2 Chronicles 6
1 Then, said Solomon, —Yahweh, said, that he would make his habitation in thick gloom;
Then Solomon said, O Lord, to the sun you have given the heaven for a living-place, but your living-place was not seen by men,
2 But, I, have built a house as a home for thee, —A settled place for thee to abide in, for ages.
So I have made for you a living-place, a house in which you may be for ever present.
3 And the king turned about his face, and blessed all the convocation of Israel, —while, all the convocation of Israel, was standing;
Then, turning his face about, the king gave a blessing to all the men of Israel; and they were all on their feet together.
4 and he said, Blessed be Yahweh, God of Israel, who spake with his mouth, unto David my father, -and, with his hand, hath fulfilled, saying:
And he said, Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who himself gave his word to my father David, and with his strong hand has made his word come true, saying,
5 From the day I brought forth my people out of the land of Egypt, I made choice of no city, out of all the tribes of Israel, for building a house, where my Name might be, —neither made I choice of any man, to be chief ruler over my people Israel:
From the day when I took my people out of the land of Egypt, no town in all the tribes of Israel has been marked out by me for the building of a house for the resting-place of my name; and I took no man to be a ruler over my people Israel;
6 nevertheless I have made choice of Jerusalem, that my Name might be there, —and I have made choice of David, that he might be over my people Israel.
But now I have made selection of Jerusalem, that my name might be there, and of David, to be over my people Israel.
7 And so it came to pass, that it was near the heart of David my father, —to build a house, to the Name of Yahweh, God of Israel.
Now it was in the heart of my father David to put up a house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.
8 Then said Yahweh unto David my father, Because it was near thy heart to build a house for my Name, thou didst well that it was near thy heart:
But the Lord said to David my father, You did well to have in your heart the desire to make a house for my name:
9 Only, thou thyself, must not build the house, —but, thine own son, that proceedeth out of thy loins—he, shall build the house for my Name.
But you yourself will not be the builder of the house; but your son, the offspring of your body, he it is who will put up a house for my name.
10 So then Yahweh hath established his word, which he spake, —and I have been raised up instead of David my father, and have taken my seat upon the throne of Israel, as spake Yahweh, and have built the house to the Name of Yahweh, God of Israel;
And the Lord has kept his word; for I have taken my father David's place on the seat of the kingdom of Israel, as the Lord gave his word; and I have made the house for the name of the Lord the God of Israel.
11 and have put there, the ark, —wherein is the covenant of Yahweh, —which he solemnised with the sons of Israel.
And there I have put the ark, in which is the agreement of the Lord, which he made with the people of Israel.
12 Then stood he before the altar of Yahweh, in the presence of all the convocation of Israel, —and spread forth his hands;
Then he took his place in front of the altar of the Lord, all the men of Israel being present,
13 for Solomon had made a platform of bronze, and had set it in the midst of the enclosure, five cubits, the length thereof, and, five cubits, the breadth thereof, and, three cubits, the height thereof, -and he stood thereon, and knelt upon his knees, in the presence of all the convocation of Israel, and spread forth his hands, heavenward;
(For Solomon had made a brass stage, five cubits long, five cubits wide and three cubits high, and had put it in the middle of the open space; on this he took his place and went down on his knees before all the meeting of Israel, stretching out his hands to heaven.)
14 and said, O Yahweh! God of Israel, Not like unto thee, is there a god, in the heavens, or throughout the earth, —who keepest Covenant and Lovingkindness for thy servants who are walking before thee with all their heart:
And he said, O Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven or on earth; keeping faith and mercy unchanging for your servants, while they go in your ways with all their hearts;
15 who hast kept, for thy servant David my father, that which thou didst promise him, —in that thou didst promise with thy mouth, and, with thy hand, hast fulfilled, as [it is] this day.
For you have kept the word which you gave to your servant David, my father; with your mouth you said it and with your hand you have made it come true this day.
16 Now, therefore, O Yahweh—God of Israel, keep thou, for thy servant David my father, that which thou didst promise him, saying, There shall not be cut off to thee a man, from before me, to sit upon the throne of Israel, if only, thy sons take heed to their way, to walk in my law, as thou hast walked before me.
So now, O Lord, the God of Israel, let your word to your servant David, my father, come true, when you said, You will never be without a man to take his place before me on the seat of the kingdom of Israel; if only your children give attention to their ways, walking in my law, as you have done before me.
17 Now, therefore, O Yahweh, God of Israel, -verified be thy promise, which thou didst make unto thy servant David.
So now, O Lord, the God of Israel, make your word come true which you said to your servant David.
18 But, in very deed, will God dwell with man on the earth? Lo! the heavens, even the leaven of heavens, cannot contain thee, how much less this house which I have built!
But is it truly possible that God may be housed with men on earth? see, heaven and the heaven of heavens are not wide enough to be your resting-place: how much less this house which I have made:
19 Wilt thou then turn unto the prayer of thy servant and unto his supplication, O Yahweh my God, —to hearken unto the cry and unto the prayer, wherewith thy servant is praying before thee:
Still, let your heart be turned to the prayer of your servant and to his prayer for grace, O Lord my God, and give ear to the cry and the prayer which your servant makes before you;
20 that thine eyes may be open toward this house, day and night, toward the place of which thou hast said thou wouldst set thy Name there, —to hearken unto the prayer which thy servant may pray towards this place:
That your eyes may be open to this house day and night, to this place of which you have said that you would put your name there; to give ear to the prayer which your servant may make, turning to this place.
21 wilt thou therefore hearken unto the supplications of thy servant, and thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place, —yea wilt, thou thyself, hear, out of thine own dwelling-place, out of the heavens, and, when thou hearest, then wilt thou forgive?
And give ear to the prayers of your servant and of your people Israel, when they make their prayers, turning to this place; give ear from heaven your living-place; and hearing have mercy.
22 If a man shall sin against his neighbour, and there shall be laid upon him an oath, to put him on oath, —and an oath shall come before thine altar in this house,
If a man does wrong to his neighbour and has to take an oath, and comes before your altar to take his oath in this house:
23 then wilt, thou thyself, hear out of the heavens, and act, and judge thy servants, bringing back unto the lawless, to set his way upon his own head, —and justifying the righteous, by giving to him, according to his righteousness?
Then let your ear be open in heaven, and be the judge of your servants, giving punishment to the wrongdoer, so that his sin may come on his head; and, by your decision, keeping from evil him who has done no wrong.
24 Or, if thy people Israel be smitten before an enemy, because they have been sinning against thee, —and they turn, and confess thy Name, and pray and make supplication before thee, in this house,
And if your people Israel are overcome in war, because of their sin against you; if they are turned to you again, honouring your name, making prayers and requesting your grace in this house:
25 then wilt, thou thyself, hear out of the heavens, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, —and bring them back unto the soil, which thou didst give to them and to their fathers?
Then give ear from heaven, and let the sin of your people Israel have forgiveness, and take them back again to the land which you gave to them and to their fathers.
26 When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain, because they have been sinning against thee, —and they shall pray towards this place, and shall confess thy Name, from their sin, shall return, because thou hast been afflicting them,
When heaven is shut up and there is no rain, because of their sin against you: if they make prayers with their faces turned to this place, honouring your name and turning away from their sin when you send trouble on them:
27 then wilt, thou thyself, hear [out of] the heavens and forgive the sin of thy servants, and thy people Israel, that thou mayest direct them into the good way, wherein they should walk, —and give rain, upon thy land, which thou hast given unto thy people, for an inheritance?
Then give ear from heaven, so that the sin of your servants and the sin of your people Israel may have forgiveness, when you make clear to them the good way in which they are to go; and send rain on your land which you have given to your people for their heritage.
28 When there shall be, a famine, in the land, when there shall be, a pestilence, —when there shall be, blasting or mildew, locust or caterpillar, —when their enemy shall besiege them in the land at their own gates-whatsoever plague or whatsoever sickness; -
If there is no food in the land, if there is disease, if the fruits of the earth are damaged by heat or water, locust or worm; if their towns are shut in by their attackers: whatever trouble or whatever disease there may be:
29 whatsoever prayer, whatsoever supplication, which any son of earth may have, or any of thy people Israel, —when any man shall come to know his plague, or his pain, and so he shall spread abroad his hands towards this house—
Whatever prayer or request for your grace is made by any man, or by all your people Israel, whatever his trouble may be, whose hands are stretched out to this house:
30 then wilt, thou thyself, hear out of the heavens, the settled place of thine abode, and forgive, and grant to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou wilt know, —for, thou thyself alone, knowest the heart of the sons of men:
Then give ear from heaven your living-place, answering with forgiveness, and give to every man, whose secret heart is open to you, the reward of all his ways; (for you, and you only, have knowledge of the hearts of the children of men; )
31 to the end they may revere thee, to walk in thy ways, all the days which they shall be living upon the face of the soil, —which thou gavest unto their fathers?
So that they may give you worship, walking in your ways, as long as they are living in the land which you gave to our fathers.
32 Moreover also, unto the stranger who is not, of thy people Israel, but he shall come in out of a far country—for the sake of thy great Name, and of thy strong hand, and of thine outstretched arm, —and so they shall come in and pray towards this house,
And as for the man from a strange land, who is not of your people Israel but comes from a far country because of the glory of your name and your strong hand and your outstretched arm; when he comes to make his prayer, turning to this house:
33 then wilt, thou thyself, hear out of the heavens, out of the settled place of thine abode, and do according to all for which the stranger shall cry unto thee, —to the end that all the peoples of the earth may know thy Name, so as to revere thee like thy people Israel, and know that, thy Name, hath been given unto this house, which I have built?
Then give ear from heaven your living-place, and give him his desire, whatever it may be; so that all the peoples of the earth may have knowledge of your name, worshipping you as do your people Israel, and may see that this house which I have made is truly named by your name.
34 When thy people shall go forth to war against their enemies, whithersoever thou mayest send them, —and shall pray unto thee in the direction of this city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy Name,
If your people go out to war against their attackers, by whatever way you may send them, if they make their prayers to you turning their faces to this town of yours and to this house which I have put up for your name:
35 then wilt thou hear, out of the heavens, their prayer and their supplication, —and maintain their right.
Then give ear from heaven to their prayer and their cry for grace, and see right done to them.
36 When they sin against thee—for there is no son of earth who sinneth not—and thou shalt be angry with them, and deliver them up before an enemy, —who shall carry them away as their captives into a land—far away or near;
If they do wrong against you, (for no man is without sin, ) and you are angry with them, and give them up into the power of those who are fighting against them, so that they take them away prisoners to a land far off or near;
37 and they come back to their right mind, in the land whither they have been taken captive, —and so turn and make supplication unto thee in the land of their captivity, saying, We have sinned, we have done perversely, and been lawless; —
And if they take thought, in the land where they are prisoners, turning again to you, crying out in prayer to you in that land, and saying, We are sinners, we have done wrong, we have done evil;
38 and so turn unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their captivity, whither they have carried them captive, —and shall pray in the direction of their own land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, and the city which thou hast chosen, and unto the house which I have built for thy Name,
If with all their heart and soul they are turned again to you, in the land where they are prisoners, the land where they have been taken, and make their prayers, turning their eyes to their land which you gave to their fathers, and to the town which you took for yourself, and the house which I have made for your name:
39 then wilt thou hear out of the heavens—out of the settled place of thine abode—their prayer and their supplications, and maintain their cause, —and forgive thy people, that wherein they sinned against thee?
Then give ear from heaven your living-place to their prayer and their cry, and see right done to them, answering with forgiveness your people who have done wrong against you.
40 Now, O my God, let—I beseech thee—thine eyes be open, and thine ears attent, —unto the prayer of this place.
Now, O my God, may your eyes be open and your ears awake to the prayers made in this place.
41 Now, therefore, arise! O Yahweh God, unto thy rest, thou, and the ark of thy strength: Thy priests, O Yahweh God, let them be clothed with salvation, and, thy men of lovingkindness, let them rejoice in prosperity.
Up! now, O Lord God, come back to your resting-place, you and the ark of your strength: let your priests, O Lord God, be clothed with salvation, and let your saints be glad in what is good.
42 O Yahweh God! do not turn away thy face from thine Anointed One, —oh remember lovingkindness unto David thy servant.
O Lord God, let him whom you have taken for yourself never be given up by you: keep in mind your mercies to David your servant.
