2 Chronicles 7:16 (DRB)

Passage

For I have chosen, and have sanctified this place, that my name may be there for ever, and my eyes and my heart may remain there perpetually.

Nearby Context

2 Chronicles 7:14 And my people, upon whom my name is called, being converted, shall make supplication to me, and seek out my face, and do penance for their most wicked ways: then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sins and will heal their land.

2 Chronicles 7:15 My eyes also shall be open, and my ears attentive to the prayer of him that shall pray in this place.

2 Chronicles 7:16 For I have chosen, and have sanctified this place, that my name may be there for ever, and my eyes and my heart may remain there perpetually.

2 Chronicles 7:17 And as for thee, if thou walk before me, as David thy father walked, and do according to all that I have commanded thee, and keep my justices and my judgments:

2 Chronicles 7:18 I will raise up the throne of thy kingdom, as I promised to David thy father, saying: There shall not fail thee a man of thy stock to be ruler in Israel.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "chosen", "sanctified", "place", "name", "ever", "eyes", "heart", and "remain". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "chosen" and "sanctified", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 15's "My eyes also shall be open and..." into verse 17's "And as for thee if thou walk...", so "chosen" and "sanctified" belong inside that flow. In 2 Chronicles context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

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