The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Chronicles — Section 19

and timber felling. The good terms and expressed, that •it i, understood may be intimRcy subsisting between Solomon and gathered from the other passages (Numb. iv. the King of Tyre speak themselves very 7). The bread consisted of twelve large cakes plainly in Bible history, without leaving us of unleavened dough (Lev. xxiv. 6-9), dependent on doubtful history, or tales of ranged in two heaps, and with a golden cup such as Josephus(' Ant.,' viii. 5. § 8; •Contra of frankincense (Lev. xxiv. 7) to each pile. Apion,' i. 17). For the timber, meta.ls, When on every seventh day new oolrne were workmen, given by Hiram to Solomon, substituted, the old ones belonged to the Solomon gave to Hiram oorn and oil, oeded priests (Lev. xxiv. 8, 9; viii. 31; Mntt. xii. to him some cities, and the use of some 4; Exod. xxix. 33, 34). The twelve o&kea porlll on the Red Sea (1 Kings ix. 11- pointed to the twelve tribes. Their size may 14, 25-28; :x. 21-23. See also 1 Kings be judged from the statement that eaoh xvi. 81). As thou didst deal with David cake contained two tenth deals, i.e. two• . . , ud didst send him oeda.rs. To this tenths of an ephah, equal to about six vers. 7 and 8 are the apodosis manifestly, pounds and a quarter. The exact signifi- while vers. 4, 5, 6 should be . enclosed in cance of this bread is not stated in Scripture. •rackets. Part of it lay plainly in the twelve cakes, Ver. 4.-In the nine beadings contained part, perhaps, in their becoming priest's food, in this verse we may consider that the found by; the people (Lev. xxiv, 8), ofter leading religious observances and services having been presented seven days before the of the nation are summarized. To dedicate Lord. Much tho.t is interesting but not it. The more frequent rendering of the finally satisfactory on the question may be Hebrew word here used is " to hallow," or found in the article "Sbewbrea.d" in Dr. "to sanctify." (1) Sweet inoense (see Smith's •Bible Dictionary,' iii. 1271. Our Exod. x:a;:. 1, 6-9, 34-38 ; mvii. 25- Authorized Version "ehewbread" comes 29; Ps. cxli. 2; Rev. v. 8 ; vi 9; viii 3- from Luther's Schaubrode. Wickliffe, after 5). This sweet incense, compounded of the the Vulga.te panes propositionis, designates four ingredient.s stacte, onyche., ga.lba.num, it "the loaves of proposition." The New pure frankinoense, was to be burnt morning Testament has, in Heb. ix. 2, .;, -,,po9l",:r and evening, at the time of the morning ,,..;v /l.p,,.,.,v; ae also in the Gospels (Matt. xii, and evening sacrifices on the altar made 4; Luke vi 4); while the Septuagint has of shittim wood, overlaid with gold, which mp'rOI iv,I,..-101 (Exod. XXV, 30), and ll.p'rOI stood in the holy pla.ce facing the e.rk, with ,,.ij, -,,po".popar (1 Kings vii. 48). The ques- the table of shewbread on the one hand, and tion really turns on the significance of the the golden candlestick on the other. While designation of Exod. xxv. 30 (c•~~ cr:h), (3) the act of atonement was set forth by the The burnt offerings morning and evening. A offering of the victim on the brazen altar succinct statement of \hese •offerings, con- in the outer court, the aecending, acceptable, stituting the " daily offering," is given and accepted prayer and aspiration of the in Numb. :xxviii. 3-8, according to its congregation were expressed by the sweet original institution (Exod. xxix. 38-42), incenee-bnrning. (2) The continual shew- except in the added mention of the " strong bread ("M?!;' n;:i'.))).~). The elementary mean- wine," or strong drink, spoken of in the ing of the wo;ci here rendered" shewbread" latter part of ver. 7, which had probably is" a ranging in order,'' whether the." order " originated as an incident of the wilderness- might be, e.g., that of an e.rmy m battle journey, The morning and evening offering array (1 Sam. iv. 16; xvii. 8, 22, 48), or of were alike, viz. a lamb, a meal offering the lamps of the holy candlestick (Exod. consisting of a tenth of an epha.h of flour, mix. 37), or of pilings of wood to be mixed with the fourth part of a hin of beaten burnt on the altar (Judg. vi. 26), or of cakes oil, and a drink offering consisting of the of bread. e.e presumably here a.nd in some fourth part of a hin of " wine," or of "strong parallel pe.ssages (Lev. xx.iv. 6). For the drink.'' (4) The burnt offering on the table which we.s to carry these cakes, see sabbath, The account of this is given in E:i..od. xxv. 23-30; xxxvii. 10-16; the Numb. xxviii. 9, 10; and any previous last verse of the former pusage speaking institution of it is not recorded. The sabbath-day burnt offerings were the double of the shewbread under the na.me Cl')~ cr:k of the daily offerings (Ezek. xlvi. 4). (3) (For the position of the table, _see Exod. The burnt offering on the new moons j see :u.vi. 35.) The word employe_d 1n the text Numb. xxvii. 11-15, where the phrase, is first used to express the piles of cakes, "the beginnings of your months,'' is what is called ill our Authorized Version shewbread employed, i.e. the first day of each month in Lev xxi.v. 6, 7; then 1 Chron. ix_. 3~; (Lev. x. 10). No previous mention of this :z:xili. 29 ; xxviii. 16 ; as also agam m burnt offering is found, It consisted of two eh. xiii. 11 ; xxix. 18; and in Nch. x. 33. bullocks, one ram, seven lambs, (a) with Where in the8e passages the word ~~~ is not meat offering consisting of three-tenth& of oJT. u. 1-18.J THE SECOND BOOK OF THE CHRONICLES. 19 ----------------------------------- an oplmh of flour rnixed with oil for onch greatness were lnrgely dependent upon the bulloolc; two-tenths of anephnh oftlourmixcd existing material and furnishing of their with oil for the rnm; one-tenth of an ophah own little country. And further, Solomon of flour aimilnrly mixed for each lamb; (b) speaks of the temple as ~eat very prohahly with drink offering, of ho.If o, bin of wine from the point of view of its simple religions to co.eh bullock; tbe third part of o, hin to uses (note end of ver. 6) as the phce of tile mm; o,nd tbe fourth pnrt of o, hin to each sacrifice in especial rather than as a place, Jamb. A kid of the goo.ta for a. sin offering, for instance, of vast congregations and vast which in foot waa offered before the burnt processions. Then, too, a.s eompa.red with offoring. And all these were to be a.ddi- the ta.bernacle, it would loorn " great," tionnl to the continual offering of the day, whether for size or for its enduring material. with its drink olfering (aee also Iaa.. !xvi. Meantime, though S,,lomon does indeed use 23; Ezek. xlvi. 3; Amos viii. 5). (6) The the words (ver. 5)," The house ... is great," burnt offering on the solemn feasts of the yet, throwing 04 the words the light of lhe Lord. These were the three great feati va.ls remaining clause of the verse, and of of the year-the Passover (Exod. xii. 3-20, David's words in 1 Chron. xxix. 1, it is not 27, 43; Lev. xxiii. 4-8; Deut. xvi. 1-8); very certain that the main thing present to tho Feast of Weeks (Exod. xxiii. 16; xxxiv. his mind was not the size, but rather tl.ie cha- 22; Lev. xxiii. 15-21; Numb. xxviii. 26; racter of the house, and the solemn character Deut. xvi. 8-12); the Feast of Tabernacles of the enterprise itself (1 Kings viii. 27; eh. (Exod. xxiii. 16; Lev. xxiii. 33-44; Numb. vi. 18). Wb.o am I . . . eave only to burn xxix. 13-40; Deut. xvi. 13-15). sacrifice before him 1 The drift of Solomon's Vel'S. 5, 6.-The contents of these verses thought is plain-that nothing won Id justify be.,. some special observation, in the first ~orta.l man, if he purported to build really pl~ce, as having been judged by the writer e. palace of residence for him whom the of Cilroniclea matter desirable to be retained heaven of heavens could not contain, but and put in his work. To find a place that he is justified all the more in "not for this subject a.mid his careful selection, giving sleep to his eyes, nor slumber to his and rejection in many cases, of the matter eyelids, until he hnd found ont a place" e.t his command, is certainly a decision in (Ps. cxxxii. 4, 5) where man might accept- harmony with his general design in this ably, in God's appointed way, draw nen.r to work. Then, a.gain, they may be remarked him. If "earth draw near to heaven," on as spoken to another king, who, whether it may be confidently depended on that it were to be expected or no, was, it is pie.in, heaven will not be slow to bend down a. sympathizing hearer of the piety and its glory, majesty, grace, to earth. religious resolution of Solomon (ver. 12). Ver. 7.-Send me . . . a man o1llllllllg to This is one of the touches of history that work, etc. The parenthesis is now ended. does not diminish our regret that we do By comparison of ver. 3, it appears that not know more of Hiram. He was no Solomon ma.kesof Hiram'sservices to David "proselyte," but he had the sympathy of a. his father e. very plea. why bis own requests convert to the religion of the Jew. Perhaps addressed now to Hiram should be granted. the simplest and most natural explanation If we may be guided by the form of the ex- may just be the truest, that Hiram for some pressions used in 1 Chron. xiv. 1 and 2 Sam. long time had seen " the rising" kingdom, v. 11, 12, Hiram had in the first instance and alike in David and Solomon in turn, volunteered help to David, and had not "the coming" men. He had been more waited to be applied to by David. This calmly and deliberately impressed thau the would show us more clearly the force of Queen of Sheba. afterwards, but not less Solomon's plea. Further, if we note the effectually and operatively impressed. And language of 1 Kings v. 1, we may be dis- once more the passage is noteworthy for posed to think that it fills a gap in our pre- the utterances of Solomon in themselves. As sent connection, and indicates that, though parenthetically testifying to a powerful Solomon e.ppel\rs here to have had to take man, who could be II powerful helper of the initiative, e.n easy opportunity was Solomon's enterprise, his outburst of expla- opened, in the courteous embassy sent him nation, and of 111·dent religious purpose, and in the persons of Hiram's "servants." That of humble godly awe, is natural. But that the king of this most privileged, separate, he should call the temple he purposed to and exclusive people of Israel (and he the h_uild "so great," as we oa.nnot put it down one who conducted that people to the very either to intentional exaggeration or to sober zenith of their fame) should have to apply historio faot, must the mther be honestly and be permitted to apply to foreign e.nd, so s~t down to suoh considerations as these, to say, heathen help, in so intrinsio a matter viz. that in point of fa.ot, neither David nor as the finding of the "cunning" and the Solomon were "travelled men," as Joseph "skill" of head and hand for the most saored 1md Moses, for ine~nce. Their measures of and distinctive chef d'amvre of the said e&• 20 THE SECOND BOOK OF THE CHRONWLES. [on. n. 1-18.