Joab is slain

A. M. 2990.
B. C. 1014.

I. KINGS.

B. C. 1014.

by Benaiah. 30 And Benaiah came to the taber- || the son of Jether, captain of the host A. M. 2990. nacle of the LORD, and said unto him, of Judah. Thus saith the king, Come forth. And he said, Nay; but I will die here. And Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me.

not.

Thus saith the king, Come forth-That the king gave this command, though it be not mentioned before, is evident, both from the nature of the|| thing, for Solomon would not pollute the altar without necessity, and from Benaiah's affirmation of it; for why should he tell a lie without a cause? It appears, also, from his returning to the king for new orders, upon Joab's resolution not to come out thence. He said, Nay, but I will die here-For he supposed, either that Solomon would not defile that place with his blood, but would spare him for his respect to it, as he had done Adonijah; or, he had a superstitious conceit, that his dying there might give his guilty and miserable soul some advantage.

Verse 31. Do as he hath said-Kill him, though he be there; take him from that place, and then kill him for Exod. xxi. 14, doth not command the ruler to kill the murderer there, but to remove him thence; to take him from the altar, that he may die. That thou mayest take away the innocent blood from me -Kings or judges owe that justice to God, whose || vicegerents they are, as to inflict those punishments on offenders which the divine laws require them to inflict or otherwise, the punishment due to the offenders may with justice fall upon their own heads, as, by not executing the punishment, they, in some measure, give their approbation to the crime.

a

33 Their blood shall therefore return upon the head of Joab, and upon the head of his seed for ever: " but upon David, and upon his seed, and upon his house, and upon his throne, shall there be peace for ever from the LORD. 34 So Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him, and slew him: and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness. 35 And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his room over the host: and ↳ Zadok the priest did the king put in the room of Abiathar. 36 ¶ And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him, Build thee a house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and go not forth thence any whither.

b

22 Sam. iii. 29.—a Prov. xxv. 5.b Num. xxv. 11-13; 1 Samuel ii. 35; 1 Chronicles vi. 53; xxiv. 3.- Verse 27. d 2 Samuel xvi. 5; Verse 8.

him considerable service at a time when both Abner and Amasa had acted against him. Upon the head of his seed for ever-Either as long as he shall have a posterity, or for a long time, as that phrase is frequently used. So that Solomon here pronounces that Joab's own death should not expiate his guilt; but that his posterity should suffer for it in future generations, according to what David had said, 2 Sam. iii. 28, 29. If Solomon spoke by inspiration of God when he uttered these words, no doubt the prediction was fulfilled, and God visited the sins of the father upon the children, as he often does, when the children tread in their progenitors' sinful steps. But whether, or how far, this was the case, the Scriptures give us no information. But upon David and upon his seed-shall there be peace— In and by this execution of justice upon Joab and such malefactors, my throne shall be established, and God will bless me and mine with peace and prosperity. He was buried in his own house— That is, in some ground belonging and adjoining to his house, and accounted a part of the mansion. In the wilderness-So they called those parts of the country which were but thinly inhabited.

Verse 36. Go not forth thence any whither-Solomon, it is likely, suspected Shimei's loyalty and fidelity, and therefore ordered this, 1st, for his own Verses 32-34. The Lord shall return his blood—|| security. For by confining him to the royal city, The guilt of the blood which he hath shed. Upon he would have him always under his eye, and in a his own head-Shall make him alone bear the pun- || place where, as in a public theatre, all his words ishment of his iniquity. Who fell upon two men and actions would be narrowly observed. And by more righteous than he-Of more ingenuous and removing him from that part of the country where generous tempers, abhorring such treacherous prac-his kindred, and estates, and interest lay, to a place tices; and both of them devoted to, and employed where he was almost a stranger, and yet sufficiently in my father's service. Prejudice, however, and odious for his former and never to be forgotten inanger seem here too much to have dictated Solo- solence toward his lord and king, he would be renmon's expressions; for, it is certain, Joab had al- dered utterly incapable of raising any tumults or seways been a firm friend to David, and had done ditions. Solomon enjoined this, 2d, as a kind of

Shimei is slain

B. C. 1014.

B. C. 1011.

AM. 2990. 37 For it shall be, that on the day || and said unto him, Did I not make A. M. 2993 thou goest out, and passest over the thee to swear by the LORD, and probrook Kidron, thou shalt know for certain that tested unto thee, saying, Know for a certain, on thou shalt surely die: thy blood shall be upon the day thou goest out, and walkest abroad thine own head. any whither, that thou shalt surely die? and thou saidst unto me, The word that I have heard is good.

38 And Shimei said unto the king, The saying is good as my lord the king hath said, so will thy servant do. And Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many days.

B. C. 1011. 39 And it came to pass at the end of three years, that two of the servants of Shimei ran away unto Achish son of Maacah king of Gath: and they told Shimei, saying, Behold, thy servants be in Gath.

40 And Shimei arose and saddled his ass, and went to Gath to Achish to seek his servants: and Shimei went and brought his servants from Gath.

41 And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and was come

43 Why then hast thou not kept the oath of the LORD, and the commandment that I have charged thee with?

44 The king said moreover to Shimei, Thou knowest all the wickedness which thy heart is privy to, that thou didst to David my father; therefore the LORD shall return thy wickedness upon thine own head ;

45 And King Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the LORD for ever.

46 So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; which went out, and fell upon him, that he died. And the kingdom was 42 And the king sent and called for Shimei, established in the hand of Solomon.

again.

Psa. vii. 16; Ezek. xvii. 19.—Proverbs xxv. 5. Verse 12; 2 Chron. i. 1.

2 Sam. xv. 23.— Lev. xx. 9; Josh. ii. 29; 2 Sam. i. 16.2 Sam. xvi. 5. * 1 Sam. xxvii. 2.

penalty for his former wickedness, wherein yet they had fled to him for protection; but suffered there was more mercy than justice, and from which Shimei to take them away from his royal city. David had not promised him any security, but had Shimei arose and went to Gath to seek his servants only given him his life for the present, or during-In three years' time he thought Solomon might his own life and reign. have forgotten his injunction, or he presumed he would not hold him strictly to it, especially since he did not go from Jerusalem for his pleasure, but to recover what he had lost, which he thought was pardonable, these servants being probably worth a great deal of money. "By seeking his servants," says Bishop Hall, "he lost himself. These earthly things either are, or should be, our servants. How commonly do we see men run out of the bounds set by God's laws, to hunt after them, till their souls incur a fearful judgment !"

Verse 37. In the day thou passest over the brook
Kidron, &c.-Which Solomon mentions, because it
was in the way to Bahurim, where Shimei's former
and settled habitation was, as appears by comparing
2 Sam. xv. 23, with xvi. 5. But Solomon's meaning
was, and
I so, no doubt, was understood by Shimei,
that if he went out of Jerusalem any way, to a great-
er distance than Kidron was from thence, he should
die for it; for when he went to Gath, after his serv-
ants, he went not over Kidron, but the direct con-
trary way, that city lying westward of Jerusalem,
as Kidron did eastward. Thy blood shall be upon
thine on head-The blame and guilt of thy blood
shall lie upon thyself only. In other words, his
death should be owing to himself only, as the con-
dition of his holding his life was known to him and
accepted by him, as appears from the next verse.
Verse 38. The saying is good-Thy sentence is
much more merciful than I expected or deserve.
As my lord hath said, so will thy servant do-And
it appears from verses 42, 43, that he not only pro-
mised this, but confirmed his promise by an oath,
being required by Solomon so to do.

Verses 39, 40. Achish king of Gath-A king, but subject and tributary, first to David, and then to Solomon: permitted to enjoy the title and honour of a king, but not the full power: whence it was, that Achish could not keep these servants, though

Verses 43, 44. Why hast thou not kept the oath of the Lord?-He lay under the guilt of two crimes: of disobeying the king's express command, and violating his oath to God, which latter Solomon terms the oath of the Lord, because it was taken in the Lord's presence, and the Lord was called upon as a witness of it, and as the avenger of all such violations, and because the law of the Lord obliged him to the performance of it. The wickedness which thy heart is privy to-For which thine own conscience accuseth thee, and there is no need of other witnesses. The Lord shall return-God hath punished thee for thy former wickedness, by suffering thee to expose thyself to thy deserved death.

Verses 45, 46. The throne of David-To which Shimei had wished confusion; the royal power and dignity conferred upon him and his heirs. Shall be established By the execution of such righteous

Solomon marries Pharaoh's daughter, 1. His religion, 2-4. His prayer for wisdom, and the answer, 5-15. He decides the dispute between the two harlots, 16–28.

B. C. 1014.

a

e

C. 1014.

A. M. 2990. AND Solomon made affinity with || the LORD, and the wall of Jerusalem A. M. 2990. Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took round about. Pharaoh's daughter, and brought her into the bcity of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of

с

2 ¶ Only the people sacrificed in high places, because there was no house built unto the name of the LORD, until those days.

wont to offer up their worship, and sacrifices to God; and from them this custom was derived both

tiles sacrificed to idols, and the Hebrews to the true God. But this custom was expressly forbidden by God to his people, except in some extraordinary cases, and they were commanded to offer their sacrifices and other oblations only in the place which the Lord should choose, and where his tabernacle, altar, and ark should be, Lev. xvii. 3-5; Deut. xii. 10-14. It is, therefore, here mentioned as an exception to Solomon's integrity and glory, and the happiness of his reign, and as a blemish to his government, that he permitted and practised what was thus so expressly forbidden. Possibly he per

Verse 1. Solomon made affinity with PharaohAs being a powerful neighbour. And took Pha-to the Gentiles and the Jews; and in them the Genraoh's daughter-To wife, which was not unlawful, if she was first instructed in, and made proselyte to, the Jewish religion, as, in all probability, she was. For Solomon was not yet fallen from God, but loved the Lord, and walked in the statutes of David, (verse 3,) and therefore would not have married a gross idolater, which would have been directly contrary to God's law, and most pernicious in its consequences. It is true he afterward loved many strange women, and the wives he married alienated his heart from Jehovah, and drew him in to worship strange gods: but the gods of the Egyptians are not reckoned among them, nor does it appear that Pha-mitted it because he thought it better to allow of an raoh's daughter was one of the wives whose exam- error in a circumstance, than occasion a neglect of ple or conversation had such a pernicious influence. God's worship altogether, which he apprehended On the contrary, it is likely she was a worshipper would follow upon a severe prohibition of that pracof the true God, and that Solomon's taking her to tice. For the people's hearts were generally and wife was designed by God to be a type of Christ constantly set upon these high places, as appears calling his church to himself and to the true reli- from the following history; and they were not willgion, not only from among the Jews, but even outing to submit to the trouble and charge which the of the Gentile world. This, it is thought, plainly appears from the forty-fifth Psalm, and the book of Canticles. And brought her into the city of David -Into David's palace there. Until he had made an end of building the house of the Lord-The temple designed for the worship and honour of God. And the wall of Jerusalem round about-Which, though in some sort built by David, yet Solomon is here said to build, either because he made it high- || er and stronger, in which sense Nebuchadnezzar is said to have built Babylon, (Dan. iv. 30,) or because he built another wall besides the former, for after this time Jerusalem was encompassed with more walls than one.

Verse 2. Only the people sacrificed in high places -Which were groves, or other convenient places upon hills. In such places the patriarchs had been

bringing their sacrifices to one place would cause, nor, indeed, would they yield to it until the temple was built: and, as that was speedily to be done, Solomon seems to have thought it more advisable to delay enforcing obedience to God's law in this point for the present, than by force to drive them to it. These, however, and all other prudential considerations, ought to have given place to the will and wisdom of God. Because there was no house built to the name of the Lord-For his service, and to the honour, and praise, and glory of his name; that is, of his majesty, and all his perfections, which were to be adored and manifested there. But this reason for their sacrificing in high places was not sufficient; because there was a tabernacle, to which they were as much confined as they were afterward to the temple.

Solomon asks wisdom

B. C. 1014.

B. C. 1014

A. M. 2900 3 And Solomon loved the LORD, || this great kindness, that thou hast A. M. 2990 walking in the statutes of David his given him a son to sit on his throne, father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in as it is this day. high places.

4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt-offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar.

7 And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.

8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy peo

5¶1In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solo-ple which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for mul

mon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.

0

titude.

2

un

9 " Give 6And Solomon said, Thou hast showed therefore thy servant an unto thy servant David my father great mer-derstanding heart to judge thy people, that cy, according as he walked before thee in I may discern between good and bad: truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness for who is able to judge this thy so great of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him a people?

Verse 3. And Solomon loved-Or, Yet he loved, whatever he would. Solomon, having his mind the Lord-Although he miscarried in the matter of still full of the desire of wisdom, asked and obtainhigh places, yet, in the general, his heart was righted it: so that the prayer or desire he uttered in his with God. Walking in the statutes-According to dream was but the consequence of the option he the statutes or commands of God, which are here had made the day before, when he was awake. In called the statutes of David; not only because they a word, though we should allow that the soul of were diligently practised by David, but also because man, when the body is asleep, is in a state of rest the observation of them was so earnestly pressed and inactivity; yet we cannot but think that God upon Solomon, and fortified with David's authority can approach it many different ways; can move and and command. actuate it just as he pleases; and, when he is inclined to make a discovery of any thing, can set such a lively representation of it before the understanding, as shall make a man not doubt of the reality of the vision. See Calmet and Dodd.

Verse 4. The king went to Gibeon-Because the tabernacle was there, and the great brazen altar which Moses made. For after Shiloh was destroyed, they were carried to Nob; and the priests being there slain by Saul, they were removed to Gibeon, 2 Chron. i. 3-6. That was the great high place The most eminent and frequented; and, possibly, was a high and raised ground. A thousand burntofferings did Solomon offer-This undoubtedly ineludes the peace-offerings which were killed and dressed for the entertainment of the guests who were invited to the sacrifices; for it can hardly be supposed that so many were wholly consumed on the altar at one time of sacrificing.

Verses 6-8. According as he walked before thee in truth-In the true worship of God, in the profession, belief, practice, and defence of the true religion. So truth here contains all duties to God, as righteousness doth his duties to men, and uprightness the right manner of performing both sorts of duties. In uprightness of heart with thee-That is, in thy judgment, to whom he appealed as the witness of his integrity. I am but a child-So he was in years: not above twenty years old, and withal Verse 5. The Lord appeared to Solomon in a (which he principally intends) he was raw and indream-As he had done to Jacob at Bethel, Gen. experienced as a child in state affairs. How to go xviii. 13; and to others on different occasions, Gen. out, &c.-To govern my people, and manage affairs. x. 3. and xxvi. 24. Sleep is like a state of death Thy servant is in the midst of thy people—Is set to the soul; wherein the senses are locked up, and over them to rule and guide them. A metaphor the understanding and will deprived of the free ex- from the overseer of divers workmen, who usually ercise of their functions. And yet this is no im-is in the midst of them, that he may the better obpediment to God in communicating his will to man- serve how each of them discharges his office. kind; for no doubt he has power, not only to awaken Which thou hast chosen-Thy peculiar people, our intellectual faculties, but to advance them above whom thou takest special care of, and therefore their ordinary measure of perception, even while the wilt expect a more punctual account of my governbody is asleep. Solomon had prayed the day be- ment of them. fore with great fervency, and desired of God the gift of wisdom: see Wisd. vii. 7. In the night-time God appeared unto him in a dream, and bade him ask

Verse 9. Give to thy servant an understanding heart-Whereby I may both clearly discern, and faithfully perform all the parts of my duty: for