1 Kings 8:39 (GNV)

Passage

Heare thou then in heauen, in thy dwelling place, and be mercifull, and doe, and giue euery man according to all his wayes, as thou knowest his heart, (for thou only knowest the heartes of all the children of men)

Nearby Context

1 Kings 8:37 When there shalbe famine in the land, when there shalbe pestilence, when there shall be blasting, mildewe, grashopper or caterpiller, when their enemie shall besiege them in the cities of their lande, or any plague, or any sickenesse,

1 Kings 8:38 Then what prayer, and supplication so euer shalbe made of any man or of all thy people Israel, when euery one shall knowe the plague in his owne heart, and stretch foorth his handes in this house,

1 Kings 8:39 Heare thou then in heauen, in thy dwelling place, and be mercifull, and doe, and giue euery man according to all his wayes, as thou knowest his heart, (for thou only knowest the heartes of all the children of men)

1 Kings 8:40 That they may feare thee as long as they liue in ye lad, which thou gauest vnto our fathers.

1 Kings 8:41 Moreouer as touching the stranger that is not of thy people Israel, who shall come out of a farre countrey for thy Names sake,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "heare", "thou", "heauen", "dwelling", "place", "mercifull", "giue", and "euery". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "heare" and "thou", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 38's "Then what prayer and supplication so euer..." into verse 40's "That they may feare thee as long...", so "heare" 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 "heare" and "thou" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.