1 Kings 8:57

57 May Yahweh our God be with us as he was with our ancestors, and may he not leave us or abandon us,

1 Kings 8:57 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 8:57

The Lord our God be with us as he was with our fathers
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and those that came out of Egypt, and especially that entered into the land of Canaan under Joshua, and subdued it; as the Lord had been with them to guide and direct them, protect and defend them, succeed and prosper them, so Solomon desires he might be with them: nothing is more desirable than the presence of God; Solomon could not have prayed for a greater blessing for himself and his people; the Targum is,

``let the Word of the Lord our God be for our help, as he was for the help of our fathers:''

let him not leave us, nor forsake us:
this was no doubt a prayer of faith, founded upon a divine promise, ( Joshua 1:5 ) .

1 Kings 8:57 In-Context

55 He stood and blessed all of the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying,

56 "Blessed be Yahweh who gave a resting place to his people Israel. According to all that he promised, not one word has fallen from all of his promises [concerning] the good which he spoke through the hand of Moses his servant.

57 May Yahweh our God be with us as he was with our ancestors, and may he not leave us or abandon us,

58 to incline our hearts toward him, to walk in all his ways and to keep his commandments, his statutes, and his judgments which he commanded our ancestors.

59 Let these my words which I pleaded before Yahweh [be] near to Yahweh our God, by day and by night, to maintain the justice of his servant and the justice of his people Israel {as each day requires}

Footnotes

• [a]. Or "fathers"