180 lines
6.7 KiB
Markdown
180 lines
6.7 KiB
Markdown
# Chapter 6
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1 Then Solomon said:
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The Lord said he would dwell in total darkness,
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2 but I have built an exalted temple for you,
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a place for your dwelling forever.
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3 Then the king turned and blessed the entire congregation of Israel while they were standing.
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4 He said:
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Blessed be the Lord God of Israel!
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He spoke directly to my father David,
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and he has fulfilled the promise
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by his power.
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He said,
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5 “Since the day I brought my people Israel
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out of the land of Egypt,
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I have not chosen a city to build a temple in
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among any of the tribes of Israel,
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so that my name would be there,
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and I have not chosen a man
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to be ruler over my people Israel.
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6 But I have chosen Jerusalem
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so that my name will be there,
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and I have chosen David
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to be over my people Israel.”
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7 My father David had his heart set
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on building a temple for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.
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8 However, the Lord said to my father David,
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“Since it was your desire to build a temple for my name,
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you have done well to have this desire.
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9 Yet, you are not the one to build the temple,
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but your son, your own offspring,
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will build the temple for my name.”
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10 So the Lord has fulfilled what he promised.
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I have taken the place of my father David
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and I sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised.
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I have built the temple for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.
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11 I have put the ark there,
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where the Lord’s covenant is
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that he made with the Israelites.
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12 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire congregation of Israel and spread out his hands.
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13 For Solomon had made a bronze platform 7½ feet long, 7½ feet wide, and 4½ feet high and put it in the court. He stood on it, knelt down in front of the entire congregation of Israel, and spread out his hands toward heaven.
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14 He said:
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Lord God of Israel,
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there is no God like you
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in heaven or on earth,
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who keeps his gracious covenant
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with your servants who walk before you
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with all their heart.
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15 You have kept what you promised
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to your servant, my father David.
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You spoke directly to him,
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and you fulfilled your promise by your power,
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as it is today.
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16 Therefore, Lord God of Israel,
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keep what you promised
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to your servant, my father David:
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“You will never fail to have a man
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to sit before me on the throne of Israel,
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if only your sons take care to walk in my Law
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as you have walked before me.”
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17 Now, Lord God of Israel, please confirm
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what you promised to your servant David.
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18 But will God indeed live on earth with humans?
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Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain you,
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much less this temple I have built.
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19 Listen to your servant’s prayer and his petition,
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Lord my God,
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so that you may hear the cry and the prayer
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that your servant prays before you,
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20 so that your eyes watch over this temple
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day and night,
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toward the place where you said
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you would put your name;
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and so that you may hear the prayer
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your servant prays toward this place.
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21 Hear the petitions of your servant
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and your people Israel,
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which they pray toward this place.
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May you hear in your dwelling place in heaven.
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May you hear and forgive.
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22 If a man sins against his neighbor
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and is forced to take an oath
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and he comes to take an oath
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before your altar in this temple,
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23 may you hear in heaven and act.
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May you judge your servants,
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condemning the wicked man by bringing
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what he has done on his own head
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and providing justice for the righteous
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by rewarding him according to his righteousness.
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24 If your people Israel are defeated before an enemy,
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because they have sinned against you,
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and they return to you and praise your name,
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and they pray and plead for mercy
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before you in this temple,
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25 may you hear in heaven
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and forgive the sin of your people Israel.
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May you restore them to the land
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you gave them and their ancestors.
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26 When the skies are shut and there is no rain
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because they have sinned against you,
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and they pray toward this place
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and praise your name,
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and they turn from their sins
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because you are afflicting them,
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27 may you hear in heaven
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and forgive the sin of your servants
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and your people Israel,
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so that you may teach them the good way
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they should walk in.
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May you send rain on your land
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that you gave your people for an inheritance.
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28 When there is famine in the land,
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when there is pestilence,
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when there is blight or mildew, locust or grasshopper,
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when their enemies besiege them
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in the land and its cities,
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when there is any plague or illness,
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29 every prayer or petition
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that any person or that all your people Israel may have—
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they each know their own affliction and suffering—
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as they spread out their hands toward this temple,
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30 may you hear in heaven, your dwelling place,
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and may you forgive and give to everyone
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according to all their ways, since you know each heart,
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for you alone know the human heart,
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31 so that they may fear you
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and walk in your ways
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all the days they live on the land
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you gave our ancestors.
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32 Even for the foreigner who is not of your people Israel
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but has come from a distant land
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because of your great name
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and your strong hand and outstretched arm:
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when he comes and prays toward this temple,
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33 may you hear in heaven in your dwelling place,
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and do all the foreigner asks you.
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Then all the peoples of the earth will know your name,
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to fear you as your people Israel do
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and know that this temple I have built
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bears your name.
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34 When your people go out to fight against their enemies,
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wherever you send them,
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and they pray to you
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in the direction of this city you have chosen
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and the temple that I have built for your name,
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35 may you hear their prayer and petition in heaven
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and uphold their cause.
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36 When they sin against you—
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for there is no one who does not sin—
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and you are angry with them
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and hand them over to the enemy,
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and their captors deport them
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to a distant or nearby country,
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37 and when they come to their senses
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in the land where they were deported
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and repent and petition you in their captors’ land,
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saying, “We have sinned and done wrong;
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we have been wicked,”
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38 and when they return to you with all their mind and all their heart
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in the land of their captivity where they were taken captive,
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and when they pray in the direction of their land
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that you gave their ancestors,
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and the city you have chosen,
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and toward the temple I have built for your name,
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39 may you hear their prayer and petitions in heaven,
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your dwelling place,
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and uphold their cause.
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May you forgive your people
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who sinned against you.
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40 Now, my God,
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please let your eyes be open
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and your ears attentive
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to the prayer of this place.
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41 Now therefore:
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Arise, Lord God, come to your resting place,
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you and your powerful ark.
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May your priests, Lord God, be clothed with salvation,
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and may your faithful people rejoice in goodness.
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42 Lord God, do not reject your anointed one;
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remember your servant David’s acts of faithful love. |