1 Kings 10:26

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...

Verse 26. _HE HAD A THOUSAND AND FOUR HUNDRED CHARIOTS_] 1 Kings 4:26....

See 1 Kings 4:26 note. Until the time of Solomon, war-chariots had not been in use among the Jews, except to a very small extent 1 Chronicles 18:4. Hence, it was necessary for him to put himself on an equality in this respect with neighboring powers. CITIES FOR CHARIOTS - They were probably fortresses upon the borders of his territory, in which he maintained the standing army necessary for the support of his dominion....

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

AND SOLOMON GATHERED TOGETHER CHARIOTS AND HORSEMEN,.... Both for war; for though it was a time of peace, he provided against the worst, lest an enemy should come upon him suddenly, and when unprepared: AND HE HAD ONE THOUSAND AND FOUR HUNDRED CHARIOTS, AND TWELVE THOUSAND HORSEMEN; of the latter 1 Kings 4:26 WHOM HE BESTOWED IN THE CITIES FOR CHARIOTS, AND WITH THE KING AT JERUSALEM; some of the horsemen were quartered in the cities where the chariots were placed, and some of them in Jerusalem, to be near the king's person, and to be a guard to him on occasion. Josephus f says, half of them were in Jerusalem about the king, and the rest were dispersed through the king's villages. f Antiqu l. 8. c. 2. sect. 4....

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

_And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen_ By reason, as Josephus tells us, of the great number of horses which were brought to him in these yearly offerings. The word פרשׁ (_parash_) here rendered -horsemen" means both the horse for riding and the rider. Just as we speak of so many hundred -horse". סוס (_sus_) on the other hand was the draught horse. Here we find the first institution of cavalry in Israel in defiance of the Deuteronomic law. If this book was compiled after Deuteronomy was written we should expect some reference to this violation. There is such a reference about another matter in 1 Kings 11:2. _a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen_ The LXX. gives for the first clause -four thousand mares for his chariots," which agrees as far as the number is concerned with...

B. SOLOMON'S OTHER WEALTH 10:22-29 TRANSLATION (22) For the king had a Tarshish fleet in the sea with the fleet of Hiram; once in three years the Tarshish fleet came, bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes and baboons. (23) So King Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for wealth and wisdom. (24) And all the earth sought the face of Solomon to hear his wisdom which God had put in his heart. (25) And each one brought his presentvessels of silver and vessels of gold, garments, and myrrh and spices, horses and mules at an annual rate. (26) And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen, and he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen; and he stationed[283] them in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. (27) And the king made silver in Jerusalem like stones, and cedar trees he made abundant to be like sycamore trees which are in the lowland. (28) And the horses w...

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