n. 66 (as the particle beth frequently signifies), some other recompense, which gave him but were no part of the land of Canaan, better satisfaction. Abarbinel thinks, that when it was divided among the Israelites: Solomon having agreed to give Hiram so for that could not be alienated, being God's many measures of wheat and oil, as are heritage. They were therefore cities out of mentioned, v. 11, with which he had supthe territories of Israel, as appears from plied him every year; now that this work Josh. ix. 27, but had been conquered partly was ended, gave him this country, out of by Pharaoh, who gave them to Solomon, as which he might raise this provision for his part of his daughter's portion; and partly household himself. Which Hiram did not by Solomon himself, who had power to like, because his people were addicted to merdispose of them; especially since at that chandise, not to agriculture: but did not time they were not inhabited by the Is- upon this account break off friendship with raelites (see 2 Chron. viii. 2, and Grotius, Solomon, as appears by the following history. De Jure Belli et Pacis, lib. i. cap. 3, sect. 12, He called them the land of Cabul.] It is 3). Hotoman, indeed, a famous lawyer, commonly thought that Hiram called them, thinks that Solomon did not give Hiram a by way of contempt, Cabul; which signifies propriety, and perpetual right in these cities; a dirty country: or, as Josephus will have but only the possession and enjoyment of it, displeasing (as we translate it in the them till the debt was satisfied, which Solo- margin of our Bibles). For Chabulon, he mon had contracted, by the assistance which saith, in the Phoenician language, signifies Hiram afforded him in building the temple. as much as oùк ápéσkov, "that which doth But his ground is not solid: for as our not please" (lib. viii., Archæol., cap. 2). Selden also hath shown (lib. vi. De Jure But the LXX seem to have understood the Nat. et Gent., cap. 16), the kings of Israel word better; who translate it öpiov, the term might dispose of those lands which they had or bound: as if Cabul were the same with conquered in a voluntary war, without the Gebul: caph and gimel being frequently consent of the senate. Bochartus also is of changed, as Bochartus observes; who the same mind, that these cities were no approves of this signification of the word. part of the country of Judea but Abar- For Chabulon was that tract of ground which binel confirms Hotoman's opinion, that the bounded the lower Galilee extending from revenues of these cities were given to him Tiberias unto this place, as Josephus himtill the debt was discharged. self saith, lib. iii. De Bello Judaico, cap. 2 (see Bochartus, in his Canaan, lib. ii., cap. 4). Ver. 13. Gesenius.- obsol. root, Talm., Syr., .Arab. to tie, to bind, to bind together נָתַתָּה לִי אָחִי וַיִּקְרָא לָהֶם אֶרֶץ כָּבוּל καὶ εἶπε, τί αἱ πόλεις αὗται, ἃς ἔδωκάς μοι ἀδελφέ; καὶ ἐκάλεσεν αὐτὰς Οριον ἕως τῆς ἡμέρας ταύτης. Cabul pr. n. a) A city in the tribe of Asher, Josh. xix. 27. b) A district of Galilee comprising twenty towns, given by Solomon to Hiram king of Tyre, 1 Kings ix. 13; so called by Au. Ver.-13 And he said, What cities the latter in token of dissatisfaction, comp. are these which thou hast given me, my v. 12. Josephus says, probably by conbrother? And he called them the land of jecture from the context, Ant. viii. 5, 3, Cabul [that is, displeasing, or, dirty] unto μeepμnvevóμevov yàp тò Xaßaλòv KaTÀ ÞOLthis day. νίκων γλῶτταν οὐκ ἀρέσκον σημαίνει. The Bp. Patrick. What cities are these which LXX have optov, border, as if bp i. q. b, thou hast given me ?—These are not words of and so Bochart; but this neglects the concontempt; for it is not likely that Solomon, text. Hiller, in Onomast. V. T., p. 435, who had been highly obliged to Hiram (and takes for part. pass. of, 'as was in his own temper very generous) would something exhaled, as nothing.' Something give him that which was of little value. like this was perhaps present to the mind of But his meaning is, these cities were not the sacred writer; though the reading of the such as would serve his purpose; which Sept. is in itself the more natural.-R. p. made him return them to Solomon again Houb.-13, terra Cabul. Radix (2 Chron. viii. 2), who, no doubt, made him est, ut videtur, Arabicum, differre debi tum, forsan quia eas urbes Salomon regi|numerous buildings; suitable to the high Hiram non ante concesserat, quam omnes dignity to which God had advanced him. ædificationes absolvisset. Est etiam But Mr. Selden hath shown, by many inArabicum, recusare, et brevem esse, quo in significatu notari etiam potest urbes eas fuisse, aut nimis exiguas, aut dignas, quæ a Tyrio rege recusarentur. stances, that the word mas is used, not only for pecuniary tribute, but for corporeal labour. And thus he interprets these words, "this is the cause of requiring the labour and work of so many men. Which when he had declared, viz. his great buildings, then he proceeds (ver. 20), to relate who they were that he employed in this service. Millo.] Which was a large and very beautiful place (as Abarbinel takes it), near Dathe.-Josephus Antiq., 1. viii., c. 5, § 3 refert, hanc vocem in Phoenicum lingua significare oйk apeσKOV. Aliorum judicio est, i. q. fines, vel i. q. 7, in pignus acceptum. Aptissima vero interpretatio videtur esse ea, qua idem est atque acceptum, donum; p enim in conjug. Piel to Zion; where the Israelites were wont to accipere significat, quam vim primæ quoque conjugationi inusitatæ tribuere licet. καὶ ἤνεγκε Χιρὰμ τῷ Σαλωμὼν ἑκατὸν καὶ εἴκοσι τάλαντα χρυσίου. Au. Ver.-14 And Hiram sent to the king sixscore talents of gold. Bp. Patrick.-And Hiram sent.] It may be better translated, "and Hiram had sent,' &c. See ver. 11, where the reason is given why Solomon offered him so rich a country. Which, though he did not like, yet these words, Abarbinel thinks, signify, that notwithstanding Hiram continued his generous friendship with Solomon, and after that sent him all this gold; or, it was sent him as his share in their traffic to Ophir, mentioned in the conclusion of this chapter. meet, and take their pleasure: and because it was full of people, was therefore called Millo; which signifies fulness, or repletion. Now David had built round about Zion, from Millo inward (as we read 2 Sam. v. 9), but had left the structure of Millo itself Pharaoh's imperfect; which Solomon now completed, xxxii. 5. But others will have it to signify that deep valley or ditch (it may be called) which was between Mount Zion (the city of David) and Mount Moriah, on which the temple stood. Therefore, that there might be a convenient passage from the king's palace to the house of God, Solomon joined these two mountains by a bridge or a causeway, which could not be done without filling up the valley, or making great arches; some think the one, and some the other. The wall of Jerusalem.] There were three walls, one within another, as Abarbinel and Joseph ben Gorion explain it: the inner שלמה וגו' שְׁלֹמֹה [Alex.] aurn pауμатía тηs проvоuns, ἧς ἀνήνεγκεν ὁ βασιλεὺς Σαλωμὼν, κ.τ.λ. Au. Ver.-15 And this is the reason of the levy which king Solomon raised; for to build the house of the LORD, and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer. Millo. See notes on 2 Sam. v. 9, pp. 521, 522. wall compassing the house of God and the house of the king; the middle wall compassing the houses of the prophets and great persons (which explains 2 Kings xxii. 14), and the third compassing the houses of all the people. Gesen. m. tribute; commonly derived from opp to pine away, because tribute is a consuming of strength, confectio virium, which is hardly tolerable. Better to take Bp. Patrick. This is the reason of the Dp as contr. from D, tribute, tax, from the levy which king Solomon raised.] That the root to number, like fem. number, raising of a great tribute upon the people, for ppp. Instances of the letters ks or έ and employing so many men in his works, at the end of words being softened by might not seem strange, he here shows the dropping the k, exist in multitude in Greek cause of it; which was his great and and Latin, as Ajax, Alas; pistrix, pistris, Houb., Ged., Booth.-In the land of Zobah [2 Chron. viii. 3]. Tíστρis; öрvis, Dor. öpviέ; mixtus, mistus; | Tadmor, which otherwise being in that wilsestertius for sextertius; also of a and ss derness which was the border of the land, between two vowels, like Heb. micsa, missa; might have been presumed to have been out Ulixes, Ulysses; padáσow, malaxo; further, of the land. maximus and Ital. massimo; Alexander and Alessandro. Almost everywhere spoken of tribute to be rendered in service, tribute- Houb.-: Superstitiosè editores vaservice, fully on (tribute of one serving) cuum spatium relinquunt post litteram ♫, ut 1 Kings ix. 21; and concr. of a levy of men significent omissam fuisse literam 7; nam as labourers; 1 Kings v. 27 [13] and king loco parallelo, 2 Par. viii. 3, legitur, Solomon let come up a levy (D) out of all Thadmer, seu Palmira; quod sic legendum Israel, and the levy (D) was thirty thousand monent Masoretæ. .., in terrâ. Mumen; comp. ix. 15; 2 Chron. viii. 8. Fre- tilus Contextus, qui suppletur ex 2 Par. quent in the phrases: D Deut. xx. 11; viii. 3, addito , (in terrâ) Suba: vide Judg. i. 30, 33, 35; Is. xxxi. 8, also Deum locum, et confer ejus loci versus 3 et 4. Gen. xlix. 15; Josh. xvi. 10, to become subject to tribute-service. So Josh. xvii. 13, □ □ Judg. i. 28, and on Esth. x. 1, to impose tribute-service upon any one. Also De prefect over the tribute-service, tribute-master, 2 Sam. xx. 24; 1 Kings iv. 6; xii. 18. Ver. 17. Au. Ver.-17 And Solomon built Gezer, and Beth-horon the nether. Houb.-17, et Bethoron inferiorem. Legitur 2 Par. viii. 5. Salomonem instaurasse Bethoron et inferiorem et superiorem. Credibile est omissa fuisse hæc verba, p, Bethoron superiorem, ex similitudine. Nam sacræ paginæ voluntas videtur esse, ne qua urbs omittatur, quam Salomon ædificarit. Ver. 18. Au. Ver.-19 ... Ver. 19. And that which Solomon desired [Heb., the desire of Solomon which he desired], to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion. Pool.-In Lebanon: either in the mountain of Lebanon, which being the border of his land, he might build some forts or a frontier city in it; or in the house of the forest of Lebanon [so Houb.]: of which see chap. vii. 2. Houb.-19, et in Libano; id est, in Regiâ, quæ saltus Libani, aut Libanus vocabatur, prope urbem Jerusalem. Nihil enim Salomon in monte Libano ædificavit; nec ullibi legitur ullam partem montis Libani fuisse in ditione Salomonis, etsi aliter videbatur Edm. Calmet. Ver. 23. Au. Ver.-18 And Baalath, and Tadmor TOLOûvτes év tô ëpyq. in the wilderness, in the land, may Au. Ver. 23 These were the chief of the officers that were over Solomon's work, five hundred and fifty, which bare rule over the people that wrought in the work. Five hundred and fifty. Bp. Patrick.-Tadmor in the wilderness.] This word Tadmor signifies in Hebrew as much as Palma in Latin. From whence it was called by the Romans Palmyra. Pool.-In the land: this clause be- Pool. Object. They were only two long either, first, To all the places above hundred and fifty in 2 Chronicles viii. 10. mentioned, which are here declared to be in Answ. First, Those might be officers of anothe land of Canaan. But so that clause ther sort; for they are not said to be over may seem superfluous; for none would the work, as these are, but only over the easily think that he would build much out of people. Secondly, The two hundred and his own land. Or, rather, secondly, To fifty were Israelites, who are therefore dis VOL. II. 5 1 Ver. 24. tinctly mentioned in that book, where many operum fuisse servitute, affirmavitque solos things are more exactly noted than in the in ea fuisse Chananæos. Sapientius proformer; and the other three hundred were fecto faciunt, qui mendorum culpam Scribis strangers, who therefore are neglected in attribuunt, quam qui narrant, sine historia that more accurate account. Or, thirdly, teste, fabulas tales. There was but two hundred and fifty at one time, which is noted there, and two hundred and fifty at another time, (for it is apparent they did their work by turns,) and the other fifty either were superior to all the rest, or rather were a reserve to supply the place of any of the five hundred when there was occasion, which might frequently happen. v. 9, p. 521, 522. And so this was an act not unbecoming Solomon's wisdom, to make provision for emergencies. Au. Ver.-24 But Pharoah's daughter came up out of the city of David unto her house which Solomon had built for her: then did he build Millo. Solomon. So Syr., Vulg., Arab., Geddes. Ver. 25. Bp. Patrick.-In 2 Chron. viii. 10, they wg hajan-by obwa niby לַיהוָה וְהַקְטִיר אִתּוֹ אֲשֶׁר לִפְנֵי יְהוָה :are said to be but two hundred and fifty For the Hebrew doctors commonly say that there were of these officers but two hundred and fifty Israelites: the other three hundred were proselytes. But the plainest account of this is given by Abarbinel, that there were only two hundred and fifty set over those that wrought in the temple: the rest were employed in looking after his public works in other places. And it must be observed, also, that there were far greater numbers employed when the temple work was carried on with great speed, as we read before (v. 16). [Alex.] καὶ ἀνεβίβασεν Σαλωμὼν τρεῖς καθόδους ἑντῷ ἐνιαυτῷ ὁλοκαύτωμα, καὶ εἰρηνικὰς ἐπὶ τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου ὃν ᾠκοδόμησεν τῷ κυριῳ, καὶ ἐθυμία αὐτὸς εἰς πρόσωπον Κυρίου· καὶ dýpriσEv σùv Tòv olkov. Au. Ver.-25 And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt offerings and peace offerings upon the altar which he built unto the LORD, and he burnt incense upon the altar [Heb. upon it] that was before the LORD. So he finished the house. Houb.-ND Om o’won, quinquaginta et Pool. So he finished the house, or, so he quingenti. Legitur 2 Par. viii. 10. Don perfected the house, to wit, by applying it DND, quinquaginta et ducenti. Statuebat to the use for which it was made, in which Lud. Cappellus in alterutro loco errasse the perfection of such things consist. Or, scribas; cui quidem nugatorie respondit the house may be put metonymically for the Buxtorfius, Rabbinis suis obsequens. Nam work or service of the house, as it is else"dici potest, (inquiebat) 550 præfectos where commonly used for the things or fuisse omnes ex Israelitis, sed in opere persons in the house. Or the words may be templi adhibitos fuisse tantum 250 sicuti and are rendered thus, After that (for so the habetur in Libro Paralipomenon, reliquos Hebrew vau often signifies, as Isaiah 250 (lege 300) occupatos fuisse in cæteris xxxvii. 9, 36; Hos. i. 11; Zech. xii. 2) he ædificiis passim per universum Regnum." finished the house, i. e., from the time of the Atqui non aguntur utroque in loco præfecti finishing of the house, until this time, he operum templi, qui quidem numero erant continued to do so. 3,600 vel 3,300 ut videre licet supra v. 15, et 2 Par. ii. 6 (vide et confer :) sed præfecti operum in urbibus ædificandis. Placebat etiam Buxtorfio id, quod "Hebræi communitur putant, ex præfectis 550 fuisse 300 peregrinos, seu proselytas; 250 ex Israelitis. Itaque in Libro Chronicorum recenseri tantum eos, qui fuerint ex Israelitis; in Libro vero regum omnes in universum." Sed distinctio talis adhiberi non jam potest, postquam pagina sacra negavit Israelitas in Ged.-25 "Three times in the year Solomon offered holocausts and eucharistic sacrifices upon the sacrifice-altar, which he had constructed to the Lord; and caused incense to be burned on that altar which was before the Lord. 26 When the building was finished, &c." This verse seems out of its place. I would place it at the end of ch. viii. or after ch. ix. ver. 9. Booth. And when he had finished the house, he burnt incense upon the altar | which was before Jehovah. Houb.-27 om пhon, et misit Hiram in navi... Clericus interpretatur, ad N, , אניות Nam cum Houb.-25 Salomon autem ter quotannis classes, non dubitans, hoc loco, quod offerebat holocausta et victimas pacificas, in navem passim significat, significare classem. eo altari quod Domino ædificárat, ibique Cui non assentimur, quia sequitur thura coram Domino incendebat, postquàm viros navium, seu nautas. numero plurali classem habeat, difficile est templum fuit absolutum. 25: Series orationis abrumpitur credere in numero sing. per notari etiam per illud : quod omninò tollendum, ut classem, eodem præsertim in loco. Legitur fuit ver. 8 addendum. Neque illud quisquam loco parallelo, 2 Par. viii. 18 m, naves, Itaque pugnant inter se loci veterum interpretatur, nisi Chaldæus, qui, seu classem. ut huic relativo locum daret, addidit duo. Nos tamen nihil emendamus, quia No, suffitum aromatum, quæ verba ad incertum est, uter locus sit mendosus. Non nihil pertinent, neque in veteribus codicibus malè ver. 26, numero sing. nam una navis satis erat ut adveheretur auri pondus extabant, ut neque in hodiernis. Sed eodem loco legitur et Dathe.-25 Ter quotannis sacra solennia 420 talentorum. fecit holocaustis et sacrificiis eucharisticism, et quinquaginta, non, ut hìc □", super altari, quod Jovæ extruxerat; in eo viginti. Adhuc incertum, utra scriptura verior. vero, quod erat coram Jova, suffitum obtulit, postquam ædis structuram absolverat. interpretes tantum non omnes vertunt: et adolebat in eo (altari), quod ante Jovam erat. Sed temere statuitur, significare super s. in c. abl. Sensus hic est; et adolebat apud eum id quod coram Jova erat. in non est referendum ad , sed ad ; reliqua significant suffimentum s. sacrificium, quod adolevit Salomo. De vi infinitivi absol. vid. ad Gen. xli. 43. Ver. 26, 27. Ver. 28. וַיָּבֹאוּ אוֹפִירָה וגו' καὶ ἦλθον εἰς Σωφιρὰ, κ.τ.λ. Au. Ver.-28 And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon. Dr. A. Clarke. And they came to Ophir.] No man knows certainly, to this day, where this Ophir was situated. There were two places of this name; one somewhere in India, beyond the Ganges, and another in Arabia, near the country of the Sabæans, mentioned by Job, chap xxii. 24: Then 26 καὶ ναῦν, ὑπὲρ οὗ, ἐποίησεν ὁ βασιλεὺς Σαλωμὼν ἐν Γασίων Γαβὲρ τὴν οὖσαν ἐχομένην Αἰλὰθ ἐπὶ τοῦ χείλους τῆς ἐσχάτης θαλάσσης ἐν γῇ Εδώμ. 27 καὶ ἀπέστειλε Χιρὰμ ἐν τῇ νηῒ τῶν παίδων αὐτοῦ ἄνδρας ναυτικούς, κ.τ.λ. Au. Ver.-26 And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion-geber which is beside Eloth, on the shore [Heb., lip] of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. 27 And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon. Dr. A. Clarke. A navy of ships.] Literally, oni, a ship: in the parallel place, 2 Chron. viii. 17, it is said that Hiram sent him oniyoth, ships; but it does not appear that Solomon in this case built more than one ship, and this was manned principally by the Tyrians. | of Ophir as the stones of the brooks. And chap xxviii. 16: It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire. Calmet places this country at the sources of the Euphrates and Tigris. But there are several reasons to prove that this was not the Ophir of the Bible, which it seems was so situated as to require a voyage of three years long to go out, load, and return. Mr. Bruce has discussed this subject at great length; see his Travels, vol. ii., chap iv., p. 354, &c. He endeavours to prove that Ezion-geber is situated on the Elanitic branch of the Arabian Gulf or Red Sea. 2. That Tharshish is Moka, near to Melinda, in the Indian Ocean, in about three degrees south latitude. 3. That Ophir lies somewhere in the land of Sofala, or in the vicinity of the Zambeze river, opposite the island of Madagascar, where there have been gold and silver mines in great abundance from the remotest antiquity. And he |