2 Chronicles 1:1-17

LESSON FOURTEEN 1-4

I. THE HISTORY OF KING SOLOMON
(2 Chronicles 1:1 to 2 Chronicles 9:31)

SOLOMON'S KINGDOM
THE TEMPLE AND ITS FURNISHINGS
1. SOLOMON AT GIBEON (II Chronicles, Chapter 1)

INTRODUCTION

Solomon's choice of wisdom qualified him to be a very effective leader of Israel. He is faithful as he begins to carry out the work that his father, David had committed to him. The details of the Temple and the elaborate appointments for its adornment describe the beauty of this amazing building.

TEXT

2 Chronicles 1:1. And Solomon the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom, and Jehovah his God was with him, and magnified him exceedingly. 2. And Solomon spake unto all Israel, to the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and to the judges, and to every prince in all Israel the heads of the fathers-' houses. 3. So Solomon, and all the assembly with him, went to the high place that was at Gibeon; for there was the tent of meeting of God, which Moses the servant of Jehovah had made in the wilderness. 4. But the ark of God had David brought up from Kiriath-jearim to the place that David had prepared for it; for he had pitched a tent for it at Jerusalem. 5. Moreover the brazen altar, that Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, had made, was there before the tabernacle of Jehovah: and Solomon and the assembly sought unto it. 6. And Solomon went up thither to the brazen altar before Jehovah, which was at the tent of meeting, and offered a thousand burnt-offerings upon it.

7. In that night did God appear unto Solomon, and said unto him,Ask what I shall give thee. 8. A nd Solomon said unto God, Thou hast showed great lovingkindness unto David my father, and hast made me king in his stead. 9. Now, O Jehovah God, let thy promise unto David my father be established; for thou hast made me king over a people like the dust of the earth in multitude. 10. Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people; for who can judge this thy people, that is so great? 11. And God said to Solomon, Because this was in thy heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honor, nor the life of them that hate thee, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king: 12. wisdom and knowlege is granted unto thee? and I will give thee riches, and wealth, and honor, such as none of the kings have had that have been before thee; neither shall there any after thee have the like. 13. So Solomon came from the high place that was at Gibeon, from before the tent of meeting, unto Jerusalem; and he reigned over Israel.
14. And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen: for he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, that he placed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem. 15. And the king made silver and gold to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycamore-trees that are in the lowland, for abundance. 16. And the horses which Solomon had were brought out of Egypt; the king's merchants received them in droves, each drove at a price. 17. And they fetched up and brought out of Egypt a chariot for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty: and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of Syria, did they bring them out by their means.

PARAPHRASE

2 Chronicles 1:1. King David's son Solomon was now the undisputed ruler of Israel, for the Lord his God had made him a powerful monarch. 2, 3. He summoned all the army officers and judges to Gibeon as well as all the political and religious leaders of Israel. He led them up to the hill to the old Tabernacle constructed by Moses, the Lord's assistant, while he was in the wilderness. 4. (There was a later Tabernacle in Jerusalem, built by King David for the Ark of God when he removed it from Kiriath-jearim.) 5, 6. The bronze altar made by Bezalel (son of Uri, son of Hur) still stood in front of the old Tabernacle, and now Solomon and those he had invited assembled themselves before it, as he sacrificed upon it 1,000 burnt offerings to the Lord.

7. That night God appeared to Solomon and told him, Ask me for anything, and I will give it to you! 8. Solomon replied, O God, you have been so kind and good to my father David, and now you have given me the kingdom9. this is all I want! For you have fulfilled your promise to David my father and have made me king over a nation as full of people as the earth is full of dust! 10. Now give me wisdom and knowledge to rule them properly, for who is able to govern by himself such a great nation as this one of yours? 11. God replied, Because your greatest desire is to help your people, and you haven-'t asked for personal wealth and honor, and you haven-'t asked me to curse your enemies, and you haven-'t asked for a long life, but for wisdom and knowledge to properly guide my people12. yes, I am giving you the wisdom and knowledge you asked for! And I am also giving you such riches, wealth, and honor as no other king has ever had before you! And there will never again be so great a king in all the world! 13. Solomon then left the Tabernacle, returned down the hill, and went back to Jerusalem to rule Israel.
14. He built up a huge force of 1,400 chariots and recruited 12,000 cavalry to guard the cities where the chariots were garaged, though some, of course, were stationed at Jerusalem near the king. 15. During Solomon's reign, silver and gold were as plentiful in Jerusalem as rocks on the road! And expensive cedar lumber was used like common sycamore! 16. Solomon sent horse-traders to Egypt to purchase entire herds at wholesale prices. 17. At that time Egyptian chariots sold for $400 each and horses for $100, delivered at Jerusalem. Many of these were then resold to the kings of the Hittites and Syria.

COMMENTARY

First and second Chronicles were considered as one book in the Hebrew canon. II Chronicles, chapter 1 concerns itself with the reign of Solomon, a very proper sequel to I Chronicles, chapter 29. 2 Chronicles 1:1 repeats 1 Chronicles 29:25. Jehovah magnified Solomon exceedingly. In the transfer of authority from David to Solomon, the young king had every advantage which would promise a highly successful reign. As the human leader, Solomon was in complete control of the kingdom. All of the captains, judges, and princes gave attention to the king's words. Solomon was about twenty years of age when he became king. The prospects for a great era in Israel's history were exceptionally good. One of Solomon's first official acts was to call a grand assembly of all Israel to meet in Gibeon in Benjamin about five miles north of Jerusalem. At some time prior to this assembly the tabernacle (tent of meeting) had been set up at Gibeon. Everything that pertained to the tabernacle was there at Gibeon except the ark of the covenant which was in Jerusalem.[47] That which seemed so very important at this time in connection with the tabernacle was the altar of burnt offering. Bezalel is named as the one who had constructed the altar. This had been done in Moses-' day at Mount Sinai (Exodus 31:1-11). The high place at Gibeon became very sacred to Solomon. He offered a thousand burnt offerings upon the altar. In spite of all the preparations made for the Temple, Solomon did not begin to build the great building until the fourth year of his reign (1 Kings 6:1). In this period Solomon was often at Gibeon worshiping Jehovah.

[47] Spence, H. D. M., The Pulpit Commentary, II Chronicles, p. 5

On one of these Occasions at Gibeon God appeared to Solomon in a very vivid visitation. Jehovah graciously offered to grant any request Solomon might make. Considering the circumstances and the timing of this proposition, it was a time of real testing for the new king. The promised establishment of the house of David (2 Samuel 7) was a consideration of primary importance. Solomon was very appreciative of Jehovah's blessings and he humbly admitted that he had a most demanding position to fill in behalf of a people who were like the dust of the earth, a great multitude. Solomon's request for wisdom and knowledge revealed his strength of character. Knowledge has to do with any kind of factual information which might come to a person's consciousness. Wisdom is the practical application of knowledge. One acts wisely when he searches for all the facts that pertain to a given subject and decides what to do and say on the basis of what he has learned. On another occasion Solomon said, the fear of Jehovah is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). In order to be able to use all of the resources at his command, the king knew that he had to be humble in his relationship with Jehovah. The king had to move among God's people. His every word and deed would be tested by fire. No mere human being relying upon himself could succeed in this high office. Jehovah knew Solomon's heart and He was pleased at the king's request.

The young king had made his decision and Jehovah did not hesitate to answer. For one in such a place as that in which Solomon found himself the kinds of things he could have requested were without limit. Without regard for others, the king could have acted like the prodigal son in Jesus-' parable. He chose the best way when he asked for wisdom and knowledge for the peoples-' benefit. Jehovah was well pleased. When God gives a person the capacity to know, there is no limit to the dimensions of that consciousness. Is it possible that the wonderful intellectual sensitivity which was Adam's before he sinned is now in large measure given to Solomon by Jehovah's decree? Solomon was to be wise, not by natural endowment, not by diligent study on his own part. Solomon's wisdom was Jehovah's gift to this select person. These unique gifts would bless the king and his people as long as both kept faith with God. If the king and Israel should break covenant, the very life-line with Jehovah would be severed. Riches, wealth, and honor would be Solomon's portion. Even in these matters as a wise king he would use the kingdom's wealth to benefit the citizens and he would find in his personal honor additional opportunity to be Jehovah's humble servant. No king ever enjoyed a more exciting and promising beginning of a reign. In the glow of the sacred experience at Gibeon Solomon climbed the road to Jerusalem and began his reign.
Solomon soon involved himself in establishing chariotry installations in strategic places in the kingdom. Considered from a military standpoint, the horses and chariots were useful, but probably not necessary. Israel was already strong militarily. Fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses imported into Israel would cause some concern in Egypt and other surrounding countries. Egypt became a famous market for horses and chariots. People who lived in Asia Minor and other people who lived in the regions of Syria traded with Egypt. Horses could be purchased more cheaply than chariots. These were days of great prosperity in Israel. Tribute flowed into Solomon's treasury in great abundance. The proverbial expression, gold like stones and cedars like sycamore trees, in an exaggerated way described good days in Israel.