1 Reis 8
Charles Spurgeon · Citado em PreceptAustin
1 Reis 8
Spurgeon - Solomon prepared the temple before he brought the ark to it, and an old writer well observes that before we pray we should prepare our heart that it may be a temple for the Lord. VIDEOS RELATED TO SOLOMON'S TEMPLE Animated version (suitable for children's Sunday School class) of Solomon's Temple dedication. Solomon's Temple Explained - youtube video ZION [ISBE] - zi'-on (tsiyon; Sion): 1. Meaning of the Word: A name applied to Jerusalem, or to certain parts of it, at least since the time of David. Nothing certain is known of the meaning. Gesenius and others have derived it from a Hebrew root tsahah, "to be dry"; Delitzsch from tsiwwah, "to set up" and Wetzstein from tsin, "to protect." Gesenius finds a more hopeful suggestion in the Arabic equivalent cihw, the Arabic cahwat signifying "ridge of a mountain" or "citadel," which at any rate suitably applies to what we know to have been the original Zion (compare Smith, HGHL, under the word). Considerable confusion has been caused in the past by the want of clear understanding regarding the different sites which have respectively been called "Zion" during the centuries. It will make matters clearer if we take the application of the name: in David's time; in the early Prophets, etc.; in late poetical writings and in the Apocrypha; and in Christian times. 2. The Zion of the Jebusites: Jerus (in the form Uru-sa-lim) is the oldest name we know for this city; it goes back at least 400 years before David. In 2 Sam 5:6-9, "The king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites. .... Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion; the same is the city of David .... And David dwelt in the stronghold, and called it the city of David." It is evident that Zion was the name of the citadel of the Jebusite city of Jerusalem. That this citadel and incidentally then city of Jerusalem around it were on the long ridge running South of the Temple (called the southeastern hill in the article JERUSALEM, III, (3) (which see)) is now accepted by almost all modern scholars, mainly on the following grounds: (1) The near proximity of the site to the only known spring, now the "Virgin's Fount," once called GIHON (which see). From our knowledge of other ancient sites all over Palestine, as well as on grounds of common-sense, it is hardly possible to believe that the early inhabitants of this site with such an abundant source at their very doors could have made any other spot their headquarters. (2) The suitability of the site for defense.--The sites suited for settlement in early Canaanite times were all, if we may judge from a number of them now known, of this nature--a rocky spur isolated on three sides by steep valleys, and, in many sites, protected at the end where they join the main mountain ridge by either a valley or a rocky spur. (3) The size of the ridge, though very small to our modern ideas, is far more in keeping with what we know of fortified towns of that period than such an area as presented by the southwestern hill--the traditional site of Zion. Mr. Macalister found by actual excavation that the great walls of Gezer, which must have been contemporaneous with the Jebusite Jerusalem, measured approximately 4,500 feet in circumference. G. A. Smith has calculated that a line of wall carried along the known and inferred scarps around the edge of this southeastern hill would have an approximate circumference of 4,250 feet. The suitability of the site to a fortified city like Gezer, Megiddo, Soco, and other sites which have been excavated, strikes anyone familiar with these places. (4) The archaeological remains on these hills found by Warren and Professor Guthe, and more particularly in the recent excavations of Captain Parker (see JERUSALEM), show without doubt that this was the earliest settlement in pre-Israelite times. Extensive curves and rock-cuttings, cave-dwellings and tombs, and enormous quantities of early "Amorite" (what may be popularly called "Jebusite") pottery show that the spot must have been inhabited many centuries before the time of David. The reverse is equally true; on no other part of the Jerusalem site has any quantity of such early pottery been found. (5) The Bible evidence that Zion originally occupied this site is clear. It will be found more in detail under the heading "City of David" in the article JERUSALEM, IV, (5), but three points may be mentioned here: (a) The Ark of the Covenant was brought up out of the city of David to the Temple (1 Ki 8:1; 2 Ch 5:2), and Pharaoh's daughter "came up out of the city of David unto her house which Solomon had built for her"--adjacent to the Temple (1 Ki 9:24). This expression "up" could not be used of any other hill than of the lower-lying eastern ridge; to go from the southwestern hill (traditional Zion) to the Temple is to go down. (b) Hezekiah constructed the well-known Siloam tunnel from Gihon to the Pool of Siloam. He is described (2 Ch 32:30) as bringing the waters of Gihon "straight down on the west side of the city of David." (c) Manasseh (2 Ch 33:14) built "an outer wall to the city of David, on the west side of Gihon, in the valley" (i.e. nachal--the name of the Kedron valley). 3. Zion of the Prophets: Zion, renamed the City of David, then originally was on this eastern ridge. But the name did not stay there. It would almost seem as if the name was extended to the Temple site when the ark was carried there, for in the pre-exilic Prophets the references to Zion all appear to have referred to the Temple Hill. To quote a few examples: "And Yahweh will create over the whole habitation of mount Zion, and over her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night" (Isa 4:5); "Yahweh of hosts, who dwelleth in mount Zion" (Isa 8:18); "Let us go up to Zion unto Yahweh our God" (Jer 31:6); "Yahweh will reign over them in mount Zion" (Mic 4:7). All these, and numbers more, clearly show that at that time Zion was the Temple Hill. 4. Zion in Later Poetical Writings and Apocrypha: In many of the later writings, particularly poetical references, Zion appears to be the equivalent of Jerusalem; either in parallelism (Ps 102:21; Am 1:2; Mic 3:10,12; Zec 1:14,17; 8:3; Zeph 3:16) or alone (Jer 3:14; Lam 5:11); even here many of the references will do equally well for the Temple Hill. The term "Daughter of zion" is applied to the captive Jews (Lam 4:22), but in other references to the people of Jerusalem (Isa 1:8; 52:2; Jer 4:31, etc.). When we come to the Apocrypha, in 2 Esdras there are several references in which Zion is used for the captive people of Judah (2:40; 3:2,31; 10:20,39,44), but "Mount Zion" in this and other books (e.g. 1 Macc 4:37,60; 5:54; 6:48,62, etc.) is always the Temple Hill. 5. Omission of Name by Some Writers: It has been pointed out as a curious and unaccountable exception that in Ezekiel as well as in Chronicles, Ezra and Nehemiah, there is no mention of Zion, except the incidental reference to David's capture of the Jebusite fort. The references in the other Prophets and the Psalms are so copious that there must be some religious reason for this. The Chronicler (2 Ch 3:1), too, alone refers to the Temple as on Mount Moriah. It is also noticeable that only in these books (2 Ch 27:3; 33:14; Neh 3:26 f; 11:21) does the name "Ophel" appear as a designation of a part of the southeastern hill, which apparently might equally fitly have been termed Zion. See OPHEL. Josephus never uses the name "Zion" nor does it occur in the New Testament, except in two quotations (Heb 12:22; Rev 14:1). 6. The Name "Zion" in Christian Times: Among the earlier Christian writers who mention "Zion," Origen used it as equivalent to the Temple Hill, but in the 4th century writers commence to localize it up the southern part of the western hill. It was a period when Biblical topography was settled in a very arbitrary manner, without any scientific or critical examination of the evidence, and this tradition once established remained, like many such traditions, undisputed until very recent years. To W. F. Birch belongs much of the credit for the promulgation of the newer views which now receive the adherence of almost every living authority on the topography of Jerusalem. E. W. G. Masterman D A Carson - For the Love of God (Vol. 1): A Daily Companion for ... - Page 5 - THE DEDICATION OF THE TEMPLE in Jerusalem and Solomon’s prayer on that occasion (1 Kings 8) overflow with links that reach both backward and forward along the line of redemptive history. (1) The structure of the temple is a proportionate reproduction of the tabernacle. Thus the rites prescribed by the Mosaic Covenant, and the symbol-laden value all that God prescribed through Moses, continue: the altar, the table for the bread of consecration, the Most Holy Place, the two cherubim over the ark of the covenant, and so forth. (2) Most spectacularly, after the ark of the covenant has been transported to its new resting place and the priests withdraw, the glory of the Lord, manifested in the same sort of cloud that signaled the Lord’s presence in the tabernacle, fills the temple. Not only does God approve the temple, but a new step has been taken in God’s unfolding purposes. While the symbolism of the tabernacle is retained in the temple, no longer is this edifice something mobile. The wandering years, and even the uncertain years of the judges, are over. Now God’s presence, manifested in this solid building, is tied to one location: Jerusalem. A new set of symbol-laden historical experiences adds rich new dimensions to the accumulating wealth pointing to the coming of Jesus. Here is a stable kingdom—and the kingdom of God; Jerusalem, and the new Jerusalem; the glorious temple, and the city that needs no temple because “the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple” (Rev. 21:22). Here are tens of thousands of animals slaughtered—and the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. (3) At his best, Solomon is thoroughly aware that no structure, not even this one, can contain or domesticate God. “The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!” (8:27). (4) But that does not stop him from asking God to manifest himself here. Above all, Solomon knows that what the people will need most is forgiveness. So in wide-ranging and prescient descriptions of experiences the people will pass through, Solomon repeats some variation of the refrain: “Hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive” (8:30ff). That is exactly right: hear from heaven, even if the eyes of the people are toward this temple, and forgive. (5) Solomon’s forward glance includes the dreadful possibility of exile (8:46–51), followed by rescue and release. Further, while Solomon urges fidelity on the people (8:56–61), he also echoes a prominent point in the Abrahamic covenant (Gen. 12:3): Israel must be faithful “so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD is God and that there is no other” (8:60). F B Meyer Commentary - 1 Kings 8:1-13 The Temple dedicated. -- The Feast of Tabernacles, which was held in the seventh month (Lev. 23:34), was blended with this solemn festival: or perhaps the one feast immediately followed the other (1 Kings 8:65). All Israel in festive attire welcomed the ark to its abiding place, with sacrifices that could not be numbered. The Priests bare it; for the Levites, by whom this duty had been performed, were not permitted to enter the Holy of Holies. There is rare joy in the heart, when He, of whom the ark was a type, with its blood-stained propitiatory, takes up His abode there. Then the glory-cloud fills the whole being, and there is no longer any part dark; but the spirit, soul, and body -- the Holy of Holies, and the outer court -- are all infilled. This is to be sanctified wholly. Thus the whole nature may be preserved blameless (1Th 5:23). Related Resource: Study of Shekinah The budding rod and the pot of manna had disappeared. They were the symbols of a life that had passed away. But the Holy Law was there. In our most rapturous experiences we shall never be able to get away from the need of loving meditation on God's Word. 1 Kings 8:14-21 The people blessed. -- Solomon recited the chain of incidents that had conducted to that august moment. Each link is worthy of notice, especially the clause which declares that though David was not permitted to carry his pious intention into effect, it was yet accepted. "Thou didst well that it was in thine heart" There are many who desire to devote their lives to God as missionaries or ministers, but are hindered by death, or home-ties, or other considerations. But they are credited before God, not only with the desire, but with the fact. In the seed He beholds the perfected plant. 1 Kings 8:22-54 The prayer of intercession and consecration. -- He began by standing (1 Kings 8:22), but in the eager pursuit of his entreaties, he found his way to his knees (1 Kings 8:54). Familiarity with God begets reverence (Heb. 12:28). All prayer should contain a large proportion of adoration. What scope we have for this as we meditate on God's faithfulness (1 Kings 8:24), and His promises (1 Kings 8:25)! In prayer, God's children should quote and claim the promises. Let us also be minute in prayer, passing step by step through the needs of our life, and asking appropriate help. The vindication of righteousness (1 Kings 8:31); defeat (1 Kings 8:33); drought (1 Kings 8:35); pestilence (1 Kings 8:37); the case of the stranger (1 Kings 8:41); captivity in a strange land (1 Kings 8:46) -- these will suggest counterparts in all lives. But in each case there had to be confession, directed towards that place where the blood was shed and the priesthood burnt sweet incense -- so in our case there is no forgiveness, save through the sacrifice and intercession of Jesus Christ. There are some notable expressions in this prayer: "The plague of the heart" (1 Kings 8:38), "The furnace of iron" (1 Kings 8:51), and so on. 1 Kings 8:55-66 Thanksgiving and sacrifice. -- As God had not failed, so they might reckon on His being true. This reckoning God to be faithful to do what He has promised is the after-glow of true prayer; and then there is the obvious condition on our side of the perfect heart. In considering the great numbers of victims sacrificed, let us not forget, that though all was offered to God, only a small part was burnt on the altar; the rest was eaten. It was needful to make provision for the immense multitudes of guests. QUESTION - What happened at the dedication of Solomon’s temple? ANSWER - Solomon’s father, David, initially conceived the idea of building a temple in God’s honor. While God acknowledged David’s good intentions, He assigned the work to King Solomon (2 Samuel 7:1–13). The switch was due to David’s history as a warrior and his involvement in bloodshed (2 Chronicles 22:6–9). Solomon’s reign was a peaceful one, the ideal time to build a temple. Solomon accomplished the task. With the help of King Hiram of Tyre, he constructed a magnificent temple and palace (1 Kings 6—7). Following the completion of the construction, he stored his father’s dedicated treasures to the temple (1 Kings 7:51). Then he dedicated the temple itself, and the following events unfolded: A Huge Sacrifice Before the priests brought the ark into the temple, King Solomon and the entire community made a huge sacrifice, such that the sheep and cattle “could not be recorded or counted” (1 Kings 8:5). Everything on this day was done on a grand scale to celebrate the joy of God’s house being completed and God’s people dwelling in safety in God’s land. Bringing in the Ark of the Covenant The ark was previously kept in the tabernacle. After Solomon built the temple, the priests, elders, and tribal leaders accompanied the ark and other valuables into the temple (1 Kings 8:1). The ark of the covenant symbolized God’s presence, making this event in the dedication of the temple as of great significance. Without the ark, the temple would have been merely a gigantic building. The priests placed the ark in the Most Holy Place (1 Kings 8:6), where the people were not likely to ever see it again. A Heavy Cloud As the priests exited the Holy Place, a dense cloud filled the entire temple This cloud served as a physical manifestation of the Lord’s presence and His acceptance of the temple Solomon had built. It was so thick that it impeded the priests’ service (1 Kings 8:10–11). Recognizing the cloud as a manifestation of the Lord’s presence, Solomon proclaimed, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud; I have indeed built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever” (1 Kings 8:12–13). Blessings and Prayers and Fire The next portion of the event was the benediction and prayers offered by Solomon. His prayer commenced with praises, acknowledging that it was God who kept His promise by ensuring the completion of the temple (1 Kings 8:15–21, 23–24). Solomon also made supplications for the people and blessed them (1 Kings 8:14, 30–53, 55–61). At the end of King Solomon’s prayer, something marvelous happened: “When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple” (2 Chronicles 7:1). This event was reminiscent of the dedication of the tabernacle under Moses: “Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown” (Leviticus 9:24). Similarly, in Solomon’s day, “when all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the Lord above the temple, they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, ‘He is good; his love endures forever’” (verse 3). The Dedication Proper King Solomon, along with the entire people of Israel, offered additional sacrifices to dedicate the temple. In accordance with his practice of generous offerings, Solomon presented “22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep and goats” (1 Kings 6:63). The altar, as large as it was, was far too small to handle all the sacrifices, so, “on that same day the king consecrated the middle part of the courtyard in front of the temple of the Lord, and there he offered burnt offerings, grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings, because the bronze altar that stood before the Lord was too small to hold the burnt offerings, the grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings” (verse 64). Subsequently, the Israelites celebrated the Feast of Booths for seven days, with the entire dedication event lasting fourteen days. After that, Solomon sent everyone home, and “they blessed the king and then went home, joyful and glad in heart for all the good things the Lord had done for his servant David and his people Israel” (1 Kings 8:66). God’s Response Following the festival and dedication of the temple, God responded to Solomon’s prayer with an affirmative statement: “I have heard the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there” (1 Kings 9:3). However, God then presented a conditional promise similar to the conditions outlined in the law (see Deuteronomy 28). He said, “As for you, if you walk before me faithfully with integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did. . . . I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever. . . . But if you or your descendants turn away from me . . . then I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name” (1 Kings 9:4–7). Tragically, the latter happened. F B
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Spurgeon - They paused on the way at different spots, and offered sacrifices, till, as Josephus tells us, “the ground was moist with drink-offerings and sacrifices.” It was the jubilee year, and the season was the feast of tabernacles, so that the crowds were great, and the joy overflowing. When shall we see the whole earth hold jubilee and adore the ascended Saviour? 1 Kings 8:6 Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the house, to the most holy place, under the wings of the cherubim. the priests: 1Ki 8:4 2Sa 6:17 2Ch 5:7 its place: 1Ki 6:19 Ex 26:33,34 40:20,21 under the wings: 1Ki 6:27 Ex 25:20-22 37:9 1Sa 4:4 2Sa 6:2 Ps 80:1 99:1 Isa 37:16 Eze 10:5 Related Passages: 2 Chronicles 5:7+ Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the house, to the holy of holies, under the wings of the cherubim. Source: Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament - Page 498 JEHOVAH ENTHRONED IN HOLY OF HOLIES Then the priests brought the ark (aron) of the covenant (beriyth) of the LORD to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the house, to the most holy place, under the wings of the cherubim (kerub) - The priests carried the ark because the Levites were not allowed to enter the most holy place. Of course, once the Ark had been placed by several priests, thereafter only the High Priest was allowed to enter the Holy Place once per year on the Day of Atonement (see Leviticus 16:1-34+) ESV Study Bible note on Genesis 3:24+ - The placing of cherubim to the east of the garden is reflected in the tabernacle and temple, where cherubim were an important component in the structure and furnishings (see The Ark of the Covenant). (See context in ESV Study Bible) Under the wings of the cherubim (kerub) - in Solomon's temple, there were two pairs of cherubim, one large pair that spread their wings from side to side of the entire cube (1Ki 8:7; cf. 1 Ki 6:23-28) and the second smaller pair of cherubim on the lid of the ark (Ex 25:18-22). Cherubim (03742) kerub are angelic heavenly beings who dwell in God's presence and minister to Him. Note that cherubim which are frequently depicted as chubby infants with wings or as feminine creatures has absolutely no scriptural support (Which makes the point again that one should not glean his theology from Biblical art but from the Bible - in fact the first use in Ge 3:24 hardly depicts them as "chubby little babies" but as fearful beings!) In other cultures of the ancient world, cherubim were minor deities protective of palaces and temples; in Israel they symbolized angelic guardians (Gen 3:24+). Expulsion from Paradise (Guarded by Cherubim Gen 3:24+) James Tissot In the OT the cherubim were symbolic attendants that marked the place of the Lord's "enthronement" in his earthly kingdom 1Sa 4:4 = "the LORD of hosts who sits above the cherubim"; 2Sa 6:2 = "the LORD of hosts who is enthroned above the cherubim"; 2Ki 19:15 = "the God of Israel, who are enthroned above the cherubim"; Ps 99:1 = "The LORD reigns, let the peoples tremble; He is enthroned above the cherubim, let the earth shake!" Gilbrant notes that "They are referred to ninety-one times in the OT (thirty-one times in Ezekiel), generally in the plural. The tri-consonantal root (krb) appears throughout the Semitic world. An etymology, though, is difficult. Cherubim are first mentioned in Gen. 3:24 as guarding Eden. Afterward, they are presented as just below, or supporting, the throne of God (Ps. 18:10; Ezek. 10:20). Scripture contains no clear description of their appearance, with the exception that they have faces, hands and wings. It is unlikely that they resemble the Assyrian winged-bulls or any other winged heavenly creature depicted elsewhere in ancient Near Eastern art and literature. The imagery of Ezek. 1:5-25 portrays unhesitancy and directness in their movement ("they went everyone straight forward... and they turned not when they went," v. 12), and associates them with wheels having rims full of eyes (v. 18). Symbolized is God's complete awareness of all that transpires and his ability to act decisively. References where Yahweh is seen enthroned between the cherubim (2 Sam. 4:4; 1 Chr. 13:6) are allusions to the Ark of the Covenant. In Solomon's temple, the Ark, with its cherubim, stood beneath the large statues of cherubim whose wings extended across the entire inner chamber (1 Kings 6:23ff). Ezekiel's temple has no such sculptures. Its inner walls are covered alternately with figures of palm trees and cherubim (Ezek. 41:18ff, 25). Cherubim vary in their biblical representations. Ezekiel 41:19 depicts them with two faces (a man and a lion), not four as earlier. Certainly, the Bible writers had difficulty in describing these extra-dimensional beings from the heavenly realm. There is possible overlap between cherubim which have an "appearance like coals of fire" (Ezek. 1:13) and seraphim (the "burning ones" of Isa. 6:2f, 6). (Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary) KERUB - 90X/66V - cherub(25), cherubim(65). Gen. 3:24; Exod. 25:18; Exod. 25:19; Exod. 25:20; Exod. 25:22; Exod. 26:1; Exod. 26:31; Exod. 36:8; Exod. 36:35; Exod. 37:7; Exod. 37:8; Exod. 37:9; Num. 7:89; 1 Sam. 4:4; 2 Sam. 6:2; 2 Sam. 22:11; 1 Ki. 6:23; 1 Ki. 6:24; 1 Ki. 6:25; 1 Ki. 6:26; 1 Ki. 6:27; 1 Ki. 6:28; 1 Ki. 6:29; 1 Ki. 6:32; 1 Ki. 6:35; 1 Ki. 7:29; 1 Ki. 7:36; 1 Ki. 8:6; 1 Ki. 8:7; 2 Ki. 19:15; 1 Chr. 13:6; 1 Chr. 28:18; 2 Chr. 3:7; 2 Chr. 3:10; 2 Chr. 3:11; 2 Chr. 3:12; 2 Chr. 3:13; 2 Chr. 3:14; 2 Chr. 5:7; 2 Chr. 5:8; Ps. 18:10; Ps. 80:1; Ps. 99:1; Isa. 37:16; Ezek. 9:3; Ezek. 10:1; Ezek. 10:2; Ezek. 10:3; Ezek. 10:4; Ezek. 10:5; Ezek. 10:6; Ezek. 10:7; Ezek. 10:8; Ezek. 10:9; Ezek. 10:14; Ezek. 10:15; Ezek. 10:16; Ezek. 10:18; Ezek. 10:19; Ezek. 10:20; Ezek. 11:22; Ezek. 28:14; Ezek. 28:16; Ezek. 41:18; Ezek. 41:20; Ezek. 41:25 Bob
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Spurgeon - No sacrifice is so acceptable to God, Who is a Spirit, as that which is spiritual. He accepted bullocks under a dim and symbolical dispensation; but in such offerings, in themselves considered, He had no pleasure. "Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats?" Here He puts dishonour upon mere outward offerings by speaking of the horns and hoofs, the offal of the victim. The opus operatum, which our ritualists think so much of, the Lord puffs at. The horning and hoofing are nothing to Him, though to Jewish ritualists these were great points, and matters for critical examination; our modern rabbis are just as precise as to the mingling of water with their wine, the baking of their wafers, the cut of their vestments, and the performance of genuflections towards the right quarter of the compass. O fools, and slow of heart to perceive all that the Lord has declared. "Offer unto God thanksgiving" (cf Heb 13:15) is the everlasting rubric of the true directory of worship. The depths of grief into which the suppliant had been plunged gave him all the richer an experience of divine power and grace in his salvation, and so qualified him to sing more sweetly "the song of loves." Such music is ever most acceptable to the infinite Jehovah. John 1:14+ And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. Revelation 21:10-11+ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. SHEKINAH GLORY FILLS THE TEMPLE It happened that when the priests came from the holy place, the cloud (anan) filled the house of the LORD - Filled (male) is same verb used to describe the Holy Spirit filling of Bezalel (Ex 31:3+). The parallel passage in 2 Chr 5:11-14+ (see above) gives us more specific detail regarding when the cloud filled the Temple. It was when the priests withdrew and the singing praises commenced. David writes that Yahweh was "enthroned upon the praises of Israel." (Ps 22:3+) THOUGHT - What might happen when we praise Him from our innermost being, singing with a clear conscience and a joy filled heart? That's rhetorical of course! Patterson has an interesting comment - “There is a parallel to this event in Acts 2:1-4+ in which God marks the inception of the church as the temple of the Holy Spirit by making his presence known through the sound of a mighty rushing wind and by filling those present with the Holy Spirit.” (BORROW Expositor's Bible Commentary page 82) Warren
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Spurgeon - The cloudy pillar was the token of the presence of God, and its filling the sanctuary was a sign of his graciously accepting the temple. We cannot tell whether it was the dazzling brightness, or the deep, portentous darkness, which overwhelmed the minds of the priests, but assuredly it is a glorious thing to have the Lord so present in the midst of his people that all our works become as nothing, and we feel that no longer do we “stand to minister,” but the Lord himself is there. The Glory of the Lord Descends The cloud descended, pure and bright, A holy veil, a radiant light. The tent of meeting, God's abode, Where His glory filled, His presence showed. No mortal dared to step inside, For heaven’s King did there reside. The weight of glory, vast and grand, Rested among His chosen band. By day, a cloud would lead the way, Through deserts vast, where shadows lay. By night, a fire lit the skies, A beacon bright, before their eyes. A guide unfailing, ever near, To calm their hearts, to still their fear. Through every trial, step, and strife, His presence brought sustaining life. So let our hearts, like tents of old, Be filled with glory, pure as gold. For where His Spirit comes to stay, He lights the night and leads the day. 1 Kings 8:12 Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that He would dwell in the thick cloud. KJV 1 Kings 8:12 Then spake Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness. NET 1 Kings 8:12 Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that he lives in thick darkness. CSB 1 Kings 8:12 Then Solomon said: The LORD said that He would dwell in thick darkness. ESV 1 Kings 8:12 Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that he would dwell in thick darkness. NIV 1 Kings 8:12 Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud; NLT 1 Kings 8:12 Then Solomon prayed, "O LORD, you have said that you would live in a thick cloud of darkness. The LORD has said De 4:11 2Ch 6:1-11 Ps 18:8-11 97:2 thick: Ex 20:21 Lev 16:2 De 5:22 Isa 45:15 Heb 12:18 Related Passages: 2 Chronicles 6:1-11+ Then Solomon said, “The LORD has said that He would dwell (shakan) in the thick cloud. 2 “I have built You a lofty house, And a place for Your dwelling forever.” 3 Then the king faced about and blessed all the assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel was standing. 4 He said, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who spoke with His mouth to my father David and has fulfilled it with His hands, saying, 5 ‘Since the day that I brought My people from the land of Egypt, I did not choose a city out of all the tribes of Israel in which to build a house that My name might be there, nor did I choose any man for a leader over My people Israel; 6 but I have chosen Jerusalem that My name might be there, and I have chosen David to be over My people Israel.’ 7 “Now it was in the heart of my father David to build a house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. 8 “But the LORD said to my father David, ‘Because it was in your heart to build a house for My name, you did well that it was in your heart. 9 ‘Nevertheless you shall not build the house, but your son who will be born to you, he shall build the house for My name.’ 10 “Now the LORD has fulfilled His word which He spoke; for I have risen in the place of my father David and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and have built the house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. 11 “There I have set the ark in which is the covenant of the LORD, which He made with the sons of Israel.” Exodus 19:9+ The LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I will come to you in a thick cloud, so that the people may hear when I speak with you and may also believe in you forever.” Then Moses told the words of the people to the LORD. Exodus 20:21+ So the people stood at a distance, while Moses approached the thick cloud where God was. Deuteronomy 4:11+ “You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the very heart of the heavens: darkness, cloud and thick gloom. Psalm 18:11+ He made darkness His hiding place, His canopy around Him, Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies. Spurgeon - The storm thickened, and the clouds pouring forth torrents of rain combined to form the secret chamber of the invisible but wonder-working God. "Pavilioned in impervious shade" faith saw him, but no other eye could gaze through the "thick clouds of the skies." Blessed is the darkness which encurtains my God; if I may not see him, it is sweet to know that he is working in secret for my eternal good. Even fools can believe that God is abroad in the sunshine and the calm, but faith is wise, and discerns him in the terrible darkness and threatening storm. Psalm 97:2+ Clouds and thick darkness surround Him; Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. Spurgeon - So the Lord revealed himself at Sinai, so must he ever surround his essential Deity when he shows himself to the sons of men, or his excessive glory would destroy them. Every revelation of God must also be an obvelation; there must be a veiling of his infinite splendour if anything is to be seen by finite beings. It is often thus with the Lord in providence; when working out designs of unmingled love he conceals the purpose of his grace that it may be the more clearly discovered at the end. "It is the glory of God to conceal a thing." Around the history of his church dark clouds of persecution hover, and an awful gloom at times settles down, still the Lord is there; and though men for a while see not the bright light in the clouds, it bursts forth in due season to the confusion of the adversaries of the gospel. This passage should teach us the impertinence of attempting to pry into the essence of the Godhead, the vanity of all endeavours to understand the mystery of the Trinity in Unity, the arrogance of arraigning the Most High before the bar of human reason, the folly of dictating to the Eternal One the manner in which he should proceed. Wisdom veils her face and adores the mercy which conceals the divine purpose; folly rushes in and perishes, blinded first, and by and by consumed by the blaze of glory. Righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne. There he abides, he never departs from strict justice and right: his throne is fixed upon the rock of eternal holiness. Righteousness is His immutable attribute, and judgment marks his every act. What though we cannot see or understand what he doeth, yet we are sure that he will do no wrong to us or any of his creatures. Is not this enough to make us rejoice in him and adore him? Divine sovereignty is never tyrannical. Jehovah is an autocrat, but not a despot. Absolute power is safe in the hands of him who cannot err, or act unrighteously. When the roll of the decrees, and the books of the divine providence shall be opened, no eye shall there discern one word that should be blotted out, one syllable of error, one line of injustice, one letter of unholiness. Of none but the Lord of all can this be said. The Former Glory Dwelling in the Cloud over the Tabernacle JEHOVAH IN THE CLOUD In 1 Kings 8:12-21 Solomon repeatedly references Jehovah's promise to David in 2 Samuel 7+ and 1 Chronicles 17, when David had the desire to build a permanent temple. Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that He would dwell (shakan) in the thick cloud (araphel) - Solomon is addressing Jehovah. Has said refers to Jehovah's promise as in Ex 19:9+ declaring “Behold, I will come to you in a thick cloud " Solomon thus recalls Jehovah promise to present Himself in a cloud to Moses and believed that God was at this very moment in the thick cloud. He recognizes that God has condescended to fix His throne in the presence of His chosen people. We call that a manifestation of grace, truly undeserved favor being shown to Solomon and Israel. Solomon immediately identified the thick cloud as the manifestation of His approval and His promised presence. Jehovah is faithful to honor Solomon's faithfulness to honor his commitment to build the LORD a dwelling place on earth. Thick Cloud - usually associated with trouble or punishment, but here suggest the inexplicable mystery of God. This dark cloud was a thick darkness that would mask God’s glory, & permit man to be able to approach. (Brian Bell) THICK CLOUD - 7X/7V NASB - Exod. 19:9; Exod. 19:16; Exod. 20:21; 1 Ki. 8:12; 2 Chr. 6:1; Job 37:11; Isa. 44:22 The thick cloud is the Shekinah glory cloud. See Ex 19:9; Ex 20:21, 24:15,18; 33:9-10; 34:5; Lev 16:2; Dt 4:11; 5:22; Ps 18:10-11. God Himself stated He would dwell among them by the signal manifestation of His glory in the Shekinah, the visible token of his presence. Recall the conditional promise from 1Ki 6:12-13+ that if Israel obeyed then He would "carry out My word with you which I spoke to David your father. “I will dwell (shakan) among the sons of Israel." So at this time in history King Solomon (representing the people) is living in obedience. John
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Spurgeon - He was not a priest, and could not therefore present the sacrifices upon the altar; but as the representative man for the nation he did well to offer up the national prayer. God Is Worth Knowing By Pastor Al Detter SCRIPTURE: 1 Kings 8:22–61 INTRODUCTION: Solomon’s dedication of the temple focuses on the glory of God and the beauty of a relationship with Him. 1. God Is Worth Knowing in a Personal Way Because He Is Incomparable in Greatness (vv. 23–29). 2. God Is Worth Knowing in a Personal Way Because He’s So Incredibly Forgiving (vv. 30–53). 3. God Is Worth Knowing in a Personal Way Because He Wants to Bless Those Who Know Him (vv. 54–61). CONCLUSION: God sent Jesus Christ so that a way would be made for us to join the family of God. Having a relationship with God allows us to see Him for who He is and permits us to experience His forgiveness and blessings. We are not to contain His name in a building but proclaim Him that the world may also know Him. Rob Salvato - When Solomon begin his Prayer in v.22 Standing –ends it in v.54 Kneeling. That is what happens in the Presence of God – Humbled in his sight and glory. Good thing – God resist the proud but gives grace to the humble. Solomon Begins his Prayer with Adoration – talking about the greatness of God. He cannot be contained in a temple made with hands John Henry Jowett - RECOVERING LOST STRENGTH 1 Kings 8:22-36. IN this portion of this great prayer I discern the unalterable mode in which nations and individuals recover their moral health and strength. How do they lose it? Two words tell the story. They “sin” and are “smitten.” It is an inevitable sequence. Every sin is the minister of disease. Sometimes we can see it, when the disease flaunts its flags in the flesh; lust and drunkenness have glaring placards, and we know what is going on within. But even when sin makes no visible mark the wasting process is at work. It is as true of falsehood as of drunkenness, of treachery as of lust. “Evil shall slay the wicked.” And how do we recover our lost estate? There are three words which tell the story. “Turn!” “Confess!” “Make supplication!” The words need no exposition. I must turn my face to my despised and neglected Lord; I must tell them all about my miserable revolt, and I must humbly crave for His restoring grace. And the answer is sure. Such humble exercise sets the joy-bells ringing, and the rich forgiveness of the Lord fills the soul with peace. “O taste and see how gracious the Lord is.” 1 Kings 8:23 He said, "O LORD, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing lovingkindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart, Lord God: Ge 33:20 Ex 3:15 no God: Ex 15:11 1Sa 2:2 2Sa 7:22 Ps 35:10 86:8 89:6-8 113:5 Isa 40:18,25 Jer 10:6,16 Mic 7:18 who keepest: De 7:9 Ne 1:5 9:32 Ps 89:3-5 Da 9:4 Mic 7:19,20 Lu 1:72 walk before: 1Ki 2:4 3:6 6:12 Ge 17:1 2Ki 20:3 Related Passages: 2 Chronicles 6:14-20+ 14 He said, “O LORD, the God of Israel, there is no god like You in heaven or on earth, keeping covenant and showing lovingkindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart; 15who has kept with Your servant David, my father, that which You have promised him; indeed You have spoken with Your mouth and have fulfilled it with Your hand, as it is this day. 16“Now therefore, O LORD, the God of Israel, keep with Your servant David, my father, that which You have promised him, saying, ‘You shall not lack a man to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your sons take heed to their way, to walk in My law as you have walked before Me.’ 17“Now therefore, O LORD, the God of Israel, let Your word be confirmed which You have spoken to Your servant David. 18“But will God indeed dwell with mankind on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You; how much less this house which I have built. 19“Yet have regard to the prayer of Your servant and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to listen to the cry and to the prayer which Your servant prays before You; 20that Your eye may be open toward this house day and night, toward the place of which You have said that You would put Your name there, to listen to the prayer which Your servant shall pray toward this place. YAHWEH PRAISED AS A COVENANT KEEPING GOD He said, "O LORD, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth beneath, Solomon is in a sense describing monotheism. keeping covenant (beriyth) and showing lovingkindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart - Keeping covenant refers to the Mosaic covenant the blessings (and cursings) of which were conditioned on obedience of the Israelites. Showing lovingkindness was also conditioned on obedience. See Covenant: Why Study It?. The Jewish Study Bible (ONLINE) -- The prayer of Solomon is filled with phrases that echo Deuteronomy: 1Kings 8:23, keep Your gracious covenant (Deut. 7.9, 12); 1Kings 8:23, in the heavens above and on the earth below (Deut. 4.39); 1Kings 8:24, as is now the case (Deut. 2.30; 4.20; etc.); 1Kings 8:30, 39, 43, 49, Your heavenly abode (Deut. 26.15); 1Kings 8:33, 34, 38, 43, 52, Your people Israel (Deut. 21.8; 26.15); 1Kings 8:36, which You gave...as their heritage (Deut. 4.21; 15.4; etc.); 1Kings 8:40, revere [the Lord] (Deut. 4.10; 5.26; etc.); 1Kings 8:42, mighty hand... outstretched arm (Deut. 4.34; 5.15; etc.); 1Kings 8:51, iron furnace (Deut. 4.20) Spurgeon comments ““It is worthy of remark concerning this prayer that it is as full and comprehensive as if it were meant to be the summary of all future prayers offered in the temple.....One is struck, moreover, with the fact that the language is far from new, and is full of quotations from the Pentateuch, some of which are almost word for word, while the sense of the whole may be found in those memorable passages in Leviticus and Deuteronomy.” I have built for You recurs five additional times in Solomon’s speeches (1Ki 8:20, 27, 43, 44, 48), sounding a message of personal piety. Andrew Murray, the gifted nineteen century writer in Two Covenants speaks to the importance of covenant writing… : Blessed is the man who truly knows God as his God; who knows what the Covenant promises him; what unwavering confidence of expectation it secures, that all its [covenant's] terms will be fulfilled to him; what a claim and hold it gives him on the Covenant-keeping God Himself. To many a man, who has never thought much of the Covenant, a true and living faith in it would mean the transformation of his whole life. The full knowledge of what God wants to do for him; the assurance that it will be done by an Almighty Power; the being drawn to God Himself in personal surrender, and dependence, and waiting to have it done; all this would make the Covenant the very gate of heaven. May the Holy Spirit give us some vision of its glory. (Murray, Andrew: Two Covenants) Chuck Smith - I. "JEHOVAH GOD OF ISRAEL, NO GOD LIKE THEE." A. Solomon's kingdom many forms of idols and gods. 1. What do all these forms of worship tell us? a. Man must worship something. b. Man instinctively reaches out beyond himself for purpose and meaning. c. The marvelous designs in nature compel us to believe in a designer. d. The awesome infinite functions in life forms demand an infinitely wise creator. 2. Man had created his own gods. a. A projection of himself. b. If I were god this is what I would do and be. 1. This is how I would have man discover and worship me. B. The God of Israel could not be represented by a form. 1. Any attempts to confine Him to a form, wrong. 2. No idols, graven images, representations. C. The God of Israel could not be contained in a house made by man. 1. The heavens of heaven cannot contain Him. a. He should never be thought of in terms of locality. 1. He is with us here. 2. He is with you as you ride home. 3. He is with you at the beach, or mountains. D. The God of Israel kept His word. 1. He would speak of things in advance of the fact, then Hewould do it. a. This He did as a proof that He was truly God. b. He promised this land to Abraham's seed 900 years earlier. 1. Now here they were dwelling in it. E. He promised to prosper and bless them. F. He promised that if they forsook Him and worshipped other Gods, He would forsake them and they would be driven from the land and dispersed. G. He promised that in the end times He would restore the land to them. That the nation would be reborn in a day. That they would build again the waste places, that they would blossom and bud and fill the earth with fruit. 1. Looking at the nation Israel today, one must surely exclaim, "O Jehovah God of Israel, there is no God like thee." H. The God of Israel was a merciful God. 1. He is described as full of compassion and plenteous in mercy. 2. He is understanding and forgiving. 3. He is not willing that any should perish. 4. He desires your fellowship and love. To know Him is to understand life. To serve Him is to live within the highest potential of man's being. Monotheism -
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Spurgeon - Observe how he dwells upon the covenant. It is sweet praying when we can plead the promises. 1 Kings 8:25 "Now therefore, O LORD, the God of Israel, keep with Your servant David my father that which You have promised him, saying, 'You shall not lack a man to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your sons take heed to their way to walk before Me as you have walked.' keep with thy: 1Ki 2:4 2Sa 7:27-29 1Ch 17:23-27 Lu 1:68-72 There shall not: etc. Heb. There shall not be cut off unto thee a man from my sight, Jer 33:17-26 so that: Heb. only if thy children: 1Ki 2:4 9:4-6 1Ch 28:9 2Ch 6:16,17 Related Passage: 1 Kings 2:4+ so that (PURPOSE) the LORD may carry out His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons are careful of their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’ DAVIDIC COVENANT UNCONDITIONAL/CONDITIONAL Now therefore, O LORD, the God of Israel, keep with Your servant ('ebed; Lxx - doulos) David my father that which You have promised him, saying, 'You shall not lack a man to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your sons take heed to their way to walk before Me as you have walked.' Solomon prays according to the promises of God, promises God had spoken to his father David, specifically related to the Davidic Covenant. THOUGHT - We too would do well to pray the promises of God. When you pray, do you pray Scripture? 1Jn 5:14-15 gives us the inspired rationale for praying God's Word. This truth should motivate us to memorize His Word, so that when we pray, His Spirit will bring passages to mind that apply to the situation for which we are praying. To say it another way, if you know God's word and especially if you have memorized God's Word, you will be far more likely to petition God to fulfill His promises. The Davidic Covenant: This covenant has conditional and unconditional components. The unconditional promise of an everlasting dynasty from David's lineage is rooted in God's will, not human action. The unconditional nature of the covenant highlights God’s faithfulness and sovereignty. In 2 Samuel 7:12-16 God makes a promise to David that his descendants will sit on the throne of Israel forever. This is a unilateral, unconditional promise by God - David's dynasty will endure no matter what. In other words even if David’s descendants disobey, the dynasty will remain. Thus it is unconditional in the sense that Jehovah, the covenant keeping God, is committed to ensuring the lineage of David will not end, no matter what happens. Even in the face of disobedience, God’s covenant with David will stand. Ultimately, the Davidic Covenant points beyond David's immediate descendants to the Messianic King, Jesus Christ, who, according to the New Testament as the ultimate fulfillment of the Davidic promise in passages like Matthew 1:1, where Jesus is identified as "Jesus the Messiah, the son of David". Jesus’ will reign eternally, fulfilling the "forever" aspect of the covenant. Even when kings were unfaithful (like King Ahaz or Zedekiah), the people could look forward to the eventual restoration of the kingdom through a faithful Davidic king. 1 Kings 8:26 "Now therefore, O God of Israel, let Your word, I pray, be confirmed which You have spoken to Your servant, my father David. Now therefore: 1Ki 8:23 Ex 24:10 1Sa 1:17 Ps 41:13 Isa 41:17 45:3 let Your word: 2Sa 7:25-29 2Ch 1:9 Ps 119:49 Jer 11:5 Eze 36:36,37 Related Passages: 2 Samuel 7:25-29 “Now therefore, O LORD God, the word that You have spoken concerning Your servant and his house, confirm it forever, and do as You have spoken, 26that Your name may be magnified forever, by saying, ‘The LORD of hosts is God over Israel’; and may the house of Your servant David be established before You. 27“For You, O LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, have made a revelation to Your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a house’; therefore Your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to You. 28“Now, O Lord GOD, You are God, and Your words are truth, and You have promised this good thing to Your servant. 29“Now therefore, may it please You to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue forever before You. For You, O Lord GOD, have spoken; and with Your blessing may the house of Your servant be blessed forever.” PRAYING THE PROMISES OF GOD Now therefore, O God of Israel, let Your word, I pray, be confirmed which You have spoken to Your servant ('ebed; Lxx - doulos), my father David - King Solomon is praying the promises God made to his father David. Clearly David had transmitted these truths to his son. THOUGHT - We too do well to pray God's promises, God's word. Why? John tells us why praying this way is so efficacious - "This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him." (1Jn 5:14-15+) Spurgeon - God sent the promise on purpose to be used. If I see a Bank of England note, it is a promise for a certain amount of money, and I take it and use it. But oh I my friend, do try and use God’s promises; nothing pleases God better than to see his promises put in circulation; he loves to see his children bring them up to him, and say, ‘LORD, do as thou hast said.’ And let me tell you that it glorifies God to use his promises.” 1 Kings 8:27 "But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You, how much less this house which I have built! ESV 1 Kings 8:27 "But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house that I have built! NET 1 Kings 8:27 "God does not really live on the earth! Look, if the sky and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this temple I have built! CSB 1 Kings 8:27 But will God indeed live on earth? Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain You, much less this temple I have built. LXE 1 Kings 8:27 But will God indeed dwell with men upon the earth? if the heaven and heaven of heavens will not suffice thee, how much less even this house which I have built to thy name? KJV 1 Kings 8:27 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? GWN 1 Kings 8:27 "Does God really live on earth? If heaven itself, the highest heaven, cannot hold you, then how can this temple that I have built? NAB 1 Kings 8:27 "Can it indeed be that God dwells among men on earth? If the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain you, how much less this temple which I have built! NIV 1 Kings 8:27 "But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built! NLT 1 Kings 8:27 "But will God really live on earth? Why, even the highest heavens cannot contain you. How much less this Temple I have built! YLT 1 Kings 8:27 But, is it true? -- God dwelleth on the earth! lo, the heavens, and the heavens of the heavens do not contain Thee, how much less this house which I have builded! But will: 2Ch 6:18 Isa 66:1 Joh 1:14 Ac 7:48-49 17:24 2Co 6:16 1Jn 3:1 the heaven: De 10:14 2Ch 2:6 Ps 113:4 139:7-16 Jer 23:24 2Co 12:2 Related Passages: 2 Chronicles 2:6+ (SOLOMON) “But who is able to build a house for Him, for the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain Him? So who am I, that I should build a house for Him, except to burn incense before Him? 2 Chronicles 6:18+ “But will God indeed dwell with mankind on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You; how much less this house which I have built. Isaiah 66:1 Thus says the LORD, “Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? Acts 7:48-49+ “However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says: 49 ‘HEAVEN IS MY THRONE, AND EARTH IS THE FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET; WHAT KIND OF HOUSE WILL YOU BUILD FOR ME?’ says the Lord, ‘OR WHAT PLACE IS THERE FOR MY REPOSE? THE HEAVENS CANNOT CONTAIN GOD But (term of contrast) What's Solomon contrasting? Will God (Elohim) indeed dwell on the earth? Literal Hebrew "Indeed, can God really live on the earth?" This is a rhetorical question which expects the answer something like "Of course not." And Solomon immediately answers his own question in the next sentence. What is fascinating is that centuries later God did come to live on earth among men that He might save them from eternal destruction! (See - Immanuel) Behold, ("attention grabber!") (hinneh; Lxx - alethos - truly) heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You - Literally "the heavens of the heavens." This is clearly an allusion to God's attribute of Omnipresence.
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Spurgeon - So even in the dim light of Judaism it was seen that the Lord dwelleth not in temples made with hands; how astonishing it is that under the Gospel men should still cling to the notion of holy places. Wayne Grudem (Systematic Theology) - Omnipresence. Just as God is unlimited or infinite with respect to time, so God is unlimited with respect to space. This characteristic of God’s nature is called God’s omnipresence (the Latin prefix omni- means “all”). God’s omnipresence may be defined as follows: God does not have size or spatial dimensions and is present at every point of space with his whole being, yet God acts differently in different places. The fact that God is Lord of space and cannot be limited by space is evident first from the fact that he created it, for the creation of the material world (Gen. 1:1) implies the creation of space as well. Moses reminded the people of God’s lordship over space: “Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it” (Deut. 10:14). a. God Is Present Everywhere: Yet there are also specific passages that speak of God’s presence in every part of space. We read in Jeremiah, “Am I a God at hand, says the LORD, and not a God afar off ? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? says the LORD. Do I not fill heaven and earth? says the LORD” (Jer. 23:23–24). God is here rebuking the prophets who think their words or thoughts are hidden from God. He is everywhere and fills heaven and earth. God’s omnipresence is beautifully expressed by David (Ps 139:7-10) There is nowhere in the entire universe, on land or sea, in heaven or in hell, where one can flee from God’s presence. We should note also that there is no indication that simply a part of God is in one place and a part of him in another. It is God himself who is present wherever David might go. We cannot say that some of God or just part of God is present, for that would be to think of his being in spatial terms, as if he were limited somehow by space. It seems more appropriate to say that God is present with his whole being in every part of space (cf. also Acts 17:28 where Paul affirms the correctness of the words, “In him we live and move and have our being,” and Col. 1:17, which says of Christ, “in him all things hold together”). b. God Does Not Have Spatial Dimensions: While it seems necessary for us to say that God’s whole being is present in every part of space, or at every point in space, it is also necessary to say that God cannot be contained by any space no matter how large. Solomon says in his prayer to God, “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house which I have built!” (1 Kings 8:27). Heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain God; indeed, he cannot be contained by the largest space imaginable (cf. Isa. 66:1–2; Acts 7:48). While the thought that God is everywhere present with his whole being ought to encourage us greatly in prayer no matter where we are, the fact that no one place can be said to contain God should also discourage us from thinking that there is some special place of worship that gives people special access to God: he cannot be contained in any one place. We should guard against thinking that God extends infinitely far in all directions so that he himself exists in a sort of infinite, unending space. Nor should we think that God is somehow a “bigger space” or bigger area surrounding the space of the universe as we know it. All of these ideas continue to think of God’s being in spatial terms, as if he were simply an extremely large being. Instead, we should try to avoid thinking of God in terms of size or spatial dimensions. God is a being who exists without size or dimensions in space. In fact, before God created the universe, there was no matter or material so there was no space either. Yet God still existed. Where was God? He was not in a place that we could call a “where,” for there was no “where” or space. But God still was! This fact makes us realize that God relates to space in a far different way than we do or than any created thing does. He exists as a kind of being that is far different and far greater than we can imagine. We must also be careful not to think that God himself is equivalent to any part of creation or to all of it. A pantheist believes that everything is God, or that God is everything that exists. The biblical perspective is rather that God is present everywhere in his creation, but that he is also distinct from his creation. How can this be? The analogy of a sponge filled with water is not perfect, but it is helpful. Water is present everywhere in the sponge, but the water is still completely distinct from the sponge. Now this analogy breaks down at very small points within the sponge, where we could say that there is sponge at one point and not water, or water and not sponge. Yet this is because the analogy is dealing with two materials that have spatial characteristics and dimensions, while God does not. Systematic Theology Praising and Asking The highest heavens...cannot contain you. Teen Challenge, a ministry to at-risk youth that started in New York City, was born from an unusual commitment to prayer. Its founder, David Wilkerson, sold his television set and spent his TV-watching time (two hours each night) praying. In the months that followed, he not only gained clarity about his new endeavor but he also learned about the balance between praising God and asking Him for help. King Solomon’s temple dedication prayer shows this balance. Solomon began by highlighting God’s holiness and faithfulness. Then he gave God credit for the success of the project and emphasized God’s greatness, declaring, “The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!” (2 Chr 6:18). After exalting God, Solomon asked Him to pay special attention to everything that happened inside the temple. He asked God to show mercy to the Israelites and to provide for them when they confessed their sin. How would you describe your conversations with God? What might help you grow closer to Him as you pray? Read more about talking to God at discoveryseries.org/hp135. Prayer helps us see things as God sees them. Matthew Dowling - Let us consider three aspects of the temple’s meaning. First, the temple signified the presence of God with the people. Particularly in terms of the kingdom covenant, it signified the presence of God with the king. The palace of the earthly sub-king was next to the temple, at the “right hand” of God, so to speak. This arrangement signified that the earthly king was to rule as God’s viceroy. Second, the temple showed God as house builder. The first house God built was creation itself in Genesis 1. The house also memorialized the defeat of an enemy. The tabernacle was built from the spoils of Egypt, the temple of the spoils of the Egyptians, and the post-exilic temple of the spoils of Babylon, sent to Israel by the kings of Persia. The temple symbolized God’s people as his true house, measured out and built according to the detailed specifications of his covenant law. Finally, the temple showed God’s holiness. Only ordained priests were allowed to set foot inside the outer room of the temple, on pain of death, and nobody except the high priest might enter the Holy of Holies, and then only once a year. God’s greatness, and his separateness from sin, were graphically represented by the temple. John
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Spurgeon - In our highest joys we have still need to say “forgive.” Our hearts are out of order when that word does not rise to our lips. Let us plead with God to bless us throughout all our lives, and evermore to forgive John
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Spurgeon - It is not therefore to be wondered at that, when Solomon dedicated to the Lord the temple which he had built, his great petition was that God would hear every prayer that should be uttered in that place or toward that place. He wished the temple always to be to Israel the token that God’s memorial is that he hears prayer.” James Smith - Thirsty. “When the Heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against Thee” (2Chr 6:26). God had different ways of manifesting His displeasure at sin. In a spiritual sense Heaven is still shut up, so that no refreshing rain comes upon the soul of the disobedient and the backsliding. A silent and irresponsive Heaven is a fearful calamity to a thirsty soul, but this thirst is meant to bring us back in heart to the place of confession and blessing. “Then hear Thou, and forgive, … and send rain” (v. 27). The way to escape the horrors of a closed-up Heaven is to keep in “the good way” of the Lord. Abide in Him. If spiritual dearth has come, there is still in Christ provision for restoration and refreshing. “Look unto Me, and be ye saved.” Rob Salvato - Sin Causes Dryness in our souls. But when a sinner turns to the Lord – in true repentance the HS rains down upon their life and refreshes them. Raymond Dillard: Ancient Israel was an agrarian society with sufficient rainfall in most of the land that irrigation was not necessary. Agriculture was dependent on the regularity of the seasonal rains, particularly both the early rains to soften the ground for plowing in the fall, and the latter rains to swell the crop before harvest in the spring; adequate rainfall was a sign of divine blessing, and low rainfall of divine anger (Lev 26:3–4; Deut 11:13–14; 28:23–24; Prov 16:15; Jer 3:3; 5:24; Hos 6:3; 10:1; Joel 2:23; Song 2:11; Acts 14:17; Heb 6:7; Jas 5:17; Amos 4:6–8). The divine response to Solomon’s prayer about drought is a promise of healing the land (2Ch 7:13–14). (See 2 Chronicles, Volume 15 - Page 49) 1 Kings 8:36 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants and of Your people Israel, indeed, teach them the good way in which they should walk. And send rain on Your land, which You have given Your people for an inheritance. teach: Ps 25:4,5,8,12 27:11 32:8 94:12 119:33 143:8 Isa 35:8 Mic 4:2 the good way: 1Sa 12:23 2Ch 6:26-27 Isa 30:21 Jer 6:16 42:3 Mt 22:16 give rain: 1Ki 18:1,27-40,45 Ps 68:9 Jer 14:22 Jas 5:17,18 SOLOMON'S APPEAL FOR FORGIVENESS then hear in heaven (see summary above) and forgive (salach; Lxx - be hileos - "be merciful") the sin of Your servants and of Your people Israel - See Courson's summary. Solomon continues to intercede for Israel asking for God's mercy when they face the consequences of sin. indeed, teach them the good way in which they should walk - Sin does not just require forgiveness but also transformation. Solomon prays that God would instruct Israel in righteousness, leading them on the right path so they do not fall back into disobedience. This mirrors Ps 86:11 where God's Word (truth) is the "way" to walk in: "Teach me Your way, O LORD; I will walk in Your truth" (Psalm 86:11+). And send rain on Your land, which You have given Your people for an inheritance - The rain from heaven is God's blessing for obedience. The land was Israel's inheritance, and while disobedience would result in exile, the inheritance promised to Abraham would be fulfilled (ultimately and fully in the Millennium). Utley on the good way - This good way refers to covenant obedience with a whole heart (cf. 1 Sam. 12:23; 2 Chr. 6:27; Prov. 2:20; 6:23; Psalm 1; 27:11; 139:23-24; Jer. 6:16; 31:9; Mark 6:8). Walk is biblical imagery for an obedient life. God shows His will as a clear, straight, level, unobstructed path/road (cf. Isa. 2:3; Micah 4:2). His people know exactly how they should live! They must not deviate from this clearly revealed path, to the right or to the left. F B
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Spurgeon - “They each know their own affliction—as they spread out their hands toward this temple.” The people especially looked toward the temple in prayer in times of national calamity. In drought, or when the crops were consumed by locusts or by caterpillars, or when blast and mildew destroyed the hope of harvest, or in time of war or pestilence, their supplications were presented unto the one Jehovah—all eyes looking toward his one sacred shrine where the one sacrifice smoked on the altar. But although there were those special opportunities when God heard their prayers as a nation, it is pleasant to observe that he regarded the griefs of individuals. Every person that knew his own affliction (or “the plague of his heart”) was to spread his hands toward that one place of sacrifice and pray. And God would forgive him and deliver him. May the Lord God, the Holy Spirit, help us avail ourselves of the blessed peace stored up in the one great sacrifice that every restless heart may have if it will only come to him. John Newton - The Lord gave Israel to understand from first to last, and especially when he was affording them signal mercies (ED: Refers to significant acts of kindness and deliverance that God bestowed upon the Israelites), that he knew them and knew what returns they would make to him (ED: This highlights that God was aware of the Israelites' tendencies and potential for both good and bad behavior, predicting their future actions based on their character. ). He knew them, and long experience taught them to know themselves. Therefore it was often sounded in their ears, Not for your own sakes [Ezekiel 36:32]. The song of Moses was published with this view before they entered Canaan, that the grant might be known to be wholly of grace. The most glorious day perhaps ever seen by Israel was at the dedication of the first temple. The Lord had wrought wonderfully for them, subdued their enemies, given them rest, plenty riches, a king who was the wisest of men. The temple, built by divine direction, was finished in all its beauty and glory; the people, to appearance, all of one heart and mind; the sacrifices immense, the congregation innumerable, the glory of the Lord in view filling the house in token of his favour and acceptance. Yet the Lord then saw a day coming, which they were little aware of, when Israel would be delivered up into the hands of their enemies and their temple destroyed—not one stone left upon another (Mt 24:2+). The prayer of Solomon upon this occasion was doubtless pronounced under the immediate influence of the Holy Spirit, and gives throughout a prophetic intimation of the changes that would take place.... I shall speak of the true Temple. The type points out to us several things. Though the whole earth was filled with the providence and goodness of the Lord, he was only known in the temple worship. No other place or people had tokens of God’s presence amongst them. Thus God is only known in Christ. The book of nature and even the book of Scriptures give us no comfortable apprehensions of him, any farther than Jesus the true Temple is acknowledged. If men have not eyes to see what is taught of the person, offices and saving work of Christ, even the Scripture is a sealed book to them, and with the Word of God in their hands and in their mouth, they stumble like the blind at noonday. Many who acknowledge the Scripture in words know no more of God in a way of comfortable dependence and influence than the heathens. All acceptable service was confined to the temple, or immediately referred to it. No sacrifices could be offered anywhere else, and prayers by those at a distance must be directed towards it. Thus, as there can be no knowledge of God, so no communion with God, but by Christ. He is the door and the way, and no one cometh to the Father but by him. In the temple there was a veil separating the things within it from the people’s view, intimating the state of distance of the church under the law. But this veil was removed, and every partition broken down at his death. The hidden glories are revealed. All the Lord’s people are priests and have right of access, and the temple, no more confined to one space, is open to people of all languages and nations. Revelation 21:3+ And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, Charles Simeon - THE REQUISITES FOR ACCEPTABLE PRAYER 1 Kings 8:38-39 "When a prayer or plea is made by any of your people Israel—each one aware of the afflictions of his own heart, and spreading out his hands toward this temple—then hear from Heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive and act; deal with each man according to all he does, since you know his heart—for you alone know the hearts of all men." Religion is often thought to be an employment fit only for weak minds, or for those who have nothing else to engage their attention; but it is worthy of the pursuit of the wisest and greatest of men. Never did Solomon appear more glorious than when uttering these words. At the head of all his subjects he dedicated his temple to God. He set a bright example for them, of piety and devotion; and interceded, not for them only, but for all succeeding generations. In this portion of his instructive prayer we may see: I. The requisites for acceptable prayer. A humble, upright, fervent, believing, submissive, obediential frame of mind is necessary when we approach the throne of grace. But the most essential requisites for acceptable worship are comprised in: 1. A deep sense of our own depravity. The "plague of one's own heart" is one's indwelling corruption. Some understand "plague" as expressing some loathsome disorder; and the rather because it is translated "sore" in the parallel passage, 2 Chronicles 6:29. This is the true sense of it when it relates to the body. But here the heart is represented as the seat of this disorder, and therefore it must be understood of sin. This is confirmed by what is said in the text, of God's knowing the heart. "Every one" has some "sin that more easily besets him;" and this sin he ought to know. Not that a mere acquaintance with this plague is sufficient; we must know the depth and inveteracy of our disorder. Our knowledge too must produce a sincere self-abhorrence, and a full conviction of our utter helplessness; nor without this knowledge can we offer up one acceptable prayer. We cannot lament what we neither feel nor know; or seek for mercy, when we perceive not our need of it. While ignorant of our depravity, we are not in a state to receive mercy; we should not even be willing to accept of mercy on God's terms. The very offers of salvation would rather excite our displeasure than our gratitude. A man, not sensible that he had subjected himself to capital punishment by breaking the laws of his country, would reject with indignation an offer of deliverance from an ignominious death. But a self-condemned criminal on the eve of his execution would receive such an offer gladly. 2. A believing view of Christ. The temple of Solomon was the more immediate residence of God; all were on this account directed to look towards it when they prayed. That temple was typical of the Lord Jesus Christ. See John 2:19; John 2:21 and compare Exodus 23:21 with the expression, "My name shall be there," 1 Kings 8:29. In him "dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;" to him our eyes are therefore to be directed, Isaiah 45:22. We are to offer all our petitions in his name, John 14:13-14. This regard to him is necessary to the acceptance of our prayers; it is through him alone that we gain access to God, Ephesians 2:18. We cannot approach the Father in any other way, John 14:6; nor is there any other channel whereby the divine blessings can flow down to us, John 1:16. On these accounts we must "stretch out our hands towards" him; we must view him as our only source of spiritual blessings. They who truly seek after God will soon experience, II. The efficacy of prayer when attended with those requisites. Cold or unbelieving petitions will receive no answer! James 4:3; Matthew 15:8-9; James 1:6-7. But humble and believing prayer will obtain the richest blessings: 1. National blessings. The passage before us relates to the whole Jewish nation; it supposes them to have incurred the heavy displeasure of God, and teaches them how they are to avert his wrath. Nor did God leave them in suspense about the outcome of such humiliation; he declared in a vision to Solomon that his petitions were accepted, 2 Chronicles 7:12-14. The Jewish history affords many striking instances of deliverance given to a repenting people. Jehoshaphat praying according to the direction in the text, 2 Chronicles 20:5-13, expressly reminded God of his promise, verse 9. And the success of his prayer far exceeded all reasonable expectation; see verse 22-25. Nor can we doubt but that the same means will still be crowned with the like success. 2. Personal blessings. He who "knows our heart" will grant all that we can desire, 1 John 5:14-15." Forgiveness of sin. Who was more infamous and abandoned than that woman? Luke 7:37; Luke 7:39. Yet she, in humility and faith, applied to Jesus, Luke 7:38, and received an assurance that her iniquities were forgiven, Luke 7:47-48; Luke 7:50. And shall not we obtain mercy if we apply to him in the same humble and believing way? Peace of conscience. How troubled, almost to distraction, were the murderers of our Lord, Acts 2:37. But, according to Peter's direction, they looked to Jesus, Acts 2:38, and were immediately filled with "peace and joy in believing, Acts 2:46." Deliverance from temporal troubles. We cannot conceive greater temporal affliction than that endured by Jonah, Jonah 2:1-3. Tet, when to appearance irrecoverably lost, he prayed in this manner, Jonah 2:4; Jonah 2:7, and experienced a most unparalleled deliverance, Jonah 2:10. Victory over our spiritual enemies. With what vehemence did Satan assault the Apostle Paul, 2 Corinthians 12:7. The afflicted saint cried with earnestness to the Lord Jesus, 2 Corinthians 12:8; his troubles were immediately turned into triumphant exultations, 2 Corinthians 12:9. Renewal after the divine image. Nothing on earth does a believer desire so much as this; yet this shall be attained in the same way. An humble and believing view of Christ shall effect it, 2 Corinthians 3:18. A peaceful death. Stephen died by the hands of cruel and blood-thirsty enemies, Acts 7:54; but he offered a humble and believing prayer to Christ, Acts 7:59, and his death was to him as a serene and peaceful sleep, Acts 7:60. A glorious immortality. He who died justly by the hands of the public executioner must have merited in a high degree the wrath of God, Luke 23:41; nevertheless in his last hour he directed his eyes to Christ, Luke 23:42; and that very day was he admitted with Christ to Paradise! Luke 23:43. APPLICATION. Let none despair on account of the greatness of their sins, or of the judgments of God which are already inflicted on them. God will allow none to "seek his face in vain." Let every one then bewail "the plague of his own heart," and offer up believing prayers! C H Spurgeon - The Plague of the Heart (When the regular congregation unanimously left their seats to be occupied by strangers, who crowded the building to its utmost capacity). You all know that the temple at Jerusalem was the one place of sacrifice throughout all the holy land, for thus had the Lord spoken, “Whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers which sojourn among you, that offereth a burnt offering or sacrifice, and bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer it unto the Lord; even that man shall be cut off from among his people.” According to God’s law there was one altar, and it was counted a high crime when the tribes which dwelt beyond Jordan built another, and their brethren besought them, saying, “Rebel not against the Lord in building you an altar beside the altar of the Lord our God.” (Josh. xxii.19.) As there was only one high priest, so there was only one altar; and sacrifice might not be offered anywhere else but on that altar at Jerusalem. Hence when a man wished to present his offerings to God he went tip to the one temple which Solomon dedicated by the prayer in which our text occurs. The people did afterwards build altars on high hills and in green groves, but these places, and the sacrifices offered there, were contrary to the mind of God. There was but one altar and one sacrifice, and that was at the temple. Hence when the godly Israelite prayed he looked towards the one place of sacrifice, not in superstition, but in believing remembrance of the one sacrifice, and the one altar, and the one glorious token of the divine presence which shone over the mercy-seat within the veil. He knew that God could only accept him through the one sacrifice, and therefore he looked that way. The people especially looked toward the temple in prayer in times of national calamity. In drought, or when the crops were consumed by locusts or by caterpillars, or when blast and mildew destroyed the hope of harvest, or in time of war, or pestilence, their supplications were presented unto the one Jehovah, all eyes looking towards his one sacred shrine where the one sacrifice smoked upon the altar. But, although there were those special opportunities, and God heard his people’s cry, as a nation, it is very pleasant to observe that he regarded the griefs of individuals. Every man, says the text, that knew the plague of his own heart was to spread forth his hands towards that one place of sacrifice and pray, and God would forgive him and deliver him. That is my subject to-night. The Lord will hear whatsoever prayer and supplication is made by any man in reference to his own personal affliction, if his heart is turned towards God’s own temple. But what is that temple? and where is it? There are now no material temples beneath the whole heaven, unless the bodies of believers may be so called, and no one thinks of looking to them. No, “The Most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands.” No one place is more sacred than another. “Where’er we seek him he is found, And every place is hallowed ground.” There remains one temple, however, and that is the body of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is temple, altar, and sacrifice; and if you would look the right way in prayer, and if you desire your prayers to speed, you must look to him by the eye of faith. See, there he sits at the right hand of God. Having finished the one sacrifice, and made atonement for sin for ever, there he sits— priest, altar, offering, temple; and every true supplicant must enter into the holiest by his blood, “by a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh.” Whoever beneath the wide heavens is conscious of the plague of his own heart, or has anything that plagues him or aught that troubles him, may turn his eyes towards Christ, the true temple, with a certainty that God will hear his prayer and answer his request, and send to him deliverance. “We have an altar,” and that altar is our Lord’s own blessed person; we have but one, and we tremble for those who set up another, but to that one we look with confident hope, being assured that the sacrifice once offered there has made our peace with God, and procured acceptance for our supplications. “We rear no altar— thou hast died; We deck no priestly shrine; What need have we of creature-aid? The power to save is thine.” But now I must come nearer to the point in hand. The text speaks of “every man which shall know the plague of his own heart.” I am going to talk to you about that knowledge, and the plague with which it deals. These are home affairs that we shall speak of to-night; not matters beyond our line, and unpractical, but our own personal concerns, Every man the plague of his own heart.” A great many men think they know the plague of other people’s hearts, and there is a great deal of talk in the world about this family, and that person, and the other. I pray you let the scandals of the hour alone, and think of your own evils. This night let each man consider his own home affairs, and not other people’s business. He would be a bad farmer who ploughed other people’s lands, and left his own untilled. He would be a poor gardener who used his hoe on other men’s weeds, and not on his own. To-night I pray you let each man think of home affairs. Yes, and let him think, of heart affairs; for, whatever may be wrong about us, the worst place to have anything wrong is the heart. Out of it are the issues of life. We can endure the burdens of life, but “a wounded spirit who can bear?” A plague in the body is not half so bad as a plague in the heart— a plague in the soul: of all plagues the plague of the heart is the sorest. It is not the plague of another man’s heart which I have to think of to-night, but the plague of my own heart, for the text speaks of knowing, “Every man the plague of his own heart.” It is a dreadful mischief that there should be a plague in the heart, for a plague is a dreadful thing. A plague means, first, something which brings pain; and there is many a secret heart-ache in this world where we least suspect it. If you could take the roofs off the houses of London strange sights would be seen, but if once you could proceed to put a window into every heart, some of those whose faces look gladdest would appear to us to be among the most miserable of men. The plague of the heart means pain, care, worry, grief, and trouble of mind: but it means more than that, for the plague is a disease. Now, a diseased heart is something terrible. Often we see it reported that a man died suddenly of disease of the heart, which I suppose frequently means that the doctors do not know what he died of; but certainly anything that ails the heart is a disease in a most important organ. The hand may be cured, or we may even lose it and live; but when the heart is affected the whole system gets out of gear, and life itself verges dangerously upon the edge of death. As it is with the heart of the body so is it with the soul’s heart: its depravity, or, in other words, its moral disease, puts all the faculties out of order and ruins our whole nature. Nothing can be right with the immortal nature till the heart is cured of the plague which came upon it through the Fall. The worst point about the plague of the heart is the fact that if it be not removed it will ultimately bring death upon the soul. Plague at the heart is mortal, and I am much surprised if I have not in this great congregation some who have a present pain, a present disease of the heart, and who will, unless God of his grace lead them to adopt the cure we shall set before them to-night, perish through this deadly plague. O that while I am speaking to you the Holy Spirit may lead many a sin-sick soul to breathe out some such desire as that expressed by John Newton when he wrote,— “Physician of my sin-sick soul, To thee I bring my case; My raging malady control, And heal me by thy grace. Pity the anguish I endure, See how I mourn and pine; For never can I hope a cure From any hand but thine. Lord, I am sick, regard my cry, And set my spirit free: Say, canst thou let a sinner die, Who longs to live to thee?” To come to close quarters. Our first point will be forms of this plaque, the next will be mode of treatment, and the third wall be help to be expected. I. First, let us mention various FORMS OF THIS PLAGUE OF THE HEART. They are very many, perhaps almost as many as the hearts themselves. Some have this plague of the heart in the form of a terrible memory. With blood-red line remorse has scored their memories in an ineffaceable manner. We need not go into particulars— a secret something known scarcely to anyone but themselves hides away in the tenderest part of their nature and eats out their vitals. They sinned— sinned terribly, and the sin haunts them. They could be happy if they could forget, but that one sin is ever before them as though a blood spot were painted on their very eyeballs. They are reminded of it by the simplest events, for it seems as though God had put an accusing tongue into the stones they tread upon and the walls which surround them. Even their beds refuse them repose; they wake in the darkness and sit in speechless horror, or if they fall asleep the visions of the night scare them. Few know of their fault, and yet they imagine that they are universally suspected. Nobody has cried shame upon them, but they cry shame upon themselves. It may not be one sin alone, but perhaps all their sins in one pack bay at them and pursue them like bloodhounds eager to devour. They can hear the voice of their sins above all notes of music or shouts of laughter. When they would be quiet and at rest they cannot be, for they are tossed to and fro like ocean in a storm. They have the plague of remembered sin upon them and see no remedy for it: to-night it is my gladsome message that there is a cure for this form of heart-plague, an effectual cure. Transgression can be blotted out, even the greatest trespass can be altogether forgiven. Sin can be put away so that it shall not be mentioned against you any more for ever. Messed be God for this. If this be the plague of your heart, have confidence and embrace the cure to-night. With others it takes another shape. Their heart-plague has assumed the form of dissatisfaction and unrest. They cannot be quiet. They are like the troubled sea, which cannot rest. They were a little pleased at one time when they had a new scheme on hand to divert their thoughts and amuse their minds. The scheme has prospered, but that prosperity has brought them no contentment; they must now be at something else, and while the new plan is in full swing they will a little forget, but when that also is accomplished they will sit down and cry, “What next? I am sick of all things, and most of all of myself. Life is worry and disappointment. I cannot be quiet. I crave a something, I know not what.” There are hundreds and thousands of men who have all that heart can wish, and yet are miserable. On the other hand I could point you to many hundreds who have but little in this world and yet are almost as happy as the angels, in foil contentment rejoicing in their God. The plague in the heart rages fiercely in those who lack for nothing except the power to enjoy what they have. They have succeeded in their learning, and gained their degree, but increased learning has only enlarged the sphere of their disquietude. They have succeeded in business and have retired, but retirement is a weariness to them. They have prospered in everything, and this has become their adversity. Like the wise roan of old, they cry, “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” They mourn over all earthly good, saying, “There is nothing in it. It is an empty thing. Woe is me! Where is rest for my soul?” Again it is my glad errand to-night to tell you where perfect rest and sweet contentment can be found; where your soul shall dwell at ease and possess the earth, and inherit worlds to come, and your peace shall be like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea. The Lord God, the Holy Spirit, help you to avail yourselves of the blessed peace stored up in the one great Sacrifice which every unresting heart may have, if it will come to him. This plague takes another shape, and I mention several, that I may come home to many hearts, and depict many experiences; in many it is a wretched tendency to some one sin, which, nevertheless, the man in his better moments does not wish to commit. Some are horribly plagued by their passions. They stand out against them occasionally, and come to a pause, and resolve, “It shall not be. In the name of everything that is good, it shall not be.” They hate and despise themselves for it, and yet they yield to overwhelming lust, and are hurried forward by their passions like sear leaves in the tempest, or spray dashed aloft by the storm. Many individuals are plagued with the temptation to strong drink. They vow that they will abstain, but the serpent stings and they thirst for the fire-water, and will have it, though it degrades their manhood below the level of the swine. With others wantonness and chambering have gained the mastery, and the plague is foul indeed. With another class it is ungovernable anger, quickness of wrath, or that slow-burning, smouldering fire called malice, which is nearest akin to the fire of hell. Better burn with a life-long fever than be the prey of these fierce heats. Some know the evil which twines about them like a python, and they wish to resist it, and yet they are so fascinated by the sin that they cannot tear away the serpent’s folds. Many are as though they were taken in a net, or garmented about with lusts, till they are comparable to Hercules of old when he put on the tunic which burned into his flesh and clung to his body, so that when he laboured to tear it off as best he could, he tore away his flesh therewith. Many are enshrouded in a horrible robe of habit which has become a part of their being, the very skin of their souls. They cannot get rid of that awful fire-tunic— a tendency to sin. To them also I have the joy to proclaim, in the name of God, the all-merciful, that from this they can be redeemed: they can be delivered from the bondage of corruption, and brought into the glorious liberty of the children of God. In others, this plague of the hearts is a wretched indecision— a perpetual vacillation. They are resolved at times, but their resolve ends in nothing. Oh, there are numbers of men who know it themselves — that they never can succeed in life because they are “everything by turns, and nothing long,” and especially in matters of religion they wax and wane like the moon. Today they repent: to-morrow they return to their sin. To-day they are in earnest; to-morrow they are careless. To-day they are almost persuaded to be Christians; to-morrow they are quite persuaded to find pleasure in sin. False as the waves and fickle as the winds, they are never long enough in one stay to take root anywhere. Unstable as water, they shall not excel. Who can heal them of this moral palsy? Can nothing decide them in the right direction? Yes, there is One who can decide them. There is One who can throw the weight of his sweet love into the quivering balance, and make it turn in the right direction. O hesitating mortal, if you have grace to look to-night towards the one Sacrifice, the Holy Spirit will root you and ground you in love, Jesus will make a steadfast man of you, and you shall yet say, “O God, my heart is fixed, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.” I have known this plague of the heart in some to take the form of a mournful hardness, so that they cry, “I would, but cannot, repent. I would feel, but I cannot feel. I seem to be given up, seared as with a hot iron, and insensible.” This is a fearful plague, perhaps worse than all I have previously mentioned because more fatal. Is there, then, no hope? Yes, there is one who can make the dead to live, who can take away the heart of stone and give a heart of flesh, and it is his name we preach tonight, the name of Jesus, who shall save his people from their sins. There are others whom I meet pretty constantly who have a faintness of heart, a despondency of spirit, and this is their plague. They cannot believe that there is mercy for them. They cannot hope that they could live a new life. At times they feel a desire to turn unto the Lord, but they think it is impossible; and that grim impossibility drives them back from Christ, and forward to yet grosser sin. Many a man has said, “Because there is no hope, therefore will I sin to the very length of my tether. I cannot be saved, and so I may as well have the pleasures of sin to the full.” I pray thee, dear hearer, let not despair thus saddle thee and ride thee, for there is no cause for it. There is salvation where Jesus comes, and he comes here to-night. No man need say he is denied a hope since Christ came into the word to seek and to save that which is lost. Oh, my hearer, hope as long as you live. To the very confines of death’s dominions, and to the borders of hell-shade let this word of mercy fly, “There is hope: there is hope.” For the most hopeless there is still hope. “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” One other form of heart-plague is a constant, dread of the future. Multitudes of persons are always under apprehension, and especially under apprehension of death. You must not mention death in some places, the very word is horrible. Some would like, I dare say, that the etiquette of the age should respect their coward fears and be as daintily absurd as that of the French monarch who would not allow death to be mentioned in his presence, and when his secretary read the words, “the death of the king of Spain,” he sharply asked, “What is that? what is that?” in anger that such a thing should be mentioned in his sacred presence. The secretary was obliged to say that it was a circumstance which occasionally happened to kings in Spain. Scores of people would like us to be just as delicate as that upon the subject of their end. But, O sirs, ye must die. The youngest among us who is in best health will die— may die soon; but where the snows of winter lie upon your heads, and where already the tenement begins to crumble through old age, death must come. Are you not prepared, my friend? Are you not prepared? Then I do not wonder that you tremble at the very thought of being summoned before your Maker’s bar. But be not as the ostrich which hides its silly head from the hunter, and then dreams of being secure. Learn to look death in the face, for it will soon stare you out of countenance. Do you call yourself a Christian, and are you afraid to die? Oh! if God had made you such a man as you ought to be you would not dread to die, for death is a mere undressing to the true believer, an undressing which leads to his being arrayed in glory. Death to the saint is the gate of endless joy, and shall he dread to enter there? To such as are in Christ who have looked to the one temple, to the one sacrifice, to the one priest, to the one altar, the fear of death is gone. Within them God has wrought such a work, and for them Christ has prepared such a heaven, that without apprehension they may look through the gates of pearl, and often clap their hands for very joy, as they sing— “See that glory, how resplendent! Brighter far than fancy paints; There in majesty transcendent, Jesus reigns, the King of saints. Spread my wings, nay soul, and fly Straight to yonder world of joy.” So elevated is the joyous experience of the true believer, that death to him would be unmingled gain, and he knows it to be so, and therefore at times he is even in haste to be gone. Have I, in any of these descriptions, picked you out, my dear friend, to-night? Have you a heart-plague like to any of these? Or is it some other form of the great spiritual pestilence? I cannot tarry to describe it, for now I want to speak upon the mode of treatment. May the Holy Ghost help you to feel the plague, and accept the remedy upon the spot. II. You desire to get rid of this heart-plague— effectually rid of it; let us then consider the MODE OF TREATMENT which will work a cure. I hope you are not so foolish as to say, “I shall not think about the matter, for it would only plague me more.” That is a very bad habit, and only such as a frivolous or a wicked person would follow. A man is in trade, and he says to his clerk, “Don’t bring me the books, I do not want to know anything about my accounts. Don’t let me see day-book or ledger; I had rather not be troubled with them.” The confidential clerk replies, “Sir, I think you ought to see your account at the bank.” “No,” answers the silly one “I should not like to be perplexed with figures, and balances, and losses, and deficits. I should not enjoy my dinner if I attended to these matters; let us drive dull care away and enjoy life while we may. Don’t worry me, but keep those wretched books away.” I do not think it needs a prophet to foretell that this tradesman will soon be in his creditors’ hands, with very small assets. By such avoidance of knowing his position he will be ruined as sure as doomsday. And whenever a man dares not look into the state of his own soul and dreads a half-an-hour alone, he may conclude that there is something rotten in the state of Denmark — something far, far gone with regard to his soul’s estate. He need not question that, I think. But let us not be so unwise, for the first mode of treatment we prescribe to-night, in order to the remedy, is that every man should know the plague of his own heart; that is to say, he should endeavour to get a true and accurate knowledge of his spiritual condition as in the sight of God. What is this sin that troubles you? Honestly look at it. What is this fear that haunts you? Do you know what it is? I would advise you to write it down and see it in black and white. What is this tendency to sin that enslaves you? What is this wretched indecision. Get a diagnosis of the disease and be sure it is a correct one. Look your own case through and through. It very much helps towards salvation when a man knows something of his need of it, and he will be very much helped to a sense of his need if he will impartially examine his own state. Might I ask such a thing, I fear it would not be granted, but I am sure good would come of it if I could get it— that every person to-night on his going home would sit down in his chamber, look into the state of his heart before God, and then write on a piece of paper one of two words— “saved” or “lost”? My friend, do not write that word “saved” unless you can honestly and sincerely say, “I have looked to the Saviour, and he has saved me.” But suppose you are forced in honesty to your own conscience to write down the word “lost” as your true description, it will be both manly and useful to do so. I have known this to be done in cases in which, before the morning light, that piece of paper has been burned and another word has been written in its stead, even the bright consoling word “saved,” Only foolish people object to enquiry as to their state: be not one of them. Write down the condition of your soul. Take stock, and make sure. Write down “impenitent,” if you are so: put it before you in black and white. Write “unbelieving,” if you are so. It cannot hurt you to know the truth, and it may be of lasting benefit to you. We prescribe that to begin with. Then, next, as Solomon bade those who knew the plague of their own heart turn their eyes to the great sacrifice at the temple, so the next thing to do is to turn, your eye to God. You cannot help yourself, and nobody on earth can help yon. Your case, apart from divine grace, is desperate. This heart-plague will not die out of its own accord, nor will any change of your outward condition eradicate it. Turn, then, to the great Physician and cry to him thus, “Lord God, thou didst make me, thou canst mend me. Thou didst make me, thou canst make me over again. I am lost. Creator, Redeemer, Sanctifier, thou canst save me.” Look heavenward and Christward. Look to the bleeding Lamb, to the risen Redeemer. To look within will breed despair, but to look to Christ on the cross, nay, to Christ, now at the right hand of God, will beget lively hope. Jesus is “able to save to the uttermost them that come unto look God by him seeing he ever to make intercession for them”— to look to him is the main part of the cure. Bring God into the business; bring Christ into your trouble, for here lies your help. Look that way, I pray you. Look and live. And when you have looked that way, the next thing to do is to spread the trouble before God. Some do not know how to pray. When you cannot pray begin your attempt in this manner: “Lord, I cannot pray; I cannot pray; oh, teach me to pray.” But you say you do not feel: then I would urge you to confess, “Lord, I do not feel. My heart is hard, Lord, cause me to feel.” Oh, but you say you are so disquieted, and so unrestful. Go, and tell him, “Lord, I am so disquieted: I cannot rest, Help me; help me.” Tell it all to Jesus without reserve. I am persuaded that if you will confess the plague to God, you will soon find help from that act of confession. The Lord Jesus will speedily relieve your conscience in a very special and effectual manner. Tell it unto no man; tell it unto God alone. Judas confessed unto the priests, and you know what he did next. Confess to God, and you shall not go forth to hang yourself, but you will go forth to find that he is able to help you, for “if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to save us from all unrighteousness.” Pour out your heart before him, and it will ease you mightily. After confession is made, with your eye to the sacrifice, pray, with your eye still upon the Lord Jesus. Pleading the blood of Jesus, be importunate for pardon. No man has truly sought God in prayer, looking to Jesus Christ, and has been refused, and there never shall be such a man. I remember how I was struck with what my mother said to me when she was pleading with me to lay hold on Christ, and I was despairing. She said, “There was never yet a man so wicked as to say that he had sincerely sought the Lord and asked mercy at his hands through Christ, and yet had been denied.” Now, I thought that I had done so, and I felt sure that the Lord had refused me, and I half resolved in my mind that I would say as much; but I have never said it, for this reason, that I sought him again and found him, to the joy of my spirit. So shall it be with you, poor, weary seeker. You shall find him soon if you seek him with your whole heart. Eternity shall not reveal a single instance in which Christ Jesus cast away a sinner that came to him. All hell shall be searched through, and they shall ask them, “Is there one here that can say that Christ rejected him when he came to him?” and though glad enough to blaspheme, there shall not be found among the damned a single tongue that shall dare to utter such a baseless slander against the Friend of sinners. My hearer, if you repentingly believe and yet are rejected, you will be the first. Come, then, ay, come to-night, and tell out the plague of your heart with your eye to Christ, and then plead with God, “Lord, save me.” I would put words into your mouth, if I could. Say, “Lord, save me. I am lost, save me. There is a plague in my heart, heal it. I confess my great sin, Lord, blot it out. I acknowledge my present depravity and tendency to sin, Lord, tear up my sin by the roots. Thou knowest my disquietude, and my hardness of heart, Lord give me peace. There is something in me, I scarce know what it is, that I must get rid of; Lord, rid me of it, for Jesus’ sake. Oh, for his Son’s sake, for his blood’s sake, for his death’s sake, for his resurrection’s sake, I beseech thee, hear me.” Earnest, childlike pleading shall certainly have its answer. Only do thou believe that the Lord can do this, and he will do it. Faith is the. starting point of salvation, yea, it brings you to salvation itself. Jesus Christ said, “Believest thou that I am able to do this?” and the poor man answered, “Lord, I believe.” Follow his example. My Lord Jesus Christ is God as well as man. He is the Son of the Highest, and he came into this world, and took the form of man, and in that form he suffered, the Just for the unjust, to bring us to God; why, then, should we doubt him? The merit of his precious blood is exceeding great beyond compare, and he would have us believe in its eternal efficacy; why should we not? again.” The mercy is that ye may be born again. New life shall enter old hearts, or old hearts shall be made new and filled with the life eternal which for ever has the dew of its youth. Turning your eye to the great sacrifice, altar, temple, priest, even Jesus Christ, and crying to him the prayer of faith, his Spirit will come upon you, and working miracles upon you, will make you a new creature in Christ Jesus. Old things shall pass away, and all things shall become new. After that the Lord will continue to do great things for you. He will keep you to the end; he will lead you from strength to strength and from joy to joy. He will make you useful, and that is what you never dreamed you could be: the thorny waste shall bear fruit a hundredfold. He will take you from among sinners, and put you among saints; and putting you among the saints he will make your very experience of sin to be instrumental for good. As none make better gamekeepers than old poachers when they are reclaimed, so none seem better able to bring others to Christ than those who know what sin and salvation mean by actual experience: Such persons talk of what they have felt in their own case, and when they are saved they speak of a salvation which is manifest to everybody, for they are such changed men and changed women that no one can deny the power of grace upon them. How eagerly do I hope that my Lord Jesus will quarter on the enemy to-night. O Lord, come in and capture some out of this crowd. Say to many who throng this building, “To-night I must abide in thy house.” O my brother, live no longer an indifferent life, but begin to care for your soul’s eternal interests. No longer oppose your Saviour. Become one of his disciples. He has many such as you are, and he does not despise them because they once rioted in sin; on the contrary, he binds them to himself by the greatness of their former guilt. They love him much because they have had much forgiven, and they serve him all the more earnestly because of what he has done for them. The Lord grant that the like may happen in your case, for Jesus Christ’s sake, and he shall have all the glory. Amen and Amen. Our Own Hymn Book no. 531 v. 3—Thomas Gibbons, 1769) ‘Transgressors of the deepest stain in Him salvation find: His blood removes the foulest guilt, His Spirit heals the mind.’ AMEN! 1 Kings 8:39 then hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive and act and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know, for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men, KJV 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;) BGT 1 Kings 8:39 καὶ σὺ εἰσακούσῃ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἐξ ἑτοίμου κατοικητηρίου σου καὶ ἵλεως ἔσῃ καὶ ποιήσεις καὶ δώσεις ἀνδρὶ κατὰ τὰς ὁδοὺς αὐτοῦ καθὼς ἂν γνῷς τὴν καρδίαν αὐτοῦ ὅτι σὺ μονώτατος οἶδας τὴν καρδίαν πάντων υἱῶν ἀνθρώπων LXE 1 Kings 8:39 then shalt thou hearken from heaven, out of thine established dwelling-place, and shalt be merciful, and shalt do, and recompense to every man according to his ways, as thou shalt know his heart, for thou alone knowest the heart of all the children of men: NET 1 Kings 8:39 then listen from your heavenly dwelling place, forgive their sin, and act favorably toward each one based on your evaluation of his motives. (Indeed you are the only one who can correctly evaluate the motives of all people.) CSB 1 Kings 8:39 may You hear in heaven, Your dwelling place, and may You forgive, act, and repay the man, according to all his ways, since You know his heart, for You alone know every human heart, ESV 1 Kings 8:39 then hear in heaven your dwelling place and forgive and act and render to each whose heart you know, according to all his ways (for you, you only, know the hearts of all the children of mankind), NIV 1 Kings 8:39 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive and act; deal with each man according to all he does, since you know his heart (for you alone know the hearts of all men), NLT 1 Kings 8:39 then hear from heaven where you live, and forgive. Give your people what their actions deserve, for you alone know each human heart. NRS 1 Kings 8:39 then hear in heaven your dwelling place, forgive, act, and render to all whose hearts you know-- according to all their ways, for only you know what is in every human heart-- NJB 1 Kings 8:39 then listen from heaven where you reside; forgive and, since you know what is in the heart, deal with each as their conduct deserves -- for you alone know what is in every human heart- NAB 1 Kings 8:39 listen from your heavenly dwelling place and forgive. You who alone know the hearts of all men, render to each one of them according to his conduct; knowing their hearts, so treat them YLT 1 Kings 8:39 then Thou dost hear in the heavens, the settled place of Thy dwelling, and hast forgiven, and hast done, and hast given to each according to all his ways, whose heart Thou knowest, (for Thou hast known -- Thyself alone -- the heart of all the sons of man), GWN 1 Kings 8:39 Hear them in heaven, where you live. Forgive them, and take action. Give each person the proper reply. (You know what is in their hearts, because you alone know what is in the hearts of all people.) BBE 1 Kings 8:39 Give ear in heaven your living-place, acting in mercy; and give to every man whose secret heart is open to you, the reward of all his ways; for you, and you only, have knowledge of the hearts of all the children of men: RSV 1 Kings 8:39 then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and act, and render to each whose heart thou knowest, according to all his ways (for thou, thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men); NKJ 1 Kings 8:39 "then hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive, and act, and give to everyone according to all his ways, whose heart You know (for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men), ASV 1 Kings 8:39 then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling-place, and forgive, and do, and render unto every man according to all his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;) Then hear: 1Ki 8:32,36 give to every man: Ps 18:20-26 28:4 Jer 17:10 32:19 Eze 18:30 Rev 22:12 for thou: 1Sa 16:7 1Ch 28:9 2Ch 6:30 Ps 11:4,5 Joh 2:25 21:17 Ac 1:24 Heb 4:12,13 Rev 2:23 Related Passages: 2 Chronicles 6:30 then hear from heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive, and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know for You alone know the hearts of the sons of men, SOLOMON PLEADS WITH JEHOVAH TO HEAR & FORGIVE then hear in heaven (see summary above) Your dwelling place, and forgive (salach; Lxx - be hileos - "be merciful") and act and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know, for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men - See Courson's summary. Note the phrase render to each according to all his ways which is probably meant to be taken "positively" in this prayer, but rendering to each may according to his ways clearly can be taken negatively if one's "ways" are "way off" the path that pleases Jehovah.
1 Reis 8
Spurgeon - “For you, Lord God, have set them apart as your inheritance from all peoples of the earth.” Israel was a type of the church of God. The apostle, in the epistle to the Romans, clearly shows that Abraham was the father, not of the circumcision only, but of all those who walk in the steps of the faith of Abraham, and that the promise that he should be heir of the world was not to Abraham or his seed through the law but through the righteousness of faith. For the covenanted inheritance was not to be given according to descent through the flesh, or the inheritance would have fallen to Ishmael. But the peculiar blessings God promised to Abraham are the heritage of those who are born after the Spirit, according to the promise, even as Isaac was. We may, therefore, without any violence, apply what is said of ancient Israel to the present people of God. The promises that were made to the great patriarch had an eye to us. So as Israel’s safety and glory lay in being distinct from all other people, that truth holds good concerning the church of God at this day, for we, also, are not of this world. And what has the Lord aimed at by separating his people from the world? The text tells us, “as your inheritance.” When someone accepts his inheritance, he expects to use it for his own purposes. So if we are the Lord’s inheritance, all that we are capable of producing belongs to him, and he looks to have it. To him every power, every faculty, every passion, every ability, yes, even life itself, belongs to him. All the clusters of our vine are his. We are his servants whose sole and only business is to wait on him. We dare not look on ourselves as our own, or as belonging to others, for we are bought with a price. And therefore it is reasonable that we should serve the Lord in our bodies and our spirits, which are his. Also, when someone takes an inheritance, he means never to give it up. A Jew was never to give up his inheritance. And we are the inheritance of God, the Lord’s own portion. Sooner than give us up, the one and only Son shed his heart’s blood. We are his and he will not lose us. Many of us are not separated enough from the world. God intends the difference to be very marked Spurgeon - Many of us are not separated enough from the world. God intends the difference to be very marked; he would have the line between the church and the world drawn very clearly. I could wish to obliterate for ever the unhappy and artificial distinction which is constantly made between sacred and secular, for a world of mischief has come out of it. The truth is that a real Christian may be known by this, that to him everything secular is sacred, and the commonest matters are holiness unto the Lord. I do not believe in the religion which only lifts its head above water on Sunday, and confines itself to praying, preaching and carrying hymn books about: we must have a religion which gives a true yard when it is measuring its cloth, a religion which weighs a true pound when it is dealing out shop goods, a religion which scorns to puff, lie and take advantage of a gullible public, a religion which is true, upright, chaste, kind and unselfish. Give me a man who would not lie if the whole earth or heaven itself were to be won thereby. We need among professed Christians a high morality; far more, we need unsullied holiness. O Holy Spirit, work it in us all! Holiness means wholeness of character in contradistinction to the cultivation of some few virtues and the neglect of others. O that we were like the Lord in this, that we loved only that which is right, and abhorred that which is evil; that we kept along the straight and narrow path, and could not be decoyed from it, fearing not the frown of man nor courting his smile, but resolved as God lives in us that we will live in our daily actions according to his will. This would make Christians to be indeed a separated people, and this is precisely what their God would have them to be. Spurgeon - 1KI 8:53 FOR THOU DIDST SEPARATE THEM. Solomon’s plea I. THE FACT. “Thou didst separate them from among all the people of the earth.” 1. That separation commenced in the eternal purpose of God. Or ever the earth was He had set apart unto Himself a people whom He looked upon in the glass of His foreknowledge, and viewed with infinite affection. 2. This first act of separation was followed up by a distinct act of grace, in which the chosen were given over to the Lord Jesus Christ. “Thine they were,” says Jesus, “and Thou gavest them Me.” 3. So far the separation is hidden from us, but what is hidden in the purpose in due time develops itself in the event, for all the people of God are at the proper moment called out by effectual caning, and in this way they are separated from among the people of the world. 4. Believers become separate from the hour of their conversion by possessing a new nature. 5. The separateness of the believer tomes out in his life. 6. There shall be a final separation by and by when the wheat shall be gathered into the garner, and the tares cast into the oven, when the great Shepherd shall come and set His sheep on the right hand and the goats on the left. Oh, in that day of final separation, may we be found among those of whom He has said, “They shall be Mine in the day when I make up My jewels.” II. THE DESIGN. What has the Lord aimed at by separating His people from among men? 1. The text tens us: “to be Thine inheritance.” God has made choice of a people who are to be called “the Lord’s portion, the lot of His inheritance,” by which is meant that He would have a peculiar interest in them. 2. A man when he takes anything to be his inheritance expects to have it used for his own purposes. 3. A man will generally take up his abode in the spot which he has selected to be specially his own. “For the Lord hath chosen Zion; He hath desired it for His habitation. This is My rest for ever; here will I dwell; for I have desired it.” 4. In a man’s inheritance He takes His delight. “The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love, He will joy over thee with singing.” 5. When a man takes a portion to be his inheritance he means never to give it up. III. A PLEA. If you have realised that you are separated to belong to the Lord, this is a plea; and the plea applies in prayer to all your trials. (C. H. Spurgeon.) Separated (set apart)(0914) badal carries the basic connotation = be separated or to separate or divide as clearly portrayed by the 1st Biblical use (Ge 1:4 "...and God separated the light from the darkness.") In Lev 20:24 badal is used of God Who separated Israel from the Gentile nations and unto a place of privilege. As a result Israel is to make a distinction (badal) between clean and unclean animals (Lev 20:25). BADAL - 40V - came over(1), dismissed(1), divide(1), excluded(2), made a separation(1), made...distinction(1), make a distinction(3), partition(1), selected(1), separate(6), separated(10), serve(1), set you apart(1), set apart(6), set aside(2), sever(2), single(1), surely separate(1). Gen. 1:4; Gen. 1:6; Gen. 1:7; Gen. 1:14; Gen. 1:18; Exod. 26:33; Lev. 1:17; Lev. 5:8; Lev. 10:10; Lev. 11:47; Lev. 20:24; Lev. 20:25; Lev. 20:26; Num. 8:14; Num. 16:9; Num. 16:21; Deut. 4:41; Deut. 10:8; Deut. 19:2; Deut. 19:7; Deut. 29:21; 1 Ki. 8:53; 1 Chr. 12:8; 1 Chr. 23:13; 1 Chr. 25:1; 2 Chr. 25:10; Ezr. 6:21; Ezr. 8:24; Ezr. 9:1; Ezr. 10:8; Ezr. 10:11; Ezr. 10:16; Neh. 9:2; Neh. 10:28; Neh. 13:3; Isa. 56:3; Isa. 59:2; Ezek. 22:26; Ezek. 39:14; Ezek. 42:20 Inheritance (gift, heritage) (05159) nachalah from nāḥal = signifies giving or receiving property which is part of a permanent possession and as a result of succession) means Inheritance, heritage, possession. A possession is any piece of property that passes by law to an heir on the death of the owner. It also speaks of God's promises to His people, such as the promise of the land to national (redeemed remnant) Israel. Used 3 times in 1 Kings 8 - 1 Ki. 8:36; 1 Ki. 8:51; 1 Ki. 8:53. 1 Kings 8:54 When Solomon had finished praying this entire prayer and supplication to the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread toward heaven. when Solomon: Lu 11:1 22:45 kneeling: 2Ch 6:13 Ps 95:6 Lu 22:41,45 Ac 20:36 21:5 with his hands: 1Ki 8:22 2Ch 6:12 Related Passages: 2 Chronicles 6:12-13+ Then he stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands. 13 Now Solomon had made a bronze platform, five cubits long, five cubits wide and three cubits high, and had set it in the midst of the court; and he stood on it, knelt on his knees in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven. FROM BENDED KNEE TO UPLIFTED HANDS When Solomon had finished praying (palal; Lxx - proseuchomai) this entire prayer (tepillah; Lxx - proseuche) and supplication (teḥinnāh/techinnah; Lxx - deesis) to the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread toward heaven - Solomon's postures of kneeling and then arising with uplifted hands indicates he was totally immersed and consumed in this prayer to Yahweh. THOUGHT- O to imitate Solomon, to be on our knees and then to rise and hold our hands toward the One Who has heard and will answer our prayers! A fitting end to the beginning of the day, with uplifted hands reflecting an "uplifted" heart, sending us off into our day with a Colossians 3:1-2+ attitude! What a difference such a day makes! O Lord, give all of your children many such glorious days, their days filled with hearts uplifted to You and Your Christ, all made possible by Your Spirit and all for Your majesty and glory. Amen