [c]in the place of thine habitation, even in heaven, and when thou hearest, have mercy.
31 ¶ When a man shall trespass against his neighbor, and [d]he lay upon him an oath to cause him to swear, and [e]the swearer shall come before thine altar into this house,
32 Then hear thou in heaven, and [f]do and judge thy servants, that thou condemn the wicked to bring his way upon his head, and justify the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness.
33 ¶ When thy people Israel shall be overthrown before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee, and turn again to thee, and [g]confess thy Name, and pray and make supplication unto thee in this house,
34 Then hear thou in heaven, and be merciful unto the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land, which thou gavest unto their fathers.
35 ¶ When heaven shall be [h]shut up, and there shall be no rain because they have sinned against thee, and shall pray in this place, and confess thy Name, and turn from their sin, when thou dost afflict them,
36 Then hear thou in heaven, and pardon the sin of thy servants and of thy people Israel (when thou hast taught them the good way wherein they may walk) and give rain upon the land that thou hast given thy people to inherit.
37 When there shall be famine in the land, when there shall be pestilence, when there shall be blasting, mildew, grasshopper or caterpillar, when their enemies shall besiege them in the [i]cities of their land, or any plague, or any sickness,
38 Then what prayer, and supplication soever shall be made of any man or of all thy people Israel, when everyone shall know the plague in his own [j]heart, and stretch forth his hands in this house,
39 Hear thou then in heaven, in thy dwelling place, and be merciful, and do, and give every man according to all his ways, as thou knowest his heart, (for thou only knowest the hearts of all the children of men)
40 That they may fear thee as long as they live in the land, which thou gavest unto our fathers.
41 Moreover as touching the [k]stranger that is not of thy people Israel, who shall come out of a far country for thy Name’s sake,
42 (When they shall hear of thy great Name, and of thy mighty hand, and of thy stretched out arm) and shall come and pray in this house,
43 Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth for unto thee: that all the people of the earth may know thy Name, and fear thee, as do thy people Israel: and that they may know that thy [l]Name is called upon in this house which I have built.
44 ¶ When thy people shall go out to battle against their enemy by the way that thou shalt send them, and shall pray unto the Lord (D)toward the way of the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house that I have built for thy Name,
45 Hear thou then in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and [m]judge their cause.
46 If they sin against thee, ((E)for there is no man that sinneth not) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them unto the enemies, so that they carry them away prisoners unto the land of the enemies, either far or near,
47 Yet [n]if they turn again unto their heart in the land (to the which they be carried away captives) and return and pray unto thee [o]in the land of them that carried them away captives, saying, We have sinned, we have transgressed, and done wickedly,
48 If they turn again unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul in the land of their enemies, which led them away captives, and pray unto thee toward [p]the way of their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, and toward the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy Name,
49 Then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling place, and [q]judge their cause,
50 And be merciful unto thy people that have sinned against thee, and unto all their iniquities (wherein they have transgressed against thee) and cause that they which led them away captives, may [r]have pity and compassion on them.
51 For they be thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest out of Egypt from the midst of the iron furnace.
52 Let thine eyes be open unto the prayer of thy servant, and unto the prayer of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them, in all that they call for unto thee.
53 For thou didst separate them to thee from among all people of the earth for an inheritance, as thou saidest by the hand of Moses thy servant, when thou broughtest our (F)fathers out of Egypt, O Lord God.
54 And when Solomon had made an end of praying all this [s]prayer and supplication unto the Lord, he rose from before the altar of the Lord, from kneeling on his knees, and stretching of his hands to heaven,
55 And stood and blessed all the Congregation of Israel, with a loud voice, saying,
56 Blessed be the Lord that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.
57 The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers, that he forsake us not, neither leave us,
58 That he may [t]bow our hearts unto him, that we may walk in all his ways, and keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his laws, which he commanded our fathers.
59 And these my words, which I have prayed before the Lord, be near unto the Lord our God day and night, that he defend the cause of his servant, and the cause of his people Israel [u]always as the matter requireth,
60 That all the people of the earth may know, that the Lord is God, and none other.
61 Let your heart therefore be perfect with the Lord our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as this day.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1 Kings 8:23 Unfainedly and without all hypocrisy.
- 1 Kings 8:27 He is ravished with the admiration of God’s mercies, who being incomprehensible and Lord over all will become familiar with men.
- 1 Kings 8:30 Or, from.
- 1 Kings 8:31 To wit, the judge or neighbor.
- 1 Kings 8:31 Hebrew, the oath.
- 1 Kings 8:32 That is, make it known.
- 1 Kings 8:33 Acknowledge thy just judgment, and praise thee.
- 1 Kings 8:35 So that there be a drought to destroy the fruit of the land.
- 1 Kings 8:37 Hebrew, in the land of their gates.
- 1 Kings 8:38 For such are most meet to receive God’s mercies.
- 1 Kings 8:41 He meaneth such as should be turned from their idolatry to serve the true God.
- 1 Kings 8:43 That this is the true religion wherewith thou wilt be worshipped.
- 1 Kings 8:45 Or, maintain their right.
- 1 Kings 8:47 Or, if they repent.
- 1 Kings 8:47 Though the Temple was the chief place of prayer, yet he secludeth not them, that being let with necessity call upon him in other places.
- 1 Kings 8:48 As Daniel did, Dan. 6:10.
- 1 Kings 8:49 Or, avenge their wrong.
- 1 Kings 8:50 He understood by faith, that God of enemies would make friends unto them that did convert unto him.
- 1 Kings 8:54 Solomon is a figure of Christ, who continually is the Mediator between God and his Church.
- 1 Kings 8:58 He concludeth that man of himself is enemy unto God, and that all obedience to his Law proceedeth of his mere mercy.
- 1 Kings 8:59 Hebrew, the thing of a day in his day.
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