Solomons final request is that Gods people would remain fully committed to him at all times. Im so glad that our church has such a strong commitment to missions and to the spread of the gospel to all the nations. The first petition which Solomon utters is rather difficult to understand. This recognized that the God of the temple could answer prayers made away from the temple. Does the temple in Jerusalem have more significance than our church buildings? 1 Kings 8:22-61 Wednesday, 17 March 2021 "And now, O God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David my father come true." -1 Kings 8:26 Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the Temple at Jerusalem is at the centre of our reading today. 58May he turn our hearts(BK) to him, to walk in obedience to him and keep the commands, decrees and laws he gave our ancestors. (True or False) Graciously, Solomon first allowed Adonijah to go free. Lord, render to every man according to all his ways. 2 Chronicles 7:12-22 . Religion Past & Present XII (2012) 141. Let God now hear Solomon. The Ark of the Covenant is brought to the temple. 32-33) shows that he realized that Israel was to reach out and share the knowledge and blessings of God with Gentiles. Amen. (1 Kings 8:57-58). Solomon mentions locust and caterpillar, grasshoppers and other creatures which denude the fields of all vegetation. Didnt they make the plans, gather the materials, and oversee the building of the temple? b. Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. After seven years the Temple is completed and the magnificence of it is stunning. Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Those who begin with the service of God, are likely to go on successfully in their own affairs. >> When you pray with others in corporate prayer, make sure your heart, mind, and soul are echoing the words that are spoken. a. I have filled the position of my father David, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised: Solomon recognized that his succession of David on the throne of Israel was a significant thing. 24You have kept what You promised Your servant David my father; You have both spoken with Your mouth and fulfilled it with Your hand, as it is this day. 1. The first prayer is a longer prayer which is recorded for us in verses 1 Kings 8:22-53. As Solomon comes before the Lord with a . When the king mentions pestilence he is referring to a very contagious disease of that day (such as the black plague of the middle ages?) How much less this temple which I have built! But, who is Solomon and what is it which he has built that he should think that Jehovah, the God of Israel, will dwell with men? (AQ), 46When they sin against youfor there is no one who does not sin(AR)and you become angry with them and give them over to their enemies, who take them captive(AS) to their own lands, far away or near; 47and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead(AT) with you in the land of their captors and say, We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly;(AU) 48and if they turn back(AV) to you with all their heart(AW) and soul in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and pray(AX) to you toward the land you gave their ancestors, toward the city you have chosen and the temple(AY) I have built for your Name;(AZ) 49then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause. This king does priestly work without violating the office of the priest as Uzziah later did. The sense that sin is all-pervading dominates, epitomised in one of the clearest biblical statements about sins universality (there is no one who does not sin, 2 Chronicles 6:36). When He came to the temple and found the outer courts the only place where the Gentile nations could come and pray more like a swap meet than a house of prayer, He drove out the moneychangers and the merchants (Matthew 21:13). The temple was one of the most beautiful structures of ancient times. Finally, Solomon prayed and anticipated the final judgment' war and national collapse.' War within is the ultimate destroyer of life, property and freedom. You may unsubscribe from Bible Gateways emails at any time. Original German (Salomo II): Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart 7 (2004) 803-804. 1 Chronicles 29:16). (Selman). Besides war and drought, there are various other calamities which may come upon a land. CONCLUSION: Solomons fourfold prayer is a wonderful model to us as we dedicate anything to the Lord whether a child, a marriage, a business, a church or a home. The Temple was incomparable - just like the God who it was built for. We cannot dedicate things to the Lord if we have not dedicated ourselves to the Lord first. 35(T)When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, when they pray toward this place and confess Your name, and turn from their sin because You afflict them, 36then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel, that You may (U)teach them (V)the good way in which they should walk; and send rain on Your land which You have given to Your people as an inheritance. God wanted the court of the Gentiles to be a place where the nations could come and pray. We should look beyond ourselves and pray for Gods name to be known among the nations. Solomon begins his prayer with thanksgiving and praise for what God has done. (If you're a human, don't change the following field), Solomons Prayer at the Dedication of the Temple. Hear in heaven Your dwelling place; and when You hear, forgive. a. Arise, O LORD God, to Your resting place, You and the ark of Your strength: This conclusion of prayer has Numbers 10:35-36 in mind, when Israel moved the ark of the covenant, the tabernacle, and the whole camp of Israel from place to place through the wilderness during the exodus. Israel had prospered and had been victorious under the reign of David. The Bible contains the record of many wonderful prayers. (v. 5) God has chose Jerusalem and David. (READ VERSES 23-24) SOLOMON IS PRAISING BECAUSE GOD IS FAITHFUL 46When they sin against You (AC)(for there is no one who does not sin), and You become angry with them and deliver them to the enemy, and they take them captive (AD)to the land of the enemy, far or near; 47(AE)yet when they [d]come to themselves in the land where they were carried captive, and repent, and make supplication to You in the land of those who took them captive, (AF)saying, We have sinned and done wrong, we have committed wickedness; 48and when they (AG)return to You with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies who led them away captive, and (AH)pray to You toward their land which You gave to their fathers, the city which You have chosen and the temple which I have built for Your name: 49then hear in heaven Your dwelling place their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their [e]cause, 50and forgive Your people who have sinned against You, and all their transgressions which they have transgressed against You; and (AI)grant them compassion before those who took them captive, that they may have compassion on them 51(for (AJ)they are Your people and Your inheritance, whom You brought out of Egypt, (AK)out of the iron furnace), 52(AL)that Your eyes may be open to the supplication of Your servant and the supplication of Your people Israel, to listen to them whenever they call to You. This is the second part of Solomons prayer: a prayer for Gods continued presence and direction. How many people have you told about Jesus lately? When was the last time you invited someone to go to church? Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. Why Do You Look for the Living Among the Dead? (BE) 53For you singled them out from all the nations of the world to be your own inheritance,(BF) just as you declared through your servant Moses when you, Sovereign Lord, brought our ancestors out of Egypt.. Solomon urges God to enter into an agreement with Israel that when the people pray to God, whether to relieve a famine, or to give them victory in combat against an approaching enemy, or to grant them forgiveness from their sins against God and against one another, that God would grant their request. If His people go to battle against their enemies, whether at home or in other countries, when they pray toward this place, may God hear them and maintain their cause. Jesus promised his disciples: For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them. (Matthew 18:20) And so when we gather to worship God in Jesus name, we can be assured that Christ is with us, that he is present with us and brings us into Gods glorious presence as we lift up the name of Jesus and worship God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. i. The heavens, Hebrew heaven of heavens, because this language has no comparative or superlative degree cannot contain Him! Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer. When a dispute came down to one word against another, Solomon asked that the temple would be a place to properly swear by. 12. the Lord appeared to Solomon by The dedication of the temple must have been an occasion of intense national interest to Solomon and his subjects. (1 Kings 7:13) Only the best materials were used. 31When anyone sins against his neighbor, and is forced to take (O)an oath, and comes and takes an oath before Your altar in this temple, 32then hear in heaven, and act, and judge Your servants, (P)condemning the wicked, bringing his way on his head, and justifying the righteous by giving him according to his righteousness. 26:16, 25, 26; Deut. 130:3; Prov. Nevertheless, it also reminds us of the principle in prayer of praying in the name of Jesus, the ultimate Anointed One. 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. (Spurgeon). c. When they come to themselves in the land where they were carried captive: Solomon also asked God to hear Israels prayer from captivity in a foreign land. It's praying until we know we have laid hold of God. So that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other. Solomons prayer has a global focus. He humbly suggests that the Temple is the . Through believing prayer like this, God promises and we appropriate. God is the one who made it possible, and we give him all the glory. After placing the ark in its new home, a praise service broke out with instruments sounding out beautifully and voices raised . Out of the land of Egypt: Solomon presses the remembrance of the Exodus. Then he prays. How were the kingly and priestly offices kept separate? Nevertheless you shall not build the temple, but your son who will come from your body, he shall build the temple for My name.. 1:6; Ps. Not one word has failed of all the good promises(BI) he gave through his servant Moses. And God did help them! Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson. God will then judge the one who has committed the sin and the taint of sin which exists as long as the real sinner is not known will be removed from the whole people. In an age when this is frequently misunderstood, it provides a valuable resource. They were defeated because they had sinned against God! And comes and takes an oath before Your altar in this temple: The temple grounds were used as a place to verify and authorize oaths. Even though men cannot prove the sin which has been committed by this "someone," God does know. The ruler is on his knees before One who is the great Ruler of the universe (2 Chronicles 6:13)! New King James Version (NKJV). b. When such a person prays toward this place, may God hear him too. This kind of prayer lays hold of Gods promise. And so the fourth and final part of Solomons prayer is a prayer that Gods people would remain fully committed to him. This prayer helps prevent us from turning inwards and from making all our decisions based on what we think is best for us. Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God; arise, therefore, and build the sanctuary of the Lord God, so that you may bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord and the holy vessels of God into the house that is to be built for the name of the Lord.". So what does it mean to dedicate something to the Lord? If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain. 63 Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to the Lord: twenty-two thousand cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats. 30 Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they ACT OF DEDICATION (Adapted from the Dedicatory Service at The Moody Church November 8, 1925). PASTOR: Holy, blessed and glorious Trinity; three Persons and one God: CONGREGATION: To you we dedicate this house. After sacrificing a seemingly endless number of animals ( 1 Kings 8:5 ), Solomon blessed the Lord for His covenantal faithfulness (vv.12-21). If this king will continue in this way, he may be sure that the Lord his God will remember His covenant and all the loving kindness which He had promised David. When the temple was complete Solomon praised God before His people reminding them of His promises. 8:1-66 The account of the Temple's dedication ceremony is organized concentrically: Solomon gathers the assembly (), blesses it (vv. Acknowledges that God is bigger than the temple. Hear from heaven Your dwelling place, and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to You, that all peoples of the earth may know Your name and fear You: Solomon asked God to hear the prayer of the foreigner out of a missionary impulse. get to know the Bible better! The heavens, even the . We dedicate this sanctuary to be a light in this community proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ to all who will hear. The two records of this prayer are too long to do them justice but the beauty of the prayer and the evidence of the deep spirituality of the one who is praying will become clear. He does not say what manner of sin it is because that is immaterial to what he has in mind. EVERYONE: They built a larger sanctuary than they needed at the time because they trusted God would help them grow. - Solomon acknowledges that God cannot be contained in any temple. B. V. 20-21 A Place For Cares - As Solomon prays, he asks the Lord to here the supplications of God's people. Wasnt it the donations of the people that made the building possible? By proceeding, you consent to our cookie usage. (Read 1 Kings 8:54-63 and pray.). Crafts: Draw or paint self-portraits and write out 1 Corinthians 3:16 on the picture. Recalls God's dynastic promises to David through the prophet Nathan. He stood on the platform and then knelt down before the whole assembly of Israel and spread out . If they are taken out of their land because of their sin! This is a unique prayer from the Old Testament. i. I. Thanksgiving and praise for what God has done (54-56). He prays for God to meet the daily needs of the people not for their own sake but so that Gods name may be known among the nations. He keeps His promises and shows lovingkindness.
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