14 And the king turned his face about, and blessed1 all the congregation of Israel: and all the congregation of Israel stood; 15 And he said, Blessed2 be the LORD God of Israel, which spake3 with his mouth unto David my father, and hath with his hand fulfilled it, saying, 16 Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes etc. of Israel to build an house, that my name might be therein; but I chose David to be over my people Israel. 17 And5 it was in the heart of David my father to build an house for the name of the LORD God of Israel. 18 And the LORD said unto David my father, Whereas it was in thine heart to build an house unto my name, thou didst well that it was in thine heart: PARALLEL PASSAGES.-12 Sam. 6:18. 2Luke 1: 68. 32 Sam. 7:5. 41 Sam. 16:1. 51 Chron. 17:1, 14. And blessed all the congregation. Let us reflect that the progress of this spiritual edifice, thus honoring to God, is also inseparably associated with the happiness of men. Recall for a moment the words of the 72d Psalm, which, though applicable primarily to the influence of the Prince of Peace as a ruler, may be translated into harmony with this great temple-building. "Men shall be blessed in him, and all nations shall call him blessed." That is to say, in proportion as souls are brought to Jesus and built into this spiritual fabric, the purity, the prosperity, and the progress of mankind shall advance. Does any one doubt this? Let him look around! To what do we owe our liberties, our privileges, and our proud position among the nations of the earth? Is it not to the degree in which the gospel of Christ has leavened the land? The Christianity of the nation is the nation's life. All that is true, and honest, and just, and pure, and lovely, and of good report among us has been but a development of the principles which centre in the cross of Calvary. Taylor. — The congregation stood. To receive this blessing they all stood up in token of reverence, and readiness to hear and accept it. It is a proper posture to be in when the blessing is pronounced. Henry. 15. He begins his account with a thankful acknowledgment of the good hand of his God upon him hitherto. Where we are allowed to have pleasure God must have praise. We are most grateful both to ourselves and to our God when we run up those streams to the fountain of the covenant, and compare what God does with what he has said. Henry. 16. I chose no city, etc. Therefore there was no occasion for such a building as this. God chose the person (David) first that should rule his people, then he put it in his heart to build a house for God's name. Henry. 17, 18. It was in the heart of David. Sincere intentions to do good shall be graciously approved and accepted of God, though providence prevent our putting them in execution. Henry. - David would have counted it the highest privilege of his life if he had been permitted to build the temple on Moriah; and, even after the prohibition came by the mouth of Nathan, it was the joy of his latter years to collect materials wherewith Solomon, his son, might raise a house worthy of Jehovah's worship. Nay, more, in the days of Solomon himself, after the gorgeous structure had been raised, every one who had done anything, however small, in the way of helping on its erection, was invested with a peculiar honor in the eyes of his fellow-countrymen. As the Psalm expresses it, "A man was famous according as he had lifted axes upon the thick trees." But a higher privilege, and a more lasting renown, will be the portion of him who assists in the most humble capacity in the uprearing of that church which is to be "for a habitation of God through the Spirit." "They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever." Shall this honor, my hearer, be thine? What art thou doing now for the building of the spiritual temple of the Lord of Hosts? Let me beseech thee to build for eternity, by building here. Only beware how thou buildest, for "if any man build upon this foundation, gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work, of what sort it is." Observe that it is not given to any one man, or to any single generation, to finish this glorious structure. David gathered the materials, and Solomon built the house. So, many of those who were present on the joyful occasion which we have described might also be spectators on the gladsome day of the consecration, when the mystic cloud descended and filled the newly-finished temple. But with the church of Christ it is different. That has been in process of erection for centuries, and it is not completed yet. In this respect it resembles not so much the sacred building that crowned the height of Moriah as one of these medieval cathedrals on which many 19 Nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; but thy son, that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house unto my name. 20 And the LORD hath performed his word that he spake; and I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as1 the LORD promised, and have built an house for the name of the LORD God of Israel. 21 And I have set there a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant? of the LORD, which he made with our fathers, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt. PARALLEL PASSAGES.-11 Chron. 28: 5, 6. 2Verse 9. Deut. 31:26. successive generations labored, and which to-day remain as the result of many hundred years of toil. "Other men have labored" on it, and "we are entered upon their labors." The architect is one; the builders are multitudinous, belonging to every age and nation. It is but a small portion of it we can hope to rear at best; therefore let us employ every moment of our time, and let us make our part worthy of the workmanship of our illustrious predecessors. It is ours to carry forward a building on which Paul, and John, and Augustine, and Chrysostom, and Luther, and Calvin, and Knox, and Edwards, and Wesley, and Whitefield spent their strength and showed their skill. Let us not dishonor their workmanship, but let us strive so to do our portion that those who may come after us shall be stimulated by our example, as we have been by that of those who have gone before us. Taylor. 19. He shall build thy house. But what is that, after all, to the delight which is felt, or the enthusiasm which is awakened, as we dig up human souls from the quarry of sin or ignorance or deg.. radation, and, through the processes of a loving and holy education, prepare them for their places in this living temple! What marble so precious as a human soul! what granite so indestructible as an immortal spirit! What beauty so rare as that of a character which is moulded and fashioned after the pattern of the Redeemer himself! And it is given to us to work with such valuable and imperishable materials for the adornment of that stately structure which is "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner-stone." What an exalted honor, but what a solemn responsibility! Let us not loiter at our holy enterprise, but day by day let us labor on with untiring earnestness, until, when evening comes, we shall be greeted with the "well done" of him who is the architect and is to be the inhabitant of the temple itself. My hearer, hast thou builded in yet even one living stone into this holy fane? As said the great, good Whitefield, in days past, so say I now to you: "I want more tongues, more bodies, more souls for the Lord Jesus. Had I ten thousand, he should have them all. So that I had as many tongues as there are hairs on my head, the ever loving, ever lovely Jesus should have them all!" Taylor. 20. The Lord hath performed. Whatever good we do, we must look upon it as the performance of God's promise to us, rather than the performance of our promises to him. The more we do for God the more we are indebted to him. Henry. 21. When Solomon describes the temple as the place for the ark, he points it out as its heart and centre. This it was inasmuch as the covenant, in consequence of which the Lord of heaven and earth condescended to dwell as God of Israel in the midst of this his chosen people, rested entirely upon his holy law which was deposited in the ark. The temple was only the dwelling-place of the Lord in so far as it was the place for the ark. Keil. LESSON V. JULY 30, 1876. SOLOMON'S PRAYER. 1 KINGS 8:22-30. CONNECTION. We have here a very gratifying testimony that he well conceived the relation sustained by the Hebrew people towards the God of their covenant, and that he had ideas at once just and grand of the purpose of this temple as a house of prayer. The tone of this consecration contemplated this temple as designed for national and public worship, for the prayers of the whole people rather than for individuals. Among the special points of this consecrating prayer were its prominent recognition of David, and of God's 22 And' Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven: 23 And he said, LORD God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walks before thee with all their heart: PARALLEL PASSAGES.-12 Chron. 6:1-42. 2Ex. 9:33. Is. 1:15. 3Ex. 15:11. 2 Sam. 15:22. Neh. 1:5. Dan. 9:4. Ch. 3:6. promise to him, and its numerous specifications of the peculiar circumstances under which, supposably, the Lord's people in their various need might address their supplications to God as in symbol dwelling in this temple to hear their prayers. The sublime grandeur of the thought that the great God should condescend so low is put impressively: "But will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth? Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have built?" So, also, the culmination of the prayer by invoking the entrance of Jehovah with the ark of his strength: "Now, therefore, arise, O Lord, into thy resting-place, thou, and the ark of thy strength; let thy priests, O Lord God, be clothed with salvation and let thy saints rejoice in goodness. O Lord God, turn not away the face of thine anointed; remember the mercies of David thy servant" (mercies promised to David).. Then the visible answer to this wonderful prayer: "Fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt-offering and the sacrifice; and the glory of the Lord" (that visible halo and effulgence of brightness) "filled the house." All Israel saw this; and, bowing themselves "with their faces to the ground upon the payement, worshipped, and praised the Lord, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth forever." Cowles. 22. Solomon stood. A scaffold had been prepared in the court of the temple; and on this Solomon stood up to bless and instruct the people, and then kneeled down upon it to offer the following most copious and comprehensive prayer. (2 Chron. 6:13.) To this reverential posture he added the spreading forth his hands towards heaven as expressive of the fervor of his heart and the largeness of his expectations in this act of worship. The king of Israel never looked more glorious than on this occasion. Scott.. Spread forth his hands. A usual custom among all nations. (See several of the Psalms.) One of the heathens has said, "All men in praying lift up their hands to heaven." S. Clarke. His posture was very reverent, expressive of humility, seriousness, and fervency. He stood before the altar, intimating that he expected the success of his prayer in virtue of that sacrifice to be offered up in the fulness of time, typified by the altar sacrifices. But when he addressed himself to prayer (1) he kneeled down, as appears (verse 54) where he is said to rise from his knees. (Compare 2 Chron. 6:13.) Kneeling is the most proper posture for prayer. (Eph. 3:14.) (2) He spread forth his hands, as it were to offer up the prayer from an open, enlarged heart, and to urge it into heaven, and also to receive the mercy thence, with both arms, which he prayed for. Henry. 23. Who keepest covenant and mercy. An appeal by innocence, by helplessness, by distress, in which the individual abandons himself with entire confidence to us, is one of the strongest that can be made to our nature, and will often be met by the greatest sacrifices, not only by individuals, but by whole nations. Let Kossuth escape and come to this country, and confide himself to our protection, and let him be pursued by the combined power of Russia and of Austria, yea, by the power of the world, and the nation would rise as one man, would form a living wall around him, and he would be taken only as his pursuers should pass over the dead bodies of those who would stand in his defence. Shall men do thus, and shall not God defend those who come to put their trust under the shadow of his wings? Shall any innocent creature of God that is in distress come to him and confide in him, and shall not the resources of Omnipotence be held ready for his deliverance? Shall any guilty creature of God, however debased and wretched, yea, though he were dyed and steeped in sin, come to him with a confidence authorized by the death of Christ, and cast himself upon him for pardon and adoption, and shall he not be received even as the prodigal son? Shall any servant of God in this world of conflict be hardly beset, and, feeling that his own strength is weakness, look up to God with an eye of filial confidence, and shall he not send him succor? Shall his servants say, in the very face of the flames, "Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us, O king," and shall he not deliver them? What are the laws of nature in a case like this? They are but as a technicality compared with a mighty principle. One glance of a confiding eye is mightier than all the laws of nature. Heaven and earth may pass away, but not a hair of him who puts confidence in God shall "fall to the earth." Sooner, far sooner, would God sweep this material framework, with all its laws, into utter annihilation, than he would disappoint the authorized confidence of the most inconsid. erable of his creatures. Pres. Hopkins.-Then should mercy stand revealed before you; not that 24 Who hast kept with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him: thou spakest also with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thine hand, as it is this day. 25 Therefore now, Lord God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him,1 saying, There shall not fail thee PARALLEL PASSAGES. a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel; so that thy children take heed to their way, that they walk before me as thou hast walked before me. '26 And now, O God of Israel, let? thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my father. - -1Ch. 2:4. 2Ps. 119:49. mercy which is known of men, and whose home is on the earth, but that sweet, that tender, that sublime expression of Jehovah known to the redeemed and pardoned, whose dwelling-place is heaven and whose home is in the bosom of God: and you should see it standing here, lacking not voice of warning, lacking not gesture of entreaty, saying unto you in tones to thrill and melt your hearts, "Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." W. H. H. Murray. - This vision of God, the Comforter, and the One most merciful, lifted them up. And as the star after the storm guides the weary mariner; as the sun, after being long hidden by the thick cloud that half-shrouded the heaven, gives him knowledge as to where he is, and cheers his hope again; as he derives his inspiration, not from the ocean, nor from the wind, nor from the cloud, nor from the sail, nor from the hull, but borrows everything from the heaven above him: so did the apostles, and so have the noble and worthy followers of the apostles in every day since, borrowed everything of joy and comfort from God. For they are the descendants, the lineal successors, of the apostles, who are like them in heart, not those who have some sort of touch on the shell. H. W. Beecher. - Walk before thee with all the heart. On no other terms can we look for salvation in this world or the other. Henry. This is no arbitrary condition. It is based on an eternal necessity that no one can escape or get around. 24. This relates to that part of God's promises to David, which had respect to his son's building for him a house. The fulfilment of this Solomon looked upon as an earnest that God would also fulfil the other great promises of kindness to his posterity made to him at the same time. (2 Sam. 7:12, 13.) Patrick. 25. In this fulfilment is concentrated the whole blessing which the Lord had promised his people by Moses. Now, as Solomon has expressed his thoughts already in verses 12-21 on the realization that had now ensued before the eyes of all the people by the entrance of the glory of the Lord into the temple, he 'here dwells no longer on this, but proceeds immediately to the petition for the averting of the remembered curse. A part of the effect of this curse was taken away by the promise that the Lord would chasten the seed of David, if he commit iniquity, with the rod of men and with the stripes of the chil dren of men, but would not quite withdraw his grace from him. (2 Sam. 2:14, f. c.) Solomon therefore holds by this promise, and prays the Lord first that he would still farther graciously fulfil his promise to David that there should not fail one to sit on his throne, on this condition, "Only if thy children take heed to their way that they walk before me as thou hast walked before me." This condition is not found in 2 Sam. 7, but it follows itself from the spirit of the covenant relation. Keil. A recent reference in the "Congregationalist" to the subject of ministers' and deacons' children has recalled some statistics that I gathered on this subject years ago that will bear republishing. These statistics were gathered from the families of Congregational clergymen and deacons in every town in Massachusetts that I visited, and in the neighboring towns so far as information could be obtained. The results were as follows: In two hundred and forty families of ministers and deacons there were one thousand one hundred and sixty-four children over fifteen years of age; of these eight hundred and fourteen, about three fourths were hopefully pious; seven hundred and thirty-two had united with the church; fifty seven had entered the ministry or were engaged in their preparatory studies, and only fourteen were dissipated, about one half of whom only became so while residing with their parents. In eleven of these families, of four ministers and seven deacons, there were one hundred and twenty-eight children, of whom all but seven were hopefully pious; seven of these were deacons and fifteen ministers! In fifty-six of these two hundred and forty families there were two hundred and forty-nine children over fifteen years of age, and all of them were hopefully pious. A distinguished clergyman, in referring to these statistics at the dinner of the New England Society, in New York, said that a man raising stock would think he was very successful not to have a larger loss than that; and he thought the safest business a man could engage in was raising ministers' and deacons' children in New England. Rev. Asa Bullard. 27 But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven1 and heaven of heavens2 cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded? 28 Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O Lord my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee to-day: 29 That thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said,3, My name shall be there : that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place. PARALLEL PASSAGES.-12 Chron. 2:6. Is. 66:1. Jer. 23:24. Acts 17:24. 22 Cor. 12:2. Deut. 12:11. 27. But will God indeed dwell, etc. As if he had said, "Let it be far from us to imagine either that thy infinite and unbounded presence should be confined to any one place, or that the mere outward grandeur of any temple should be enough to gain thy favor towards worshippers, regardless of the true qualifications and real ends of religious worship. Yet, as thou hast been pleased to appoint us here the place and manner of publicly serving thee, grant us acceptance of all devotions, duly directed towards the sacred ark of thy residence, for imploring thy mercies and obtaining the pardon of our sins." Pyle. The heaven of heavens. That is the heaven in its most extended compass. By this sentence Solomon strikes down all rationalistic assertions that the Israelites imagined Jehovah to be only a finite, national God. The true God is not merely infinitely exalted above the world, he is also present on the earth. Solomon hereby opposes not the fancy that God actually dwells in the temple, but only the fancy that he so dwells in the temple as men dwell in a place, confined to the place, and not at the same time beyond and above it. Keil. We have here a striking description of the immensity and omnipresence of God. We have frequent expression in Scripture of God being "in heaven"; the meaning of which is not that He who is in all places can be confined to any. But they are intended to represent his amazing height and dignity, not in place, but in power; that he is exalted over all in sovereignty and dominion; that he is the high and holy One, great, glorious, and supreme over all. There is also another reason of the expression of God's being in heaven, and that is, to signify that though of his real actual presence there is no confinement, yet of his glory and majesty there is in the heavens a particular manifestation. There the righteous shall see his face, and be blessed with the peculiar manifestation of his power and majesty. In like manner here upon earth, in those places where he has been pleased more particularly to manifest his glory, to place his name, and to receive the homage of his servants, there God, in Scripture phrase, is said to be. S. Clarke. 29. Open toward this house day and night. But further, in availing yourself of this divine resource amid the daily exigencies of life, why should you wait always for the periodic season and the formal attitude of prayer? The heavens are not open to the believer's call only at intervals. The grace of God's Holy Spirit falls not, like the fertilizing shower, only now and then; or, like the dew on the earth's face, only at morning and night. At all times on the uplifted face of the believer's spirit the gracious element is ready to descend. Pray always; pray without ceasing. When difficulties arise, delay not to seek and obtain at once the succor you need. Swifter than by the subtle electric agent is thought borne from earth to heaven. The great Spirit on high is in constant sympathy with the believing spirit beneath, and in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, the thrill of aspiration flashes from the heart of man to God. Whenever any thing vexes you; whenever, from the rude and selfish ways of men, any trials of temper cross your path; when your spirits are ruffled, or your Christian forbearance put to the test, be this your instant resource. Haste away, if only for a moment, to the serene and peace-breathing presence of Jesus, and you will not fail to return with a spirit soothed and calmed. Or when the impure and low-minded surround you, when, in the path of duty, the high tone of your Christian purity is apt to suffer from baser contacts, oh, what relief to lift the heart to Christ, to rise on the wings of faith, even for one instant to breathe the air of that region where the infinite Purity dwells, and then return with a mind steeled against temptation, ready to recoil with the instinctive abhorrence of a spirit that has been beside the throne from all that is impure and vile! Say not, then, with such aid at your command, that religion cannot be brought down to common life. John Caird. - My name shall be there. It is the same with actions as with places. Just as no spot or scene on earth is in itself more or less holy than another, but the presence of a holy heart may hallow, of a base one desecrate, any place where it dwells; so with actions. Many actions materially great and noble may yet, because of the spirit that prompts and pervades them, be really ignoble and mean; and, on the other hand, many actions externally mean and lowly may, because of the state of his heart who does them, be truly exalted and honorable. It is possible to fill the highest station on earth, and go through the actions pertaining to it |