Exposition of the Whole Bible

verfions; that is, profelytes of the gate, who fubmitted to the feven precepts of Noah, were admitted to dwell in the cities of [/rael, fee Gen. ix. 4. and thefe were ordered to be got together to be employed in building the temple, and making preparations for it; and that partly, becaufe they were better artificers than the //raelites, who were chiefly employed in hufbandry and cattle, and partly that the J/raelttes, who were freemen, might not be put to hard fervice; but chiefly this was for the fake of a myttery in it, denoting that the Gentiles would be concerned in building the fpiritual houfe and church of God, the temple was a type and figure of, fee Zech.vi.15. and be fet mafons to hew wrought Stones to build the boufe of God; to dig them out of the quarries, and fit them for the building.

¥.3. And David prepared iron in abundance for the-nails for the doors of the gates, and for the joinings, &c.} Great plenty of iron to make nails of for joining the boards together, of which the doors and gates were to be made, and for the. fattening of the hinges of them: and bra/s in abundance without weight; for making the altar of brafs, and the laver of brafs, and other veffels. Brafs was much ufed by the heathens in facred things, as

¥. 8. But the word of the Lord came to me, &c.} The word of prophecy, as the Targum, by the mouth of Nathan the prophet: faying 5 as follows, which though not expreffed in the book of Szmuef before referred to, is here recorded by divine infpiration: thou baft foed blood abundantly; Kimcht thinks this refers to the blood of Uriah, and thofe gallant men that were flain with him, and to the priefts flain by the order of Saul, which David was the occafion of, or accidental caufe of, 1 Sam. xxii. 22. and to many good men among the Gentiles; though it was the intention of the Lord to confume the wicked among them, that they might not prevail over J/rael: and baft made great wars; with the Philiftines, Moabites, &c. thou foall not build an houfe unto my name, becaufe thou haft fred much blood upon the earthin my fight; an intimation this, that the church of God, of which this houfe was a type, was to be built by Chrift, the prince of peace, and to be fupported and maintained not by force of arms, and by fpilling of blood, as the religion of Mahomet, but by the preaching of the gofpel of peace,

¥. 9. Behold, a fon foall be born to thee, &c.]} For this was faid to David before the birth of Solos mon, fee 2 Sam vii. 12, 13. and xii. 24. who foall be a man of reft, and I will give bim ret from all his enensies round about; aid fo fhould be at leifure for fuch a work, and his people enjoy great profperity and riches, and fo be capable of contributing largely and liberally to it: for his name hall be Solomon; which fignifies peace, and is one of the fix perfons that had their names given then before they were born, as the Yews obferve’: and I will give peace and quietne/s untoljrael in bis days; and fo a proper time to begin and carry on fuch a work; of the fulfilment of this prophecy, fee 1 Kings iv. 24,25. and v. 3, 4.

¥.10. He shall build an houfe for my name, &c.] For the worfhip of God, and for his honour and glory: and be fhail be my fon, and I will be his fa-~ ther; fee 2 Sam. vii. 13, 14. and which is applied to Chrift, Heb. i. 5. and Iwill efablifh the throne of bis kingdom over Ifrael for ever; that is, for a long time in his pofterity; and which will have its fulfilment in Chrift, his antitype, in the utmoft fenfe of the expreffion, whofe kingdom is an everlafting kingdom, and his throne for ever and ever, PARES. 90,29. £10001, 8.

¥.11, Now, my fon, the Lord be with thee, &c.] Or fhall be with thee’, as fome; and if it be confidered as a prayer, it was no doubt a prayer of faith; the Zargum is, ** may the Word of the Lord be ‘thine help:” and profper thee; may fuccefs attend thee: and build the houfe of the Lord thy God, as he hath faid of thee; foretold he fhould, and therefore would affift him to do it, which was an encouragement to go about it,

.y. 12. Only the Lord give thee wifdom and underftanding, &c.| ‘To manage and conduét an affair of fuch importance, as well as to govern the people as follows: and give thee charge concerning Ifrael; or, when be gives, commits the charge of them to thee, fets thee king over them: that thou mayeft keep the law of the Lord thy God, have wifdom and underftanding to do that, and make that the rule of all thine a¢tions, private and public, in thine own houfe, in the houfe of God, and i ’ a

¥.4. Alfo cedar-trees in abundance, &c.] To be fawed into boards and planks for the cieling, wain- {cotting and flooring of the temple, and other things: for the Zidonians, and they of Tyre, brought muck cedar-wood to David; from mount Lebanon, which was chiefly in their. poffeffion; and which they did either of themfelves as a free gift and prefent to him, or at his requeft, for which he paid them; and this is another thing pre-figuring the help of the Genziles in building up the church of Chrift in gofpel-times.

¥.5. And David faid, Solomon my fon is young and tender, &c.|.Farchi fuppofes he was about 12 years of age, though he obferves that the fame word is ufed of Fo/bua when 42 years of age; it is probable Solomon might be now about 20: and the boufe that is to be builded for the Lord, mutt be exceeding magnificent, of fame and of glory through-. out all countries; and fuch was the temple built by Solomon, it was renowned throughout the whole earth; never was there a temple equal to it, no not the famous temple of Diana at Ephe/fus, built by the affiftance of many kings, and at the expence of all 4/a, and was 200 years in building: I will therefore now make preparation for it, feeing his fon was fo young, and this building to be {fo magnificent, though he himfelf was not admitted to build it: /o David prepared abundantly before bis death; of which we have an after-account in this chapter, and more largely in ch. xxviii. and xxix,

¥. 6. Then he called for Solomon bhis.fon, &c.| To be brought before him: and charged him to build an houfe for the Lord God of I/rael; which charge made great preparations for this work, as appears from ¥. 5, 14, 45, 16.;

y. 7. And David faid to Solomon, &c.] When brought into his prefence: my jon, as for me, it was in my mind to build an houfe unto the name o the Lord my God; he was difpofed and inclined to it, and was once determined upon it, fee 2 Sam. Vil. 2, 3. te MG

»° all things relative to ‘that, and inthe government be obtained, there being not.a fufficiency of ( Jof them prepared for the work, 2 * death. y.14. Now bebold in my trouble, &c.] Or af-

¥.13. Then halt thou profper, if thou takef heed to fulfil the flatutes, &c.} See 1 Kings ii. yr. 15: Moreover, there are workmen with thee ii A 2, 3.Jabundance, &c.] All the ftrangers in the lan ae ed by the order of David, ¥. 2. who- where the fame things are {aid as here; which fhews that this was fpoken by David a little before his ing gather were fkille d'in all manner of work as follows: hewers and workers of fione and timber, mafons and — carpenters: and-all manner of cunning men for every”

fliGion, which had attended him, through thelmanner of work; joiners, carvers, Sey A greater part of his reign, partly through wars

y. 16. Of the gold, the filver, and the brafs, and

abroad, and partly through rebellions and infurrections at home: or, 7 my poverty’;

frugal way, as if he had been a poor man, in der to lay up money for this purpofe: pared for the houfe of the Lord; for the building of it, and for thihgs to be ufed in it:' of gold, and 1,000,000 talents of filver 5 a prodigious fum, be it reckoned as it will; the gold, ¢he fron, &c.] That is, the cunning artificers ere - living in alfkilfulto work in each of thefe, fome in gold and or-jfilver, others in brafs and iron: there is no number 5 J have pre- either of the workmen, or of thefe materials 5 which yet muft be retrained to the brafs and iron, 100,000 talents for the gold and filver are numbered, but not the ~ brafs and iron, ¥. 14. arife therefore ani be doing, not. that he fhould. fet about, and begin the build-_.

according to Scheuckzer ° 1,222,000,000 ducats of gold; according to Waferus* the talents of gold made 600 millions o | Hungarian pieces of gold, or 6000 tons. of gold; our Brerewood * makes them to amount [0 450,000,000 pounds; but this being a fum fo after he came to the throne, and not neglect and - delay it: and the Lord be with thee, as in ee and here as there the Targum is, “ may the Word of the Lord be thy help.” —_ at y¥.17. David alfo commanded all the princes of was an{werable ae the temple directly; but as foon as he could — exceflive large as what exceeds the riches of anylJ monarch read of in hiftory, he thinks * the Kikkar fignifies a mafs or cake of gold of an tain value; or that this talent was of a lefler lue than the Mo/aic one, as there were {mall talents rael, &c.] His courtiers and nobles that were wordjabout him: #0 heip Solomon his fon, by, their aduncer- vice, and with their purfes, fhould he need them,” va-jand by overlooking the workmen, dire¢ting and. encouraging them: faying; as follows.

in the times of Homer ‘, as he obferves, and fome of different worth in various countries.

taking gold to be in proportion to filver, as 10)sot given you refi on y.18. Is not the Lord your God with you, &e.]

The filver,|Bleffing them with wealth and riches: and bath be every fide? from all enemies — to 1, as it formerly was, is juft of the fame value with the gold; but Brerewood who takes it to be within and without; fo that they had peace and quietnefs, and leifure to attend the fervice he re- as 12 to 1, computes it at 375,000,000 pounds; but the proportion of gold to filver is now grown, as bifhop Cumberland obferves *, to above 14 to 1. According to Scheuchzer the filver talents amounted to 4,500,000,000 imperials or rix-dollars; according to Witfus* the gold and filver both amounted to 3000 and goo millions of pieces of gold; but Yofepbus ‘has reduced thefe fums very much, making them to be 10,000 talents of gold, and 100,000 of filver. Dr. Prideaux * fays that what is faid to be given by David here, and in ch. xxix. 3, 4, 5 and by his princes, ¥. 6, 7, 8. if valued by the Mofaic talent, exceeded the value of 800 millions of our money, which was enough to have built the whole temple of folid filver: and of brafs and irin without weight, for it is in abundance; there was fo much of both, that it was too much trouble to take the weight and value of them: timber alfo and ftone have I prepared, fee ¥. 2—4. and thou mayeft add thereunto; which.might eafily commended to them: for ke hath given the inba- Litants of the land into my band, meaning the reft of the Canaanites, who before were unfubdued, as even the Febufites in Ferufalem: and the land is fubdued before the Lord, and before his people, and the extent of it carried to its utmoft bounds, as God had promifed. “dy y. 49. Now fet your heart and your foul to eck the Lord your God, &c.] His honour and glory, moft fincerely and cordially, and to the utmoft of - their power: ari/e ye, and build ye the Jan8uary of the Lord God; affift therein, and encourage the work as much as they were able, without delay: to bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord; which was now in a tent of David’s erecting and pitching: and the holy vefféls of God 5 which were inthe tabernacle at Gibeon: into the houfe that is to be built to the name of the Lord; that fo they might be together, and made ule of; which in times paft had. ere |

N this chapter David makes Solomon king, y.1.) y. calls together the princes, priefts, and Levites, numbers the latter, and affigns them, their proper work, ¥. 2—5. divides them into 3 clafiés, y. 6—23. when the number of them was taken from | I 20 years of age, and upwards;

1. So when Devt has ol ah full of a 8c.} Perhaps was now in the laft year o; about 70 years old, though before he we fee ch. xxviii. 2. be made Solomon his rael; declared him to’ be his fac the reafons of;before the affair of Adonijab, for

- Chxxiny.2—24. I CHRONICLES. 35 jab, that it was againft rhe declared and known will ove reckoning, according to their father’s hou es of his father. | et, made one family with their brethren. ©

. y.2. And be gathered together all the princes of Jfrael, &c.] Ordered them to be affembled, partly to acquaint them with his will and pleafure, that Solomon fhould fucceed him in the kingdom; and partly to fettle the order of the work and fervice of the temple; and therefore thefe were convened with the priefhs and Levites; to affign to them their refpective places and offices.

y. 13; The fons.of Amram, Aaron, and Mofes &c.] A fon of Kobath, y. 12. Exod. vi. a and Aaron was feparated; from the. children of If rael, Exod. xxviii, 1. that be fhould fanttify the moft holy things, he and his fons for ever; by an holy ufe of them, and keeping them from all unholy and profane ufes; and this they were to do as long as the 4aronical priefthood lafted: to burn incenfe before the Lord; in the holy place, on the altar of amdjincenfe; which none but priefts defcended from 4aron might do: ¢o minifter unto him; both at the altar of burnt-offering and of incenfe; and the high-prieft in the holy of holies: and to ble/s bis name for ever, or in bis name; thatis, the people in his name; fee Numé. vi. 23—27.

¥. 3. Now the Levites were numbered from the oge of thirtyyears, and upward, &c.| So they were numbered in the days of Mo/es, and by his order, and fo they were now at firft,; though afterwards there was anew reckoning of them, ¥. 24. their number by their pofts; or according to their heads: man by man was 38,000; which vaftly exceeds the number in the times of Mdo/es; fee Numb. iv. 47, 48. but then thofe above 50 years of age were not numbered, as they now might; fince theit work in the temple would be much mgreeafy, no burdens to carry, as the ark, the veflels, &e, &c.

y.14. Now concerning Mofes the man of God, Raifed up by him asa prophet, admitted to great familiarity with him, a law-giver from him, and the ruler and guide of J/rael under him thro’ the wildernefs: is fons were named of the tribe of Levi; were only common Levites; Mo/es had no ambition to gratify; he fought no honour for. his avd 6000 were pofterity; the civil government was left to Fofbua, thejand the priefthood to Aaron.

y.4..Of which 24,000 were to fet forward the work of the houfe of the Lord, &c.} To prepare for the work of the priefts by flaying the facrifices, flaying them, cutting them in pieces, and wafhing them, and bringifig them to the altar; 1000 of thefe ferved weekly. in their turns: officers and judges;, that aéted as juftices of peace in the feveral parts of the country, heard caufes and adminiftered juftice to the people, being trained up in and acquainted with the laws of God, civil as well as ecclefiaftic; fome were more pro- ‘perly judges, and others executioners of their fentence; fee Devt, xvi, 18. and xvii. 9.

¥. 15. The fons of Mofes were Gerfoom and Eliezer 3] See Exod. xviii. 3, 4.

y. 16. Of the fons of Gerfoom Shebuel was the chief;} Of the pofterity of Ger/bom in the times of David, called Shubael, ch. xxiv. 20. the Targum makes him to be the fame with jonathen, Fudg. Xviii. 30°.

¥. 5. Moreover 4000 were porters, &c.| At the eaft, north, and fouth gates of the temple, intheir turns: and 4000 praifed the Lord with the inftruments; wete fingers in the temple, which in all made up 38000: which I made {aid David to praife therewith; which inftruments he devifed and ordered to be made to praife the Lord with; fee 2 Chron. xxix. 26. Neb. xii. 36.

; ¥. 17, 4nd the fons of Eliezer were Rebabiah the chief, &c ] The firft and only begotten, as it follows: azd Eliezer had none other fons; before nor after him: but the fons of Rehabiah were very many 5 or greatly multiplied; not, as the Targum fays, above 600,000; the number of J/rac/, as the ewi/b writers ™fancy; which they gather from Exod. i. 7. and xxxil. 10. fee Numb. xi. a1. and that though Mo/es deprecated the multiplication of his feed, God fulfilled it.

y. 6. And David divided them into courfes among the fous of Levi, &c.] nto three claffes, according to the number of them, which follow, namely: Gerfhon, Kobath, and Merari, {ee Exod. vi. 16. ¥. _ ¥. 7. Of the Gerfhonites were Ldadan and Shi- * ‘mei 3) Thefe two were the immediate pofterity of Gerfbon; are the fame with Libui and Shimbi,. and heads of families, Exod. vi. 17. ¥. 19, 20,21. y¥. 8. The fons of Laadan, the chief was Febiah, and Zetham, and Foel;} Not his immediate fons, but fome that defcended from him.

18. Of the fous of Izbar, &c.|. Another fon — of Kobath, the fon of Levi, y¥.12. Shelomith the ¢4ie/; the principal defcendent of Jzar at this time.

Of the fons of Hebron, &c.] A third fon of Kobath, v.12. Feriab the 18, Amariab ¢he 24, Fabaziel the 3d, and Fekameam the 4th: of the fons of Uzziel; another fon of Kohath, y. 12. Micab the tft, Fefiah the 2d: the fons of Merari, © Mabli, and Mufbi, Exod, vi. 19. the fons of Mabli, Hleazar, and Kifo,; of whom fee ch. xxiv. 28, 29-;

¥. 9. The fons of Shime?, &c.] Not him that was the. fon of Gerfbon, ‘but.a defcendent of Laadan, his fon, as Kimchi obferves: Shelomith and Haziel, and Haran, thefe were the chief of the fathers of Laadan., of the families that fprangfrom him.

¥. 22. dud Eleazar died, and had no fons, but daughters, &c.] And fo none to fucceed him in his office and fervice: and their brethren the fons of Kifo took them; married them, their uncle’s fons, their own coufins.

y. 10. And the fons of Shimei, &c.] The fon of | Gerfoon, and brother of Laadan, according to Kimchi, which feems right, were Fabath, Zina, and Feufh, and Beriah, thefe four were the fons of Shi- ‘mei, defcendents of his in the times of David.

y¥.23. And the fons of Mufbi, &cc.] The other Merari, Mabli; {0 called from his uncle, his father’s brother: and Eder and Ferimoth, threes and is there read mentioned again ch. xxiv. 30, y.11. And Fabath was the chief, &c.] The\fon of ‘prince.and head of a family’: and Ziza the fecond; the fame with Zina in y. 10.

- Liza in the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin verfions: but Feufo and Beriah had not many fons x fo as to “conftivute diftinct families: therefore they were in y.24. Thefe were the sons of Levi, after the houfe of ther fathers, &c.] According to the three clafles of them, as defcending from the three fons of Levis