God Always Forgives His Own

When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you become angry with them and give them over to their enemies, who take them captive to their own lands, far away or near; and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captors and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly’; and if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and pray to you toward the land you gave their ancestors, toward the city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name; then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause. And forgive your people, who have sinned against you; forgive all the offenses they have committed against you, and cause their captors to show them mercy; for they are your people and your inheritance, whom you brought out of Egypt, out of that iron-smelting furnace (1 Kings 8:46-51, NIV).

In Solomon’s prayer at the dedication of the Temple (1 Kings 8:23-54) several things stand out.

First, that the focus of his prayer is the need for forgiveness. 1 Kings 8:30 (NIV) sets the theme, Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.

The reason is that the people are going to sin. It is not a matter of if but when.

• When anyone wrongs their neighbor (verse 31)…
• When your people Israel have been defeated by an enemy because they have sinned against you (verse 33)…
• When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you (verse 35)…
• When famine or plague comes because of sin (verse 37)…
• When they sin against you (verse 46)…

I do not think Solomon was being prophetic, nor do I think he was being pessimistic. I think he was being realistic. God’s forgiveness is necessary not because we might need it, but because we always need it.

The next thing that stands out is that Solomon expects that when the people sin—and do not repent—God will discipline them. He expects that continued unrepentant sin will lead God to allow them to be defeated by their enemies (verse 33), or to bring drought (verse 35), famine, plague, blight, or locusts on the land (verse 37). And that if all this did not work that God would allow them to not only be defeated by their enemies, but to be exiled as captives (verse 46). He expects this because God said that this is what He would do in Deuteronomy 4 and 28.

The last thing that strikes me in this prayer is that God’s relationship with them is not changed because of their sin. The phrase “your people” occurs eleven times throughout this prayer. Israel is described as God’s people when they sin, and is the reason that they can be sure God will hear their prayer when they ask for forgiveness. They never cease to be His people because of what they do. They may well cease to act like they are, but the fact that they are His people does not change. That is the reason Solomon was sure that God would forgive them when they repented, because they were His people. 1 Kings 8:51 and 53 (NIV), for they are your people and your inheritance, whom you brought out of Egypt, out of that iron-smelting furnace…For you singled them out from all the nations of the world to be your own inheritance, just as you declared through your servant Moses when you, Sovereign LORD, brought our ancestors out of Egypt.

That is all grace.

We need to remember that. Paul says in Colossians 3:12 (NIV) that we are God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved. We may—no, we will—do all sorts of things that go against that reality. God may discipline us as we would discipline our own children so that we repent and ask for forgiveness. And when we do, He will always forgive us. We can be sure of that because we are His.