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Solomon’s Prayer(A)

22 In the presence of the entire assembly of Israel, Solomon stood in front of Yahweh’s altar. He stretched out his hands toward heaven 23 and said,

Yahweh Elohim of Israel,
    there is no god like you in heaven above or on earth below.
You keep your promise[a] of mercy to your servants,
    who obey you wholeheartedly.
24 You have kept your promise to my father David, your servant.
    With your mouth you promised it.
    With your hand you carried it out as it is today.

25 “Now, Yahweh Elohim of Israel,
    keep your promise to my father David, your servant.
        You said, ‘You will never fail to have an heir
            sitting in front of me on the throne of Israel
                if your descendants are faithful to me
                    as you have been faithful to me.’

26 “So now, Elohim of Israel,
    may the promise you made to my father David,
        your servant, come true.

27 “Does Elohim really live on earth?
    If heaven itself, the highest heaven, cannot hold you,
    then how can this temple that I have built?
28 Nevertheless, my Yahweh Elohim, please pay attention to my prayer for mercy.
Listen to my cry for help as I pray to you today.
29 Night and day may your eyes be on this temple,
    the place about which you said, ‘My name will be there.’
Listen to me as I pray toward this place.
30 Hear the plea for mercy
    that your people Israel and I pray toward this place.
Hear us when we pray to heaven, the place where you live.
Hear and forgive.

31 “If anyone sins against another person
    and is required to take an oath
        and comes to take the oath in front of your altar in this temple,
32 then hear that person in heaven, take action, and make a decision.
    Condemn the guilty person with the proper punishment,
        but declare the innocent person innocent.

33 “An enemy may defeat your people Israel
    because they have sinned against you.
        But when your people turn to you, praise your name, pray,
            and plead with you in this temple,
34 then hear them in heaven, forgive the sins of your people Israel,
    and bring them back to the land that you gave to their ancestors.

35 “When the sky is shut and there’s no rain
    because they are sinning against you,
        and they pray toward this place, praise your name,
            and turn away from their sin because you made them suffer,
36 then hear them in heaven.
    Forgive the sins of your servants, your people Israel.
    Teach them the proper way to live.
        Then send rain on the land,
            which you gave to your people as an inheritance.

37 “There may be famine in the land.
Plant diseases, heat waves, funguses, locusts,
    or grasshoppers may destroy crops.
Enemies may blockade Israel’s city gates.
During every plague or sickness
38 hear every prayer for mercy,
    made by one person or by all the people in Israel,
        whose consciences bother them,
            who stretch out their hands toward this temple.
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.)
40 Then, as long as they live in the land that you gave to our ancestors,
    they will fear you.

41 “People will hear about your great name,
    mighty hand, and powerful arm.[b]
    So when people who are not Israelites
come from distant countries because of your name
42 to pray facing this temple,
43 hear them in heaven, the place where you live.
    Do everything they ask you
        so that all the people of the world may know your name
            and fear you like your people Israel
            and learn also that this temple which I built bears your name.

44 “When your people go to war against their enemies
    (wherever you may send them)
        and they pray to you, O Yahweh, toward the city you have chosen
            and the temple I built for your name,
45 then hear their prayer for mercy in heaven,
    and do what is right for them.

46 “They may sin against you.
    (No one is sinless.)
    You may become angry with them and hand them over to an enemy
        who takes them to another country as captives,
            whether it is far or near.
47 If they come to their senses,
    are sorry for what they’ve done,
        and plead with you in the land where they are captives,
            saying, ‘We have sinned. We have done wrong.
                We have been wicked,’
48 if they change their attitude toward you
    in the land of their enemies where they are captives,
if they pray to you
    toward the land that you gave their ancestors,
        and the city you have chosen,
        and the temple I have built for your name,
49 then in heaven, the place where you live, hear their prayer for mercy.
    Do what is right for them.
50 Forgive your people, who have sinned against you.
    Forgive all their wrongs when they rebelled against you,
        and cause those who captured them to have mercy on them
51 because they are your own people
    whom you brought out of Egypt
        from the middle of an iron smelter.

52 “May your eyes always see my plea and your people Israel’s plea
    so that you will listen to them whenever they call on you.
53 After all, you, Adonay Yahweh, set them apart from all the people of the world
    to be your own as you promised through your servant Moses
        when you brought our ancestors out of Egypt.”

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 8:23 Or “covenant.”
  2. 1 Kings 8:41 The first sentence of verse 42 (in Hebrew) has been placed in verse 41 to express the complex Hebrew paragraph structure more clearly in English.

Psalm 132

A song for going up to worship.

O Yahweh, remember David and all the hardships he endured.

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O Yahweh, arise, and come to your resting place
    with the ark of your power.
Clothe your priests with righteousness.
    Let your godly ones sing with joy.
10 For the sake of your servant David,
    do not reject your anointed one.

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