Word of Encouragement (01/07/2025)

“If your people Israel are defeated before the enemy because they have sinned against you, and they turn again and acknowledge your name and pray and plead with you in this house, ²⁵ then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them again to the land that you gave to them and to their fathers. (2 Chron. 6:24–25)

Here, Solomon prays that the LORD would hear His people’s prayer of confession toward the temple, grant forgiveness to them, and restore them to the land. Israel was experiencing unprecedented prosperity under Solomon’s reign. On that day, they were also celebrating the joyous occasion of dedicating the temple to the LORD, which was the pinnacle of their religious devotion.

But Solomon knew too well that they were a sinful people. As their forefathers grumbled and rebelled against the LORD even though they experienced His redemption from Egypt through many signs and wonders, grumbled, they, too, would often forget about the LORD and all that He had done for them and rebel against Him. He also knew of God’s promise: “But if you will not obey the voice of the LORD your God or be careful to do all his commandments and his statutes that I command you today, then all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you.... The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You shall go out one way against them and flee seven ways before them. And you shall be a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth” (Deut. 28:15, 25). Solomon knew that this had happened many times already in Israel’s history. Think of the period of the judges. He also knew it would happen again—it was not a matter of if but when.

Even so, Solomon also knew that God was “merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (Ex. 34:6). As certain as he was about Israel’s future sins, he was also certain—more certain!—that God would not reject Israel’s prayers for His forgiveness and mercy. So, he offers this prayer at the dedication of the temple.

Solomon was right. God heard his prayer. God was gracious to forgive when His people pleaded with Him time and again. Even when He had to chase them out of the promised land for their repeated, persistent, and unrepentant rebellion against Him and exiled them in Babylon, God brought them back when Daniel prayed a prayer of confession (Lev. 26:40-42; Dan. 9:1-4). But Israel (by that time, only Judah) was never the same after the exile. Even until Jesus’ time, Israel was never free from foreign occupation except for a brief time.

But God did not ignore Solomon’s prayer. He answered his prayer far beyond what he asked or thought (Eph. 3:20). For God’s people have an enemy far worse than any foreign nation—sin, death, Satan, and hell. Even though they fell into the terrible bondage of them all by their sins, God heard their cry for deliverance and accomplished their redemption through Jesus Christ. He crushed the head of the Serpent, put death to death, closed up the gate of hell forever against the people of God, and removed the sting of sin by His atoning sacrifice. So, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Let us close with what John says a couple of verses later: “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 2:1).