ened the place, that one priest could not discern another: but it afforded to the minds of all a visible image, and glorious appearance of God's having descended into this temple, and of his having pitched his tabernacle therein. So these men were intent upon this thought. But Solomon rose up, (for he was sitting before) and used such words to God as he thought agreeable to the divine nature to receive, and fit for him to give; for he said, "Thou hast an eternal house, O Lord! and such a one as thou hast created for thyself out of thine own works; we know it to be the heaven, the air, the earth, and the sea, which thou pervadest; nor art thou contained within their limits. I have indeed built this temple to thee and thy name; that from thence when we sacrifice, and perform sacred operations, we may send our prayers up into the air, and may constantly believe that thou art present, and art not remote from what is thine own. For neither when thou seest and hearest all things, nor now, when it pleases thee to dwell here, dost thou leave off the care of all men; but rather thou art very near to them all ; and especially thou art present to those that address themselves to thee, whether by night or by day." When he had thus solemnly addressed himself to God, he turned his discourse to the multitude, and strongly represented the power and providence of God to them. How he had shewn all things that were to come to pass to David his father; as many of those things had already come to pass; and the rest would certainly come to pass hereafter. And how he had given him his name, and told to David what he should be called before he was born; and foretold that when he should be king, after his father's death, he should build him a temple; which since they saw accomplished according to his prediction, he required them to bless God; and by believing him, from what they had seen accom

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internal part was bright and refulgent, darting its rays upon occasion, and exhibiting its light through its obscurity so that, according to its different phasis, or position, it became to the Israelites a pillar of a cloud by day, to screen them from the heat, and at night a pillar of fire, to give them light, Exod. xiii. 21, Whatever it was that constituted this strange appearance, it is certain this mixture of light and darkness was looked upon as a symbol of the divine presence; for so the Scripture has informed us, that He who dwelleth in light that is inaccessible, made darkness his secret place, his pavilion round about him, with dark water, and thick clouds to cover him, Psal. xviii. 11, Calmet's Commentary. B.

plished, never to despair of any thing that he had promised for the future, in order to their happiness, or suspect that it would not come to pass.

When the king had spoken thus, he looked again towards the temple, and lifting up his right hand to the multitude, he said, "It is not possible by what men can do to return sufficient thanks to God for his benefits bestowed upon them; for the Deity stands in need of nothing; and is above any such requital. But so far as we have been superior, O Lord! to other animals by thee, it becomes us to bless thy majesty; and it is necessary for us to return thee thanks for what thou hast bestowed on our house, and on the Hebrew people. For with what other instruments can we better appease thee, when thou art angry at us, or more properly preserve thy favour, than with our voice? which as we have it from the air, so do we know that by that air it ascends upwards towards thee. Itherefore ought myself to return thee thanks thereby, in the first place concerning my father, whom thou hast raised from obscurity unto so great glory; and in the next place concerning myself; since thou hast performed all that thou promisedst unto this very day. And I beseech thee for the time to come to afford us whatsoever thou, O God! hast power to bestow on such as thou didst esteem; and to augment our house for all ages, as thou hast promised to David my father to do, both in his life-time, and at his death; that our kingdom should continue, and that his posterity should successively receive it to ten thousand generations. Do not therefore fail to give us these blessings, and to bestow on my children that virtue in which thou delightest. And besides all this, I humbly beseech thee that thou wilt let some portion of thy Spirit come down and inhabit in this temple; that thou mayest appear to be with us upon earth. As to thyself, the entire heavens, and the immensity of the things that are therein, are but a small habitation for thee; much more is this poor temple. But I intreat thee to keep it, as thine own house, from being destroyed by our enemies for ever; and to take care of it as thine own possession. If this people be found to have sinned, and be thereupon afflicted by thee with any plague, because of their sin; as with dearth, pestilence, or any other affliction which thou usest to inflict on those that transgress any of thy holy laws; and if they fly all of them to this temple, beseeching

thee to deliver them; then do thou hear their prayer, as being within this house, and have mercy upon them, and deliver them from their afflictions. Nay, moreover, this help is what I implore of thee, not for the Hebrews only, when they are in distress; but when any shall come hither from any ends of the world, and shall return from their sins, and implore thy pardon, do thou then pardon them, and hear their prayer. For hereby all shall learn that thou wast pleased with the building of this house; and that we are not ourselves of an unsociable nature, nor behave ourselves like enemies to such as are not of our own people; but are willing that thy assistance should be communicated to all men in common; and that they may have the enjoyment of thy benefits bestowed upon them."

When Solomon had said this, and had cast himself upon the ground, and worshipped a long time, he arose up, and brought sacrifices to the altar; and when he had filled it with unblemished victims, he evidently discovered that God had with pleasure accepted of all that he had sacrificed to him; for there came a fire running out of the air, and rushed with violence upon the altar, in the sight of all; and caught hold of and consumed the sacrifices. Now when this divine appearance was seen, the people supposed it to be a demonstration of God's abode in the temple, and were pleased with it; and fell down upon the ground and worshipped. Upon which the king began to bless God, and exhorted the multitude to do the same; as now having sufficient indication of God's favourable disposition to them; and to pray that they might always have the like indications from him, and that he would preserve in them a mind pure from all wickedness, in righteousness and religious worship, and that they might continue in the observance of those precepts which God had given them by Moses; because by that means the Hebrew nation would be so happy, and indeed the most blessed of all nations among all mankind. He exhorted them also to be mindful, that by what methods they had obtained their present good things, by the same they must preserve them to themselves, and make them greater and more than they were at present. For that it was not sufficient for them to suppose they had received them on account of their piety and righteousness; but that they had no other way of preserving them for the time to come; for it is not so great a

thing for men to acquire somewhat which they want, as to preserve what they have acquired, and to be guilty of no sin, whereby it may be hurt.

So when the king had spoken thus, he dissolved the congregation; but not till he had completed his oblations, both for himself, and for the Hebrews; insomuch that he sacrificed twentytwo thousand oxen; and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. For then it was that the temple did first taste of the victims; and all the Hebrews with their wives and children feasted therein. Nay, besides this, the king then observed splendidly and magnificently the feast of tabernacles, before the temple for fourteen days; and he then feasted together with all the people.

When all these solemnities were performed, and nothing was omitted that concerned the divine worship, the king dismissed them; and they every one went to their own homes; giving thanks to the king for the care he had taken of them, and the works he had done for them; and praying to God to preserve Solomon to be their king for a long time, they also took their journey home with rejoicing, and singing hymns to God. And indeed the pleasure they enjoyed took away the sense of the pains they all underwent in their journey home. So when they had brought the ark into the temple, and had seen its greatness, and had been partakers of the sacrifices that had been offered, and of the festivals that had been solemnized, they returned to their own cities. But a dream that appeared to the king in his sleep informed him, that God had heard his prayers; and that he would not only preserve the temple, but would always abide in it; that is, in case his posterity, and the whole multitude, would be righteous. And for himself, if he continued obedient to the admonitions of his father, God would advance him to an immense degree of dignity and happiness; so that then his posterity should be kings of that country of the tribe of Judah, for But that still, if he should be a betrayer of the ordinances of the law, and forget them, and turn away to the worship of strange gods, he would cut him off by the roots; and would neither suffer any remainder of his family to continue, nor would watch over the people of Israel, nor preserve them any longer from afflictions; but would utterly destroy them with wars and misfortunes; would cast them out of the land which he had

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given their fathers, and make them sojourners in strange lands; and deliver that temple which was now built, to be burnt and spoiled by their enemies, and that city to be utterly overthrown by the hands of their enemies; and make their miseries proverbial, and such as should hardly be credited for their stupendous magnitude; till their neighbours, when they should hear of them, should wonder at their calamities, and earnestly inquire for the occasion, why the Hebrews, who had been before advanced by God to such wealth and glory, should be then so hated by him? and that the answer that should be made by the remainder of the people should be, by confessing their sins, and their transgression of the laws of their country.*

CHAP. V.

OF THE ROYAL PALACE ERECTED BY KING SOLOMON, AND HIS SOLUTION OF THE RIDDLES SENT HIM BY HIRAM.

AFTER the building of the temple, which, we have before said, was finished in seven years, the king laid the foundation of his palace;† which he did not finish under thirteen years. For he was not equally zealous in the building of this palace, as he had been about the temple. For although that was a great work, and required wonderful application; yet God, for whom it was made, so far co-operated therewith, that it was finished in the aforementioned number of years. But the palace, which was a building much inferior in dignity to the temple, both on account that its materials had not been so long beforehand prepared, and on account that this was only a habitation for kings, and not for God, it was longer in finishing. However, this building was raised so magnificently, as suited the happy state of the country of the Hebrews, and of the king thereof. But it is necessary that I describe the entire structure and disposition of the parts; that so those who peruse this book

* 1 Kings ix. 1-9.

+1 Kings vii. 1—12.