1 Kings 8:31 (LSB)

Passage

“If a man sins against his neighbor and is made to take an oath, and he comes and takes an oath before Your altar in this house,

Nearby Context

1 Kings 8:29 that Your eyes may be open toward this house night and day, toward the place of which You have said, ‘My name shall be there,’ to listen to the prayer which Your slave shall pray toward this place.

1 Kings 8:30 And listen to the supplication of Your slave and of Your people Israel, when they pray toward this place; listen in heaven Your dwelling place; listen and forgive.

1 Kings 8:31 “If a man sins against his neighbor and is made to take an oath, and he comes and takes an oath before Your altar in this house,

1 Kings 8:32 then listen in heaven and act and judge Your slaves, condemning the wicked by bringing his way on his own head and justifying the righteous by bringing him reward according to his righteousness.

1 Kings 8:33 “When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy, because they have sinned against You, if they turn to You again and confess Your name and pray and make supplication to You in this house,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "sins", "against", "neighbor", "take", "oath", "comes", and "takes". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "sins" and "against", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 30's "And listen to the supplication of Your..." into verse 32's "then listen in heaven and act and...", so "sins" and "against" 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 "sins" and "against" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.