1 Kings 8:49 (DRB)

Passage

Then hear thou in heaven, in the firmament of thy throne, their prayers, and their supplications, and do judgment for them:

Nearby Context

1 Kings 8:47 Then if they do penance in their heart, in the place of captivity, and being converted, make supplication to thee in their captivity, saying: We have sinned, we have done unjustly, we have committed wickedness:

1 Kings 8:48 And return to thee with all their heart, and all their soul, in the land of their enemies, to which they have been led captives: and pray to thee towards the way of their land, which thou gavest to their fathers, and of the city which thou hast chosen, and of the temple which I have built to thy name:

1 Kings 8:49 Then hear thou in heaven, in the firmament of thy throne, their prayers, and their supplications, and do judgment for them:

1 Kings 8:50 And forgive thy people, that have sinned against thee, and all their iniquities, by which they have transgressed against thee: and give them mercy before them that have made them captives, that they may have compassion on them.

1 Kings 8:51 For they are thy people, and thy inheritance, whom thou hast brought out of the land of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hear", "thou", "heaven", "firmament", "throne", "prayers", "supplications", and "judgment". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hear" and "thou", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 48's "And return to thee with all their..." into verse 50's "And forgive thy people that have sinned...", so "hear" and "thou" belong inside that flow. In 1 Kings context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "hear" and "thou" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.