--- title: "Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible" author: "Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown" languages: [en] shelf: "Commentaries" section: 108 of 927 url: https://scriptura.si/works/jamieson-fausset-brown-commentary-critical-and-explanatory-on-the-whole-bible/108/ cite: "Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, section 108. Scriptura (scriptura.si), https://scriptura.si/works/jamieson-fausset-brown-commentary-critical-and-explanatory-on-the-whole-bible/108/" --- # Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible *Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown* The Victorian standard commentary, critical and practical, from Genesis to Revelation. ## 108. 1 Kings · 2 of 9 Source: https://scriptura.si/works/jamieson-fausset-brown-commentary-critical-and-explanatory-on-the-whole-bible/108/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/jamieson-fausset-brown-commentary-critical-and-explanatory-on-the-whole-bible/108/#p-N [¶0] 19-20. Bath-sheba ... went unto King Solomon--The filial reverence and the particular act of respect, which Solomon rendered, were quite in accordance with the sentiments and customs of the East. The right hand is the place of honor; and as it expressly said to have been assigned to "the king's mother," it is necessary to remark that, when a husband dies, his widow acquires a higher dignity and power, as a mother over her son, than she ever possessed before. Besides, the dignity of "king's mother" is a state office, to which certain revenues are attached. The holder has a separate palace or court, as well as possesses great influence in public affairs; and as the dignity is held for life, it sometimes happens, in consequence of deaths, that the person enjoying it may not be related to the reigning sovereign by natural maternity. Bath-sheba had evidently been invested with this honorable office. [¶1] 22. why dost thou ask Abishag ... ask for him the kingdom also--(See on [2Sa 16:5]; also see on [2Sa 12:8]). Solomon's indignation was roused; he in a moment penetrated the artful scheme, and from his associating the names of Abiathar and Joab, he seems to have suspected or known that those deep schemers had been the prompters of Adonijah. [¶2] 23-25. God do so to me, and more also--the common form of introducing a solemn oath. [¶3] if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own life--Whether there was a treasonable design to conceal under this request or not, the act, according to Eastern notions, was criminal, and of dangerous consequence to the state. There is no ground of censure upon Solomon for cruelty or precipitation in this instance. He had pardoned Adonijah's former conspiracy; but this new attempt was rebellion against the viceroy appointed by the divine King and called for condign punishment. The office of executioner was among the Hebrews, as in other ancient countries of the East, performed unceremoniously and privately--often without any previous warning--by the captain of the guard, or one of his officers ([Mt 14:10]). [¶4] 26-27. unto Abiathar the priest said the king--This functionary, as the counsellor or accomplice of Adonijah, had deserved to share his fate. But partly from regard to his priestly dignity, and partly from his long associations with the late king, Solomon pronounced on him the mitigated sentence of banishment to his country estate at Anathoth, and thereby, as God's vicegerent, deprived him of his office and its emoluments. The sacred writer notices the remarkable fulfilment, Abiathar's degradation from the high priesthood (see on [1Ki 4:4]), of the doom denounced against the house of Eli ([1Sa 2:30]). [¶5] [1Ki 2:28-45]. Joab Slain. [¶6] 28. Then tidings came to Joab--The execution of these sentences respectively on Adonijah and Abiathar prepared Joab for his fate. Death, due to his great crimes ([Nu 35:33]), would long ago have been inflicted, had not his power and popularity with the army been too formidable for the old king. He now fled to the altar, which, though a recognized asylum, afforded no sanctuary to the rebel and murderer ([Ex 21:14]). And, as he refused to leave it, he seems to have cherished some faint hope that a religious scruple would have been felt at the thought of violating the sanctity of the place by bloodshed. Benaiah, not liking to assume any responsibility, referred the matter to Solomon, who determined that the law should take its course ([De 19:13]). [¶7] 33. Their blood shall ... return upon the head of Joab, &c.--A reference is here made to the curse publicly and solemnly pronounced by King David ([2Sa 3:28], ). [¶8] [1Ki 2:34-46]. Shimei Put to Death. [¶9] 34. Benaiah ... went up, and fell upon him--According to the terms of the statute ([Ex 21:14]), and the practice in similar cases ([2Ki 11:15]), the criminal was to be dragged from the altar and slain elsewhere. But the truth is, that the sanctity of the altar was violated as much by the violence used in forcing the criminal from the place as in shedding his blood there; the express command of God authorized the former and therefore by implication permitted the latter. [¶10] was buried in his own house--or family vault, at his property in the wilderness of Judah. His interment was included in the king's order, as enjoined in the divine law ([De 21:23]). [¶11] 36. the king sent and called for Shimei--He was probably residing at Bahurim, his native place. But, as he was a suspicious character, Solomon condemned him henceforth to live in Jerusalem, on the penalty of death, for going without the gates. He submitted to this confinement for three years, when, violating his oath, he was arrested and put to death by Solomon for perjury, aggravated by his former crime of high treason against David [1Ki 2:42-44]. [¶12] 46. the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon--Now, by the death of Shimei, all the leaders of the rival factions had been cut off. ### Chapter 3 [¶14] [1Ki 3:1]. Solomon Marries Pharaoh's Daughter. [¶15] 1. Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh--This was a royal title, equivalent to "sultan," and the personal name of this monarch is said to have been Vaphres. The formation, on equal terms, of this matrimonial alliance with the royal family of Egypt, shows the high consideration to which the Hebrew kingdom had now arisen. Rosellini has given, from the Egyptian monuments, what is supposed to be a portrait of this princess. She was received in the land of her adoption with great eclat; for the Song of Solomon and the forty-fifth Psalm are supposed to have been composed in honor of this occasion, although they may both have a higher typical reference to the introduction of the Gentiles into the church. [¶16] and brought her into the city of David--that is, Jerusalem. She was not admissible into the stronghold of Zion, the building where the ark was ([De 23:7], ). She seems to have been lodged at first in his mother's apartments ([So 3:4]; ), as a suitable residence was not yet provided for her in the new palace ([1Ki 7:8]; ; [2Ch 8:11]). [¶17] building ... the wall of Jerusalem round about--Although David had begun ([Psa 51:18]), it was, according to Josephus, reserved for Solomon to extend and complete the fortifications of the city. It has been questioned whether this marriage was in conformity with the law (see [Ex 34:16]; [De 7:3]; [Ezr 10:1-10]; [Ne 13:26]). But it is nowhere censured in Scripture, as are the connections Solomon formed with other foreigners ([1Ki 11:1-3]); whence it may be inferred that he had stipulated for her abandonment of idolatry, and conforming to the Jewish religion ([Psa 45:10], ). [¶18] [1Ki 3:2-5]. High Places Being in Use, He Sacrifices at Gibeon. [¶19] 3. And Solomon loved the Lord--This declaration, illustrated by what follows, affords undoubted evidence of the young king's piety; nor is the word "only," which prefaces the statement, to be understood as introducing a qualifying circumstance that reflected any degree of censure upon him. The intention of the sacred historian is to describe the generally prevailing mode of worship before the temple was built. The [¶20] high places were altars erected on natural or artificial eminences, probably from the idea that men were brought nearer to the Deity. They had been used by the patriarchs, and had become so universal among the heathen that they were almost identified with idolatry. They were prohibited in the law ([Le 17:3], ; [De 12:13], ; [Jr 7:31]; [Eze 6:3], ; [Ho 10:8]). But, so long as the tabernacle was migratory and the means for the national worship were merely provisional, the worship on those high places was tolerated. Hence, as accounting for their continuance, it is expressly stated ([1Ki 3:2]) that God had not yet chosen a permanent and exclusive place for his worship. [¶21] 4. the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there--The old tabernacle and the brazen altar which Moses had made in the wilderness were there ([1Ch 16:39]; ; [2Ch 1:3-6]). The royal progress was of public importance. It was a season of national devotion. The king was accompanied by his principal nobility ([2Ch 1:2]); and, as the occasion was most probably one of the great annual festivals which lasted seven days, the rank of the offerer and the succession of daily oblations may help in part to account for the immense magnitude of the sacrifices. [¶22] 5. In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream--It was probably at the close of this season, when his mind had been elevated into a high state of religious fervor by the protracted services. Solomon felt an intense desire, and he had offered an earnest petition, for the gift of wisdom. In sleep his thoughts ran upon the subject of his prayer, and he dreamed that God appeared to him and gave him the option of every thing in the world--that he asked wisdom, and that God granted his request ([1Ki 3:9-12]). His dream was but an imaginary repetition of his former desire, but God's grant of it was real. [¶23] [1Ki 3:6-15]. He Chooses Wisdom. [¶24] 6. Solomon said--that is, had dreamed that he said. [¶25] 7. I am but a little child--not in age, for he had reached manhood ([1Ki 2:9]) and must have been at least twenty years old; but he was raw and inexperienced in matters of government. [¶26] 10. the speech pleased the Lord--It was Solomon's waking prayers that God heard and requited, but the acceptance was signified in this vision. [¶27] 15. behold, it was a dream--The vivid impression, the indelible recollection he had of this dream, together with the new and increased energy communicated to his mind, and the flow of worldly prosperity that rushed upon him, gave him assurance that it came by divine inspiration and originated in the grace of God. The wisdom, however, that was asked and obtained was not so much of the heart as of the head--it was wisdom not for himself personally, but for his office, such as would qualify him for the administration of justice, the government of a kingdom, and for the attainment of general scientific knowledge. [¶28] [1Ki 3:16-28]. His Judgment between Two Harlots. [¶29] 16. Then came there two women--Eastern monarchs, who generally administer justice in person, at least in all cases of difficulty, often appeal to the principles of human nature when they are at a loss otherwise to find a clue to the truth or see clearly their way through a mass of conflicting testimony. The modern history of the East abounds with anecdotes of judicial cases, in which the decision given was the result of an experiment similar to this of Solomon upon the natural feelings of the contending parties. ### Chapter 4 [¶31] [1Ki 4:1-6]. Solomon's Princes. [¶32] 1. So King Solomon was king over all Israel--This chapter contains a general description of the state and glory of the Hebrew kingdom during the more flourishing or later years of his reign. [¶33] 2. these were the princes--or chief officers, as is evident from two of them marrying Solomon's daughters. [¶34] Azariah the son of Zadok the priest--rather, "the prince," as the Hebrew word frequently signifies ([Ge 41:45]; [Ex 2:16]; [2Sa 8:18]); so that from the precedency given to his person in the list, he seems to have been prime minister, the highest in office next the king. [¶35] 3. scribes--that is, secretaries of state. Under David, there had been only one [2Sa 8:17; 20:25]. The employment of three functionaries in this department indicates either improved regulations by the division of labor, or a great increase of business, occasioned by the growing prosperity of the kingdom, or a more extensive correspondence with foreign countries. [¶36] recorder--that is, historiographer, or annalist--an office of great importance in Oriental courts, and the duties of which consisted in chronicling the occurrences of every day. [¶37] 4. Benaiah ... was over the host--formerly captain of the guard. He had succeeded Joab as commander of the forces. [¶38] Zadok and Abiathar were the priests--Only the first discharged the sacred functions; the latter had been banished to his country seat and retained nothing more than the name of high priest. [¶39] 5. over the officers--that is, the provincial governors enumerated in [1Ki 4:17-19]. [¶40] principal officer, and the king's friend--perhaps president of the privy council, and Solomon's confidential friend or favorite. This high functionary had probably been reared along with Solomon. That he should heap those honors on the sons of Nathan was most natural, considering the close intimacy of the father with the late king, and the deep obligations under which Solomon personally lay to the prophet. [¶41] 6. Ahishar was over the household--steward or chamberlain of the palace. [¶42] Adoniram--or Adoram ([2Sa 20:24]; [1Ki 12:18]), or Hadoram ([2Ch 10:18]), [¶43] was over the tribute--not the collection of money or goods, but the levy of compulsory laborers (compare [1Ki 5:13], ). [¶44] [1Ki 4:7-21]. His Twelve Officers.