1because your eternal spirit is in each of them. 2That's why you correct us for our sins a little at a time, as a reminder and a warning for us to turn from sin and have faith in you, our Lord.

The Sins of the People of Canaan

Solomon continues praying:

3 And what about those who lived in your holy land before your people settled there? 4You hated them because of their horrible deeds--they practiced magic and did vulgar things when they worshiped their gods; 5they mercilessly sacrificed children and ate human flesh and blood. They were members of pagan cults 6and murdered their own helpless children. That's why you decided to let our ancestors destroy them, 7so that your most precious land would accept a group of people worthy to be your servants.

8 But since these people were merely human, you spared many of them and sent hornets ahead of your army to destroy them a little at a time. 9You did this, even though you could have let your own people destroy that evil nation, or you could have wiped them out all at once with fierce animals or with one harsh word. 10 Although you knew that they were sinful by nature and that they would never give up their evil thoughts, you still punished them little by little, giving them time to turn back to you. 11They were under your curse from the beginning, and though you were not afraid of anyone, you let them go unpunished.

God Rules All People

Solomon continues praying:

12All of us are merely human, and we cannot question what you have done, nor can we refuse to let you punish us. No one would dare to blame you for destroying those nations you created or dare to defend the guilty in your court of law. 13You alone are God, and you care for all creation. So you don't have to prove to any other gods that you do what is right, 14and no kings or rulers can accuse you of wrongly punishing anyone. 15You are always perfectly fair, and you would never punish innocent people. 16You do what is right because you have the strength to do so, and your great power makes you merciful to everyone.

17When anyone doubts your strength, you show how strong you are, and you correct anyone who understands and still doubts. 18Although you have power to do all things, you are gentle when you judge us, and you rule us with great patience.

Lessons God Taught His People

Solomon continues:

19Our God, by the things you have done, you have given your people a wonderful hope and have taught them to live right and be kind because you have let them turn from evil. 20The enemies of your people deserved death, but you patiently gave them time to give up their sins, before punishing them. 21You did severely punish your people, even though you had made wonderful promises and agreements with them. 22Yes, we were punished! But our enemies were punished 10,000 times worse, so that when we judge others, we will remember your kindness, and when we are being judged, we can expect mercy.

God Punished the Egyptians

Solomon continues praying:

23The Egyptians foolishly lived a sinful life, but you punished them by using those disgusting creatures they worshiped. 24In fact, they had gone so far from the truth that they were like senseless children, worshiping the most worthless animals. 25And so you made them look like stupid children, when you punished them. 26Those who failed to take this warning seriously then received from you the punishment they deserved. 27While they were being punished because of the creatures they had worshiped, they became angry with those creatures and finally realized that you are the only true God, even though they had always refused to worship you. All this explains why they were punished so terribly.