The Prayer of the Foreigner

 2 Chronicles 6-7; Psalms 135; Romans 4 

“As for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm - when they come and pray toward this temple, then hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.”

2 Chronicles 6:32, 33

This prayer of the foreigner is an essential part of the temple’s function. The court of the Gentiles was set aside as a place for foreign seekers who came to inquire about the Lord. Solomon’s plea to God was that he would answer the prayers of the foreigner “so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you…”. Today, many would pray, “that they may know your name and love you.”

Why would knowing God lead foreigners to fear him?

The awesome glory of God dwelling in the splendor of his holiness could be lost today by God’s familiarity for Christians who have a personal relationship with him through Christ. When our lives are temples of worship and witness, we, too, will give expression to the prayer of the foreigner who approaches us, seeking God’s intervention in their lives. 

Are the temples of our lives still open to the prayer of the foreigner?

“Lord Jesus, pray through me for nations and people who don’t yet know you, for your glory.”