1 Kings 4:12

_BAANA THE SON OF AHILUD; TO HIM PERTAINED TAANACH AND MEGIDDO, AND ALL BETHSHEAN, WHICH IS BY ZARTANAH BENEATH JEZREEL, FROM BETHSHEAN TO ABELMEHOLAH, EVEN UNTO THE PLACE THAT IS BEYOND JOKNEAM:_ Taanach - (see the notes at Joshua 17:11; Judges 5:19.) AND MEGIDDO - (see the notes at 2 Kin. 1:23,29-30 .) AND ALL BETH-SHEAN - (see the notes at 1 Samuel 31:10.) WHICH IS BY ZARTANAH - (1 Kings 7:46, Zarthan.) BENEATH JEZREEL - (1 Kings 18:40.) ABEL-MEHOLAH - ...

1-19 In the choice of the great officers of Solomon's court, no doubt, his wisdom appeared. Several are the same that were in his father's time. A plan was settled by which no part of the country was exhausted to supply his court, though each sent its portion....

On these cities see Joshua 12:21; Joshua 3:16; Judges 7:22; Joshua 21:22....

EXPOSITION SOLOMON'S STATE AND COURT OFFICIALS.—The account of Solomon's marriage and entry upon his religious and judicious functions is appropriately followed by a description of his court, of the great functionaries of the realm, of his royal state and magnificence, and, lastly, of his varied and unprecedented wisdom. It must not be supposed, however, from the occurrence of the lists in this particular place, that they necessarily represent the appointments of the early part of Solomon's reign. The mention of two of the married daughters of the king (1 Kings 4:11, 1 Kings 4:15) has been generally thought to prove that the record belongs to a much later period, and it certainly affords a powerful presumption

BAANA THE SON OF AHILUD, [TO HIM PERTAINED] TAANACH AND MEGIDDO, AND ALL BETHSHEAN,.... All which were places in the tribe of Manasseh, Joshua 17:11; WHICH [IS] BY ZARTANAH BENEATH JEZREEL; so described, to distinguish it, as is thought, from Zaretan in Joshua 3:16; and the country this officer presided over reached also FROM BETHSHEAN TO ABELMEHOLAH, [EVEN] UNTO [THE PLACE THAT IS] BEYOND JOKNEAM; the two first of these were in the tribe of Manasseh, and the last in the tribe of Zebulun, Joshua 19:11....

3. SOLOMON'S PRINCES AND OFFICERS THE PROSPEROUS KINGDOM AND THE KING'S GREAT WISDOM CHAPTER 4 _ 1. The Princes (1 Kings 4:1)_ 2. The Officers (1 Kings 4:7) 3. The prosperous kingdom (1 Kings 4:20) 4. Solomon's great wisdom (1 Kings 4:29) “So King Solomon was king over all Israel.” A list of the princes and the twelve officers is given first. Their names fit in perfectly with the character of the kingdom, foreshadowing the coming and better kingdom of our Lord. We give the names of the princes with their meaning. Azariah, “Jehovah is help”; Elihoreph, “my God is reward”; Ahiah, “Brother of Jeho

1 KINGS 3:1 TO 1 KINGS 4:34. EARLY DAYS, REIGN, AND WISDOM OF SOLOMON. The sources of this section are various, and the arrangement of the narrative in the LXX should be noticed. There are (_a_) a statistical account of Solomon s reign, referred to, apparently in 1 Kings 11:41, as the book of the acts of Solomon; (_b_) a number of narratives about this reign; (_c_) several Deuteronomic additions_ e.g._ 1 Kings 3:6; 1 Kings 3:14, etc.: and (_d_) some very late passages, possibly originally explanatory notes. The history of Solomon's reign

ABEL-MEHOLAH. The country of Elisha (1 Kings 19:16; 1 Kings 19:21). Compare Judges 7:22....

_Baana the son of Ahilud_ Probably the brother of Jehoshaphat the recorder mentioned in 1 Kings 4:3. _Taanach and Megiddo_ These places are both inland to the east of Dor, Megiddo being a little north of Taanach which lies in the valley of Esdraelon. Cf. Judges 5:19 -Taanach by the waters of Megiddo." _Beth-shean_is still further east nearer to the Jordan, and _Zartanah_is no doubt Zarethan or Zarthan (Joshua 3:16), which must have been close to the Jordan. _Abel-meholah_is south from Beth-shean in the Jordan valley. The name _Jokneam_should be, on the authority both of Hebrew, Septuagint and Vulgate, written _Jokmeam_. This place is mentioned...

B. THE FINANCIAL OFFICERS 4:7-20 TRANSLATION (7) And Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, and they supplied provisions for the king and his household; a month in the year it fell upon one to make provision. (8) And these are their names: The son of Hur in Mt. Ephraim; (9) the son of Dekar, in Makaz, Shaalbin, Beth-shemesh, and Elon-bethhanan; (10) the son of Hesed, in Aruboth (he had charge of Sochoh and all the land of Hepher); (11) the son of Abinadab, in all the region of Dor (Taphath the daughter of Solomon was his wife); (12) Baana the son of AhiludTaanach, Megiddo and all Beth-shean which is by Zartanah beneath Jezreel from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah unto beyond Jokneam; (13) the son of Geber, in Ramoth-gilead who had charge of the towns of Jair, the son of Manasseh which are in Gilead and the region of Argob which is in Bashansixty great cities with walls and bronze bars:...