The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Kings — Section 116

were cree.ted." They were graved] within were covered with gold, we may be sure both and without. [These words, here e.nd in ver. walls aud d,oors would not be without their 30, are generally taken to mean "in the coating of the precious metoJ. Our author oracle and in the house." But it is worthy of does not mention the curtain-it is clear tho.li consideration whether they do not rather the doors would not dispense with the neces- i:ignify, "iu the house and in the porch." sity for o. vail-but the chronicler does (2 The latter was overlaid with gold (2 Cbron. Chrou. iii. 14). It wo.s necesse.ry in order iii 4). It is doubtful whether )i~•i:,~ on to cover the ark (Exod. xl. 3, 21) ; hence it was sometimes co.lied " the va1l of tbo the out,sid{!, can be applied to any part of covering." But for this, when the doors the interior, and here its application would were opened on the day of atonement, the be to the oracle (Thenius)J. priest in the holy place might have gazed Ver. 30.-And the floor of the house he into the oracle. See on eh. viii. 8. The doors overlaid with gold, within 2.nd without. opened outwardly (into the house). The Ver. 31.-And for the entering of the vail was suspended within the oracle.] oracle, he made doors [which bung on Ver. 33.-So also [i.e., similarly] made golden hinges (eh. vii. 50] of olive tree he for the door [or entrance, doorway] of [see on ver. 23)], the lintel and side the temple posts of olive tree, a fourth posts were a fifth part of the wall. [The [Heh. from a fourth] part of the wall. It meaning of the Hebrew words has been is uncertain whether we are to understand much disputed. See Gesen. Thesaur, i. the " fourth part" of the height or of the pp. 43---45. Gesen. himself interprets as breadth of the doorway, though the latter is A. V. : crepid,o cum postibus erat quinta probably meant. The height of the wall is pars, i.e., quintam parietis partem occu- variously estimated; generally o.t 30 (ver. 2), pabat. The llabbins : the " entablature but by Rawlinson at 20 cubits. But the "ith side posts and threshold formed a breadth is beyond dispute. It was 20 cubits. pentagon." But a pentagonal doorway is The doorway, consequently, would be five without example in Eastern architecture. cubits wide. The effect of the preposition, "from a fourth," is probably this: The Tbenius : " the strength ( ''.t3 is generally entrnnce with the side posts subtracted taken as an architectural term = crepido one-fourth from the space of the wall .. portae, or entablature) of the posts was Ver. 34.-And the two doors were [As in a fifth." Rawlinson : "the lintel was one- ver. 32, the verb is to be supplied from the filth of wall, and each door post one-fifth verse preceding. " And he made two doors, of its height ; " in which case the doorway &c.] of fir tree [l!lii:;l see note on eh. v. 8]: would of course be a square of four cubits. the two leaves [lit: ribs, same word as in But perhaps the rendering of A. V. (with vers. 5, 8, 10] of the one door were folding which Keil and Bahr also agree) is more natural. The meaning, consequently, [Heb, rollingl, and the two leaves [t:l'P7i? would be that ihe entrance to the oracle, is probably a clerical error for t:l'P7)l arising inclusive of the side posts which helped to form it, occupied one-fifth of the extent of out of the ll?~ in vers. 32, 35] of the other the cedar partition. The entrance to the [Heh. second] door were folding. [It seems /wuse (ver. 33) we.s one-fourth of the wall more natural to suppose that the lee.ves of the house.] were formed by a vertical than by a hori- Ver. 32. -The two doors also were zontal di vision. Indeed, it is doubtful [Rather, perhaps, " And he made" is to be supplied from ver. 31, as Keil. Rawlinson whether the word ,,';,i would be applied to remarks that such doors as these are cha- the latter arrangement. Keil objects to the racteristic of Assyrian gateways] of olive former on the ground that the leo.ves would tree : and he carved upon them carvtngs of thus be only one cubit broad each, and the cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, opening of one leaf, consequently, would and overlBJd them with gold, and spread be insufficient to admit of any person's pass, [,~!1 Hiph. of i:nJ gold [Heh. the gala] ing through. But to this it me.y be replied upon the cherubims and upon the palm (1) that the opening of two leaves would iu trees [The writer means, not that the carv- any case form a sufficiently wide entrance, ing o.lone was gilded-as Tbenius thinks, who and (2) that it is not said that all the leaves remarks on the effective contrast which the were of uniform width. Besides, the other dark red cedar and the bright gold would arrangement is without precedent in the fnrnish)-but that the gilding did not con- public buildings of the Ee.et.] ceal the character of the carvings. It is Ver. 35.-And he carved thereon cheru. clear from ver. 22 the.t " all the house " bi.ms and pa.Im treea and open 1lowers [The blazed with gold in every pa.rt. If the floors conste.nt recurrence of the same forms is in OD, VI, 1-88.] THE FIRST BOOK OF KINGS, 111