As for you, if you will walk before me, as David your father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, and will keep my statutes and my ordinances; then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, as I promised to David your father, saying, ‘There shall not fail from you a man on the throne of Israel.’ 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.’ ”
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1 Kings 9:4-9 sits inside this longer paragraph.
When Solomon had finished the building of Yahweh’s house, the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he was pleased to do, Yahweh appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. Yahweh said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your supplication, that you have made before me. I have made this house holy, which you have built, to put my name there forever; and my eyes and my heart shall be there perpetually. As for you, if you will walk before me, as David your father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, and will keep my statutes and my ordinances; then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, as I promised to David your father, saying, ‘There shall not fail from you a man on the throne of Israel.’ 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.’ ”
Parallel Translations
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As for you, if you will walk before me, as David your father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, and will keep my statutes and my ordinances;
then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, as I promised to David your father, saying, ‘There shall not fail from you a man on the throne of Israel.’
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.’ ”
-
And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:
Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them:
Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people:
And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?
And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD brought upon them all this evil.
Show all 3 translations
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And as for thee, if thou wilt walk before Me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep My statutes and Mine ordinances;
then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom over Israel for ever; according as I promised to David thy father, saying: There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
But if ye shall turn away from following Me, ye or your children, and not keep My commandments and My statutes which I have set before you, but shall go and serve other gods, and worship them;
then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for My name, will I cast out of My sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a by word among all peoples;
and this house which is so high shall become desolate, and every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and when they shall say: Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?
they shall be answered: Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshipped them, and served them; therefore hath the LORD brought all this evil upon them.'
Cross-references (85)
- 1 Kings 15:5 (v4) because David did that which was right in Yahweh’s eyes, and didn’t turn away from anything that he commanded him all the days of his life,…
- 1 Kings 3:14 (v4) If you will walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.”
- Psalms 44:14 (v7) You make us a byword among the nations, a shaking of the head among the peoples.
- Jeremiah 24:9 (v7) I will even give them up to be tossed back and forth among all the kingdoms of the earth for evil; to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt…
- Genesis 17:1 (v4) When Abram was ninety-nine years old, Yahweh appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty. Walk before me and be blameless.
Show all 85 cross-references
- Deuteronomy 29:24-26 (v8) Even all the nations will say, “Why has Yahweh done this to this land? What does the heat of this great anger mean?” Then men will say,…
- 1 Kings 2:4 (v5) Then Yahweh may establish his word which he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your children are careful of their way, to walk before me in…
- Jeremiah 22:8-9 (v8) “Many nations will pass by this city, and they will each ask his neighbor, ‘Why has Yahweh done this to this great city?’ Then they will…
- Deuteronomy 4:26 (v7) I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you will soon utterly perish from off the land which you go over the Jordan to…
- Deuteronomy 28:37 (v7) You will become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword among all the peoples where Yahweh will lead you away.
- 1 Kings 6:12 (v5) “Concerning this house which you are building, if you will walk in my statutes, and execute my ordinances, and keep all my commandments to…
- 1 Kings 11:4 (v4) When Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not perfect with Yahweh his God, as the heart of…
- 1 Kings 11:6 (v4) Solomon did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, and didn’t go fully after Yahweh, as David his father did.
- Jeremiah 2:19 (v9) “Your own wickedness will correct you, and your backsliding will rebuke you. Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing,…
- Leviticus 18:24-28 (v7) “ ‘Don’t defile yourselves in any of these things; for in all these the nations which I am casting out before you were defiled. The land…
- Deuteronomy 28:1 (v4) It shall happen, if you shall listen diligently to Yahweh your God’s voice, to observe to do all his commandments which I command you…
- 2 Samuel 7:12 (v5) When your days are fulfilled, and you sleep with your fathers, I will set up your offspring after you, who will proceed out of your body,…
- 2 Samuel 7:16 (v5) Your house and your kingdom will be made sure forever before you. Your throne will be established forever.” ’ ”
- 1 Kings 11:38 (v4) It shall be, if you will listen to all that I command you, and will walk in my ways, and do that which is right in my eyes, to keep my…
- 1 Kings 14:8 (v4) and tore the kingdom away from David’s house, and gave it you; and yet you have not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and…
- 2 Kings 25:9 (v7) He burned Yahweh’s house, the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, even every great house, he burned with fire.
- 2 Kings 25:21 (v7) The king of Babylon attacked them, and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away captive out of his land.
- 2 Chronicles 7:21 (v8) This house, which is so high, everyone who passes by it shall be astonished, and shall say, ‘Why has Yahweh done this to this land and to…
- Psalms 26:11 (v4) But as for me, I will walk in my integrity. Redeem me, and be merciful to me.
- Proverbs 28:18 (v4) Whoever walks blamelessly is kept safe; but one with perverse ways will fall suddenly.
- Jeremiah 5:19 (v9) It will happen when you say, ‘Why has Yahweh our God done all these things to us?’ Then you shall say to them, ‘Just as you have forsaken…
- Zechariah 3:7 (v4) “Yahweh of Armies says: ‘If you will walk in my ways, and if you will follow my instructions, then you also shall judge my house, and shall…
- Luke 1:6 (v4) They were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord.
- Luke 21:24 (v7) They will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled down by the Gentiles,…
- Deuteronomy 29:25-28 (v9) Then men will say, “Because they abandoned the covenant of Yahweh, the God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them…
- Deuteronomy 29:26-28 (v7) and went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods that they didn’t know and that he had not given to them. Therefore Yahweh’s anger…
- 2 Samuel 7:14-16 (v6) I will be his father, and he will be my son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the…
- 1 Kings 8:15 (v5) He said, “Blessed is Yahweh, the God of Israel, who spoke with his mouth to David your father, and has with his hand fulfilled it, saying,
- 1 Kings 8:20 (v5) Yahweh has established his word that he spoke; for I have risen up in the place of David my father, and I sit on the throne of Israel, as…
- 1 Kings 8:25 (v4) Now therefore, may Yahweh, the God of Israel, keep with your servant David my father that which you have promised him, saying, ‘There shall…
- 1 Chronicles 22:9-10 (v5) Behold, a son shall be born to you, who shall be a man of peace. I will give him rest from all his enemies all around; for his name shall…
- 1 Chronicles 28:9 (v6) 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…
- 2 Chronicles 7:17-18 (v4) “As for you, if you will walk before me as David your father walked, and do according to all that I have commanded you, and will keep my…
- 2 Chronicles 7:20 (v7) then I will pluck them up by the roots out of my land which I have given them; and this house, which I have made holy for my name, I will…
- 2 Chronicles 7:22 (v9) They shall answer, ‘Because they abandoned Yahweh, the God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and took other…
- 2 Chronicles 36:19 (v7) They burned God’s house, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and burned all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all of its valuable…
- Job 23:11-12 (v4) My foot has held fast to his steps. I have kept his way, and not turned away. I haven’t gone back from the commandment of his lips. I have…
- Psalms 15:2 (v4) He who walks blamelessly and does what is right, and speaks truth in his heart;
- Psalms 26:1 (v4) Judge me, Yahweh, for I have walked in my integrity. I have trusted also in Yahweh without wavering.
- Psalms 89:28-39 (v5) I will keep my loving kindness for him forever more. My covenant will stand firm with him. I will also make his offspring endure forever,…
- Psalms 132:11-12 (v5) Yahweh has sworn to David in truth. He will not turn from it: “I will set the fruit of your body on your throne. If your children will keep…
- Jeremiah 2:10-13 (v9) For pass over to the islands of Kittim, and see. Send to Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if there has been such a thing. Has a…
- Jeremiah 19:8 (v8) I will make this city an astonishment and a hissing. Everyone who passes by it will be astonished and hiss because of all its plagues.
- Jeremiah 22:28 (v8) Is this man Coniah a despised broken vessel? Is he a vessel in which no one delights? Why are they cast out, he and his offspring, and cast…
- Jeremiah 26:6 (v7) then I will make this house like Shiloh, and will make this city a curse to all the nations of the earth.” ’ ”
- Lamentations 2:6-7 (v7) He has violently taken away his tabernacle, as if it were of a garden. He has destroyed his place of assembly. Yahweh has caused solemn…
- Ezekiel 33:27-29 (v7) “You shall tell them, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “As I live, surely those who are in the waste places will fall by the sword. I will give he…
- Joel 2:17 (v7) Let the priests, the ministers of Yahweh, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, “Spare your people, Yahweh, and don’t…
- Micah 3:12 (v7) Therefore Zion for your sake will be plowed like a field, and Jerusalem will become heaps of rubble, and the mountain of the temple like…
- 1 Thessalonians 4:1-2 (v4) Finally then, brothers, we beg and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, that…
- Joshua 23:15-16 (v6) It shall happen that as all the good things have come on you of which Yahweh your God spoke to you, so Yahweh will bring on you all the…
- 1 Samuel 2:30 (v6) “Therefore Yahweh, the God of Israel, says, ‘I said indeed that your house and the house of your father should walk before me forever.’ But…
- 1 Kings 9:3 (v7) Yahweh said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your supplication, that you have made before me. I have made this house holy, which you…
- 1 Kings 11:4-10 (v6) When Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not perfect with Yahweh his God, as the heart of…
- 2 Kings 17:20-23 (v7) Yahweh rejected all the offspring of Israel, afflicted them, and delivered them into the hands of raiders, until he had cast them out of…
- 2 Chronicles 7:19-22 (v6) But if you turn away, and forsake my statutes and my commandments which I have set before you, and shall go and serve other gods, and…
- 2 Chronicles 15:2 (v6) 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…
- Nehemiah 4:1-4 (v7) But when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry, and was very indignant, and mocked the Jews. He spoke before his…
- Psalms 89:30 (v6) If his children forsake my law, and don’t walk in my ordinances;
- Psalms 89:32 (v6) then I will punish their sin with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.
- Proverbs 10:9 (v4) He who walks blamelessly walks surely, but he who perverts his ways will be found out.
- Proverbs 20:7 (v4) A righteous man walks in integrity. Blessed are his children after him.
- Isaiah 64:11 (v8) Our holy and our beautiful house where our fathers praised you is burned with fire. All our pleasant places are laid waste.
- Isaiah 65:15 (v7) You will leave your name for a curse to my chosen; and the Lord Yahweh will kill you. He will call his servants by another name,
- Jeremiah 7:4-15 (v7) Don’t trust in lying words, saying, ‘Yahweh’s temple, Yahweh’s temple, Yahweh’s temple, are these.’ For if you thoroughly amend your ways…
- Jeremiah 12:7-8 (v9) “I have forsaken my house. I have cast off my heritage. I have given the dearly beloved of my soul into the hand of her enemies. My…
- Jeremiah 16:10-13 (v9) It will happen, when you tell this people all these words, and they ask you, ‘Why has Yahweh pronounced all this great evil against us?’ or…
- Jeremiah 26:18 (v7) “Micah the Morashtite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and he spoke to all the people of Judah, saying, ‘Yahweh of Armies…
- Jeremiah 49:17 (v8) “Edom will become an astonishment. Everyone who passes by it will be astonished, and will hiss at all its plagues.
- Jeremiah 50:7 (v9) All who found them have devoured them. Their adversaries said, ‘We are not guilty, because they have sinned against Yahweh, the habitation…
- Jeremiah 50:13 (v8) Because of Yahweh’s wrath she won’t be inhabited, but she will be wholly desolate. Everyone who goes by Babylon will be astonished, and…
- Jeremiah 52:13 (v7) He burned Yahweh’s house, and the king’s house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, even every great house, he burned with fire.
- Lamentations 2:15-16 (v7) All that pass by clap their hands at you. They hiss and wag their head at the daughter of Jerusalem, saying, “Is this the city that men…
- Lamentations 2:16-17 (v9) All your enemies have opened their mouth wide against you. They hiss and gnash their teeth. They say, “We have swallowed her up. Certainly…
- Lamentations 4:13-15 (v9) It is because of the sins of her prophets and the iniquities of her priests, That have shed the blood of the just in the middle of her.…
- Ezekiel 24:21 (v7) ‘Speak to the house of Israel, “The Lord Yahweh says: ‘Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the desire of your…
- Ezekiel 36:17-20 (v9) “Son of man, when the house of Israel lived in their own land, they defiled it by their ways and by their deeds. Their way before me was as…
- Daniel 9:12 (v8) He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us, and against our judges who judged us, by bringing on us a great evil; for under the…
- Zephaniah 1:4-5 (v9) I will stretch out my hand against Judah, and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place:…
- Matthew 24:2 (v7) But he answered them, “You see all of these things, don’t you? Most certainly I tell you, there will not be left here one stone on another,…
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (16 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv4, 6, 7 If thou walk in my fear, and withdraw thyself…
If thou walk in my fear, and withdraw thyself from the common manner of men, which follow their sensuality.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv4–9 1Ki 9:4 And if thou wilt walk before me,…
1Ki 9:4 And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, [and] wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:
Ver. 4. To do according to all.] "All" is a little word, but of large extent. He doeth not God’s will, but his own will, who doeth no more than himself will. Everything must be done as well as anything, else we do nothing.
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 On vv4–8 As David thy father walked; who, though he miscarried…
As David thy father walked; who, though he miscarried in some things, yet in the general course of his life was upright and faithful towards me.
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 On vv4–9 And if thou wilt walk before me, as David…
And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness..... Who, though guilty of many sins and failings in life, yet was sincere and upright in the worship of God, never apostatized from it, or fell into idolatry, which is what is chiefly respected:
to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments; observe all the laws of God, moral, ceremonial, and judicial.
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 On vv5, 8 Then - Upon that condition; for my promise to…
Then - Upon that condition; for my promise to David was conditional.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv7, 9 Verse 7. A proverb and a by-word among all…
Verse 7. A proverb and a by-word among all people] And so they are to the present; the unbelieving Jews, the stubborn, stiff-necked Jews, are words still in common use. They forsook the Lord, rejected his Christ, and are cast off, their temple destroyed, and they scattered over the face of the earth.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv4, 6, 8 1Ki 9:4-5. If thou wilt walk before me, &c.…
1Ki 9:4-5. If thou wilt walk before me, &c. — He shows him that he and his people were for the future upon their good behaviour: Let them not be secure now, as if they might conduct themselves as they please, having the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord among them, Jer 7:4. No: this house was designed to protect them in their allegiance to God, not in their rebellion against him, or disobedience to him. As David thy father walked — Who, though he foully miscarried in some things, yet in the general course of his life was upright and faithful, especially in things relating to the worship of God and civil government. Then will I establish the throne of thy kingdom — Upon that condition, and not otherwise; for my promise to David was conditional, Psa 132:12. If we perform our part of the condition, God will not fail to perform his. If we improve the grace God has given us, he will confirm us to the end. Let not the children of godly parents expect the entail of the blessing, unless they tread in the steps of those that are gone before them, and keep up the virtue and piety of their ancestors.
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 On vv4, 6, 8 See 1Ki 3:14. Solomon’s subsequent fall lends to these…
See 1Ki 3:14. Solomon’s subsequent fall lends to these repeated warnings a special interest.
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 On vv4, 6, 7, 8 Simplicity of heart. That is, in the sincerity and…
Simplicity of heart. That is, in the sincerity and integrity of a single heart, as opposite to all double-dealing and deceit. (Challoner) --- External worship alone will not be acceptable. (Worthington) --- "God is worshipped by faith, hope, and charity." (St. Augustine, Ench. iii.)
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 On v8 this house, which is high--"high," either in point of…
this house, which is high--"high," either in point of situation, for it was built on a hill, and therefore conspicuous to every beholder; or "high" in respect to privilege, honor, and renown; or this "house of the Most High," notwithstanding all its beauty and magnificence, shall be destroyed, and remain in such a state of ruin and degradation as to be a striking monument of the just judgment of God. The record of this second vision, in which were rehearsed the conditions of God's covenant with Solomon and the consequences of breaking them, is inserted here as a proper introduction to the narrative about to be given of this king's commercial enterprises and ambitious desire for worldly glory; for this king, by encouraging an influx of foreign people and a taste for foreign luxuries, rapidly corrupted his own mind and that of this subjects, so that they turned from following God, they and their children (Kg1 9:6).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv7–8 7. A proverb and a byword — The very…
7. A proverb and a byword — The very name Israel will become a proverbial expression significant of disastrous failure; nay, more — a byword, a pointed, sarcastic term, ever suggestive of scorn and mockery. Compare Deu_28:37.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv4, 6, 7, 8, 9 4. I have commanded thee] The LXX. reads ‘I…
4. I have commanded thee] The LXX. reads ‘I commanded him,’ making the clause refer to David.
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 On vv5, 7, 8, 9 (5) If thou wilt walk.—The fall of the house…
(5) If thou wilt walk.—The fall of the house of Solomon from dominion over all Israel is an emphatic comment on the conditional nature of this promise. Yet the essence of the covenant with David was kept in that preservation of the diminished kingdom to an unbroken succession of his descendants—singularly contrasted with the changes of dynasty in the greater rival kingdom—which is expressly declared to have been granted “for David’s sake” (1Ki_11:12-13).
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 On vv4–9 And Heb. And thou, emphatic if thou wilt walk…
And Heb. And thou, emphatic if thou wilt walk before me as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart before me and in uprightness. (cf. 1Ki_3:6, 14 11:34) David was not perfect, as our author tells us elsewhere (1Ki_15:5; cf. 1Ki_1:6; 2Sa_24:10) His integrity consisted in his unvarying loyalty to the true God. Even when overcome by that fierce temptation (2Sa 11) he never faltered in his allegiance to the truth. There was no coquetting with idolatrous practices; cf., Psa_18:20-24 to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments the echo of David"s last words, 1Ki_2:3, 1Ki_2:4. It is probable, however, that the historian has only preserved the substance of the message. It is doubtful whether Solomon himself would remember the exact words.
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 On vv4, 6 If thou writ walk before Me, as David thy…
1Ki_9:4
If thou writ walk before Me, as David thy father walked.
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Imperativeness of law
General Grant, while president, caused the injury of a woman by his fast driving. He invited a police officer to enter his buggy, and drove with him to the police station, where he paid a fine of twenty dollars for fast and reckless driving. President MKinley once had to reprove his driver for crossing a chalk-line which marked the limit of space allowed to carriages. He leaned his head out of the window, apologised to the policeman in charge, and ordered his driver to obey the rule at once. Obedience comes hard when we think that for some reason we ought to be exceptions to the rules that govern others. (J. B. Morgan.)
The power of a sainted parent
After the news of his fathers death, Thomas Carlyle set himself to describe with pride his peasant parent. A living picture he gives: the large head, grey ever since he could remember; the strong face, full of earnestness; the clear eyes, through which honesty streamed--his dear, good father! Only a common farmer, though. Digging and ditching were part of his work. He drove the plough through the furrow. But, writes Thomas, his son also is part of his work. An inspiring example I owe him. The pale face stiffened into death will certainly impel me. I seem to myself the second volume of my father. The dead spirit of the Ecclefechan farmer lived in the brilliant writer of books. The instructions of his father soaked into his very flesh and bone. He, being dead, yet shaped his life. O blessed office of parenthood! (F. Y. Leggatt.)
The law of obedience
To that law of truth that firmly fixes foundations for cathedrals, Ruskin adds the law of obedience. In springing his wall the architect must plumb the stones of obedience to the law of gravity. In springing his arch he must brace it, obeying the laws of resistance. In lifting his tower he must relate it to the temple, obeying the law of proportion and symmetry; and he who disobeys one fundamental law will find great nature puking his towers down over his head. For no architect builds as he pleases, but only as nature pleases, through laws of gravity, and stone and steel. In the kingdom of the soul also obedience is strength and life, and disobedience is weakness and death. In the last analysis liberty is a phantom, a dream, a mere figment of the brain. Societys greatest peril of to-day is the demagogues who teach, and the ignorant classes who believe that there is such a thing as liberty. The planets have no liberty; they follow their sun. The seas know no liberty; they follow the moon in tidal waves. When the river refuses to keep within its banks, it becomes a curse and a destruction. It is the stream that is restrained by its banks that turns mill wheels for men. The clouds, too, have their beauty in that they are led forth in ranks and columns generaled by the night winds. And in proportion as things pass from littleness towards largeness they go toward obedience to law. (N. D. Hillis, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv4, 6, 8 if you walk before me as David your father…
if you walk before me as David your father walked
The way a person lives is spoken of as if that person were walking on a path. AT: "if you live the way I want you to live, just as David your father did" (See: Metaphor)
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in integrity of heart and in uprightness
These two phrases mean basically the same thing and emphasize how righteous David was. (See: Doublet)
the throne of your kingdom
Here "throne" refers to his reign. AT: "your dynasty" or "your reign" (See: Metonymy)
will never fail to be on the throne of Israel
The action of ruling a kingdom is spoken of as if it were a person sitting on a throne. This can be expressed positively. AT: "will always rule over Israel" (See: Metonymy and Litotes)
translationWords
walk
David
integrity
heart
obey
command
statute
decree
throne
kingdom
Israel
eternity
descend
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.