1 Kings 9.

Matthew Henry

In this chapter we have, I. The answer which God, in a vision, gave to Solomon's prayer, and the terms he settled with him (Kg1 9:1-9). II. The interchanging of grateful kindnesses between Solomon and Hiram (Kg1 9:10-14). III. His workmen and buildings (Kg1 9:15-24). IV. His devotion (Kg1 9:25). V. His trading navy (Kg1 9:26-28).

1–9. God had given a real answer to Solomon's prayer, and tokens of his acceptance of it, immediately, by the fire from heaven which consumed the sacrifices (as we find Ch2 7:1); but here we have a more express and distinct answer to it. Observe,
I. In what way God gave him this answer. He appeared to him, as he had done at Gibeon, in the beginning of his reign, in a dream or vision, Kg1 9:2. The comparing of it with that intimates that it was the very night after he had finished the solemnities of his festival, for so that was, Ch2 1:6, Ch2 1:7. And then Kg1 9:1, speaking of Solomon's finishing all his buildings, which was not till many years after the dedication of the temple, must be read thus, Solomon finished (as it is Ch2 7:11), and Kg1 9:2 must be read, and the Lord had appeared.
II. The purport of this answer. 1. He assures him of his special presence in the temple he had built, in answer to the prayer he had made (Kg1 9:3): I have hallowed this house. Solomon had dedicated it, but it was God's prerogative to hallow it - to sanctify or consecrate it. Men cannot make a place holy, yet what we, in sincerity, devote to God, we may hope he will graciously accept as his; and his eyes and his heart shall be upon it. Apply it to persons, the living temples. Those whom God hallows or sanctifies, whom he sets apart for himself, have his eye, his heart, his love and care, and this perpetually. 2. He shows him that he and his people were for the future upon their good behaviour. Let them not be secure now, as if they might live as they please now that they have the temple of the Lord among them, Jer 7:4. No, this house was designed to protect them in their allegiance to God, but not in their rebellion or disobedience. God deals plainly with us, sets before us good and evil, the blessing and the curse, and lets us know what we must trust to. God here tells Solomon, (1.) That the establishment of his kingdom depended upon the constancy of his obedience (Kg1 9:4, Kg1 9:5): "If thou wilt walk before me as David did, who left thee a good example and encouragement enough to follow it (and advantage thou wilt be accountable for if thou do not improve it), if thou wilt walk as he did, in integrity of heart and uprightness" (for that is the main matter - no religion without sincerity), "then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom, and not otherwise," for on that condition the promise was made, Psa 132:12. If we perform our part of the covenant, God will not fail to perform his; if we improve the grace God has given us, he will confirm us to the end. Let not the children of godly parents expect the entail of the blessing, unless they tread in the steps of those that have gone before them to heaven, and keep up the virtue and piety of their ancestors. (2.) That the ruin of his kingdom would be the certain consequence of his or his children's apostasy from God (Kg1 9:6): "But know thou, and let thy family and kingdom know it, and be admonished by it, that if you shall altogether turn from following me" (so it is thought it should be read), "if you forsake my service, desert my altar, and go and serve other gods" (for that was the covenant-breaking sin), "if you or your children break off from me, this house will not save you. But, [1.] Israel, though a holy nation, will be cut off (Kg1 9:7), by one judgment after another, till they become a proverb and a by-word, and the most despicable people under the sun, though now the most honourable." This supposes the destruction of the royal family, though it is not particularly threatened; the king is, of course, undone, if the kingdom be. [2.] "The temple, though a holy house, which God himself has hallowed for his name, shall be abandoned and laid desolate (Kg1 9:8, Kg1 9:9): This house which is high." They prided themselves in the stateliness and magnificence of the structure, but let them know that it is not so high as to be out of the reach of God's judgments, if they vilify it so as to exchange it for groves and idol-temples, and yet, at the same time, magnify it so as to think it will secure the favour of God to them though they ever so much corrupt themselves. This house which is high. Those that now pass by it are astonished at the bulk and beauty of it; the richness, contrivance, and workmanship, are admired by all spectators, and it is called a stupendous fabric; but, if you forsake God, its height will make its fall the more amazing, and those that pass by will be as much astonished at its ruins, while the guilty, self-convicted, self-condemned, Israelites, will be forced to acknowledge, with shame, that they themselves were the ruin of it; for when it shall be asked, Why hath the Lord done thus to his house? they cannot but answer, It was because they forsook the Lord their God. See Deu 29:24, Deu 29:25. Their sin will be read in their punishment. They deserted the temple, and therefore God deserted it; they profaned it with their sins and laid it common, and therefore God profaned it with his judgments and laid it waste. God gave Solomon fair warning of this, now that he had newly built and dedicated it, that he and his people might not be high-minded, but fear.

10–14. What agreement was made between Solomon and Hiram, when the building-work was to be begun, we read before, ch. 5. Here we have an account of their fair and friendly parting when the work was done. 1. Hiram made good his bargain to the utmost. He had furnished Solomon with materials for his buildings, according to all his desire (Kg1 9:11), and with gold, Kg1 9:15. So far was he from envying Solomon's growing greatness and reputation, and being jealous of him, that he helped to magnify him. Solomon's power, with Solomon's wisdom, needs not be dreaded by any of his neighbours. God honours him; therefore Hiram will. 2. Solomon, no doubt, made good his bargain, and gave Hiram food for his household, as was agreed, Kg1 5:9. But here we are told that, over and above that, he gave him twenty cities (small ones we may suppose, like those mentioned here, Kg1 9:19) in the land of Galilee, Kg1 9:11. It should seem, these were not allotted to any of the tribes of Israel (for the border of Asher came up to them, Jos 19:27, which intimates that it did not include them), but continued in the hands of the natives till Solomon made himself master of them, and then made a present of them to Hiram. It becomes those that are great and good to be generous. Hiram came to see these cities, and did not like them (Kg1 9:12): They pleased him not. He called the country the land of Cabul, a Phoenician word (says Josephus) which signifies displeasing, Kg1 9:13. He therefore returned them to Solomon (as we find, Ch2 8:2), who repaired them, and then caused the children of Israel to inhabit them, which intimates that before they did not; but, when Solomon received back what he had given, no doubt he honourably gave Hiram an equivalent in something else. But what shall we think of this? Did Solomon act meanly in giving Hiram what was not worth his acceptance? Or was Hiram humoursome and hard to please? I am willing to believe it was neither the one nor the other. The country was truly valuable, and so were the cities in it, but not agreeable to Hiram's genius. The Tyrians were merchants, trading men, that lived in fine houses, and became rich by navigation, but knew not how to value a country that was fit for corn and pasture (that was business that lay out of their way); and therefore Hiram desired Solomon to take them again, he knew not what to do with them, and, if he would please to gratify him, let it be in his own element, by becoming his partner in trade, as we find he did, Kg1 9:27. Hiram, who was used to the clean streets of Tyre, could by no means agree with the miry lanes in the land of Cabul, whereas the best lands have commonly the worst roads through them. See how the providence of God suits both the accommodation of this earth to the various dispositions of men and the dispositions of men to the various accommodations of the earth, and all for the good of mankind in general. Some take delight in husbandry, and wonder what pleasure sailors can take on a rough sea; others take as much delight in navigation, and wonder what pleasure husbandmen can take in a dirty country, like the land of Cabul. It is so in many other instances, in which we may observe the wisdom of him whose all souls are and all lands.

15. We have here a further account of Solomon's greatness.
I. His buildings. He raised a great levy both of men and money, because he projected a great deal of building, which would both employ many hands and put him to a vast expense, Kg1 9:15. And he was a wise builder, who sat down first, and counted the cost, and would not begin to build till he found himself able to finish. Perhaps there was some complaint of the heaviness of the taxes, which the historian excuses from the greatness of his undertakings. He raised it, not for war (as other princes), which would spend the blood of his subjects, but for building, which would require only their labour and purses. Perhaps David observed Solomon's genius to lie towards building, and foresaw he would have his head and hands full of it, when he penned that song of degrees for Solomon, which begins, Except the Lord build the house, those labour in vain that build it (Psa 127:1), directing him to acknowledge God in all his ways, and, by prayer and faith in his providence, to take him along with him in all his designs of this kind. And Solomon verily began his work at the right end, for he built God's house first, and finished that before he began his own; and then God blessed him, and he prospered in all his other buildings. If we begin with God, he will go on with us. Let the first-fruits be his, and the after-fruits will the more comfortably be ours, Mat 6:33. Solomon built a church first and then he was enabled to build houses, and cities, and walls. Those consult not their own interest that defer to the last what they design for pious uses. The further order in Solomon's buildings is observable. God's house first for religion, then his own for his own convenience, then a house for his wife, to which she removed as soon as it was ready for her (Kg1 9:24), then Millo, the town-house or guild-hall, then the wall of Jerusalem, the royal city, then some cities of note and strength in the country, which were decayed and unfortified, Hazor, Megiddo, etc. As he rebuilt these at his own charge, the inhabitants would be not only his subjects, but his tenants, which would increase the revenues of the crown for the benefit of his successors. Among the rest, he built Gezer, which Pharaoh took out of the hands of the Canaanites, and made a present of to his daughter, Solomon's wife, Kg1 9:16. See how God maketh the earth to help the woman. Solomon was not himself a warlike prince, but the king of Egypt, who was, took cities for him to build. Then he built cities for convenience, for store, for his chariots, and for his horsemen, Kg1 9:19. And, lastly, he built for pleasure in Lebanon, for his hunting perhaps, or other diversions there. Let piety begin, and profit proceed, and leave pleasure to the last.
II. His workmen and servants. In doing such great works, he must needs employ abundance of workmen. The honour of great men is borrowed from their inferiors, who do that which they have the credit of. 1. Solomon employed those who remained of the conquered and devoted nations in all the slavish work, Kg1 9:20, Kg1 9:21. We may suppose that they renounced their idolatry and submitted to Solomon's government, so that he could not, in honour, utterly destroy them, and they were so poor that he could not levy money on them; therefore he served himself of their labour. Herein he observed God's law (Lev 25:44, Thy bondmen shall be of the heathen), and fulfilled Noah's curse upon Canaan, A servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren, Gen 9:25. 2. He employed Israelites in the more creditable services (Kg1 9:22, Kg1 9:23): Of them he made no bondmen, for they were God's freemen, but he made them soldiers and courtiers, and gave them offices, as he saw them qualified, among his chariots and horsemen, appointing some to support the service of the inferior labourers. Thus he preserved the dignity and liberty of Israel and honoured their relation to God as a kingdom of priests.
III. His piety and devotion (Kg1 9:25): Three times in a year he offered burnt-offerings extraordinary (namely, at the three yearly feasts, the passover, pentecost, and feast of tabernacles) in honour of the divine institution, besides what he offered at other times, both statedly and upon special occasions. With his sacrifices he burnt incense, not himself (that was king Uzziah's crime), but the priest for him, at his charge, and for his particular use. It is said, He offered on the altar which he himself built. He took care to build it, and then, 1. He himself made use of it. Many will assist the devotions of others that neglect their own. Solomon did not think his building an altar would excuse him from sacrificing, but rather engage him the more to it. 2. He himself had the benefit and comfort of it. Whatever pains we take, for the support of religion, to the glory of God and the edification of others, we ourselves are likely to have the advantage of it.
IV. His merchandise. He built a fleet of trading ships at Ezion-geber (Kg1 9:26), a port on the coast of the Red Sea, the furthest stage of the Israelites when they wandered in the wilderness, Num 33:35. Probably that wilderness now began to be peopled by the Edomites, which it was not then. To them this port had belonged, but, David having subdued the Edomites, it now pertained to the crown of Judah. The fleet traded to Ophir in the East Indies, supposed to be that which is now called Ceylon. Gold was the commodity traded for, substantial wealth. It should seem, Solomon had before been Hiram's partner, or put a venture into his ships, which made him a rich return of 120 talents (Kg1 9:14), which encouraged him to build a fleet of his own. The success of others in any employment should quicken our industry; for in all labour there is profit. Solomon sent his own servants as factors, and merchants, and super-cargoes, but hired Tyrians for sailors, for they had knowledge of the sea, Kg1 9:27. Thus one nation needs another, Providence so ordering it that there may be mutual commerce and assistance; for not only as Christians, but as men, we are members one of another. The fleet brought home to Solomon 420 talents of gold, Kg1 9:28. Canaan, the holy land, the glory of all lands, had no gold in it, which teaches us that that part of the wealth of this world which is for hoarding and trading is not the best part of it, but that which is more immediately for the present support and comfort of life, our own and others'; such were the productions of Canaan. Solomon got much by his merchandise, but, it should seem, David got much more by his conquests. What were Solomon's 420 talents to David's 100,000 talents of gold? Ch1 22:14; Ch1 29:4. Solomon got much by his merchandise, and yet has directed us to a better trade, within reach of the poorest, having assured us from his own experience of both that the merchandise of wisdom is better than the merchandise of silver and the gain thereof than fine gold, Pro 3:14.

Adam Clarke

The Lord appears a second time to Solomon, and assures him that he had heard his prayer; and that he would establish his worship for ever in that temple, and him and his successors on the throne of Israel, provided he and they would keep his statutes and judgments, Kg1 9:1-5; but if they should transgress and forsake the Lord, then they should be cast off, the temple itself abandoned, and their enemies permitted to prevail over them, Kg1 9:6-9. Solomon having finished the temple and the king's house, about which he was employed twenty years, and having received assistance from Hiram king of Tyre, he gave him in return twenty cities in Galilee, with which he was not pleased, Kg1 9:10-14. Solomon's levies, buildings, and the persons employed, Kg1 9:15-23. Pharaoh's daughter comes to the city of David, Kg1 9:24. He sacrifices thrice a year at the temple, Kg1 9:25. Solomon's navy, and the gold they brought from Ophir, Kg1 9:26-28.

2–6. The Lord appeared to Solomon - The design of this appearance, which was in a dream, as that was at Gibeon, was to assure Solomon that God had accepted his service, and had taken that house for his dwelling-place, and would continue it, and establish him and his descendants upon the throne of Israel for ever, provided they served him with an upright heart; but, on the contrary, if they forsook him, he would abandon both them and his temple.

7–8. A proverb and a by - word among all people - And so they are to the present; the unbelieving Jews, the stubborn, stiff-necked Jews, are words still in common use. They forsook the Lord, rejected his Christ, and are cast off, their temple destroyed, and they scattered over the face of the earth.

9. Have taken hold upon other gods - When an indigent person claims the protection of a superior, he casts himself down before him, and lays hold of his feet; and this expression is frequently used when there is no prostration: I have taken hold of thy feet. When a person is called into the presence of the Burman monarch, he is said to go to the golden foot. - Ward's Customs.

10. At the end of twenty years - He employed seven years and a half in building the temple, and twelve years and a half in building the king's house; see Kg1 7:1; Ch2 8:1.

11–12. Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities - It is very likely that Solomon did not give those cities to Hiram so that they should be annexed to his Tyrian dominions, but rather gave him the produce of them till the money was paid which he had advanced to Solomon for his buildings. It appears however that either Hiram did not accept them, or that having received the produce till he was paid, he then restored them to Solomon; for in the parallel place, Ch2 8:2, it is said, The cities which Hiram had restored to Solomon, Solomon built them, and caused the children of Israel to dwell there. Some think that they were heathen cities which Solomon had conquered, and therefore had a right to give them if he pleased, as they were not any part of the land given by promise to the Israelites.

13. Called them the land of Cabul - Whether this epithet was given to this land by Hiram as a mark of disapprobation, or what is its proper meaning, the learned are not agreed. That there was a country of this name in the promised land in the time of Joshua, is evident enough from Jos 19:27, as it was one part of the boundary of the tribe of Asher; hence some interpret the word border or boundary, and so, the Septuagint understood it, for they have translated the Hebrew word ὁριον, which signifies the same. The margin gives another meaning.

14. Sixscore talents of gold - This was the sum which Hiram had lent, and in order to pay this Solomon had laid a tax upon his people, as we afterward learn. The whole is very darkly expressed.

15. This is the reason of the levy - That is, in order to pay Hiram the sixscore talents of gold which he had borrowed from him (Hiram not being willing to take the Galilean cities mentioned above; or, having taken them, soon restored them again) he was obliged to lay a tax upon the people; and that this was a grievous and oppressive tax we learn from Kg1 12:1-4, where the elders of Israel came to Rehoboam, complaining of their heavy state of taxation, and entreating that their yoke might be made lighter.
And Millo - This is supposed to have been a deep valley between Mount Sion and what was called the city of Jebus, which Solomon filled up, and it was built on, and became a sort of fortified place, and a place for public assemblies. - See Calmet.

16–17. Pharaoh - had gone up, and taken Gezer - This city Joshua had taken from the Canaanites, Jos 10:33; Jos 12:12, and it was divided by lot to the tribe of Ephraim, and was intended to be one of the Levitical cities; but it appears that the Canaanites had retaken it, and kept possession till the days of Solomon, when his father-in-law, Pharaoh king of Egypt, retook it, and gave it to Solomon in dowry with his daughter.

18. And Tadmor in the wilderness - This is almost universally allowed to be the same with the celebrated Palmyra, the ruins of which remain to the present day, and give us the highest idea of Solomon's splendor and magnificence. Palmyra stood upon a fertile plain surrounded by a barren desert, having the river Euphrates on the east. The ruins are well described by Messrs. Dawkes and Wood, of which they give fine representations. They are also well described in the ancient part of the Universal History, vol. i., p. 367-70. The description concludes thus: "The world never saw a more glorious city; the pride, it is likely, of ancient times, and the reproach of our own; a city not more remarkable for the state of her buildings and unwontedness of her situation than for the extraordinary personages who once flourished there, among whom the renowned Zenobia and the incomparable Longinus must for ever be remembered with admiration and regret."

19–20. And all the cities of store - Though, by the multitude and splendor of his buildings, Solomon must have added greatly to the magnificence of his reign; yet, however plenteous silver and gold were in his times, his subjects must have been greatly oppressed with the taxation necessary to defray such a vast public expenditure.

21–24. A tribute of bond-service - He made them do the most laborious part of the public works, the Israelites being generally exempt. When Sesostris, king of Egypt, returned from his wars, he caused temples to be built in all the cities of Egypt, but did not employ one Egyptian in the work, having built the whole by the hands of the captives which he had taken in his wars. Hence he caused this inscription to be placed upon each temple: -
Ουδεις εγχωριος εις αυτα μεμοχθηκε.
No native has labored in these
Diodor. Sic. Bibl., lib. i., c. 56.
It appears that Solomon might with propriety have placed a similar inscription on most of his works.

25. Three times in a year did Solomon offer - These three times were:
1. The passover.
2. The feast of pentecost.
3. The feast of tabernacles.

26–27. A navy of ships - Literally, אני oni, a ship: in the parallel place, Ch2 8:17, it is said that Hiram sent him אניות oniyoth, ships; but it does not appear that Solomon in this case built more than one ship, and this was manned principally by the Tyrians.

28. And they came to Ophir - No man knows certainly, to this day, where this Ophir was situated. There were two places of this name; one somewhere in India, beyond the Ganges, and another in Arabia, near the country of the Sabaeans, mentioned by Job, Job 22:24 : Then shalt thou lay up gold as dust; and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the brooks. And Job 28:16 : It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire. Calmet places this country at the sources of the Euphrates and Tigris.
But there are several reasons to prove that this was not the Ophir of the Bible, which it seems was so situated as to require a voyage of three years long to go out, load, and return. Mr. Bruce has discussed this subject at great length; see his Travels, vol. ii., chap. iv., p. 354, etc. He endeavors to prove
1. That Ezion-geber is situated on the Elanitic branch of the Arabian Gulf or Red Sea.
2. That Tharshish is Moka, near to Melinda, in the Indian Ocean, in about three degrees south latitude.
3. That Ophir lies somewhere in the land of Sofala, or in the vicinity of the Zimbeze river, opposite the island of Madagascar, where there have been gold and silver mines in great abundance from the remotest antiquity. And he proves,
4. That no vessel could perform this voyage in less than Three years, because of the monsoons; that more time need not be employed, and that this is the precise time mentioned in Kg1 10:22.
5. That this is the country of the queen of Sheba, or Sabia, or Azeba, who on her visit to Solomon, brought him one hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices and precious stones great store, Kg1 10:10. And that gold, ivory, silver, etc., are the natural productions of this country.
To illustrate and prove his positions he has given a map on a large scale, "showing the track of Solomon's fleet in their three years' voyage from the Elanitic Gulf to Ophir and Tharshish;" to which, and his description, I must refer the reader.

John Gill

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, Kg1 9:1 that passed between him and Hiram king of Tyre, Kg1 9:10, the places that Solomon built or repaired, Kg1 9:15, the Canaanitish people that became bondmen to him, and the officers he had among the children of Israel, Kg1 9:20 the removal of Pharaoh's daughter to the house built for her, Kg1 9:24. Solomon's attention to religious services, Kg1 9:25 and the navy of ships he employed, which brought him in great riches, Kg1 9:26.

1. And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the Lord,.... Which was done in seven years, Kg1 6:38.

and the king's house; his own palace, which was finished in thirteen years, Kg1 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, Ecc 2:4 in which he succeeded and prospered, Ch2 7:11.

2. 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, Kg1 3:5, see Ch2 7:12.

3. 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, Ch2 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.

4. 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.

5. 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 Sa2 7:12.

6. 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" (e), 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.

(e) "si avertendo aversi fueritis", Pagninus, Montanus, &c.

7. 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 Ch2 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 Deu 28:37, in Ch2 7:20 the house or temple is said to be made a proverb of.

8. 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, Ch2 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.

9. 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.

10. 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.
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

kg1 9:11
kg1 9:11
kg1 9:11(Now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees,.... For the building of both his houses; see Kg1 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 Kg1 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 Jos 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 Ch2 8:2. They are by a Jewish writer (f) said to be twenty two, very wrongly.

(f) Gloss. in T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 54. 1.

11. 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 Ch2 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.

12. 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 interpret (g) the word shut up, or unfruitful, sandy, dirty, clayey; so in the Talmud (h) 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. Josephus (i) says, in the Phoenician tongue it signifies "not pleasing", which agrees with what Hiram says, Kg1 9:12. Hillerus (k) 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, Ch2 8:2, which seems to be the best sense of the word. They are the same with Decapolis, Mat 4:25 so called from ten cities therein (l).

(g) David de Pomis, Lexic fol. 58. 2. (h) T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 54. 1. (i) Antiqu. l. 8. c. 5. sect. 3. (k) Onomastic. Sacr. p. 435. (l) Vid. Castel Lex Heptaglot. col. 1669. & Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 18.

13. 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" (m), and is the sum of the gold he furnished him with for the temple, Kg1 9:11 which, according to Brerewood (n), was 540,000 pounds of our money; and, according to another (o) writer, it amounted to 1,466,400 ducats of gold, taking a talent at 12,220 ducats.

(m) "miserat", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. (n) De Ponderibus & Pretiis, Vet. Num. c. 5. (o) Scheuchzer. Physic. Sacr. vol. 3. p. 571.

14. And this is the reason of the levy which King Solomon raised,.... Both of men to work, Kg1 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 Sa1 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 Jos 11:1.

and Megiddo; which was in the tribe of Manasseh, Jos 17:11.

and Gezer; which was in the tribe of Ephraim, and formerly a royal city of the Canaanites, Jos 10:33.

15. 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 Jos 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.

16. 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, Ch2 8:5, which belonged to the tribe of Ephraim, and were on the borders of it, between that and Benjamin, Jos 16:3.

17. And Baalath,.... A city in the tribe of Dan, Jos 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 Ptolemy (p); and is thought by some to be the same with Tamar in Eze 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 Ptolemy (q) and Pliny (r) 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 temple (s). Benjamin of Tudela says (t), 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 geographer (u), was situated at the foot of Mount Lebanon; and Tadmor seems to be in the land of Hamathzobah, Ch2 8:3.

(p) Geograph. l. 5. c. 16. (q) Ib. c. 15. (r) Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 26. & 6. 28. (s) Halifax apud Philosphic. Transact. vol. 3. p. 504. (t) Itinerar. p. 57, 58. (u) Geograph. Nub. par. 5. clim. 3. p. 117.

18. 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, Ch2 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, Kg1 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 Ecc 2:4,

and in Lebanon; the house of the forest of Lebanon, which Junius on Kg1 7:2 thinks he built after he had taken Hamathzobah, a royal city of Lebanon; see Ch2 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.

19. 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 Jdg 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.
, 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

kg1 9:21
kg1 9:21
kg1 9:21Their 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 Ch2 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.

20. 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, Lev 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 Kg1 9:19.

21. 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 Ch2 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, Ch2 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.

22. 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, Kg1 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 Ch2 8:11,

then did he build Millo: this being particularly repeated from Kg1 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 Ch2 8:11 calls her name Bithiah.

23. 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 Ch2 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 Ch2 8:14.

24. 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, Num 33:35, it signifies the backbone of a man; and it is said (w) 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 says (x) in his time it was called Berenice, which is placed by Mela (y) between the Heroopolitic bay, and the promontory Strobilus, or Pharan. It is thought probable (z) to be the same with that which is called by the Arabs Meenah-el-Dsahab, the port of gold, called Dizahab, Deu 1:1, which stands upon the shore of the Arabic gulf, about two or three days' distance from Mount Sinai; though by others (a) 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 Deu 2:8. Trajan, the Roman emperor, formed a navy in the Red sea (b), that by it he might ravage and waste the borders of India; and here it seems Solomon's navy went; see Kg1 9:28.

(w) Harris's Voyages, vol. 1. B. 1. ch. 2. sect. 3. p. 377. (x) Antiqu. l. 8. c. 6. sect. 4. (y) De Situ Orbis, l. 3. c. 8. (z) Clayton's Chronology, &c. p. 407. (a) Vossius in Melam ut supra, (Harris's Voyages, vol. 1. B. 1. ch. 2. sect. 3.) p. 386. (b) Eutrop. Rom. Hist. l. 8. Ruti Fest. Breviar.

25. And Hiram sent in his navy his servants,.... And, according to Ch2 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 conjectures (c), 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. Japhet (d) 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 man (e) and who approves of the observation, and thinks it does not deserve the censure Dr. Lightfoot (f) passes on it. If this, I say, can be supported, the difficulty is removed: so Abarbinel asserts (g), 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 said (h) 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 Pliny (i) ascribed to Hippus the Tyrian: and the Tyrians were famous for merchandise, which they could not carry on with foreign nations without shipping; see Isa 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 Eze 27:3,

with the servants of Solomon; to instruct and assist them in naval affairs, they not having been used thereunto.

(c) Ebr. Comment p. 628. (d) In Aben Ezra in Jon. ii. 5. (e) Texelii Phoenix, l. 3. c. 6. p. 243, 244. (f) Miscellanies, c. 18. vol. 1. p. 1002, 1003. (g) Apud Manasseh, Spes Israelis, sect. 2. p. 20. (h) "Prima ratem ventis credere docta Tyros", Catullus. (i) Nat. Hist. l. 7. c. 56.

26. 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; some (k) Peru in America; Vatablus the island of Hispaniola in the West Indies, discovered by Columbus, and who thought (l) 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 author (m), 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 Josephus (n); 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 Kircher (o) 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 Varrerius (p) 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 mines (q) Reland (r) 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 Brerewood (s) amounted to 1,890,000 pounds of our money; and according to another writer (t) 5,132,400 ducats of gold. Abarbinel says a talent of gold was equal to 12,300 Venetian ducats; in Ch2 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.

(k) Erasm. 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. (l) P. Martyr Decad. 1. l. 1. (m) Harris's Voyages, ut supra. (vol. 1. B. 1. ch. 2. sect. 3. p. 377.) (n) Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 8. c. 6. sect. 4.) (o) China Illustrat. cum Monument. p. 58. & Prodrom. Copt. c. 4. p. 119. (p) Comment. de Ophyra. (q) Dampier's Voyages, vol. 2. ch. 7. (r) Dissert. de Ophir, sect. 6, 7. (s) De Ponder. & Pret. c. 5. (t) Scheuchzer. Physic. Sacr. vol. 3. p. 572.

Next: 1 Kings Chapter 10

JFB

GOD'S COVENANT IN A SECOND VISION WITH SOLOMON. (Kg1 9:1-9)

And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house--This first verse is connected with Kg1 9:11, all that is contained between Kg1 9:2-10 being parenthetical.

2–7. That--rather, "For."

the Lord appeared--This appearance was, like the former one at Gibeon, most probably made in a supernatural vision, and on the night immediately following the dedication of the temple (Ch2 7:12). The strain of it corresponds to this view, for it consists of direct answers to his solemn inaugural prayer (Kg1 9:3 is in answer to Kg1 8:29; Kg1 9:4-5 is in answer to Kg1 8:25-26; Kg1 9:6-9 to Kg1 8:33-46; see also Deu 29:22-24).

8–9. this house, which is high--"high," either in point of situation, for it was built on a hill, and therefore conspicuous to every beholder; or "high" in respect to privilege, honor, and renown; or this "house of the Most High," notwithstanding all its beauty and magnificence, shall be destroyed, and remain in such a state of ruin and degradation as to be a striking monument of the just judgment of God. The record of this second vision, in which were rehearsed the conditions of God's covenant with Solomon and the consequences of breaking them, is inserted here as a proper introduction to the narrative about to be given of this king's commercial enterprises and ambitious desire for worldly glory; for this king, by encouraging an influx of foreign people and a taste for foreign luxuries, rapidly corrupted his own mind and that of this subjects, so that they turned from following God, they and their children (Kg1 9:6).

10. THE MUTUAL PRESENTS OF SOLOMON AND HIRAM. (Kg1 9:10-23)

at the end of twenty years--Seven and a half years were spent in building the temple, and twelve and a half or thirteen in the erection of his palace (Kg1 7:1; Ch2 8:1). This verse is only a recapitulation of Kg1 9:1, necessary to recover the thread of connection in the narrative.

11–14. Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee--According to JOSEPHUS, they were situated on the northwest of it, adjacent to Tyre. Though lying within the boundaries of the promised land (Gen 15:18; Jos 1:4), they had never been conquered till then, and were inhabited by Canaanite heathens (Jdg 4:2-13; Kg2 15:29). They were probably given to Hiram, whose dominions were small, as a remuneration for his important services in furnishing workmen, materials, and an immense quantity of wrought gold (Kg1 9:14) for the temple and other buildings [MICHAELIS]. The gold, however, as others think, may have been the amount of forfeits paid to Solomon by Hiram for not being able to answer the riddles and apothegms, with which, according to JOSEPHUS, in their private correspondence, the two sovereigns amused themselves. Hiram having refused these cities, probably on account of their inland situation making them unsuitable to his maritime and commercial people, Solomon satisfied his ally in some other way; and, taking these cities into his own hands, he first repaired their shattered walls, then filled them with a colony of Hebrews (Ch2 8:2).

15–16. this is the reason of the levy--A levy refers both to men and money, and the necessity for Solomon making it arose from the many gigantic works he undertook to erect.

Millo--part of the fort of Jerusalem on Mount Zion (Sa2 5:9; Ch1 11:8), or a row of stone bastions around Mount Zion, Millo being the great corner tower of that fortified wall (Kg1 11:27; Ch2 32:5).

the wall of Jerusalem--either repairing some breaches in it (Kg1 11:27), or extending it so as to enclose Mount Zion.

Hazor--fortified on account of its importance as a town in the northern boundary of the country.

Megiddo--(now Leijun)--Lying in the great caravan road between Egypt and Damascus, it was the key to the north of Palestine by the western lowlands, and therefore fortified.

Gezer--on the western confines of Ephraim, and, though a Levitical city, occupied by the Canaanites. Having fallen by right of conquest to the king of Egypt, who for some cause attacked it, it was given by him as a dowry to his daughter, and fortified by Solomon.

17. Beth-horon the nether--situated on the way from Joppa to Jerusalem and Gibeon; it required, from so public a road, to be strongly garrisoned.

18–22. Baalath--Baal-bek.

Tadmor--Palmyra, between Damascus and the Euphrates, was rebuilt and fortified as a security against invasion from northern Asia. In accomplishing these and various other works which were carried on throughout the kingdom, especially in the north, where Rezon of Damascus, his enemy, might prove dangerous, he employed vast numbers of the Canaanites as galley slaves (Ch2 2:18), treating them as prisoners of war, who were compelled to do the drudgery and hard labor, while the Israelites were only engaged in honorable employment.

23. These were the chief of the officers--(See on Ch2 8:10).

24–25. SOLOMON'S YEARLY SACRIFICES. (Kg1 9:24-28)

three times in a year--namely, at the passover, pentecost, and feast of tabernacles (Ch2 8:13; Ch2 31:3). The circumstances mentioned in these two verses form a proper conclusion to the record of his buildings and show that his design in erecting those at Jerusalem was to remedy defects existing at the commencement of his reign (see Kg1 3:1-4).

26–27. Ezion-geber, which is beside Eloth--These were neighboring ports at the head of the eastern or Elanitic branch of the Red Sea. Tyrian ship carpenters and sailors were sent there for Solomon's vessels (see on Ch2 8:17-18).

Ezion-geber--that is, "the giant's backbone"; so called from a reef of rocks at the entrance of the harbor.

Eloth--Elim or Elath; that is, "the trees"; a grove of terebinths still exists at the head of the gulf.

28. Ophir--a general name, like the East or West Indies with us, for all the southern regions lying on the African, Arabian, or Indian seas, in so far as at that time known [HEEREN].

gold, four hundred and twenty talents--(See on Ch2 8:18). At 125 pounds Troy, or 1500 ounces to the talent, and about £4 to the ounce, this would make £2,604,000.

Next: 1 Kings Chapter 10