You, Solomon my son, know the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind; for Yahweh searches all hearts, and understands all the imaginations of the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.
Parallel Translations
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You, Solomon my son, know the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind; for Yahweh searches all hearts, and understands all the imaginations of the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.
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And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever.
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And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve Him with a whole heart and with a willing mind; for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts; if thou seek Him, He will be found of thee; but if thou forsake Him, He will cast thee off for ever.
Cross-references (64)
Passages linked to 1 Chronicles 28:9 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Jeremiah 29:13 You shall seek me, and find me, when you search for me with all your heart.
- James 4:8-11 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners. Purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament, mourn, and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you. Don’t speak against one another, brothers. He who speaks against a brother and judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge.
- Matthew 7:7-8 “Ask, and it will be given you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives. He who seeks finds. To him who knocks it will be opened.
- Isaiah 55:6-7 Seek Yahweh while he may be found. Call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Let him return to Yahweh, and he will have mercy on him, to our God, for he will freely pardon.
- Jeremiah 24:7 I will give them a heart to know me, that I am Yahweh. They will be my people, and I will be their God; for they will return to me with their whole heart.
- 1 Kings 8:61 “Let your heart therefore be perfect with Yahweh our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as it is today.”
- Proverbs 2:1-6 My son, if you will receive my words, and store up my commandments within you, so as to turn your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for discernment, and lift up your voice for understanding; if you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures: then you will understand the fear of Yahweh, and find the knowledge of God. For Yahweh gives wisdom. Out of his mouth comes knowledge and understanding.
- 2 Chronicles 15:2 and he went out to meet Asa, and said to him, “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin! Yahweh is with you, while you are with him; and if you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.
- Psalms 9:10 Those who know your name will put their trust in you, for you, Yahweh, have not forsaken those who seek you.
- 1 Samuel 16:7 But Yahweh said to Samuel, “Don’t look on his face, or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for I don’t see as man sees. For man looks at the outward appearance, but Yahweh looks at the heart.”
- John 4:24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”
- Jeremiah 17:10 “I, Yahweh, search the mind. I try the heart, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.”
- Psalms 139:2 You know my sitting down and my rising up. You perceive my thoughts from afar.
- Hebrews 10:38-39 But the righteous will live by faith. If he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.” But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the saving of the soul.
- Jeremiah 9:24 But let him who glories glory in this, that he has understanding, and knows me, that I am Yahweh who exercises loving kindness, justice, and righteousness in the earth, for I delight in these things,” says Yahweh.
- Hosea 4:1 Hear Yahweh’s word, you children of Israel; for Yahweh has a charge against the inhabitants of the land: “Indeed there is no truth, nor goodness, nor knowledge of God in the land.
- John 17:3 This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ.
- 1 Chronicles 29:17-19 I know also, my God, that you try the heart, and have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things. Now I have seen with joy your people, who are present here, offer willingly to you. Yahweh, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this desire forever in the thoughts of the heart of your people, and prepare their heart for you; and give to Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for which I have made provision.”
- Jeremiah 31:34 They will no longer each teach his neighbor, and every man teach his brother, saying, ‘Know Yahweh;’ for they will all know me, from their least to their greatest,” says Yahweh: “for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
- Isaiah 45:19 I have not spoken in secret, in a place of the land of darkness. I didn’t say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I, Yahweh, speak righteousness. I declare things that are right.
- 2 Kings 20:3 “Remember now, Yahweh, I beg you, how I have walked before you in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
- Exodus 15:2 Yah is my strength and song. He has become my salvation. This is my God, and I will praise him; my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
- Jeremiah 22:16 He judged the cause of the poor and needy; so it was well, then. Wasn’t this to know me?” says Yahweh.
- 1 Chronicles 29:9 Then the people rejoiced, because they offered willingly, because with a perfect heart they offered willingly to Yahweh; and David the king also rejoiced with great joy.
- 1 Kings 8:39 then hear in heaven, your dwelling place, and forgive, and act, and give to every man according to all his ways, whose heart you know (for you, even you only, know the hearts of all the children of men);
- 1 Kings 9:6-9 But if you turn away from following me, you or your children, and not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them; then I will cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and I will cast this house, which I have made holy for my name, out of my sight; and Israel will be a proverb and a byword among all peoples. Though this house is so high, yet everyone who passes by it will be astonished and hiss; and they will say, ‘Why has Yahweh done this to this land, and to this house?’ and they will answer, ‘Because they abandoned Yahweh their God, who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and embraced other gods, and worshiped them, and served them. Therefore Yahweh has brought all this evil on them.’ ”
- Acts 17:30 The times of ignorance therefore God overlooked. But now he commands that all people everywhere should repent,
- Psalms 101:2 I will be careful to live a blameless life. When will you come to me? I will walk within my house with a blameless heart.
- Hebrews 4:13 There is no creature that is hidden from his sight, but all things are naked and laid open before the eyes of him to whom we must give an account.
- Psalms 7:9 Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous; their minds and hearts are searched by the righteous God.
- Deuteronomy 31:21 It will happen, when many evils and troubles have come on them, that this song will testify before them as a witness; for it will not be forgotten out of the mouths of their descendants; for I know their ways and what they are doing today, before I have brought them into the land which I promised them.”
- 2 Kings 22:2 He did that which was right in Yahweh’s eyes, and walked in all the way of David his father, and didn’t turn away to the right hand or to the left.
- Hebrews 12:28 Therefore, receiving a Kingdom that can’t be shaken, let’s have grace, through which we serve God acceptably, with reverence and awe,
- Job 36:11-12 If they listen and serve him, they will spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures. But if they don’t listen, they will perish by the sword; they will die without knowledge.
- Acts 1:24 They prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two you have chosen
- Romans 1:28-29 Even as they refused to have God in their knowledge, God gave them up to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, malice; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil habits, secret slanderers,
- Deuteronomy 4:35 It was shown to you so that you might know that Yahweh is God. There is no one else besides him.
- Hosea 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you, that you may be no priest to me. Because you have forgotten your God’s law, I will also forget your children.
- John 2:25 and because he didn’t need for anyone to testify concerning man; for he himself knew what was in man.
- John 21:17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you have affection for me?” Peter was grieved because he asked him the third time, “Do you have affection for me?” He said to him, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I have affection for you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.
- 2 Corinthians 4:6 seeing it is God who said, “Light will shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
- Genesis 8:21 Yahweh smelled the pleasant aroma. Yahweh said in his heart, “I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake because the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth. I will never again strike every living thing, as I have done.
- Exodus 3:16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together, and tell them, ‘Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt.
- Ezra 8:22 For I was ashamed to ask of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy on the way, because we had spoken to the king, saying, “The hand of our God is on all those who seek him, for good; but his power and his wrath is against all those who forsake him.”
- Proverbs 17:3 The refining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold, but Yahweh tests the hearts.
- Jeremiah 11:20 But, Yahweh of Armies, who judges righteously, who tests the heart and the mind, I will see your vengeance on them; for to you I have revealed my cause.
- Ezekiel 38:10 “ ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “It will happen in that day that things will come into your mind, and you will devise an evil plan.
- Deuteronomy 31:16-17 Yahweh said to Moses, “Behold, you shall sleep with your fathers. This people will rise up and play the prostitute after the strange gods of the land where they go to be among them, and will forsake me and break my covenant which I have made with them. Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall come on them; so that they will say in that day, ‘Haven’t these evils come on us because our God is not among us?’
- Psalms 18:2 Yahweh is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower.
- Jeremiah 20:12 But Yahweh of Armies, who tests the righteous, who sees the heart and the mind, let me see your vengeance on them, for I have revealed my cause to you.
- 1 Kings 3:6 Solomon said, “You have shown to your servant David my father great loving kindness, because he walked before you in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with you. You have kept for him this great loving kindness, that you have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is today.
- John 1:47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and said about him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!”
- John 8:55 You have not known him, but I know him. If I said, ‘I don’t know him,’ I would be like you, a liar. But I know him and keep his word.
- Acts 17:23 For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription: ‘TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.’ What therefore you worship in ignorance, I announce to you.
- Revelation 2:23 I will kill her children with Death, and all the assemblies will know that I am he who searches the minds and hearts. I will give to each one of you according to your deeds.
- Genesis 28:13 Behold, Yahweh stood above it, and said, “I am Yahweh, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac. I will give the land you lie on to you and to your offspring.
- Psalms 89:26 He will call to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation!’
- Isaiah 1:28 But the destruction of transgressors and sinners shall be together, and those who forsake Yahweh shall be consumed.
- 1 Peter 5:2 Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, exercising the oversight, not under compulsion, but voluntarily, not for dishonest gain, but willingly;
- Genesis 6:5 Yahweh saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of man’s heart was continually only evil.
- 1 Corinthians 15:34 Wake up righteously, and don’t sin, for some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.
- 2 Corinthians 8:12 For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what you have, not according to what you don’t have.
- 1 Kings 8:43 hear in heaven, your dwelling place, and do according to all that the foreigner calls to you for; that all the peoples of the earth may know your name, to fear you, as do your people Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by your name.
- 2 Corinthians 9:7 Let each man give according as he has determined in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (15 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 1Ch 28:9 And thou, Solomon my son, know thou…
1Ch 28:9 And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever.
Ver. 9. Know thou the God of thy father, and serve him.] Deum cognoscere et colere. Rightly to know and serve God is the whole duty of man, saith Lactantius; this, therefore, is fitly charged by dying David upon his dearest son Solomon. To any blind obedience God bindeth not his servants; as the Popish padres do their novices.
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With a perfect heart.] That there be no halving.
And with a willing mind.] That there be no heaving, hucking, or shucking, as they say.
All the imaginations of the thoughts.] Those very first motions of the mind, the principles of all practice.
But if thou forsake him.] This maketh against those desperadoes who take liberty to live as they list, and then say for defence of their sinful practices, Si sum ex praedestinatis, quicquid faciam, perinde est.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Know thou the God; know him, so as to…
Know thou the God; know him, so as to love him and serve him, as it follows; for words of knowledge in Scripture use commonly imply affection and practice: or acknowledge him as thy God, by loving and obeying him; for otherwise Solomon did already know God, having doubtless been very well instructed in the knowledge of God’s nature and law.
The Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou dost only put on a profession of religion, to please me and secure thy hopes of the kingdom; or if thy obedience to God be insincere and with grudging; thou mayst indeed deceive me, but thou canst not deceive him, for he searcheth thy inward thoughts, and the motions of thy heart.
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If thou forsake him; if when I am dead and gone, and thou art perfectly at thy own dispose, thou shalt cast off that religion and fear of God of which thou now makest profession, and shalt continue to do so without true repentance for thine errors.
He will cast thee off for ever; notwithstanding all his promises made to me and to my seed, and that great honour and favour which he hath showed to thee, with which possibly thou mayst flatter thyself.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And thou, Solomon my son,.... Who was present in…
And thou, Solomon my son,.... Who was present in this assembly, and presented to them by David as his successor, and their future king: and having addressed them, he turns himself to him, and exhorts him, saying:
know thou the God of thy father; who was his Father and covenant God, and whom he served and worshipped, and who had bestowed upon him many favours, both temporal and spiritual; and having had such an experience of his goodness, he exhorts his son to seek to know more and more of him, and to own and acknowledge him as his God, and to love and fear him:
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serve him with a perfect heart, and with a willing mind; cordially and sincerely, cheerfully and freely, neither in an hypocritical manner, nor through force and constraint, nor with loathing and weariness:
for the Lord searcheth all hearts; the hearts of all men, even of kings, and knows from what principles and with what views and in what manor they serve him:
and understandeth all the imaginations of the thought; not only the thoughts of the heart, when regularly formed and ranged in order, hut even the very beginning of them, the first motions of the mind, and before they are well formed, see Gen 6:5.
if thou seek him; by prayer and supplication in his house and ordinances:
he will be found of thee; grant his presence and bestow his favours, see Isa 4:6.
but if thou forsake him: his word, his ways, his worship:
he will cast thee off for ever; from being king, or enjoying that peace, prosperity, and happiness, which otherwise would be enjoyed.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Know - So as to love and serve him.…
Know - So as to love and serve him. Words of knowledge in scripture-use commonly imply affection and practice. Or, acknowledge him, as thy God, by loving and obeying him. Searcheth - If thou dost only put on a profession of religion to please me, or if thy obedience to God be unsincere, thou mayest indeed deceive me, but thou canst not deceive him, for he searcheth the motions of thy heart. Cast thee off - Notwithstanding all his promises to me and to my seed, and that great honour and favour which he hath shewed thee.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain 1Ch 28:9. Know thou the God of thy father…
1Ch 28:9. Know thou the God of thy father — Thou knowest that there is a God, a living and true God, and that the God of thy father is that God: thou knowest not only that he is, but what he is: that he is a Spirit, an infinite and eternal Spirit, self-existent, and therefore independent of, and supreme over, all other beings, who are only the workmanship of his hands. Thou knowest that he is possessed of all possible perfections, of unsearchable wisdom, of almighty power, of unfathomable goodness, of inviolable truth, of impartial justice, of unspeakable mercy and love: that he is thy Creator, Preserver, and Benefactor, to whom thou art indebted for all thy powers and faculties of body and mind; for thy life, and breath, and all things: that he is thy Redeemer and Saviour, thy Governor and Judge. But know him as he makes himself known to his people when he gives them a heart to know him, (Jer 24:7,) and manifests himself to them as he does not to the world. Know him as a sin-pardoning God, merciful to thy unrighteousness, and remembering thy sins and iniquities no more, Jer 31:34. Know him so as to be acquainted, intimately acquainted, and at peace with him, Job 22:21; so as to love and live to him: for God is love, and God is holy, and he that loveth him not, knoweth him not, 1Jn 4:7-8; and, he that saith he knoweth him and loveth him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 1Jn 2:4. And serve him — That is, worship and obey him, and endeavour to serve and promote his honour and interest in the world, which is the interest of piety and virtue, of truth and grace. With a perfect heart — Not only with a sincere and upright heart, but with an entire and undivided heart, or with thy whole heart, being fervent in his love, and zealous in his service, and therefore with a heart entirely changed and made new, Eze 36:26. And with a willing mind — Not with reluctance, as if his service were a bondage and drudgery; but with alacrity, delight, and joy, and from a principle of love to him and his service, knowing by experience that it is perfect freedom. For the Lord searcheth all hearts — And as he has made it the indispensable duty of all ranks and conditions of mankind, of kings as well as their subjects, to know, love, and serve him, in sincerity and truth; so he takes notice, and perfectly knows, whether they do so or not; nor can any one impose on him by false pretences. If thou, Solomon my son, only take up a form or profession of religion to please me and others; or if thy obedience to God be insincere, thou mayest indeed deceive man, but thou canst not deceive him, for he searcheth the desires and designs, the counsels and intentions, nay, the thoughts and imaginations, and all the motions of the heart. If thou seek him — In the way he hath appointed, by prayer, meditation upon, faith in, and obedience to, his word; if thou seek him sincerely, perseveringly, and with all thy heart; he will be found of thee — Will manifest himself to thee by his holy and enlightening Spirit, will make himself known to thee as thy friend, and father, and God in covenant: yea, he that commanded light to shine out of darkness, will shine into thy heart, and give thee the light of the knowledge of his glory; so that, beholding his glory with open face, thou shalt be changed into his image, and shalt resemble the God thou lovest and servest, 2Co 3:18. But if, after having known, and loved, and begun to serve him aright, thou forsake him — Desert his love and service, and turn from following him; he will cast thee off for ever — Notwithstanding his promises to me and my seed, and that great honour and favour which he hath showed thee. Reader, observe, this advice and charge, given by David to his son Solomon, is given by the Holy Ghost to thee, and every human creature into whose hands these divine oracles come. O! see that thou attend to it, and make it thy chief care, and the constant business of thy life, to comply with and reduce it to practice.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Know thou the God of thy father - “Knowing…
Know thou the God of thy father - “Knowing God,” in the sense of having a religious trust in Him, is an unusual phrase in the earlier Scriptures. It scarcely occurs elsewhere in the historical books. David, however, uses the phrase in his Psalms Psa 36:10; and its occurrence here may be accepted as evidence that the entire speech is recorded in the actual words of the monarch.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Know, with affection (Haydock) and faith; and him alone…
Know, with affection (Haydock) and faith; and him alone must thou serve. (Du Hamel) --- Forsake him, and die impenitent. (Haydock)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain HE ENCOURAGES SOLOMON TO BUILD THE TEMPLE. (Ch1 28:9-20)
HE ENCOURAGES SOLOMON TO BUILD THE TEMPLE. (Ch1 28:9-20)
And thou, Solomon my son--The royal speaker now turns to Solomon, and in a most impressive manner presses upon him the importance of sincere and practical piety.
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know thou--He did not mean head knowledge, for Solomon possessed that already, but that experimental acquaintance with God which is only to be obtained by loving and serving Him.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 9–21. David’s Charge to Solomon
9–21. David’s Charge to Solomon
9. know thou the God of thy father] For this use of know cp. Exo_5:2; Isa_1:3; Jer_31:34.
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with a perfect heart] i.e. with a single, undivided heart. In 2Ch_15:17 the heart of king Asa is described as perfect, because he took no part in the idolatrous practices which prevailed in his day. Faithfulness to Jehovah, not moral perfection, is implied in phrases of this kind.
the Lord searcheth] Cp. Ezekiel’s vision of the Lord’s detection of secret idolatry (Ezekiel 8).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (9) And thou, Solomon my son.—The king now turns…
(9) And thou, Solomon my son.—The king now turns to his heir, urging a whole-hearted service to his father’s God (1Ch_28:9-10).
Know thou.—Regard thou, have care for (Psa_1:6).
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The God of thy father might mean the God of Israel (comp. 1Ch_29:10). But 1Ch_28:20, where David speaks of “my God,” suggests the simpler meaning, God of David, here. (Comp. Psa_18:2; Psa_18:6; Psa_18:22; also Gen_31:29; Gen_31:42.)
With a perfect heart.—The word shâlçm means whole, sound, unimpaired; the Latin integer. Hence, what is urged is an undivided allegiance, such as is enjoined by the Decalogue. (Comp. 1Ch_29:9; 1Ch_29:19; 1Ki_8:61.)
A willing mind.—For service is not real unless it be voluntary, and so glad as well as free.
For the Lord searcheth all hearts.—Search, i.e., seek (1Ch_28:8 and below). For the thought, comp. Psa_139:1-4; Psa_139:23; 1Sa_16:7; Psa_94:9; Act_1:24; Heb_4:13. The Searcher of hearts will at once see through an insincere and half-hearted obedience.
And understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts.—And every fashioning (yççer, εἶδος, Bild) or cast of thoughts he discerneth (Gen_6:5; Gen_8:21).
If thou seek him.—Deu_4:29. Seeking Jehovah in earnest always results in finding (Isa_55:6). Yet the Divine grace is not restricted even by this condition (Isa_65:1).
If thou forsake him.—Deliberately and of set purpose, as choosing to live by other laws than His.
He will cast thee off.—A strong word (hizniah), meaning strictly, to reject as noisome or foul-smelling. (Comp. Hos_8:3; Hos_8:5.) The verbal form hiphil is peculiar to Chronicles. (See 2Ch_11:14; 2Ch_29:19.)
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain HOMILIES BY J.R. THOMSON Ver. 9.
HOMILIES BY J.R. THOMSON Ver. 9.
Early piety.
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A father"s solicitude for his son is too often confined to his temporal prosperity. It was not so with David. The aged monarch was indeed anxious for Solomon"s stability on the throne, for his fitness to discharge all regal duties, for the magnificence of his public works, and for the splendour of his reign. But he was well enough acquainted with human nature to know that character is the key to life. His supreme desire was that his son should be right at heart, that his principles should be sound, that he should honour, trust, and serve his God. Hence the beautiful language of the text.
I THE NATURE OF EARLY PIETY. It does not consist merely in outward associations or in outward observances.
1. The basis of such piety is knowledge. "Know thou the God of thy.father." Hence the importance of early instruction in religious truth.
2. The substance of such piety is a cheerful service of God. The practicalenergies of youth need to be employed in doing the Lord"s will. Willingness and cheerfulness should characterize all work done for God. It is well that the young should be trained to find their delight in the practical service of their God and Saviour.
II THE MOTIVES TO EARLY PIETY.
1. The obligation of duty. It is right to "remember thy Creator in the daysof thy youth.
2. The assurance of the Lord"s perfect knowledge: "For the Lord searchethall hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts.
3. The encouragement of promise: "If thou seek him, he will be found ofthee." There are many similar assurances in Scripture fitted to encourage the young to seek the God of salvation.
4. The fearful alternative: "If thou forsake him, he will cast thee off forever. T.
Vers. 9, 10.
A parental charge: a sermon to the young.
The scene is one of profound interest, for it is one of deep and strong emotion. A father who feels that his end is near is delivering an earnest charge to his son, who has, as he hopes, a brilliant course before him. There is everything to add solemnity and pathos to the scene. The aged king excited to one last painful effort, the assembled princes of Israel, the "young and tender" Solomon (1Ch_22:5) kneeling before his father, the outpouring of royal and parental tenderness and solicitude, everything combines to make the occasion one of greatest interest. And what can be more impressive than the last injunction given by a departing father to the son who is his destined heir: who will, if any one does, carry on his work when he himself is removed? David"s supreme desire is that Solomon shall be a faithful servant of God, and do the special work which awaits his care. We are invited to consider
I IN WHAT TRUE PIETY CONSISTS. It embraces two things.
1. A practical knowledge of God. "Thou,solomon my son, know thou the God," etc. And this knowledge of God includes
(1) an intelligent understanding of his nature and his attitude toward the children of men. We must have some mental apprehension of him; we must understand that he is a holy, pure, ever-present, all-observant Spirit; claiming our reverence, love, obedience, and submission; condemning our ingratitude, our departure from himself, our sin; ready to receive, forgive, restore all who return to him in penitence and faith.
(2) A direct, practical acquaintance with him. Such acquaintance as is gained by coming to him in personal approach; by contact of our spirit with his Spirit; by the prayer, the pleading, the surrender, which is not formal but spiritual not "after the flesh," but from the soul; for "the Lord searcheth all hearts," etc.
2. Continuous spiritual service. "Serve him with a perfect heart and awilling mind." Having found his favour and entered into his kingdom, we must live continuously in his service. We must render this "with a gladsome mind," not constrainedly and as of necessity, not hypocritically, not servilely, but cheerfully and heartily the obedience of love, of those who are satisfied if he is pleased. This our service is (1) to be lifelong; (2) to cover all the particulars of our life, extending to all our human relationships and all our various spheres of activity.
II WHAT POWERFUL INDUCEMENTS WE HAVE TO DEVOTE OURSELVES AT ONCE TO GOD. These are four in number.
1. Strong filial considerations urge us to do so. David pleaded withSolomon to" know the God of his father." The young prince must have felt that if he gave his life to the service of God, he would be
(1) delighting the heart of his beloved father, and
(2) treading closely in his honoured parent"s footsteps; in both ways acting worthily and "as became his father"s son." The same or similar considerations should be potent and prevalent with ourselves.
2. By so doing we may hope to accomplish great things. Solomon had theprospect of "building a house for the sanctuary." We may not anticipate such an achievement, but we may hope to do good and even great things for our God and our race, if we devote our whole powers from the beginning to the service of Christ. We may
(1) influence, during a long course, many hundreds or even thousands of souls for good;
(2) help many a good and beneficent work;
(3) render invaluable aid to some one useful cause or Church.
1. Honest and persevering effort to find his favour is certain to be rewarded with success. "If thou seek him, he will be found of thee". (see Mat_7:7-11)
2. Neglected opportunity has a disastrous end. "If thou forsake him, he willcast thee off for ever." Those who in youth are conscious of the heavenly call, but who give not heed to the voice Divine and to parental earnestness, but yield to the lower and ignobler impulses, enter on a course of folly and sin, which too often runs on to an evil end, to a life without nobility and without achievement, to a death without hope, to a future without the joy of home. C.
Vers. 9, 10, 20, 21.
David"s charge to Solomon.
From the princes of the congregation David turns to Solomon his son. Every line is full of instruction. "Know thou the God of thy father." We may conclude Solomon already knew something, and perhaps much, of God. But this refers to a further and deeper knowledge of him, as his father David had experienced. It is this deeper knowledge of God that is spoken of in the New Testament. St. Paul, though he knew Christ well, still says, "That I may know him." However much we know there is always more to be known. It is this knowledge of him that our Lord refers to when he says, (Joh_7:17) "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine." There is a knowledge of Christ as the Saviour from sin; there is a still further knowledge which springs from obedience in all things to his will. But David continues, "And serve him with a perfect heart and a willing mind." Mark here, service and the character of it depend on the knowledge of God, and this knowledge a deepening one. This is ever the Divine order. All the graces of the Christian character act and react on each other. True knowledge ever begets service, and faithful service deepens real knowledge. But there are always two conditions attached to real knowledge and true service, viz. "A perfect heart and a willing mind." A perfect, or as the word means, an "undivided" heart, is one that is wholehearted. Not "a heart within a heart" which God hates. Not a heart that will follow and serve the Lord when it is convenient but not when it is inconvenient. Not "in season" only, but also "out of season." Next to this is a "willing mind," or a mind that desires only that which will please God. A mind that will say always and in everything, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" A heart devoted and a will given up this is what David means, and this is what God asks for. David enforces this by the statement of God"s omniscience. Solomon might deceive men by having the outer life fair, while inwardly the other might be lacking, but he could not deceive God; and to him Solomon and every man will have eventually to render account. David further enforces these words by a solemn warning: "If thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. Take heed now." It reminds us of Paul"s solemn words to Timothy: "Take heed to thyself, and to the doctrine; continue in them: for in so doing thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee." The soul must be watched and kept, and then the doctrine will be sound. If we seek the Lord he will ever be found; but if we turn our backs on him, then we shall experience that spiritual darkness and misery within that will be practically, though to one saved in the Lord may never be judicially, a casting off from God. Though a true believer may never fall from God, he may fall from the grace of God; and this, though not judicial, is yet practical and experimental exclusion from God. David enjoins Solomon to "take heed" because he is "chosen." It is the dignity conferred that demands the responsibility and gives the power to rule. Is it not so with men put into high places over our land? Before men get into office, what do they not say? and how do they not act? But when they are in office the dignity controls and directs, and gives wisdom and judgment. So is it in the Divine]tie. God"s grace chooses a man, makes him one of his children, puts upon him the highest dignity, and thus he possesses a motive power for holiness which nothing else can give him. David"s final words to Solomon at the close of this chapter are equally solemn and suggestive. "Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed." What a string of holy exhortations! On what are they built? On God"s presence with his people; "for the Lord God, even my God, will be with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the Lord." God"s presence is the believer"s joy; it is also his strength and power for work. The expression "my God" reminds us again of Paul: "My God shall supply all your need." It was the personal and experimental acquaintance with Gods unchanging love and faithfulness, and that alone, which gave to David and Paul such confidence, and made them speak thus. But Solomon might have said, as many others often say, These are precious promises and encouragements, and I am but "young and tender," and the work is so great; how shall I get the means, and who will help me, and how shall I know they will be ready and willing?" These and a thousand other questions rise up in the soul when God sets a clear path before us, or a plain duty. How often we stand, we hesitate! We are already taking one step back. God comes in again to strengthen our faltering faith. "The priests and Levites shall be with thee, and there shall be with thee every willing and skilful man, the princes and all the people will be wholly at thy commandment." What a promise things are yours"! So it is always. Having the Lord with us, we shall have everything else: "life and death, things present and things to come," yea, "all things are ours." How completely every question of the soul is met from the unchanging faithfulness and love of our God! W.
The faithfulness of the great Heart-searcher.
the Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts." For this conception of God, compare 1Sa_16:7; Psa_7:9 Psa_139:2; Jer_11:20 Jer_17:10 Jer_20:12. The expressions of the text suggest the accuracy and intimacy of the Divine knowledge of men"s affairs. Apprehend God rightly, and his interest in us fills us with grateful surprise. Illustrate David"s feeling, "When I consider thy heavens what is man that thou art mindful of him?" Solomon"s, Will God in very deed dwell with man on the earth?" Isaiah"s, "To whom then will ye liken God? He giveth power to the faint," etc. See the Divine interest:
1. In the spheres of natural life; i.e. in us as beings. He is near as Creator, Sustainer, Provider. Birth, preservation, and death are all his.
2. In the spheres of associated life; i.e. as beings in relations. Government, family, and Church are all under his Divine inspections.
3. In the spheres of mental life; i.e. as intellectual beings. All movements of mind he presides over.
4. In the spheres of spiritual life; i.e. as moral beings. God knows and watches all unfoldings of character and religion. All spheres are accessible to him. "All things are naked and open to the eyes of him with whom we have to do." Dwell on the subtlety of the human heart; its labyrinths and hiding-places and self-deceivings. How imperfect, at its best, is a man"s own knowledge of his heart! How impossible it is for one man to know the intricate workings of the heart of another man! Searching the heart is required, that its subtle evils may be discovered. But all depends on who it is that does the searching work, and with what aim and purpose the searching is done.
I GOD CAN SEARCH THE HUMAN HEART. He can, for he designed it, and knows all its possibilities. He can, for he has never let it slip away from his observation and. control, and so all its "latent mazes" he knows, and all its wilfulnesses he controls.
II GOD SEARCHES THE HUMAN HEART WITH A DEFINITE AND GRACIOUS PURPOSE. Even its deliverance from evil and perfecting in holiness. This purpose makes good men regard the Divine searching as a most precious thing. In view of it David can pray, "Search me, O God." He feels, "God does not know me as a mere ordinary matter of knowledge. He is graciously and lowngly interested in me, and so he knows me helpfully, that he may adapt his grace to my various and subtle needs." This personal interest in our highest good, which gives tone to his searching, is brought home to our hearts by the tender interest shown in humanity, and in individuals of humanity, by the God-Man, the Lord Jesus Christ. We feel that we never can resist his searching us through and through, and knowing us altogether. The close inspections of God may be:
1. A terror to us. Illustrate the influence of the words, "Thou God seest me," sometimes on little children. They are even used to frighten them into goodness. Compare Jacob"s, "How dreadful is this place!" From Job, Isaiah, and John we learn that solemnity and awe should always attend the consciousness of God"s near presence.
2. It may be a real practical help to us, as David expected it to be to Solomon, He who knows us so well, does not only know; he also gives strength. David, who trembles at God"s searchings, can only say, "It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect.
3. It may be cherished as our holiest joy. No harm can come to us, for God"s eye and hand are always on us. No good thing can fail us, for God knows all our real wants. Our Lord taught so often about the intimate knowledge and care of the heavenly Father, who keeps the sparrows, clothes the grass, watches over the seeds, paints the lilies, waves the harvests, and knows that we are of more value than flowers or sparrows.
Show that this truth, of God"s knowledge and heart-searchings, bears upon men"s tendency to self-deception. It is only possible to sin on when we have deluded ourselves into the idea that "God doth not see. R.T.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain 1Ch_28:9; 1Ch_28:21
1Ch_28:9; 1Ch_28:21
And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father.
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Gods relation to human life
Learn--
I. That our life is exposed to Gods inspection.
II. That our service to God should spring from sincere motives.
III. That our welfare depends upon our conduct towards God. (J. Wolfendale.)
The God of thy father
1. The rich experience behind these words.
2. The force of parental affection in giving that experience.
3. The susceptibility of youth to profit by the teaching. (J. Wolfendale.)
Fathers and children
We see here one generation--
1. Transmitting the knowledge of God to its successor.
2. Enjoining the service of God upon its successors.
3. Indicating Gods method of dealing with its successor.
4. Bequeathing its unfulfilled intentions to its successor. (M. Braithwaite.)
The knowledge of God the first principle of religion
I. What the knowledge of God implies.
1. A firm belief of His existence.
2. Just and regular sentiments concerning the perfections of His nature. Whatever argues a real imperfection or frailty in men ought not in the most distant resemblance to be ascribed to God.
3. A reverent contemplation of Him, according to the discoveries He hath been pleased to make of His perfections in His Word, works, and the ways of providence. Let us frequently contemplate--
(1) His almighty power.
(2) His holiness.
(3) His wisdom.
(4) His veracity.
(5) His infinite mercy.
II. The efficacy and influence this knowledge of God ought to have upon us. The design and end of knowledge is not only to enlarge and enlighten the mind, but to direct the practice and mend the heart. The true knowledge of God should produce in us--
1. Reverence.
2. Holiness.
3. Dependence upon Him for wisdom (Jam_1:5).
4. Confidence in His promises.
5. Fear.
6. Gratitude. (J. Mason, M. A.)
Solomon succeeding David
No better advice could have been given to the young sovereign of Israel. No better advice can to-day be given to the young sovereigns who fill our churches and Sunday-schools. So far as Solomon followed this advice he was prosperous beyond any that went before him; as soon as he forgot this advice the terrible warning with which the verse ends was fulfilled, and the disappointed misanthrope in the Book of Ecclesiastes tells us of the sorrows of a man whom God has forsaken. As God chose Solomon, so does He choose every young man and woman for some special work, which they alone can best accomplish. There are four things to be noticed in this charge.
I. Know thou God.
1. Through the Bible.
2. Providence.
3. Through the communings of our own heart.
II. Know thou thy fathers God. Every generation need not begin at the beginning, as though the fathers knew nothing about God. There is much foolish talk about thinking these great truths concerning God and religion through for ourselves. That our fathers served God is a reason why we should not discard Him.
III. Serve Him with a perfect heart.
IV. Serve Him with a willing mind. It is said that when the Princess Victoria was called to the kingdom, the messengers, who were the highest dignitaries of State, arrived at her palace from the death-bed of the king very early in the morning. They had great difficulty in arousing any one; but at length the princesss maid appeared, who said that her mistress was in such a sweet sleep that it was a pity to disturb her. Tell her, said the Archbishop of Canterbury, that we have come on business of importance to the queen, and even her slumbers must give way to that. Very soon the princess appeared, and was invested with royal robes and prerogatives. To every young person comes the messenger of God telling them of their Fathers good pleasure that they should inherit the kingdom. No one can afford to neglect the summons. (F. E. Clark.)
Davids charge to Solomon
These words contain--
1. Advice given to a hopeful son.
2. By an excellent father.
3. Under most affecting circumstances.
I. The course prescribed.
1. TO know God. This implies--
(1) That mankind by nature do not know God.
(a) They do not understand Gods relations to mankind, as their rightful Sovereign; their Guide in difficulties; their Redeemer from evil; their Friend in necessities (Psa_10:4).
(b) They do not acknowledge God in these relations.
(c) They do not enjoy God in these relations (Eph_2:12).
(2) That the knowledge of God must be sought to be enjoyed.
2. To serve God with a perfect heart and with a willing mind.
(1) By preserving attention to His guidance (Act_3:22-23; Heb_12:25).
(2) By habitual dependence on Christs mediation (Col_2:6).
(3) By steadfastly resisting Satan (1Pe_5:8-9).
(4) By aspiring after spotless purity (2Co_7:1; 2Pe_3:14).
(5) By doing good to mankind for Gods sake (Gal_6:10; Rom_14:17-18).
(6) Serve Him alone (Mat_4:10).
(7) Seek to please Him in all things (Mat_6:22; 1Co_10:33).
(8) Serve Him from a principle of grateful affection (Rom_12:1).
(9) And in cheerful hope (1Pe_1:13).
3. Thus to know and serve God must be justly denominated a course of acceptable piety. It is acceptable piety--
(1) In opposition to the complimental piety of the Antinomian; for it includes actual service.
(2) To the affected piety of the hypocrite, for it includes sincerity of heart.
(3) To the erroneous piety of the superstitious, for it includes piety directed by the knowledge of God.
(4) To the servile piety of the Pharisee, for it includes service cheerfully rendered.
(5) To the inconstant pious intervals of unstable professors (Hos_6:4).
II. The arguments by which it is urged.
1. From the knowledge of God as our Observer.
2. From His goodness as our Redeemer.
3. From His just severity as our Judge.
(1) God cannot be imposed upon (1Sa_2:3; Pro_16:2; Ecc_12:14).
(2) Forsaking God is highly resented by Him, as implying ingratitude, treachery, and folly (Jer_2:13; Jer_2:19).
(3) Apostasy from God is justly punished with eternal banishment from Him (Job_21:14; Mat_25:41).
Application:
1. You must serve God on earth, or you cannot live with Him in heaven (Mat_7:21).
2. That you may serve God acceptably you must first know Him (Exo_5:2).
3. The knowledge of God should be restlessly and confidently sought (Pro_2:3-5; Jer_31:31-34). (Sketches of Four Hundred Sermons.)
Davids instructions to Solomon
These words were not spoken from the death-bed, and yet behind them there is the background of death, judgment, and eternity. When dying men or women are speaking to us we know their words are few and well ordered. Especially so are the last utterances of parents to their children, if there is sufficient strength left of mind and body. In this instruction to Solomon we feel just as if the Spirit of God gave David inspiration. Just as if he looked into Solomon prophetically and saw both his weakness and his strength, words shaped themselves upon Davids tongue that exactly fitted the best and worst in the youthful life that lay before him.
1. David felt, I cannot offer the chart of ray life to my own son when he is beginning his voyage and say, Just sail as I sailed, for if so, he will run on reefs that I was nearly foundering upon, he will run on the quicksands that nearly ruined me. Those lights that lie around our dangerous rock-bound coast are all very fine, and our lighting system is one of the glories of our British commerce. How all our coasts are lighted up at dangerous places at the expense of millions of money spent in building lighthouses, fitting them with the best lights, and keeping efficient men to take charge of them! But take the best of them, and ask any sailor, and he will tell you that five minutes of the sun itself is worth them all together. So it is with the best human testimony, the best earthly wisdom, and the best human experience. What a blessing when we can lift our heads right above it all to the sun that never fails us! Know thou the God of thy father.
2. See how David recommended his God to Solomon. In Old Testament days to name His name apart from any human qualification and attachment was then something too large, too vague, too profound. But when David speaks of the God of thy father, how homely it makes God!
3. After all, grace is not an heirloom. It cannot be bequeathed. Solomon had to know God for himself. Of the godly Elis family it was said, Elis sons were sons of Belial.
4. What wonderful instruction in the philosophy of conduct is in religion, if we would only believe Him! Know Him, and let your knowledge be of the practical kind. I said this to my son the other day: My lad if I were beginning just where you are, and only twelve years of age, if I knew about myself and about what a fool I am at bottom, about how bad I am by nature, and what sin and grace really mean, what the Word of God means, and what Christ means--oh, my lad, if I were back with you, I think I would make more of life than I have done. I think David is saying all that to young Solomon. If I could begin all over again, Solomon, if I could stand where you are standing, I would make life to mean just one thing--God! God! God! God! (John McNeill.)
The duty and advantage of knowing and serving the God of our fathers
I. The nature of the duties here spoken of.
1. You are to know the God of your fathers. This means such a practical acknowledgment of Him as engages a religious regard to Him as our chief good and highest end, that we may glorify Him here, and enjoy Him for ever, in the way of His own appointment.
2. You are to serve the God of your fathers. His ordinances and institutions are to be observed in all acts of religious worship, and His commands are to be obeyed in a departure from all iniquity and in a performance of all moral duties, with a professed subjection to the gospel of Christ.
3. You are to serve the God of your fathers with a perfect heart and with a willing mind. There is a sort of perfection which consists in integrity and uprightness, in opposition to prevailing hypocrisy, and which must be found in the heart if ever we serve God in an acceptable manner (1Ki_15:3; 1Ki_15:14; 2Ch_25:2).
II. The manner in which these duties are recommended.
1. This important advice is directed to every one of you, as if you were mentioned by name.
2. It is the God of your fathers who is recommended to you.
3. It is the God whom your fathers themselves have recommended, and can recommend to you.
4. It is the God to whom your fathers have devoted you, and for whom they have trained you up.
5. It is the God of your fathers, who has encouraged you, by His covenant promise, to know and serve Him.
6. It is the God of your fathers, who has as much right to your knowing and serving Him as to theirs (Deu_29:10-12).
7. It is the God who will so much the more resent your disregard of Him, because He was your fathers God.
8. It is the God before whom you must appear, together with your fathers, in judgment at the last day. (J. Guyse.)
Godly parents concerned for the piety of their children
I. What is implied in children recognising God as the God of their fathers?
1. That they stand in a covenant relation to God through His promise to their fathers to be their God and the God of their seed.
2. When children are required to recognise God as their fathers God they should recall to their minds the pious instructions which their parents have communicated to them.
3. When children are required to recognise God as their fathers God, this should remind them of the many instances of Gods faithfulness, and kindness, and mercy which their fathers have experienced at Gods hand.
II. The earnest desire of godly parents for advancing the spiritual and eternal interests of their children.
1. It is necessary that children should know the God of their fathers.
2. There is nothing on which the heart of a pious parent is more deeply fixed than the religious interests of his children.
III. The motives and arguments by which this duty of children is enforced.
1. Youth is the most advantageous period for entering on a religious life. In every science or profession early application is deemed necessary to future excellence.
2. The children of godly parents have pre-eminent advantages above other young persons for entering on a religious life.
3. The obstinacy of young persons who have been religiously educated, and after all forsake the God of their fathers, is especially criminal, and attended with great aggravation.
4. That those young persons who have been religiously educated, and forsake the God of their fathers, are in danger of greater punishment than other men. (James Hay, D. D.)
Christian education
I. Without sincerity and seriousness, our religion can be of no value in the sight of the omniscient God.
II. It is important in every point of view that young persons, even from their earliest childhood, should be taught this high and holy lesson--to be sincere and serious in their religion; that is, in their whole conduct.
III. To serve God with a perfect heart is the sum and substance of all practical religion. (Plain Sermons by Contributors to the Tracts for the Times. )
Davids charge to Solomon
I. The foundations of a religious life.
1. The knowledge of God (Jer_9:23-24; Joh_17:3). This knowledge is not a mere abstract conception of God, but a burning memory of the Friend of the family.
2. A dedication of ourselves to His service.
II. The safeguards of a religious life.
1. A consciousness of the Divine presence in the heart.
2. A consciousness of the Divine omniscience prevents evil thoughts.
III. The encouragement of a religious life. If thou seek Him, He will be found of thee.
1. In every department of life man is a seeker.
2. In the department of spiritual life our gain is the greatest.
IV. The warning of a religious life. (Homilist.)
Royal regard for the right training of children
Rev. Benjamin Smith, in his Gems Re-set, reminds us of an interesting circumstance concerning the royal family of England. A dignitary of the Established Church had been examining some of the royal children in the Catechism. The divine was thoroughly satisfied with the readiness and the correctness of the replies. Doubtless he would be pleased to be able with truthfulness to commend the children of the Queen. He manifested his good sense, however, by doing this in an indirect manner, praising the lady who was their ordinary instructress. He said, Your governess deserves high commendation for teaching you the Catechism so accurately. I am delighted with your proficiency. The young folk replied, Our governess does take great pains with us in our other lessons, but it is mamma who teaches us the Catechism. There is reason to believe that the Queen of England was deeply solicitous that her children should from their earliest years be well acquainted with Gods truth. That truth had been commended to her when young by her mothers tuition and example. In her husband, Albert the Good, our Queen had one to counsel and aid her in the training of their children. Thus the highest lady in these realms, with cares of State constantly pressing on her attention, and with godly and learned men ever able and willing to impart Scriptural instruction to the royal children, deemed it her duty and privilege to teach the Catechism to her loved ones.
And serve Him with a perfect heart, and with a willing mind.--
To serve God the best way to prosper in the world
I. What it is to serve God
1. To serve God is to sincerely practise all the duties of piety.
(1) We must take heed to our private devotions--reading, meditation, prayer.
(2) We must discharge the duties of public worship.
2. To serve God is to practise all those duties which we owe more immediately to our fellow-creatures and to ourselves.
II. What a tendency the serving God in this manner has to secure His favour and blessing in all our secular concerns.
1. This is evident from the promises God has made in His Word (1Ti_4:8; Deu_8:18; Pro_10:22; Psa_34:10; Psa_84:2; Mat_5:5; Rom_8:28; Ecc_2:26).
2. This is apparent from the very nature and connection of things. Godliness with contentment is great gain.
(1) It secures a man the most durable peace, the most valuable possessions, and gives him much more satisfaction and comfort in that share of the world which providence hath allotted to him than the most affluent fortune ever afforded, which I take to be the meaning of the promise, Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
(2) It preserves a man from running into vicious habits and customs.
(3) It obliges to the practice of that integrity, wisdom, and industry which have a natural tendency to improve our circumstances.
3. This is confirmed by constant experience and observation. Conclusion: How greatly mistaken are they who think to prosper in the world by stepping aside out of the path of duty, or who dare to violate the sacred obligations of virtue and religion for the sake of a temporal advantage. (J. Mason, M. A.)
In what manner we are to serve God
I. The rule of worship laid down in the text, which we should carefully observe in all our religious transactions with God. We must worship God--
1. With a perfect heart. That is--
(1) An upright heart: in spirit and in truth (Joh_4:24).
(2) A pure heart. This stands in opposition to all vile affections and corrupt ends in worship (1Ki_15:14; Psa_26:6).
(3) A devout and engaged heart. This stands opposed to--
(a) Worldly and wandering thoughts;
(b) a dull and drowsy frame in worship.
2. With a willing mind.
(1) We should always preserve an habitual readiness and disposition to the service of God, and oppose and break through every accidental reluctance of the mind thereunto.
(2) Our minds should be excited to the service of God from a principle of gratitude and love.
(3) With cheerfulness of heart in worship.
II. What is essential and peculiar to Christian worship? It must always be performed in the name of Christ (Col_3:17; Joh_14:13-14; Joh_16:23-24; Joh_16:26). To serve God in the name of Christ implies--
1. A dependence on His mediation for the acceptance of our services.
2. A dependence on His grace for our assistance (Php_4:18).
3. A dependence on His merits for the atonement of our guilt (Rom_3:24-25).
4. A thankful acknowledgment of this gracious constitution of His, in appointing His Son to be Mediator between Him and His apostate creatures.
Application:
1. How vain it is to lay a great stress upon any particular place, or external forms and modes of worship.
2. This should lead us to inquire in what manner our worship, hath been performed, and what hath been the ordinary frame of our mind therein.
3. This shows the need we have to prepare our hearts to serve Him, and to avoid everything that would unfit us for this service.
4. Hence likewise appears the necessity of keeping the heart with all diligence in the service of God. (J. Mason, M. A.)
Heart service
That which we do with the heart is done without grudging, or toil, or weariness. A willing heart goes all the day on its path of duty, art unwilling one soon tires. All is nimble and cheerful which is done by the heart. This is the only kind of service God accepts of His creatures. This is the only condition in which men can render true service to Him. If the heart is dull, our service will be inapt and untoward. (Homiletic Review.)
For the Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts.--
God the searcher of hearts, and found of them that seek Him
1. When God is said to search the heart, the meaning is He perfectly understands it.
2. The knowledge which God has of the human heart is universal: Searcheth all hearts.
3. The hearts of men and the imaginations of the thoughts are mentioned here as distinct objects of the Divine knowledge, and the difference between them is--by the former we are to understand the passions and purposes of the mind; and by the latter, the paintings of fancy, or the mere casual rovings of thought. I proceed now--
I. Briefly to prove this proposition, the Lord searcheth or knoweth all hearts.
1. This is evident from the reason of things. He that gave to man an understanding heart must understand the heart He gave (Psa_94:9-11).
2. This may be further argued from His omniscience.
3. This is expressly ascribed to Him in the Scriptures (Jer_17:9-10; Jer_20:12; Act_1:24).
II. To show how fitly this consideration is urged to enforce the duty enjoined, or how proper it is to induce us to guard and govern our thoughts at all times, especially in the service of God.
1. A total neglect of our thoughts and the frame of our spirits in the service of God shows a great contempt of His authority.
2. God, who knows our thoughts now, will call us to an account of them hereafter.
3. It is the turn and temper of the heart which forms the character of every one in the sight of God.
4. To keep a strict and constant guard over our hearts at all times, and especially in His worship, is the best evidence we can have of our sincerity.
III. Motives to attend to the exhortation given. If thou seek Him, He will be found of thee, etc. These words contain the most valuable promise and the most awful threatening that are to be found in the whole book of God. Notice particularly the promise. To seek the Lord is usually applied to the duty of prayer, but in the Bible it is often put to denote the whole of practical religion (Psa_34:10; Isa_45:6; Isa_9:13; Isa_6:5). If we seek we shall obtain--
1. His favour. It is a much easier thing to please God than some men. There is no such thing as pleasing these sometimes without the most servile compliance with their caprice, a conformity to their manners, and a connivance at their follies.
2. His help (Luk_13:24; Hos_5:15; Jer_2:27; 2Ch_33:11-12).
3. His direction (Jam_1:5; Pro_2:6; Pro_3:5-6).
4. His Holy Spirit (Mat_7:11; Luk_11:13).
The Holy Spirit is comprehensive of all the good things we can desire.
1. There are His renewing, sanctifying, supporting influences.
2. His preventing, quickening, assisting grace. He is our guide, teacher--earnest of the heavenly inheritance. (J. Mason.)
The moral discipline of the imagination
The moral cultivation of the imagination is of the first importance to the young.
I. Its negative discipline. The imagination must be restrained--
1. Because our lower nature will master our higher.
2. We inherit a sinful nature, prone to evil imaginings from our youth up.
3. We may sin in thought as well as in deed. This raises the question--
(1) Of literature. We must give heed to right reading. A few moments of tainted literature may impart a fever to the imagination which will blight its beauty for ever.
(2) Of art. There is much pagan art in Europe, The value of Ruskins art-criticisms lies not in its infallibility, but in its moral elevation.
(3) Of pleasure.
II. Its positive discipline. We must seek the things which stimulate and refine the imagination.
1. By means of noble literature.
2. By means of Christian conceptions.
A cultivated imagination is an aid to faith. Let it kindle over Christian truth, the nature of God, the incarnation, redemption, etc. Application:
1. Some think there is no harm in imagining evil, if it is not committed. Read Sermon on Mount.
2. This should convince the unconverted of sin. (S. E. Keeble.)
If thou seek Him, He will be found of thee.
Seeking the Lord
God is to be sought and found not merely by the intellect, not alone by processes of accurate logic, but by other faculties that have been bestowed upon us for this purpose. The moral sense, the consciousness of our high obligations, must be carefully and scrupulously nourished and cultured till we acquire an appetite for the noblest virtue--till, in fact, we hunger and thirst after righteousness and learn to satisfy our craving in communion with God and getting moral food and strength from Him. There must be a Divine discontent with our own righteousness in order to drive us to His footstool to ask for more. We must cherish our spiritual affections. We must put ourselves in the way of loving God. We must teach ourselves to pray or beseech Him to teach us. It is contrary to all common sense to expect feelings to arise in our heart spontaneously while we remain in conditions in which those feelings are all but impossible, and while we refuse to use the faculties which were given us for the express purpose of bringing us to love God. If the soul will not seek after God it cannot find Him. God will wait long enough, no one knows how long or how patiently; but it must germinate for itself and put forth its tender sprout and green leaves above the mouldy ground, and thus ask for Gods air to breathe life into it, and His gracious rain to feed it, and His glorious sun to shine upon it, and give warmth and beauty and fertility to it in time to come. Neither sun nor rain nor air can do for that hidden seed what it must first do for itself. Seek ye the Lord. (Charles Voysey, B. A.)
Seeking God
I. The duty.
1. Whom are we to seek? God in Christ.
2. How must we seek Him?
(1) Not in our own strength.
(2) With an integrity of purpose and a singleness of determination.
(3) By forsaking and standing aloof from the world; by putting down self and walking with a mortified spirit.
3. Where are we to seek Christ?
(1) In the Scriptures.
(2) In the sanctuary.
(3) At the family altar.
(4) In the secret exercises of prayer.
4. When are we to seek a God in Christ? Now.
5. Why are we to seek Christ?
II. The assurance. (T. J. Judkin, M. A.)
Seeking the Lord
I. You should seek him.
1. You cannot do without Him.
2. You have everything when you have found Him. The true light (Joh_1:9). The bread of life (Joh_6:35). A refuge from the storm (Isa_25:4). Your rock and fortress (Psa_31:3). A sure foundation (Isa_28:16). An advocate (1Jn_2:1). A surety (Heb_7:22). The truth (Joh_14:6). Wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, redemption (1Co_1:30).
3. He has sought you, has come from heaven for you, is seeking you now.
4. You know you will find Him.
II. The manner of seeking.
1. In His Word, by obeying it.
2. In thine heart, by confidently expecting Him to come and dwell in thee. When He knows that thou really desirest Him, He will be found. (The Study and the Pulpit.)
Decision in religion recommended
I. The promise. We must seek Him--
1. Scripturally.
(1) With penitence.
(2) With faith.
(3) As He is to be found in Christ.
2. Earnestly.
3. Early in life: They that seek Me early shall find Me.
II. The warning. Those who forsake God, who turn towards God their back, and not their face; who forsake His house, Word, day, people. I once visited, upon his death-bed, a professional man who had evidently forsaken God all his life, and whom God forsook in the hour of death. He then sought God earnestly, but it was too late. He could not find Him. When I prayed with him, he tried to follow my petitions, but his mind--distracted and bewildered--would not allow him. He told me over and over again that he sought to pray, but he never could find words. He also told me that he endeavoured to write his prayer upon a slate, but that his fingers refused to move. And in that awful state of mind he went to his final account. Another whom I visited seemed to be actually amid the pains of hell, whilst his body was still upon earth. As the large drops of perspiration stood upon his agonised forehead he exclaimed, There is nothing you can tell me. I know it all. I have heard these things from you and from others, and that is my misery. I am entering hell with my eyes wide open. These are no imaginary cases. Cast off for ever. (C. Clayton, M. A.)
Spiritual aspects of man
We may look at these words as presenting man to us in three solemn aspects.
I. As inspected by the eye of God. God knows each individual man thoroughly. He does not overlook the units in the millions. Thoughts, purposes, feelings fall under His searching glance (Psa_139:4). This should impress us--
1. With the importance of our existence.
2. With the solemnity of our existence.
II. As invited to the friendship of God.
1. This is worth seeking.
2. This requires seeking.
III. As threatened with the displeasure of God. God, says an old author, never casts men off until they first cast Him off. (Homilist.)
Genuine piety a search for God
I. It is a personal search for God.
1. It is a search for Him, not His.
2. It is a search for Him, not His presence. All men are in His presence. To have Him is to have His heart, His sympathies, His love.
II. It is a voluntary search for God. All genuine religion is uncoerced and free: Will ye also go away, etc.
III. It is a successful search for God: He will be found of thee. This discovery is--
1. Conditional.
2. Transcendent. Find Him.
3. Individual: Thee. The man who has sought Him--no one else. (Homilist.)
But if thou forsake Him, He will cast thee off for ever.--
The nature, cause, and danger of the sin of apostasy
I. The sin against which this threatening is pronounced.
1. Apostasy is a total renunciation of the principles, the practice, and profession of true religion. It is attended with the greatest aggravations of which any crime is capable.
(1) Other sins may be committed through the surprise of a sudden and violent temptation. This is a determined and deliberate act, the result of thought and choice; and a perverted and abused understanding approves the choice, so that the apostate goes astray with the full bent of his will.
(2) It always carries in it a secret malignity against true religion.
(3) Apostasy hardens the heart, sears the conscience, and renders it almost wholly incapable of any serious impressions, either from religion or reason.
2. The ordinary ways by which men are drawn into it.
(1) A great zeal for little things is one remote cause. When a man is convinced that his zeal has abused his understanding, and led him wrong, he is for throwing it all off at once, and apt to degenerate into a total indifference about all religion.
(2) A weak affectation of seeing further and appearing wiser than other men.
(3) Some secret, predominant vice or unconquered lust which men care not to part with. If a mans religion does not make him averse to sin, sin will make him averse to religion.
(4) An excessive love of the world--the pleasures, profits, or the preferments of it.
(5) A partial backsliding in religion. This partial backsliding generally begins with light thoughts of sin, frequent neglects of duty, or a careless, irreverent performance of it.
(6) Inconsideration, or a thoughtlessness of futurity.
(7) Reading infidel or profane books.
(8) Wicked company. Nothing more contagious than the breath of a profane man. The world is governed by examples. Bad examples are commonly most attractive, and especially when set by those whom in other respects we much esteem.
II. The threatening denounced against it.
1. All obstinate and final apostates shall hereafter be totally rejected of their Maker. They shall never more be received into favour. (J. Mason.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain Special Encouragement Addressed to Solomon
Special Encouragement Addressed to Solomon
v. 9. And thou, Solomon, my son, know thou the God of thy father, who had so often helped David out of his troubles, and serve Him with a perfect heart, with undivided allegiance, and with a willing mind; for the Lord searcheth all hearts and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts, wherefore a mere hand and lip service cannot deceive Him. If thou seek Him, desiring His inner acquaintance in true love and service, He will be found of thee; but if thou forsake Him, He will cast thee off forever, this being the manner employed by the Lord to this day; He wants heart-service, not mere head-knowledge.
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v. 10. Take heed, now, watch closely, mark well; for the Lord hath chosen thee to build an house for the Sanctuary, to serve as a place dedicated to the Lord; be strong and do it.
v. 11. Then David gave to Solomon, his son, the pattern, the model, or sketch, of the porch, that immediately before the Sanctuary, or Temple proper, and of the houses thereof, all the buildings of the Temple, and of the treasuries thereof, and of the upper chambers thereof, those flanking the Sanctuary, used as storerooms for the vestments of the priests and other precious things, and of the inner parlors thereof, the portico before the Sanctuary and the Holy Place, and of the place of the mercy-seat, the Most Holy Place,
v. 12. and the pattern of all that he had by the spirit, of all that his spirit had in thought, of everything that was in his mind, which he had caused the architects and draftsmen to sketch and to model, of the courts of the house of the Lord, that of the priests and that of the people, and of all the chambers round about, also those used for the assembling of the ministers in charge and for living quarters, of the treasuries of the house of God, where the regular income of the Temple was placed, and of the treasuries of the dedicated things, where special freewill gifts, especially of precious metals, were placed:
v. 13. also for the courses of the priests and the Levites, as David had determined them, and for all the work of the service of the house of the Lord, and for all the vessels of service in the house of the Lord. Cf 1Ch 23:26.
v. 14. He gave, or rather, stated, of gold by weight for things of gold, giving the weight or amount of the precious metal to be used in making the various vessels and appointments, for all instruments of all manner of service; silver also for all instruments of silver by weight, for all instruments of every kind of service;
v. 15. even the weight for the candlesticks of gold and for their lamps of gold, by weight for every candlestick and for the lamps thereof, these being intended for use in the Sanctuary, and for the candlesticks of silver by weight, both for the candlestick and also for the lamps thereof, according to the use of every candlestick, these silver candlesticks probably being used in the courts and chambers. The lamps of the candlesticks are mentioned separately because they were daily filled with oil and placed in the cup or blossom-shaped containers on the arms of the candlesticks.
v. 16. And by weight he gave, or stated, gold for the tables of showbread, the one table for this bread here being included with the stands for the candlesticks, for every table, and likewise silver for the tables of silver, for the stands which held the silver candlesticks;
v. 17. also pure gold for the flesh-hooks, the forks used in cooking the pieces of the sacrifices, and the bowls, the sprinkling-bowls used so much in sacrificial worship, and the cups, the covered cans, or tankards, used in drink-offerings; and for the golden basins he gave gold by weight for every basin, stating how much should be used in each instance; and likewise silver by weight for every basin of silver;
v. 18. and for the altar of incense refined gold by weight, to cover the entire frame-work of acacia-wood; and gold for the pattern of the chariot of the cherubim, the mercy seat being called so on account of the fact that the cherubim were represented with their wings extended as if moving rapidly, that spread out their wings, and covered the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord.
v. 19. All this, said David, the Lord made me understand in writing by His hand upon me, even all the works of this pattern. It is probable that David, in a vision, saw the entire edifice, with all its separate buildings and appointments, so clearly that he was enabled to have the sketches and the models made exactly as they had appeared to him at that time.
v. 20. And David said to Solomon, his son, taking up his admonition once more where he stopped when showing the models, Be strong and of good courage and do it; fear not nor be dismayed, the entire trend of the address showing unflinching confidence and steadfast determination; for the Lord God, even my God, the one whom David had served so faithfully all his life, will be with thee. He will not fail thee nor forsake thee until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the Lord.
v. 21. And. Behold, the courses of the priests and the Levites, who were surely also represented in the assembly on that day, even they shall be with thee for all the service of the house of God; and there shall be with thee for all manner of workmanship every willing skilful man for any manner of service, the skilled artisan as well as the ordinary craftsman or workman; also the princes and all the people will be wholly at thy commandment; of this David was convinced from his acquaintance with them all and from the cheerful loyalty they had shown him for more than thirty years, except in the matter of the rebellion of Absalom. It is well-pleasing to God and serves as a great encouragement to His servants if all men, great and small, stand together for the purpose of building His kingdom on earth, no matter what special business may be at hand.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 the God of your father
the God of your father
David calls himself "your father" because this is a very formal occasion. AT: "my God" (See: First, Second, or Third Person)
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with your whole heart
Here the "heart" the represents the whole person. To do something with "your whole heart" is an idiom. AT: "with complete devotion" or "completely" (See: Synecdoche and Idiom)
a willing spirit
Here the "spirit" represents the whole person and emphasizes the person's will. AT: "willingly" (See: Synecdoche)
searches all hearts and understands every motivation of everyone's thoughts
These two phrases mean basically the same thing and emphasize that Yahweh knows the thoughts and motives of every person. (See: Parallelism)
all hearts
Here people's "hearts" represent their feelings and desires. AT: "searches everyone's emotions and desires" (See: Metonymy)
If you seek him, he will be found by you
This can be written in active form. Also, this speaks of following Yahweh and having him listen to you as searching for him and finding him. AT: "If you seek him, you will find him" or "If you try to get Yahweh to pay attention to you, he will do so" (See: Active or Passive and Metaphor)
Realize that
"Be aware that" or "Be sure you remember that"
Be strong and do it
The word "strong" here refers to willpower and strength of character.
translationWords
Solomon
obey
God
servant
heart
spirit
seek
reject
temple
sanctuary
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 28:9-10 David’s message to Solomon did not stress the…
28:9-10 David’s message to Solomon did not stress the privileges of being chosen as king but emphasized the responsibilities of assuming the throne. The primary obligation was to seek the Lord, to worship and serve him. The Lord also required an unflinching resolve to build the Temple sanctuary.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.