Services and for the preſent Solemn Work, for which the Brazen Altar was not ſufficient, as it here follows ; and by the direction of God's Spirit, wherewith Selomon was endowed, as being a Pro- pher, as well as a King. Here therefore he ſuddenly reared up divers Altars, which after this Solemnity were demolithed.
65 And ac that time Solomon held a feaft =, and all Tfrael with him, a great congregation, from the en- tring in of Hamath, unto the river of Egypt o, before the LORD p our God, ſeven days, and ſeven days 9, even fourteen days. |
n i.e. Kept the Solemnity. o The uſual and known bounds of the Land, in the utmoſt length of it, of which, fee Numb. 34: 8. Joſh. 13. 5. Judg. 3: 3- Þ 4. e. Before the Temple, and as in God's Preſence. 9 Seven for the Dedication of the 'T'emple, or Altar 3 and the other ſeven for the Feaſt of Tabernacles ; as may be ga- thered from 2 Chron. 7. 9. And it ſeems to be expreſſed in this manner, to intimate, that theſe 14 days of Rejoycing,were not all together, but thar there was ſome interval between them, which indeed was neceſſary, becauſe the Day of Atonement was on the Tenth Day of this Month, Levit: 23-'27. And becauſe theſe 14 days ended on the Twenty-ſecond day, 2 Chron. 7.10. it may ſeem moſt probable, that the Feaſt of the Dedication was kept betore the Tenth day + and the Feaſt of Tabernacles ſome days after 1t.
66 On the eighth day he ſent the people away r : and they || blefled the king s, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart, for all the goodneſs that the LORD had done for David # his ſervant,and ior Iſrael his people.
r Solomon having joyned with the People in the Solemn Aſſembly which was kept on the Eighth day ; in the cloſe of that Day and Service, he took his ſolemn farewel, and diſmiſſed them with his Blefling ; and the next Morning the Heads and Elders who came to Solomon upon this ſpecial Jummons,above wer. 3. and with them divers of the People came tg take their leave of the King, he ſent them away. And lo this place agrees very well with 2 Ciron: 7:9,10 # 7. e. They prayed to God to Bleſs him, according to their Duty and Cuſtom. Or, They praiſed him, for his great care and pains in Building of the Temple and ſetting up God's Wor- ſhip among them. 7 In giving him a ſure Houle, and a wiſe and rcligious Son, by whom he had now fulfilled the Promiſe made to David about the Building of the Temple,
CHAF. ©.
God's Covenant, in a ſecond Viſion, with Solomon, 1 9. The mu- tual Preſents of Solowon and Hiram, 10 -—— 14. Strong holds built by Solomon, 1 5 -———19. The Gentiles are Bond-men : The Iſraelites not ſo, 20 23: Pharaoh's Daughter removeth to her Houſe, 24 Solommn's yearly folemm Sacriſices, 25- His Navy fercheth Gold from Ophir, 26 —-— 28,
A N D * it came to paſs when Solomon had fini- A ſhed the buiiding of the houſe of the LORD, and the kings houſe, and all Solomons defire which he was pleaſed to do :
2 That the LORD appeared to Solomon the ſecond
time «, * as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon.
a To wit, ina Dream or Viſion : for that which is mentioned, Chap. 6. 11. ſeems to have been imparted unto him by ſome Pro- pher or Meſſenger ſent from God, with that Errand. The time of this Revelation was. either 1. after all Solomon's Buildings, as the words, thus rendred plainly imply. And ifit ſcem ſtrange, that Goa ſhould not Reveal this purpoſe and tentence of his con cerning the Temple, till ſo many years after the finiſhing of it; at muſt be conſidered. 1- Thar as it is an a& of God's lingular Grace, when he doth thus Reveal himſelf to any Perton,to it 1s but meet, he ſhould chuſe his own time for it. 2. That God had preſently
- after the finiſhing of the Temple, at the Feaſt of the Dedicarion of it, ſufficiently 1t»ewed his acceptance and approbation of it,by that glorious Cloud, Chap. 8. 10, 11. and therefore this Revelation was not then neceſſary. 3. That God might chuſe this as the titteit time for giving Solomon the following Admonition, when he per
ceived that his heart began to be lifred up in Pride, for his ſumpru- ous and magnificent Buildings, &c. and that he was grown vain, and careleſs. and ſecure ; and therefore moſt needed ſuch an a- wakening Oracle, Or, 2. Preſently after the Building of the Tem- ple, as may be thought from the Matter of this Revelation,which ſeems beſt toſuit with that time when it was newlyBuilt,and when S-lomon's Prayer here mentioned was newly made - for feing the following word's contain God's Anſwer to that Prayer,it ſeems im- probable, that the Anſwer ſhould come ſo many Years after it- Bur then this ſecond Verſe, and the reſt even to wer. 11. are to be inclo- Ted with a Parentheſis ; and the place muſt be thus rendred ver 2. For ( ſo the Hebrew Yau is oft rendred ) the Lord appeared, or, had appeared to Svlomon, &Cc. vere 3" And the Lord had ſaid unto hmm, &c
And this Parentheſis may ſeem to have a foundation in ver. 10
where the firſt Verſe ( in ſubſtance, though not in the very ſame words ) is repeated, as is uſual after long digreſſions : and then he compleats the Sentence, wer. 12, &c. which till then had been ſu- ſpended. Nor are ſuch long Parentheſis without Example in Scri- prure ; See my Latin Synopſis, on Rem. 5. 12, &c, Eph. 3: i, &C- Revel. 22.7.
3 And the LORD faid unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and my ſupplication that thou haſt made be- fore me : I have hallowed this houſe þ which thou hat buile, * ro put thy name there for ever c, and mine eyes d, and mine heart e, ſhall be there f perpetually. g.
6 I have, by my glorious Preſence in the cloud, and by my ac- ceptation of thy Sacrifices, SanCtified it ro my proper utc and Sc1- Vice. 6 As lopg as the Mz/aical Diſpenſation lates ; whereas. hitherto
N G 8. Chap. 1X my Name and Worſhip hath been ſucceſſively in ſeveral places d i, e. My watchful and gracious Providence. e My true and ten«
der Affe&ion, F Shall be rowards this Place and People. s U condition of your Obedience ; as it here Arn wo = a
4 Andif thou wilt walk before me,as David thy fa- ther walked 5, in integrity of heart, and in upright- neſs, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and will Keep my ſtatutes and my judgments :
þ Who, though he miſcarried in ſome things,yer in tl Fl courſe of his Lite was Upright and Faithful DC OY Oe
5 Then # I will eſtabliſh che Throne of thy king- dom upon Lfrael for ever, * as I promiſed ro David thy * 2 Sam.