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1 Kings Chapter
Nine
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 9
This
chapter relates a second vision Solomon had at Gibeon, in which he received an
answer to his prayer in the preceding chapter, 1 Kings 9:1 that
passed between him and Hiram king of Tyre, 1 Kings 9:10, the
places that Solomon built or repaired, 1 Kings 9:15, the
Canaanitish people that became bondmen to him, and the officers he had among
the children of Israel, 1 Kings 9:20 the
removal of Pharaoh's daughter to the house built for her, 1 Kings 9:24. Solomon's
attention to religious services, 1 Kings 9:25 and
the navy of ships he employed, which brought him in great riches, 1 Kings 9:26.
1 Kings 9:1 And
it came to pass, when Solomon had finished building the house of the Lord and the king’s
house, and all Solomon’s desire which he wanted to do,
YLT
1And it cometh to pass, at
Solomon's finishing to build the house of Jehovah, and the house of the king,
and all the desire of Solomon that he delighted to do,
And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the
house of the Lord,.... Which was done in seven years, 1 Kings 6:38.
and the king's house; his own palace, which
was finished in thirteen years, 1 Kings 7:1,
and all Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do; all his other
buildings, the house for Pharaoh's daughter, the house of the forest of
Lebanon, and may include his vineyards, gardens, orchards, and pools of water,
made for his pleasure, Ecclesiastes 2:4 in
which he succeeded and prospered, 2 Chronicles 7:11.
1 Kings 9:2 2 that the Lord appeared to
Solomon the second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon.
YLT
2that Jehovah appeareth unto
Solomon a second time, as He appeared unto him in Gibeon,
That the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time,.... Junius
and Tremellius read this verse with the following, to the end of the ninth, in
a parenthesis, and render this clause, "for the Lord had appeared",
&c. and Piscator translates it, "moreover the Lord appeared",
&c. as beginning a distinct narrative from the former; and indeed if the
words are to be connected with the preceding, as in our version, this
appearance must be thirteen years after the building of the temple, which is
not probable; but rather it was the night after the dedication of it, when an
answer was returned to Solomon's prayer in the preceding chapter; for that it
should be deferred twelve or thirteen years is not reasonable to suppose; and
this appearance was the second of the kind and manner:
as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon; in a dream
and a vision, and by night, 1 Kings 3:5, see 2 Chronicles 7:12.
1 Kings 9:3 3 And the Lord said to him:
“I have heard your prayer and your supplication that you have made before Me; I
have consecrated this house which you have built to put My name there forever,
and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually.
YLT
3and Jehovah saith unto him,
`I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication with which thou hast made
supplication before Me; I have hallowed this house that thou hast built to put
My name there -- unto the age, and Mine eyes and My heart have been there all
the days.
And the Lord said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy
supplication that thou hast made before me,.... With delight and
pleasure, and had accepted it; meaning the prayer recorded in the preceding
chapter:
I have hallowed this house which thou hast built; by the cloud
of glory filling it, and by fire descending from heaven, and consuming the
sacrifices offered in it, 2 Chronicles 7:1.
to put my name there for ever; there to grant his
presence, so long as his pure worship should be continued in it; so the Targum
adds,
"and
my Shechinah or divine Majesty shall abide in it, if my will is done there
continually:'
and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually; his eyes of
Providence should be upon it, to watch over it, and protect it, and his
worshippers in it; and he should have a cordial regard to the sacrifices there
offered, and to the persons of the offerers, so long as they offered them in a
right way, and to right ends and purposes.
1 Kings 9:4 4 Now if you walk before Me
as your father David walked, in integrity of heart and in uprightness, to do according
to all that I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and My
judgments,
YLT
4`And thou -- if thou dost
walk before Me as David thy father walked, in simplicity of heart, and in
uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee -- My statutes
and My judgments thou dost keep –
And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in
integrity of heart, and in uprightness..... Who, though guilty of
many sins and failings in life, yet was sincere and upright in the worship of
God, never apostatized from it, or fell into idolatry, which is what is chiefly
respected:
to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep
my statutes and my judgments; observe all the laws of God, moral,
ceremonial, and judicial.
1 Kings 9:5 5 then I will establish the
throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, as I promised David your father,
saying, ‘You shall not fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.’
YLT
5then I have established the
throne of thy kingdom over Israel -- to the age, as I spake unto David thy
father, saying, There is not cut off to thee a man from [being] on the throne
of Israel.
Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for
ever,.... In a succession in his posterity, until the coming of the
Messiah:
as I promised unto David thy father, saying, there shall not fail
thee a man upon the throne of Israel; not fail one of his
posterity to sit upon it; see 2 Samuel 7:12.
1 Kings 9:6 6 But
if you or your sons at all turn from following Me, and do not keep My
commandments and My statutes which I have set before you, but go and
serve other gods and worship them,
YLT
6`If ye at all turn back --
you and your sons -- from after Me, and keep not My commands -- My statutes,
that I have set before you, and ye have gone and served other gods, and bowed
yourselves to them,
But if you shall at all turn from following me, you or your
children,.... From my worship, as the Targum; either Solomon or his
successors, or the people of Israel and their posterity; should they turn their
backs on God and his worship, meaning not in a single instance, or in some
small degree; but as in the original, "if in turning ye turn"F5אם שוב תשבון
"si avertendo aversi fueritis", Pagninus, Montanus, &c. , that
is, utterly, and entirely, or wholly turn from him and his worship to other
gods, as follows:
and will not keep my commandments and my statutes, which I have
set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: neglecting
the will and worship of God, go into idolatrous practices, as Solomon himself
did.
1 Kings 9:7 7 then I will cut off Israel
from the land which I have given them; and this house which I have consecrated
for My name I will cast out of My sight. Israel will be a proverb and a byword
among all peoples.
YLT
7then I have cut off Israel
from the face of the ground that I have given to them, and the house that I
have hallowed for My name I send away from My presence, and Israel hath been
for a simile and for a byword among all the peoples;
Then will I cut off Israel out of the land I have given them,.... Suffer
them to be carried captive into other lands, as the ten tribes were into
Assyria, and the two tribes to Babylon; which is called a plucking them up by
the roots in 2 Chronicles 7:20.
and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out
of my sight: as it was when burnt by Nebuchadnezzar:
and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people; both for
their sins and for their miseries; see Deuteronomy 28:37,
in 2 Chronicles 7:20
the house or temple is said to be made a proverb of.
1 Kings 9:8 8 And as for this
house, which is exalted, everyone who passes by it will be astonished
and will hiss, and say, ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land
and to this house?’
YLT
8as to this house, [that] is
high, every one passing by it is astonished, and hath hissed, and they have
said, Wherefore hath Jehovah done thus to this land and to this house?
And at this house which is high,.... The house of the
most High, as some render it, and in high esteem, fame, and glory, as well as
it was built on an high hill, and was itself one hundred and twenty cubits
high, 2 Chronicles 3:4,
the Targum is,
"and
this house which was high shall be destroyed:'
everyone that passeth by it shall be astonished; at the ruins
of the temple, and of the city of Jerusalem, which had been so magnificent:
and shall hiss; in scorn and derision of the people of
Israel, rejoicing in their ruin:
and they shall say, why hath the Lord done thus unto this land, and
to this house? or suffered it to be done, to lie thus in waste and ruins; a
land in which it had been said he delighted, and looked unto from one end of
the year to the other, and a house he had taken up his dwelling in; surely
something more than ordinary, they suggest, must be the cause of all this.
1 Kings 9:9 9 Then they will answer,
‘Because they forsook the Lord their God, who brought
their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, and
worshiped them and served them; therefore the Lord has brought
all this calamity on them.’”
YLT
9and they have said, Because
that they have forsaken Jehovah their God, who brought out their fathers from
the land of Egypt, and they lay hold on other gods, and bow themselves to them,
and serve them; therefore hath Jehovah brought in upon them all this evil.'
And they shall answer,.... Who were left in the
land when others were carried captive, as were some by Nebuchadnezzar, and who
were capable of making the following answer:
because they forsook the Lord; the worship of the Lord
their God, as the Targum:
who brought forth their fathers out of the land Egypt; which is
observed as an aggravation of their sin:
and have taken hold upon other gods: the gods of the people,
as the Targum; of the Gentiles, who knew not the true God:
and have worshipped them, and served them: even idols of
gold and silver, wood and stone; an instance of judicial blindness they were
left unto, who had been favoured with a revelation from God:
therefore hath the Lord brought upon them all this evil; their
idolatry was the cause of it, than which nothing is more provoking to God.
1 Kings 9:10 10 Now it happened at the end
of twenty years, when Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the Lord and the king’s
house
YLT
10And it cometh to pass, at
the end of twenty years, that Solomon hath built the two houses, the house of
Jehovah, and the house of the king.
And it came to pass at the end of twenty years,.... From the
time Solomon first began to build: when Solomon had built the two houses, the
house of the Lord, and the king's house; the first was seven years in building,
and the other thirteen; in all twenty.
1 Kings 9:11 11 (Hiram the king of Tyre
had supplied Solomon with cedar and cypress and gold, as much as he desired), that
King Solomon then gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.
YLT
11Hiram king of Tyre hath
assisted Solomon with cedar-trees, and with fir-trees, and with gold, according
to all his desire; then doth king Solomon give to Hiram twenty cities in the
land of Galilee.
(Now Hiram the king of
Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees,.... For the
building of both his houses; see 1 Kings 5:8,
and with gold, according to all his desire): which is not
before mentioned, and accounts for it from whence Solomon had his gold; if he
made no use, as some think he did not, of what his father left him; see 1 Kings 7:51 with
which he covered several parts of the temple, and made several vessels in it.
Hiram traded to Ophir, and had it from thence; and he could supply Solomon with
it, and did, before he sent a navy thither:
that then Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee; that is, by
or near it, for they were not in the land of Canaan; for then Solomon could not
have disposed of them, being allotted and belonging to one of the tribes of
Israel, and part of the Lord's inheritance; but they were upon the borders,
particularly on the borders of Asher, if Cabul in Joshua 19:27, can
be thought to be the same with these; though some think that Solomon did not
give Hiram the possession of these cities, but the royalties and revenues of
them, their produce until the debt was paid: but they rather seem to be a
gratuity, and a full grant of them, and might be cities which David had
conquered, and taken out of the hands of the ancient inhabitants of them; and
so Solomon had a right to dispose of them, being left him by his father; for it
is plain as yet they were not inhabited by Israelites; see 2 Chronicles 8:2.
They are by a Jewish writerF6Gloss. in T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 54. 1.
said to be twenty two, very wrongly.
1 Kings 9:12 12 Then Hiram went from Tyre
to see the cities which Solomon had given him, but they did not please him.
YLT
12And Hiram cometh out from
Tyre to see the cities that Solomon hath given to him, and they have not been
right in his eyes,
And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had
given him,.... For these cities, being in or near Galilee, were not far
from Tyre:
and they pleased him not; being either out of
repair, as some think; see 2 Chronicles 8:2 or
the ground barren, and unfruitful; which is not likely, being in a very
fruitful country, as the tribes on which they bordered were: but they were not
agreeable to him, they did not suit with the disposition of him and his people,
who were given not to husbandry, but to merchandise; and the land about these
would require a good deal of pains and labour to till, which they were not used
to.
1 Kings 9:13 13 So he said, “What kind
of cities are these which you have given me, my brother?” And he
called them the land of Cabul,[a] as they
are to this day.
YLT
13and he saith, `What [are]
these cities that thou hast given to me, my brother?' and one calleth them the
land of Cabul unto this day.
And he said,.... By letter to him:
what cities are these which thou hast given me, my brother? so he called
him, being not only his neighbour, but his ally, in friendship and covenant
with him; and this he said of them not by way of complaint, or contempt, as
unworthy of his acceptance; for so munificent a prince as Solomon would never
offer to a king to whom he was so much obliged anything mean and contemptible;
but as being unsuitable to him, however valuable they might be in themselves,
or of advantage to others:
and he called them the land of Cabul unto this day; or rather the
words should be rendered impersonally, "they were called so"; for
Hiram could not call them by this name to the times of the writer of this book;
nor is there any reason to think he would give them any name at all, and much
less a contemptible one, as this is thought to be, when he did not choose to
accept of them. Some interpretF7David de Pomis, Lexic fol. 58. 2.
the word shut up, or unfruitful, sandy, dirty, clayey; so in the TalmudF8T.
Bab. Sabbat, fol. 54. 1. it is said to be a sandy land, and called Cabul,
because a man's foot was plunged in it up to his ankles, and is represented as
unfruitful. JosephusF9Antiqu. l. 8. c. 5. sect. 3. says, in the
Phoenician tongue it signifies "not pleasing", which agrees with what
Hiram says, 1 Kings 9:12.
HillerusF11Onomastic. Sacr. p. 435. interprets it "as
nothing", they being as nothing to Hiram, of no use to him, whatever they
might be to others; and therefore he restored them to Solomon, 2 Chronicles 8:2,
which seems to be the best sense of the word. They are the same with Decapolis,
Matthew 4:25 so
called from ten cities thereinF12Vid. Castel Lex Heptaglot. col.
1669. & Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 18. .
1 Kings 9:14 14 Then Hiram sent the king
one hundred and twenty talents of gold.
YLT
14And Hiram sendeth to the
king a hundred and twenty talents of gold.
And Hiram sent to the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold. Not after the
cities had been given him, but before; and it may be rendered "had
sent"F13ישלח "miserat",
Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. , and is the sum of the gold he furnished
him with for the temple, 1 Kings 9:11 which,
according to BrerewoodF14De Ponderibus & Pretiis, Vet. Num. c.
5. , was 540,000 pounds of our money; and, according to anotherF15Scheuchzer.
Physic. Sacr. vol. 3. p. 571. writer, it amounted to 1,466,400 ducats of gold,
taking a talent at 12,220 ducats.
1 Kings 9:15 15 And this is the
reason for the labor force which King Solomon raised: to build the house of the
Lord, his own
house, the Millo,[b] the wall
of Jerusalem, Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer.
YLT
15And this [is] the matter of
the tribute that king Solomon hath lifted up, to build the house of Jehovah,
and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and
Megiddo, and Gezer,
And this is the reason of the levy which King Solomon raised,.... Both of
men to work, 1 Kings 5:13, and
of money to defray the expense:
it was for to build the house of the Lord; the temple:
and his own house; or palace:
and Millo; which he repaired: See Gill on 1 Samuel 5:9.
and the wall of Jerusalem; which, as Abarbinel
says, was a large building, there being three walls one within another:
and Hazor; a city in the tribe of Naphtali, and which had been a royal city
with the Canaanites; see Joshua 11:1.
and Megiddo; which was in the tribe of Manasseh, Joshua 17:11.
and Gezer; which was in the tribe of Ephraim, and formerly a royal city of
the Canaanites, Joshua 10:33.
1 Kings 9:16 16 (Pharaoh king of Egypt had
gone up and taken Gezer and burned it with fire, had killed the Canaanites who
dwelt in the city, and had given it as a dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s
wife.)
YLT
16(Pharaoh king of Egypt hath
gone up and doth capture Gezer, and doth burn it with fire, and the Canaanite
who is dwelling in the city he hath slain, and giveth it [with] presents to his
daughter, wife of Solomon.)
For Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt
it with fire,.... Egypt lay lower than Canaan, and therefore Pharaoh is said
to go up to it; what moved him to it is not certain; whether he went of himself
provoked, or was moved to it by Solomon, who had married his daughter; however,
so he did, and took the place, and burnt it:
and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city: for though it
was given to the tribe of Ephraim, yet they could not drive the Canaanites out
of it, who seem to have remained in it to this time; see Joshua 16:10.
and given it for a present unto his daughter, Solomon's wife; not as a
dowry with her, but as a present to her; perhaps some time after marriage.
1 Kings 9:17 17 And Solomon built Gezer,
Lower Beth Horon,
YLT
17And Solomon buildeth Gezer,
and Beth-Horon the lower,
And Solomon built Gezer,.... Rebuilt it, it
having been burnt, at least great part of it, by Pharaoh when he took it:
and Bethhoron the nether; and the upper also, 2 Chronicles 8:5,
which belonged to the tribe of Ephraim, and were on the borders of it, between
that and Benjamin, Joshua 16:3.
1 Kings 9:18 18 Baalath, and Tadmor in the
wilderness, in the land of Judah,
YLT
18and Baalath, and Tadmor in
the wilderness, in the land;
And Baalath,.... A city in the tribe of Dan, Joshua 19:44.
and Tadmor in the wilderness, in the land; or
"Tamar", as in the Cetib, or Scriptural reading; for we go according
to the marginal reading, and so Thamato in PtolemyF16Geograph. l. 5.
c. 16. ; and is thought by some to be the same with Tamar in Ezekiel 47:19,
which Jerom there says is Palmyra. Tamar signifies a palm tree, from whence
this city had its name Palmyra, the situation of which place agrees with this;
hence we read both in PtolemyF17Ib. c. 15. and PlinyF18Nat.
Hist. l. 5. c. 26. & 6. 28. of the Palmyrene deserts: the ruins of it are
to be seen to this day, and of it this account is given; that it is enclosed on
three sides with long ridges of mountains, which open towards the east
gradually, to the distance of about an hour's riding; but to the south
stretches a vast plain, beyond the reach of the eye; the air is good, but the
soil exceeding barren; nothing green to be seen therein, save some few palm
trees in the gardens, and here and there about the town; and from these trees,
I conceive, says my author, it obtained its name both in Hebrew and in Latin:
it appears to have been of a large extent, by the space now taken up by the
ruins; but there are no footsteps of any wall remaining, nor is it possible to
judge of the ancient figure of the place. The present inhabitants, as they are
poor, miserable, dirty people, so they have shut themselves up, to the number
of about thirty or forty families, in little huts made of dirt, within the
walls of a spacious court, which enclosed a most magnificent Heathen templeF19Halifax
apud Philosphic. Transact. vol. 3. p. 504. . Benjamin of Tudela saysF20Itinerar.
p. 57, 58. , it is situated in a wilderness, far from any habitable place, and
is four days' journey from Baalath before mentioned; which place he takes to be
the same with Baalbek, in the valley of Lebanon, built by Solomon for Pharaoh's
daughter; which, according to the Arabic geographerF21Geograph. Nub.
par. 5. clim. 3. p. 117. , was situated at the foot of Mount Lebanon; and
Tadmor seems to be in the land of Hamathzobah, 2 Chronicles 8:3.
1 Kings 9:19 19 all the storage cities
that Solomon had, cities for his chariots and cities for his cavalry, and whatever
Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in all the land of his
dominion.
YLT
19and all the cities of
stores that king Solomon hath, and the cities of the chariots, and the cities
of the horsemen, and the desire of Solomon that he desired to build in
Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.
And all the cities of store that Solomon had,.... In which
were his magazines of corn, arms, and ammunition; and these were built in
Hamath, 2 Chronicles 8:4.
and cities for his chariots; chariots of war, iron
chariots, which were kept in times of peace, in case of necessity, of which
Solomon had 1400, 1 Kings 10:26,
and cities for his horsemen; of which he had 12,000,
a standing cavalry:
and that which Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem; besides the
temple and his own palace before mentioned; see Ecclesiastes 2:4,
and in Lebanon; the house of the forest of Lebanon, which
Junius on 1 Kings 7:2 thinks
he built after he had taken Hamathzobah, a royal city of Lebanon; see 2 Chronicles 8:3 or
fortresses on Mount Lebanon, which was the northern border of his kingdom:
and in all the land of his dominions; where he
might repair or fortify cities, or erect new forts for the safety of his
kingdom; now for the doing of all this was the levy both of men and money
raised, and of whom next follows.
1 Kings 9:20 20 All the people who were
left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who were
not of the children of Israel—
YLT
20The whole of the people
that is left of the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the
Jebusite, who [are] not of the sons of Israel –
And all the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites,
Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites,.... Who were not
destroyed in the times of Joshua, or since, but dwelt in several cities of the
land of Israel from those times; see Judges 1:1, which
were not of the children of Israel; not natives of the land of Israel, though
they might be proselytes, at least some of them.
1 Kings 9:21 21 that is, their descendants
who were left in the land after them, whom the children of Israel had not been
able to destroy completely—from these Solomon raised forced labor, as it is to
this day.
YLT
21their sons who are left
behind them in the land, whom the sons of Israel have not been able to devote
-- he hath even lifted up [on] them a tribute of service unto this day.
Their children that were left after them in the land,.... The
posterity of those left unsubdued in the times of Joshua:
whom the children of Israel also were not able utterly to destroy; in later
times, though now it is thought by some it was not for want of power, but
because they had made a covenant with them, as the Gibeonites did, and
therefore they could not, because it would have been a breach of covenant to
have destroyed them; see 2 Chronicles 8:8,
upon these did Solomon levy a tribute of bond service unto this
day; not a tribute of money, which being poor they were not able to
pay, but of service, and which being once laid on was continued, and even to
the time of the writing of this book.
1 Kings 9:22 22 But of the children of
Israel Solomon made no forced laborers, because they were men of war and
his servants: his officers, his captains, commanders of his chariots, and his
cavalry.
YLT
22And out of the sons of
Israel Solomon hath not appointed a servant, for they [are] the men of war, and
his servants, and his heads, and his captains, and the heads of his chariots,
and his horsemen.
But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bondmen,.... For that
was contrary to the law; they might be hired servants, but not bond servants, Leviticus 25:39.
but they were men of war; which he kept in pay, a
standing army, maintained even in time of peace, in case of necessity, should
an enemy attempt to invade or surprise them:
and his servants; in his family and court, who had offices
and employments there:
and his princes; ministers of state, counsellors, governors
of cities, &c.
and his captains; officers in his army:
and rulers of his chariots and his horsemen; war chariots
and troopers; see 1 Kings 9:19.
1 Kings 9:23 23 Others were chiefs
of the officials who were over Solomon’s work: five hundred and fifty,
who ruled over the people who did the work.
YLT
23These [are] the heads of
the officers who [are] over the work of Solomon, fifty and five hundred, those
ruling among the people who are labouring in the work.
These were the chief of the officers over Solomon's work,.... In
building the above houses and cities:
five hundred and fifty which bore rule over the people that
wrought in the work; in 2 Chronicles 8:10
they are said to be but two hundred and fifty; now it may be observed, as is by
the Jewish writers, that there were three sorts of those rulers; the lowest
rank and order of them consisted of 3300, the next of three hundred which were
over the 3300, and being numbered with them made 3600, 2 Chronicles 2:18
and the highest rank of them were two hundred and fifty, and the middlemost and
highest being joined together, as they are here, made five hundred and fifty.
Abarbinel reconciles the places thus, the two hundred and fifty were only over
those that wrought in the temple; and the five hundred and fifty here were
those that were over such that were employed in the various parts of the
kingdom.
1 Kings 9:24 24 But Pharaoh’s daughter
came up from the City of David to her house which Solomon[c] had built
for her. Then he built the Millo.
YLT
24Only, the daughter of
Pharaoh went up out of the city of David unto her house that [Solomon] built
for her; then he built Millo.
But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of David,.... Where he
placed her when he first married her, until he had finished his buildings, 1 Kings 3:1, which
being done he brought her from thence unto her house, which Solomon had built
for her; the reason of which is given, not only because it was the house of
David, but because it was holy by the ark being there for some time; and
therefore he did not judge it proper that his wife, an Egyptian woman, and
sometimes in her impurity, should dwell there; see 2 Chronicles 8:11,
then did he build Millo: this being particularly
repeated from 1 Kings 9:15, and
following upon what is said of Pharaoh's daughter, has led many Jewish writers
to conclude her house was built at Millo; and indeed, without supposing this,
it is hard to conceive why it should be observed here; the Targum on 2 Chronicles 8:11
calls her name Bithiah.
1 Kings 9:25 25 Now three times a year
Solomon offered burnt offerings and peace offerings on the altar which he had
built for the Lord,
and he burned incense with them on the altar that was before the Lord. So he
finished the temple.
YLT
25And Solomon caused to
ascend, three times in a year, burnt-offerings and peace-offerings on the altar
that he built to Jehovah, and he perfumed it with that which [is] before
Jehovah, and finished the house.
And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt offerings and
peace offerings upon the altar which he built unto the Lord,.... The
brasen altar, the altar of burnt offering, which stood in the court of the
priests, and by whom he offered. The three times were the feasts of passover,
pentecost, and tabernacles, as explained in 2 Chronicles 8:13,
not that these were the only offerings, or these the only times he offered; for
he offered all other sacrifices, and at all other times commanded in the law of
Moses, as on sabbaths and new moons, as expressed in the above place:
and he burnt incense upon the altar that was before the Lord; the altar of
incense, which stood in the holy place, right beside the most holy, in which
was the ark, the symbol of the divine Presence; not that Solomon burnt incense
in person, but by the priests, whom he furnished with incense; for no king
might offer incense, as the case of Uzziah shows:
so he finished the house; which respects not the
building of it, that had been observed before, but the service of it; as he had
provided all vessels and utensils for the furniture of it, and all things to be
used in them; as sacrifices for the altar of burnt offering, incense for the
altar of incense, bread for the shewbread table, and oil for the lamps; so he
appointed the courses of the priests, Levites, and porters, to do their duty,
who went through every part of service assigned them, and completed the whole;
see 2 Chronicles 8:14.
1 Kings 9:26 26 King Solomon also built a
fleet of ships at Ezion Geber, which is near Elath[d] on the
shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom.
YLT
26And a navy hath king
Solomon made in Ezion-Geber, that is beside Eloth, on the edge of the Sea of
Suph, in the land of Edom.
And King Solomon made a navy of ships in Eziongeber,.... Which was
one of the stations of the Israelites, near the wilderness of Sin, or Paran, Numbers 33:35, it
signifies the backbone of a man; and it is saidF23Harris's Voyages,
vol. 1. B. 1. ch. 2. sect. 3. p. 377. the ridge of rocks before this port were
in that form, covered by the sea at high water, and sticking up with various
points in a line when it was low. Josephus saysF24Antiqu. l. 8. c.
6. sect. 4. in his time it was called Berenice, which is placed by MelaF25De
Situ Orbis, l. 3. c. 8. between the Heroopolitic bay, and the promontory
Strobilus, or Pharan. It is thought probableF26Clayton's Chronology,
&c. p. 407. to be the same with that which is called by the Arabs
Meenah-el-Dsahab, the port of gold, called Dizahab, Deuteronomy 1:1,
which stands upon the shore of the Arabic gulf, about two or three days'
distance from Mount Sinai; though by othersF1Vossius in Melam ut
supra, (Harris's Voyages, vol. 1. B. 1. ch. 2. sect. 3.) p. 386. thought to be
the same the Arabs call Calzem, where was a great quantity of wood fit for
building ships. It is further described,
which is beside Elath, on the shore of the Red sea, in the land of
Edom; and when Edom was subdued by David, this port fell into his
hands, and so was in the possession of Solomon; and there being plenty of timber
in the parts adjacent, and this being a port in the Red sea, Solomon chose it
as proper place to build ships in. Elath, near to which was, is the same the
Elanitic bay had its name from; or which See Gill on Deuteronomy 2:8.
Trajan, the Roman emperor, formed a navy in the Red seaF2Eutrop.
Rom. Hist. l. 8. Ruti Fest. Breviar. , that by it he might ravage and waste the
borders of India; and here it seems Solomon's navy went; see 1 Kings 9:28.
1 Kings 9:27 27 Then Hiram sent his
servants with the fleet, seamen who knew the sea, to work with the servants of
Solomon.
YLT
27And Hiram sendeth in the
navy his servants, shipmen knowing the sea, with servants of Solomon,
And Hiram sent in his navy his servants,.... And,
according to 2 Chronicles 8:18,
ships also but how he could send them from Tyre, which lay in the Mediterranean
sea, to the above ports in the Red sea, without going a great way round, is not
easy to conceive. Perhaps, as Gussetins conjecturesF3Ebr. Comment p.
628. , Hiram had a port in the Red sea for building and sending out ships, for
the sake of his eastern navigation, and from thence he sent them to Solomon's
ports in the same sea; but if what R. JaphetF4In Aben Ezra in Jon.
ii. 5. observes is true, that the Red sea is mixed with the sea of Joppa by
means of the river Rhinocurura, as is remarked by a learned manF5Texelii
Phoenix, l. 3. c. 6. p. 243, 244. and who approves of the observation, and
thinks it does not deserve the censure Dr. LightfootF6Miscellanies,
c. 18. vol. 1. p. 1002, 1003. passes on it. If this, I say, can be supported,
the difficulty is removed: so Abarbinel assertsF7Apud Manasseh, Spes
Israelis, sect. 2. p. 20. , that a branch of the Nile flows into the Red sea:
and another, passing through Alexandria, runs into the Mediterranean sea. This
is the first navy of ships we read of; in the construction of which, as well as
in the art of navigation, the Tyrians no doubt were greatly assisting to
Solomon's servants, and which appears by what follows; and they are saidF8"Prima
ratem ventis credere docta Tyros", Catullus. to be the first that made use
of ships; and the invention of ships of burden, or merchant ships, such as
these were, is by PlinyF9Nat. Hist. l. 7. c. 56. ascribed to Hippus
the Tyrian: and the Tyrians were famous for merchandise, which they could not
carry on with foreign nations without shipping; see Isaiah 23:8, the
servants Hiram sent in Solomon's navy were
shipmen that had knowledge of the sea; of sea coasts
and ports, of the manner of guiding and managing ships at sea, and of the whole
art of navigation, so far as then known, for which the Tyrians were famous; see
Ezekiel 27:3,
with the servants of Solomon; to instruct and assist
them in naval affairs, they not having been used thereunto.
1 Kings 9:28 28 And they went to Ophir, and
acquired four hundred and twenty talents of gold from there, and brought it
to King Solomon.
YLT
28and they come in to Ophir
and take thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and bring [it] in unto
king Solomon.
And they came to Ophir,.... About which place
there are various opinions; some take it to be the little island of Zocatora,
on the eastern coast of Africa, at a small distance from the straits of
Babelmandel; others the island of Ceylon; others Sofala in Africa; someF11Erasm.
Schmid. de America, orat. ad Cale. Pindar. p. 261. So some Jewish writers say
it is the new world, Ganz. Tzemach David, par. 1. fol. 10. 1. Peru in America;
Vatablus the island of Hispaniola in the West Indies, discovered by Columbus,
and who thoughtF12P. Martyr Decad. 1. l. 1. himself that he had
found the land of Ophir, because of the quantity of gold in it; others the
southern part of Arabia; but the most reasonable opinion is, says my authorF13Harris's
Voyages, ut supra. (vol. 1. B. 1. ch. 2. sect. 3. p. 377.) , that it is a rich
country in Malacca, which is a peninsula in the true Red sea (that part of the
ocean which divides Asia from Africa), known by the name of the "golden
Chersonese", and which agrees with JosephusF14Ut supra.
(Antiqu. l. 8. c. 6. sect. 4.) ; and at twelve leagues from Malacca there is a
very high mountain, which by the natives is called Ophir, and is reported to
be, or to have been, very rich in gold, though at present only some tin mines
are worked there; and KircherF15China Illustrat. cum Monument. p.
58. & Prodrom. Copt. c. 4. p. 119. says the word Ophir is a Coptic or
Egyptian word, by which the ancient Egyptians used to call that India which
contains the kingdoms of Malabar, Zeilan, the golden Chersonese, and, the
islands belonging to it, Sumatra, Molucca, Java, and other neighbouring golden
islands. So VarreriusF16Comment. de Ophyra. thinks that all that
coast in which are contained Pegu, Malaca, and Somatra, is Ophir; which places,
besides gold, abound with elephants, apes, and parrots. In the island of
Sumatra gold is now found, especially in Achin, in great plenty; in which is a
mountain, called the "golden mountain", near the minesF17Dampier's
Voyages, vol. 2. ch. 7. RelandF18Dissert. de Ophir, sect. 6, 7.
takes Ophir to be the country round about a city called Oupara or Suphara, in
the East Indies, where now stands Goa, the most famous mart in all India at
this day for many of those things Solomon traded thither for. Though after all
perhaps there was no such place originally as Ophir in India; only the gold
brought from thence was like that of Ophir in Arabia, and therefore they called
the place so from whence it was had; see Job 22:24.
and fetched from thence gold four hundred and twenty talents, and brought
it to King Solomon; which according to BrerewoodF19De Ponder. &
Pret. c. 5. amounted to 1,890,000 pounds of our money; and according to another
writerF20Scheuchzer. Physic. Sacr. vol. 3. p. 572. 5,132,400 ducats
of gold. Abarbinel says a talent of gold was equal to 12,300 Venetian ducats;
in 2 Chronicles 8:18
it is said, that four hundred and fifty talents of gold were brought to
Solomon; perhaps thirty might be expended in the voyage, or paid to Hiram's
servants for their wages, as some Jewish writers observe; or in the bulk or ore
it might be four hundred and fifty talents, but when purified only four hundred
and twenty, as Grotius remarks; either way removes the difficulty; though some
think different voyages are respected here and there; of the gold of Ophir
frequent mention is made in Scripture.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)