1 Kings 8:23-53 ESV

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:37

If there be in the land famine [Heb. Famine should there be, etc. The word is emphatic by position. Famine is denounced, Le 26:20, 26; Deuteronomy 28:33 ], if there be pestilence [Le 26:25; Jeremiah 14:12 ; Jeremiah 24:10 ; Amos 4:10 ; Ezekiel 6:12 , etc.], blasting [same word Genesis 41:6 ; Amos 4:9 ; Deuteronomy 28:22 ], mildew [lit. paleness, χλωρότης , Deuteronomy l.c. ], locust, or if there be caterpillar [It is uncertain whether חָסִיל , lit; ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:38

What prayer and supplication soever [There is here a studied reference to the preceding words. Lit; every prayer, etc. We might render in 1 Kings 8:37 , "Whatsoever the plague," etc; and here, "Whatsoever the prayer," etc.] be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart [Here again there is an unmistakeable reference to the "plague" (same word) of 1 Kings 8:37 . The plague of the heart is the inner smart of the conscience... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:38

The consecration of the temple was the grandest religious ceremony of the old covenant. It is important— I. BECAUSE IT CENTRALIZES THE WORSHIP OF THE THEOCRACY . II. BECAUSE IT SUPPLIES A TYPE OF THE SPIRITUAL TEMPLE which is to be reared in the Church and in every Christian soul. Solomon, as the king chosen of God, represents in this service of consecration the entire theocracy. The temple is essentially a house of prayer, as is manifest from the words... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:38-39

The Praying King. One of the most remarkable features of this scene of the dedication of the temple is the place occupied, the part performed, in it by Solomon himself. He is the central figure, the chief actor. Both priest and prophet give place to him. The dedicatory prayer is a spontaneous effusion of his own devout feeling, and it is he who pronounces afterwards the benediction on the people. He stands before us here as a true type of that greater "Son of David," who is our Prophet,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:39

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;) [ Jeremiah 17:10 . Cf. ὁ παρδιογνώστης θεὸς ( Acts 15:8 ; also ib . Acts 1:24 ). read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:40

That they may fear thee all the days that they live in the land which thou gavest unto their fathers. [Solomon anticipates that a godly fear will be the result of forgiveness and restoration. We find the same thought in Psalms 130:4 . The mercy and goodness of God should lead to repentance, but unhappily it not unseldom fails to do so.] The fifth petition contemplates the prayers which foreigners, attracted by the fame of Jerusalem, of its religion and sanctuary could offer towards the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:41

Moreover concerning a stranger, that is not of thy people Israel, but cometh out of a far country for thy name's sake; [Solomon takes it for granted that such will come, and not without good reason, for the house was "exceeding magnifical" and destined to be "of fame and glory throughout all countries" ( 1 Chronicles 22:5 ). And we can hardly doubt that in the visit of the Queen of Sheba we are to see one fulfilment of this anticipation. (Note the expression of 1 Kings 10:1 "concerning... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:41-43

The Stranger's Interest in the Temple. Kindly human sympathy is one of the most marked characteristics of this prayer of Solomon. This is seen in the way in which he enters into various supposed conditions of need and suffering among his people; takes the burden and the "plague" upon himself as if it were his own; a true intercessor on their behalf. His royalty assumes here the aspect of fatherhood. The model king is one in heart and interest with those over whom he rules. We are reminded,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:42

(For they shall hear of thy great nam e [Cf. Joshua 7:9 ; Psalms 76:1 ; Psalms 99:3 ] , and of thy strong hand [cf. Exodus 6:6 ; Exodus 13:9 ; Deuteronomy 9:26 , Deuteronomy 9:29 ; cf. Deuteronomy 7:19 . They had heard at a much earlier date ( Exodus 15:14 ; Exodus 18:1 ; Joshua 5:1 ). The reference is not so much to the marvels of the Exodus—that was long past—as to the wondrous works which Solomon assumes will hereafter be wrought], and of thy stretched out arm;)... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:43

Hear thou in heaven thy dwell-lug place, and do according to an that the stranger calleth to thee for: that all people of the earth may know thy name [It is interesting to notice this foreshadowing of the inclusion of the Gentiles in the one fold. The same thought is found in some of the Psalms and in Isaiah, as St. Paul witnesses ( Romans 15:9 sqq.) Cf. Psalms 22:27 ; Psalms 72:11 ; Psalms 86:9 ; Psalms 98:3 ; Psalms 102:15 ; Psalms 117:1 ; Isaiah 49:6 ; Isaiah 52:10 ] to... read more

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:37

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:38

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:38

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:38-39

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:39

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:40

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:41

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:41-43

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:42

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 8:43

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