2 Chronicles 6:1-42

2 Chronicles 6:18-21

God in the sanctuary.

These elevated and eloquent words suggest to us what is—

I. A FALSE THOUGHT OF GOD IN RELATION TO THE SANCTUARY. It may be, and probably is, imagined by the idolatrous that the temple of their deity contains the object of their worship; that it is his residence and home; that it suffices for him. Solomon had no such false thought about Jehovah; he knew that "the heaven of heavens could not contain him," and "how much less the house that he had built!" God's presence is not to be limited in our thought in any way whatever He is "within no walls confined," and if we so habituate our mind to think of him as being present in some sacred place as he is not elsewhere, we "limit the Holy One" as we should not do. The only difference in the presence of the Eternal and Infinite One can be in our thought and to our imagination.

II. THE TRUE THOUGHT OF HIM IN THAT RELATION. As those who worship God in the sanctuary, we should accustom our minds to think of him as:

1. The very present One. "Will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth?" In very deed and in truth. Not only is his presence everywhere, and therefore within any walls that may be erected in his honour, but he is actively present there, interested in all that is passing there; "his eyes open … day and night" to observe all that is there done before him. The prevailing thought of those who "go up to the house of the Lord" should be that they are about to meet God, to stand and to bow before him; to address him even as they address their neighbour, only with deepest reverence and in lowliest homage of heart. The commanding and restraining thought, the penetrating, soul-pervading thought of those who occupy the sanctuary, should be that of Israel at Bethel, "Surely God is in this place."

2. One who is waiting to be worshipped. Solomon earnestly and repeatedly desires of Jehovah that he would "hear his servant(s)," that he would "hear their prayers." If only we are engaged in really reverential worship, we have no need to doubt this. God is not only "to be entreated" of us; he is always to be found of all who truly seek him. Nay, he seeks us as his worshippers. "The Father seeketh such to worship him" (John 4:23), i.e. such as worship him in spirit. All they, therefore, who draw nigh to God with a pure desire to render to him the homage and the gratitude of their heart, to renew before him their vows of loving attachment and holy service, to ask of him his Divine guidance and enrichment, may make quite sure that they "do not seek his face in vain."

3. One who is ready to forgive. "When thou hearest, forgive." We should meet continually with God under a blessed sense of sonship, as those "whose transgressions have been forgiven," and who are as children at home with their Father, as redeemed ones with their Saviour. This is the true basis of communion with God. But, even then and thus, it becomes us to bethink ourselves that our service is not untainted with imperfection; near to our lips should be the recurring prayer. "And when thou hearest, forgive." Humility is not disowned by the more advanced graces of trustfulness, love, joy in God.—C.

2 Chronicles 6:22-23

Divine justice.

This petition supposes—

I. THE COMMISSION OF DELIBERATE WRONG by one man against another. A dispute may readily arise in which each man, affected in his judgment by his own personal interests, believes himself to make a righteous claim. This is a ease for impartial intervention, for the decision of one who is not prejudiced by any interest of his own. But the case here referred to by Solomon is one of deliberate wrong perpetrated by one man against his neighbour. It is a painful thing that this should have to be presupposed among the "people of God." Yet it was so. Enlightenment was not, and it is not, any positive guarantee against actual unrighteousness. A man may know all he can learn of Christ, sitting constantly and reverentially at his feet, and yet he may allow himself to do that which defrauds his brother and does him cruel and shameful wrong. Saddening observation only too frequently and only too powerfully attests it.

II. THE APPEAL TO GOD. The injured Hebrew made his appeal to the Lord his God; he required the offending neighbour to take an oath in the very presence of the Holy One, invoking the judgment of God against the one who was in the wrong. It was presumably a last resort, an ultimate appeal. Not formally, but substantially, we do likewise. If human judgment fails, we leave the guilty in the hands of God. We commit our righteous cause to his Divine arbitration. We ask God to make our innocence appear, to restore to us the good name or the possession of which we have been defrauded. We make our appeal from earth to Heaven.

III. THE DIVINE JUDGMENT. Solomon prayed God to intervene so that the wicked should be recompensed and the righteous justified. Under that dispensation he might rightly and even confidently make that request. But what may we expect now of the Divine justice? These three things:

1. That the righteous laws of God are always working for the overthrow of evil and the enthronement of integrity; the former is radically weak, and the latter is essentially strong and prevailing.

2. That unvisited evil is always attended with spiritual failure, while unrewarded rectitude is always accompanied and sustained by spiritual worth.

3. That there is a long future which holds ample compensations in its unsounded depths. Divine justice will prove to be completely vindicated when we have looked deep enough and waited long enough.—C.

2 Chronicles 6:24-28, 2 Chronicles 6:34, 2 Chronicles 6:35

God and the nation.

Solomon takes his place and his part on this great occasion as the sovereign of the nation; he prays for the people of the land in the double sense of representing them and of interceding for them. It is the Hebrew nation that was then "before God," and is now before us. We therefore think of—

I. NATIONAL RESPONSIBILITY. That is assumed throughout. It is not stated in so many words, but the idea of it pervades the whole prayer. The people of Israel were not at liberty to choose their own deity, nor their own ecclesiastical polity, nor even their own forms of worship; nor might they determine how they should be related to one another. In all the important relationships in which they stood, of every kind, they owed a direct obedience to God. And this rested upon the bases of—

II. NATIONAL INHERITANCE. Their land was that which God had "given his people for an inheritance" (2 Chronicles 6:27). So very distinctly and remarkably had God bestowed their land upon them, that they might well realize their national obligation. But when we take all things into account, we shall see that every nation owes all that it has and is to the creative, formative, providential goodness of Almighty God; and it is, therefore, responsible to him for its creed, its religious worship, its laws and statutes, its habits of life; for there is no nation anywhere that has not derived its inheritance from him. Even that which may, at first sight, seem to disconnect it from him, viz. the element of national courage, energy, industry, struggle, suffering,—this also is "of the Lord."

III. NATIONAL ACTIVITY. Solomon prayed (2 Chronicles 6:34) that, when God's people "went out to war," their prayers for victory might be heard, and that God would "maintain their cause." He could offer this supplication with a perfectly clear conscience. Neither as a spirit nor as a sentiment, much less as a religious conviction, had peace entered into the minds of men as it has now. Be had not been born who came to be the Prince of peace, and whose advent was to be the beginning of the era of "peace on earth." War was then regarded as a rightful, honourable, commendable activity—a field of enterprise and capacity which any one might desire to enter. There may still be found a place for it, as a sad and deplorable necessity. Under the sway of Jesus Christ, it can hold no larger or higher position among national activities than that. But as it was right that prayer should be offered for God's blessing on national wars, more certainly is it right that his Divine blessing should be continually sought on all peaceful industries; that is to say, on all those peaceful industries which make for the comfort, the enrichment, the well-being of the world. There are activities on which the pure or kind heart must shrink from invoking the blessing of God. And what we cannot conscientiously ask him to bless we should refuse to promote or to entertain. Surely, however, it is a very large part of national piety that prayer should be made continually, in the church and in the home, that, in every path of honourable and estimable industry, the people of the land may walk before God, and fulfil in this respect his holy will; that they may also receive his sanction and his blessing.

IV. NATIONAL MISFORTUNE (2 Chronicles 6:24, 2 Chronicles 6:26-28.) Solomon anticipates the hour of national misfortune—defeat in battle, drought, pestilence, locusts, etc. He regards this conceivable calamity as the consequence of national sin and the sign of Divine displeasure (2 Chronicles 6:24, 2 Chronicles 6:26), "because they have sinned against thee," and he prays for mercy and for the removal of the stroke of penalty. It is a question of great importance whether this view is to be taken under all circumstances whatever. We must remember that the way in which the favour of God was manifested in Old Testament times was the way of temporal prosperity, and (conversely) the form of Divine disapproval was that of temporal adversity. But we are living in a period when the spiritual and the future are the prevailing elements; and what was a certain conclusion then may be only a possibility or a probability now.

1. It may be true that national calamity speaks of national delinquency, and calls for national repentance. It is not only possible, but even probable, that this is the case. For national sin is commonly showing itself in guilty indulgence, and that leads to weakness, to exposure to the enemy, to misfortune of many kinds.

2. It may be that national calamity is Divine discipline. It is quite possible that God is testing, is purifying, is refining the nation as he does the individual, is intervening to save it from sin and shame, is working thus for its moral elevation and enlargement, And therefore it may be that the question to be asked is—What have we to learn? what is the peril to be shunned? which is the way God desires should be taken?—C.

2 Chronicles 6:29-31

God and the individual soul.

Not only during the time of national calamity (2 Chronicles 6:28), though especially then, do families and individual men find themselves in sore need of Divine succour. There is never any considerable congregation which does not include at least a few hearts that come up in hope of comfort and relief from Heaven.

I. THE BURDEN WHICH IS BORNE BY EACH HUMAN HEART. With our complex nature, and our many human relationships, we lie open to many ills and sorrows. These may be:

1. Bodily; pain or weakness, or threatened serious disease.

2. Temporal; some difficulty or danger connected with "our circumstances."

3. Sympathetic; some trouble of heart we are suffering by reason of our strong attachment to others who suffer and are in distress.

4. Spiritual; heart-ache, disappointment, compunction, doubt, anxious inquiry after God. "Every one knows his own sore and his own grief."

II. THE APPEAL OF THE SOUL TO THE SUPREME. Trouble does lead men to the God of their life, to the Father of their spirit. "Men say, 'God be pitiful,' who ne'er said, 'God be praised.'" We cannot supply our own need; we find our own "insufficiency for ourselves;" we must look beyond ourselves, and in what direction? Man often fails us.

1. We cannot speak to him, either because we cannot get his ear, or because we do not care to divulge our secret grief to any human heart whatsoever.

2. Or we have tried to secure human sympathy, and have failed; men are too much occupied with their own affairs and their own troubles to make much room in their hearts for ours.

3. Or we cannot discover the human hand that will help us; those that pity cannot serve us, cannot save us. We must have recourse to God. And we bring our grief, our sore, to him.

1. We are sure that he is accessible. He invites our approach; he says, "Call upon me in the time of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me."

2. We are sure of his attention. He is our Father, who pities us with parental kindness (Psalms 103:13); he is our Saviour, who has trodden the path of struggle and of sorrow before us, on whose tender sympathy we may confidently count (Hebrews 2:18; Hebrews 4:15, Hebrews 4:16; Hebrews 5:2).

3. We may depend on his power. He is able to save, to rescue, to restore, to renew.

III. THE DIVINE RESPONSE.

1. It is a question of our spiritual integrity. God answers "according to all our ways;" that is, according to our integrity. We must have the spirit of obedience in us. We may not look for a response if we are "regarding iniquity in our heart;" but, on the other hand, if we are seriously bent on serving the Lord, if "our heart condemn us not," if it acquit us of all insincerity and double-mindedness, "then have we confidence toward God; and whatsoever we ask we receive of him, because we keep his commandments" (1 John 3:21, 1 John 3:22). We may not, we are not able to keep all his precepts in all particulars; but the spirit of filial obedience, the desire to do what is "pleasing in his sight," is dwelling within us and inspiring us, and we are, therefore, of those whose prayer he hears. He forgives our shortcoming ("hear … and forgive"), and he "renders according to our ways."

2. It is a question of Divine knowledge. Who shall tell that this spirit of submission and obedience is within us? Only One can; it is he who "only knows the hearts of the children of men." He looks beneath our words and actions, and sees the motives and the purposes of our hearts.

3. It is a question of our character and the Divine intention. And God's design is so to hear and heed our prayers, so to grant or to withhold the desires of our heart, that we shall "fear God and walk in his ways," shall be "partakers of his holiness."—C.

2 Chronicles 6:36-39

Departure and return.

It seems a melancholy thing that, at this hour of sacred joy and triumph, Solomon should have been under the necessity of contemplating national unfaithfulness, Divine displeasure, a return of the people of God to ignominious captivity and all its consequent distress. But he felt that it was necessary, and the issue abundantly justified his forecast.

I. DEPARTURE FROM GOD. In the case of Israel, departure from the Lord their God meant either

1. A growing disregard, ending in an absolute indifference, or even denial, of God's claims.

2. A serious and, in the end, a shameful violation of his moral Law; doing that which is grievous in his sight and injurious to ourselves and our neighbours.

3. Gradual but growing declension after acquaintance with God; the heart allowing itself to become loosened from sacred ties and attaching itself to other objects—separating itself from him and quitting his service.

I. ITS PENALTY.

1. Divine displeasure. "Thou be angry with them." A moss serious and most deplorable thing it is to abide beneath the displeasure of our heavenly Father. The anger of love, the righteous anger of holy love, is ill to bear, indeed; it is a heavy weight upon the heart; it is a darkening of the life of man.

2. The triumph of our enemy. "And deliver them over before their enemies," etc. A sad thing it is for the human soul to be at the mercy of its enemy. Sin is a cruel enemy, and exacts a full penalty.

III. OUR REPENTANCE AND RETURN.

1. Distress leads to thoughtfulness. "They bethink themselves." We "come to ourselves" (Luke 15:17), as those who were created to consider and act reasonably; we weigh our condition and our prospects.

2. Thoughtfulness leads to self-rebuke. We reprove ourselves for our folly. We compare or contrast the present with the past, the land whither we have been "carried away captive" with the home of freedom and of sacred joy. We reproach ourselves with our guilt. We are pained and ashamed that we have left him, who is worthy of the riches of our strength, for all that is unworthy; him, to whom we owe everything, for that or for those to whom we owe nothing. We repent of our decision and our deed.

3. Repentance leads to return. We return unto God "with all our heart and with all our soul." We come with confession; we say freely and sincerely, "We have sinned" (2 Chronicles 6:38). We come with consecration; we offer ourselves, our hearts and lives, unto God, that henceforth we may walk in his ways with a perfect heart. We come in faith; we have hope in his mercy, for we know what will be—

IV. HIS RECEPTION OF US. He will "forgive his people that have sinned against him" (2 Chronicles 6:39). He will cordially welcome; he will immediately and magnanimously restore (see Luke 15:20-24).—C.

2 Chronicles 6:1-11

The dedication of the temple: 2. The address of Solomon.

I. To JEHOVAH. (2 Chronicles 6:1, 2 Chronicles 6:2.) On beholding the cloud which filled the temple (2 Chronicles 6:13), Solomon uttered words which expressed:

1. Recognition of Jehovah's presence. "The Lord hath said that he would dwell in the thick darkness." Though nowhere occurring in Old Testament Scripture, this promise accorded substantially with the declarations Jehovah had often made (Exodus 13:21; Exodus 16:9; Exodus 19:9; Exodus 20:21; Exodus 24:16; Le Exodus 16:2; Numbers 12:5; Deuteronomy 31:15). In speaking as he did, Solomon both intimated his faith in the Divine promise, and his belief that in the cloud which filled the temple that promise had been implemented; in the thick darkness he recognized the dwelling-place of God.

2. Relief in Jehovah's acceptance of the temple. The phenomenon looked upon must have called to his mind the similar occurrence on the completion of the tabernacle, and led him to interpret this as Moses did that, as an intimation that Jehovah was pleased to accept the finished structure, and designed to make of it not simply "a lodging for a wayfaring man," but "a house of habitation," and "a place of dwelling for ever"

3. Welcome of Jehovah to his house. Addressing himself directly to Jehovah, the king in effect says, "Lord, I have built a house of habitation for thee, and a place for thy dwelling for ever; and now that thou hast gracious]y condescended to come to us, according to thy promise, in 'a thick cloud,' in the name of thy people I give thee joyous welcome, and humbly invite thee to enter and take possession."

4. A sense of the honour done by Jehovah to himself and his people in permitting them to build him a permanent habitation in their midst. It is hardly doubtful that Solomon at the moment realized the antithesis expressed by the words "I" and "thee"—"I, a sinful as well as puny creature, have built for thee, whom the heaven of heavens cannot contain, a house of habitation. Who am I, O Lord, that thou shouldest set such honour upon me?" Similar emotions rise in gracious souls at the thought of God taking up abode within them (Psalms 8:4; Psalms 144:3; Luke 7:6), or accepting the work of their hands (1 Chronicles 29:14; 2 Corinthians 2:14).

II. TO THE PEOPLE. (2 Chronicles 6:3-11.) Facing round upon the congregation, which at a signal rose to its feet, the pious monarch (probably with uplifted hands)supplicated for his subjects the Divine blessing, and in their hearing rendered thanks to God for the work that day finished. In particular, he acknowledged that the temple had been built by Jehovah:

1. Rather than by him, Solomon. Noteworthy is the emphasis laid upon the fact that "the Lord God of Israel had with his hands fulfilled that which he had spoken with his mouth." Qui facit per alium facit per se. Solomon esteemed himself the builder of the temple (2 Chronicles 6:10), though not a beam of timber had been felled, or a stone quarried, or a pillar cast, or a knop fashioned by himself, but all had been executed at and in accordance with his instructions by workmen and artisans; and in like manner he regarded Jehovah as the prime Architect, inasmuch as without Jehovah's permission the work had never been begun, and without Jehovah's aid it had never been finished (Psalms 127:1).

2. As a mark of special favour to Jerusalem. "In all places where I record my Name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee," had Jehovah said upon the mount (Exodus 20:24), while Moses on the plains of Moab had reminded them that "unto the place which the Lord their God should choose out of all their tribes to put his Name there, even unto his habitation should they seek, and thither should they bring their offerings" (Deuteronomy 12:5); yet never since the day of their departure from Egypt had a city been selected for such a purpose, until David had arisen to be the captain of his people and Jerusalem had become the metropolis of the land, Then Jerusalem was chosen (Psalms 132:13), and the ark of God established on Zion (2 Samuel 6:12; 1 Chronicles 15:1, etc.); now, in further pursuance of this plan to specially distinguish the capital, a house had been built to set his Name there.

3. In fulfilment of a promise made to David his father. The first effect of the ark's establishment upon Mount Zion was to excite within David's heart a desire to erect a structure worthy of its accommodation (2 Samuel 7:2); a house of cedar instead of the goat's-hair tent in which it had hitherto been lodged. The design was approved by Jehovah in so far as it bespoke the deeply religious spirit of his servant, the fervour of his gratitude, and the sincerity of his devotion, Nevertheless, the proposal that David should build the house was not favoured by Jehovah—rather was expressly negatived. David having been a man of war, and, having shed much blood upon the earth in God's sight, it was hardly congruous that he should build a temple to the God of peace (1 Chronicles 22:8). Thus God intimates that in religion, as in ordinary affairs, is a "fitness of things" which cannot be transgressed without a shock to beholders. If in any department of life, much more in that of religion, a beautiful consistency should be maintained between one's public conduct and private character, and a strict watch set upon one's present actions lest they should hinder future usefulness. But if David should not build the house, a son of his, to be afterwards born, would (2 Samuel 7:12, 2 Samuel 7:13; 1 Chronicles 22:9, 1 Chronicles 22:10); and he, Solomon, had arisen in fulfilment of that promise.

4. For the honour of his Name. So far as Solomon was concerned, that indicated true humility Different from Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4:30), Solomon had no thought of enhancing his own glory in what he undertook and executed, though, as the sequel proved, he thereby the more effectually secured that (2 Chronicles 9:23; 1 Kings 10:23, 1 Kings 10:24; cf. Luke 14:11). Of genuine religion also was it a sign, God's glory being ever to a good man the foremost motive and highest aim in all his actions (1 Corinthians 10:31), the uppermost desire in his heart being to sing forth the honour of God's Name (Psalms 66:2), and to speak of his glory (Psalms 29:9). On the part of Jehovah the end contemplated was the loftiest possible, God having nothing more magnificently resplendent in itself, or more infallibly beatific in its results, to make known to man than just his own ineffably glorious Name, its holiness (Psalms 111:9), faithfulness (Psalms 146:6), goodness (Psalms 25:8), and mercy (Exodus 34:6). Symbolically that was done by the ark of the covenant, with the tables of the Law deposited in the inner shrine of the sanctuary between the cherubim; historically that has since been done by God's Son, who in the fulness of the times came forth from the Father, and revealed him to men (Matthew 1:23; John 1:18; John 5:43); fully that will be done in the heavenly temple, when God's servants shall see his face, and his Name shall be in their foreheads (Revelation 22:4).

LESSONS

1. The condescension of God in dwelling with man.

2. The faithfulness of God in keeping his word.

3. The sovereignty of God in working all things according to the counsel of his will.

4. The love of God in making known his Name to men.—W.

2 Chronicles 6:12-21

The dedication of the temple: 3. The consecration prayer.

I. THE PERSON OF THE SUPPLIANT. Solomon.

1. Royal. That Solomon should have prayed was not surprising, considering the example and training he must have received from his father, and remembering the solemn and impressive spectacle he had witnessed. It is difficult to shake off habits formed within the soul by ancestral piety and early training; while, if a sense of God's nearness and a realization of God's goodness will not stimulate to prayer, it is doubtful if anything on earth will. Yet praying kings are not so numerous as they might and should, or indeed would be, did they consider their own or their people's good, not to speak of the allegiance they owe to the King of kings, by whose permission alone it is they reign (Proverbs 8:15; Daniel 2:21).

2. Representative. Though Solomon prayed for himself and in his own name, he nevertheless acted as the official mouthpiece of his people, who in this whole work were associated with him. Though from this it cannot be inferred that earthly sovereigns in general (or even Christian sovereigns in particular) have a right to prescribe creeds or forms of worship to, or serve vicariously for, their subjects in the duties of the sanctuary, it is still true that they occupy a sort of representative position as the nation's head, and just on that account should interest themselves in the advancement of religion amongst those who own their sway, and should frequently bear these upon their hearts before God in prayer.

II. THE DEITY ADDRESSED. The Lord God of Israel.

1. The only God. The language employed here by Solomon (2 Chronicles 6:14), and elsewhere by David (Psalms 86:8), was not intended to concede the existence of other divinities either in heaven or on earth, but designed, like the statements of Moses (Deuteronomy 4:39), Rahab (Joshua 2:11), David (2 Samuel 7:22), and Jehovah himself (Isaiah 45:22; Isaiah 46:5), to emphasize in the strongest way the unity and soleity of God (Exodus 9:14; Deuteronomy 6:4; 1 Kings 8:23; Jeremiah 10:6; 1 Corinthians 8:4).

2. A covenant-keeping God. Solomon, like all pious Israelites, like Moses (Deuteronomy 7:9), David (Psalms 25:10; Psalms 89:34; 1 Chronicles 16:15), Nehemiah (Nehemiah 1:5), and Daniel (Daniel 9:4), delighted to acknowledge Jehovah's faithfulness to his promised word. It was solely on the ground of that covenant by which God had chosen Israel for his possession (Exodus 19:5, Exodus 19:8), and made himself over to be their God (Exodus 20:2), that Israel existed as a nation and enjoyed the privilege of drawing near to God. Had it been possible for God to violate his deliberately and graciously formed engagements, or go back in the smallest measure from his promised word, Solomon knew that Israel's continuance as a people would instantly have become imperilled. That Jehovah had fulfilled the promise made to David with reference to the temple, was a proof that this contingency could not occur. The same covenant faithfulness is the believer's warrant for drawing near to God in prayer, and the suppliant's encouragement in expecting an answer (2 Corinthians 1:20; 1 Thessalonians 5:24; Titus 1:2; Hebrews 6:18).

3. A mercy-showing God. This also indispensable as a characteristic of such a Divinity as man can hopefully address in prayer. For unless God can be merciful towards the undeserving and hell-deserving, it is useless to think of asking anything at his hands. The notion that man may treat with God on grounds of pure personal justice must be discarded, as neither warranted by Scripture nor supported by experience.

"'Tis from the mercy of our God

That all our hopes begin."

And that God is pre-eminently a God of mercy is the clear teaching of revelation (Exodus 34:7; Psalms 103:8; Micah 7:18; Ephesians 2:4; James 5:11).

III. THE MODE OF SUPPLICATION.

1. Publicly. The king prayed from a brazen scaffold, or basin-like elevation, perhaps resembling a modern pulpit, five cubits long, five broad, and three high, erected in the middle of the court and congregation. Prayers for one's self should not be made in public (Matthew 6:5), the place for such being, not the synagogue, street corners, or market squares, but the inner chamber of the house, the secret room, or retiring-hall of the soul (Matthew 6:6).

2. Humbly. Indicated by the attitude assumed during prayer. Hitherto, while speaking to the people, the king had stood; now, in addressing God, he kneels. David sat before the Lord (2 Samuel 7:18); Abraham stood (Genesis 18:22). In Nehemiah's time the people stood and confessed their sins (Nehemiah 9:2). Daniel kneeled three times a day on his knees and prayed (Daniel 11:10). In the New Testament Scripture the Pharisee stood and prayed (Luke 18:11); Jesus kneeled (Luke 22:41); so did Stephen (Acts 7:60), Peter (Acts 9:40), and Paul (Acts 20:36; Acts 21:5).

3. Fervently. Outstretched hands were a sign of prayer generally, their heavenward direction symbolizing a solemn and earnest appeal to him who sat enthroned on high (Exodus 9:29, Exodus 9:33; Psalms 88:9; Psalms 143:6; Isaiah 1:15). The same thing now signified by the folding or clasping of the hands and the upward turning of the face. Both classes of actions betoken inward emotion, and fervency of spirit on the part of him who prays.

4. Believingly. The scaffold stood before the brazen altar. The king' prayed from the neighbourhood of sacrificial blood—a recognition on his part that only through atoning blood could either himself or his supplications gain admission into Jehovah's audience-chamber, or acceptance with him (Hebrews 9:7). It is now true that only through the blood of Jesus can one draw near to God (Hebrews 10:19).

IV. THE CONTENTS OF THE PRAYER. A fourfold petition.

1. For David's house—that it should never want a man to sit upon the throne (verse 16). Jehovah had promised this conditionally on David's children proving faithful to their covenant obligations, and walking in the ways of righteousness and truth (2 Samuel 7:12-16). Solomon requests that this promise may be fulfilled, not provisionally merely, but absolutely, by God dealing with David's children so that they shall take heed to their way, and walk in God's Law as David had done before them. To suppose Solomon only meant that Jehovah should stand to his word and maintain the Davidic dynasty, should it eventually prove worth maintaining, he, Jehovah, all the while severely leaving it alone, is as incorrect as to imagine that Solomon desired God to establish David's throne for ever, irrespective of the character of its occupants. What Solomon craved was the two things together—the perpetuity of David's house through the never-failing moral and spiritual worth of David's successors.

2. For the temple—that it might continue to be a dwelling-place for God on earth, and in the midst of men (verse 18). Solomon saw that, without this, his magnificent edifice would turn out a comparatively worthless structure, as modern cathedrals and churches, however imposing their appearance, elaborate their ornamentation, or gigantic their dimensions, are nothing more than piles of masonry if God is absent from their aisles. Yet, so overpowered was his imagination with the bare idea of God's immensity—"Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee"—that it seemed to him doubtful if it were not the merest vanity to dream that an infinite and omnipresent Deity could inhabit even a palace such as he had erected—"how much less this house which I have built?" And in any case the condescension of it appeared so strange as to fill him with wonder and doubtful joy. "But will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth?" The feelings here expressed have their counterparts in those kindled in believing hearts by the contemplation of that mystery of mysteries, the incarnation of the Eternal Son, and of that almost equally amazing fact, the inhabitation of the human heart by the Holy Ghost (1 Corinthians 3:16). (See next homily on verse 18.)

3. For himself—that his present supplication might be answered (verse 19). The special burden of his supplication was that Jehovah's eyes might be open upon the temple day and night, not so much for protection—though that idea must not be excluded (Psalms 121:3)—as for observation; to note when any worshipper should be directing thitherward his prayer (verse 20), lest for want of being observed such petitioner should go without an answer. The earnestness with which Solomon "cried" unto Jehovah concerning this thing was an attestation of the importance he attached to it. So far from doubting whether God could answer prayer, it seemed to him that, if God could not, his entire reputation and character as a God would be gone.

4. For all future suppliants—that their prayers might be heard (verse 21). Solomon believed that his people would in after-years retain such a faith in Jehovah as to lead them to direct their supplications towards his earthly dwelling-place. Yet Solomon confounded not Jehovah's earthly habitation with his true dwelling-place in heaven, or expected responses from the lower shrine after the manner of a heathen oracle, instead of from the upper temple where Jehovah sat enthroned in unveiled glory. Jehovah's symbolic presence might be behind the screen that concealed the holy of holies; his real presence was beyond the curtain of the sky. Thence accordingly should all answers come, as thither would all petitions go. The coming of such answers would be a fruit and a sign of forgiveness.

Learn:

1. The duty of intercessory prayer (1 Timothy 2:1).

2. The propriety of public devotion (Hebrews 10:25).

3. The reverential spirit of prayer (Hebrews 12:28).

4. The reasonableness of expecting answers to prayer (Psalms 5:3).—W.

2 Chronicles 6:18

Will God in very deed dwell with men?

I. REASON SAYS, NO!

1. The greatness of God forbids it. The heaven of heavens cannot contain him; how much less any house which man might build, or, even man's heart, which at the best is narrow and mean! The insignificance of man in comparison with the transcendent majesty of the Supreme has always been a difficulty in the way of accepting the religion of the Bible.