Commentary on the Holy Bible

and finished it. teBanwioL 15 And he built the walls of the house

'""-^^ within with boards of cedar, "both the floor of the house, and the walls of the ceiling: OTtd he covered them on the inside with wood, and covered the floor of the house with planks of fir.

16 And he buflt twenty cubits on the eides of

the house, both die floor and the walls with bouda of cedar: he even built them for it within, even for the oracle, even for Uie ' most holy «Iace.

17 And the bouse, that is, the temple befbre it, was forty cuhita lone-

18 And the cedar o? the bouse within was carved with ■ knops and * open flowers: all war cedar: there was no stone seen.

19 f And the oracle he prepared in the house within, to set there the ark of the covenantor the LoBD.

20 And the oracle in the fore-part was twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof: and he overlaid it with ^ pure gold; and so covered the altar which was lif cedar.

2 1 So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure sold: and he made a partition by the chains of gotet before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold.

22 And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he bad finished all the house; also <the whole altar, that was by the oracle, he overlaid with gold.

23 If And within the oracle * he" made two cherubim of * olive ' tree, each ten cubits high.

24 And nve cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wiiig of the cherub: from the uttermost part of the one wing unto the uttermost part oT the other were ten cubits.

25 And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the eherubim were of one measure and one size.

26 The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub.

27 And he set the cherubim within the inner house: and * they ^ stretched forth the wings of the cherubim, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall ^ and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house.

28 And be overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29 And he carved all the walls of the nouse round about with carved figures of cherubim, and palm trees, and < open fiowere, within and without.

30 And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without.

31 Tl And for the entering of the oracle he made doors of olive tree: the lintel and side poets were * a fiflh part of the wall.

For otlier psrtiealsn I must refer the nsder to the threa imrgt -nU. of VHalpandua, Or. lA^oofa Worki, snd to ine Connexiotu qf Dr. PriiUaux.

VMse4. Window ^fnan^ligUal The Ku^ai« nys,./^MMrirotoAlima*, oblique windows: butwliaiiortofwinrfowieouldsuafbel Hnte Hebrew i> irarn c^npv n^nchmlonnr ihekuphim stumiin I window lolooktkrougk,iMA shut. PrabsbtylsttiGelwiiKlowatwiodowsthrou^whicha psnoa within oould ice well; but a penoa without, nothing. t^indovD^ wyi the IVvgum, uAicA were open iBiihin, and shut wiOwut, Does he mean vtndoiM with Auttert; or, are we to underatsnd, with the AraUo, windows openiiw wide within, and aanow on the outnde; sueh u w« atifi ■es in saeient eastlesY lUs aense our nor^ expresns.

Terse 7. Tht how was buttt ^atonal Itawean dat emy stone was hewn and-Mpuued, and ile pluee in the baiMmg <ueertait\ad, befbre it came to Jeraealem: the ttmbora were fitted in like manner. Thia greatly leaaeaed the trouble and ezpenaa of carriage; on tbia account, that all waa prepared at mount Lebanon, 7Vr« taoa ntiOUr ham7Mr,axa, nor anjfleel of iroUfhiardiM^ building: BOdnng except malleta to dnve the tenons huo the morticea, and drive in the pine to'fitaten them, waa neceaaary; therefor*, there waa no noiae. But idty ia thia ao parti, eularly marked t la it not because the temple waa a type of die kingdom of Oodf and the eoula of men are to be prepared htrt for Uuit place of blnaetdneai IViere, there is no preaching, exbortnticKia, repenlano& teara, criea, nor pmyna; the atones muat be all aquarea and fitted bers for their ^ace in the New Jeruaalem: and being Using ^onep, must be built up a holy temple for a babmtioo M God, through the Spirit.

Terse 9. Covvred 0*4 houte vUh beama and boards tlf eedar.] The Eastern custom is very different from ours: Weoettwithpfauto-, aiul makeour^,^aar«of tmod: they make their Jlaora of plaet^, or painted tUa; and make dieir ceUinge of wooo. But it nuw not be improper to obaerre that, in ancient times, ourbuiioingawmaomeidmtsnnilar: Westmineter Hall iaaproofof this.

Terae 11. The vord qf the Lord came to Solomon} Some ihiuk that this is the same revelation as ihi^t mealioned chap. xit. % Ac. which took place after the dediealicm of the temple: but to me it aniears different; it was a wtnd to aneoursge him uhiU Duilding; to warn him against apoataay, and to anure him of Chid'e continued protectioD of him and bis family, if thqr contmued fiuthfiil to the grace vhidi Ood had given.

Terse 19, The orwlehe wepartd\ See iho description of ilu temple at the eod of iKia chapter.

Terse 22. The tOude house he ovvrlaidi^ goX^ It ia impoaaible to calculate this expense, or the quaxUity of gold employed in this sacred building.

TerBe28. Thehaghlt^ theone Aerub untmeubU*} Concerning the cherubiot, their Ibnn. Ac. see my iwie on Sxod. Jtxv. 18. the height of each cherub waa about ^lUenftd ani Arte indtts.

33 The I two doors alao were of olhra tree; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubim, and palm trees, and " open flowers, and overlaid them with gold, and spread gold upon the chertdiim, and upon the palm trees.

33 So also made he for the door of the temple poets of olive tree, " a fourth part of the irali.

34 And the two doors were of fir tree: the * two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding.

35 And he carved thereon cherubim, and

Veree 36, TTiree row qf hexccd slant, and a row <if ctdar beanu.1 Does nol ihia iatimate that there were three oaorwa of atones; and then one courae of timber, all Muourit (his wall ^ Three strata of stone, and one stratum of timber, and to on. If so, could such a building be very durable 7 This is also referred to in the sueeeeauw chapter, ver. 11.; and u both the temple uid Solomon^ house were built in the samo manner, we may suppose that ibis was the ordinary w&y in which the better sort of buildings were constructed. Calmet thinks, thai to this mode of building the prophet alludes, Hab. ii. U. 7Tu atona ihaU, cry out of uu wail, and Ou beam out of the timber ahall answer it. But it should be observed, that this was in the inner court; and, therefore, the timber was not exposed to the weather. The mUiard court does not appear to have been built stratum super stratum, of stone and wood.

Verse 38. In Ihe eleventh year — woe Ote howKjlni^ut[\ It is rather strange that this house required ween yean and about six monttw to put all the stones and the dmben in their plaees: for we have already seen, that they were all prepared before they oame to Jerusalem; but the omanenting, plding, or overlaying with gold, nuddng the carved work, cherubim, trees, Howera^ &c. must nave consumed a considerable time. The month Bid aoswers to a port (tf our October and November; as ^f, in wliich it was begun, answers lo a port of AprU and May.

The abdication did not take place Ull the ft^lowing ^r, the twelfth of Solomon; because that then, accoromg to Archbisliop Ussher, the jubilee happened.

Sb he woe aeven yeare in building of it.\ Properlv, ■even years and six months: but the Scripture generally expressei things in round numbert.

Diana's temple, at E|)hesue, was one of the seven wondsrs of the world. It is said that almost all Aaia was employed in die building of it, for about hoo hundred years: but it was certainly more extensive than the temple at Jerusalem; for it maybe justly questioned, notwithstanding the profusion of fold, silver, precious stones, emploved in the temple m Solomon, whedier it cost any thing like the money expended on the temple of Diana.

Puny informs us, Hiet. Nat. Wh. xxxvi. cf^. 12. that, in order to build one of the pyramids in Egypt, no less than Oiree hundred and nxty ihoueand men were employed for ibe space of twenty years. But neither was the temple any sudi work as thu. We mav also observe, that the temple was never intended to hold a vast concourse of people; it was only for the Mrvice of the htoA, and the prieeti were those alone who were employed in it The cqurts, chambers, and other apartments, were far more extensive than the temple itself: it was never designed to be a place to worship ut, but a place to worship at. There Ood was known to have a peculiar residence; and before him the tribes came, and the priests were a sort of mediators betweenhimandtlwpeople. In rtiort, the to?i|i/e was to die Jews in the prom&ea land, what the labernade was to the BebretM in the witdeme**; the place where God's tumour dwelt, and whither the people floclced to pay their adoration.

iLluilbiinit,tJ— 9. And tan brum

2 H He built also the house of the for- est of Lebanon; the length thereof vaa a hundred cubits, and the breadth thereof fifly cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits, upon four row? of cedar inllara, with cedar beams upon

3 And was covered with cedar above upon the *■ beams, that lajr on forty-five pillars, fifteen in a row.

4 And there vere windows in three rows, and * light was against light in three ranks.

5 And ail tne doors and posts ^Dere square, with the windows: and light was against light in three ranks.

6 ^ And he made a porch of pillars; the length thereof va« fiHy cubits, and the breadth thereof thirty cubits: and the porch vas * before them: eiul the other pillars and the thick beam were 'befoi*the0L

7 Then he made a porch for the throne where he might judge, even the porch of judgment: and it was covered with cedar > from one side of the floor to the other.

8 IT And his house where he dwelt Jiad another oourt within the porch, which was of the like work. Solomon made also a house for Pharaoh's daughter, ^whom he had taken to vife, like unto this porch.

9 IT All these were q/" costly stones, accordiiig to the measures of hewed stones, sawed with aawB, within and without, even from the fonndation unto the coping, and so on the outside toward the great court.

10 And the foundation was cf tmHf stones, even great stones^ stones of ten onbits, and stones of eight cubits.

11 And above were costly stones, after the measures of hewed stones and cedare.

IS And the great court round about was with three rows of hewed stones, and a row of cedar beams, both for the inner court of the house of the Lcmo, land for the porch of the house.

13 T And king Solomon sent and fetched ^Hinun out of Tyre.

14 He I was ■* a widow's aon of the tribe of Naphtfdj, and ■ his father was a man of Tyre, a

lbs snored tnasurei vws ^lied to thi'i use, that tbe da- Todoa of tbe petals had Imiu^t to the temple from ell dw provioces ot the world. In tome pleoee these walla were ebove three hundred cuUte high; and the stonei used in these walls were eonie for^ euoiu long. They were llened together by iron eramM and lead, to be able to mist the inturiea of time. 1^ platfonn on whicb tbe temple WM built was a furlong equare, or one hundred ud twwty-flTB pscss." Urns ar CbIsmC sad Jot^ku*. NG^ S ON CIUFTER VU.

Terse I. Building kU own Aoum] His houn is said to have been eituatod in Jenualem; and probably wae, what some call it, hie winter'f residence. It is called the kin^M Aoiwv^iap. ix. 10.

Tene2. lyu ieiua tif t/u fonat <if Ltbanmi Itwae not built in Lebanon, but ie thooriit to have been on mount SioD. And why it was called tke ftotue tff Otrforaal ^ ■Leftaaan, does not appear: probably it was beouus it 19s built aXmo9t tntiraljf of materials brought from that place. See tbe fDllowing

' Verae 7. A pmh^or tluvne] One pordi appears to hkve been derated to the pnrpoee of adminietenng judg- SMnt, which Solosooa did id persnt. VmmS. Ahoum/or Pharatih'u diaighterl TUeap- worker in brass: and *be was filled with dom, and understanding, and cnnniiuc to woilt all works in brass. And he came to King Solomon, and wrought all his work.

15 IT For he ' cast ' two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece: and a line of twelve cumtedid compass either of them about.

16 Andhe made two chapiters 0/ molten brass, to set upon the tops of the pillars: the height ofthe one chapiter teas five cuoits, and the height of the other chapiter was five cubits:

17 And nets of checker-work, and wreaths of chain-work, for the chapiters whidi were upon the top of the pillars: seven for the one chapiter, and seven for the other chapiter.

18 And be made the |»llars, and two rows round about upon the one netr-work, to cover tbe chapiters that •were upon Uie top, with pomegranates: and so did he for the' other chapiter.

19 And the chapiters that were upon the top of the pillars were of lily-work in the porch, four cubits.

20 And the chatters upon the two pillars had pomeercmatee also above, over against the bdly which was by the net-work:. and the pomegranates were ■ two hundred, in rows round about upon the other chapiter.

21 > And he set up the pillars in " the porch of the temple: and ne set up the r%ht pillar, and called the name therec^'Jachin: end beset up the left pillar, and called tbe name thereof 'Boaz.

22 And upon the top of the pillarB wax lilywork; BO was the work of the pillars finished.

23 if And he made ' a molten sea, ten cabits ' from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubiu; and a line of thirty cubits d^ compEtss it round about.

24 And under the brim of it romid about there were knops compassing it, ten in a ci^it, ' compassing tiie sea round about: the knops wo-e caet in two rows, when it was cast.

25 It stood upon ' twelve oxen^ three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward thiB east; and the aea war Set above 1000 them, and idl their hinder parU were inwEird.

26 And it was a handbreadth thick, and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, with the flowers of Uiiee: it contained tvo thousand baths.

27 ^ And he made ten bases of brass: four < cubits was the leagtii otoae base, and four cubits the breadth thereof, and three cubits the height of it

made but one buHding) and were in the mbib plM^hflt tiifiwgniah^ from each other; tbe first at Sclomoa^ palace t the eeoood as a houae of judgment, a cwirt-heuee;

(he third, the Aaron, or ^lartiaenta for the women. ' Verae 13. Solomon tent and Jetdud Hirttat otU ^ Tyrt^ TlUa was not the lyrian Kinfc mentiooed befcre; but a very intellig«it coppersmith, of JewiA eztiactiiio hy bia mother's eidck who was pn^stoly manied to « Tyneik In 2 Chroo. ii. l4. this wmaaa ia nid to be MU*> UTt^Dimi'aA\ittx*t^Attribt^tlaf&tmH. TheUig of Tyre, who gives the eocoimt as we have it in Onaf clee^ mij^t have made the mistake, end coafbuadcd ibe two triMs t or, she might have beeo-of 7V<yAlaii W hv faiker,, and of i7an ^ her ntofAsr; and so be infififcreatly called ^lAe tribt ^ Nt^ihtaH, or ^Ms dtmgUtn qfOan. This aniean to be the beet SQliilion <f the dift> euhy. "Rm vemois and HSS. give no help hen.

A lint of tw^t 'atbit»l In etrcumference. We ihanld find it difficult, even now, 10 procura a founder who could cast such massire pUlan, whether solid or hollow.

28 Aud the work of the bates iDoa on this manner: they hod borders^ and the borders were between the ledges:

29 And on the borders that -were between the ledses were lions, oxen, and cherubim: and upon the ledges there was a base above: and beneath the lions ami oxen were certain additions made of tbm work.

30 And every base had four brazen wheels, and plates of brass: and the four comers thereof had undersetters; under the laver were undersetters molten, at the side of every addition.

31 And the mouth of it within the chapiter and above was a ci^bit: but the mouth thereof was round nfler the work of the base, a cubit and a half: and also upon the mouth of it were gravings with their borders, four Bqnare, not round.

32 And under the borders were four wheels; and the axletrees of the wheels were * joined to the base: and the height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit.

33 And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel: their axletrees, and their naves, and their felloes, and their spokes, V?ere all molten.

34 And there were four undersettere to the four corners of one base: and the undersetters were of the very base itself.

35 And in the top of the base was there a roimd comnass of half a cubit high: and on the top of the Dase the ledges thereof and the borders thereof were of the same.

36 For on the plates of the ledges thereof, and on the borders thereof, he graved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, according to the <' proportion of every one, and additions round about.

37 After this nianR«r he made the ten bases: all of them had one casting, one measure, and one size.

38 1 Then * made he ten larers of brass: one. laver contained forty baths: and every laver

was four cubits: ana upon every one of the ten bases one laver.

39 And he put five bases on the right 'side of the house.and five on the left side of the house: and he set the sea on the right side of the house eastward over ajfainst the south.

40 ^ And ' Hiram made the lavers, and the ■hovels, and the basins. So Hiram made an end 9f doing all the work that he made King Solomon for the house of the Loro:

41 The two pillars, and the two bowls of the chapiters that were on the top of the two pillars; and the two networks, to cover the two bowls

their natiu^ tbey seem to have sapported no- part of the building.

Veras 38. TTien made he ten. lavere] TheM were aet on dM IsD baeee or pedeetat*, uid were to hold water for the IMS oi ibe mwMtm in iheir Baered office) panicularlv to wsA the victiau that were to be offered aa a bumt.«nering, sa we learn from 3 Chron. iv. 6. | but the brazen eea was for the prieau to waah in. The whole was a building of vast art, labour, and upeiue.

Verae 40. So Hiram made an end] It ia truly aurpriaing that, in ao abort a time, one artiat could dealgn and execute worits auch magnitude laate, and varietf, howioever mnneroua hU aaaiatanta nugbt be. The mere building of the bouas waa a mattw oTUltte difficult, in eomponeon <rf tbeas internal worlta.

Terae46. Caetthem; in &e day ground] Inthiiploce ha fbund that particuW kind of aay that waa proper for bia purpow. Some auppoee that the plaee where Hiram had hia fouodir waa on tbe other tide, aome on thia aide otJoidsa. Caunel auppoees that it waa near to AeAaAan.

Verse 51. SblosMit frreHgU te tt« Mng*] It baa been a ^paetiea whether Solomon, in the etiuetiirv of the temple, tiaed any of the go]d wad ailvor which DaWd had provided 1 Ana Itere it aeema anawered in the nwaiivei for, after the bowwt waa Gntahed, with all iuuteaaila aitd ema- of the chapiters which w«re upon the top of the pillars;

42 And four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, even two rows of pomegranates for one network, to cover the two boms of tho chapiters, that wer« i upon ttie pillars;

43 And the ten bases, and ten Lavers on the bases:

44 And one sea, and.twelve oxen under the sea;

45 ^ And the pots, and the shovels, and the basina: and all these vesselB. which Hiram made to King Solomon for the house of the Loan, were ofi bright brass.

46 ~ In the plain of Jordan did the king cast them; ' in the clay ground between ° Succoth and P Zarthan.

47 And Solomon left all the vessels unwei^A«(2, 'because they were exceeding many: neither was the weight of the brass ■ found out.

48 1] And Solomon made all the vessels that pertained unto the house of the Lord: ' the altar of gold, Eihd " the table of gold, whereupon ' the show-bread was.

49 And the candlesticks of pure gold, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the oracle, with the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs gold.

50 And the bowls, and the snufiers, ifnd the basins, and the 8j)oons, and the "censers q/'purd gold I and the hmges of gold, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the houBC. to wit, of the temple.

51 So waa ended all the work that King Solomon made for tbe house of the LoRo. And Solomon brought in the ' things ' which David hia father bad dedicated; even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, did he put among the treasures of the house of the Lord.

^ (tcfd uT Urai:!, utui uU tLu iiKoai \ V4 of the tribes, the " chief of the fathers iUftSSS: of the children of Israel, unto King v<^*^ Solomon in Jerusalem, ' that they might hriiw up the ark of the covenant of the Lobd ' out m the city of David, which t* Zion.

menta with its immense profiiaion of gold, it ia here aaid that Saiomon brouM in the sUear, and the gold, and the Te»ed»i/^iiAD<mdhiM father had dedieaUa. Itappeara, therefore, that Solomon had employed four yenra lo make preparation for the work before it waa bepm. During the whole time of the building, he waa, no doubt atiU appropriating a part of the publie revenue for this purpoae t utd the proviaion made by hia father he placed omonf the treaeurea tif the houae t but the temple waa truly Solomon'a, ai be had provided all tte motarisla, and borne all ite expense.

As the temple waa built, in aome meaeure, cm the model of the tabamacle, and dedicated to the aamc uae, I wiah to refer the reader to the deaoription of the former, in Bzod. xxT — xzvii., and zxxv — xxxiz.; and the notea there. NOTES ON CHAPTER VIH.

Verae 1. TTten Solomon aeeembl«d} It haa already been obeerved, that Solomon deferred 'the dedioation of the temple to the following year afier it was finif hod; beeaiiae thftt year, according to Archbiahop Ua^r, waa a jubilee. " 'nita," lie obeervea, " waa the ninth jubilee, opening the fourth mil/«naryof the world, or, A. M. 30Olt wherein Solomon, widt great magnificence, celebrated the dedication of the traiple aeven daya, find tlie feaat of tabemaclea other aeven daya; and the celebrity of the eighth day of labemaolee bemg finished, upon Aie twenty-ihird da^ of the seventh month the people w#re diamiwNl every man

' 2 And all the men of Israel assembled themflelves unto King Solomon at the *rea£rt m the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month.

3 And all the elders of I«rael came, 'and the prieata took up the ark.

4 And they brought up the ark of the Lord. * and the tabemaclc of the congregation, and all the holy veaaela that were in the tabernacle, even those did the prieste and the Levitea bring

5 And Kiag Solomon, and all the coneregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark, >> eacrificiog Bheep and oxen, that could not be told nor nun^ered for multitude.

6 And the priests ' brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord unto ^ his idace, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even 1 under the wings of the cherubim.

7 For the cherubim spread forth their two winga over the place of the ark, and the cherubim covered the ark ajid the staves thereof above.

8 Ai^ they drew out the staves, that the ■ends of the staves were seen out in the " holy place before the oracle, and they were not seen without: and there the^ are unto this day.

9 1* There was nolhin? in the ark ' save the two tables of stone, which Moses ■ put there at Horeb, » when ■ the Lord made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egvpt.

10 T And it cam^ to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud ' filled the house of the Lord,

11 So that the priests coutd not stand to min-

to hia home. The eiriith day of the Kventh month, vit. dw thirtieth of our October, being' Friday, vu the firat of the seven days of dedication; the Unth day, Saiurdav, NoTCinber 1, was the fut of ez|>iatioo, or atonement, held; whereon, according to the Leritiea] law, the jubilee voa proclaimed by aound of tmmpeL The lifleenth day, Friday, November 6, was the feast of tabemoclet; the twenhT'-MCond, of our November \Z, beiiw also Friday, was me teaat of lobemaelefc iriiiBh was always ver^ •olemnly Itept, 2 Cbron. vlt 9. Lev. xxiiL 36. Jwtn vii. 37.; and Ibe day following November 14, being our Saturday, when uie adblwch -vnm ended, the people returned home.

" In the ^rteenth year after the temple was built, Solomon mode an end also of buildins bis own house; having spent fiill twen^ jrears upon both of them: seven and a half upon the temple; and thirteen, or twelve and a half, upon bis own. " tWUf^« AnnaU, sub. A. H. 3001.

Verse 2. At tktftatt in the monA ISAanimi The feast of tabernacles; wnich was celebrated in the seveniA monili of what is called the EcduiaHieal year.

Verse 4. 7%«y frrvugM wp — Ou Mttmatie\ It is genamlly agreed that there were now two tabemaclea: one at Gibeon, and the other in city of David; which one David had oonitnicted aa a tempomrv residence for the aric, in the event of a temple being built. Which of lixaa tabernacles was brou^t into die temple at this time is not well known; some thmk bolA were brouzfat in. in order to prevent the danger of idolatry. I ahoufd rather suppose that the tabernacle from Qibeon was brought in, oua that dM tempora^ one erected by David was demolished.

Versa S. Andthtreauyaretmtothiaday.} is proves that ibe book was written before the destrucuon (rf the first temple; but how long before we cannot tell.

Verse 10. When Uu prieatt were come out] TiM Is, after having carried the ark into the holy of holies t before any sacred service had yet eommeneed.

VerseU. The glory of the homo had JOUdeuhoiueJ Tlie cloud, the svmbol of the divine glory and presence, appears to have filled not only the holy <a holies, but the whole temple, court and all; and btwie evident to the people t aiu, by this, Solomon knew that God had honourad me plase with his presence, and token it for bis hrtitalien in refarence to the pamile of Israel.

VmwIS. HksLoapMjtf-AawoultfdiseUJ ItWBsuDdv lha aweanuM of a cloud that Ghid dwwed hhnelf

Ister, because of the cloud: for the glory of tbv Loan had filled the house of the Lord.

12 Tf 'Then spake Solomon^ The Loan said that he would dwell ' in the thrck darkness.

13 ' I have surely bnilc thee a house to dwell in, ■ a settled place for thee to abide in for ever.

14 And the king turned his face ^>out, anl ■blessed all the congregation of Israel: (.and all the congregation oflsrael stood:)

15 And he said, ^ Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, which 'spake with his mouth unto David my father, ana hath with his hand fulfilled it, saying,

16 * Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to build a house, that

* my name might be therein; but I chose ' David to be over mv people Israel.

17 And < it was in the heart of David my fkther to build a house for the name of the Lorn God oflsrael.

18 >■ And the LoRO said unto David my father. Whereas it was in thine heart to build a house unto my name, thou didst well that it was in thine heart;

19 Nevertheless i thou ahatt not build the house^ but thv son, that shall come forth oat of thy loms, he shall build the house unto name-

20 Ana the Lord hath performed his word that he spalce, and 1 am risen up in the room of David mi' father, and eit on the throne oflsrael,

* as the Lord promised, and have built a hooM for the name of the Lord God oflsrael.

31 And I have set Oiere a place for the ark, wherein is > the covenant of the Lord, whkb he

{Mvsent with Israel in the wilderness, see Exod. xiv. 19^ 20: And at the dedication of the tabernacle in the wildernns, God manifested himself in the same way that he did bere, at the dedication of die temple; see Elzod. xtL 10.

Verse 13. / have rarely built th4e a hotue] He was now fijlly convinced that am ihioe pleased Goo, and that he had taken this place for his setUea habilatioD.

Verse 14. BUaeed all the congregatiotil Though this blessing is not particularly stated, yet we may suppose dioi it was such as the high priest pronounced upon the people; " The Lord bless thee, and keep thee; the Lonl nuke hw face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee; the Lord lift tip his countenance upon thee, and give ilm peace. " See Numb. vi. 24 — 36; for Solomon seems now to be maing the part of the high priest. But he may have in view more particularlv the conduct of Motes, who, when be had seen that toe peo|^ had done all ibe wot^c of the tabernacle, aa the Lord had eommanded item, be falcssal them, Exod. xxxiz. 43. And the conduct of his telbcr David, who, when the ark had been brou^tt into dty of David, and the burnt-offerings and peaGfr^ofleriafseoMpleted, he blessed the people in the lUUBa ot Hm Jjatd, 2 Sam. vi. 18.

Terse 16. Situs the day, &c] Uentioa b bere madib BBjrs Dr. Eennicott, of some one place, and some oas ptrmn, preferred bef«re all others; and the prefiBreon is of Jenualem to other places, and of Daiid to odHr wum. In consequence of this remark, we.^iall see the isii i mm\j of correcting this passage by its paralle), in 2 Ctmm. n. 6, 6i where the Ihiiteen Bewew words now lost in Eags are happily preserved. Let us compare d>e pass^es s —

I would just (Swerve here, that I do not think ifaaae thirtem wvrde ever made a port of Kings; and, ooms- ({uently, are not loet from it.- nor do they exist here m asty of the versions; but their being found in ChroDktka helps to complete the sense.

Verse 21. Wherein imVueevmsmt^ Of ljom>\ A«it is said, ver. 9. diat lAsrv was noAWnjf in Ou ark but As ttBo tabUa 9f stone, eonseoumtly, these are oalkd Tibs CsMfioiU; t.«.a«^of the eovenaai, as oar Lord made with our fiitberi, when be brought them out or the land of Egypt,

22 T[ And Solomon stood before " the altar of the Lord, in the presence of all the coj^re^ ation of Israel, and 'spread forth hia hands toward heaven:

23 And he said, "Lord God of Israel, ffAere is no God tike thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, ' who keepest covenant and iner<^ with thy servants that ■ walk before thee with all their heart:

24 Who bast kept with thy servant David my lather that thou promisedet him: thou shakes t also with thy jnouth, and hast fulfilled ti with thine hand, aBtiis this day.

25 Therelbre now, Lord God of Israel, keep with thy servant David mv father that thou promisMst him, saying, > There " shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel; ' so that thy children take heed to their wav, Uiat they walk before me as thou hast walked before me.

26 * And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant Davidony lather.

27 But ■ will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, the heaven,-and ' heaven of heavens.

the cup the New Cotatanl in hU Mood; that ii, the Hgn of the n«w Covenant: m 7%ia u my body, implied Uub it the aign or emblem of my body.

Tens 22. <SlMd] He «Meiided the brazen mxijold, five cubits long, and five cubiu broad, and three ei^U nigh; and then lauded down ttpen hU kneaa, with faia handi apread up to heaven, and offered up ths followiiig prayw: see ver. M. and 2 Chron. v. 12, 13.

And tpreadforth kia hands toward heaTen\ Uliia waa a uvual cuitom in all nations: in prayer the nande vert •treCdW ou/ to Aeoven, as if to invite and receive assistance fton thence; while buiobly hueiing tm their kneei^ Ihey seemed to acknowledge at once their dtj>endea£e and tmvarthinett. On this subject I have spoken elsewhere. In the Soripturea we meet with leverai ezamplea of the Icind: Hear im/ wiee — when I lift up mv hands towards thy koiy orake, Paa. zxviii. 2. I^rr dp toitb hands in tlu tatutuurj/, and bleae the L/ord, Paa. cxxziv. 2. I^eL my prayer be eet forth — and the uptims up or wn kands OS 3te sMdiiur eaerUlett Psa* ozU. 2. And see 1 Tim. ii.8:&e!

In heathen vritera, examples are not leu frequent:

cannot contain thee j how much less this htrase that I have builded?

28 Yet have thou respect unto the prayer thy servant, and to his supplication, OLobd my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee to-day;

29 That tliine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, ecen toward the place of which thou hast said, ■ My name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make ■ toward this place.

30 < And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, when they shall prav toward this plcuse: and hear thou in heaven tny dwelling-place; and irtien thou hear* est, forgive.

31 Iflf any man trespass against his neighr hour, * and 'an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house:

32 Then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, ' condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head; aiKl justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness.

33 T[ ""When thy people Israel be smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned

And that they kneeled down when Btin>licating, I have also proved. Of tliis alio the Scriptural afford ^nindant evidence; as do also die heathen writers. I need add but one word:

Indeed, so univeraal were these forms in prayine, that one q{ the heathens has said, "All men, in praying, lift up their hands to heaven."

Terse 24. Who koet kept with thy tervant David] This is in reference to 2 Sam. vii. 13. where Qod promises ut David that 8(4oinoa shall build a house for ihe name of lha IfOr^ l^e temple being now completed, this promise was literally fiilfilled.

Verse 27. But toiU Ood indeed dwiU on the tarth] This expression is fiill of aslonishment, veneration, and delist He is struck with the immensity, dignity, and naiHleur, of the Divine Being; but especially at his conassesnsion to dwell with men: and though be seas, by his filing the place, that he has come now to make bis uode with them, yet be eaonot help asking the question — How can such a God dwell in such a place, and with such eretuuresi

Bduld^ Su heaven} 'Rie words are all in the plural number in the Hebrew: vovn -nvt tpotm haeheAamayim, v-skcmsy AosAsAamayim j *' the heavens, and the heavens <rf heavens." What do Ifaese words imply 7 That there sre wj/tleme, and eytUmt of eyteme, each poasessing its MR, lis primary and eaeondary p/ansb; all extending beyond each other iu unlimited spae^ in Itie uaat regular and graduated order, which we find to prevail in what ws call our eolar system; which, probably, in its tbotuanda of millions of miles in diameter, i^. to some others, no more than die area of the hmar wbit to that of the Geor- §iam Sidus. When God, his manifold wisdom, his crear live ener^, and that space which is unlimited, are considered, It is no hyperbole to say, that, although the earth has been created nearly six thousand years ago, suns, ihe centres of systems, may have been created at so immenso a distance that their light has not yet reached our earth, though travelling at the rate of one hundrtd and ninetg thmisand miles every seoond { or upwards of a miOhn times swiAer than the motion of a cannon ball I ThiM mav be said to be ineoDceivable; but what is even all this to the vast immensity of space I Had Ood created a system like oora in every six days since the foundation of tlie world, and kept the seventh as a s^boih, and rhough then might have been by this time [A. M 6323, ineunte, A. D. 1919, ineuni^] three hundred and three thousand five hundrtd and sevmty^fite mtmdana systems, they would occupy but a epeek in Ihe inconeeivable munenaity of space. Reader, all this, and miDioos more, is demonstnutly powib)e; and. if so, what must Ood be— iUtMf inexprmabiU, who i-n-n-a-b-i-i-«-t-h e-t-e-r-n-i-t-y I

Verse 29. My name thaJl be there] I will there show forth my power and my glory, by enl ighteniog, quiekeninA pardoning, sanctifying, and saving all my eincere wonhippere.

Verse 30. Toward this place] Both tnhemwBle and temple were Qrpes of our Lord Jesui^er of God manifested in theJUfh; and he was and is the Mediator between Ood and man. All prayer, to be acceptabltL and to be entitled (D a bearing, must go to Ood through him. The Atnnon nature of Christ is the temple in which dwelt all ths fulnessiffthe Godhead bodily t therefore, with propriety, all prayw must be offered to God through him. " If Uiey pray toward this place, hear thou in heaven, thy dwellingplace f and when thou hearest, forgive." Tnis i^jpeors to me to be the true sense and doctrine of this verse.

Verse 31. If any man trespass against Ms netgA&nir] Solomon puts here seven cases, in aH of v^ch the mercy and intervention of Ood would be indispensably requisite t and he eaimsdy beq>eaks that mercy and intervenUon, on condition that the p0^>le pray toward that holy place { an^ with a feeling hear^ make earnest supplication.

The riBsr cobb is one of donAj/umMt; wbora a man has sustained an itnury, and ehoi^ges it on a snspeoted iter* SOD, though not able to bring direet evidenee of the net, the accused is permitted to come before the altar of Qod, and purge himself by his personal oaih. Solomon prays that Qod may not permit a false oath to be taken; but tHat he will discover the truth, so diat the wicked shall be condemned, and the righteous Justified.

Verse 33. Whtntlufpe^4hradbesmittmdcfwn,ttb.1 The sxcoND ease; Wneo uteir enemies make inroads npoa them, and defeat them hi bottle, and lead them into ea^ tivity, because Ood, being die^eaaed with their tranagref

BKainst thee, and > shall turn asain to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, ana make supplication nnto thee ^ in thiB house:

34 Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the flin of thy people Israel, and bring them aeain unto the land which thou gavest unto their rethers.

35 IT ■ When heaven ia shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee: if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, aad turn from their sin, when thoa afflictest them:

_ 36 Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, that thou " teach them " the ^od way wherein they ihould walk, and give ram upon thy land, which tiiou hast given to th^ people for an inheritance.

37 H • if there be m the land famine, if there be pestilence, blasting^ mildew, locust, or if there be caterpillar; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their i> cities; whatsover pla^e, wiiatsoever sickness there be:

33 What prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth hia hands toward this house:

39 Then hear thou in heaven thy dwellingplace, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to bis ways, whose heart thou

dons, hns delivered ihem up: then, if iheyHhall turn again, eonfeas the name of God, which thev had in effect denied, by nther o^lectiDg hit worship, or Mconung idolalroua; «Dd pray and ma£e mpplicatioa, Then, rays Solomon, hear thou in heaven — and bring tkem again into Ae land «Afdi Aou gaeat unto their JaAerl.

T«rH 35. W%ai the heaven i» shut up, and thtre t» no rain] "Ric thiss case: When, becauu of their lin, and ceaaiDK to vxUk in the good way in which they should hsye witlkea, God refuKS to send me early and latter rain, so that the appointed weeks of harveit come in vain, as there is no crop: then, if they pray, oonfen thur aii^ Stc bear thou in heaven, and forgive, m,

Tme 37. {r M«re beintlu land^m^i»—putUmee'\ Tbt FOURTH ease inehidea aeverftL kinds of evils: 1. Famine; a scarcity, or total want of bread, necessarily springing from the preceding cause, draught. 2. Peatilence; any eeneral and contagious disease, d. Blastings anything by which the crops are injured, so that the ear is never matured; but, instead of wholesome groin, a btaek o^ennve duet. 4. MildetD; any thing that vitiates, or corrodes the texture of the stalk, Jeatroya the flowers and btoasoma, or causes the youn^ shaped fruits to foil off their stenia. 6. Locust; a well-known curse in the East, a species of graedurpper, ihut multiplies by miUionM, and covers the mce of the earth for many miles square, destroying every green thing; leaving neitner herb nor grass upon the earth, nor leaf, nor bark upon the trees. 6. Caterpillar; the locust in its young or nympha state, "nie former refers to loeuMte, brought by winds from oQier ctntntriee, and Mttlinf on the land; the latter to the young laeueta bred in the land. 7. An enemy, having aitaeked ^irdefeneed ciftM, the keys and barriers of the land. 8. Anycrtherkindof plapu; that which afTects the turfaee of die body; blotch, Dlain, leprosy, ophthalmia, &/:.: or, tiekneae, whatever impured the Mrengtb, affected the intestines, disturbed or destroyed their natural functions. All such cases were to ba brouj^t before the Lord, the persons htning a deep tmte of the wickedness which induced God thus to afflict, or permit them to be afflicted; for only tfiose who know ttH plague ^ their tntn hearU, ver. 38.: the deep-rooted nonl oomiption of their nature, and the destnietive nature and sinfulness of sin, were likely to pray in sudi a manner as to induce God to hear and forgive-

Vem 41. Mhremer, eoneeming attranger\ The tiftm ease relates to heathena coming from other countries, widi As design to beoome proselytes to the true religion; that may might be reeeivea, blessed, and proieeled, as dw true IsraeMtM: Aattheoameof JdMvahnagfatbenowntnrer the bee of the earth.

Verse 44. ^ thy people go out to baUlel nwarrrHcaae refers to wan undertaken ay divine appointment; whither' soever thmi AaU tend themt for in no other wan could Otay expect the blessing and concurrence of the Lord i in knowest; (for thon, even thoo only, 'knowcat the hearts of all the children of men;)

40 ■ That they may fear thee all the days that they live in the land which thou gavest onto oar

41 11 Moreover, concerning a stranger, thatt* not or thy people Israel, but cometh otit of a &r country tor thy name's sake;

42 (For they shall hear of thy great name, and of thy 'stroiw hand, and of thy stretched-ont arm:) when he shall come and pray toward this house:

43 Hear thou in heaven thy dwetling-p4aee, and do according to all that the stranger caUeth to thee for: ■■ that all people of the earth may Imow thy name, to * fear thee, as do thy people Israel; and that they may know that • this house, which I have butlded, is called by thy name.

44 K If thy people go out to battle against their enemy, whithersoever thou ehalt send them, and shall pray unto the Lord ' toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward tfaa house that I have bmlt for thy name:

45 Then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their ^ cause.

46 If thev sin against thee, (■ for tkere is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captivea ■ unto the land of the enemy, Ihr or near;

none other could the God of truth and Justice vuniUam ffieir eaute. There were such wan under the Mosaic dispensation, there are none sucih under the ChrisliaB diajwii> sation; nor can there be anyj for the Son of man ia coum not to destroy men's 1 ives, mH to save them. Except mors ds/ensivs war, all othen are diabcdiei and, qftery, mre there no provocations, would there be any attoob, and consequently any need of defensive wan 1

Verse 46. If they sin against thee] This b«»mt case must refer to some eeneral defection from truth; to sona species of false worahip, idolatry, or corraption of the U u8i and ordinances of the Host High; as for it, tbey are here elated to be delivered into Ae Aonoi their enemies, and eorrfed away awMvs, which was the guteral jeaMaaati tor idolatry; and what is called, ver. 47. acting ptrrsrstbf, and committing vnckednets.

In ver. 46. we read, If they sin against thee, Jbr there is no man that sinneth not. On itiis verse we may observe, that the second clause^ as it is here translated, readers the supposition, in the fint clause, entirely DUKatory: tor, if d»re be no man that sinneth not, it is oaeleM u say, ir they sini but this contradiction is taken Kwtnw br rewrenee to the original, iHffm <3 H yeehetau lak, wfuda should be translate] ir they shall sin against ikes: or, should they sin against thee, m9rv> nV '•vm oim -o JK cts Adam asher lo yKheta; "For there is no man that mag not sin i. e. there is no man tmpeccoftb, none infaOiblt: none that ia not liable to transgress. This is the true meaning of the {dirase in various parts of the Bible, and so our translators have imderatocd the original; fiir. erea in the 31st verse of this chapter, they have translatea nb*" ysAsta, tr a man TBcepABa; which certainty implies he might or might not do it: and in this way rhey have tnu»- lated 'the same word, if a soul sm, in Lev. t. 1. n. 7. 1 Sam. ii. 2 Chron. vi. 22., and in several other placet. The truth is, the Hebrew has no -mood to ezpren wonfa in the permissive or of^alive way, but to express diis aesw it uses the future tense of Ae conjugation koL

Tiam text has been a wonderfiil strong-hold for all -whs believe that there is no redemption from sin in this fife; that no man can live without committing sin; and dial w« cannot be entirely freed from it till we die. \. l%e wxt speaks no such doctrine, it only speaks of die jtossUtiiUw of every man sinning; and this must bo true of a Kate oa probatum. 2. There is not another text in dke dmma records that is more to (he purpose dian this. S. lite doctrine is flatly in opposition to the design of the Go^l; for Jesus came to save hia people from their sins, aw U destroy the works of the devil. 4. It is a dangeroos and destructive doctrin^nd shouU ba blotted out of evoy Oiristian's creed. T^ere are WO many who are seeldiir to excuse their crimes by all means in their power; axn we need not embody their excuses in a creed, to cmtj'" dieir deception, by anting that tfietr ans an 1

47 * Yet if they shall • bethink themselvefl in the land whither they were curried cftptivee, and repent, and mnke supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, * saying. We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness;

43 And so 'return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their aoul, in the land of their enemtea, which led themaway eajilive,and ^pray unto thee toward their land, which thou guveat unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy name:

49 Then hear thou tlieir prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling-place, and maintain their ' cause,

50 And forgive thy people that hare sinned against thee, and all their transgresstons wherein they have transgressed against thee, and "ffive them compaeeion before them who ciirried triem captive, that they mny have compassion on them:

51 For I they 6« thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out ofEgypt, ' from the midst of the furnace of iron:

52 That thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of thy Bervant, and onto the supplication of thy people IsrEieU to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto thee.

53 For thou didst separate them from amon^ all the people of the earth, to be thine inheritance, 1 as thou spakcst by the hand of Moses thy Krvant, when thou broughtest oar fathers out of Egypt, O Lord God.

54 il And it was so, that when Solombn had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the Lord, he arose from before the altar of the Lord, fVom kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven.

55 And he stood^ and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying,

56 Blessed be the Lord, that hath eiven rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: " there hath not " failed one word of nil his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.

57 The Lord our Gknl be with us, as he was with our fathers: 'let him not leave as, nor forsake us:

58 That he may 'incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, •which he commanded our fathers.

59 And let these my words, wherewith I have made supplication before the Lord, be nigh unto the Lord our God day and night, that he maintain

VeTM 60. And give them compattion b^ore them who carried Uum eaptita] He dou not pray thu they may be delivered out of that captivity; bat, tiuit their enemies may use them well; aitd thu they might, aa formerly, be kept a eeparate and diitinct people.

Tcree SS. He ttood, and blested all the emgregaiion] Thia blewing is contained in the &7th and S8th veraea.

Verae 69. And Ut thae my worda] This, sod the following vtn^ ia a eort of ntpplement to the prayer, which cndod Tier. 63: but there ia an important aodition to thii prayer in the parallel place, 2 Cwod. vi. 41, 42. " Now therefore arise, O Lohd God, into thy restii^-ploee, thou eHid the ark of thy strength: let thy prieats, O Loan Qod, be dodtad widt sunMion, and let diy aUnts rttioioe in goodtum. O Lord Ood, turn not awa^ m fiMie of thine anointed: remember the mercies of David thy servanL"

Verse 61. Let your AaaW thtrtfore bt pafe^ Be sincere in your fiuth; be irreproachuile in rour conduct.

Verse 63. "iSoo and tuMtty tJunuana oxen] This was the whole amount of the vietima that bad been offered during the fimrtem days; i. s. the awm days of die dtiiasfion, ana the smn cme of dteThMfo^MMniaeles. Ia What way eoold they dispose « ths Uood of so many Tiettms't

Versa 64. Did At king haUow the middU qf the eoxrt] Tht grsat altarof bumt-oflem^ was not sofficieiU for the

the cause of his servant, and the came of his people Israel "at all times, as the matter sh^ retiuire;

60 > That all the people of the earth mav know that " the Lean is Ood, and that there u none else.

61 Let your 'heart therefore be perfect with the Lord our God, to walk in his etatutes, and to beep his commandments, as at this day.

62 IT And ' the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before the Lord.

63 And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peaceolTerings, which he offered unto the Lord, two and twenty thousand oxen, and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the

64 "The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of the Lord: for there he offered burnt-offerings, and meat-otfe rings, and the fat of the peaceofTeringe: because ^the brazen altar that was before the Lord vas too little to receive the burnt-otterings, and meat-offerings, and the fat of thepeace-otie rings.

65 TAnd at that time Solomon held ■ a (eastf and alt Israel with him, a great congregation^ from ' the entering in of Hanmth unto the river of Egypt, before the Lord our God, 'seven days and seven days, evm fourteen days.

■66 On the eighth day he sent the pet^le away: and they * blessed the king, and went onto their tents joyful and gtad of heart, for all the goodness that the Lord had done for David his servant, and for Israel hie people.

AND ' it came to pass, when Solo- b't m!,*- rooD had finished the* building of *r"' LStj|I? the house of the Lord, (and the king's MtT*^ house, and ''ail Solomon's desire which. l>«p^^. he was pleased to do>',

2 That the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time, ■ bb he had appeared nnto him at Gibeon.

3 And the Lord said unto him, *I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast

number of wicrificei which were tlien made; therefore, the middle of the court was ael apart, and an altar erected there for the same purpose.

Verse 66. From — Hamath unto Oie river qf Egypt"] Supposed to be Antiock of Syria — lo the fihinocorura; the former beinc^ on the north, the latter on the aouiht i-e. from one pztremily of the land to the other.

Verse 66. They bleeeed the king] Wished him all spiriiual and temporal happincM. They were contented with their king, at peace among themaelves, and hajipy in their Ood 1 BO that they returned to their houaei magnifying their Ooil for oil hii bounty to diem, their country and their king. How happy must these people have been; and lum proapsroua, had ibeir king continued to walk iqirighthr btfora God. But, akw I the king fell, and the mtiimi followed hia enuple.

Verse 2. 7^ Lord appeared to Solomon] The design of this appearance, which was in a dream, as that was at Oibeon, was to assure Solomon that he had accepted hia aerviee, sad had laksD that house for his dwdling-place; and would eontinue it, and him, and hia deseendants, unoo the throm of Israel, for ever, provided they served aim with an upright heart i but, on the contraty, if diey foraook him, he would abandon both then and his tenuile. i

made berare me; I hare hallowed this house, which thou hast built, > to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.

4 And if thou wilt ■ walk before me, "aa David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in aprightnees, to do accordiiu: to all that I have oommanded thee, and wUt keep my statutes and my judgments:

6 Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. Pas I promised to David thy father, saying. There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.

6 '> Bui if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments, and my statutes, which I have set before)ou, but go and serve other gods, and worship them:

7 ' Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them: and this house, which I have hallowed * for ray name, will I east out of my sight: < and Israel shall be a proverb and a by-word araon^ all people:

8 And " at this house, •which is high, every one that passcth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss i and they shall say, ' Why hath the Lord done thus unto this land, and to this house 1

9 And they shall answer. Because they forsook the Lord their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have wori^pped them, and servea them; therefore hath the LniU) brought upon them all this evil.

10 IT " And It came to pass at the end of twenty years, when Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the Lord, and the king's house,

Ver« 7. A proverb and a by-word amottf^ all people] And so they lure to the prcaent: the unbelieving Jewt; the atubborn, etiff-necked Jew; are words ttill in common lUB. They Tonook the Lord, rejected his Christ, ana are cast off, their temple deatn^^, and tliey aeattered over the face of the earth.

Verse 10. At the end of twenty yeare] He employed •even years aiid a half in buildinj; me temple, and twelve yeara and a half in building the lung's house; sec 1 Kings vii. I. 2 Chron. viii. 1.

Verse II. Solomon gave Hiram twenty eitiet] It ia very likely that Solomon did not give those cities to Hiram, so that iliey should be annexed to his Tyrian dominions; but rather i^ve 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, 2 Chron. viii. 2. it is said, The eiliet tekick Hiram had reatored to Solomon, Solomon built Hum, and eauted the diitdren of Itraa to dwell there. Some think that they were heathen eiliet, which Solomon bad conquered; and, therefore, had a right to give tliem, if he pleased, aa they were not any part of the land givea liy_promise to the Israelites.

Verse 13. CaUcd them the land <tf Cabtd] Whether this epithet waa 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 df this name in the promised land, in (he time of Jodiua, is evident enough, from Josh. xix. 27. as it was one part of the boundary of the tribe of Aaher: hence aoroe interpret the word border, or botmdary; and so the Se^uagint underatood it, for they have translated the Hebrew wonl •for, which signifies the Kune. The margin gives another nteaning.

Verio 14. SUnore talenU of gold] This was the sum nAiich Hiram had lent; and, in order to pay thii^ he laid a tax upon his people, as we afterward learn. The w^le b very darkly expressed.

Verse 16. 7^ is the reaoon the levy} That in order to pay Hiram the sixsoore talenta of*^ gold whieh he bad borrowed from him, Hiram dot being williog to take ne ualOeaa eitiea mentiotted obov^ or Iwving i^ksn

11 (' Now Hiram the kinff of Tyre had fatniehed Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees, and with gold, according to all his desire.) that then King Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.

13 And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomoa had eiven liim; and they y pleased him not.

13 And he said, What cities are these which thou hast given me, my brother? ■ And he called them the land of ■ Cabul unto this day.

14 And Hicam sent to the ions sixscora talents of gold.

15 T) And this it the reason of the ^iJS" levv which King Solomon raised; for ac \tu-mL to build the house of the Lord, and l otaTa his own house, and ' Millo, ana the ~" wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and * Megiddo, and ^ Gezer.

16 for Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone op, and taken Gezer, and Durnt it with fire, <aM slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and given it /or a present unto his daughter, Solomon's wife.

17 And Solomon built Gtezer, and ^Betb-

18 And I Baalath, and Tadmor in the wilder-

19 And ail the cities of store that Solomoa had, and cities for >■ his chariots, and cities for his horsemen, and i that which Solomon "desired to build m Jerusalem, and in Lebantm, sod in all (he land of his dominion.

20 T[ " And all the people thai were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebufiites, which icere not of the children of Israel,

21 Their children " that were left after them

them, soon restored them agaJn, he was obliged to lay a tax upon the people; and timt this was a nievous and prestive lax we luara from chap. xii. 1—4. where tbe elders of Israel came to Rehoboam, conplainiiw of their heavy state of taxation, and entreating that neir yoke might be made lighter.

And Millo] This is supposed to have been a de^ valley between mount Sion and what was called the ci^ of Jebus, which Solomon filled up, and it was built on; and became a sort of fortified place, and a place for public a*- semblies. See Calmet,

Verse 16. Pharaoh— had gotu Up and taken OcmtJ This city Joshua bad taken fiom the Canaanite^ Josh- x. 33. and xii. 12. and it was divided by lot to the tribe of Ephraim, and was intended to be one of the Levitieal cities; but it appears that the Canaanites bad cetakca and kept possession till the days of Solomon, when his &ther-in-law Pharaoh, king of tgypt, retook it, and gava it to Solomon in dowry with his dau^ier.

Verae 18. And Tadmor in the vildemeo*] This is almost universally allowed to be the same with the tdo brnted Palmyra, Qie ruins of which remain to the present day, and ^ve lu the hi^eat idea of Solomon's spleiKkpar and magnificence. Palmyra stood upon a fertile Plaim surrounded by a barren desert, having the river EinfcialM on the east The ruins are well deachbed bj Moam. Dawket and Wood; of which ther give fine repreaeMtions. They are also well deacnbed in the aneieDt partof the Univertai History, vol. i. p. 367—70. Hie ilaacs^ tioo concludes thus: "The world never saw a man glorious city i the pride, it is likely, of ancient time*, and the reproaon of our own. A ci^ not more remarkabie for the state of her buildings and nnwontednesa of her ntantioR, than tar the extnordinanr poroonagem who emo» flourished there; among whom the renowoM ZenoUn, and the incomparable Longinuo, mast for emr ha 'imniiiMfWwl with admiration and regret."

Verae 19. AtuI alt the titieo of etore] Thoug)!, by lbs multitude and a|riendour of bis buikltug% Solomon mam, have added greatly to the magDifioenee of his reign i yei, howsoever plaateoua sihrar and gold wars in bis tisM^ lu« subjeets must have been greuly oppreswd with ttw taxatioo neeeswry to defray auch a mat puUic expsMbton.

in the land, >■ whom the children of Israel also werenotabie utterly todestroy.^upon those did Solomon levy a tribate of ' bond-aervice unto thie day.

22 But of the children of larnel did Solomon • make no bondmen: but they were men of war, and his servanla, and bis princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots, and his horseuen.

23 These irere the chief of the officers that toere over Solomon's work, « five hundred and fifty, which bare rule over the people that wrouffht in the work.

34 "IT But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of David unto 'her house which Solomon had built for her: ' then did he build Millo.

25 7 * And three times in a year did Solomon ofier burnt-offerings and peace-offerings upon the altar which he built unto the Lord, and he burnt incense ' upon the altar that was before the LoBD. So he finished the house.

26 IT And * King Solomon made a navy of ships m ■ Ezion-geber, which is beside Elotn, on the *■ shore of the Red sea, in the land of Edoro.

27 ' And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon.

Verse 21. A trilmU <^ bond-ttrvie«l He made tliem do the mmt laborioug put of the public works, the hrael- Ue$ beinK senernlly eKempt. When Setoatru, king of Egypt, returned from his ware, he caused lemples to be built in all the ciiiee of E^pt: but did not employ one Egyptian in the work: having builded the whole 1^ the haoda of the captives which he had taken in his wars. Heoee he CMised this inscriptioD to be placed upon each temple.: —

It appears that Solomon might, with propriety, have placed a similar inscription on most of his works.

VerH 26. Three tines in a ysar did Solomon offer] These three times were — 1. The Possossr— 2. Pentecost —3. the feast <(f Tabemades.

Verse 26. A navy sAtps] Lilemtljr ^itt mf, "a ship;" but in the parallel place, 2 Chron. viii. 17. it is said mat Hiram sent him n>'>»t oniirf^ " ships:" but it does not appear that Solomon, in this case, built more than one ship^ and this was manned principally by the IVriaas.

Verse 28. And they came to GJp&tr] No man knows owtainly, to this day, where this' Opkir was situated. Tiien were two placet of this name 1 one somewhere in India, beyond tha Oaoges) and anouier in Arabia, near the eountry of the Sabauuis, mentioned by Job, chap. zzii. 34. Then thali Hum lay up gold as dust; and tne gcAA of OpHr as the stones ef the brook. And chap, xxviii. 16. it cannot be valued wUh the gold qf Ophir, vith the precious onyx or the smmhire. Calmet places this sountry at die ■ouross of the Eu|rfirates and Ti^a.

But there are seTeral reasons to prove imt this was DM the 0|rtiir of the Bible; which, it seenos, was so situated a* to require a voyaEe of three years \oD^ to out, load, and return. Mr. Bruce has discussed this subject at f^nex length t see his Traoels, vol. ii. c. 4. p. 364, Ac. He endeavours to prove that Exion-geber is situated on the Elanitic branch of the Arabian cul^ or Red sea. 2. liiat narsklsh is Moks, near to Melioda, in the Indian ocean, in ^>out three degrees aoutli latitude. 3. That Ophir lies somewhere in the land of Sqfala, or in the vicinity of the Zambexe river, opposite to the island of Madaguear, where there have bcwn gold and silver mines in great abundance, from the remotest antiquity. And he pfovs 4. That no vessel could perform this voyage tn IMS than three years, because of the Mbnaoonsi tliat more tlate nsad not be employed; and that this is (he precise thne mentioned I Kin?* x. 22. 6. 'niat this is the countrf of the queen of Skeba, or Sabia, or Aztfyt, who, on her visit to Solomon, broueht him one hundred and ftosniy taleolS of gold; and of apices and precious stones great store, ver. 10. AikI that gold, ivory, silver, arc the natural pnduetions of diit eoontry. To illustrate and prove his pnutions^ he has given a mop on a large seals, ■'sbowtns the tract of Solomon's fleet in their diree

28 And thev came to 'Ophir, and fetched fi-om thence gold, four hundred and tweiUy talents, and brought it to King Solomon.

2 And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels tlmt bore spices, and yery much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.

3 And Solomon told her ell her '(luestitmB: there was not any ttuag hid from the king, whieb he told her not.

4 TT And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the hoose that b« had built,

5 And the meat ofhis table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of hie minis-

yeara' voyage Irom the Elanitic gulf to Of^ir and Tharelii^;" to which, and his descnption, I must refer th* reader.

Verse 1. IVhen the queen qf Sheba heardl As our Lord calls her fiwen qf the south. Matt. xii. 42. it is likely the name should be written Saba, Axab, or Axaba, all irf' which signify the south. She is called Balkis by the Arabians; but by the AbvBsinians Maqutda, See ii» account at tlie end of Ihe chapter.

With hard <piestione.'\ nii^ria bechidoth; Septuagint, with riddles. With parables and riddies, says the Arabic. Those who contend that she was queen of the SobsauB, a people of Arabia Felix, toward the soutliern extremity of the Red sea, find several proofs oftheir opinion — 1. Tliat the Sabvaoa abounded la riches and spices.

The Sab»ana use odorous wood only; and even use the incense tree, and myrrh, to cook their victuals."

2. All ancient authors speak not only of their odorx- Jeroue woods, but of their ridi gold and silver mines, and of their prectoiu atmes. See Pliny, Hist. Nat. lib. zxxvil. c. 6, dS:^.

It is also well known that the Sabaans had queens tat their sovereigns, and not kings. So Claudian, mEutnw. lib. i.

By this is meant, says Mr. Bruce, the coantry botween the Tropic and mountains of Abyssini^ the coantn of shepherds; from berber, a shepherd. AikI be contends that these Sabaans were a distinct people from the Ethiopians and the Arabs; and that Sasa was a distinet etatsi

Verse 3. Solomon told her all her queatioJts) Riddles, problems, fables, apologues, 4c. formed the principal part of the wisdom of the Eiut; indeed, they use and delight in them to the present dav. See the case of Samson and hk friends, Judges xiv. 12, 14, and the notes there.

Verse 4. Had seen all Solotnon's visdomj By the answers which be gave to her subtle mestions.

terB, and their apparel, and hU ' cup-beaters, ^ and hi« ascent by whicU he went up unto fne house of the Lord; there was no more spirit in her,

6' And she said to the king, It was a true 'report that I heard in mine own land of thy " actSj and of thy wisdom.

7 Howheit 1 believed not the wordn, until I came, and mine eyes had Been it: and, behold, the half was not told me: ' thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard.

8 " Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom.

9 ' Blessed be the Lobd thy God, which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the Lobd loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, ^ to do judgment and justice.

10 f And she ' gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones; there came no more Buch abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to Kinz Solomon.

11 ■ And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of ^almug trees, and precious stones.

13 "And the King made of the almug trees ' pillars ' for the house of the Lohd, and for the king's house, harps also and psalteries for sing-

Terse 5. TTw meat qf kU tabU] The immeiue supply of all kinds food, diuly necMsary for the many (hou- ■anda whii^ were fed at and from tus table. See chap, iv. 2'i, 23. and the notes there,

And sitting qf hii ttrtant»] The various orders and distutctioos of his officers.

The attendaiut qfkis minuters] See the SDoount of tfieae, and their attendance, diap. iv. 1, &c

And their appartlj The peculiarity of their robe% and ttieir splendour end costliness.

And kia eup-bearert] The original vpam mariuJcaiv, may as well be applied to hie beverage, or to his drinking-utentiU, as to his eup-bearera.

And Ais lucent by wAkA ke went up] It seems very strange that (he lUpe to the temple alumia be such a separate matter of astonishment The original ie -am viVjn nw n's nS)>' which all the versons have translated, And the hoUxautte which he offered tn the kotue qf the Lord, Hie Vulgate, Sepluagini, Chaldee, Syriae, and Arabic, all express this sense: w does the Oerman translation of iMther I from which, in this place we have roost pitifully dmnsdi KnU sdne bcanO opEec Uc cr fn iwm liouse lies Vetrn asftvUi "And hia burat-offBring which be offered in the houae of the Lord."

Th^e vat no more epirit in her.] She was overpowered with astonishment) she feinted. I have seen preeisely the same effect produced ■ a lady^ m^o was herself an artist, viewing some exquisitely finished oriental paiatinffs, was so struckwith astonishment, that she twice nearly hinted and was obliged to leave the room. What h^tpened to the queen of Sheba la a natund, and not an uncommon effect, which will be produced in a delicate, sensible mind, at (he sight of rare and extraordinary productions of art.

Of the profusion of Solomon's ncriScea we have already bad proor, chap. viii. 63. and ix. 25.

Terse 8. Bappy are Ay men] All diesa are very natural expressions from a person in her state of mind.

Terse 10. A hundred and twenty talents of gold] llie wwth of these one hundred and twenty talents of gold, according to Mr. Reynolds, is equal to 843,905^. \Qt. 4|a. of our British sterling. But the iptcea aod precUmt etanea migbt have been yet of more vuue. After this verse the tSlh should be read, which is here most evidenthr misplaeed: and then the seoount of (he queen t^Shefia win be ooneluded, and that of Solomon's revenue will stand without interruption.

Verse 13. AU her deeire, n^u^eoevtr lAeaaked] Some imagine she desired progeny from the wise xing of Iirael; and all the traditions concerning lier state thai she had a son Solomon, called MeniUk, who was brought u|p at the Israslitish eourt, succeeded hia mother in me kmgdom of Saba, sad introduced among his subfecta the Jevnah religion. See at (he end of the ctwpter.

13 And King Solomon gave unto the imeen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, besides that which Solomon gave her 'of his royal bounty. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants.

14 1 Now the weight of gold that

came to Solomon in one year was six a c w^ma. hundred threescore and six talents of tvS^^ gold,

15 Besides (hat he had of the merchaDtmen, and of the traffic of the spice-merchants, and * of all the kings of Arabia, and of the ■ governors of the country.

16 1[ And King Solomon made two hundred targets o/ beaten gold: six hundred shekelM of gold went to one target,

17 And he made three hundred shields o/ beaten gold; three. pounds of gold went to one shield: and the king put them m the ■ house of the forest of Lebanon.

IS T[ Moreover, the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaia it with the best gold.

19 The throne had six steps, and the to^ of the throne was round 'behina: and there were ' stays on either side on the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the stays.

Terse 11. Great plenty o/* almug- freet] In the panlld place, 2 Chron. ix. 10, 11, these are called algvtn tree^ di« Q mem and the i gimel being transposed; probably the latter is the most correct orthc^rapby. What dte ol^m trees were, we do not exactly know. The Vulgate cails it ligna thyina, the ihya or lignumvitx wood; and Mr. Par&hurst atialu that the origitial cmvh* algumim, cornea from St at, not, and » gem, to _fiU; because the llgmuBvit» is of so close a texture that it can imbibe no waier, and cannot be affected by wet weather. Hie ' SeptuagiiU translate it loXa irtwivet, jnne timber; the Syriae JCCUO)2<l£aaOt kai^ darkiaotho, probably eji}»-u« utod; or what the translators render tifma bratiliea. The ArsMc translates coloured wood; aiM suUoina a paiaphnne,,^ that vood ttaa bjf nature jtainteainik mHow eotHn. Perhaps the Arabic comes nearest (ha truth t wood ekaded of difierent clours, such as the rose wood, and stich lilie, which are brought to us from various parts of the East Indies. The whole pasaage, as it stands in the Aratte, is this: And the ships of Hiram broucht gold from ihe land of Hind, (India;) and they carriea also much coloKnrf wood, (but this wood is naturaUy pointed of wrassw cofourt,) and veiT precisuB jewels. And Solomon pmsons of that same poinded wooa which was bou^t to btn, in the bouse of uie Lord, and in his own house; and viinit he adorned them." And for inlaying and TsnserniB^ nothing can be finer than this wood.

Verse 14. The weight of gold-^wae eis hundred Am- Kore andeix talmta] linis would amount, in oar mooej, to 4,683,675^ 12*. Sid. sterling. This seems to he wfaM he got annually of btdUoni bul, iodepoidently of (bis, bs bad tribute of all tlie kings of Anuna, duties from nterchansroen, and the traffic of spiee-mercbanu. See ver. 2B.

Terse 16. Solomon mikU tieo hundred targtte of beaten gold] I have already conjectured that the mi teinMak, might resemble ihe Hi^land ta^;c or target, with a da^ gerurc^ecting from the dicbo, or centra.

Terse 17. He made Arte hundred ekieUa} Htb vo magen, was a huge sbiald, hy which die whole bo^ ynm protected.

Hr. Reynolds computes that the two hundred Isrjnfc on each oi which was employed Ihret hundred Whit of gold, wera worth 2S,13U 1&. 91d.,

And the Aree hundred Aielde, in forming eeicb of vfaidi /ArMjpound* of gold were employe^ were wonh llltjmL

Verse 19. 7^ Arone was round be/rind: and then were ataya on either eide] This deacriptioa seen* to indicate that this throne was in the form of one of ow ancient rouiut-toppcd, two-armed chairs. This thrans^ or chair of state, was raised on a plaiform, the aseeat (o which consisted of six steps. What ws esll stejw is m ibe Hebrew m-r- yadoth, Aonas; which nerves to coufinn eonjeeture above.

J 10 And twelve Uoiu stood there on the one B and on the other upon the six steps: there was not * the like made in any Idngdom.

31 t And all King Solomon's arinkin^ vessels were of ffold, abd all the ressele of the house of the forest of Lelwion were <^ pure gold; < none were (if silver: it was oothuff accounted of in the days of Solomon.

2-2 For the kins It&d at sea a navy of ^ Tharahish with the navrof Hiram: once in three rears came the navy of Tharshi^h, bringing sold, and ailrer, > ivon;, and apes, and peacocks.

33 So " King Solomon exceeded all die tings of the earth for riches and for wisdom.

34 IT And all the earth ■ sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.

35 And they brought every man his present, vessels of sflver, and vessels of gold, and gar-

Van 22. A nan of T^MrthiA] For probable oodjflctura oonoeminff uiii plwe, and the tkrMyearJ voyage, aoe u the end of ta'u Bad the precedii^ dia^r.

Tarse. 23. Solomon exctadad all the fdnge qftheearih JhrridMl lb. Bay)»ld% statins the iDeome of Solonion •tsboat fiHirdoHs nuuh ma biher left him, hnce rMksoa that he hsd, each tub, 142,24S;034i. 9». Id.; •aebwsiK,V3&,423^14«. 9|<1; and, each dat, 390,770/. 16«; 4^d.; taking each day, veeAj and year, one with •notbar.

Tciae 26. 7?Uy brought every man hie preeetU] 'Rut SMsna tribuU; and it abowa iia of what aort that tribute ms— vie. SMMb of gabt sod eUver, pnimhtf ingoUt gamtadt of very ricfi atufia; armma; for little « thia kind vaa ever made ia Judea-, epiete. which doubtless BoM well in that country; horeetj whioh were very rare; and muAc^ the moat nwmarysnunaU for all tbeputpoaea of Ule.

Veraa 26. Be had a thaueand and fintr htaniTti d^sriof*] See the note od cbap. iv. 28.

Verse 27. Mad* Mieer^-ao eionee] He deitnyad Its vtlue In making it so exceedingly plenty.

At die eycamore /r««] He planted many cedars and doaht]«N had much cedar wood imported; so that it became as common as the eyeamore trees, wtidi appear to ban gmni ihere io sreat abundance, 'niis ia oonsideTed to be a tree that panakes of the nature of the/^ tree, and flf Iba muibsrry. Of the fiwmet it has the and of lbs lauor tbalMvsf; that n, tbe fruit baa a coosideiabte resemblaaea to tbe fl^ and toe loitfia that of tbe mutbtrry trmi lienoe its name syeamors, from the Greek mcq, afig, fend /toftot a mulbenr tree.

Verae 29. Boreee brought out of Egyjd} It is lhou|dit diet the first peopis who used norses in tear were me Egyptians; am it is well known that the nations who knew tbe use of ihis creature in battle, had greatly the advantage of tboaa who did nob God had absolutely randiibilea horses to be imported or used; but, in many things Solomon paid little attention to the divine command.

And Unen yam] The original word mpo mikveh, is hard to bo understoixl. If it be not indeed a eomiption.

The versions SresU puzzled widt It: the Vulgate and S^tuagirU make it a proper naau, " And Solomon bad borsBS nrouditont of sgypt, snt from Cbo, or TUoo." Some think il signifies a tnmttti thus Botnaii: "Hey brought horses to Solomon Out of Egypt; and, as to llie tribub^ (be formers of this prince received it at a price.** "nicy mrmed the tribute, gave so mueh annually ibr it; taking tbe different kinds to themselves^ and giving a round son for tbe whole.

Some suppose that kiktbr s^fies die string or eord bf which one horsc^a head is tied to the twl of another; md dial tb« meaning ia, Sdonon broogbt droves of horsey thus tied, out of EmL

Rabbi Solomon Jarebi, in bis comment on the parallel place, 2 Chron. i. 14. sayB,'Ibat mUn^ signifiM a Mrileetion, ot drove of bmes; or, what the Germans eall •tOtte, a He observes on diat ptaeeb "Tbatbebas beard thsit tbsre was a aonmayrf marcmuita in Egyp^ vtebonght horses fron tbe Bgyptisns si • oertsin pnes^ SK eondttion dMt B»porBoa riwuid be pennitlBd to bring a bosse out of Egypt but Omaa^ Osb."

ments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year., 30 If « And Solomon v gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariotF, and twelve thousand horeeihen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with tbe king at Jerusalem.

27 T[ t And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he io be as the sycamore trees that are in the vale, for abundance.

28 • And t Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and • Knen yarn: the king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price.

39 And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred ajid fifty: * and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, did they bring them out * by their means.

for npD mikoehj we should read rasvi merdiuboA, chariots: " And Solomoo had horses brought out of Egypt, and ohariots i and tbe king's marchmta received the chariots at a price; and a cbariot came up and went out of Egypt fin- eix hundred diekels of silver, Ac" This makes a very good and consislMit sense i but none of tlie versons acknowle%e it; nor ta Ibeie any various readiiv here in any of the USS. yet cdlated.

If we und^tand it of Oiread, it may refer to the byeeut, or Jlne JLix, for wfaidi Egypt was mmous: but I do not see OQ what audiority we translate it linm thread. Bo* charfa opinion appears (o me tbe most probable, as lbs text now stands; but the chaise contended for bj Houbigant makes tbe text lar more simple and intelligible.

yens 29. AAarxotixtmeup— for rix hundred JiMMt]B{ lliis was the ordinary price of a chariU, as a huttdrea andJLfly ehekda were for a horee.

Kinge of the HiUUes] These must have been the remains of the original inbabitants of Cazuian, who had gone to Bone odter country, probably Syria, and formed dbem< solves into a principality there. It seems that neitb^ horses nor duiriots came out of Egypt but by meana <k Solomon's servanla. Hr. Brw^s account of Solomon's vojrage to Ophir; " We are not to wonder, if the prodieious hurry and flow of business, toA the immensely valuable transactions they had with each other, had greatly familiarized tbe Tyrians and Jews with their eorrespondenbi. die Cushites and abep-. herds, on the coast of Asica. Inia had gone so fiir ai^ very naturally, to ereate a deure in d» queen of AxeHa, the sovereign of diat eoontry, to go benelf and see tbe qifdicatioD of the immenae treaaurea that had beni exported from her country for a series of jreara; and the prince wbo so magnificently employed them. There can be no doubt of this expedition; asPagan, Aml^ Moor, Abyssinian, and all the countries round, voudi for it nearly in the terms of^ Scripture.

" Hername^ tbe Aiaba say, was Belbis { die Abyssinian^ Haquedtk Our Saviour dufs her <ilaeen of tni; Sootb, witbout mentioning aigr otbernsme: hot gives Hs sanefion to the truth of the voyage. ' Hie oueen of the South, (or Saba, or Azab,) shall rise up in judgment with this generation, and dioll condemn it, for she came from the tttiermost parts of the euih to hear the wisdom of Solomon | and, heboid, a greater than Solomon is hare.' No other paitieulars,however,areinenttoi)edaboutberinSeriptan), and it is not probable that our Saviour would have sud she oame from the unerfOost parts of the earth, if sbs bad been an Arah^ and bad ■aeatjtfhi degrees of the continent bebmd her. But, when we ctmsider that the boundaries ol tbs known land to tbe aonthward were, at that time, RaptuiB, or Praasum, as we have just seen, these being tbe utter* most parts of the known eardi, were, witb great [n^priety, so sty led by our Saviour } andof diesaabewaauidojuNedqr Bovodgn. TTiejgok^ d>e myrri^ eassi% sad frsnkincenss, were all tbe produce of her own ooontry.

" Whether she was a Jewess or a Pagan is uneertaia. Sabaism was the religion of all die East i it was the eonstant attendant and a^pbting-block of the Jewa: but, eon- Biderinc the multituA^ that people, then trading from Jerusawn, and tbe ttng time it oontinned, it is not improbable lAie was a Jewess. 'And when tbe mMen of Sbafaa heard of the &me of Sdomon, concerning the naow of die Lord, rtw came to prove him irob hard gusatioo^' 1 Kings, X. 1. 2C3iraa. ix. 1. Our Saviour, uimovsr, apeaks of her widl prsias, pointing her out as an anmpls to lbs