1 Kings 8:31
in 1 Kings 8When a man sins against his neighbor and is required to take an oath, and he comes to take an oath before Your altar in this temple,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
If a man sin against his neighbor, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and he come and swear before thine altar in this house;
KJV
If any man trespass against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house:
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This verse in 1 Kings 8
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The oath come before ... - “The oath” is equivalent to “the man who swears the oath.” A slight alteration in the present Hebrew text gives the sense “and he (the accused) go and swear before thine altar,” etc. The threats and the promises, the punishments and calamities of 1Ki 8:31-38 were distinctly named in the Law. See the margin reference.
This site's exposition
trespass against his neighbour
on 1 Kings 8:31-32
The first case is judicial, an oath sworn at the altar to settle a dispute with no witnesses, the practice Wesley locates in the ordinary court procedure of Ex 22:11. Solomon asks the Lord to judge between the two parties himself, condemning the wicked and justifying the righteous exactly as their own conduct deserves. It is the shortest of the seven petitions and the only one that asks for a verdict rather than for mercy, setting the pattern before the harder cases begin.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Trespass - If he be accused of a trespass. Laid on him - Either by the judge, or by the party accusing him, or by the accused person himself: which was usual, when there were no witnesses. Thine altar - For here God, who was appealed to as witness, was especially present.
He prayed that, in difficult matters, this throne of grace might be a throne of judgment, from which God would right the injured that believingly appealed to it, and punish the injurious that presumptuously appealed to it. It was usual to swear by the temple and altar ( Matt. xxiii.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
If any man trespass against his neighbour,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
If any man trespass against his neighbor - Solomon puts here seven cases, in all of which the mercy and intervention of God would be indispensably requisite; and he earnestly bespeaks that mercy and intervention on condition that the people pray towards that holy place, and with a feeling heart make earnest supplication. The First case is one of doubtfulness; where a man has sustained an injury, and charges it on a suspected person, though not able to bring direct evidence of the fact, the accused is permitted to come before the altar of God, and purge himself by his personal oath. Solomon prays that God may not permit a false oath to be taken, but that he will discover the truth, so that the wicked shall be condemned, and the righteous justified.
The words behind it
15 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אֵת֩ | ʾet | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֨ר | ʾasher | [that] which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יֶחֱטָ֥א | yecheta' | he will sin | H2398 → | 238 times |
| אִישׁ֙ | ʾish | anyone | H376 → | 1663 times |
| לְרֵעֵ֔הוּ | lereehu | to neighbor his | H7453 → | 188 times |
| וְנָֽשָׁא־ | venasha'- | and he will impose | H5378 → | |
| ב֥וֹ | vo | on him | ||
| אָלָ֖ה | ʾalah | an oath | H423 → | |
| לְהַֽאֲלֹת֑וֹ | lehaaloto | to put under an oath him | H422 → | |
| וּבָ֗א | uva' | and he will come | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אָלָ֛ה | ʾalah | he will swear an oath | H422 → | |
| לִפְנֵ֥י | lifnei | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| מִֽזְבַּחֲךָ֖ | mizbachakha | altar your | H4196 → | 401 times |
| בַּבַּ֥יִת | babayit | in the house | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| הַזֶּֽה׃ | hazeh | <the> this | H2088 → | 1180 times |
אֵת֩<obj.>
ʾetH853 →10935 times
אֲשֶׁ֨ר[that] which
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
יֶחֱטָ֥אhe will sin
yecheta'H2398 →238 times
אִישׁ֙anyone
ʾishH376 →1663 times
לְרֵעֵ֔הוּto neighbor his
lereehuH7453 →188 times
וְנָֽשָׁא־and he will impose
venasha'-H5378 →
ב֥וֹon him
vo
אָלָ֖הan oath
ʾalahH423 →
לְהַֽאֲלֹת֑וֹto put under an oath him
lehaalotoH422 →
וּבָ֗אand he will come
uva'H935 →2568 times
אָלָ֛הhe will swear an oath
ʾalahH422 →
לִפְנֵ֥י<to> before
lifneiH6440 →2123 times
מִֽזְבַּחֲךָ֖altar your
mizbachakhaH4196 →401 times
בַּבַּ֥יִתin the house
babayitH1004 →2046 times
הַזֶּֽה׃<the> this
hazehH2088 →1180 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Proverbs 30:9Otherwise, I may have too much and deny You, saying, ‘Who is the LORD?’ Or I may become poor and steal, profaning the name of my God.
it leads to
- Hosea 13:6
When they had pasture, they became satisfied; when they were satisfied, their hearts became proud, and as a result they forgot Me.
- Deuteronomy 31:20
When I have brought them into the land that I swore to give their fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey, they will eat their fill and prosper. Then they will turn to…
- Ezekiel 16:49–50
Now this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed, and complacent; they did not help the poor and needy.
- Deuteronomy 8:10–14
When you eat and are satisfied, you are to bless the LORD your God for the good land that He has given you.
- Deuteronomy 32:15
But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked—becoming fat, bloated, and gorged. He abandoned the God who made him and scorned the Rock of his salvation.
- Hosea 13:6
Through
Leviticus 5:1“If someone sins by failing to testify when he hears a public charge about something he has witnessed, whether he has seen it or learned of it, he shall bear the iniquity.
it leads to
- Leviticus 5:17
If someone sins and violates any of the LORD’s commandments even though he was unaware, he is guilty and shall bear his punishment.
- Proverbs 29:24
A partner to a thief hates his own soul; he receives the oath, but does not testify.
- Matthew 26:63
But Jesus remained silent. Then the high priest said to Him, “I charge You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God.”
- Leviticus 5:17
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About 1 Kings
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.