The White House released a video of President Donald Trump reading from scripture for his participation of an epic, Bible-reading marathon meant to coincide with the celebration of America’s 250th birthday. The president read from 2 Chronicles, a passage chronicling, as it were, a visit from the Lord God to Solomon in his completed Temple to advise him on following in the footsteps of David to follow the Word lest the promised nation of Israel fall.
For context, President Trump was doing his small part in what has been called “America Reads The Bible.” He joined countless hundreds of other people in reading a small part of Christianity’s holy book to commemorate the momentous anniversary celebration of the nation’s founding in 1776.
While not speaking in person, a large screen was presented on stage to reveal the President seated in the Oval office and reading from 2 Chronicles 7:11-22. “Thus, Solomon finished the house of the Lord and the king’s house and all that came into Solomon’s heart to make in the house of the Lord and in his own house, he prosperously affected,” the president’s reading began.
“And the Lord appeared to Solomon by night and said to him, I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place to myself for a house of sacrifice, if I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the Locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people, If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land,” he continued.
“Now my eyes shall be open and my ears attent to the prayer that is made in this place. For now, I have chosen and sanctified this house that my name may be there forever, and my eyes and my heart shall be there perpetually,” he kept reading.
“And as for you, if you will, walk before me as David, your father walked and do according to all that I have commanded you, and shall observe my statutes and my judgments, then will I establish the throne of My Kingdom according to as I have covenanted with David your father, saying, There shall not fail you as a man to be ruler in Israel, but if You turn away and forsake my statutes and my commandments which I have set before you, and shall go and serve other gods and worship them,” he went on.
“Then will I pluck them up from the roots, out of my land which I have given them, and this house which I have sanctified for my name, will I cast out of my sight, and will make it to be a proverb and a by word among nations,” 2 Chronicles continued.
“And this house, which is high, shall be an astonishment to every one that passes by it, so that he shall say, Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house, and it shall be answered because they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods and worshiped them and served them. Therefore has He brought all this evil upon them?”
Watch Trump below:
Featured image: Screen shot from embedded video