1 Kings 8:58 (WEB)

Passage

that he may incline our hearts to him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his ordinances, which he commanded our fathers.

Nearby Context

1 Kings 8:56 “Blessed be Yahweh, who has given rest to his people Israel, according to all that he promised. There has not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by Moses his servant.

1 Kings 8:57 May Yahweh our God be with us, as he was with our fathers. Let him not leave us or forsake us;

1 Kings 8:58 that he may incline our hearts to him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his ordinances, which he commanded our fathers.

1 Kings 8:59 Let these my words, with which I have made supplication before Yahweh, be near to Yahweh our God day and night, that he may maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause of his people Israel, as every day requires;

1 Kings 8:60 that all the peoples of the earth may know that Yahweh himself is God. There is no one else.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "incline", "hearts", "walk", "ways", "keep", "commandments", "statutes", and "ordinances". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "incline" and "hearts", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 57's "May Yahweh our God be with us..." into verse 59's "Let these my words with which I...", so "incline" and "hearts" 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 "incline" and "hearts" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.