Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Kings 8:22
And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven:
22 53. Solomon’s prayer (2Ch 6:12-42)
22. And Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord ] This was the altar of burnt offerings which stood in the Temple court. In 2Ch 6:13 we have an explanation which is omitted here, “For Solomon had made a brazen scaffold of five cubits long, and five cubits broad, and three cubits high, and had set it in the midst of the court, and upon it he stood and kneeled down before all the congregation of Israel.” (See note on 1Ki 8:54.)
Josephus gives as the opening of this prayer a passage utterly foreign to the character of Solomon’s words. “It is not possible for men by what they do to give God thanks for the benefits they have received. For the divinity is in need of nothing and is above all such requital. But with that wherein we are made by Thee, O Lord, superior to other living creatures, with that we are bound to bless Thy majesty and to give thanks for what Thou hast wrought for my house, and for the people of the Hebrews. For with what is it more fitting that we should supplicate Thee, whether Thou be angry or continuest gracious, than with the voice which we derive from the air and know to be sent back through the same medium?”
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The margin reference shows that the king was so placed as to be seen by all present, and that, before beginning his prayer, he knelt down upon his knees (compare 1Ki 8:54).
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
1Ki 8:22-61
Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord.
The dedicatory prayer
Now we approach the great prayer by which the temple was dedicated. The house itself was nothing. It was but a gilded sepulchre, an elaborate and costly vacancy. First of all, therefore, we stand convinced that however much we may do technically, it can only be regarded as in a preparatory or introductory capacity. We can build the house, but we cannot supply the tenant.
1. Solomons conception of the personality and dignity of God stands out quite conspicuously in the pages of history for its unrivalled sublimity. He speaks as one who was well instructed in the mysteries of the kingdom. In this prayer of Solomons there is what some persons often mistakenly call preaching even in the language of devotion. Prayer is not request only, it is fellowship, communion, identification with God; it is the soul pouring itself out just as it will in all the tender compulsion of love, asking God for blessings, praising God for mercies, committing itself to God in view of all the mystery and peril of the future. Solomon having thus addressed the God of Israel, turns to Providence as revealed in the history of the chosen people, goes back even so far as the bringing-forth of Israel out of Egypt, and indicates point after point, at least suggestively, until David was elected to reign over the people Israel, and purposed as king to build an house for the name of the Lord God of Israel. Solomon does not take the whole credit to himself for the origination of this idea of the temple. He connects his action with the purpose that was in the heart of David his father. The temple, so beautiful and so costly, is not to be associated with anything that is merely religiously mystic. This is not a tent of superstition, not a habitation created for the purpose of indulging spiritual romances which can never have any bearing upon actual human life. Throughout his prayer we discover on the part of Solomon how thoroughly he identifies the house of God with all human interests.
2. How natural it is that human imagination should be confounded by the impossibility of the infinite God locating Himself within finite space. We do not consider that it is because God is infinite that He can, so to say, thus become finite. The finite never can become infinite, but it would seem to belong to infinite perfection to adapt itself to human limitation and necessity. God Himself has addressed the ages in a tone precisely coincident with the language of Solomon: Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool: where is the house that ye build unto Me? and where is the place of My rest? Solomon was therefore strictly within the line of revelation when he propounded the solemn inquiry. Everything depends upon our point of view in considering this great Question of Gods condescension.
3. One might well think that the millennium had set in with the solemn dedication of the temple, and that all things would begin anew, and certainly that the time of tragedy, rebellion, and suffering had for ever passed away. We find, however, that Solomon orders his prayer in such a manner and tone as to recognise distinctly the fact that all things which had ever occurred which could try the faith, the patience, and the virtue of men would occur again and again to the end of the chapter. No; on the contrary: though the temple stands as a monument of human piety and as a fulfilment of a divine promise, human life will go on in all the variety of a divine promise, human life go on in all the variety of its experience much as it had gone on from the beginning. What then, is there nothing in the point of history thus established by the building of this holy house? Henceforth it is to be understood that whatever happens admits of religious treatment, and is to be taken to the temple itself for consideration and adjustment. Solomon recognises God as the ruler of providence and the controller of all nature. He is not afraid to trace the absence of rain to an ordinance of the Most High. A perusal of the history of his own people would make it clear that from early times God had been recognised as ruling over the elements of nature. Thus is the dominion of God enlarged by the religious imagination of Solomon; and thus, from the other point of view, is the revelation of God confirmed by the testimony of those who have most profoundly studied his ways and purposes in the earth.
4. Solomon, having ended his prayer, stood, and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, and in that blessing he made one declaration which cannot but be quoted from age to age with increasing emphasis and joy–There hath not failed one word of all his good promise. This is the continual testimony of the Church. Thus with hardly any variation of language is the continuance of the Divine goodness reaffirmed. This is matter of personal experience. Every man can examine his own life, and see wherein he has been faithful, and wherein he has been faithless, and say distinctly whether faithfulness has not been followed by benediction, and faithlessness by disapprobation. Many promises remain yet to be fulfilled. Specially there remains the promise to be fulfilled that God will be with His people in the valley of the shadow of death. There is no discharge in that war! These triumphant conditions can only be realised by continual and growing faith in Him who is the resurrection and the life. (J. Parker, D. D.)
The Temple dedicated
I. The Church is the house of God. Every home in Israel had its family worship and secret prayer; but the cloud of glory came only upon the Temple. So now God is present in His house with a blessing which we can get nowhere else.
II. The Church brings blessings to the nation. All other institutions, our good schools and happy homes, depend upon it. Just to see in a town a building consecrated to God makes men think of Him; it is His sign, inviting people to come for heavenly riches and heavenly healing.
III. The Church has a special promise for children. Gods covenant with David brought to Solomon much of his glory and honour. The covenant with Abraham included his descendants. The Heavenly Father knows how dearly earthly parents love their children, and promises that if they will bring them up rightly, He Himself will take especial care of them. The special lessons we can learn to-day are very plain.
1. Reverence the House of God.
2. Love the Church.
3. Attend Church regularly.
4. Consecrate yourself to God. (Monday Club Sermons.)
The Temple dedicated
The undivided kingdom of Israel reached the zenith of its course in the reign of Solomon. Like Julius Caesar, David was the military hero and champion of his nation. He extended its territory from Egypt to the Euphrates, and centralised its government on the conquered heights of Jerusalem. But Solomon, the Augustus of Hebrew history, was an organiser and administrator. Jehovah, instead of teaching his hands to war, gave him rather a wise and an understanding heart, and both riches and honour, so that he was the greatest king of his day (1Ki 3:1-28; 1Ki 12:13; 1Ki 4:24). These gifts and opportunities naturally made him also the Pericles of his race. His reign was distinguished for its magnificent architecture. This dedicated temple of Solomon is a pregnant type.
1. It Is a type of Jesus Christ. The architectural magnificence of Solomons temple but feebly prefigures the perfection of Christs wonderful person. Solomons temple was to Israel a symbol of permanence, but Jesus, looking at its second successor, declared that not one stone should be left upon another; and there, thinking of his own mastery even over death itself, declared, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. But he spake of the temple of his body (Joh 2:19-20). The temple was the dwelling-place of God; Jesus Christ is God incarnate. The temple was the meeting-place for God and man; Jesus is the divine-human Mediator, and whatsoever we ask in his name we receive (Joh 16:23). The temple was the place for intercession and atonement; Jesus ever liveth to make intercession for us, and he is the sacrificial Lamb whose blood cleanseth us from all sin. The temple contained the ark of the covenant; Jesus has fulfilled all law, and in love he binds all filial souls to the divine Father.
2. Solomons temple is a type of heaven. It is Jehovahs permanent dwelling-place (1Ki 8:30; 1Ki 8:32, etc.).
3. Solomons temple is a type of every Christian. For the Christian is the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in him, demanding a pure home (1Co 3:16-17). Thus the glory of Solomon was the temple which bears his name; the glory of that temple was its typifying of Christ, of His Church and His heaven; and the glory of Christ, of the Church, even of heaven, is a human life fully consecrated to God in Christ. (S. J. Macpherson, D. D.)
The dedication of the Temple
I. Solomon begins with the expression of his sober sense of the Divine greatness. He exclaims, Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath. Now it will be of no use whatsoever for any human being, who is intelligently proposing to consecrate himself fully to Gods service, to attempt to covenant with the Almighty without realising that he has entered upon the most awfully serious moment of his life: for he is dealing with the one supreme Head of the universe.
II. Then comes an affecting remembrance of the Divine grace. Solomon openly admits that he is now in the immediate presence of that God who was accustomed to keep covenant and mercy with his servants that walk before him with all their heart.
III. Solomon makes a humble acknowledgment of the Divine condescension. He has prepared for God this palace. But now in this moment of his highest satisfaction he appears surprised by a fresh revelation of the glory of God. No sentence in all this extraordinary address is more pathetic in its disclosure of experience than that we find here: But will God indeed dwell on the earth behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded! It is the grand simplicity of such an exclamation that fixes an unusual character upon it. The candour of the confession shows a heart penetrated with the consciousness that its very best gift must be sanctified by the altar of God it lies upon before the infinite holiness of Jehovah can accept it.
IV. Solomon trustfully accepts the fulness of the Divine invitation to continue to hold communication with him in the building he was offering. Attention was long ago caned to the fact that the disciples going to Emmaus were not enlightened so as to recognise Jesus all along the way where they conversed with Him; not until they fulfilled His commands in the exercise of hospitality did they suddenly discover how their hearts had burned with the thoughts He had given them. Not by hearing His precepts, says Gregory in one of his homilies, but by doing them, did they receive illumination. The souls that only freely receive, it is not at all certain will be those who will understand. It is when souls freely give, they begin to grow intelligent. Mystery then ceases, mysticism ends, and reality begins. One of the loftiest steps of Christian consecration is reached when a man is beginning to realise fully that God has invited him to pray for all he needs, in that very moment in which he has given away all he has in this world.
V. Solomon suggests his sense of a lifelong need for the divine companionship and favour. (C. S. Robinson, D. D.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 22. Stood] He ascended the brazen scaffold, five cubits long, and five cubits broad, and three cubits high, and then kneeled down upon his knees, with his hands spread up to heaven, and offered up the following prayer: see 1Kg 8:54, and 2Ch 5:12-13.
And spread forth his hands toward heaven] This was a usual custom in all nations: in prayer the hands were stretched out to heaven, as if to invite and receive assistance from thence; while, humbly kneeling on their knees, they seemed acknowledge at once their dependence and unworthiness. On this subject I have spoken elsewhere. In the Scriptures we meet with several examples of the kind: Hear my voice-when I LIFT UP MY HANDS toward thy holy oracle; Ps 28:2. LIFT UP YOUR HANDS in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord; Ps 134:2. Let my prayer be set forth-and the LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS as the evening sacrifice; Ps 141:2. And see 1Ti 2:8, c.
In heathen writers examples are not less frequent:
SUSTULIT exutas vinclis ad sidera PALMAS.
Vos aeterni ignes, et non violabile vestrum
Testor numen, ait.
VIRG. AEn. lib. ii., ver. 153.
Ye lamps of heaven, he said, and LIFTED HIGH
HIS HANDS, now free thou venerable sky,
Inviolable powers!
And that they kneeled down when supplicating I have also proved. Of this too the Scriptures afford abundant evidence, as do also the heathen writers. I need add but one word: –
Et GENBIUS PRONIS supplex, similisque roganti,
Circumfert tacitos, tanquam sun brachia, vultus.
OVID, Met. lib. iii., f. 3, ver. 240.
Indeed, so universal were these forms in praying, that one of the heathens has said, “All men, in praying, lift up their hands to heaven.”
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Solomon stood upon a scaffold set up for him in the court of the people, 2Ch 6:13.
Before the altar of the Lord, with his face towards the altar of burnt-offerings.
In the presence of all the congregation of Israel, who stood round about the scaffold, in the same court with him.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
22. Solomon stood before thealtarThis position was in the court of the people, on a brazenscaffold erected for the occasion (2Ch6:13), fronting the altar of burnt offering, and surrounded by amighty concourse of people. Assuming the attitude of a suppliant,kneeling (1Ki 8:54; compare 2Ch6:24) and with uplifted hands, he performed the solemn act ofconsecrationan act remarkable, among other circumstances, forthis, that it was done, not by the high priest or any member of theAaronic family, but by the king in person, who might minister about,though not in, holy things. This sublime prayer [1Ki8:22-35], which breathes sentiments of the loftiest piety blendedwith the deepest humility, naturally bore a reference to the nationalblessing and curse contained in the lawand the burden of itafteran ascription of praise to the Lord for the bestowment of the former,was an earnest supplication for deliverance from the latter. Hespecifies seven cases in which the merciful interposition of Godwould be required; and he earnestly bespeaks it on the condition ofpeople praying towards that holy place. The blessing addressed to thepeople at the close is substantially a brief recapitulation of thepreceding prayer [1Ki8:56-61].
1Ki8:62-64. HIS SACRIFICEOF PEACE OFFERING.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord,…. The altar of the burnt offering in the court of the priests, where he prayed the following prayer; and which altar was typical of Christ, who is always to be in sight in prayer, and through whom all sacrifices of prayer and praise become acceptable to God. In 2Ch 6:13 he is said to stand upon a scaffold of brass, five cubits long, five broad, and three high, which stood in the midst of the court; it was a sort of a pulpit, round, as a laver, for which the word is sometimes used, and on which he kneeled:
in the presence of all the congregation of Israel; who stood in the great court before him, called the court of Israel:
and spread forth his hands toward heaven; and hence it appears, that though Solomon stood before the altar, he did not lay hold on it with his hands, as the Heathens did when they prayed; for they say y, that prayer alone does not appease the Deity, unless he that prays also lays hold on the altar with his hands; hence altars, at first, as we are told z, were called “ansae”; and lifting up or spreading the hands towards heaven was a proper gesture with the Greeks and Romans a.
y Macrob. Saturnal. l. 3. c. 2. Vid. Sperling. de Baptism. Ethiac, c. 6. p. 103. z Varro Rer. Divin. l. 5. apud ib. a Homer. Iliad. 3. ver. 275. & 6. ver. 301. Vid. Barth. Animadv. ad Claudian. in Rufin. l. 2. ver. 205.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Second Act of the feast of dedication: Solomon’s dedicatory prayer (cf. 2 Chron 6:12-42). – 1Ki 8:22. “Then Solomon stood before the altar of Jehovah in front of all the assembly of Israel, and stretched out his hands towards heaven.” It is evident from 1Ki 8:54 that Solomon uttered the prayer which follows upon his knees. The Chronicles contain the same account as we have here, with this addition, that it is said to have taken place on a “scaffold,” or kind of pulpit ( ) specially erected for the purpose.
(Note: Bttcher is right in his assertion, that the opinion expressed by Thenius and Cappellus, that this passage in the Chronicles has been dropped out of our text through a copyist ‘ s oversight, is a very improbable one; although the reasons he assigns are for the most part untenable. The omission may be explained in a very simple manner, from the fact that the introduction of this circumstance had no bearing upon the design or contents of the dedicatory prayer.)
The altar, to the front of which Solomon went, was the altar of burnt-offering in the court, where the congregation was gathered together. The expression favours the idea that Solomon offered the prayer upon his knees with his face turned towards the congregation, and not with his back to the people and his face turned towards the temple, as Thenius supposes. – The substance of the prayer is closely connected with the prayer of Moses, especially with the blessings and curses therein (vid., Lev 26 and Deut 28). Commencing with the praise of God, who “keepeth covenant and truth” towards His servants, and has thus far performed to His servant David the promise that He gave him (1Ki 8:23, 1Ki 8:24), Solomon entreats the Lord still further to fulfil this promise of His (1Ki 8:25, 1Ki 8:26), and to keep His eyes constantly open over the temple, to hearken to the prayers of His people, and to avert the curse threatened against sinners from all who shall call upon Him in this temple (vv. 27-53).
1Ki 8:23-24 By granting the blessing promised to His people, the Lord has hitherto proved Himself to be the true and only God in heaven and on earth, who keepeth covenant and mercy with those who walk before Him with all their heart. This acknowledgment provides the requisite confidence for offering the prayer which is sure of an answer (Mat 21:22; Mar 11:24; Jam 1:6). For , compare Exo 15:11 with Deu 4:39; 2Sa 7:22; 2Sa 22:32; Psa 86:8. “Who keepeth covenant and mercy,” verbatim the same as in Deu 7:9. The promise given to His servant David (2 Sam 7), the fulfilment of which the commencement now lay before their eyes (cf. 1Ki 8:20, 1Ki 8:21), was an emanation from the covenant faithfulness of God. “As it is this day,” as in 1Ki 3:6.
1Ki 8:25 The expression “and now” ( ) introduces the prayer for the further fulfilment of the promise, never to allow a successor upon the throne to be wanting to David, in the same conditional form in which David had uttered the hope in 1Ki 2:4, and in which the Lord had renewed the promise to Solomon during the building of the temple (1Ki 6:12-13). In , instead of in 1Ki 2:4, the divine rejection is more distinctly indicated.
1Ki 8:26 1Ki 8:26 is not merely a repetition of the prayer in 1Ki 8:25, as Thenius supposes, but forms the introduction to the prayers which follow for the hearing of all the prayer presented before the Lord in the temple. The words, “let Thy words be verified, which Thou spakest unto Thy servant David,” contain something more than a prayer for the continual preservation of the descendants of David upon the throne, for the fulfilment of which Solomon prayed in 1Ki 8:25. They refer to the whole of the promise in 2Sa 7:12-16. The plural ( Chethb) points back to in 2Sa 7:17, and is not to be altered into the singular after the Keri. The singular is used as it frequently is with the subject in the plural, when the verb precedes (cf. Ewald. 316, a., 1). Solomon has here in mind one particular point in the promise, viz., that God would not withdraw His mercy from the seed of David, even when it sinned. This is evident from what follows, where he mentions simply cases of transgression, and prays that they may be forgiven.
1Ki 8:27-28 1Ki 8:26 are closely connected in this sense: keep Thy words that were spoken to David; for although this temple cannot hold Thine infinite divine nature, I know that Thou wilt have respect to the prayer of Thy servant, to keep Thine eyes open over this temple, to hear every prayer which Thy people shall bring before Thee therein. in 1Ki 8:28 continues the optative in 1Ki 8:26; and 1Ki 8:27 contains an intermediate thought, with which Solomon meets certain contracted ideas of the gracious presence of God in the temple. (1Ki 8:27) signifies neither but, nevertheless, atque (Bttcher), nor “as” (Thenius, Bertheau); and the assertion that 1Ki 8:27 is the commencement of a new section is overthrown by the inadmissible rendering of , “but Thou turnest Thyself” (Thenius). – With the words, “Should God really dwell upon the earth! behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens (i.e., the heavens in their widest extent, cf. Deu 10:14) cannot contain Thee, to say nothing ( ; cf. Ewald, 354, c.) of this house which I have built,” in which the infinitude of God and His exaltation above the world are expressed as clearly and forcibly as possible, Solomon does not intend to guard against the delusion that God really dwells in temples (J. D. Mich.), but simply to meet the erroneous idea that He dwells in the temple as men dwell in a house, namely, shut up within it, and not also outside and above it, – a delusion which sometimes forced its way into the unspiritual nation but which was always attacked by the prophets (cf. Mic 3:11; Jer 7:4, etc.). For it is evident that Solomon did combine with his clear perception of the infinite exaltation of God a firm belief in His real presence in the temple, and did not do homage to the abstract idealism of the rationalists, not merely from his declaration in 1Ki 8:12. that he had built this temple as a dwelling-place for God, but also from the substance of all the following prayers, and primarily from the general prayer in 1Ki 8:28, 1Ki 8:29, that God would take this temple under His special protection, and hearken to every prayer directed towards it. The distinction between , , and is the following: denotes prayer in general, praise, supplication, and thanksgiving; , supplication or entreaty, prayer for help and mercy; and , jubilation, prayer as the joyous utterance of praise and thanksgiving.
1Ki 8:29-32 “That Thine eyes may be open upon this house night and day.” , speciali quadam providentia in hanc domum directi (Mich.). The following clause, “upon the place of which Thou hast said, My name shall be there” (namely, 2Sa 7:13, implicite), contains within itself the ground upon which the prayer rests. Because the name of God will be in the temple, i.e., because God will manifest His gracious presence there, He will also keep His eyes open upon it, so as to hear the prayer of Solomon directed towards it. (toward this place): because Solomon also was prayer in the court towards the temple. – In 1Ki 8:30, “and hear the supplication of Thy servant and of Thy people Israel,” he begins by asking that those prayers may be heard which the king and people shall henceforth bring before God in the temple. corresponds to in 1Ki 8:28, and is more precisely defined by the following (as for these prayers), Thou wilt hear them up to the place of Thine abode, to heaven. is a pregnant expression: to hear the prayer, which ascends to heaven. In the Chronicles we find throughout the explanatory . The last words, “hear and forgive,” must be left in their general form, and not limited by anything to be supplied. Nothing but forgiveness of sin can remove the curse by which transgression is followed.
This general prayer is then particularized from 1Ki 8:31 onwards by the introduction of seven special petitions for an answer in the different cases in which, in future, prayers may be offered to God in the temple. The first prayer (1Ki 8:31, 1Ki 8:32) has reference to the oaths sworn in the temple, the sanctity of which God is asked to protect. “If a man sin against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him, to cause him to swear, and he come (and) swear before the altar in this house, then wilt Thou hear,” etc. does not mean either “granted that” (Thenius) or “just when ” (Ewald, 533, a.), although is used in the Chronicles, and we might render it freely “ when;” but is simply an accusative particle, serving to introduce the following clause, in the sense of “as for,” or “with regard to (such a case as) that a man sins” (vid., Ewald, 277, a.). cannot be taken as anything but an asyndeton. For if were a substantive, it would have the article ( ) provided it were the subject, and the verb would be written ; and if it were the object, we should have , as in Neh 10:30 (cf. Eze 17:13). The prayer refers to the cases mentioned in Exo 22:6-12 and Lev 26:17, when property entrusted to any one had been lost or injured, or when a thing had been found and the finding was denied, or when an act of fraud had been committed; in which cases the law required not only compensation with the addition of a fifth of its value, but also a trespass-offering as an expiation of the sin committed by taking a false oath. But as this punishment could only be inflicted when the guilty person afterwards confessed his guilt, many false oaths might have been sworn in the cases in question and have remained unpunished, so far as men were concerned. Solomon therefore prays that the Lord will hear every such oath that shall have been sworn before the altar, and work ( ), i.e., actively interpose, and judge His servants, to punish the guilty and justify the innocent. The construction (1Ki 8:32, 1Ki 8:34, 1Ki 8:36, etc.) can be explained more simply from the adverbial use of the accusative (Ewald, 300, b.), than from in 1Ki 8:30. , to give (bring) his way upon his head, i.e., to cause the merited punishment to fall upon him (cf. Eze 9:10; Eze 11:21, etc.). and recall Deu 25:2. For compare 2Sa 22:21, 2Sa 22:25. – The following cases are all taken from Lev 26 and Deut 28.
1Ki 8:33-34 The second petition, – “If Thy people Israel are smitten by the enemy, because they have sinned against Thee, and they turn to Thee and confess Thy name, … then hear … and bring them back into the land,” – refers to the threatenings in Lev 26:17 and Deu 28:25, where the nation is threatened with defeat and subjugation on the part of enemies, who shall invade the land, in which case prisoners of war are carried away into foreign lands, but the mass of the people remain in the land, so that they who are beaten can pray to the Lord in the temple, that He will forgive them their sin, save them out of the power of the enemy, and bring back the captives and fugitives into their fatherland.
1Ki 8:35-36 The third prayer refers to the remission of the punishment of drought threatened against the land, when the heaven is shut up, according to Lev 26:19; Deu 11:17; Deu 28:23. , because Thou humblest them (lxx, Vulg.); not “that Thou hearest them” (Chald. and others). , because Thou teachest them the good way. These words correspond to , and contain a motive for forgiveness. Because God teaches His people and seeks by means of chastisements to bring them back to the good way when they fail to keep His commandments, He must forgive when they recognise the punishment as a divine chastisement and come to Him with penitential prayer.
1Ki 8:37-40 The fourth prayer relates to the removal of other land-plagues: famine (Lev 26:19-20, and Lev 26:26; Deu 28:23); pestilence (Lev 26:25); blight and mildew in the corn (Deu 28:22); locusts ( , devourer, is connected with without a copula, – in the Chronicles by Vv, – to depict the plague of locusts more vividly before their eyes after Deu 28:38); oppression by enemies in their own land; lastly, plagues and diseases of all kinds, such as are threatened against the rebellious in Lev 26:16 and Deu 28:59-61. is not the imperfect Kal of (Ges., Dietr., Frst, Olsh. Gramm. p. 524), but the imperfect Hiphil of in Deu 28:52, as in Neh 9:27; and the difficult expression is probably to be altered into , whilst is either to be taken as a second object to , as Luther supposes, or as in apposition to , in the land (in) his gates, as Bertheau assumes. The assertion of Thenius, that all the versions except the Vulgate are founded upon the reading , is incorrect. is omitted after kaal-machalaah, since Solomon dropped the construction with which he commenced, and therefore briefly summed up all the prayers, addressed to God under the various chastisements here named, in the expression , which is placed absolutely at the opening of 1Ki 8:38. , “when they perceive each one the stroke of his heart,” i.e., not dolor animi quem quisque sentit (Vatab., C. a Lap.), but the plague regarded as a blow falling upon the heart, in other words, as a chastisement inflicted upon him by God. In all these cases may God hear his prayer, and do and give to every one according to his way. , “as Thou knowest his heart,” i.e., as is profitable for every one according to the state of his heart of his disposition. God can do this, because He knows the hearts of all men (cf. Jer 17:10). The purpose assigned for all this hearing of prayer (1Ki 8:40), viz., “that they may fear Thee,” etc., is the same as in Deu 4:10.
1Ki 8:41-43 The fifth prayer has reference to the hearing of the prayers of foreigners, who shall pray in the temple. Solomon assumes as certain that foreigners will come and worship before Jehovah in His temple; even Moses himself had allowed the foreigners living among the Israelites to offer sacrifice at the temple (Num 15:14.), and the great name and the arm of the Lord, that had manifested itself in deeds of omnipotence, had become known in the times of Moses to the surrounding nations (Exo 15:14; Exo 18:1; Jos 5:1), and the report of this had reached Balaam even in Mesopotamia (see the Comm. on Num 22). does not mean “as for the foreigners” (Thenius), for is never used in this sense; but it is to be connected with in 1Ki 8:43, as frequently occurs (Bertheau).
1Ki 8:42 1Ki 8:42 is a parenthesis inserted in explanation of : “for they will hear,” etc. The strong hand and the outstretched arm are connected together as a standing expression for the wondrous manifestations of the divine omnipotence in the guidance of Israel, as in Deu 4:34; Deu 5:15, etc. With the in 1Ki 8:41 is resumed, and the main thought continued.
1Ki 8:43 The reason for the hearing of the prayers of foreigners is “that all nations may know Thy name to fear Thee,” etc., as in Deu 28:10. An examination of this original passage, from which is taken and transferred to the temple, shows that the common explanations of this phrase, viz., “that this house is called after Thy name,” or “that Thy name is invoked over this temple (at its dedication),” are erroneous. The name of the Lord is always used in the Scriptures to denote the working of God among His people or in His kingdom (see at 2Sa 6:2). The naming of this name over the nation, the temple, etc., presupposes the working of God within it, and denotes the confession and acknowledgment of that working. This is obvious from such passages as Jer 14:9, where the expression “Thy name is called over us” is only a further explanation of the word “Thou art in the midst of us;” and from Isa 63:19, where “we are they over whom Thou hast not ruled from eternity” is equivalent to “over whom Thy name has not been called.” The name of Jehovah will be named over the temple, when Jehovah manifests His gracious presence within it in such a manner, that the nations who pray towards it experience the working of the living God within His sanctuary. It is in this sense that it is stated in 2Sa 6:2 that the name of Jehovah is named above the ark of the covenant (see the Comm. in loc.). – There are no cases on record of the worship of foreigners in connection with Solomon’s temple, though there are in connection with the temple built after the captivity (vid., Josephus, Ant. xi. 8, 5, that of Alexander the Great; xii. 2, 5ff., that of Ptolemaeus Philadelphus; and 2 Macc. 3:2, 3, that of Seleucus).
1Ki 8:44-45 Finally, in 1Ki 8:44-50 Solomon also asks, that when prayers are directed towards the temple by those who are far away both from Jerusalem and the temple, they may be heard. The sixth case, in 1Ki 8:44, 1Ki 8:45, is, if Israel should be engaged in war with an enemy by the appointment of God; and the seventh, in 1Ki 8:46-50, is, if it should be carried away by enemies on account of its sins.
(Note: Bertheau (on Chron.) has already proved that there is no force in the arguments by which Thenius attempts to show, on doctrinal grounds, that 1Ki 8:44-51 are an interpolated addition. As he correctly observes, “ it is, on the contrary, quite in harmony with the original plan, that the two cases are also anticipated, in which the prayers of Israelites who are at a distance from the seat of the sanctuary are directed towards the temple, since it is perfectly appropriate that the prayers of the Israelites at the place of the sanctuary are mentioned first, then the prayers of foreigners at the same place, and lastly the prayers of Israelites, who, because they are not in Jerusalem, are obliged to content themselves with turning their faces towards the temple. We might also point to the fact that it is probably intentional that exactly seven cases are enumerated, inasmuch as in enumerations of this kind, which are not restricted by the nature of the case to any definite measure, such a number as seven easily furnishes an outward limit, ” – or more correctly: because seven as a sacred or covenant number was more appropriate than any other to embrace all prayers addressed to God.)
By the expression in 1Ki 8:44, “in the way which Thou sendest them,” the war is described as one undertaken by the direction of God, whether wages against an enemy who has invaded the land, or outside the land of Canaan for the chastisement of the heathen dwelling around them. “And shall pray :” i.e., in the direction towards the chosen city and the temple, namely, in faith in the actual presence of the covenant God in the temple. , “to Jehovah,” instead of “to Thee,” is probably introduced for the sake of greater clearness. , and secure them justice (cf. Deu 10:18; Psa 9:5, etc.).
1Ki 8:46-49 In the seventh prayer, viz., if Israel should be given up to its enemies on account of its sins and carried away into the land of the enemy, Solomon had the threat in Lev 26:33, Lev 26:44 in his eye, though he does not confine his prayer to the exile of the whole nation foretold in that passage and in Deu 28:45., Deu 28:64, and Deu 30:1-5, but extends it to every case of transportation to an enemy’s land. , “and they take it to heart,” compare Deu 4:39, and without the object, Deu 30:1; not “they feel remorse,” as Thenius supposes, because the Hiphil cannot have this reflective signification (Bttcher). The confession of sin in 1Ki 8:47, , was adopted by the Jews when in captivity as the most exhaustive expression of their deep consciousness of guilt (Dan 9:5; Psa 106:6). , to slip, labi, depicts sin as a wandering from right; , to act perversely, as a conscious perversion of justice; and as a passionate rebellion against God (cf. Isa 57:20).
1Ki 8:50-53 : literally, “and make (place) them for compassion before their captors, that they may have compassion upon them,” i.e., cause them to meet with compassion from their enemies, who have carried them away. – In 1Ki 8:51-53 Solomon closes with general reasons, which should secure the hearing of his prayer on the part of God. Bertheau follows the earlier commentators in admitting that these reasons refer not merely to the last petitions, but to all the preceding ones.
(Note: Seb. Schmidt has already given the following explanation: “ These things which I have asked for myself and for my people do Thou, O Lord, because it is for Thy people that I have prayed, and I am their king: therefore hear Thou the prayers of Thy servant and Thy people. For in 1Ki 8:52 he makes mention of his own case and of the cases of all the rest, in which they would call upon the Lord.)
The plea “for they are Thy people,” etc. (1Ki 8:51), is taken from Deu 4:10; and that in 1Ki 8:53, “Thou didst separate them,” etc., is taken from Lev 20:24, Lev 20:26, compared with Exo 19:5. , “that Thine eyes may be opened,” follows upon (“then hear Thou”) in 1Ki 8:49; just as 1Ki 8:29 at the commencement of the prayer follows upon in 1Ki 8:28. The recurrence of the same expression shows that the prayer is drawing to a close, and is rounded off by a return to the thought with which it opened. “As Thou spakest by Moses” points back to Exo 19:5. – In 2Ch 6:40-42 the conclusion of the prayer is somewhat altered, and closes with the appeal to the Lord to cause salvation and grace to go forth from the temple over His people.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
| Solomon’s Prayer. | B. C. 1003. |
22 And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven: 23 And he said, LORD God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart: 24 Who hast kept with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him: thou spakest also with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thine hand, as it is this day. 25 Therefore now, LORD God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel; so that thy children take heed to their way, that they walk before me as thou hast walked before me. 26 And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my father. 27 But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded? 28 Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee to day: 29 That thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place. 30 And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place: and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place: and when thou hearest, forgive. 31 If any man trespass against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house: 32 Then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head; and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness. 33 When thy people Israel be smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee, and shall turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, and make supplication unto thee in this house: 34 Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which thou gavest unto their fathers. 35 When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou afflictest them: 36 Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, that thou teach them the good way wherein they should walk, and give rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance. 37 If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust, or if there be caterpillar; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be; 38 What prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house: 39 Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;) 40 That they may fear thee all the days that they live in the land which thou gavest unto our fathers. 41 Moreover concerning a stranger, that is not of thy people Israel, but cometh out of a far country for thy name’s sake; 42 (For they shall hear of thy great name, and of thy strong hand, and of thy stretched out arm;) when he shall come and pray toward this house; 43 Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for: that all people of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel; and that they may know that this house, which I have builded, is called by thy name. 44 If thy people go out to battle against their enemy, whithersoever thou shalt send them, and shall pray unto the LORD toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house that I have built for thy name: 45 Then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause. 46 If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near; 47 Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness; 48 And so return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, 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 maintain their cause, 50 And forgive thy people that have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee, and give them compassion before them who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them: 51 For they be thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron: 52 That thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto thee. 53 For thou didst separate them from among all the people of the earth, to be thine inheritance, as thou spakest by the hand of Moses thy servant, when thou broughtest our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord GOD.
Solomon having made a general surrender of this house to God, which God had signified his acceptance of by taking possession, next follows Solomon’s prayer, in which he makes a more particular declaration of the uses of that surrender, with all humility and reverence, desiring that God would agree thereto. In short, it is his request that this temple may be deemed and taken, not only for a house of sacrifice (no mention is made of that in all this prayer, that was taken for granted), but a house of prayer for all people; and herein it was a type of the gospel church; see Isa. lvi. 7, compared with Matt. xxi. 13. Therefore Solomon opened this house, not only with an extraordinary sacrifice, but with an extraordinary prayer.
I. The person that prayed this prayer was great. Solomon did not appoint one of the priests to do it, nor one of the prophets, but did it himself, in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, v. 22. 1. It was well that he was able to do it, a sign that he had made a good improvement of the pious education which his parents gave him. With all his learning, it seems, he learnt to pray well, and knew how to express himself to God in a suitable manner, pro re nata–on the spur of the occasion, without a prescribed form. In the crowd of his philosophical transactions, his proverbs, and songs, he did not forget his devotions. He was a gainer by prayer (ch. iii. 11, c.), and, we may suppose, gave himself much to it, so that he excelled, as we find here, in praying gifts. 2. It was well that he was willing to do it, and not shy of performing divine service before so great a congregation. He was far from thinking it any disparagement to him to be his own chaplain and the mouth of the assembly to God and shall any think themselves too great to do this office for their own families? Solomon, in all his other glory, even on his ivory throne, looked not so great as he did now. Great men should thus support the reputation of religious exercises and so honour God with their greatness. Solomon was herein a type of Christ, the great intercessor for all over whom he rules.
II. The posture in which he prayed was very reverent, and expressive of humility, seriousness, and fervency in prayer. He stood before the altar of the Lord, intimating that he expected the success of his prayer in virtue of that sacrifice which should be offered up in the fulness of time, typified by the sacrifices offered at that altar. But when he addressed himself to prayer, 1. He kneeled down, as appears, v. 54, where he is said to rise from his knees; compare 2 Chron. vi. 13. Kneeling is the most proper posture for prayer, Eph. iii. 14. The greatest of men must not think it below them to kneel before the Lord their Maker. Mr. Herbert says, “Kneeling never spoiled silk stocking.” 2. He spread forth his hands towards heaven, and (as it should seem by v. 54) continued so to the end of the prayer, hereby expressing his desire towards, and expectations from, God, as a Father in heaven. He spread forth his hands, as it were to offer up the prayer from an open enlarged heart and to present it to heaven, and also to receive thence, with both arms, the mercy which he prayed for. Such outward expressions of the fixedness and fervour of devotion ought not to be despised or ridiculed.
III. The prayer itself was very long, and perhaps much longer than is here recorded. At the throne of grace we have liberty of speech, and should use our liberty. It is not making long prayers, but making them for a pretence, that Christ condemns. In this excellent prayer Solomon does, as we should in every prayer,
1. Give glory to God. This he begins with, as the most proper act of adoration. He addresses himself to God as the Lord God of Israel, a God in covenant with them And, (1.) He gives him the praise of what he is, in general, the best of beings in himself (“There is no God like thee, none of the powers in heaven or earth to be compared with thee”), and the best of masters to his people: “Who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants; not only as good as thy word in keeping covenant, but better than thy word in keeping mercy, doing that for them of which thou hast not given them an express promise, provided they walk before thee with all their heart, are zealous for thee, with an eye to thee.” (2.) He gives him thanks for what he had done, in particular, for his family (v. 24): “Thou hast kept with thy servant David, as with thy other servants, that which thou promisedst him.” The promise was a great favour to him, his support and joy, and now performance is the crown of it: Thou hast fulfilled it, as it is this day. Fresh experiences of the truth of God’s promises call for enlarged praises.
2. He sues for grace and favour from God.
(1.) That God would perform to him and his the mercy which he had promised, 1Ki 8:25; 1Ki 8:26. Observe how this comes in. He thankfully acknowledges the performance of the promise in part; hitherto God had been faithful to his word: “Thou hast kept with thy servant David that which thou promisedst him, so far that his son fills his throne and has built the intended temple; therefore now keep with thy servant David that which thou hast further promised him, and which yet remains to be fulfilled in its season.” Note, The experiences we have had of God’s performing his promises should encourage us to depend upon them and plead them with God: and those who expect further mercies must be thankful for former mercies. Hitherto God has helped, 2 Cor. i. 10. Solomon repeats the promise (v. 25): There shall not fail thee a man to sit on the throne, not omitting the condition, so that thy children take heed to their way; for we cannot expect God’s performance of the promise but upon our performance of the condition. And then he humbly begs this entail (v. 26): Now, O God of Israel! let thy word be verified. God’s promises (as we have often observed) must be both the guide of our desires and the ground of our hopes and expectations in prayer. David had prayed (2 Sam. vii. 25): Lord, do as thou hast said. Note, Children should learn of their godly parents how to pray, and plead in prayer.
(2.) That God would have respect to this temple which he had now taken possession of, and that his eyes might be continually open towards it (v. 29), that he would graciously own it, and so put an honour upon it. To this purpose,
[1.] He premises, First, A humble admiration of God’s gracious condescension (v. 27): “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Can we imagine that a Being infinitely high, and holy, and happy, will stoop so low as to let it be said of him that he dwells upon the earth and blesses the worms of the earth with his presence–the earth, that is corrupt, and overspread with sin–cursed, and reserved to fire? Lord, how is it?” Secondly, A humble acknowledgment of the incapacity of the house he had built, though very capacious, to contain God: “The heaven of heavens cannot contain thee, for no place can include him who is present in all places; even this house is too little, too mean to be the residence of him that is infinite in being and glory.” Note, When we have done the most we can for God we must acknowledge the infinite distance and disproportion between us and him, between our services and his perfections.
[2.] This premised, he prays in general, First, That God would graciously hear and answer the prayer he was now praying, v. 28. It was a humble prayer (the prayer of thy servant), an earnest prayer (such a prayer as is a cry), a prayer made in faith (before thee, as the Lord, and my God): “Lord, hearken to it, have respect to it, not as the prayer of Israel’s king (no man’s dignity in the world, or titles of honour, will recommend him to God), but as the prayer of thy servant.” Secondly, That God would in like manner hear and answer all the prayers that should, at any time hereafter, be made in or towards this house which he had now built, and of which God had said, My name shall be there (v. 29), his own prayers (Hearken to the prayers which thy servant shall make), and the prayers of all Israel, and of every particular Israelite (v. 30): “Hear it in heaven, that is indeed thy dwelling-place, of which this is but a figure; and, when thou hearest, forgive the sin that separates between them and God, even the iniquity of their holy things.” a. He supposes that God’s people will ever be a prayer people; he resolves to adhere to that duty himself. b. He directs them to have an eye, in their prayers, to that place where God was pleased to manifest his glory as he did not any where else on earth. None but priests might come into that place; but, when they worshipped in the courts of the temple, it must be with an eye towards it, not as the object of their worship (that were idolatry), but as an instituted medium of their worship, helping the weakness of their faith, and typifying the mediation of Jesus Christ, who is the true temple, to whom we must have an eye in every thing wherein we have to do with God. Those that were at a distance looked towards Jerusalem, for the sake of the temple, even when it was in ruins, Dan. vi. 10. c. He begs that God will hear the prayers, and forgive the sins, of all that look this way in their prayers. Not as if he thought all the devout prayers offered up to God by those who had no knowledge of this house, or regard to it, were therefore rejected; but he desired that the sensible tokens of the divine presence with which this house was blessed might always give sensible encouragement and comfort to believing petitioners.
[3.] More particularly, he here puts divers cases in which he supposed application would be made to God by prayer in or towards this house of prayer.
First, If God were appealed to by an oath for the determining of any controverted right between man and man, and the oath were taken before this altar, he prayed that God would, in some way or other, discover the truth, and judge between the contending parties, 1Ki 8:31; 1Ki 8:32. He prayed that, in difficult matters, this throne of grace might be a throne of judgment, from which God would right the injured that believingly appealed to it, and punish the injurious that presumptuously appealed to it. It was usual to swear by the temple and altar (Mat 23:16; Mat 23:18), which corruption perhaps took its rise from this supposition of an oath taken, not by the temple or altar, but at or near them, for the greater solemnity.
Secondly, If the people of Israel were groaning under any national calamity, or any particular Israelite under any personal calamity, he desired that the prayers they should make in or towards this house might be heard and answered.
a. In case of public judgments, war (v. 33), want of rain (v. 35), famine, or pestilence (v. 37), and he ends with an et cetera–any plague or sickness; for no calamity befals other people which may not befal God’s Israel. Now he supposes, (a.) That the cause of the judgment would be sin, and nothing else. “If they be smitten before the enemy, if there be no rain, it is because they have sinned against thee.” It is sin that makes all the mischief. (b.) That the consequence of the judgment would be that they would cry to God, and make supplication to him in or towards that house. Those that slighted him before would solicit him then. Lord, in trouble have they visited thee. In their afflictions they will seek me early and earnestly. (c.) That the condition of the removal of the judgment was something more than barely praying for it. He could not, he would not, ask that their prayer might be answered unless they did also turn from their sin (v. 35) and turn again to God (v. 33), that is, unless they did truly repent and reform. On no other terms may we look for salvation in this world or the other. But, if they did thus qualify themselves for mercy, he prays, [a.] That God would hear from heaven, his holy temple above, to which they must look, through this temple. [b.] That he would forgive their sin; for then only are judgments removed in mercy when sin is pardoned. [c.] That he would teach them the good way wherein they should walk, by his Spirit, with his word and prophets; and thus they might be both profited by their trouble (for blessed is the man whom God chastens and teaches), and prepared for deliverance, which then comes in love when it finds us brought back to the good way of God and duty. [d.] That he would then remove the judgment, and redress the grievance, whatever it might be–not only accept the prayer, but give in the mercy prayed for.
b. In case of personal afflictions, v. 38-40. “If any man of Israel has an errand to thee, here let him find thee, here let him find favour with thee.” He does not mention particulars, so numerous, so various, are the grievances of the children of men. (a.) He supposes that the complainants themselves would very sensibly feel their own burden, and would open that case to God which otherwise they kept to themselves and did not make any man acquainted with: They shall know every man the plague of his own heart, what it is that pains him, and (as we say) where the shoe pinches, and shall spread their hands, that is, spread their case, as Hezekiah spread the letter, in prayer, towards this house; whether the trouble be of body or mind, they shall represent it before God. Inward burdens seem especially meant. Sin is the plague of our own heart; our indwelling corruptions are our spiritual diseases. Every Israelite indeed endeavours to know these, that he may mortify them and watch against the risings of them. These he complains of. This is the burden he groans under: O wretched man that I am! These drive him to his knees, drive him to the sanctuary. Lamenting these, he spreads forth his hands in prayer. (b.) He refers all cases of this kind, that should be brought hither, to God. [a.] To his omniscience: “Thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men, not only the plagues of their hearts, their several wants and burdens” (these he knows, but he will know them from us), “but the desire and intent of the heart, the sincerity or hypocrisy of it. Thou knowest which prayer comes from the heart, and which from the lips only.” The hearts of kings are not unsearchable to God. [b.] To his justice: Give to every man according to his ways; and he will not fail to do so, by the rules of grace, not the law, for then we should all be undone. [c.] To his mercy: Hear, and forgive, and do (v. 39), that they may fear thee all their days, v. 40. This use we should make of the mercy of God to us in hearing our prayers and forgiving our sins, we should thereby he engaged to fear him while we live. Fear the Lord and his goodness. There is forgiveness with him, that he may be feared.
c. The case of the stranger that is not an Israelite is next mentioned, a proselyte that comes to the temple to pray to the God of Israel, being convinced of the folly and wickedness of worshipping the gods of his country. (a.) He supposed that there would be many such (1Ki 8:41; 1Ki 8:42), that the fame of God’s great works which he had wrought for Israel, by which he proved himself to be above all gods, nay, to be God alone, would reach to distant countries: “Those that live remote shall hear of thy strong hand, and thy stretched-out arm; and this will bring all thinking considerate people to pray towards this house, that they may obtain the favour of a God that is able to do them a real kindness.” (b.) He begged that God would accept and answer the proselyte’s prayer (v. 43): Do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for. Thus early, thus ancient, were the indications of favour towards the sinners of the Gentiles: as there was then one law for the native and for the stranger (Exod. xii. 49), so there was one gospel for both. (c.) Herein he aimed at the glory of God and the propagating of the knowledge of him: “O let the stranger, in a special manner, speed well in his addresses, that he may carry away with him to his own country a good report of the God of Israel, that all people may know thee and fear thee (and, if they know thee aright, they will fear thee) as do thy people Israel.” So far was Solomon from monopolizing the knowledge and service of God, and wishing to have them confined to Israel only (which was the envious desire of the Jews in the days of Christ and his apostles), that he prayed that all people might fear God as Israel did. Would to God that all the children of men might receive the adoption, and be made God’s children! Father, thus glorify thy name.
d. The case of an army going forth to battle is next recommended by Solomon to the divine favour. It is supposed that the army is encamped at a distance, somewhere a great way off, sent by divine order against the enemy, v. 44. “When they are ready to engage, and consider the perils and doubtful issues of battle, and put up a prayer to God for protection and success, with their eye towards this city and temple, then hear their prayer, encourage their hearts, strengthen their hands, cover their heads, and so maintain their cause and give them victory.” Soldiers in the field must not think it enough that those who tarry at home pray for them, but must pray for themselves, and they are here encouraged to hope fore a gracious answer. Praying should always go along with fighting.
e. The case of poor captives is the last that is here mentioned as a proper object of divine compassion. (a.) He supposes that Israel will sin. He knew them, and himself, and the nature of man, too well to think this a foreign supposition; for there is no man that sinneth not, that does not enough to justify God in the severest rebukes of his providence, no man but what is in danger of falling into gross sin, and will if God leave him to himself. (b.) He supposes, what may well be expected, that, if Israel revolt from God, God will be angry with them, and deliver them into the hand of their enemies, to be carried captive into a strange country, v. 46. (c.) He then supposes that they will bethink themselves, will consider their ways (for afflictions put men upon consideration), and, when once they are brought to consider, they will repent and pray, will confess their sins, and humble themselves, saying, We have sinned and have done perversely (v. 47), and in the land of their enemies will return to God, whom they had forsaken in their own land. (d.) He supposes that in their prayers they will look towards their own land, the holy land, Jerusalem, the holy city, and the temple, the holy house, and directs them so to do (v. 48), for his sake who gave them that land, chose that city, and to whose honour that house was built. (e.) He prays that then God would hear their prayers, forgive their sins, plead their cause, and incline their enemies to have compassion on them,1Ki 8:49; 1Ki 8:50. God has all hearts in his hand, and can, when he pleases, turn the strongest stream the contrary way, and make those to pity his people who have been their most cruel persecutors. See this prayer answered, Ps. cvi. 46. He made them to be pitied of those that carried them captive, which, if it did not release them, yet eased their captivity. (f.) He pleads their relation to God, and his interest in them: “They are thy people, whom thou hast taken into thy covenant and under thy care and conduct, thy inheritance, from which, more than from any other nation, thy rent and tribute of glory issue and arise (v. 51), separated from among all people to be so and by distinguishing favours appropriated to thee,” v. 53.
Lastly, After all these particulars, he concludes with this general request, that God would hearken to all his praying people in all that they call unto him for, v. 52. No place now, under the gospel, can be imagined to add any acceptableness to the prayers made in or towards it, as the temple then did. That was a shadow: the substance is Christ; whatever we ask in his name, it shall be given us.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Dedicatory Prayer, 1Ki 8:22-30 AND 2Ch 6:12-20
Solomon had arranged to make himself conspicuous in the assembly, to lead them in worship and dedication. Chronicles tells of a bronze scaffold, or kind of pulpit, which he had made, from which to address the people. From this he speaks, standing and uplifting his hands toward heaven, leading them in a prayer of dedication.
The king began by glorifying the Lord as a keeper of promises, as evidenced in His promise concerning the temple to David. On this basis Solomon then continued to pray that the Lord would further fulfill the promise made to his father concerning the continuance of his family reigning on the throne of David. That Solomon was fully aware of the contingency attached to this promise, relative to the spiritual walk of his children in the way of the Lord, is apparent from the words of verses 25 (Kings) and 16 (Chronicles). This makes all the more astounding the later apostasy of Solomon in his walk before the Lord. God does not abrogate His promises (Heb 13:5).
From this prayer of laudation and praise Solomon turned to confession and admission. The temple, though great and magnificent in the eyes of Israel, was but nothing in the eyes of the Lord. In applying to Hiram for the materials to build the wonderful temple Solomon had admitted the impossibility of containing the Lord in a house of Man’s making (2Ch 2:6). Here he reiterates these words to the people. This was cautionary and should have been accepted by the people, for later generations certainly forgot, or disbelieved, this fact (Jer 7:4; Jer 7:11-14).
Still Solomon prayed that the Lord would be merciful to Israel when they prayed toward this temple, dedicated to His name, which the Lord had acclaimed by His descent upon it in the indwelling cloud. The closing words of the Kings account are the fitting climax to the king’s prayer, “When they shall pray toward this place: … hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place: and when thou hearest, forgive” (1Ki 8:30).
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
CRITICAL AND EXPLANATORY NOTES.
1Ki. 8:28. Prayer, supplication, and cry, are respectively prayer in general (whether praise, petition, or thanks), entreaty or supplication (petition for grace and help), and praise (prayer as the joyful expression of praise and thanks).Keil.
1Ki. 8:31. If any man trespassSolomon here passes from general prayer, and begins to specify distinct cases. Seven particular cases are given in which Gods merciful interposition would be needed: concerning the observation of the oath (31, 32), captives (33, 34), drought (35, 36), land plagues (3740), strangers (4143), Israelites when absent from Zion (44, 45), captives (4650). 1Ki. 8:51-53. A concluding argument by which Solomon urges his prayer. 1Ki. 8:54-61. Solomon counsels and blesses the congregationHe arose from the altar, and he stood and blessed, &c.
HOMILETICS OF 1Ki. 8:22-53
A MODEL DEDICATORY PRAYER
THIS is a prayer of unusual length, of great compass and pathos in its petitions; and is remarkable as combining the conception of the Infinity of the Divine Presence with the hope that the Divine Mercies will be drawn down on the nation by the concentration of the national devotions, and even of the devotions of foreign nations towards this fixed locality. It consists of three parts
1. Adoration for the fulfilment of the promise to David (1Ki. 8:23-24).
2. Prayer for its continued fulfilment, and for blessings upon the concentration of worship at the Temple (1Ki. 8:25-30).
3. Supplication for specific blessings (3153); e.g., in cases of trespass, when smitten before enemies, in times of drought, famine, or plague, for the devout stranger, for success in battle, and for deliverance from captivity. These prayers for specific blessings are seven, thus corresponding in number with the seven petitions of the Lords prayer. We may regard the whole prayer as illustrative of and embodying the three principal ideas which governed the religious life of the Jewish peoplethe ideas of God, of sin, and of a coming deliverance. Just as the Grecians represented the philosophic and artistic culture, and the Romans the legislative capacity, of the human race, so the Israelites represented the religious principlethe greatest force of all, and that which was destined to interpenetrate all other forces, and use them for the advancement and salvation of the race. An examination of the scope and matter of this prayer will show how the three leading ideas referred to were ingrained in the national consciousness of Israel. The whole prayer is an excellent model that may be appropriately followed in the dedicatory services of every sanctuary solemnly set apart for Divine worship.
I. This prayer is illustrative of the Israelitish idea of Jehovah. The whole world was overrun with polytheism, and the idea of one God was in danger of being utterly extinguished. Abraham, the founder of the Jewish nation, was rescued, by the special call of heaven, from the darkness and bewilderment of heathenism, and became the great apostle of monotheism. With his descendants was deposited the precious truth, which, though at first a strictly national possession, was ultimately to enrich and exalt mankind. The Israelites cherished the loftiest ideas of Jehovah
1. As a Being of Incomparable Majesty: There is no God like Thee (1Ki. 8:23). Jehovah is not compared here with other gods; but, on the contrary, is described as the only true God (compare Deu. 4:39; Jos. 2:11; 2Sa. 7:22; 2Sa. 22:32). God is recognized as the living and personal God, who is the source and power of all things, and in comparison with whom all is emptiness and vanity.
2. As a Being of Infinite condescension: But will God indeed dwell on the earth? (1Ki. 8:27). The omnipresence and infinitude of Jehovah are acknowledged. This is at once a refutation of the anthropomorphic notions of God such as heathenism made in its temples, and which it might seek to associate with His dwelling, no longer a movable tent, but in a permanent building; and also a refutation of the pantheistic notion of Deity, which the highest philosophy of heathendom, by identifying God and the world, imagined. The Israelitish idea of God knows nothing of a contradiction between the supernal, infinite, and absolute being of God, and His entering into creaturely, finite, and limited being. Just because He is infinite and unsearchable, He can communicate with the finite; and because He is everywhere, He can be peculiarly present in one place, centring His presence and displaying His absolute sublimity.
3. As a Being of unutterable purity. From Him proceeds the law which discovers sin in us and holiness in Him, and which law is the rule to regulate our earthly life. The whole Levitical economy, in its elaborate particularity, was so constructed as specially to detect and unveil sin in man, and to foster the most exalted conceptions of Divine purity.
4. As a Being of boundless mercy: Who keepest covenant and mercy; And when thou hearest, forgive (1Ki. 8:23; 1Ki. 8:30). He is the gracious and merciful God to whom the poor and afflicted may look for help, and all the world for blessing. In the new covenant we no longer call upon God as the God of Israel, but as the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He has revealed Himself to us through Christ, and through Christ alone do we find in Him the true God, the God of grace and mercy (Eph. 1:3; Joh. 17:3). We have glimpses now of the depth and vastness of Gods mercy which the most pious Israelite never saw.
5. As a Being of unchangeable faithfulness (1Ki. 8:24-25). Through the ages of the past, notwithstanding the failures and sins of His chosen people, Jehovah continued steadfast to His part of the covenant. The course of Jewish history is studded with wondrous and convincing evidences of the unswerving fidelity of God; and the sacred writers are never wearied in rehearsing the mighty acts which were done in defence and preservation of His people, and in the accomplishment of His promised Word. The believer of to-day has the same invulnerable fidelity to fall back upon: Faithful is He who hath promised, who also will do it.
II. This prayer is illustrative of the Israelitish idea of sin. Israel is the nation conscious of sin, conscious as no other nation ever was or could be. The best of men in the pre-Christian age were conscious there was something radically wrong, but they had no just conception of the nature of the wrong, and were utterly powerless to devise a remedy. Convinced that things could not go on as they were, they looked for the destruction of the world, and despaired of mankind. The piety and religions of the ancient world resolved themselves into stoical scepticism on the one hand, and superstitious despair on the other. There was no nation in whom the consciousness of sin was deeper, more genuine, or more powerful than in Israel. The law was a constant remembrancer and a constant convicter of sin. Sacrifice was the central point of all the rites and ceremonies of the law. The sacred fire was to be burning incessantly upon the altar; sacrifices were to be offered day by day; and the climax of all sacrifice was that offered on the great day of atonement, on which the high priest, as the representative of the nation, laid upon the sacrificial animal the sins of the whole people, bore the blood of atonement into the place of Gods typical presence, and sprinkled with it the mercy seat, that the people might be absolved from sin, and reconciled to God. Not only is universal sinfulness expressly assertedThere is no man that sinneth not; or, rather, That may not sin (1Ki. 8:46)but the living consciousness of sin is interwoven with every thought. This is the more characteristic, as it was not a penitential ceremony at which the prayer was offered, but a joyful thanksgiving festival, and it was offered by a king who was the wisest of his time, and had reached the summit of power and prosperity. It is evident, then, how deeply rooted was this consciousness of sin in Israel, and how inseparably it was blent with their religious ideas. (Consult Luthardts Fundamental Truths, Lecture viii., and Langes Com.) The deeper our sense of sin, the more awful does the holiness of God appear, and the more eagerly do we welcome and prize His mercy.
III. This prayer is illustrative of the Israelitish idea of future deliverance and glory. Israel was the nation of hope. Ancient prophecies of a Redeemer and of a glorious redemption, in which the whole world was to share (1Ki. 8:60), existed among this people, and ever kept their view directed to the future. These prophecies assumed a form ever increasingly definite, while their fulfilment was confided to an ever narrowing circleto the seed of Abraham, the tribe of Judah, the house of David. And now Israel, in the reigns of David and Solomon, has reached the climax of its history and the maturity of its national development and glory; and this era is a type of the victorious conflicts and universal peace of the future, when a greater than Solomon shall reign over a vanquished and ransomed world. It is remarkable that while Solomon is offering this prayer, at the very flood-tide of national prosperity and triumph, as if gifted by prophetic insight, he foresees the defeat and captivities of Israel in the future, and earnestly supplicates for their restoration, that the Divine purpose in advancing the good of mankind and His own glory might not be frustated (1Ki. 8:46-53compare with 1Ki. 8:43-60). The common talk of vulgar rationalism, about Jehovah being only a God of the Jews and of their land, appears in all its emptiness and folly when contrasted with the official acknowledgment of Israels world-wide mission, and which acknowledgment was made on a most solemn occasion. The continual approach of a great deliverance and of an era of happy, peaceful, and glorious government, is the great theme of all the Hebrew prophets. Diversely as the records may read, penned as they were under such different circumstances, all the varying features of the prophetic utterances combine to form one great, bright picture of future blessings. The history of Israel to the present is a witness to the veracity of the prophecies and to the wondrous facts of Christianity. The prince who, on one occasion, asked his chaplain to furnish him with the evidence of the truth of Christianity, but to do so briefly, for he had no time to spare, received as an answer the wordsThe Jews, your majesty!
LESSONS:
1. Prayer is a humble admission of personal dependence and helplessness.
2. Must be offered to the only living and true God.
3. Should be comprehensive in its topics.
4. Should be urgent and persevering in supplication.
GERM NOTES ON THE VERSES
1Ki. 8:22. Solomon stands before the altar, bows the knee, stretches out his hands; the people stand around, the worshippers turn their faces towards the sanctuary (1Ki. 8:38; 1Ki. 8:44; 1Ki. 8:48; 1Ki. 8:54). In prayer the ancients used to spread out the palms of their hands, as it were to receive a blessing from God (Exo. 9:29; Psa. 44:20; Psa. 143:6). Outward forms for the worship and service of God are not to be rejected when they are the natural unbidden outflow of inward feeling. They are worthless when they are regarded as meritorious, and man puts his trust in them (Luk. 18:11). They are sinful and blameworthy if they are performed merely for appearances sake, or to deceive men (Mat. 6:5; Mat. 6:16). The Lord knows the hearts of all men; one cannot serve the living God with dead works. The Lord Himself and His Apostles prayed upon their knees (Luk. 22:41; Eph. 3:14). No one is so exalted that he ought not to bow his knee and clasp his hand.
1Ki. 8:23-53. The prayer of Solomon.
1. A witness to his faith. He confesses the living, holy, and one God before all the people.
2. To his love. He bears his people upon his heart, and makes intercession for them.
3. To his hope. He hopes that all nations will come to a knowledge of the true God. From Solomon we may learn how we ought to prayin true reverence and humiliation before God, with earnestness and zeal, with undoubting confidence that we shall be heard. What an elevating spectaclea king upon his knees praying aloud in the presence of his whole people, and in their behalf! Although the highest of them all, he is not ashamed to declare himself a servant of God, and to fall down upon his knees; although the wisest of them all, he prays, as a testimony that a wisdom which can no longer pray is folly; although the mightiest of all, he confesses that nothing is done by his power alone, but that the Lord is the King Eternal; therefore it is that he does not merely rule over his subjects, but as an upright king supplicates and prays for them likewise.Lange.
1Ki. 8:27. Reflecting upon Gods performance of His promise concerning the building of the Temple, Solomon breaks forth into admiration. Is it possible that the great and high and lofty God should stoop so low as to take up His dwelling here amongst men! O, astonishing condescension! The heavenall this vast space of the visible world:And heaven of heavensthe third and highest and therefore the largest heaven, called the heaven of heavens here (as also Deu. 10:14; Psa. 148:4), for its eminency and comprehensivenesscannot contain Thee, for Thy essence reacheth far beyond them, being omnipresent. How much less this house that I have builded! This house, therefore, was not built as if it were proportionable to Thy greatness, or could contain Thee, but only that therein we might serve and glorify Thee.Pool.
By the sentence that the heaven of heavensi.e., the heaven in its most extended compass; the illimitable space above the visible heaven or firmament which lies immediately over the earthcannot contain God, Solomon strikes down all rationalistic assertions, that the Israelites imagined Jehovah to be only a finite national god. The infinite and supra-mundane exaltation of God cannot be more clearly and strongly expressed than it is in these words. That, however, Solomon was addicted to no abstract idealism is sufficiently apparent from this, that he unites this consciousness of the infinite exaltation of God with the firm belief of His real presence in the temple. The true God is not merely infinitely exalted above the world, has not only His throne in heaven (1Ki. 8:34; 1Ki. 8:36; 1Ki. 8:39; Psa. 2:4; Psa. 11:4; Psa. 103:19; Isa. 66:1; Amo. 9:6), He is also present on the earth (Deu. 4:39), has chosen the temple for the dwelling place of His name in Israel, from which He hears the prayers of His people.Keil.
Although the heaven of heavens cannot contain the Unmeasurable and Infinite One, and no building, how great and noble soever, can suffice for Him, yet, in His mercy, He will make His dwelling place (Joh. 14:23) in the heart of that man who loves Him and keeps His word, and it will truly become a temple of God (1Co. 3:16). He will dwell with those who are of a humble spirit (Isa. 57:15; Psa. 113:5-6).
1Ki. 8:27-30. The greatness and condescension of God. I. God is too great to be confined by anything that has limits.
1. He is greater than all created things: Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee (1Ki. 8:27). Solomon wonders that God should appoint a temple to be erected to Him upon the earth, when He is not contained in the vast circuit of the heavens; His essence is not straitened in the limits of any created work. He who was before the world, and place, and all things, was to Himself a world, a place, and everything: He is really out of the world in Himself, as He was in Himself before the creation of the world. As because God was before the foundation of the world we conclude His eternity, so because He is without the bounds of the world we conclude His immensity. He is above and outside of all His creatures, and governs all the possibilities of their existence
2. He is present everywhere. Everything is filled by God; but that which is filled is different from that by which it is filled. The Omnipresent God is the inmost fundamental Being of everything that exists: He is the life of all that lives, the Spirit of all spirits. And as He is all in all, so is all in Him. As the bird in the air, as the fish in the sea, so do all creatures live and move and have their being in God. The world of time and space, of nature and history, is contained in Him. But although creation is contained in God, God is not contained in His creation. Although the Omnipresent One is essentially present in every leaf and every grain of wheat, He dwells and moves freely in Himself, in virtue of His eternity. The fundamental error of Pantheism is the notion that God is Omnipresent of necessity. God is present in one way in nature, in another way in history; in one way in the church, in another way in the world: He is not, in the same sense, present alike in the hearts of His saints, and in those of the ungodly; in heaven and in hell (Martensen). II. God condescends to make His church His dwelling place.
1. Here His presence is especially realized: The place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there (1Ki. 8:29). The choice of Jerusalem as the place seems to have been made by special revelation to David (Psa. 78:68; Psa. 132:13, comp. with 1Ch. 22:1). The Name Jehovah is synonymous with the nature and perfections of Jehovah; and it is here intimated that He would be present in His temple to show forth His power and glory by enlightening, quickening, pardoning, sanctifying, and saving the devout and sincere worshipper. As the prayerful Jew directed his gaze towards the Temple of Jerusalem, so the believer must address his prayers to God through Jesus Christ, who is the Head of the spiritual church (Dan. 7:10, with Heb. 10:19-20; Col. 1:18).
2. Here His word is deposited. The church is commissioned to hold inviolate the sacred trust, and to disseminate the Word in all its purity and power. The hoarded riches of ancient cities were paltry compared with the inexhaustible wealth of revelations which are treasured up in the church of Godtreasured up not to lie unused and unproductive, but to enrich the world.
3. Here His mercy is dispensed. The ark of the covenant, with its mercy seat, was in the Templea symbol of hope and a pledge of deliverance to the transgressor. III. God is graciously pleased to hear and answer the prayer of the humble suppliant (1Ki. 8:28; 1Ki. 8:30).
1. Prayer may be offered anywhere. The exclusiveness of the Jewish religion was a preparation for, and made possible, a religion that was to be adapted to universal man. In the old dispensation prayer was offered in or towards Jerusalem (1Ki. 8:30): in the present dispensation the command is that Men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands without wrath and doubting (1Ti. 2:8). Both tabernacle and temple were types of ChristGod manifest in the flesh; and He was and is the Mediator between God and man. The human nature of Christ is the temple in which dwell all the fulness of the Godhead bodily; therefore all prayer, to be acceptable and entitled to a hearing, must be offered to God through Him. There is no restriction as to locality. From the crowded sanctuary or the quiet home-circle, from the dingy prison or the pathless seas, the worshipper may direct his prayers to the Great Helper of the helpless.
2. Prayer, to be successful, must be fervent. Solomon speaks of the cry and the supplication (1Ki. 8:28; 1Ki. 8:30). The more vividly the soul realizes its need and its peril, the more pathetic and passionate will be its cry for help. Spite of the hollow sneer of modern scientists, prayer has an indefinable something about it that moves the heart of God, and brings Him consciously nearer to the praying soul. The most coveted prizes in religious experience have been won by wrestling prayer.
LESSONS:
1. The greatness of God is manifested in His merciful condescension.
2. He is worthy of ceaseless adoration.
3. The most abject sinner who turns to Him will not be rejected.
1Ki. 8:29. The eye of God looks upon every house where His name is honoured, where all with one mind raise heart and hand to Him, and call upon His name (Psa. 121:4). To every church the saying is applicableMy Name shall be there. The object of every church is to be a dwelling-place of divine revelation, i.e., of the revealed Word of God, in which, upon the strength of that Word, worship, praise, and prayer shall be offered to the name of the Lord.
1Ki. 8:30. The houses of God, above all else, must be houses of prayer (Isa. 56:7): they are desecrated if devoted to merely worldly purposes of any kind whatsoever, instead of being used for prayer and supplication. The hearing of prayer does not, indeed, depend upon the place where it is offered (Joh. 4:20), but prayer should have an appointed place, where we can present ourselves, even as God wills that, together with one voice, we humbly exalt His name (Rom. 15:6; Psa. 34:4). Where two or three are gathered together in His name, He is in their midst; how much more will He be where a whole congregation is assembled to call upon Him.Lange.
1Ki. 8:31-50. The seven petitions of the prayer teach us
1. In all necessity of body and soul to turn to the Lord, who alone can help, and call upon Him with earnestness and zeal (Psa. 50:15; Psa. 91:14-15).
2. In all our straits to recognize the wholesome discipline of an holy and just God, who will show us the good way in which we must walk (Psa. 94:12; Heb. 12:5).
3. To confess our sins, and to implore forgiveness in order that we may be heard (Psa. 32:1; Psa. 32:5; Psa. 32:7).
4. Not only for ourselves, but also for others, in their time of need, should we pray and supplicate, even as the king does here for all individual men, and for his entire people.Lange.
1Ki. 8:31-32. The solemn appeal of the accused.
1. That cases will arise where it is difficult to convict the wrong-doer of his crime. Sin is subtle in its movements and deceptive in its appearance. It often wears the garb of the saint, while it is enacting the enormities of the most vicious. How often is the truth concealed by the most miserable equivocation. A sudden lie may be sometimes only manslaughter upon truth; but, by a carefully constructed equivocation, truth always is, with malice aforethought, deliberately murdered. It is difficult to detect the real culprit, amid the mystifications he has himself originated, as it is to seize the cuttlefish by groping in the inky waters it has itself discoloured.
2. That the final refuge of baffled justice is to allow the accused an appeal to the judgment of God.
1. This appeal has been often abused. In the ruder stages of human development, very painful methods were resorted to as tests of innocence. Fire and sword were freely used for this purpose. In the dark ages a fire was kindled within the church, not far from the great altar; a bar of iron was heated, and, after an elaborate ritual of prayers and abjurations, the accused was required to carry the red-hot iron nine yards from the flame. The moment he laid it down, he was borne by the priests into the vestry: there his hands were wrapped in linen cloths, sealed down with the signet of the church; and, according to the condition in which the hands were found on the third day, was he declared innocent or guilty. A belief was common among the northern nations that the corpse of a murdered person would bleed on the touch or at the approach of the real murderer; and this test was often applied with great and imposing ceremonies. In Borneo, we are told, when two dyaks have to decide which is in the right, they have two equal lumps of salt given them to drop into water, and he whose lump dissolves first is deemed to be in the wrong. Or, they put two live shell-fish on a plateone for each litigantand squeezing lime-juice over them, the verdict is given according to which mans mollusc stirs first. The Siamese, again, have a curious way of deciding the truth between two parties in the absence of witnesses: their method is to ascertain which of the two can stay longest under water. Such are specimens of the varied plans which reveal the craft, the audacity, and the folly of mankind.
2. This appeal must be solemn and sincere (1Ki. 8:31). Though the method may be abused, we may and must call upon God to help the innocent man to his rights, and, even in this world, to reward the evil man according to his deserts. It is allowable for a pious man to entreat God to administer his just cause; yet, must he not wish evil to his neighbour in mere human vindictiveness (Psa. 109:1). The oath is a prayer, a solemn invocation of God in testimony of the truth: the false oath is not merely a lie, but an insolent mockery of God, and God will not be mocked (Gal. 6:7; Exo. 20:7). Bear in mind, when thou swearest, that thou art standing before the altar, i.e., before the judgment-seat of the Holy and Just God, who can condemn body and soul to hell. Where the oath is no longer held sacred, there the nation and the state go to ruin.(Starke).
3. That the Judgment of God is infallible in the punishment of the guilty and the vindication of the innocent (1Ki. 8:32). The sinner cannot triumph for ever; and the cries of the injured for justice are not in vain. The retribution of the wicked is often swift, and is always terrible: God brings his way upon his head. This He hath done on those who have taken false oaths of execration, as may be instanced in the three false accusers of Narcissus, the bishop of Jerusalem; in the case of Earl Godwin; and in the case of one Anne Averies, who, forswearing herself in a shop in Wood Street, London, in 1575, praying God she might sink where she stood, if she had not paid for the wares she took, fell down speechless and instantly expired. Verily, there is a God that ruleth in the earth, and every act of man shall receive its due recompense according to its character.
LESSONS:
1. The innocent need not fear the strictest scrutiny.
2. Sin it certain to be discovered and punished.
3. The appeal to Divine Justice it not in vain.
Personal injuries. I. Should not be lightly inferred. Here an oath was taken of the man who had inflicted the injury. This oath was to be taken before Gods altar.
II. Should be committed into the hand of God. The Judge of all the earth will do right. Prayer to God when we smart under injury will
1. Prevent a vindictive spirit.
2. Lead us to desire the triumph of righteousness.
1Ki. 8:33-34. The terrible scourge of war.
1. That the defence of a nation depends upon the bravery of its people.
2. That sin saps the foundation of natural courage.
3. That war is sometimes an instrument of punishment for national offences.
4. That war is ever attended with terrible suffering.
5. That defeat often drives a nation to seek help and deliverance in prayer.
6. That God hears the cry of the humble and penitent captives, and brings them out of their distresses.
I. The commission of sin producing national calamities. Israel smitten before the enemy, because they sinned. This result may be brought about by the operation of natural lawsnot necessary to suppose any miraculous intervention. Sin weakenssin destroys.
II. The means that should be employed in times of calamity.
1. ReformationTurn again to thee.
2. Confession of sinConfess thy name.
3. Prayer to GodAnd pray.
A victorious enemy is the whip and scourge with which the Lord chastises a nation, so that it may awake out of sleep, confess its sins, turn unto Him, and learn anew its forgotten prayers and supplications. To those who are taken captive in war, and, far from fatherland, must dwell beneath a foreign yoke, applies the Word of the Lord (Luk. 13:2). Therefore, they who are prospering in their native country must pray for them, believing in the words of Psa. 146:7.
1Ki. 8:35-36. The abuse of prosperity and its Nemesis. I. Prosperity is a blessing from God. He controls the food-producing elementsopens or stops the bottles of the sky, fills the earth with fruitfulness, or binds it up with the iron bands of sterility. II. Prosperity is encompassed with many perils. Of a reckless and thankless indulgenceof a proud self-sufficiencyof an impious forgetfulness of God. III. The abuse of prosperity is followed with inevitable punishment. Hard, harassing, and unremunerative labourgeneral scarcitylife-long disease, personal and social sufferings. IV. The teachings of adversity tend to correct the errors of prosperity. The proud and thoughtless are humbledman is taught his absolute dependence on Goda spirit of genuine devotion is encourageda wise and generous use of prosperity is inculcated.
Introduces a question about which there has been much angry discussion Can human prayer modify or influence the operation of natural law? If so, to what extent, and under what conditions? Probably a thorough and satisfactory solution of the problem will never be obtained. No necessary conflict between prayer and natural law.
I. The possibility of a great calamity arising from natural causes. Heaven shut up. No rain.
II. The connection of this calamity with human sinfulness. Because they have sinned against Thee.
III. The Scriptural method of terminating this calamity.
1. Confession of sin.
2. Abandonment of sin.
3. Prayer of God.
Inasmuch as fruitful seasons, instead of leading to repentance, as being proofs of Gods goodness, so often tend to create pride, haughtiness, and lightmindedness, therefore the Lord sometimes shuts up His heavens. But then we should murmur not against Him, but against our own sins (2Sa. 3:39), and confess that all human care and toil for obtaining food out of the earth is in vain if He give not rain out of heaven and fruitful seasons. Fine weather is not brought about by the means of processions, but by true repentance and heartfelt prayer (Lev. 26:3-4). When God humbles us, He thus directs to the good way (Psa. 119:67; Deu. 2:3; Deu. 5:8).Starke.
1Ki. 8:36. The good way.
1. Is Divinely revealed.
2. Is maintained by Divine instruction.
3. Is lost by disobedience.
4. Is found in the pathway of suffering and trial.
5. Leads to everlasting blessedness.
1Ki. 8:37-40. National calamities and their lessons. I. That national calamities are varied in their character (1Ki. 8:37).
1. Famine, a scarcity, or total want of bread, necessarily springing from the preceding cause, want of rain.
2. Pestilence, any general and contagious disease.
3. Blasting, anything by which the crops are injured, so that the ear is never matured, but, instead of wholesome grain, there is a black offensive dust.
4. Mildew, anything that vitiates or corrodes the texture of the stalk, destroys the flowers and blossoms, or causes the young shaped fruits to fall off their stems.
5. Locust, a well-known curse in the East, a species of grasshopper that multiplies by millions, and covers the face of the earth for many miles square, destroying every green thing, leaving neither herb nor grass upon the earth, nor leaf nor bark upon the trees.
6. Caterpillars, the locust in its young or nympha state. The former refers to ocusts brought by winds from other countries, and settling on the land; the latter, to the young locusts bred in the land.
7. An enemy, having attacked their defenced cities, the keys and barriers of the land.
8. Any other kind of plague, that which affects the surface of the bodyblotch, blain, leprosy, ophthalmia, &c.
9. Sickness, whatever impaired the strength, or affected the intestines, disturbing or destroying their natural functions. II. That national calamities are aggravated by individual offences.
1. Sin is the fruitful source of all calamities, and is itself the greatest of all.
2. That a personal consciousness of sin is the discovery of mans greatest moral plague (1Ki. 8:38). III. That national calamities should lead to national humiliation and prayer. IV. That the removal of national calamities should intensify and augment national piety (1Ki. 8:40).
Divine judgments and means of discipline are very various in their kind, their degree, and their duration. God in His wisdom and justice metes out to a whole people, as to each individual man, such measure of suffering as is needed for its salvation, for He knows the hearts of all the children of men, and He tries no man beyond His power of endurance. He hearkens to him who calls upon Him in distress (2Sa. 22:7; Psa. 34:18; Isa. 26:16). Distress teaches us how to pray, but often only so long as it is present with us. God looks upon our hearts, and knows whether our prayer is a mere passing emotion, or whether we have truly turned to Him. How entirely different would our prayers often sound if we reflected that we were addressing Him who knows our heart, with its most secret and mysterious thoughts, expectations, and wishes. The effect of an answer to our prayers must be that we fear the Lord, and walk in His ways, not only in the time of need and trouble, but at all times as long as we live. It is a priceless thing that the heart remains constant.Lange.
1Ki. 8:38. The moral plague of humanity. Shall know every man the plague of his own heart. I. The moral plague of humanity is sin. II. Is inward and individual. III. Is terrible when it intensifies itself into the form of a conscious and deserved judgment of God. IV. Is an unspeakable blessing when it induces man to escape from its ruinous consequences by a timely repentance. V. Can be removed only by a believing application of the Divine Remedy.
The plague of his own heart. His own iniquity (Psa. 18:23): the cause of his calamity, as he well understandeth when sin and wrath meet in his soul and make a wound in it: the cure whereof he seeketh of God by prayer, which hath a pacifying property, and fetcheth out the stain and sting of sin.Trapp.
1Ki. 8:39. The divine knowledge of man.
1. Is infallible.
2. Universal.
3. Minute.
4. Is specially concerned with his moral condition.
5. Enables God to reveal mans true state to himself.
6. Should foster in man a spirit of vigilance, circumspection, and awe.
1Ki. 8:40. The fear of God is again connected with forgiveness in Psa. 130:4, as if he should not fear, unless we could hope. So Milton makes Satan say, Then farewell Hope; and with Hope, farewell Fear. And Aristotle speaks of fear as inseparably connected with hope (Rhet. 1Ki. 2:5).Speakers Comm.
1Ki. 8:41-43. The unifying power of prayer. I. All men are alike in their moral needs. II. The exercise of prayer is an invisible but all-active power that unites the entire raceirrespective of rank, of nationality, of creed, or outward circumstances. III. Prayer is a divinely-appointed means of bringing all men to a true knowledge of God. IV. Prayer recognises the fact of a universal brotherhood.
1Ki. 8:41. Nothing is more remarkable in the Mosaic law than its liberality with regard to strangers. Not only were the Israelites forbidden to vex or oppress a stranger (Exo. 22:21), not only were they required to relieve the stranger who was poor or in distress (Lev. 25:35), not only had they a general command to love the stranger (Deu. 10:19); but, even in religious matters, where anciently almost all nations were exclusive, they were exclusive, they were bound to admit strangers to nearly equal privileges. Such persons might make offerings at the tabernacle under exactly the same conditions as the native Israelites (Num. 15:14-16); and they might be present at the solemn reading of the law, which took place once in seven years (Deu. 31:12). It is quite in the spirit of these enactments that Solomon, having first prayed God on behalf of his fellow-countrymen, should next go on to intercede for the strangers, and to ask for their prayers the same acceptance which he had previously begged for the prayers of faithful Israelites.Speakers Com.
1Ki. 8:41-43. Even Solomon bore witness that the house he had built could not encompass Him whom the heavens cannot contain, so likewise he testified that the covenant made by God with Israel did not exclude all other nations from salvation, but rather aimed at leading all men to a knowledge of the truth. If a Solomon prayed for the attainment of this object, how much more does it become us to pray for the conversion of the heathen, and do our utmost that the people who sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death, may come to Him, a light set by God before all nations to lighten the heathen (Luk. 2:31). He who desires to know nothing of missions to the heathen, fails to know the God who wills that help should be given to all men, and that all should come to the knowledge of Himself (1Ti. 2:4). Solomon hoped that the heathen, when they heard the great deeds which the Lord did in Israel, would turn to that God; how much stronger becomes this hope when the infinitely greater scheme of salvation in Christ Jesus is declared to them!The acknowledgment of the name of God necessarily causes the fear of God. If an individual, or an entire nation, be wanting in the latter, they will, alas! lack a true knowledge of God, let them boast as they will of enlightenment and enlightened religious ideas.Lange.
1Ki. 8:43. Here is one of the Old Testament intimations of the universality of the true religion and true worship of God. Though the national consciousness of Israel was that of separateness from all other nations, yet at times the Spirit lifted it above that exclusiveness, and thrilled it with a momentary grasping after universal brotherhood.Terry.
1Ki. 8:44. This refers to wars undertaken by Divine appointmentWhithersoever thou shalt send them: for in no other wars could they expect the blessing and concurrence of the Lord; in none other could the God of truth and justice maintain their cause. There were such wars under the Mosaic dispensation; there are none such under the Christian dispensation: nor can there be any, for the Son of Man is come, not to destroy mens lives, but to save them. Except mere defensive war, all others are diabolic; and if there were no provocations, would there be any attacks, and, consequently, any need of defensive wars?A. Clarke.
1Ki. 8:44-45. Prayer a preparation for conflict.
1. Every man is called to wage unceasing warfare against evil.
2. Man can conquer evil only by Divine aid.
3. He who prays the most will fight the best.
4. Prayer will win the conflict when all external tactics fail.
5. God will prosper and maintain the cause He has made His own.
A people who undertake war should, above all, be sure that it is under the guidance of God. That alone is a just war which is undertaken with Gods help and in the cause of God, of truth, and of justice. A host going forth to battle should remember this:Nothing can be done in our own strength; we are soon quite ruined (Psa. 33:16), and thereupon we should pray and entreat the Lord, from whom alone proceeds victory (Pro. 21:31; Psa. 147:10).That soldier can never answer it to God that strikes not more as a justicer than as an enemy. Soldiers must fight and pray, and pray and fight.
1Ki. 8:46-50. Captivity and freedom. I. Captivity is a bitter experience to the ardent lover of liberty. It is the badge of defeatthe loss of home and countryexposes to exasperating taunts and pitiless cruelties. II. Captivity to sin, and on account of sin, is most degrading, and fraught with unutterable distress. III. The first step towards freedom begins in repentance and prayer (1Ki. 8:47). IV. Freedom from sin involves restoration to the Divine favour and inheritance.
Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people (Pro. 14:34). Thus the people Israel is a living example for all times as a warning and as an admonition (1Co. 10:2.) The Lord has patience with each person as also with whole peoples and governments, for He knows there is no man that is not sinful. But when the riches of His goodness, patience, and long-suffering are despised, and a nation given over to hardness of heart and impenitence (Rom. 2:4), He casts it away from before His face, and wipes it out as a man wipeth a dish (2Ki. 21:13), so that it ceases to be a people and a kingdom. The worlds history is the worlds final doom. The wrath of God towards all ungodly conduct of men is not a mere biblical form of speech, but a fearful truth, which he who hearkens not will learn by experience.The saying: There is no man that sinneth notthat may not sinmust not be misused to apologize for sin as a natural weakness; it should rather warn and exhort us that we must not give the reins to that will which lieth even at the door, but rule over it (Gen. 1:4; Gen. 1:7); for he who committeth sin is the slave of sin (Joh. 8:34). The statement is not made with reference to the possibilities of gracious attainment in the Christian life, but to the ordinary facts of human history. The meaning is, there is no man and no nation that can claim to be beyond the possibility of sinning. Israel must not assume that because they are the chosen people that may not, by running into sin, draw down the Divine anger in bitter judgments upon them. But here is surely no such universal proposition as to involve, as some assume, that even the New Testament saint, whose life is hid with Christ in God, sees never in this life the hour in which he does not sin. The confession, We have sinned (1Ki. 8:47) must come from the depths of the heart, and must be in connection with the conversion of the whole soul to the Lord; for he alone can obtain forgiveness of all his sins in whose spirit there is no guile (Psa. 32:2). But how often in days of fasting and humiliation is this confession made only with the lips! How, then, can a man hope for mercy and forgiveness through the hearing of prayer? The Lord, who guides the hearts of men as water-courses, can bestow upon our enemies a forgiving and merciful heart, even as Israel experienced. For this, and not for the destruction of our enemies, we ought to pray.Lange and Whedon.
1Ki. 8:50. Solomon probably means, not merely such compassion as Evil-Merodach showed towards Jehoiachin in alleviating his sufferings and ameliorating his condition (2Ki. 25:27-30; Jer. 52:31-34), but such as Cyrus and Artaxerxes showed in allowing the captive Jews to return to their own land (Ezr. 1:3; Ezr. 8:13; Neh. 2:6, compared with Psa. 146:4-6).
1Ki. 8:51. The midst of the furnace of iron. The disciplinary aspect of affliction. I. Is very painful to endure. II. Tests the faith and patience of the sufferer. III. Purifies and ennobles the whole man. IV. Magnifies the grace and power of God in sustaining and delivering. V. Prepares for a loftier mission and more extended usefulness.
1Ki. 8:51-53. Arguments in pleading with God. Based onI. Intimacy of relationship: They be thy people.
1. Specially chosen: For thou didst separate them from among all the people of the earth.
2. Specially prized: Thine inheritance. II. The fact of great suffering: The midst of the furnace of iron. III. The memory of past deliverances: Which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt. IV. The record of Divine pledges and promises: As thou spakest by the hand of Moses.
In the midst of our cries and prayers we should remember how dearly the Lord has purchased us for His own by the blood of His Son (Rom. 8:32; 1Co. 6:20; Rev. 5:9). The grace of God in Christ is the foundation of our assurance that the Lord will deliver us from all tribulation and sorrow, and will lead us to. His heavenly kingdom. For this do we close our prayer with the wordsFor the sake of thine eternal love. God does not leave His people in the furnace of misery, but always guides them forth from it (Job. 3:22). Our prayers from beginning to end must be grounded on the Divine promises (2Sa. 7:25).Starke.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
C. THE DEDICATORY PRAYER 8:2253
The dedicatory prayer of Solomon is one of the most beautiful passages in the Bible. No doubt the author of Kings copied this composition from the book of the acts of Solomon (1Ki. 11:41), or possibly from the book of Nathan (2Ch. 9:29). Modern critics have attacked the authenticity of the prayer on the dubious grounds that it contains too many references to the Pentateuch! Of course if the Pentateuch in its entirety be regarded as Mosaic in origin, there is no reason in the world why Solomon could not or would not have alluded to it frequently.
It is interesting to note that in the entire prayer there is not one reference to offering sacrifice in the Temple. The concept of the Temple as a house of prayer was not, then, a postexilic evolutionary development as critics are wont to maintain. The prayer consists of three parts: (1) adoration of God (1Ki. 8:22-30); (2) special petitions (1Ki. 8:31-50); and (3) a general conclusion and final appeal (1Ki. 8:51-53).
1. ADORATION OF GOD (1Ki. 8:22-30)
TRANSLATION
(22) And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and he spread out his hands to heaven. (23) And he said, O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on the earth beneath, who keeps covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk before You with all their heart, (24) Who has kept with your servant David that which You spoke to him; and You have spoken with Your mouth, and with Your hand You have fulfilled it as it is this day. (25) And now O LORD, God of Israel, keep with Your servant David my father that which You spoke unto him, saying, A man shall not be cut off to you from before Me sitting upon the throne of Israel if only your sons keep their way to walk before Me as you walked before Me. (26) And now, O God of Israel, let Your word, I pray you, be faithful, which You spoke to Your servant David my father. (27) Should God really dwell upon the earth? Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You, much less this house which I have built. (28) Yet have respect unto the prayer of Your servant and unto his supplication, O LORD my God, to hearken unto the cry and unto the prayer which Your servant prays before You today, (29) that Your eyes may be open unto this house night and day, unto the place of which You said, My name shall be there, to hearken unto the prayer which Your servant prays unto this place. (30) And hearken unto the prayer of Your servant and Your people Israel which they shall pray toward this place, may You hear in Your dwelling place in heaven, and when You hear, forgive.
COMMENTS
An appropriate caption for 1Ki. 8:22-30 might well be, How Great Thou Art! Solomon makes the point that God is greater than any other godgreater than the universegreat in mercygreat in faithfulnessgreat in condescensiongreat in forgiveness. Solomon began his prayer in a standing position with his hands spread forth toward heaven (1Ki. 8:22). This posture was so often employed for prayer by the ancients that the phrase lift up the hands came to be a synonym for supplication.[233] Chronicles adds that he stood upon a bronze platform 4 feet high which was set in the midst of the Temple courtyard before the altar of the Lord (2Ch. 6:13). Using language which had been previously employed by Moses (Exo. 15:11) and David (Psa. 86:8), Solomon declared that no other god in heaven or earth compared to the Lord God of Israel. This expression does not imply that other gods really exist, but in effect means that the Lord is the only God (cf. 1Ki. 8:60). The thing that distinguished God from the non-entities worshiped by other peoples is that the Lord kept His covenantal word and extended mercy to those who sincerely tried to live by the terms of that covenant (1Ki. 8:23).
[233] Exo. 9:29; Exo. 9:33; Psa. 44:20; Psa. 143:6; Isa. 1:15; Isa. 65:2.
As a particular example of Gods faithfulness, Solomon mentioned the promises made to David, which, in view of his own succession and the completion of the Temple, he regarded as fulfilled (1Ki. 8:24; cf. 1Ki. 8:15). But God had also promised that the succession would continue in the line of David so long as Davids descendants continued to keep His commandments (cf. 1Ki. 2:4). Solomons first petition was that God would keep this promise just as He had kept the other promises made to David in 2 Samuel 7 (1Ki. 8:25).
Again in 1Ki. 8:26 Solomon called upon God to keep the words which He had spoken to David. The king knew that God is infinitethat He cannot be contained, i.e., shut up, within a man-made building. Even the heaven of heavens, i.e., the highest heavens, cannot contain Him! (1Ki. 8:27). Yet he prayed that his God would pay attention to the prayer, supplication and cry being addressed to Him by His servant[234] (1Ki. 8:28). He prayed that this great God would condescend to take notice of the earnest worship and prayer offered to Him at the Temple. That this petition is not presumptuous is indicated by the fact that God had designated the Temple as the place where His name would dwell,[235] and had indicated His acceptance of the house by the cloud theophany. Now that God had revealed His presence in the Temple, an Israelite, wherever he might be, would pray toward that sacred spot (1Ki. 8:29).
[234] Your servant in 1Ki. 8:28 is probably more than the customary form of deferential address. Here as elsewhere in the Old Testament the term denotes one who represents the religious community before God (Gray, OTL, p. 205).
[235] The reference may be to 2Sa. 7:13 (He shall build a house for My name) or to some other revelation made to David concerning the sanctuary which has not been preserved. Rawlinson thinks the reference is to the many passages in Deuteronomy where God speaks of a place which he shall choose to set His name (e.g., Deu. 12:5; Deu. 12:11; Deu. 12:18 etc.).
The general petition concluded with an appeal that God in heaven would hear those prayers which the king and people henceforth would bring before Him in the Temple, and that He would respond to those prayers of penitence by forgiving whatever trespass had been committed (1Ki. 8:30). The Temple was the divinely appointed bridge for the gap between the distant heavenly God and His peoples desire for knowledge of His nearness.[236]
[236] Wright, BAR, 1, 18081.
2. SPECIAL PETITIONS (1Ki. 8:31-53)
TRANSLATION
(31) If a man shall sin against his neighbor, and an oath is laid upon him to cause him to swear, and he come, and swear before the altar in this house, (32) then hear in heaven, and act, and judge Your servants, punishing the wicked by bringing his way on his head, and vindicating the innocent by giving to him according to his righteousness. (33) When Your people Israel are smitten before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and they turn unto You, and praise Your name, and they pray, and make supplication in this house, (34) then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and cause them to return unto the land which You gave to their fathers. (35) When the heavens are shut up, and there is no ram because they have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place, and praise Your name, and they turn from their sin because You have afflicted them, (36) then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your servants and Your people Israel, because You teach them the good way in which they should walk. And give rain upon Your land which You have given to Your people for an inheritance. (37) If there be famine in the land, if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew, if there be a devouring locust; if his enemy besiege him in the land of his gates, whatever plague, whatever sickness, (38) whatever the prayer, whatever the supplication which any individual or all Your people Israel have, when every man shall know the plague of his heart and shall spread forth his hands toward this house, (39) then hear in heaven, Your dwelling place, and forgive, and act, and give to each man according to all his ways because You know his heart, for You alone know the heart of all the children of men. (40) In order that they may fear You all the days that they live in the land which You gave to our fathers. (41) And also unto a stranger who is not of Your people Israel, but comes from a distant land for the sake of Your name, (42) for they shall hear of Your great name and of Your strong hand and of Your outstretched arm, when he conies and prays toward this house, (43) hear in heaven, Your dwelling place, and act according to all which the stranger shall call unto You, in order that all the peoples of the earth might know Your name, to fear You as Your people Israel, and that they might know that Your name is called over this house which I have built. (44) If Your people go out to war against their enemy in the way in which You send them, and they pray unto the LORD toward the city which You have chosen and the house which I have built for Your name, (45) then hear in heaven their prayer and supplication, and execute justice on their behalf. (46) If they sin against You (for there is no man who does not sin), and You become angry with them, and give them to the enemy, so that they take them captive unto the land of the enemy far or near, (47) and they come to then- senses in the land to which they were carried captive, and repent, and pray unto You in the land of their captivity, saying, We have sinned, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedness, (48) and they turn unto You with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies which took them captive, and pray unto You toward their land which You gave to their fathers, the city which You have chosen and the house which I have built for Your name, (49) hear in heaven, Your dwelling place, their prayer and their supplication, and execute justice on their behalf, (SO) and forgive Your people who have sinned against You, and all their rebellions which they have committed against You, and give them compassion before those who took them captive that they may have compassion upon them.
COMMENTS
From the general, Solomon moved to the particular in 1Ki. 8:31-53 by introducing seven special petitions concerning specific conditions that could be expected to arise in the future. Each situation is cast in the if . . . then framework. Frequently Solomon alludes to God in heaven; four times praying toward the Temple is mentioned.
1. The first petition (1Ki. 8:31-32) has reference to oaths. Under certain circumstances disputes between two persons were settled with finality before the altar, the accused party being required to take a solemn oath that he was innocent (1Ki. 8:31). Solomon prayed that God would hear every such oath taken before His altar and actively intervene to punish the guilty and justify the innocent (1Ki. 8:32). The phrase bring his way on his head means to cause the merited punishment to fall upon him. A false oath taken in Gods name dishonored that name and polluted the sanctuary dedicated to that name. Consequently the false swearer had to be punished.
2. The second petition concerned military defeat and exile (1Ki. 8:33-34). Such calamities were recognized as judgment which came as the result of national sin. When the chastened nation repented, confessed transgression and came into the Temple with prayers of supplication offered by priestly intercessors, Solomon petitioned God to hearken, to forgive and to restore to the homeland those individuals who had been taken into exile.
3. The third petition concerns the plague of drought (1Ki. 8:35-36). More than once God had threatened to shut up the heavens if His people were unfaithful to Him (Lev. 26:19; Deu. 11:17 etc.). Under such circumstances contrite people all over the land would direct their prayers toward the Temple in Jerusalem. Because of the disciplinary nature of such natural disasters, God must forgive His people when they recognize the punishment as a divine chastisement and come to Him with penitential prayer.
4. The fourth petition (1Ki. 8:37-40) refers to other plagues which might fall upon the land because of rebellion. Pestilence is the plague of man and beast which might be a consequence of shortage and pollution of water, or might be an infection brought in from neighboring lands. Mildew (lit., greenness, paleness) is caused by excessive dew of spring and summer in consequence of the heavy condensation on the high mountains of the interior, the paleness being caused by a parasite fungus which exhausts the nutritive substances on which the plant depends. Blasting is the premature desiccation of the plant in consequence of the desert winds which sweep across Palestine usually in May and October. Usually these winds, called the sirocco, come during or after the harvest, but if they come earlier than usual, growth is immediately arrested. Locusts were a pest to which Palestine is particularly susceptible owing to its proximity to the desert where the locusts breed. During such times of national trial, each man would experience the plague of his own heartthe painful agony of stricken conscienceand would spread forth his hands in desperate prayer toward the Temple (1Ki. 8:38). Solomon prayed that God would hear these prayers and give to every man according to his way. God alone can fairly deal with each person, for He alone knows what is hidden in the heart (1Ki. 8:39). The forgiveness and goodness of God would (or at least should) result in godly fear on the part of His people (1Ki. 8:40).
5. Having first prayed to God on behalf of his fellow country men, Solomon made intercession for foreigners in his fifth petition (1Ki. 8:41-43). The king assumed that strangers would come and worship before the Lord in His Temple (1Ki. 8:41) once they had heard of His fame, His strong and outstretched arm, i.e., the wondrous manifestations of divine power on behalf of Israel. Solomon pleaded that God would answer such prayers so that all people of the earth might come to fear (i.e., worship and serve) the Lord and realize that the Temple was His special habitation (1Ki. 8:43). Representatives of foreign governments and neighboring aliens whose business led them to Palestine may have been attracted to the higher worship of the God of Israel.
6. The last two petitions concern prayers directed towards the Temple by those far distant from Jerusalem. The sixth petition refers to those who might be called upon to go into war at the appointment of God (1Ki. 8:44-45). Wherever they might be, if they prayed toward Jerusalem and the Temple, Solomon called upon God to hear their supplication in heaven and intervene on their behalf to defend their cause.
7. In the last petition, Solomon contemplated the captivity of the Hebrew nation (1Ki. 8:46-50). Long before, Moses had warned of the possibility of Israel going into captivity if the nation persisted in disobedience (Lev. 26:33; Lev. 26:44; Deu. 28:25; Deu. 28:36; Deu. 28:64). Solomons plea is that God might show mercy to those captives when they (1) came to their senses, (2) made supplication unto the Lord, confessing their iniquity, (1Ki. 8:47) and (3) returned unto their God with all their heart and soul (1Ki. 8:48). Divine mercy in this case would take the form of intervening on their behalf (1Ki. 8:49), and causing their captors to have compassion upon them. God would thereby demonstrate that He had forgiven their sins and their rebellions (1Ki. 8:50).[237]
[237] In 1Ki. 8:50 Solomon uses two terms to describe the reason for the captivity: (1) Their sins (Heb. chata)which may denote an unwitting or unwilling delinquency; and (2) their rebellions (Heb. pesha)a stronger word indicating rebellion against the known will of God. Note also in 1Ki. 8:47 to do iniquity (lit., twist, distort) and to do wickedness (lit., be loose, disjointed, abnormal).
3. GENERAL CONCLUSION AND FINAL APPEAL (1Ki. 8:51-53).
TRANSLATION
(51) (For they are Your people, and Your inheritance whom You brought out from Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron), (52) that Your eyes may be opened unto the supplication of Your servant, and unto the supplication of Your people Israel, to hearken unto them in all that they cry unto You. (53) For You separated them to Yourself for an inheritance from all the peoples of the earth, as You spoke by the hand of Moses Your servant, when You brought our fathers out from Egypt, O Lord GOD.
COMMENTS
1Ki. 8:51-53 are a fitting conclusion to this magnificent prayer. Here Solomon recited several reasons why God should hearken to the present prayer and all future prayers which Gods servant (i.e., a special intercessor) or the people of Israel should offer before Him (1Ki. 8:52). Israel is Gods people (Deu. 4:10), His inheritance among the nations of the earth (cf. Deu. 32:8 f). God had rescued them from the furnace of Egyptian bondage and He could not well forsake them now (1Ki. 8:51). The Lord had set them apart from all other peoples (Lev. 20:24; Lev. 20:26) and had declared, by His servant Moses, that they were His special possession (1Ki. 8:53). In Chronicles this prayer closes with an appeal to the Lord to cause salvation and grace to go forth from the Temple over His people (2Ch. 6:40-42).
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
22. Solomon stood The word stood does not here designate Solomon’s posture in prayer, for that was kneeling, (1Ki 8:54; 2Ch 6:13,) but rather the position he occupied relatively to the altar and the congregation. Before he kneeled down in prayer he stood in the presence of all the people, and in that posture addressed them and blessed them.
Before the altar of the Lord He was both before the altar and in presence of the congregation. “Solomon, in all his other glory, even on his ivory throne, looked not so great as he did now.” Henry. The altar here referred to was the great brazen altar of burnt offerings which stood in the court.
Spread forth his hands A usual custom in prayer. Compare Exo 9:33; Ezr 9:5; Psa 28:2; Isa 1:15.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Solomon’s Prayer Of Dedication Of The Temple ( 1Ki 8:22-62 ).
Having, as he hoped, reconciled the people to having the Temple in Jerusalem as their Central Sanctuary, Solomon now reminded God of His covenant, and of His covenant love, admitted that the Temple that he had built could not really contain the God of Heaven and earth, the One Whom even the Heaven of heavens could not contain, and prayed that God would bless them as a result of their having their Temple. He asked Him to listen to their prayers when they prayed towards it, and as a result offer them forgiveness for their sins when they sinned and then repented, and went on to list seven possibilities of the way in which He could show His mercy when they had sinned and then sought His mercy.
Considering the examples that we have of similar sins in Leviticus 27 and Deuteronomy 28-29 what is really remarkable is how any real direct reference to them appears to be avoided. There are very occasional possible echoes of language, but certainly nothing substantial. To describe the prayer as ‘Deuteronomic’ (why not Levitical?) is therefore a total misrepresentation. All that can be said is that it contains occasional parallel ideas to one or the other without borrowing from either, and indeed contains echoes from the whole of the Pentateuch. Furthermore it must be said that even these echoes could easily be seen simply as resulting from traditional ideas conveyed during cultic recitation at the regular feasts.
But there is one further point to be noted and that is the emphasis of the prayer on ‘forgiveness’ (salach). It can hardly be denied that it is a central feature of the prayer and yet it is salutary to recognise that this concept of forgiveness (salach) is prominent in Leviticus and Numbers but almost unknown in what are often called the Deuteronomic writings up to this point.
Thus our conclusion is that we have in Solomon’s prayer a unique and carefully thought out independent prayer of the kind that we would expect from someone like Solomon. During the commentary on the verses we will be giving examples of parallel use of words and ideas found in the Pentateuch, (such as they are), and it will be noted that they are evenly spread over a number of books and of a kind which might have been expected of a young man who had attended the feasts and heard the whole of the Torah being read out, but who did not have it to hand while preparing his speech.
From a literary point of view it will also be noticed that 1Ki 8:22; 1Ki 8:54 form a definite and specific inclusio. And what is also interesting is that while he began the prayer standing before the altar with his hands raised towards Heaven, he finished it kneeling on his knees before the altar with his hands spread forth towards Heaven. As we consider the depths which his prayer reached we are not surprised by this. He was clearly so deeply moved by the content of his intercession that as the people’s intercessor he eventually fell to his knees before YHWH. His prayer was no mere formality.
Analysis.
a
b And he said, “O YHWH, the God of Israel, there is no God like you, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keeps covenant and covenant love with your servants, who walk before you with all their heart, who has kept with your servant David my father that which you promised him. Yes, you spoke with your mouth, and have fulfilled it with your hand, as it is this day” (1Ki 8:23-24).
c “Now therefore, O YHWH, the God of Israel, keep with your servant David my father what you have promised him, saying, “There shall not fail you a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your children take heed to their way, to walk before me as you have walked before me” (1Ki 8:25).
d “Now therefore, O God of Israel, let your word, I pray you, be verified, which you spoke to your servant David my father” (1Ki 8:26).
e “But will God in very deed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain you, how much less this house that I have built” (1Ki 8:27).
d “Yet have you respect to the prayer of your servant, and to his supplication, O YHWH my God, to listen to the cry and to the prayer which your servant prays before you this day” (1Ki 8:28).
c “That your eyes may be open towards this house night and day, even towards the place of which you have said, “My name shall be there,” to listen to the prayer which your servant shall pray towards this place, and hearken you to the supplication of your servant, and of your people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place. Yes, hear you in heaven your dwelling-place, and when you hear, forgive” (1Ki 8:29-30).
b Seven examples of breaches of the covenant for which he prays forgiveness if the people truly repent (1Ki 8:31-53).
a And it was so, that, when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication to YHWH, he arose from before the altar of YHWH, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread forth toward heaven (1Ki 8:54).
Note that in ‘a’ he is praying before the altar, and in the parallel he ceases praying before the altar. In ‘b’ he stresses the keeping of the covenant and the covenant-keeping nature of God, and in the parallel he considers seven possible breaches of covenant and their possible consequences, and prays that God will hear His people if they truly repent of them. In ‘c’ he calls on YHWH to keep His promises to David, and in the parallel he calls on Him in the same way to listen to the prayers of himself and his people. In ‘d’ he prays that the word of YHWH to David might be verified, and in the parallel he asks YHWH to listen to the prayer that he is praying this day. Centrally in ‘e’ he acknowledges that God will not really dwell on earth, because even the Heaven of heavens cannot contain Him.
1Ki 8:22
‘ And Solomon stood before the altar of YHWH in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread forth his hands towards heaven,’
The most solemn moment of the dedication of the Temple had now come (such dedications at the building of temples is testified to elsewhere in the ancient Near East), and as the intercessor of Israel Solomon had well prepared himself. He stood before the altar of YHWH in the presence of all of assembled Israel, and spread forth his hands towards Heaven. But as already mentioned, he would shortly be so moved by some of the things that he was praying about that, by the end of the prayer, he would be on his knees (1Ki 8:54). For the idea of the spreading forth of the hands compare Exo 9:33; Psa 143:6 (a Psalm of David); Isa 1:15; and compare Exo 17:11-12. The Chronicler informs us that he stood on a specially made bronze platform so that all could see him (2Ch 6:13).
The altar of YHWH has not previously been mentioned in connection with the Temple (see 1Ki 9:25), for the concentration had been on the items made of gold, but it was so necessary a part of ancient worship that it could be assumed. No temple would be complete without one. For the phrase ‘the altar of YHWH’ see Lev 17:6; Jos 9:27; Jos 22:28-29. In contrast, in Deuteronomy it is always ‘the altar of YHWH your God’ (Deu 12:27; Deu 16:21; Deu 26:4; Deu 27:6)
1Ki 8:23-24
‘ And he said, “O YHWH, the God of Israel, there is no God like you, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keeps covenant and covenant love with your servants, who walk before you with all their heart, who has kept with your servant David my father that which you promised him. Yes, you spoke with your mouth, and have fulfilled it with your hand, as it is this day.”
His prayer was firmly based on the covenant that YHWH had made with his father David, which also intimately affected him, although very much as a part of the continuing covenant of Sinai. He addressed Him as ‘the God of Israel’, that is as the God Who had a personal interest in Israel, and yet he immediately expanded the thought to include the idea that YHWH is supreme and unique in Heaven and earth, a supremacy and uniqueness especially revealed in His keeping of His covenant promises. We can compare Exo 15:11, ‘Who is like to you O YHWH among the gods? Who is like you, glorious in holiness (set-apartness), fearful in praises, doing wonders?’.
“Who keeps covenant and covenant love with your servants, who walk before you with all their heart” can only refer to the covenant of Sinai, and was directly based on words which YHWH had spoken to David concerning ‘the Torah of Moses’ (1Ki 2:3-4). This combination of ‘covenant’ and ‘covenant love’ is found in Deu 5:10; Deu 7:9; Deu 7:12. In keeping His covenant He reveals His covenant love, for otherwise our case would be hopeless. And that covenant love is shown towards those who walk before Him (see Gen 17:1; 1Sa 2:30) ‘with all their hearts’ (1Ki 2:4).
Note the idea of the people as ‘YHWH’s servants’. He is their king, and they are in subjection to Him, owning Him as their Overlord.
“Who has kept with your servant David my father that which you promised him. Yes, you spoke with your mouth, and have fulfilled it with your hand, as it is this day.” Solomon then connects the original covenant up with the matter that is now on their minds, the fulfilment of YHWH’s covenant with David as evidenced in the building of the Temple. As recent history had demonstrated, YHWH had kept His promises to David, and that keeping of His promises has now resulted in the building of the Temple. That was, of course, Solomon’s view. The original covenant had been about ‘the house of David’ not about the Temple (2Sa 7:4-17).
For the idea of ‘covenant love’ see Gen 20:13; Gen 24:12; Gen 24:14; Gen 24:27; Gen 32:10; Gen 39:2; Exo 15:13; Exo 20:6; Exo 34:6-7; Lev 20:17; Num 14:18-19. For the combination of covenant and covenant love see Deu 5:10; Deu 7:9; Deu 7:12. For the phrase ‘Heaven above’ compare Gen 49:25. For both ‘Heaven above’ and ‘earth beneath’ see Exo 20:4; Deu 4:39; Deu 5:8, but as it is in part of the ten major requirements of the covenant it would be a commonly used phrase. For walking before God see Gen 17:1; 1Sa 2:30. For ‘walking before God with all their hearts’ see 1Ki 2:4. For ‘fulfilled with your hand’ see 1Ki 8:15.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Solomon’s Invocation
v. 22. And Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord, v. 23. and he said, Lord God of Israel, there is no God like Thee, in heaven above or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before Thee with all their heart; v. 24. who hast kept with Thy servant David, my father, that Thou promisedst him; Thou spakest also with thy mouth and hast fulfilled it with Thine hand, as it is this day, v. 25. Therefore now, Lord God of Israel, keep with thy servant David, my father, v. 26. And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray Thee, be verified which Thou spakest unto Thy servant David, my father. v. 27. But will God indeed dwell on the earth? v. 28. Yet have Thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant and to his supplication, O Lord, my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer which thy servant prayeth before Thee to-day, v. 29. that Thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which Thou hast said, my name shall be there, v. 30. And hearken Thou to the supplication of Thy servant and of Thy people Israel when they shall pray toward this place; and hear Thou in heaven, thy dwelling-place, v. 31. If any man trespass against his neighbor, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come before Thine altar in this house, v. 32. then hear Thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head, v. 33. When thy people Israel be smitten down before the enemy because they have sinned against Thee, v. 34. then hear Thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which Thou gavest unto their fathers, v. 35. When heaven is shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against Thee, v. 36. then hear Thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of Thy servants and of Thy people Israel, that Thou teach them the good way wherein they should walk, and give rain upon Thy land which Thou hast given to Thy people for an inheritance. v. 37. If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust, or if there be caterpillar, v. 38. what prayer and supplication soever be made by any man or by all Thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, v. 39. then hear Thou in heaven, Thy dwelling-place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart Thou knowest; (for Thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;) v. 40. that they may fear Thee all the days that they live in the land which Thou gavest unto our fathers. v. 41. Moreover, concerning a stranger, that is not of Thy people Israel, v. 42. (for they shall hear of Thy great name and of Thy strong hand and of Thy stretched-out arm, v. 43. hear Thou in heaven, thy dwelling-place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth to Thee for, that all people of the earth may know thy name, to fear Thee, as do Thy people Israel, v. 44. If thy people go out to battle against their enemy, whithersoever Thou shalt send them, and shall pray unto the Lord toward the city which Thou hast chosen, and toward the house that I have built for Thy name, v. 45. then hear Thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause, v. 46. If they sin against Thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not, v. 47. yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, v. 48. and so return unto Thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies which led them away captive, and pray unto Thee toward their land which Thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which Thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for Thy name: v. 49. then hear Thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven, Thy dwelling-place, and maintain their cause, v. 50. and forgive Thy people that have sinned against Thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against Thee, and give them compassion before them who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them; v. 51. for they be Thy people and Thine inheritance, v. 52. that Thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of Thy servant and unto the supplication of Thy people Israel, to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto Thee.
v. 53. For Thou didst separate them from among all the people of the earth,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
1Ki 8:22. And Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord Raised above the people, on a brazen scaffold three cubits high, (see 2Ch 6:13.) Solomon commanded the attention of the people, who stood in the court and in the galleries round about, and kneeling down, 1Ki 8:54. He spread forth his hands towards heaven, and dedicated the sacred building to God, in a most elegant and devout prayer. The noble and animated break in the 27th verse is peculiarly excellent.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
(22) And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven:
What a lovely view doth Solomon afford in this attitude! To see, not only priests, but monarchs thus engaged! Never, in any day of Solomon’s life, did he appear so truly great! But, Reader! from Solomon, turn to Jesus. Behold Jesus in the memorable night before his sufferings and death, when just about to enter upon that unparalleled service of redemption; he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and cried out, Father! the hour is come. Joh 17:1 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
1Ki 8:22 And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven:
Ver. 22. And spread forth his hands towards heaven. ] In prayer the ancients used to spread out the palms of their hands, as it were to receive a blessing from God. Exo 9:29 Psa 44:20 ; Psa 143:6
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
stood = took his position: position, not posture. See note on 1Ki 8:54.
spread forth. He did this kneeling. See 1Ki 8:54 and 2Ch 6:13.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
God Greater than Any Temple
1Ki 8:22-32
Solomons different attitudes are specially mentioned. First he stood with hands outspread, 1Ki 8:22; then, as indicated by 1Ki 8:54, he came to his knees. These attitudes show expectant faith, as well as profound humility and reverence. The more we know of God, and experience the blessing of fellowship with Him, the lower becomes our self-estimate. Confidence in God always enhances reverence, Heb 12:28. The man who is lowest on his knees before God stands most erect to bless others, 1Ki 8:55.
The prayer began with an ascription of glory to God. In this it resembles the Lords Prayer; which begins with Hallowed be thy Name. Compare Psa 115:1. Let us form our own prayers on this model. Then it acknowledges Gods fidelity to His promises. As He speaks, so He fulfils. But it is our part always to say with Solomon, Keep that which thou hast promised, 1Ki 8:25, and Let thy word be verified, 1Ki 8:26. When we stand on this sure footing with God, we can look out on all possible ills that may confront us-whether, drought, famine, pestilence, defeat, or captivity-and be absolutely sure that he will hear, answer, and forgive. Heaven cannot contain Him, but he dwells in the contrite heart, Isa 57:15.
Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary
2Ch 6:12, Ezr 9:5, Job 11:13, Psa 28:2, Psa 63:4, Isa 1:15, 1Ti 2:8
stood before the altar: 1Ki 8:54, 2Ki 11:14, 2Ki 23:3, 2Ch 6:12, 13-42
spread forth: Exo 9:29, Exo 9:33
Reciprocal: Exo 33:10 – worshipped 1Ki 8:38 – spread forth 2Ch 4:1 – an altar Neh 9:5 – Stand up Psa 44:20 – stretched Psa 68:31 – stretch Lam 1:17 – spreadeth Eze 46:2 – he shall worship
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1Ki 8:22. Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord He had erected a brazen scaffold, of five cubits long, five cubits broad, and three cubits high, (2Ch 6:13,) and on this he stood, raised above the people, who were in the court and in the galleries round about, observing him, and disposed to hearken, with profound attention, to what he should further say. And, having spoken the foregoing words with his face toward them, and blessed them, he now turned about again with his face toward the altar, that he might address a solemn prayer to God, and so dedicate the sacred building to his worship and service. And spread forth his hands toward heaven A solemn posture in which prayer was wont to be made, not only among the Jews, but other nations. It appears from 1Ki 8:54 of this chapter, that when he had stood awhile with his face toward the altar, he fell down upon his knees, and uttered the greatest part of the following prayer in the posture of kneeling.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Solomon’s prayer of dedication 8:22-53
This great prayer centers on the Mosaic Covenant. That is its heart. It is the longest prayer in the Bible. Solomon introduced seven petitions with a backward look emphasizing God’s faithfulness (1Ki 8:23-26). He concluded with a forward look stressing God’s mercy (1Ki 8:52-53).
Solomon’s posture of kneeling with open hands uplifted to heaven (1Ki 8:52) symbolized his heart attitude, as posture often does in prayer. [Note: See Thomas L. Constable, Talking to God, pp. 72, 159-60.] He, the earthly king, placed himself in a supplicant’s position before the heavenly King, dependent and eager to receive the blessings he requested.
Seven petitions follow a general request that God would hear the prayers of His people (1Ki 8:27-30). In these verses Solomon voiced the truth that Yahweh did not really live on earth but in heaven (1Ki 8:27). He did not confuse the symbols of God’s presence with God Himself (cf. 1Sa 4:3). Solomon referred to himself often as God’s servant (1Ki 8:28-39, et al.).
Then he requested that God would grant mercy when His people turned to Him in situations involving violations of the covenant. These included personal sins (1Ki 8:31-32), defeat in battle (1Ki 8:33-34), drought (1Ki 8:35-36), and famine (1Ki 8:37-40). He next asked for God’s grace on God-fearing foreigners (1Ki 8:41-43), as well as on the Israelites in battle (1Ki 8:44-45) and after captivity (1Ki 8:46-51; cf. Dan 6:10). All the calamities Solomon mentioned in his prayer are curses God promised to send on Israel if she broke the Mosaic Covenant (cf. Lev 26:16-39; Deu 28:22; Deu 28:25; Deu 28:38; Deu 28:42; Deu 28:59; Deu 31:17; Deu 31:29; Deu 32:24).
As Hannah’s prayer (1Sa 2:1-10) set the tone for all that followed in 1 and 2 Samuel, so Solomon’s prayer here does the same for 1 and 2 Kings. The remainder of 1 and 2 Kings shows how God answered Solomon’s prayer. That is why this chapter is so significant theologically. The possibilities that the king mentioned here eventually took place in Israel’s history, culminating in the Babylonian Captivity. Later in Israel’s history, the writing prophets frequently alluded to conditions that Solomon mentioned in this prayer, that came to pass in the prophets’ days because of Israel’s sins.
"Solomon’s prayer is essential to comprehend the message of the book. The author of the Book of Kings intended for the words of Solomon to be heard at a key point in the relationship between God and His people, that is, at the time the temple in Jerusalem was dedicated. The following words of Solomon’s prayer [1Ki 8:47-48] would appeal to the exiles and would be a specific plea for repentance because of the hope of returning to the motherland. This is the essence of the book’s message." [Note: Gershon Galil, "The Message of the Book of Kings in Relation to Deuteronomy and Jeremiah," Bibliotheca Sacra 158:632 (October-December 2001):408.]