1 Kings 10:15

_BESIDE THAT HE HAD OF THE MERCHANTMEN, AND OF THE TRAFFICK OF THE SPICE MERCHANTS, AND OF ALL THE KINGS OF ARABIA, AND OF THE GOVERNORS OF THE COUNTRY._ GOVERNORS - х_ PACHOWT_ (H6346). The Septuagint renders it by: satrapoon]. 'Is this a foreign word, having a Semitic status constructus, and the plural pachoth? The word pechah is remarkable from its early reception into Hebrew, having become a title of some "governors" in Solomon's outlying dominions. For in that they are mentioned both here and 2 Chronicles 9:14, in union with the kings of "Arabia," as persons who supplied a yearly quantity of gold in addition to his regular revenue, and this in connection with that derived from the merchants, it is in itself probable that "the pachoth of the land" were governors set over the outlying country beyond Judea proper, (cf.

14-29 Solomon increased his wealth. Silver was nothing accounted of. Such is the nature of worldly wealth, plenty of it makes it the less valuable; much more should the enjoyment of spiritual riches lessen our esteem of all earthly possessions. If gold in abundance makes silver to be despised, shall not wisdom, and grace, and the foretastes of heaven, which are far better than gold, make gold to be lightly esteemed? See in Solomon's greatness the performance of God's promise, and let it encourage us to seek first the righteousness of God's kingdom. This was he, who, having tasted all earthly enjoyments, wrote a book, to show the vanity of all worldly things, the vexation of spirit that attends them, and the folly of setting our hearts upon them: and to recommend serious godliness, as that which will do unspeakably more to make us happy, that all the wealth and power he was master of; and...

There is no mention in the original of “spice merchants.” Two classes of traders are spoken of; but both expressions are general. KINGS OF ARABIA - Rather, “kings of the mingled people” (compare Jeremiah 25:24). These were probably tribes half Jewish, half Arabian, on the borders of the western desert. They are regarded as Arabs by the author of Chronicles (marginal reference). GOVERNORS - The word used here is thought to be of Aryan origin. It appears to have been a title given by the Persians to petty governors, inferior to the great satraps of provinces. We find it borne by, among others, Tatnai Ezra 5:6, Zerubbabel Haggai 1:1

EXPOSITION SOLOMON'S WEALTH, POMP, AND POWER. The visit of the Queen of Sheba, in itself a striking proof of the fame and greatness of Solomon, is followed by a description of his revenues, his throne, and various other particulars of his wealth and magnificence, some of which are related here because they were the products of the voyages of that same fleet which had been the means of acquainting the queen with Solomon and his glory. 1 KINGS 10:14 NOW THE WEIGHT OF GOLD THAT CAME TO SOLOMON IN ONE YEAR [probably one particular and exceptional year, probably also the year of the queen's visit, not year by year (Wordsworth, _al_.),_ _as the Vulgate (_per singulos annos_)._ _One fleet only came home from

BESIDES THAT HE HAD OF THE MERCHANTMEN, AND OF THE TRAFFIC OF THE SPICE MERCHANTS,.... What they paid him as a duty or custom for the importation of their goods: AND OF ALL THE KINGS OF ARABIA; who were subject to him, and paid him a yearly tribute, or at least made presents, see 1 Kings 4:21 AND OF THE GOVERNORS OF THE COUNTRY; who were viceroys or deputy governors of countries conquered by his father, and who collected tribute from the people, and paid it to him....

6. SOLOMON AND THE QUEEN OF SHEBA: HIS GREAT RICHES AND SPLENDOUR CHAPTER 10 _ 1. The visit of the Queen (1 Kings 10:1)_ 2. Solomon's enormous wealth (1 Kings 10:14) 3. the targets and shields (1 Kings 10:16) 4. The ivory throne (1 Kings 10:18) 5. The abundance of gold and the depreciation of silver (1 Kings 10:21) 6. The greatest living monarch (1 Kings 10:23) 7. His chariots and hors

1 KINGS 10. VISIT OF THE QUEEN OF SHEBA. By Sheba or Saba a district in S. Arabia is meant. The Sabæ ans were known to the Israelites as exporters of gold (Isaiah 60:6; Psalms 72:15); Ezekiel (Ezekiel 27:23) says that they dealt extensively with Tyre. In Job (Job 1:15; Job 6:19), they are represented as marauders. The civilisation of Arabia was considerable, and much light has been thrown on it by scholars like Hommel and Glaser. Our Lord calls the queen of Sheba the queen of the south (Mat

_beside_that he had _of the merchantmen_ There are two kinds of traders specified in this verse, and the participle here used to describe the first signifies -those who go about" with their goods, hawkers of their wares, which is a general characteristic of Oriental traffickers. Hence in R.V. the word CHAPMEN has been adopted, and the clause a little differently worded. Literally it is, -beside (what came) from the men of the hawkers," and this is represented by -beside _that which_the chapmen _brought_," though the literal rendering shews that -brought" might fairly have been printed in Roman and not in italics. The LXX. gives, apparently having read some other words in the original, -from the tribute of the subject people." _and_of _the traffick of the_spice _merchants_ A mistaken identification of the word descriptive of this second class of traders with a Syrian noun which means -a d...

III. INDICATIONS OF SOLOMON'S GLORY 10:14-29 The account of the visit of the queen of Sheba is followed by a description of Solomon's revenues, his throne, and various other particulars of his wealth and magnificence. These notices are a continuation of 1 Kings 9:23-28 from which they have been separated by the queen of Sheba narrative. There is no inkling of criticism in these notices. On the contrary, it was probably the intent of the author to emphasize the fulfillment of the promise to Solomon (1 Kings 3:13) that he would be given riches and honor in addition to wisdom. In this section the author discusses (1) Solomon's enormous gold revenues (1 Kings 10:14-21); and (2) his wealth in substance ot

SOLOMON AND THE QUEEN OF SHEBA 1. Sheba] the Sheba of Genesis 10:28 (in Arabia), not of Genesis 10:7 (in Africa). Arabia seems frequently to have been ruled by queens; more than one is mentioned in the Assyrian inscriptions. If Ophir was in Arabia (see on 1 Kings 9:28), it may have been through the traders at that port that the queen here alluded to had heard of Solomon. HARD QUESTIONS] These were probably of the nature of puzzles or riddles, the same word being used of Samson's riddle (Judges 14:12). Legend relates that one of the puzzles that Solomon was set to solve was how to distinguish between a bunch of natural and