23<\/strong>. who keepest covenant and mercy<\/em> ] The phrase is found in Deu 7:9<\/span>; Deu 7:12<\/span>. In God’s intent, the covenant and the mercy were the same thing. It was transgression on man’s part which called forth any other character in the covenant.<\/p>\n with thy servants<\/em> ] The LXX. has the singular, thus restricting the allusion in 1Ki 8:23-26<\/span> entirely to David and his family. The Hebrew by the plural represents the spirit of the phrase in Deuteronomy, and the supplication becomes an appeal to God that He will remember towards David’s race the promise which at first was made to all Israel. See Chap. 1Ki 2:4<\/span> and 2Sa 7:12<\/span>, &c.<\/p>\n Compare Deu 7:9<\/span>.<\/P> <\/p>\n And he said, Lord God of Israel<\/strong>,…. Their covenant God and Father, whereby he was distinguished from all the gods of the Gentiles:<\/p>\n there is no god like thee; in heaven above or on earth beneath<\/strong>; none among the angels in heaven, nor among kings and civil magistrates on earth, who both are sometimes called “Elohim” gods; but only in a figurative sense, and not to be compared with the one only true God, for the perfection of his nature, or the works of his hands:<\/p>\n who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart<\/strong>; performs his promises, by which he both declares his mercy or goodness and his faithfulness to such who walk before him, in his ways, and according to his word, in the sincerity and uprightness of their hearts.<\/p>\n (23) There is no God like Thee.<\/strong>These words, often used in the Psalms (Psa. 71:19<\/span>; Psa. 86:8<\/span>; Psa. 89:6<\/span>), and especially found in the thanksgiving of David after the great promise (2Sa. 7:22<\/span>), are evidently suggested by more ancient utterances of devotion; as for example, in the first recorded Psalm at the Red Sea (Exo. 15:11<\/span>). In them we trace the spiritual process by which the Israelites were trained from the polytheism of their forefathers to the knowledge of the One only God. He is known to them, first, in the close personal relation of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to whom none is like of all gods whom others worshipped; but next, in His universal relation to the universe as the God Almighty, and the Judge of the whole earth (Gen. 17:2<\/span>; Gen. 18:25<\/span>); lastly, as Jehovah, God, indeed, of Israel, but, by the very meaning of the name, the One Self-existent Being, source of all other life. Thus, in the thanksgiving of David to the words, none is like Thee, is added at once the higher belief, there is no God beside Thee. In this prayer of Solomon there follows at once the striking confession that the heaven of heavens cannot contain His Infinity.<\/p>\n Who keepest covenant and mercy.<\/strong>This phrase, again, familiar in prayer (see Deu. 7:9<\/span>; Neh. 1:5<\/span>; Dan. 9:4<\/span>), is clearly traceable to the conclusion of the Second Commandment (Exo. 20:6<\/span>), and the special revelation of God to Moses in the Mount (Exo. 34:6-7<\/span>). It is notable, not merely because it describes God as manifesting Himself most chiefly by showing mercy and pity, but also because it declares this manifestation of mercy to be pledged to man as a chief part of His covenant. So in the New Testament it is said that, to those who claim His covenant in Christ, He is faithful and just to forgive sins.<\/p>\n (23-53) The prayer of Solomon, uttered (see 1Ki. 8:54<\/span>) on his knees with hands uplifted to heaven, long and detailed as it is, is yet of extreme simplicity of idea. It begins (a<\/em>), in 1Ki. 8:23-25<\/span>, with a thankful acknowledgment of the fulfilment of one part of the great promise to David, and a prayer for the like fulfilment of the other; next (b<\/em>), in 1Ki. 8:26-30<\/span>, acknowledging that Gods presence can be limited to no Temple, it yet Asks that His peculiar blessing may rest on prayer uttered toward the place which He has hallowed; and then (c<\/em>), in 1Ki. 8:31-53<\/span>, applies that petition to the various contingencies, of oath taken in His name, of rain withheld, of disaster in battle, of famine and pestilence, of captivity in a foreign land, and extends it not only to Israel, but to the stranger who shall acknowledge and invoke the Lord Jehovah. Its constantly recurring burden is, Hear Thou from heaven thy dwelling-place, and when Thou hearest, Lord, forgive. It is plain that before Solomons mind there are continually present in some form the blessing and the curse pronounced in the Law (see Leviticus 26<\/span>; Deuteronomy 28<\/span>); and it is most true to human nature, and especially characteristic of the thoughtfulness of his philosophic temper, that over the bright hour of exultation there seems to hover a constant foreboding of evils and trials to come.<\/p>\n SOLOMON’S PRAYER OF DEDICATION, 1Ki 8:23-53<\/span>.<\/p>\n This prayer “is one of unprecedented length, and 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 devotion of foreign nations, towards this fixed locality.” Stanley. <\/em> It is reproduced in substantially the same language and order in 2Ch 6:14-42<\/span>, and is a model most appropriately read and followed in the dedication of houses of Christian worship. It consists of three parts: <\/p>\n 1.) Adoration for the fulfilment of the promise to David. 1Ki 8:23-24<\/span>. <\/p>\n 2.) Prayer for its continued fulfilment, (1Ki 8:25-26<\/span>,) and for blessings upon the concentration of worship at the temple. 1Ki 8:27-30<\/span>. <\/p>\n 3.) Supplication for specific blessings, <\/em> (1Ki 8:31-53<\/span>,) namely, in cases of trespass, (1Ki 8:31-32<\/span>\ud83d\ude09 when smitten before enemies, (1Ki 8:33-34<\/span>\ud83d\ude09 in times of drought, (1Ki 8:35-36<\/span>,) famine, or plague, (1Ki 8:37-40<\/span>\ud83d\ude09 for the devout stranger, (1Ki 8:41-43<\/span>\ud83d\ude09 for success in battle, (1Ki 8:44-45<\/span>\ud83d\ude09 for deliverance from captivity, (1Ki 8:46-53<\/span>.) These prayers for specific blessings are seven, thus corresponding in number with the seven petitions of the Lord’s prayer.<\/p>\n 25<\/strong>. <\/strong> So that thy children take heed <\/strong> Better, only if thy children, <\/em> etc., as in the margin. The Divine promises can be fully realized only on conditions of righteousness in the people. They comfort those who “walk uprightly.”<\/p>\n (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 today: (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.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n In this former part of Solomon’s prayer, I would desire the Reader to remark with me, the posture in which it was offered. It is said, he stood before the altar. Jesus is our Altar, as well as our High Priest and Sacrifice. Therefore, certainly, it was in view of the glorious Mediator, that Solomon prayed. But it also appears, from what is said in the further prosecution of this prayer, at 1Ki 8:54<\/span> , that Solomon when he had finished his prayer, arose from off his knees. I am inclined, therefore, to suppose, that when the king began the prayer, be stood as is here said, before the altar: but, perhaps, as his mind became more inflamed with the spirit of devotion, he fell on his knees as he prosecuted the prayer, and so remained until that he had finished it. But what a vast comprehension of subject matter doth the prayer contain, even in the few verses only already noticed. How doth Solomon enlarge upon the being, and attributes, and perfections of God! How highly doth he speak of him as a God in covenant; here taking into view, the whole Three Persons of Jehovah! How solemnly doth he draw the contrast between the greatness and holiness of the Lord God, whom the heaven, and the heaven of heavens are not worthy to contain, and the littleness of the earth, and all that is in it! And having thus enlarged on the glories of Jehovah, how sweetly, and fervently, doth he plead with God for grace, and the performance of all his covenant promises to David and his seed forever. Precious Jesus! was Solomon struck with astonishment, in the contemplation that the heaven, and the heaven of heavens had not splendor enough to contain thee; and what a thought is that, to overpower the mind, that thou shouldest tabernacle in our flesh? Reader! I should suppose it impossible for you to overlook the sweet strain of gospel mercies, which runs through the whole of this prayer of Solomon, in the part of it which we have already read; Not to see Jesus in the whole of it, as the sum and substance of the covenant, is to pass over the grand and distinguishing feature, which marks every form of prayer and praise, in which it is expressed. But this is not all. I hope the Reader is so far under the teaching of the Holy Ghost, that he instantly beholds Jesus himself, as the one glorious object the pious Israelite is supposed to have in view, in all his prayers and supplications which he made with his eye towards the temple. And I hope that the Reader is no less alive to behold the fullest testimony to that precious doctrine, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, when he hears Solomon say, that thine eyes may be open toward thy house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there. Never, surely, was there more clear gospel, or the Lord Jesus more sweetly looked to with an eye of faith, and the Father’s perfect approbation of redemption by him, than in what these verses express in the prayer of Solomon.<\/p>\n 1Ki 8:23 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:<\/p>\n Ver. 23. And he said, Lord God of Israel.<\/strong> ] This was a worthy precedent for princes, who, if they would imitate Solomon in devotion, might likewise share with him in the blessing. This is a very long prayer, and full of affection to the end. So to pray is hard and happy. It is a precedental prayer, as one calleth it. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee, &c.<\/strong> ] This is a very august preface to his prayer. To begin on this sort doth notably strengthen faith, and stir up devotion.<\/p>\n mercy = lovingkindness, or grace. <\/p>\n Lord God: Gen 33:20, Exo 3:15 <\/p>\n no God: Exo 15:11, 1Sa 2:2, 2Sa 7:22, Psa 35:10, Psa 86:8, Psa 89:6-8, Psa 113:5, Isa 40:18, Isa 40:25, Jer 10:6, Jer 10:16, Mic 7:18 <\/p>\n who keepest: Deu 7:9, Neh 1:5, Neh 9:32, Psa 89:3-5, Dan 9:4, Mic 7:19, Mic 7:20, Luk 1:72 <\/p>\n walk before: 1Ki 2:4, 1Ki 3:6, 1Ki 6:12, Gen 17:1, 2Ki 20:3 <\/p>\n Reciprocal: Gen 9:15 – remember Gen 24:40 – before 1Ki 8:26 – And now 2Ki 19:15 – O Lord God 2Ch 6:14 – O Lord God 2Ch 20:6 – God in heaven Eze 46:2 – he shall worship<\/p>\n 1Ki 8:23-24. Lord God of Israel, there is none like thee He here acknowledges the transcendent excellences of Jehovah; and again particularly extols his faithfulness to those who serve him sincerely. Who hast kept with thy servant David that thou promisedst That branch of thy promise concerning the building of this house by his son. <\/p>\n 8:23 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 {h} all their heart:<\/p>\n (h) Truthfully and without hypocrisy.<\/p>\n 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: 23. who keepest covenant and mercy ] The phrase is found in Deu 7:9; Deu 7:12. In God’s intent, … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Kings 8:23”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9020","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-commentary"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9020","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9020"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9020\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9020"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"