Word of the Day

Palace

PA'LACE. n.s.  ...A royal house; an house eminently splendid.
- Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

1 Kings 16:18-19 And it came to pass, when Zimri saw that the city was taken, that he went into the palace of the king's house, and burnt the king's house over him with fire, and died, For his sins which he sinned in doing evil in the sight of the LORD, in walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin which he did, to make Israel to sin. [Somehow, it is interesting to me that the first mention of a palace in the Bible, as far as I could tell, is in the context of defeat and suicide. Palaces in history are not known for their pristine and lovely histories. They tend to have ugly stories attached to them. This is curious.]

1 Chronicles 29:1 Furthermore David the king said unto all the congregation, Solomon my son, whom alone God hath chosen, is yet young and tender, and the work is great: for the palace is not for man, but for the LORD God.

Esther 1:5 And when these days were expired, the king made a feast unto all the people that were present in Shushan the palace, both unto great and small, seven days, in the court of the garden of the king's palace;

Psalm 45:8 All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad.

My Lord has garments so wondrous fine,
And myrrh their texture fills;
Its fragrance reached to this heart of mine
With joy my being thrills.

Out of the ivory palaces,
Into a world of woe,
Only His great eternal love
Made my Savior go.

In garments glorious He will come,
To open wide the door;
And I shall enter my heav’nly home,
To dwell forevermore.

Henry Barraclough

Psalm 45:13-15 The king's daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold. She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee. With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought: they shall enter into the king's palace.

Psalm 48:1-3 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King. God is known in her palaces for a refuge.

’Tis a goodly pleasant land
That we pilgrims journey thro’,
And our Father’s constant blessings
Fall around us like the dew;
But its sunshine and its beauty
To our hearts no joy can bring,
Like the splendors that await us
In the palace of the King.
In this goodly pleasant land
Only strangers now are we,
For we seek a better country,
And ’tis where we long to be;
Yes, we long to swell the anthem
That forever­more shall ring,
From the pure in heart made perfect
In the palace of the King.

O the palace of the King
Royal palace of the King;
Where our Father in His mercy
All the ransomed ones will bring;
Where our sorrows and our trials
Like a dream will pass away,
And our souls shall dwell forever
In the realms of endless day.

Fanny J. Crosby

Psalm 122:6-7 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces.

Psalm 144:11-12 Rid me, and deliver me from the hand of strange children, whose mouth speaketh vanity, and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood: That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; that our daughters may be as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace:

Proverbs 30:28 The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings' palaces.

Jeremiah 30:18 Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob's tents, and have mercy on his dwellingplaces; and the city shall be builded upon her own heap, and the palace shall remain after the manner thereof.

Daniel 4:29-31 At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon. The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty? While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee.

Daniel 11:45 And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

Hosea 8:14 For Israel hath forgotten his Maker, and buildeth temples; and Judah hath multiplied fenced cities: but I will send a fire upon his cities, and it shall devour the palaces thereof.

O earth, with all thy kingdoms,
Was there no other place
Wherein to welcome Jesus,
The Lord of life and grace?
No room in royal palace?
No spot within the inn
To shield the Word made human—
The God-man without sin?

To make men priests and mon­archs,
Joint heirs with Him on high,
The Logos consubstantial
Descendeth from the sky.
Leaving the Father’s brightness,
Leaving His throne of flame,
He comes a helpless infant,
To suffer grief and shame.

Anna H. Mercur

Jesus speaking about John the Baptist: Matthew 11:8 But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings' houses.

Matthew 26:3 Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas,

Matthew 26:58 But Peter followed him afar off unto the high priest's palace, and went in, and sat with the servants, to see the end.

Matthew 26:69-70 Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying, Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee. But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest.

Mark 14:54 And Peter followed him afar off, even into the palace of the high priest: and he sat with the servants, and warmed himself at the fire.

Luke 11:21-22 When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: But when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils.

Philippians 1:12-14 But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places; And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

I belong to the King; I’m a child of His love,
I shall dwell in His palace so fair,
For He tells of its bliss in yon Heaven above,
And His children in splendor shall share.

I belong to the King; I’m a child of His love,
And he never forsaketh His own.
He will call me some day to His palace above;
I shall dwell by His glorified throne.

Ida L. Reed

background and graphics by Mary Stephens
vintage graphics: unknown source
Throne image: Getty Museum Collection