1 Kings 8:38
in 1 Kings 8then may whatever prayer or petition Your people Israel make—each knowing his own afflictions and spreading out his hands toward this temple—
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
what prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, who shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house:
KJV
What prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house:
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This verse in 1 Kings 8
Commentary
9 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Know every man the plague of his own heart - i. e. perceive one’s sinfulness, or recognize one’s sufferings as divine chastisements, and sin as their cause.
This site's exposition
famine, if there be pestilence
on 1 Kings 8:37-40
The fourth petition gathers famine, pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust and siege into one list, the same catalogue of curses Lev 26 and Deut 28 had already attached to covenant unfaithfulness. Solomon widens the request from the nation as a whole to any man who knows the plague of his own heart, Wesley reading plague there as the sin itself rather than only its penalty, the true sickness beneath every visible one. The petition ends on the Lord's unique knowledge of every heart, thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men, a claim no priest at the altar could make on his own authority.
This site's exposition
each knowing his own afflictions
The word rendered afflictions is the Hebrew for a plague or a stroke, and the verse joins it to the heart. Albert Barnes reads it as a man seeing his suffering as God's chastening and his sin as its cause. Ishodad of Merv places that knowledge after rescue.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
The words "knowing the rebellion of their own heart," mean that, when they are saved, they will know that God had previously turned away from them and had crushed them by misfortunes because they had sinned and acted rebelliously.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Thou knowest which prayer comes from the heart, and which from the lips only." The hearts of kings are not unsearchable to God. [ b. ] To his justice: Give to every man according to his ways; and he will not fail to do so, by the rules of grace, not the law, for then we should all be undone. [ c. ] To his mercy: Hear, and forgive, and do (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens+odd-straight-quotes
The plague - His sin, which may be called the plague of his heart, in opposition to the other plagues here mentioned; so the sense is, who, by their afflictions are brought to a true and serious sense of their worse and inward plague of their sins, which are most fitly called the plague of the heart, because that is both the principal seat of sin, and the fountain from whence all actual sins flow.
What prayer and supplication soever,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
(When the regular congregation unanimously left their seats to be occupied by strangers, who crowded the building to its utmost capacity). You all know that the Temple at Jerusalem was the one place of sacrifice throughout all the holy land, for thus had the Lord spoken, "Whatever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers which sojourn among you, that offers a burnt offering or sacrifice, and brings it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer it unto the Lord: even that man shall be cut off from among his people." According to God's Law there was one altar and it was counted a high crime when the tribes which dwelt beyond Jordan built another. And their brethren sought them, saying, "Rebel not against the Lord in building an altar besides the altar of the Lord our God" (Josh. 22:19). As there was only one high priest, so there was only one altar—and sacrifice might not be offered anywhere else but on that altar at Jerusalem. Therefore, when a man wished to present his offerings to God, he went up to the Temple which Solomon dedicated by the prayer in which our text occurs. The people afterwards built altars on high hills and in green groves, but these places and the sacrifices offered there were contrary to the mind of God. There was but one altar and one sacrifice—and that was at the Temple. That is why, when the godly Israelite prayed, he looked towards the one place of sacrifice, not in superstition, but in believing remembrance of the one sacrifice and the one altar and the one glorious token of the Divine Presence which shone over the Mercy Seat within the veil. He knew that God could only accept him through the one sacrifice and, therefore, he looked that way. The people especially looked toward the Temple in prayer in times of national calamity.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
(When the regular congregation unanimously left their seats to be occupied by strangers, who crowded the building to its utmost capacity). You all know that the Temple at Jerusalem was the one place of sacrifice throughout all the holy land, for thus had the Lord spoken, "Whatever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers which sojourn among you, that offers a burnt offering or sacrifice, and brings it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer it unto the Lord: even that man shall be cut off from among his people."
The words behind it
21 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כָּל־ | kol- | every | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| תְּפִלָּ֣ה | tefilah | prayer | H8605 → | 72 times |
| כָל־ | khol- | every | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| תְּחִנָּ֗ה | techinah | supplication | H8467 → | 25 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֤ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| תִֽהְיֶה֙ | tihyeh | it will belong | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| לְכָל־ | lekhol | to any | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| הָ֣אָדָ֔ם | haadam | <the> person | H120 → | 551 times |
| לְכֹ֖ל | lekhol | to all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| עַמְּךָ֣ | ʾamekha | people your | H5971 → | 1873 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֣ר | ʾasher | who | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יֵדְע֗וּן | yedeun | they will know ! | H3045 → | 945 times |
| אִ֚ישׁ | ʾish | each | H376 → | 1663 times |
| נֶ֣גַע | nega' | [the] plague of | H5061 → | |
| לְבָב֔וֹ | levavo | own heart his | H3824 → | 252 times |
| וּפָרַ֥שׂ | ufaras | and he will spread out | H6566 → | 67 times |
| כַּפָּ֖יו | kapav | palms his | H3709 → | 192 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| הַבַּ֥יִת | habayit | the house | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| הַזֶּֽה׃ | hazeh | <the> this | H2088 → | 1180 times |
כָּל־every
kol-H3605 →5413 times
תְּפִלָּ֣הprayer
tefilahH8605 →72 times
כָל־every
khol-H3605 →5413 times
תְּחִנָּ֗הsupplication
techinahH8467 →25 times
אֲשֶׁ֤רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
תִֽהְיֶה֙it will belong
tihyehH1961 →3559 times
לְכָל־to any
lekholH3605 →5413 times
הָ֣אָדָ֔ם<the> person
haadamH120 →551 times
לְכֹ֖לto all
lekholH3605 →5413 times
עַמְּךָ֣people your
ʾamekhaH5971 →1873 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֑לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
אֲשֶׁ֣רwho
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
יֵדְע֗וּןthey will know !
yedeunH3045 →945 times
אִ֚ישׁeach
ʾishH376 →1663 times
נֶ֣גַע[the] plague of
nega'H5061 →
לְבָב֔וֹown heart his
levavoH3824 →252 times
וּפָרַ֥שׂand he will spread out
ufarasH6566 →67 times
כַּפָּ֖יוpalms his
kapavH3709 →192 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
הַבַּ֥יִתthe house
habayitH1004 →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
Philippians 4:6Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
it leads to
- Proverbs 3:5–6
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;
- 1 Peter 5:7
Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.
- Matthew 6:25–33
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more…
- Psalms 55:22
Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:17–18
Pray without ceasing.
- Proverbs 3:5–6
Through
Proverbs 14:10The heart knows its own bitterness, and no stranger shares in its joy.
it leads to
- Philippians 4:7
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
- Proverbs 18:14
The spirit of a man can endure his sickness, but who can survive a broken spirit?
- Philippians 4:7
Through
1 Kings 8:22Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven,
it leads to
- Ezra 9:5
At the evening offering, I got up from my humiliation with my tunic and cloak torn, and I fell on my knees, spread out my hands to the LORD my God,
- Ezra 9:5
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); Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 1489: “The Plague of the Heart” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition); Ishodad of Merv, BOOKS OF SESSIONS 1 KINGS 8:38; 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.