Keraia
2 Chronicles 6

2 Chronicles 6:39

Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication · 2 Chronicles 6:12–42
Read 2 Chronicles 6

Translations

Modern
…then may You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place, their prayer and pleas, and may You uphold their cause. May You forgive Your people who sinned against You.
Traditional
Then hear thou from the heavens, even from thy dwelling place, their prayer and their supplications, and maintain their cause, and forgive thy people which have sinned against thee.
Literal
…then may You hear from the heavens, the fixed place of Your dwelling, their prayer and their supplications, and may You maintain their cause and forgive Your people who have sinned against You.
Latin
…tu exaudies de cælo, hoc est, de firmo habitaculo tuo, preces eorum: et facias judicium, et dimittas populo tuo, quamvis peccatori:

Original

Hebrew
English
…then may You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place, their prayer and pleas, and may You uphold their cause. May You forgive Your people who sinned against You.

Notes

2 Chronicles 6:36–39

Petition 7: Solomon worried that Israel might be completely exiled, as shown in the last part of his prayer. Israel faced many exiles, but the total destruction of Jerusalem and its temple was the hardest test of faith. Solomon saw the temple as a source of faith; even in a foreign land, people could remember it and pray. Mentioning the land, city, and temple (2 Chronicles 6:38) suggests total destruction, not just partial exile. Even if the temple was gone, people could still pray to God in heaven, who would hear and forgive.

2 Chronicles 6:21–39

In his covenant with Israel, the Lord promised blessings and life for obedience, and curses and death for disobedience (Deuteronomy 27:11–28:68; 30:15–18). Solomon prayed for God to listen and forgive when the people broke God's covenant. The seven "if-then" requests in his prayer covered any future situations the covenant people might face. In each case, Solomon described the situation and asked God to help his people.

Parallels

1 Kings 8:22–53

Glossary

Chronicles, Books of First and Second Genealogy

Topics

Afflictions and Adversities: Prayer In Heaven: God's Dwelling Place Public Prayer: Solomon Repentance: Unclassified Scriptures Relating To the First Temple: Solemnly Dedicated to God by Solomon