BOOK VIII. Containing an interval of One Hundred and Sixty-three Years. FROM THE DEATH OF DAVID TO THE DEATH OF AHAB CHAP. I. OF SOLOMON'S CONDUCT AFTER HE HAD RECEIVED THE KINGDOM. We have already treated of David, and his virtue, and of the benefits that he was the author of to his countrymen; of his wars also, and battles which he managed with success; and then died an old man. And when Solomon his son, who was but a youth in age,* had taken the kingdom, and whom David had declared, while he was alive, the lord of that people, according to God's will; when he sat upon the throne, the whole body of the people made joyful acclamations to him, as is usual at the beginning of a reign; and wished that all his affairs might come to a blessed conclusion; and that he might arrive at a great age, and at the most happy state of affairs possible. But Adonijah, who, while his father was living, attempted to gain possession of the government, came to the king's mother, Bathsheba, and saluted her with great civility; and when she asked him, whether he came to her, as desiring her assistance in any thing or not? and bade him tell her if that were the case, for that she would cheerfully afford it him; he began to say, that she knew herself that the kingdom was his, both on account of his elder age, and of the disposition of the multitude; and that yet it was transferred to Solomon her son, according to the will of God. He also said, that he was contented to be a servant under him, and was pleased with the present settlement. But he desired her to be a means of obtaining a favour from his brother to him, and to persuade him to bestow on him in marriage Abishag; who had slept by his father, but was still a virgin. So * About 12 or 14 years old. Bathsheba promised to afford him her assistance, and to bring this marriage about; because the king would be willing to gratify him in such a thing; and because she would press him to it very earnestly. Accordingly he went away in great hopes of succeeding in this affair. So Solomon's mother went presently to her son, to speak about what she had promised, upon Adonijah's supplication to her. And when her son came forward to meet her, and embraced her; and when he had brought her into the house where his royal throne was, he sat thereon, and bade them set another throne on the right hand for his mother. When Bathsheba was set down, she said, "O son! grant me one request that I desire of thee, and do not do any thing to me that is disagreeable or ungrateful; which thou wilt do if thou deniest me." And when Solomon desired her to lay her commands upon him, because it was agreeable to his duty, to grant her every thing she should ask; and complained that she did not at first begin her discourse, with a firm expectation of obtaining what she desired, but had some suspicion of a denial; she entreated him to grant, that his brother Adonijah might marry Abishag. But the king was greatly offended at these words, and sent away his mother, saying, that Adonijah aimed at great things; and that he wondered she did not desire him to yield up the kingdom to him, as to his elder brother: since she desired that he might marry Abishag; and that he had potent friends, Joab the captain of the host, and Abiathar the priest. So he called for Benaiah, the captain of the guards, and ordered him to slay his brother Adonijah.† He also called † 1 Kings ii. 25. there, rather than in another place. And when Benaiah had reported his answer to the king, Solomon commanded him to cut off his head there,§ and let him take that as a punishment for those two captains of his host whom he had wickedly slain, and to bury his body: that his sins might never leave his family; but that himself and his father, by Joab's death, might be guiltless. And when Benaiah had done what he was commanded to do, he was himself appointed to be captain of the whole army. The king also made Zadok highpriest, in the room of Abiathar, whom he had removed. for Abiathar, the priest, and said to him, "I will || said he would not leave the altar, but would die not put thee to death, because of those hardships which thou hast endured with my father, and because of the ark which thou hast borne along with him; but I inflict the following punishment upon thee, because thou wast among Adonijah's followers, and wast of his party. Do not thou continue here, nor come any more into my sight; but go to thine own town, and live on thine own fields, and there abide all thy life; for thou hast offended so greatly, that it is not just thou shouldest retain thy dignity any longer." For the aforementioned cause therefore it was, that the house of Ithamar was deprived of the sacerdotal dignity, as God had foretold to Eli, the grandfather of Abiathar. So it was transferred to the family of Phineas, to Zadok. Now those that were of the family of Phineas, but lived privately during the time that the high-priesthood was transferred to the house of Ithamar, (of which family Eli was the first that received it,) were these that follow: Bukki, the son of Abishua, the high-priest; his son was *Joatham; Joatham's son was Meraioth; Meraioth's son was †Arophoeus; Arophæus's son was Ahitub; and Ahitub's son was Zadok: who was first made high-priest in the reign of David. Now when Joab, the captain of his host, had heard of the slaughter of Adonijah, he was greatly afraid, for he was a greater friend to him than to Solomon; and suspecting, not without reason, that he was in danger on account of his favour to Adonijah, he fled to the altar, and supposed he might procure safety thereby to himself; because of the king's piety towards God. But when some told the king what Joab's supposal was, he sent Benaiah, and commanded him to raise him up from the altar, and bring him to the judgment seat, in order to make his defence. However Joab *Zerahiah, 1 Chron. vi. 6. † Amariah, 1 Chron. vi. 7. This execution upon Joab, as a murderer, by slaying him, || even when he had taken sanctuary at God's altar, is perfectly agreeable to the laws of Moses, which enjoins, that "If a man come presumptuously upon his neighbour to slay him with guile, thou shalt take him from mine altar, that he may die." Exod. xxi. 14. § It was formerly very customary among princes, to employ their officers, or greatest confidants, in such like executions. Among the Romans, the soldiers were always the persons who carried to prison, to torture, or to execution, such as were found guilty of any offence; and this Tertullian makes an argument to dissuade Christians from engaging in their wars, lest thereby they should be obliged to imprison, punish, or execute malefactors. In Dan. ii. 24, we read, that Nebuchadnezzar sent Arioch, who was chief commander of his troops, to destroy the wise men of Babylon, because they could not interpret his dream; and therefore we need less wonder, that we find Solomon employing Benaiah, the captain of his guard, on the like office. But whether he did not first drag Joab from the altar before he slew him, But as to Shimei, Solomon commanded that he should build him a house, and stay at Jerusalem, and attend upon him; and should not have authority to go over the brook Cedron; and that if he disobeyed that command, death should be his punishment. He also threatened him so terribly, that he compelled him to take an oath, that he would obey. Accordingly, Shimei said, that he had reason to thank Solomon for giving him such an injunction, and added an oath that he would do as he bade him: and, leaving his own country, he made his abode in Jerusalem.T But three years afterwards,** when he heard that two of his servants were run away from him, and were in Gath, he went for his servants in haste: and when he was come back with them, the king perceived it, and was much displeased that he had contemned his commands, and what was more, had no regard to the oaths he had sworn to God. So he called him, and said, "Didst not thou swear never to leave, nor to go out of this city to another? Thou shalt not therefore escape punishment for thy perjury, but I will punish thee, thou wicked wretch! both for this crime, and for those where for fear of polluting the holy place with blood, or whether Solo- When he ¶ Shimei, as we read, was a very powerful man. came to meet king David, and to beg pardon for his offence, he had a thousand of his own tribe to accompany him, 2 Sam. xix. 17; and therefore Solomon might think proper to confine him to the city of Jerusalem, that, being removed from the place where his family and interest lay, to one where he was but a stranger, and sufficiently odious for his former ill-treatment of the late king, he might be incapable of raising any tumults or seditions ; and that, being in this public theatre, all his words and actions might be narrowly observed, which, considering his busy and wicked temper, might give Solomon a fair advantage against him, and, as the manner of some is, the very prohibition itself might probably inflame his desire to transgress it. Pool's Annotations. B. ** About An. 1052. edly And with thou didst abuse my father, when he was in his flight; that thou mayest know that wicked men gain nothing at last; although they be not punished immediately upon their unjust practices; but that in all the time wherein they think themselves secure, because they have yet suffered nothing, their punishment increases, and is heavier upon them; and that to a greater degree than if they had been punished immediately upon the commission of their crimes." So Benaiah, on the king's command, slew Shimei. CHAP. II. joy; and what it was most profitable for man to receive. For he did not desire either gold, silver, or any other riches, as a young man might naturally have done; for these are the things that generally are esteemed by most men, as alone of the greatest worth, and of the best gifts of God. "But," said he, "Give me, O Lord, a sound mind, and a good understanding; whereby I may speak and judge the people according to truth and righteousness." With these petitions God was well pleased, and promised to give him all those things that he had not mentioned in his option, riches, glory, victory over his enemies; and in the first OF SOLOMON'S MARRIAGE; HIS WISDOM AND RICHES; AND THE AS place, understanding and wisdom; and this in such SISTANCE HE OBTAINED FROM HIRAM TOWARDS THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE. SOLOMON having settled himself firmly in his kingdom, and having brought his enemies to punishment; married the daughter of Pharaoh, king of Egypt.* He also built the walls of Jerusalemt much larger and stronger than those which had been before: and thenceforward he managed public affairs very peaceably. Nor was his youth any hindrance in the exercise of justice, the observance of the law, or the remembrance of what charges his father hath given him at his death: but he discharged every duty with greater accuracy than might have been expected from such as are aged, and of the greatest prudence. He now resolved to go to Hebron,‡ and sacrifice to God upon the brazen altar that was built by Moses. Accordingly he offered there a thousand burntofferings. And when he had done this, he thought he had paid great honour to God. For as he was asleep that very night, God appeared to him, and commanded him to ask of him some gifts which he was ready to bestow on him, as a reward for his piety. So Solomon asked of God what was most excellent, and of the greatest worth in itself: what God would bestow with the greatest 1 Kings iii. 1. †This building the walls of Jerusalem, soon after David's death, illustrates the conclusion of the fifty-first Psalm, where David prays: Build thou the walls of Jerusalem; they being, it seems, unfinished or imperfect at that time. See VIII. 6, and 1 Kings ix. 15. Although both the Hebrew and the Septuagint say, 1 Kings iii. 4, 5, and 2 Chron. i. 3, that the place whither Solomon now went, to the tabernacle or great brazen altar, was Gibeon, and not Hebron, as Josephus's copy had it; yet is Josephus's copy confirmed by the vow of Absalom, which was according to our common copies, to be performed not at Gibeon, but at Hebron, 2 Sam. xv. 7, 12. And since Gibeah or Gibeon denotes a hill or an elevation, as Josephus elsewhere truly observes, VI. 8, the original text perhaps meant an elevated place at Hebron. See the very same difference between Gibeon in our copies, Jeremiah xli. 12, and Hebron in Josephus's, x. 9, which probably requires the very same reconciliation also. a degree, as no other mortal man, neither kings nor ordinary persons, ever had. He also promised to preserve the kingdom to his posterity for a very long time; if he continued righteous and obedient to him, and imitated his father in those things wherein he excelled. When Solomon heard this from God, he leaped out of his bed; and when he had worshipped him, he returned to Jerusalem and after he had offered great sacrifices before the tabernacle, he feasted all his own family.§ ; In those days a cause came before him in judgment, which it was very difficult to find any end of. And I think it necessary to explain the fact about which the contest was, that such as peruse my writings may know what difficult cause Solomon was to determine; and those that are concerned in such matters may take this sagacity of the king's for a pattern, that they may the more easily give sentence about such questions. There were two women, who were harlots in the course of their lives, that came to him; of whom she that seemed to be injured began to speak first, and said, "O king! I and this other woman dwell together in one room. Now it came to pass, that we both bore a son at the same hour of the same day, and on the third day this woman overlaid § 1 Kings iii. 15. These two women are said in the text to be harlots; but the Hebrew word, as we took notice in the case of Rahab, may equally signify a hostess, or one who kept a house of public entertainment; and that it is so to be taken here, we have these reasons to presume; that as all public prostitution was severely forbidden by the law, Deut. xxiii. 17, women of this infamous character durst not have presented themselves before so just and so wise a king; that women of this lewd behaviour seldom do become mothers of children, and when they chance to have any, are not so solicitous for their preservation, but rather rejoice when they have got rid of them. There is no reason to suppose then, that these women were common harlots; and yet it is generally thought, that they were both unmarried persons, and guilty of fornication, because no mention is made of their husbands, whose office it was, if they had any, to contest the matter for their wives. Pool's Annotations, and Calmet's Commentary. B. her son, and killed it; and then took my son out of my bosom, and removed him to herself; and as I was asleep, she laid her dead son in my arms. Now when, in the morning, I was desirous to give the breast to the child, I did not find my own; but saw this woman's dead child lying by me; for I examined it attentively, and found it so to be. Hence it was that I demanded my son; and when I could not obtain him, I have recourse, my lord, to thy assistance. For since we were alone, and there was nobody there that could convict her, or affright her, she cares for nothing; but perseveres in an obstinate denial of the fact. When this woman had spoken, the king asked the other, what she had to say in contradiction to that story? And when she had denied that she had done what was charged upon her, and said that it was her child that was living, and that it was her antagonist's child that was dead; and when no one could devise what judgment could be given, and the whole court were blind in their understanding, and could not tell how to find out this riddle; the king invented the following method of discovering it. He bade them bring in both the dead and the living child; and commanded one of his guards to fetch a sword, and to cut both the children into two pieces, that each of the women might have half the living and half the dead child. Hereupon all the people privately laughed at the king, as no more than a youth, But in the mean time the real mother of the living child cried out,* that he should not do so, but deliver that child to the other woman as her own; for she would be satisfied with the life of the child, and with the sight of it, although it were esteemed the other's child. But the other woman was ready * Solomon knew at once that the only sign that would discover the truth, would be her affection, and compassion, and tenderness for her child; and therefore in order to distinguish between the two, his business was to make trial of this; and if we suppose, that when he commanded the child to be divided, he spake with a sedate countenance, and seeming earnestness, as the true mother's petition to the king makes it apparent that he did, then we may suppose farther, not only the two women, but all the people present, with horror and admiration, expecting the execution of the thing; which, when it ended in so just a decision, quite contrary to what they looked for, raised joy in every breast, and gave a more advantageous commendation to the judge and yet Abarbinel, the Jewish commentator, thinks, that all this was no great proof of Solomon's extraordinary wisdoin, nor could it beget that fear or reverence which the text says, 1 Kings iii. 28, it procured to his person. His opinion therefore is, that Solomon made a discovery of the truth antecedent to this experiment, that by observing the countenance, the manner of speech, and all the motions of the wornen, he discerned the secret of their heart, and penetrated to the bottom of the business; and that his commanding the child to be divided afterwards, was only to notify to the company, what he before had discovered. However this be, it may not be improper, upon to see the child divided, and was even desirous that the first woman should be tormented. When the king understood that both their words proceeded from the truth of their passions, he adjudged the child to her who cried out for its preservation; for that she was the real mother; and he condemned the other as a wicked woman, who had not only killed her own child, but was willing to see her friend's child destroyed also. Now the multitude looked on this determination as a great demonstration of the king's sagacity and wisdom; and after that day attended to him, as one that had a divine mind.† Now the captains of Solomon's armies, and officers appointed over the whole country, were these. Over the lot of Ephraim was Ures; over the toparchy of Bethlehem was Dioclerus. Abinadab, who married Solomon's daughter, had the region of Dora, and the sea-coast under him. The great plain was under Benaiah the son of Achilus, who also governed all the country as far as Jordan. Gabaris ruled over Gilead, and Gaulanitis; and had under him the sixty great and fenced cities of Og. Achinadab managed the affairs of all Galilee, as far as Sidon; and had himself also married a daughter of Solomon, whose name was Basima. Banacates had the sea-coast about Arce; as had Shaphat, mount Tabor and Carmel, and the lower Galilee, as far as the river Jordan; one man was appointed over all this country. Shimei was intrusted with the lot of Benjamin; and Gabares had the country beyond Jordan; over whom there was again one governor appointed. Now the people of the Hebrews, and particularly the tribe of Judah, received a wonderful increase, when they betook themselves to husbandry, and the this occasion, to mention an instance or two out of profane history, of a singular address, though much inferior to this, in discovering such secrets as seemed to be past finding out. To this purpose, Suetonius, in his life of Claudian, chap. 15, tells us, how that emperor discovered a woman to be the mother of a young man, whom she would not own for her son, by command. ing her to be married to him; for the horror of committing incest obliged her to declare the truth; and, in like manner, Diodorus Siculus relates, how Ariopharnes, king of the Thracians, being appointed to arbitrate between three men, who all pretended to be sons of the king of the Cimmerians, and claimed the succession, found out the true son and heir, by ordering them to shoot each man his arrow into the dead king's body, which one of them refusing to do, was deemed the true claimant. Pool's Annotations, Patrick's and Calmet's Commentaries. B. † 1 Kings iii. 28. Mr. Reland has treated of these prefects of provinces, and of their provinces, more exactly than any other; and has compared our copies of 1 Kings iv. with Josephus very carefully; to whom I refer the learned reader. Palestina, tom. I. lib. I. chap. 29. Only we must note, that Josephus has but ten prefects, and that his names are different from those in our copies. cultivation of their grounds. For as they enjoyed peace, and had besides an unbounded fruition of the most desirable liberty, every one was busy in augmenting the product of their own lands, and making them worth more than they had formerly been. The king had also other rulers, who were over the land of Syria, and of the Philistines, which reached from the river Euphrates to Egypt; and these collected his tributes of the nations. Now these contributed to the king's table, and to his supper every day thirty cori of fine flour,* and sixty of meal; as also ten fat oxen, twenty oxen out of the pastures, and a hundred fat lambs; all these were besides what were taken by hunting, harts, buffaloes, birds, and fishes, which were brought to the king by foreigners every day. Solomon had also so great a number of chariots, that the stalls of his horses for these chariots were forty thousand;† and besides these he had twelve thousand horsemen : one half of which waited upon the king in Jerusalem, and were dispersed abroad, and dwelt in the royal villages. But the same officers who provided for the king's expenses, supplied also the fodder for the horses, and still carried it to the place where the king abode at that time. Now the sagacity and wisdom which God had bestowed on Solomon was so great, that he ex * It may not be amiss to compare the daily furniture of Solomon's table, here set down, and 1 Kings iv. 22, 23, with the like daily furniture of Nehemiah, the governor's table, after the Jews were come back from Babylon; and to remember withal, that Nehemiah was now building the walls of Jerusalem, and maintained more than usual above one hundred and fifty considerable men every day; and that, because the nation was then very poor, at his own charges also; without laying any burden upon the people. "Now that which was prepared for me daily was one ox, and six choice sheep. Also fowls were prepared for me. And once in ten days a store of all sorts of wine; and yet for all this I required not the bread of the governor, because the bondage was heavy upon this people." Nehem. v. 18. See the whole context, v. 14, 19. Nor did the governor's usual allow ance of forty shekels of silver a day, v. 15, amount to 57. a day; nor to 18007. a year. Nor does it indeed appear that under the judges, or under Samuel the prophet, there was any such public allowance to those governors at all. Those great charges upon the public for maintaining courts came in with kings, as God had foretold, 1 Sam. viii. 11-18. † Four thousand, 2 Chron. ix. 25, which I suppose to be the true number. The several books which treated of the nature and virtue of animals, as well as plants, are supposed to have been lost in the Babylonish captivity; but Eusebius, as he is quoted by Anastatius, informs us, that king Hezekiah, seeing the abuse which his subjects made of Solomon's works, by placing too much confidence in remedies which he prescribed, and the natural secrets which he discovered, thought proper to suppress them all. Notwithstanding this, since his time, many books, concerning the secrets of magic, medicine, and enchantments; have appeared under the name of this prince; and several pieces have ceeded the ancients: insomuch that he was noway inferior to the Egyptians, who are said to have been beyond all men in understanding; nay indeed it is evident that their sagacity was very much inferior to that of the king's. He also distinguished himself in wisdom above those who were most eminent among the Hebrews at that time for shrewdness. Those I mean were Ethan, Heman, Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol. He also composed books of Odes, and Songs, in number a thousand and five; and of Parables and Similitudes three thousand. For he spake a parable upon every sort of tree, from the hyssop to the cedar: and in like manner also about beasts, about all sorts of living creatures, whether upon the earth, or in the seas, or in the air. For he was not unacquainted with any of their natures; nor omitted inquiries about them; but described them all like a philosopher, and demonstrated his exquisite knowledge of their several properties. God also enabled him to learn that skill which expels demons,§ which is a useful science to men. Ile composed such incantations also by which distempers are alleviated and left behind him the manner of using exorcisms, by which they drive away demons; so that they never return, and this method of cure is of great force until this day. For I have seen a certain man of my own country, whose name was Eleazar, releasing the people that been quoted, such as The Instructions of Solomon to his son Rehoboam; The Testament of Solomon; The Books of the Throne of Solomon; The Books of Magic, composed by the demons, under the name of Solomon; The Clavicula, or Key of Solomon; The Ring of Solomon; The Contradiction of Solomon, &c. which were most of them very wicked and pernicious tracts, to which the authors prefixed this great name to give them credit and sanction. It is somewhat strange, however, that Josephus should inform us, that Solomon composed books of enchantments, and several manners of exorcisms, or of driving away devils, so that they could return no more; and that he should farther assure us, that himself had seen experiments of it, by one Eleazar, a Jew, who, in the presence of Vespasian, his sons, and the officers of his army, cured several that were possessed. Jewish Antiq. lib. 8. c. 2. Calmet's Dictionary, under the word Solomon. B. § Some pretended fragments of these books of conjurations of Solomon are still extant in Fabricius's Cod. Pseudepigr. Vet. Test. page 1054. Though I entirely differ from Josephus, in this opinion, that such books and arts of Solomon were parts of that wisdom which was imparted to him by God in his younger days. They must rather have belonged to such profane but curious arts as we find mentioned, Acts xix. 13, 20, and had been derived from the idolatry and superstition of heathen wives and concubines, in his old age; when he had forsaken God, and God had forsaken him, and given him up to demoniacal delusions. Nor does Josephus's strange account of the root Baara, Of the War, VII. 6, seem to be other than that of its magical use in such conjurations. As for the following history, it confirms what Christ says, Matt. xii. 27, If I by Beelzebub cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? |