Solomon replied, “You have shown much loving devotion to Your servant, my father David, because he walked before You in faithfulness, righteousness, and uprightness of heart. And You have maintained this loving devotion by giving him a son to sit on his throne this very day.
Parallel translations
- WEB Solomon said, “You have shown to your servant David my father great loving kindness, because he walked before you in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with you. You have kept for him this great loving kindness, that you have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is today.
- KJV And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
- NKJV And Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
- NASB Then Solomon said, “You have shown great faithfulness to Your servant David my father, according as he walked before You in truth, righteousness, and uprightness of heart toward You; and You have reserved for him this great faithfulness, that You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
- NLT Solomon replied, “You showed great and faithful love to your servant my father, David, because he was honest and true and faithful to you. And you have continued to show this great and faithful love to him today by giving him a son to sit on his throne.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Solomon praises God's covenant faithfulness to David and acknowledges that his own kingship is a gift of that loyal love. He frames his reign in gratitude rather than entitlement.
Overview
Solomon answers God by recalling the LORD's steadfast covenant love (hesed) shown to David, who walked faithfully before Him. He recognizes that his sitting on the throne fulfills God's promise, not his own merit. This humble, covenant-rooted perspective shapes the request to come and models prayer grounded in God's character and promises.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 19
- 1 Kgs 9:4And as for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, with a heart of integrity and uprightness, doing all I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and ordinances,
- 1 Kgs 1:48saying, ‘Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel! Today He has provided one to sit on my throne, and my eyes have seen it.’”
- 1 Kgs 2:4and so that the LORD may fulfill His promise to me: ‘If your descendants take heed to walk faithfully before Me with all their heart and soul, you will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.’
- 2 Cor 9:11You will be enriched in every way to be generous on every occasion, so that through us your giving will produce thanksgiving to God.
- 2 Sam 7:8–12Now then, you are to tell My servant David that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be the ruler over My people Israel.
- 2 Sam 12:7–8Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.
- 2 Cor 9:5So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to visit you beforehand and make arrangements for the bountiful gift you had promised. This way, your gift will be prepared generously and not begrudgingly.
- Ps 15:2He who walks with integrity and practices righteousness, who speaks the truth from his heart,
- 2 Kgs 20:3“Please, O LORD, remember how I have walked before You faithfully and with wholehearted devotion; I have done what was good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
- Ps 119:17Deal bountifully with Your servant, that I may live and keep Your word.
- Ps 116:7Return to your rest, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you.
- 1 Chr 29:12–14Both riches and honor come from You, and You are the ruler over all. In Your hands are power and might to exalt and give strength to all.
- Num 12:7But this is not so with My servant Moses; he is faithful in all My house.
- 2 Sam 7:5“Go and tell My servant David that this is what the LORD says: Are you the one to build for Me a house to dwell in?
- Ps 18:20–24The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness; He has repaid me according to the cleanness of my hands.
- Ps 13:6I will sing to the LORD, for He has been good to me.
- 2 Sam 22:47–51The LORD lives, and blessed be my Rock! And may God, the Rock of my salvation, be exalted—
- 1 Kgs 15:5For David had done what was right in the eyes of the LORD and had not turned aside from anything the LORD commanded all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.
- Ps 78:70–72He chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds;
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Christ at the center
Solomon's glory, wisdom, and temple where God's presence dwells are a shadow of the greater Son of David — 'one greater than Solomon is here' — and of the true Temple, Christ himself.
How 1 Kings 3:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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