14 and My people on whom My name is called be humbled, and pray, and seek My face, and turn back from their evil ways, then I -- I hear from the heavens, and forgive their sin, and heal their land.
be exceeding afflicted, and mourn, and weep, let your laughter to mourning be turned, and the joy to heaviness; be made low before the Lord, and He shall exalt you.
and they have turned `it' back unto their heart in the land whither they have been taken captive, and have turned back, and made supplication unto Thee in the land of their captivity, saying, We have sinned, we have done perversely, and have done wickedly; yea, they have turned back unto Thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their captivity, whither they have taken them captive, and they have prayed the way of their land that Thou hast given to their fathers, and of the city that Thou hast chosen, and of the house that I have built for Thy name: then Thou hast heard from the heavens, from the settled place of Thy dwelling, their prayer and their supplications, and hast maintained their cause, and forgiven Thy people who have sinned against Thee.
We search our ways, and investigate, And turn back unto Jehovah. We lift up our heart on the hands unto God in the heavens.
Whoso is covering his transgressions prospereth not, And he who is confessing and forsaking hath mercy.
then Thou dost hear in the heavens, and hast forgiven the sin of Thy servants, and of Thy people Israel, because Thou directest them unto the good way in which they walk, and hast given rain on Thy land that Thou hast given to Thy people for an inheritance.
And when he is in distress he hath appeased the face of Jehovah his God, and is humbled exceedingly before the God of his fathers, and prayeth unto Him, and He is entreated of him, and heareth his supplication, and bringeth him back to Jerusalem, to his kingdom, and Manasseh knoweth that Jehovah -- He `is' God.
And in the turning back of the wicked From his wickedness that he hath done, And he doth judgment and righteousness, He his soul doth keep alive. And he seeth and turneth back, From all his transgressions that he hath done, He doth surely live, he doth not die, And the house of Israel have said, Not pondered is the way of the Lord, My ways -- are they not pondered? O house of Israel -- are not your ways unpondered? Therefore, each according to his ways I judge you, O house of Israel? An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah, Turn ye back, yea, turn yourselves back, From all your transgressions, And iniquity is not to you for a stumbling-block,
`And -- ye have sought from thence Jehovah thy God, and hast found, when thou seekest Him with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, in distress `being' to thee, and all these things have found thee, in the latter end of the days, and thou hast turned back unto Jehovah thy God, and hast hearkened to His voice;
`And it hath been, when all these things come upon thee, the blessing and the reviling, which I have set before thee, and thou hast brought `them' back unto thy heart, among all the nations whither Jehovah thy God hath driven thee away, and hast turned back unto Jehovah thy God, and hearkened to His voice, according to all that I am commanding thee to-day, thou and thy sons, with all thy heart, and with all thy soul -- then hath Jehovah thy God turned back `to' thy captivity, and pitied thee, yea, He hath turned back and gathered thee out of all the peoples whither Jehovah thy God hath scattered thee. `If thine outcast is in the extremity of the heavens, thence doth Jehovah thy God gather thee, and thence He doth take thee; and Jehovah thy God hath brought thee in unto the land which thy fathers have possessed, and thou hast inherited it, and He hath done thee good, and multiplied thee above thy fathers. `And Jehovah thy God hath circumcised thy heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love Jehovah thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, for the sake of thy life;
`And -- they have confessed their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, in their trespass which they have trespassed against Me, and also, that they have walked with Me, in opposition, also I walk to them in opposition, and have brought them into the land of their enemies -- or then their uncircumcised heart is humbled, and then they accept the punishment of their iniquity, --
And come to Zion hath a redeemer, Even to captives of transgression in Jacob, An affirmation of Jehovah.
We healed Babylon, and she was not healed, Forsake her, and we go, each to his land, For come unto the heavens hath its judgment, And it hath been lifted up unto the clouds.
Say unto them, I live -- an affirmation of the Lord Jehovah, I delight not in the death of the wicked, But -- in the turning of the wicked from his way, And he hath lived, Turn back, turn back, from your evil ways, Yea, why do ye die, O house of Israel?
Not in secret have I spoken, in a dark place of the earth, I have not said to the seed of Jacob, In vain seek ye Me, I `am' Jehovah, speaking righteousness, Declaring uprightness.
and the Lord `saith' unto him, `Having risen, go on unto the street that is called Straight, and seek in the house of Judas, `one' by name Saul of Tarsus, for, lo, he doth pray,
And the rest of the matters of Manasseh, and his prayer unto his God, and the matters of the seers, those speaking unto him in the name of Jehovah, God of Israel, lo, they are `on the book of' the matters of the kings of Israel; and his prayer, and his entreaty, and all his sin, and his trespass, and the places in which he had built high places, and established the shrines and the graven images before his being humbled, lo, they are written beside the matters of Hozai.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » John Gill's Exposition of the Bible » Commentary on 2 Chronicles 7
Commentary on 2 Chronicles 7 John Gill's Exposition of the Bible
INTRODUCTION TO 2 CHRONICLES 7
In this chapter is an account of the Lord's acceptance of the sacrifices offered at the dedication of the temple by fire, to the great surprise and encouragement of the people, 2 Chronicles 7:1, and of the feast kept on that account, and the feast of tabernacles, 2 Chronicles 7:8, and of the Lord's appearance to Solomon, giving an answer to his prayer, 2 Chronicles 7:13.
Now when Solomon had made an end of praying,.... The prayer recorded in the preceding chapter:
the fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; which was the token God gave of his acceptance of them, of which there had been several instances before, Leviticus 9:24, 1 Kings 18:38,
and the glory of the Lord filled the house; the glory of the Shechinah of the Lord, as the Targum, see 1 Kings 8:11.
And the priests could not enter into the house of the Lord,.... They went in to carry the ark thither, but not being able to stand to minister, they came out, and could not reenter:
because the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord's house; both the holy place, and the holy of holies, see 1 Kings 8:10.
And when all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down,.... From heaven upon the sacrifice, and consumed it, which was all visible to the eye; or it may be this was a distinct fire from the former, since it seems to have come down upon the house, and so may denote a bright, shining, glorious light; the same with what follows:
and the glory of the Lord upon the house; for not only the house was filled with the glory, but there was a bright stream of light and glory over it, very dazzling and surprising:
they bowed themselves with their faces to the ground upon the pavement; of the great court, where they were assembled:
and worshipped and praised the Lord: worshipped him by praising him:
saying, for he is good; in his nature, promises, and blessings; is good, and does good:
for his mercy endureth for ever; this was the close of their song of praise.
Then the king and all the people,.... Of these two verses; see Gill on 1 Kings 8:62; see Gill on 1 Kings 8:63.
And the priests waited on their offices,.... Performed them, some in offering sacrifices, others in blowing trumpets, as it may be explained from the latter part of the verse:
the Levites also with instruments of music of the Lord, which David the king had made to praise the Lord; under a divine direction, on which the Levites played to the songs of praise offered to the Lord, and by which they made music sacred to him:
because his mercy endureth for ever; which, as it was the close of their songs of praise, was the cause of them:
when David praised by their ministry; the songs sung being composed by him, and the instruments they played upon being of his invention, and used by his order:
and the priests sounded trumpets before them; or rather over against them, that is, over against the Levites, as they were singing and playing on the instruments of music:
and all Israel stood; while this sacred and delightful service was performing, they both stood up, and stood by the priests and Levites, and joined with them in praising the Lord.
Moreover, Solomon hallowed the middle of the court,.... From hence, to the end of 2 Chronicles 7:10 is the same with 1 Kings 8:64. See Gill on 1 Kings 8:64, 1 Kings 8:65, 1 Kings 8:66, only mention is made in 2 Chronicles 7:9 of the dedication of the altar, as if distinct from the dedication of the house, and hallowing the middle of the court, see Numbers 7:10 in imitation of which the Heathens dedicated their altars, in which they used ashes and water, as PausaniasF25Eliac, 1. sive, l. 5. p. 312. relates, and had also feasts, as here, at the dedication of their templesF26Plin. Ep. l. 4. ep. 1. , in which they have been imitated by Christians; and many of our country feasts, as they are called, were first kept at the dedication of churches to such and such a saint.
Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord,.... With which begins 1 Kings 11:1; see Gill on 1 Kings 11:1.
And the Lord appeared to Solomon by night,.... From hence, to the end of the chapter, much the same things are related as in 1 Kings 9:2. See Gill on 1 Kings 9:2, 1 Kings 9:3, 1 Kings 9:4, 1 Kings 9:5, 1 Kings 9:6, 1 Kings 9:7, 1 Kings 9:8, 1 Kings 9:9, excepting 2 Chronicles 7:13 which contain an answer to the particular requests made by Solomon in case of a famine or pestilence, that when the people of Israel should humble themselves in prayer and supplication, the Lord would be attentive to them, and forgive them, 2 Chronicles 6:26 and which is given as a specimen, and as encouragement to expect the same treatment in all other cases mentioned in Solomon's prayer, they so behaving.