11. (a) The Holy Scriptures were written for whose benefit primarily? (b) What encouragement can be found in Solomon’s prayer at 1 Kings 8:41-43?

¹¹ Perhaps you say, and rightly so, that the Holy Scriptures, including those already mentioned, center around God’s people and apply to them, especially the Christian congregation that constitutes spiritual Israel, “the Israel of God.” (Rom. 15:4; 1 Cor. 10:11; Gal. 6:16) In comparison with such, you perhaps consider yourself an outsider or a foreigner, so to speak, because of your previous way of life and total lack of interest in religion. Many are in such a position today. Do not quickly give up, however. Keep in mind that among the many petitions that Solomon presented to Jehovah at the dedication of the temple, he prayed for “the foreigner, who is no part of your people Israel and who actually comes from a distant land by reason of your name.” He prayed that “you [Jehovah] must do according to all that for which the foreigner calls to you; in order that all the peoples of the earth may get to know your name so as to fear you the same as your people Israel do.”​—1 Ki. 8:41-43.

12, 13. (a) How was Isaiah inspired to write about “foreigners”? (b) For whose benefit and in what way can these expressions be applied?

¹² Additional insight and encouragement for these “foreigners” is given at Isaiah 56:6-8:

“And the foreigners that have joined themselves to Jehovah to minister to him and to love the name of Jehovah, in order to become servants to him, all those keeping the sabbath in order not to profane it and laying hold of my covenant,

¹³ What an inviting description! These “foreigners” are not regimented, but gladly join themselves to Jehovah out of love for his name and all for which it stands. Their whole life (not just one day in seven) becomes one of ‘sabbath keeping,’ one being dedicated to Jehovah; thereby they enter into His rest, as Paul explains at Hebrews 4:1-10.