1 Kings 8:43

1Ki 8:43 Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for: that all people of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as [do] thy people Israel; and that they may know that this house, which I have builded, is called by thy name.

Ver. 43. That all people of the earth.] "O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come." {Psa 65:2} {See Trapp on "Psa 65:2"}

As do thy people Israel.] Either they do, or should do, for the good example of others. Aliter deteriores quidem sunt quia meliores esse deberent: {a} else they are so much the worse, because they ought to be better than others.

{a} Salvian.

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.

1Ki 8:43. Do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for — That is, so far as is agreeable to thy word and will. It is observable, that his prayer for the stranger is more large and comprehensive than for the Israelites; that thereby he might both show his public spirit, and encourage strangers to the worship of the true God. Thus early were the indications of God’s favour toward the sinners of the Gentiles. As there was then one law for the native and for the stranger, so there was one gospel for both. That all the people of the earth may know thy name — Hereby we learn how sincerely and heartily the ancient and godly Jews desired the conversion of the Gentiles; whereas the latter and degenerate Jews, in the days of Christ and of the apostles, out of pride, envy, and malice, opposed and fretted at it. That they may know that this house is called by thy name — Is owned not only by us, but by thyself as thy house; the only place in the world to which thou wilt vouchsafe thy special presence and protection, and where thou wilt be publicly and solemnly worshipped.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

That this is the true religion wherewith thou wilt be worshipped.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

43. that this house … is called by thy name] The literal rendering of the Hebrew ‘that thy name is called upon this house,’ though not so good English, brings out more of the true notion of the words viz., that God has taken up His abode there, and that there men may approach very near unto Him.

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.

Hear thou in heaven thy dwellingplace,.... The prayer of the stranger:

and do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for; which were consistent with the will of God and his glory, and for the good of the stranger; this is more absolutely and unconditionally expressed than the requests for the Israelites; it is not desired that he would do by them according to their ways, and if they turned from their sins, or knew the plague of their hearts; the reason of which is supposed to be, because the Israelites knew the will of God, when the strangers did not; and therefore it is desired that, notwithstanding their ignorance, and their non-compliance with the divine will, through that, they might be heard and answered:

that all people of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel; might know him to be a God, hearing and answering prayer, forgiving sin, and bestowing favours, which might lead them to fear him and his goodness, as Israel did:

and that they may know that this house, which I have builded, is called by thy name; that he dwelt in it, granted his presence, heard and received the supplications of men, answered their requests, and accepted of their sacrifices here. Solomon seems to have had knowledge of the calling of the Gentiles, and to desire it.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

That all people of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee - Solomon prays that the result of Yahweh’s hearing the prayers of pagans addressed toward the temple may be the general conversion of the world to the worship of Him. Compare Psa 96:1-13; Psa 98:1-9.

This house ... - literally, as in the margin. In Scripture, when God’s Name is said to be “called upon” persons or things, it seems to be meant that God is really present in them, upholding them and sanctifying them. This passage therefore means, that the pagan, when their prayers, directed toward the temple, are granted, will have a full assurance that God is present in the building in some very special way.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for, to wit, agreeable to thy will and word; for he would not have them heard, if they had prayed for any thing dishonourable to God, or destructive to his people. It is observable, that his prayer for the strangers is more large and comprehensive than for the Israelites, that thereby he might both show his public spiritedness, and encourage strangers to the worship of the true God.

That all people may know thy fame, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel; whereby we see how sincerely and heartily the ancient and godly Jews desired the conversion of the Gentiles; whereas the latter and degenerate Jews, in the days of Christ and of the apostles, did envy, oppose it, and fret at it.

Is called by thy name, i.e. is owned, not only by us, but by thyself, as thy house; the only place in the world to which thou wilt vouchsafe thy presence and protection, and wherein thou wilt be publicly and solemnly served.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

43. That all people of the earth may know thy name — Here is one of the Old Testament intimations of the universality of the true religion and true worship of God. Though the national consciousness of Israel was that of separateness from all other nations, yet at times the Spirit lifted it above that exclusiveness, and thrilled it with a momentary grasping after universal brotherhood.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Hear thou in heaven thy dwell-lug place, and do according to an that the stranger calleth to thee for: that all people of the earth may know thy name It is interesting to notice this foreshadowing of the inclusion of the Gentiles in the one fold. The same thought is found in some of the Psalms and in Isaiah, as St. Paul witnesses (Rom_15:9 sqq.) Cf. Psa_22:27 Psa_72:11 Psa_86:9 Psa_98:3 Psa_102:15 Psa_117:1; Isa_49:6 Isa_52:10 to fear thee, as do thy people Israel; and that they may know that this house, which I have builded, is called by thy name. Heb. that thy name is called (or, has been called, arqni. LXX ejpikeklhtai) upon this house, i.e., that God has taken this house for His habitation: that He dwells there, works, hears, answers there. Same expression, Jer_7:10, Jer_7:11, 14 25:29 Deu_28:10 Isa_4:1. In Num_6:27 we have, "they shall put my name upon the children of Israel." In Deu_12:5, and 16:6, (cf. 1Ki_11:36) we read of the place God has "chosen to put his name there.

So far the royal suppliant has spoken of prayers offered in or at the temple. He now mentions two eases where supplications will be offered by penitents far distant from the holy city or even from the Holy Land. And first, he speaks of the armies of Israel on a campaign.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Calleth for - Agreeable to thy will and word. It is observable, that his prayer for the strangers is more large, and comprehensive, than for the Israelites; that thereby he might both shew his public- spiritedness, and encourage strangers to the worship of the true God. Thus early were the indications of God's favour, toward the sinners of the Gentiles. As there was then one law for the native and for the stranger, so there was one gospel for both.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

According to all that the stranger calls out to You. And relating to the Jew it states, “and give to each one according to all his ways,” because the Jew recognizes the Holy One Blessed Is He, and he knows that He has the ability in His power [to answer]; and if his prayers are not heard, he will blame the matter on himself and an account of his sins. But the non-Jew complains and says, “a house [i.e., Beis Hamikdosh], whose fame reaches to the ends of the world, I have exhausted myself on many roads, and have come and prayed in it and found no substance in it, just as there is no substance in idol worship.” Therefore, “according to all that the stranger calls out to You,” but a Jew, if You see that he uses his wealth to destroy his friend, do not give him.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.