The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Kings — Section 76

o~hers, i.e., superintendents. The term is Ver. 11.-The son of Abinadab [Ben used of Doeg (1 Sam. x.xii. 9). They were ..4 binadab. Possibly the Abinadab of 1 Sam. twelve, not because of the twelve tribes, but xvi. 8 ; xvii. 13. If so, this officer, who the twelve months] over all Israel, which married Solomon's daughter, was also hie provided victuals for [Heb. nourished] the cousin], 1n [Heb. omits] all the region king and his household : each man his [i1!n height; the term is only nsed in month 1n a year made prov1B1on [lit., a connection with Dor] of Dor [Josh. xi. 2; 'lfl()nth in the year it was (i.e., devolved) xii. 23 ; xvii. 11. Dor, now represented by upon each to nouruh, It bas been thought the miserable village of Tanture., lies on the by some that these superintendents were strand of the Mediterranean, north of also governors of provinces (qyEµover; ra1 Ciesaree.. A " spur of Mount Carmel, steep crraT1]yoi, Jos. Ant. viii. 2, S), as well as and partially wooded, runs pare.lie! to the purveyors. But of this nothing is said in coast-line, at the distance' of about a mile the text. Their principal function was to and a heJ.f " (Porter). This is the " height collect the roya.l dues or taxes which were of Dor." Theni-.:s supposes this fourth dis- evidently paid, as they still are in the East, trict embraced the plain of Sharon. Josephus in kind]. (viii. 2. 3.) limits this prefecture to the sea Ver. 8,-And these are their names [the coast, which may well include Sharon. order is not gaographical, nor do t~e dis- Indeed, without it, this district would have tricts correspond, except roughly, with t~e been destitute of cornlandsJ which had territories of the tribes. The order 1s Taphath, the daughter of Solomon, to wife. probably that of the months for which they [" It has always been a practice amongst were severally responsible, and the districts Oriental potentates to attach to themselves were marked out according to the capa- the more important of their officers by bilities of the country]: The son of Hur giving them for wives princesses of the roya.l [Heb. as marg., Ben Hur. Of the twelve house. . . . The practice of polygo.my has prefects, five are only known by their patro- generally enabled them to carry out this nymics, for it is hardly likely that these are system to a very wide extent" (Rawlinson). proper names, like Ben-hanan and Ben- Ver.12.-Ba.ana., the eonofAhilud [cf. ver. zoheth (1 Chron. iv. 20). No satisfactory 3. Probably the recorder's brotherJ , to him explo.no.tion of this curious circumstance has perta.l.ned [the original, true to its charac- hitherto been givan. The most probable is ter.as a list, omits these words, simply giving that in the document from which this list the name of the officer and then the towns was compiled, the part of the page co1;1tain- of his district or province] Taanach and ing the missing no.mes had been e.cc1dent- Megiddo [similarly associated, Josh. xii. 21; o.lly destroyed], 1n mount Ephraim. [See Judg. v. 19; i. 27. These towns, which be- on eh. xii, 25. This district, which pmc- came famous in later Jewish history (2 Kings tico.lly coincided with the territo~ ~f xxiii. 29 ; 2 Chron. xxxv. 22), lo.y nt the foot Ephraim, wo.s one of the most fertile m of the E. spurs of Carmel, on the margin of Po.Jestine. Hence, possibly, it cte.nds first.] the pie.in of Esdraelon. See Conder's " Tent Ver. 9.-The son of Deka.r [Ben-Dekar], Work in Palestine," p. 67] and all Bethahean 1n Ma.ka.z [unknown otherwise], and 1n [Josh. xvii. 11, 16; Judg. i. 27. Otherwise Shaalblm [Josh. xi.x. 42; Judg. i. 35] and Bethshan (1 Sam. xxxi. 10, 12 ; 2 So.m. xxi. Beth-ehemeah [called lrshemesh, Josh. xix. 12), now Beisiin. The LXX. here transl~te 41. Now 'AinShemes], and Elon-beth-ha.nan. the word o olJCoc l:uv ; elsewhere they wnte [Elon, Josh. xix. 43. Probo.bly Beth-~e.nan ~s {3m0crav or {3m011dft, and in Judge~ i. 27 a different place, the" and" (\) ho.V!Dg o.cc1- explain 71 1CTT, l:,:v0wv 71'oX,c, hence its Inter dcntally dropped out of the text. The LXX. name Scythopolis. Rawlinson, by nn over- (i!wc D,10avav) fo.vours this view. It has sight, interprets the name to mean " house been identified by Robinson with Beit Hunftn. of the sun," which is the tronslo.tion of This second district embraces Dan. J Bethshemesh. Bethshan prob, means" house Ver. 10.-The son of Hesed [Ben-Hesed], of rest." "The site of the town is on the in Aruboth (Heb. Arubboth, unknown]; to brow of the descent by which the great pie.in him pertained Sochoh [there were two cities of Esdraelon drops down to the level of of this name, one in the mountain (Josh. the Ghor." The present writer was much xv. 48), and one in the "vo.lley" (the atruck (in 1861) by its situation. See Shefelah, Josh. xv. 33, 3~), and both in t~e Conder, pp. 233, 234. The text sho~vs ~hat tribe of Judah, from which, therefore, this it gave its no.me to the adjoining distnct], third district wo.s to.ken], and all the land which 1s by Za.rtanah [probably the Zo.reto.n of Hepher. [Josh. xii. 17. Ewald holds of Josh. iii. 16 and the Ze.rthan (so.me word in that this place was in Manasseh! all;d that the Heb.) of 1 Kings vii. 46, which plo.ce is "it is impossible in the twelve districts to called Zeredatho.h in 2 Chron. iv. 17, and is find any portion of .. , . Judah." But • probably the Zererath of Judg. vii. 22. (Th11 see above.] 70 THE FIRST 1300K OF RINGS. [oa. IV, 1-19.