1 Kings 8:37

Compare all

35 ^a“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,

36 then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel, that You may ^ateach them ^bthe good way in which they should walk; and send rain on Your land which You have given to Your people as an inheritance.

37 ^a“When there is famine in the land, pestilence or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers; when their enemy besieges them in the land of their¹ cities; whatever plague or whatever sickness there is;

38 whatever prayer, whatever supplication is made by anyone, or by all Your people Israel, when each one knows the plague of his own heart, and spreads out his hands toward this temple:

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 ^aknow the hearts of all the sons of men),

40 ^athat they may fear You all the days that they live in the land which You gave to our fathers.

41 “Moreover, concerning a foreigner, who is not of Your people Israel, but has come from a far country for Your name’s sake

Commentaries:

Adam Clarke

<< 1 Kings 8:36

1 Kings 8:38 >>

1 Kings 8:37

If there be in the land famine - pestilence - The Fourth case includes several kinds of evils:

1.Famine; a scarcity or total want of bread, necessarily springing from the preceding cause, drought.

2.Pestilence; any general and contagious disease.

3.Blasting; any thing by which the crops are injured, so that the ear is never matured; but instead of wholesome grain, there is a black offensive dust.

4.Mildew; any thing that vitiates or corrodes the texture of the stalk, destroys the flowers and blossoms, or causes the young shaped fruits to fall off their stems.

5.Locust, a well known curse in the East, a species of grasshopper that multiplies by millions, and covers the face of the earth for many miles square, destroying every green thing; leaving neither herb nor grass upon the earth, nor leaf nor bark upon the trees.

6.Caterpillar; the locust in its young or nympha state. The former refers to locusts brought by winds from other countries and settling on the land; the latter, to the young locusts bred in the land.

7.An enemy, having attacked their defenced cities, the keys and barriers of the land.

8.Any other kind of plague; that which affects the surface of the body; blotch, blain, leprosy, ophthalmia, etc.

9.Sickness; whatever impaired the strength, or affected the intestines, disturbing or destroying their natural functions.

All such cases were to be brought before the Lord, the persons having a deep sense of the wickedness which induced God thus to afflict, or permit them to be afflicted: for only those who knew the plague of their own hearts, (I Kings 8:38), the deep-rooted moral corruption of their nature, and the destructive nature and sinfulness of sin, were likely to pray in such a manner as to induce God to hear and forgive.

<< 1 Kings 8:36

1 Kings 8:38 >>

DISCLAIMER: Church of the Great God (CGG) provides these resources to aid the individual in studying the Bible. However, it is up to the individual to "prove all things, and hold fast to that which is good" (I Thessalonians 5:21). The content of these resources does not necessarily reflect the views of CGG. They are provided for information purposes only.

Join 137,304+ readers

A Verse and a Thought,
Every Morning

Consistent Bible study is hard to start.

The Berean gives you the starting point: one scripture and a focused commentary in your inbox each morning — read it in minutes, or go as deep as you like.

Free, daily, and spam-free. We never share your address. Unsubscribe anytime.

A Verse and a Thought,Every Morning

A Verse and a Thought,
Every Morning