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The Works of Flavius Josephus
Antiquities of the Jews
book VIIi
FROM THE DEATH OF DAVID TO THE DEATH OF AHAB
Translated by William Whiston
CHAPTER 1.
HOW SOLOMON, WHEN HE HAD RECEIVED THE KINGDOM TOOK OFF HIS
ENEMIES.
1. WE have already treated of David, and his virtue, and of the benefits
he was the author of to his countrymen; of his wars also and battles, which
he managed with success, and then died an old man, in the foregoing book.
And when Solomon his son, who was but a youth in age, had taken the kingdom,
and whom David had declared, while he was alive, the lord of that people,
according to God's will; when he sat upon the throne, the whole body of
the people made joyful acclamations to him, as is usual at the beginning
of a reign; and wished that all his affairs might come to a blessed conclusion;
and that he might arrive at a great age, and at the most happy state of
affairs possible.
2. But Adonijah, who, while his father was living, attempted to gain
possession of the government, came to the king's mother Bathsheba, and
saluted her with great civility; and when she asked him, whether he came
to her as desiring her assistance in any thing or not, and bade him tell
her if that were the case, for that she would cheerfully afford it him;
he began to say, that she knew herself that the kingdom was his, both
on account of his elder age, and of the disposition of the multitude, and
that yet it was transferred to Solomon her son, according to the will of
God. He also said that he was contented to be a servant under him, and
was pleased with the present settlement; but he desired her to be a means
of obtaining a favor from his brother to him, and to persuade him to bestow
on him in marriage Abishag, who had indeed slept by his father, but, because
his father was too old, he did not lie with her, and she was still a virgin.
So Bathsheba promised him to afford him her assistance very earnestly,
and to bring this marriage about, because the king would be willing to
gratify him in such a thing, and because she would press it to him very
earnestly. Accordingly he went away in hopes of succeeding in this match.
So Solomon's mother went presently to her son, to speak to him about what
she had promised, upon Adonijah's supplication to her. And when her son
came forward to meet her, and embraced her, and when he had brought her
into the house where his royal throne was set, he sat thereon, and bid
them set another throne on the right hand for his mother. When Bathsheba
was set down, she said, "O my son, grant me one request that
I desire of thee, and do not any thing to me that is disagreeable or ungrateful,
which thou wilt do if thou deniest me." And when Solomon bid her to
lay her commands upon him, because it was agreeable to his duty to grant
her every thing she should ask, and complained that she did not
at first begin her discourse with a firm expectation of obtaining what
she desired, but had some suspicion of a denial, she entreated him to grant
that his brother Adonijah might marry Abishag.
3. But the king was greatly offended at these words, and sent away his
mother, and said that Adonijah aimed at great things; and that he wondered
that she did not desire him to yield up the kingdom to him, as to his elder
brother, since she desired that he might marry Abishag; and that he had
potent friends, Joab the captain of the host, and Abiathar the priest.
So he called for Benaiah, the captain of the guards, and ordered him to
slay his brother Adonijah. He also called for Abiathar the priest, and
said to him, "I will not put thee to death because of those other
hardships which thou hast endured with my father, and because of the ark
which thou hast borne along with him; but I inflict this following punishment
upon thee, because thou wast among Adonijah's followers, and wast of his
party. Do not thou continue here, nor come any more into my sight, but
go to thine own town, and live on thy own fields, and there abide all thy
life; for thou hast offended so greatly, that it is not just that thou
shouldst retain thy dignity any longer." For the forementioned cause,
therefore, it was that the house of Ithamar was deprived of the sacerdotal
dignity, as God had foretold to Eli, the grandfather of Abiathar. So it
was transferred to the family of Phineas, to Zadok. Now those that were
of the family of Phineas, but lived privately during the time that the
high priesthood was transferred to the house of Ithamar, (of which family
Eli was the first that received it,)were these that follow: Bukki, the
son of Abishua the high priest; his son was Joatham; Joatham's son was
Meraioth; Meraioth's son was Arophseus; Aropheus's son was Ahitub; and
Ahitub's son was Zadok, who was first made high priest in the reign of
David.
4. Now when Joab the captain of the host heard of the slaughter of Adonijah,
he was greatly afraid, for he was a greater friend to him than to Solomon;
and suspecting, not without reason, that he was in danger, on account of
his favor to Adonijah, he fled to the altar, and supposed he might procure
safety thereby to himself, because of the king's piety towards God. But
when some told the king what Joab's supposal was, he sent Benaiah, and
commanded him to raise him up from the altar, and bring him to the judgment-seat,
in order to make his defense. However, Joab said he would not leave the
altar, but would die there rather than in another place. And when Benaiah
had reported his answer to the king, Solomon commanded him to cut off his
head there
(1)
and let him take that as a punishment for those two captains of the host
whom he had wickedly slain, and to bury his body, that his sins might
never leave his family, but that himself and his father, by Joab's death,
might be guiltless. And when Benaiah had done what he was commanded to
do, he was himself appointed to be captain of the whole army. The king
also made Zadok to be alone the high priest, in the room of Abiathar, whom
he had removed.
5. But as to Shimei, Solomon commanded that he should build him a house,
and stay at Jerusalem, and attend upon him, and should not have authority
to go over the brook Cedron; and that if he disobeyed that command, death
should be his punishment. He also threatened him so terribly, that he compelled
him to take all oath that he would obey. Accordingly Shimei said that he
had reason to thank Solomon for giving him such an injunction; and added
an oath, that he would do as he bade him; and leaving his own country,
he made his abode in Jerusalem. But three years afterwards, when he heard
that two of his servants were run away from him, and were in Gath, he went
for his servants in haste; and when he was come back with them, the king
perceived it, and was much displeased that he had contemned his commands,
and, what was more, had no regard to the oaths he had sworn to God; so
he called him, and said to him, "Didst not thou swear never to leave
me, nor to go out of this city to another? Thou shalt not therefore escape
punishment for thy perjury, but I will punish thee, thou wicked wretch,
both for this crime, and for those wherewith thou didst abuse my father
when he was in his flight, that thou mayst know that wicked men gain nothing
at last, although they be not punished immediately upon their unjust practices;
but that in all the time wherein they think themselves secure, because
they have yet suffered nothing, their punishment increases, and is heavier
upon them, and that to a greater degree than if they had been punished
immediately upon the commission of their crimes." So Benaiah, on the
king's command, slew Shimei.
CHAPTER 2.
CONCERNING THE WIFE OF SOLOMON; CONCERNING HIS WISDOM AND
RICHES; AND CONCERNING WHAT HE OBTAINED OF HIRAM FOR THE BUILDING OF THE
TEMPLE.
1. SOLOMON having already settled himself firmly in his kingdom, and
having brought his enemies to punishment, he married the daughter of Pharaoh
king of Egypt, and built the walls of Jerusalem much larger and stronger
than those that had been before,
(2)
and thenceforward he managed public affairs very peaceably. Nor was his
youth any hinderance in the exercise of justice, or in the observation
of the laws, or in the remembrance of what charges his father had given
him at his death; but he discharged every duty with great accuracy, that
might have been expected from such as are aged, and of the greatest prudence.
He now resolved to go to Hebron, and sacrifice to God upon the brazen altar
that was built by Moses. Accordingly he offered there burnt-offerings,
in number a thousand; and when he had done this, he thought he had paid
great honor to God; for as he was asleep that very night God appeared to
him, and commanded him to ask of him some gifts which he was ready to give
him as a reward for his piety. So Solomon asked of God what was most excellent,
and of the greatest worth in itself, what God would bestow with the greatest.
joy, and what it was most profitable for man to receive; for he
did not desire to have bestowed upon him either gold or silver, or any
other riches, as a man and a youth might naturally have done, for these
are the things that generally are esteemed by most men, as alone of the
greatest worth, and the best gifts of God; but, said he, "Give me,
O Lord, a sound mind, and a good understanding, whereby I may speak and
judge the people according to truth and righteousness." With these
petitions God was well pleased; and promised to give him all those things
that he had not mentioned in his option, riches, glory, victory over his
enemies; and, in the first place, understanding and wisdom, and this in
such a degree as no other mortal man, neither kings nor ordinary persons,
ever had. He also promised to preserve the kingdom to his posterity for
a very long time, if he continued righteous and obedient to him, and imitated
his father in those things wherein he excelled. When Solomon heard this
from God, he presently leaped out of his bed; and when he had worshipped
him, he returned to Jerusalem; and after he had offered great sacrifices
before the tabernacle, he feasted all his own family.
2. In these days a hard cause came before him in judgment, which it
was very difficult to find any end of; and I think it necessary to explain
the fact about which the contest was, that such as light upon my writings
may know what a difficult cause Solomon was to determine, and those that
are concerned in such matters may take this sagacity of the king for a
pattern, that they may the more easily give sentence about such questions.
There were two women, who were harlots in the course of their lives, that
came to him; of whom she that seemed to be injured began to speak first,
and said, "O king, I and this other woman dwell together in one room.
Now it came to pass that we both bore a son at the same hour of the same
day; and on the third day this woman overlaid her son, and killed it, and
then took my son out of my bosom, and removed him to herself, and as I
was asleep she laid her dead son in my arms. Now, when in the morning I
was desirous to give the breast to the child, I did not find my own, but
saw the woman's dead child lying by me; for I considered it exactly, and
found it so to be. Hence it was that I demanded my son, and when I could
not obtain him, I have recourse, my lord, to thy assistance; for since
we were alone, and there was nobody there that could convict her, she cares
for nothing, but perseveres in the stout denial of the fact." When
this woman had told this her story, the king asked the other woman what
she had to say in contradiction to that story. But when she denied that
she had done what was charged upon her, and said that it was her child
that was living, and that it was her antagonist's child that was dead,
and when no one could devise what judgment could be given, and the whole
court were blind in their understanding, and could not tell how to find
out this riddle, the king alone invented the following way how to discover
it. He bade them bring in both the dead child and the living child; and
sent one of his guards, and commanded him to fetch a sword, and draw it,
and to cut both the children into two pieces, that each of the women might
have half the living and half the dead child. Hereupon all the people privately
laughed at the king, as no more than a youth. But, in the mean time, she
that was the real mother of the living child cried out that he should not
do so, but deliver that child to the other woman as her own, for she would
be satisfied with the life of the child, and with the sight of it, although
it were esteemed the other's child; but the other woman was ready to see
the child divided, and was desirous, moreover, that the first woman should
be tormented. When the king understood that both their words proceeded
from the truth of their passions, he adjudged the child to her that cried
out to save it, for that she was the real mother of it; and he condemned
the other as a wicked woman, who had not only killed her own child, but
was endeavoring to see her friend's child destroyed also. Now the multitude
looked on this determination as a great sign and demonstration of the king's
sagacity and wisdom, and after that day attended to him as to one that
had a divine mind.
3. Now the captains of his armies, and officers appointed over the whole
country, were these: over the lot of Ephraim was Ures; over the toparchy
of Bethlehem was Dioclerus; Abinadab, who married Solomon's daughter, had
the region of Dora and the sea-coast under him; the Great Plain was under
Benaiah, the son of Achilus; he also governed all the country as far as
Jordan; Gabaris ruled over Gilead and Gaulanitis, and had under him the
sixty great and fenced cities [of Og]; Achinadab managed the affairs of
all Galilee as far as Sidon, and had himself also married a daughter of
Solomon's, whose name was Basima; Banacates had the seacoast about Arce;
as had Shaphat Mount Tabor, and Carmel, and [the Lower] Galilee, as far
as the river Jordan; one man was appointed over all this country; Shimei
was intrusted with the lot of Benjamin; and Gabares had the country beyond
Jordan, over whom there was again one governor appointed. Now the people
of the Hebrews, and particularly the tribe of Judah, received a wonderful
increase when they betook themselves to husbandry, and the cultivation
of their grounds; for as they enjoyed peace, and were not distracted with
wars and troubles, and having, besides, an abundant fruition of the most
desirable liberty, every one was busy in augmenting the product of their
own lands, and making them worth more than they had formerly been.
4. The king had also other rulers, who were over the land of Syria and
of the Philistines, which reached from the river Euphrates to Egypt, and
these collected his tributes of the nations. Now these contributed to the
king's table, and to his supper every day
(3)
thirty cori of fine flour, and sixty of meal; as also ten fat oxen, and
twenty oxen out of the pastures, and a hundred fat lambs; all these were
besides what were taken by hunting harts and buffaloes, and birds and fishes,
which were brought to the king by foreigners day by day. Solomon had also
so great a number of chariots, that the stalls of his horses for those
chariots were forty thousand; and besides these he had twelve thousand
horsemen, the one half of which waited upon the king in Jerusalem, and
the rest were dispersed abroad, and dwelt in the royal villages; but the
same officer who provided for the king's expenses supplied also the fodder
for the horses, and still carried it to the place where the king abode
at that time.
5. Now the sagacity and wisdom which God had bestowed on Solomon was
so great, that he exceeded the ancients; insomuch that he was no way inferior
to the Egyptians, who are said to have been beyond all men in understanding;
nay, indeed, it is evident that their sagacity was very much inferior to
that of the king's. He also excelled and distinguished himself in wisdom
above those who were most eminent among the Hebrews at that time for shrewdness;
those I mean were Ethan, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of
Mahol. He also composed books of odes and songs a thousand and five, of
parables and similitudes three thousand; for he spake a parable upon every
sort of tree, from the hyssop to the cedar; and in like manner also about
beasts, about all sorts of living creatures, whether upon the earth, or
in the seas, or in the air; for he was not unacquainted with any of their
natures, nor omitted inquiries about them, but described them all like
a philosopher, and demonstrated his exquisite knowledge of their several
properties. God also enabled him to learn that skill which expels demons,
(4) which
is a science useful and sanative to men. He composed such incantations
also by which distempers are alleviated. And he left behind him the manner
of using exorcisms, by which they drive away demons, so that they never
return; and this method of cure is of great force unto this day; for I
have seen a certain man of my own country, whose name was Eleazar, releasing
people that were demoniacal in the presence of Vespasian, and his sons,
and his captains, and the whole multitude of his soldiers. The manner of
the cure was this: He put a ring that had a Foot of one of those sorts
mentioned by Solomon to the nostrils of the demoniac, after which he drew
out the demon through his nostrils; and when the man fell down immediately,
he abjured him to return into him no more, making still mention of Solomon,
and reciting the incantations which he composed. And when Eleazar would
persuade and demonstrate to the spectators that he had such a power, he
set a little way off a cup or basin full of water, and commanded the demon,
as he went out of the man, to overturn it, and thereby to let the spectators
know that he had left the man; and when this was done, the skill and wisdom
of Solomon was shown very manifestly: for which reason it is, that all
men may know the vastness of Solomon's abilities, and how he was beloved
of God, and that the extraordinary virtues of every kind with which this
king was endowed may not be unknown to any people under the sun for this
reason, I say, it is that we have proceeded to speak so largely of these
matters.
6. Moreover Hiram, king of Tyre, when he had heard that Solonion succeeded
to his father's kingdom, was very glad of it, for he was a friend of David's.
So he sent ambassadors to him, and saluted him, and congratulated him on
the present happy state of his affairs. Upon which Solomon sent him an
epistle, the contents of which here follow:
SOLOMON TO KING HIRAM.
"(5)Know
thou that my father would have built a temple to God, but was hindered
by wars, and continual expeditions; for he did not leave off to overthrow
his enemies till he made them all subject to tribute. But I give thanks
to God for the peace I at present enjoy, and on that account I am at leisure,
and design to build a house to God, for God foretold to my father that
such a house should he built by me; wherefore I desire thee to send some
of thy subjects with mine to Mount Lebanon to cut down timber, for the
Sidonians are more skillful than our people in cutting of wood. As for
wages to the hewers of wood, I will pay whatsoever price thou shalt determine."
7. When Hiram had read this epistle, he was pleased with it; and wrote
back this answer to Solomon.
HIRAM TO KING SOLOMON.
"It is fit to bless God that he hath committed thy father's government
to thee, who art a wise man, and endowed with all virtues. As for myself,
I rejoice at the condition thou art in, and will be subservient to thee
in all that thou sendest to me about; for when by my subjects I have cut
down many and large trees of cedar and cypress wood, I will send them to
sea, and will order my subjects to make floats of them, and to sail to
what place soever of thy country thou shalt desire, and leave them there,
after which thy subjects may carry them to Jerusalem. But do thou take
care to procure us corn for this timber, which we stand in need of, because
we inhabit in an island." (6)
8. The copies of these epistles remain at this day, and are preserved
not only in our books, but among the Tyrians also; insomuch that if any
one would know the certainty about them, he may desire of the keepers of
the public records of Tyre to show him them, and he will find what is there
set down to agree with what we have said. I have said so much out of a
desire that my readers may know that we speak nothing but the truth, and
do not compose a history out of some plausible relations, which deceive
men and please them at the same time, nor attempt to avoid examination,
nor desire men to believe us immediately; nor are we at liberty to depart
from speaking truth, which is the proper commendation of an historian,
and yet be blameless: but we insist upon no admission of what we say, unless
we be able to manifest its truth by demonstration, and the strongest vouchers.
9. Now king Solomon, as soon as this epistle of the king of Tyre was
brought him, commended the readiness and good-will he declared therein,
and repaid him in what he desired, and sent him yearly twenty thousand
cori of wheat, and as many baths of oil: now the bath is able to contain
seventy-two sextaries. He also sent him the same measure of wine. So the
friendship between Hiram and Solomon hereby increased more and more; and
they swore to continue it for ever. And the king appointed a tribute to
be laid on all the people, of thirty thousand laborers, whose work he rendered
easy to them by prudently dividing it among them; for he made ten thousand
cut timber in Mount Lebanon for one month; and then to come home, and rest
two months, until the time when the other twenty thousand had finished
their task at the appointed time; and so afterward it came to pass that
the first ten thousand returned to their work every fourth month: and it
was Adoram who was over this tribute. There were also of the strangers
who were left by David, who were to carry the stones and other materials,
seventy thousand; and of those that cut the stones, eighty thousand. Of
these three thousand and three hundred were rulers over the rest. He also
enjoined them to cut out large stones for the foundations of the temple,
and that they should fit them and unite them together in the mountain,
and so bring them to the city. This was done not only by our own country
workmen, but by those workmen whom Hiram sent also.
CHAPTER 3.
OF THE BUILDING OF THIS TEMPLE
1. SOLOMON began to build the temple in the fourth year of his reign,
on the second month, which the Macedonians call Artemisius, and
the Hebrews Jur, five hundred and ninety-two years after the Exodus
out of Egypt; but one thousand and twenty years from Abraham's coming out
of Mesopotamia into Canaan, and after the deluge one thousand four hundred
and forty years; and from Adam, the first man who was created, until Solomon
built the temple, there had passed in all three thousand one hundred and
two years. Now that year on which the temple began to be built was already
the eleventh year of the reign of Hiram; but from the building of Tyre
to the building of the temple, there had passed two hundred and forty years.
2. Now, therefore, the king laid the foundations of the temple very
deep in the ground, and the materials were strong stones, and such as would
resist the force of time; these were to unite themselves with the earth,
and become a basis and a sure foundation for that superstructure which
was to be erected over it; they were to be so strong, in order to sustain
with ease those vast superstructures and precious ornaments, whose own
weight was to be not less than the weight of those other high and heavy
buildings which the king designed to be very ornamental and magnificent.
They erected its entire body, quite up to the roof, of white stone; its
height was sixty cubits, and its length was the same, and its breadth twenty.
There was another building erected over it, equal to it in its measures;
so that the entire altitude of the temple was a hundred and twenty cubits.
Its front was to the east. As to the porch, they built it before the temple;
its length was twenty cubits, and it was so ordered that it might agree
with the breadth of the house; and it had twelve cubits in latitude, and
its height was raised as high as a hundred and twenty cubits. He also built
round about the temple thirty small rooms, which might include the whole
temple, by their closeness one to another, and by their number and outward
position round it. He also made passages through them, that they might
come into on through another. Every one of these rooms had five cubits
in breadth,
(7)
and the same in length, but in height twenty. Above these there were other
rooms, and others above them, equal, both in their measures and number;
so that these reached to a height equal to the lower part of the house;
for the upper part had no buildings about it. The roof that was over the
house was of cedar; and truly every one of these rooms had a roof of their
own, that was not connected with the other rooms; but for the other parts,
there was a covered roof common to them all, and built with very long beams,
that passed through the rest, and rough the whole building, that so the
middle walls, being strengthened by the same beams of timber, might be
thereby made firmer: but as for that part of the roof that was under the
beams, it was made of the same materials, and was all made smooth, and
had ornaments proper for roofs, and plates of gold nailed upon them. And
as he enclosed the walls with boards of cedar, so he fixed on them plates
of gold, which had sculptures upon them; so that the whole temple shined,
and dazzled the eyes of such as entered, by the splendor of the gold that
was on every side of them, Now the whole structure of the temple was made
with great skill of polished stones, and those laid together so very harmoniously
and smoothly, that there appeared to the spectators no sign of any hammer,
or other instrument of architecture; but as if, without any use of them,
the entire materials had naturally united themselves together, that the
agreement of one part with another seemed rather to have been natural,
than to have arisen from the force of tools upon them. The king also had
a fine contrivance for an ascent to the upper room over the temple, and
that was by steps in the thickness of its wall; for it had no large door
on the east end, as the lower house had, but the entrances were by the
sides, through very small doors. He also overlaid the temple, both within
and without, with boards of cedar, that were kept close together by thick
chains, so that this contrivance was in the nature of a support and a strength
to the building.
3. Now when the king had divided the temple into two parts, he made
the inner house of twenty cubits [every way], to be the most secret chamber,
but he appointed that of forty cubits to be the sanctuary; and when he
had cut a door-place out of the wall, he put therein doors of Cedar, and
overlaid them with a great deal of gold, that had sculptures upon it. He
also had veils of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and the brightest and
softest linen, with the most curious flowers wrought upon them, which were
to be drawn before those doors. He also dedicated for the most secret place,
whose breadth was twenty cubits, and length the same, two cherubims of
solid gold; the height of each of them was five cubits
(8)
they had each of them two wings stretched out as far as five cubits; wherefore
Solomon set them up not far from each other, that with one wing they might
touch the southern wall of the secret place, and with another the northern:
their other wings, which joined to each other, were a covering to the ark,
which was set between them; but nobody can tell, or even conjecture, what
was the shape of these cherubims. He also laid the floor of the temple
with plates of gold; and he added doors to the gate of the temple, agreeable
to the measure of the height of the wall, but in breadth twenty cubits,
and on them he glued gold plates. And, to say all in one word, he left
no part of the temple, neither internal nor external, but what was covered
with gold. He also had curtains drawn over these doors in like manner as
they were drawn over the inner doors of the most holy place; but the porch
of the temple had nothing of that sort.
4. Now Solomon sent for an artificer out of Tyre, whose name was Hiram;
he was by birth of the tribe of Naphtali, on the mother's side, (for she
was of that tribe,) but his father was Ur, of the stock of the Israelites.
This man was skillful in all sorts of work; but his chief skill lay in
working in gold, and silver, and brass; by whom were made all the mechanical
works about the temple, according to the will of Solomon. Moreover, this
Hiram made two [hollow] pillars, whose outsides were of brass, and the
thickness of the brass was four fingers' breadth, and the height of the
pillars was eighteen cubits and their circumference twelve cubits; but
there was cast with each of their chapiters lily-work that stood upon the
pillar, and it was elevated five cubits, round about which there was net-work
interwoven with small palms, made of brass, and covered the lily-work.
To this also were hung two hundred pomegranates, in two rows. The one of
these pillars he set at the entrance of the porch on the right hand, and
called it Jachin
(9)
and the other at the left hand, and called it Booz.
5. Solomon also cast a brazen sea, whose figure was that of a hemisphere.
This brazen vessel was called a sea for its largeness, for the laver
was ten feet in diameter, and cast of the thickness of a palm. Its middle
part rested on a short pillar that had ten spirals round it, and that pillar
was ten cubits in diameter. There stood round about it twelve oxen, that
looked to the four winds of heaven, three to each wind, having their hinder
parts depressed, that so the hemispherical vessel might rest upon them,
which itself was also depressed round about inwardly. Now this sea contained
three thousand baths.
6. He also made ten brazen bases for so many quadrangular lavers; the
length of every one of these bases was five cubits, and the breadth four
cubits, and the height six cubits. This vessel was partly turned, and was
thus contrived: There were four small quadrangular pillars that stood one
at each corner; these had the sides of the base fitted to them on each
quarter; they were parted into three parts; every interval had a border
fitted to support [the laver]; upon which was engraven, in one place a
lion, and in another place a bull, and an eagle. The small pillars had
the same animals engraven that were engraven on the sides. The whole work
was elevated, and stood upon four wheels, which were also cast, which had
also naves and felloes, and were a foot and a half in diameter. Any one
who saw the spokes of the wheels, how exactly they were turned, and united
to the sides of the bases, and with what harmony they agreed to the felloes,
would wonder at them. However, their structure was this: Certain shoulders
of hands stretched out held the corners above, upon which rested a short
spiral pillar, that lay under the hollow part of the laver, resting upon
the fore part of the eagle and the lion, which were adapted to them, insomuch
that those who viewed them would think they were of one piece: between
these were engravings of palm trees. This was the construction of the ten
bases. He also made ten large round brass vessels, which were the lavers
themselves, each of which contained forty baths;
(10)
for it had its height four cubits, and its edges were as much distant from
each other. He also placed these lavers upon the ten bases that were called
Mechonoth; and he set five of the lavers on the left side of the temple
(11) which
was that side towards the north wind, and as many on the right side, towards
the south, but looking towards the east; the same [eastern] way he also
set the sea Now he appointed the sea to be for washing the hands and the
feet of the priests, when they entered into the temple and were to ascend
the altar, but the lavers to cleanse the entrails of the beasts that were
to be burnt-offerings, with their feet also.
7. He also made a brazen altar, whose length was twenty cubits, and
its breadth the same, and its height ten, for the burnt-offerings. He also
made all its vessels of brass, the pots, and the shovels, and the basons;
and besides these, the snuffers and the tongs, and all its other vessels,
he made of brass, and such brass as was in splendor and beauty like gold.
The king also dedicated a great number of tables, but one that was large
and made of gold, upon which they set the loaves of God; and he made ten
thousand more that resembled them, but were done after another manner,
upon which lay the vials and the cups; those of gold were twenty thousand,
those of silver were forty thousand. He also made ten thousand candlesticks,
according to the command of Moses, one of which he dedicated for the temple,
that it might burn in the day time, according to the law; and one table
with loaves upon it, on the north side of the temple, over against the
candlestick; for this he set on the south side, but the golden altar stood
between them. All these vessels were contained in that part of the holy
house, which was forty cubits long, and were before the veil of that most
secret place wherein the ark was to be set.
8. The king also made pouring vessels, in number eighty thousand, and
a hundred thousand golden vials, and twice as many silver vials: of golden
dishes, in order therein to offer kneaded fine flour at the altar, there
were eighty thousand, and twice as many of silver. Of large basons also,
wherein they mixed fine flour with oil, sixty thousand of gold, and twice
as many of silver. Of the measures like those which Moses called the Hin
and the Assaron, (a tenth deal,) there were twenty thousand
of gold, and twice as many of silver. The golden censers, in which they
carried the incense to the altar, were twenty thousand; the other censers,
in which they carried fire from the great altar to the little altar, within
the temple, were fifty thousand. The sacerdotal garments which belonged
to the high priest, with the long robes, and the oracle, and the precious
stones, were a thousand. But the crown upon which Moses wrote [the name
of God], (12)
was only one, and hath remained to this very day. He also made ten
thousand sacerdotal garments of fine linen, with purple girdles for every
priest; and two hundred thousand trumpets, according to the command of
Moses; also two hundred thousand garments of fine linen for the singers,
that were Levites. And he made musical instruments, and such as were invented
for singing of hymns, called ,Nablee and Cindree, [psalteries
and harps,] which were made of electrum, [the finest brass,] forty thousand.
9. Solomon made all these things for the honor of God, with great variety
and magnificence, sparing no cost, but using all possible liberality in
adorning the temple; and these things he dedicated to the treasures of
God. He also placed a partition round about the temple, which in our tongue
we call Gison, but it is called Thrigcos by the Greeks, and
he raised it up to the height of three cubits; and it was for the exclusion
of the multitude from coming into the temple, and showing that it was a
place that was free and open only for the priests. He also built beyond
this court a temple, whose figure was that of a quadrangle, and erected
for it great and broad cloisters; this was entered into by very high gates,
each of which had its front exposed to one of the [four] winds, and were
shut by golden doors. Into this temple all the people entered that were
distinguished from the rest by being pure and observant of the laws. But
he made that temple which was beyond this a wonderful one indeed, and such
as exceeds all description in words; nay, if I may so say, is hardly believed
upon sight; for when he had filled up great valleys with earth, which,
on account of their immense depth, could not be looked on, when you bended
down to see them, without pain, and had elevated the ground four hundred
cubits, he made it to be on a level with the top of the mountain, on which
the temple was built, and by this means the outmost temple, which was exposed
to the air, was even with the temple itself.
(13)
He encompassed this also with a building of a double row of cloisters,
which stood on high upon pillars of native stone, while the roofs were
of cedar, and were polished in a manner proper for such high roofs; but
he made all the doors of this temple of silver.
CHAPTER 4.
HOW SOLOMON REMOVED THE ARK INTO THE TEMPLE HOW HE MADE SUPPLICATION
TO GOD, AND OFFERED PUBLIC SACRIFICES TO HIM.
1. WHEN king Solomon had finished these works, these large and beautiful
buildings, and had laid up his donations in the temple, and all this in
the interval of seven years, and had given a demonstration of his riches
and alacrity therein, insomuch that any one who saw it would have thought
it must have been an immense time ere it could have been finished; and
would be surprised that so much should be finished in so short a time;
short, I mean, if compared with the greatness of the work: he also wrote
to the rulers and elders of the Hebrews, and ordered all the people to
gather themselves together to Jerusalem, both to see the temple which he
had built, and to remove the ark of God into it; and when this invitation
of the whole body of the people to come to Jerusalem was every where carried
abroad, it was the seventh month before they came together; which month
is by our countrymen called Thisri, but by the Macedonians Hyperberetoets.
The feast of tabernacles happened to fall at the same time, which was
celebrated by the Hebrews as a most holy and most eminent feast. So they
carried the ark and the tabernacle which Moses had pitched, and all the
vessels that were for ministration, to the sacrifices of God, and removed
them to the temple.
(14)
The king himself, and all the people and the Levites, went before, rendering
the ground moist with sacrifices, and drink-offerings, and the blood of
a great number of oblations, and burning an immense quantity of incense,
and this till the very air itself every where round about was so full of
these odors, that it met, in a most agreeable manner, persons at a great
distance, and was an indication of God's presence; and, as men's opinion
was, of his habitation with them in this newly built and consecrated place,
for they did not grow weary, either of singing hymns or of dancing, until
they came to the temple; and in this manner did they carry the ark. But
when they should transfer it into the most secret place, the rest of the
multitude went away, and only those priests that carried it set it between
the two cherubims, which embracing it with their wings, (for so were they
framed by the artificer,) they covered it, as under a tent, or a cupola.
Now the ark contained nothing else but those two tables of stone that preserved
the ten commandments, which God spake to Moses in Mount Sinai, and which
were engraved upon them; but they set the candlestick, and the table, and
the golden altar in the temple, before the most secret place, in the very
same places wherein they stood till that time in the tabernacle. So they
offered up the daily sacrifices; but for the brazen altar, Solomon set
it before the temple, over against the door, that when the door was opened,
it might be exposed to sight, and the sacred solemnities, and the richness
of the sacrifices, might be thence seen; and all the rest of the vessels
they gathered together, and put them within the temple.
2. Now as soon as the priests had put all things in order about the
ark, and were gone out, there cane down a thick cloud, and stood there,
and spread itself, after a gentle manner, into the temple; such a cloud
it was as was diffused and temperate, not such a rough one as we see full
of rain in the winter season. This cloud so darkened the place, that one
priest could not discern another, but it afforded to the minds of all a
visible image and glorious appearance of God's having descended into this
temple, and of his having gladly pitched his tabernacle therein. So these
men were intent upon this thought. But Solomon rose up, (for he was sitting
before,) and used such words to God as he thought agreeable to the Divine
nature to receive, and fit for him to give; for he said, "Thou hast
an eternal house, O Lord, and such a one as thou hast created for thyself
out of thine own works; we know it to be the heaven, and the air, and the
earth, and the sea, which thou pervadest, nor art thou contained within
their limits. I have indeed built this temple to thee, and thy name, that
from thence, when we sacrifice, and perform sacred operations, we
may send our prayers up into the air, and may constantly believe that thou
art present, and art not remote from what is thine own; for neither when
thou seest all things, and hearest all things, nor now, when it pleases
thee to dwell here, dost thou leave the care of all men, but rather thou
art very near to them all, but especially thou art present to those that
address themselves to thee, whether by night or by day." When he had
thus solemnly addressed himself to God, he converted his discourse to the
multitude, and strongly represented the power and providence of God to
them; - how he had shown all things that were come to pass to David his
father, as many of those things had already come to pass, and the rest
would certainly come to pass hereafter; and how he had given him his name,
and told to David what he should be called before he was born; and foretold,
that when he should be king after his father's death, he should build him
a temple, which since they saw accomplished, according to his prediction,
he required them to bless God, and by believing him, from the sight of
what they had seen accomplished, never to despair of any thing that he
had promised for the future, in order to their happiness, or suspect that
it would not come to pass.
3. When the king had thus discoursed to the multitude, he looked again
towards the temple, and lifting up his right hand to the multitude, he
said," It is not possible by what men can do to return sufficient
thanks to God for his benefits bestowed upon them, for the Deity stands
in need of nothing, and is above any such requital; but so far as we have
been made superior, O Lord, to other animals by thee, it becomes us to
bless thy Majesty, and it is necessary for us to return thee thanks for
what thou hast bestowed upon our house, and on the Hebrew people; for with
what other instrument can we better appease thee when thou art angry at
us, or more properly preserve thy favor, than with our voice? which, as
we have it from the air, so do we know that by that air it ascends upwards
[towards thee]. I therefore ought myself to return thee thanks thereby,
in the first place, concerning my father, whom thou hast raised from obscurity
unto so great joy; and, in the next place, concerning myself, since thou
hast performed all that thou hast promised unto this very day. And I beseech
thee for the time to come to afford us whatsoever thou, O God, hast power
to bestow on such as thou dost esteem; and to augment our house for all
ages, as thou hast promised to David my father to do, both in his lifetime
and at his death, that our kingdom shall continue, and that his posterity
should successively receive it to ten thousand generations. Do not thou
therefore fail to give us these blessings, and to bestow on my children
that virtue in which thou delightest. And besides all this, I humbly beseech
thee that thou wilt let some portion of thy Spirit come down and inhabit
in this temple, that thou mayst appear to be with us upon earth. As to
thyself, the entire heavens, and the immensity of the things that are therein,
are but a small habitation for thee, much more is this poor temple so;
but I entreat thee to keep it as thine own house, from being destroyed
by our enemies for ever, and to take care of it as thine own possession:
but if this people be found to have sinned, and be thereupon afflicted
by thee with any plague, because of their sin, as with dearth or
pestilence, or any other affliction which thou usest to inflict on those
that transgress any of thy holy laws, and if they fly all of them to this
temple, beseeching thee, and begging of time to deliver them, then do thou
hear their prayers, as being within thine house, and have mercy upon them,
and deliver them from their afflictions. Nay, moreover, this help is what
I implore of thee, not for the Hebrews only, when they are in distress,
but when any shall come hither from any ends of the world whatsoever, and
shall return from their sins and implore thy pardon, do thou then pardon
them, and hear their prayer. For hereby all shall learn that thou thyself
wast pleased with the building of this house for thee; and that we are
not ourselves of an unsociable nature, nor behave ourselves like enemies
to such as are not of our own people; but are willing that thy assistance
should be communicated by thee to all men in common, and that they may
have the enjoyment of thy benefits bestowed upon them."
4. When Solomon had said this, and had cast himself upon the ground,
and worshipped a long time, he rose up, and brought sacrifices to the altar;
and when he had filled it with unblemished victims, he most evidently discovered
that God had with pleasure accepted of all that he had sacrificed to him,
for there came a fire running out of the air, and rushed with violence
upon the altar, in the sight of all, and caught hold of and consumed the
sacrifices. Now when this Divine appearance was seen, the people supposed
it to be a demonstration of God's abode in the temple, and were pleased
with it, and fell down upon the ground and worshipped. Upon which the king
began to bless God, and exhorted the multitude to do the same, as now having
sufficient indications of God's favorable disposition to them; and to pray
that they might always have the like indications from him, and that he
would preserve in them a mind pure from all wickedness, in righteousness
and religious worship, and that they might continue in the observation
of those precepts which God had given them by Moses, because by that means
the Hebrew nation would be happy, and indeed the most blessed of all nations
among all mankind. He exhorted them also to be mindful, that by what methods
they had attained their present good things, by the same they must preserve
them sure to themselves, and make them greater and more than they were
at present; for that it was not sufficient for them to suppose they had
received them on account of their piety and righteousness, but that they
had no other way of preserving them for the time to come; for that it is
not so great a thing for men to acquire somewhat which they want, as to
preserve what they have acquired, and to be guilty of no sin whereby it
may be hurt.
5. So when the king had spoken thus to the multitude, he dissolved the
congregation, but not till he had completed his oblations, both for himself
and for the Hebrews, insomuch that he sacrificed twenty and two thousand
oxen, and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep; for then it was that the
temple did first of all taste of the victims, and all the Hebrews, with
their wives and children, feasted therein: nay, besides this, the king
then observed splendidly and magnificently the feast which is called the
Feast of Tabernacles, before the temple, for twice seven days; and
he then feasted together with all the people.
6. When all these solemnities were abundantly satisfied, and nothing
was omitted that concerned the Divine worship, the king dismissed them;
and they every one went to their own homes, giving thanks to the king for
the care he had taken of them, and the works he had done for them; and
praying to God to preserve Solomon to be their king for a long time. They
also took their journey home with rejoicing, and making merry, and singing
hymns to God. And indeed the pleasure they enjoyed took away the sense
of the pains they all underwent in their journey home. So when they had
brought the ark into the temple, and had seen its greatness, and how fine
it was, and had been partakers of the many sacrifices that had been offered,
and of the festivals that had been solemnized, they every one returned
to their own cities. But a dream that appeared to the king in his sleep
informed him that God had heard his prayers; and that he would not only
preserve the temple, but would always abide in it; that is, in case his
posterity and the whole multitude would be righteous. And for himself,
it said, that if he continued according to the admonitions of his father,
he would advance him to an immense degree of dignity and happiness, and
that then his posterity should be kings of that country, of the tribe of
Judah, for ever; but that still, if he should be found a betrayer of the
ordinances of the law, and forget them, and turn away to the worship of
strange gods, he would cut him off by the roots, and would neither suffer
any remainder of his family to continue, nor would overlook the people
of Israel, or preserve them any longer from afflictions, but would utterly
destroy them with ten thousand wars and misfortunes; would cast them out
of the land which he had given their fathers, and make them sojourners
in strange lands; and deliver that temple which was now built to be burnt
and spoiled by their enemies, and that city to be utterly overthrown by
the hands of their enemies; and make their miseries deserve to be a proverb,
and such as should very hardly be credited for their stupendous magnitude,
till their neighbors, when they should hear of them, should wonder at their
calamities, and very earnestly inquire for the occasion, why the Hebrews,
who had been so far advanced by God to such glory and wealth, should be
then so hated by him? and that the answer that should be made by the remainder
of the people should be, by confessing their sins, and their transgression
of the laws of their country. Accordingly we have it transmitted to us
in writing, that thus did God speak to Solomon in his sleep.
CHAPTER 5.
HOW SOLOMON BUILT HIMSELF A ROYAL PALACE, VERY COSTLY AND
SPLENDID; AND HOW HE SOLVED THE RIDDLES WHICH WERE SENT HIM BY HIRAM.
1. AFTER the building of the temple, which, as we have before said,
was finished in seven years, the king laid the foundation of his palace,
which be did not finish under thirteen years, for he was not equally zealous
in the building of this palace as he had been about the temple; for as
to that, though it was a great work, and required wonderful and surprising
application, yet God, for whom it was made, so far co-operated therewith,
that it was finished in the forementioned number of years: but the palace,
which was a building much inferior in dignity to the temple, both on account
that its materials had not been so long beforehand gotten ready, nor had
been so zealously prepared, and on account that this was only a habitation
for kings, and not for God, it was longer in finishing. However, this building
was raised so magnificently, as suited the happy state of the Hebrews,
and of the king thereof. But it is necessary that I describe the entire
structure and disposition of the parts, that so those that light upon this
book may thereby make a conjecture, and, as it were, have a prospect of
its magnitude.
2. This house was a large and curious building, and was supported by
many pillars, which Solomon built to contain a multitnde for hearing causes,
and taking cognizance of suits. It was sufficiently capacious to contain
a great body of men, who would come together to have their causes determined.
It was a hundred cubits long, and fifty broad, and thirty high, supported
by quadrangular pillars, which were all of cedar; but its roof was according
to the Corinthian order,
(15)
with folding doors, and their adjoining pillars of equal magnitude, each
fluted with three cavities; which building as at once firm, and very ornamental.
There was also another house so ordered, that its entire breadth was placed
in the middle; it was quadrangular, and its breadth was thirty cubits,
having a temple over against it, raised upon massy pillars; in which temple
there was a large and very glorious room, wherein the king sat in judgment.
To this was joined another house that was built for his queen. There were
other smaller edifices for diet, and for sleep, after public matters were
over; and these were all floored with boards of cedar. Some of these Solomon
built with stones of ten cubits, and wainscoted the walls with other stones
that were sawed, and were of great value, such as are dug out of the earth
for the ornaments of temples, and to make fine prospects in royal palaces,
and which make the mines whence they are dug famous. Now the contexture
of the curious workmanship of these stones was in three rows, but the fourth
row would make one admire its sculptures, whereby were represented trees,
and all sorts of plants; with the shades that arose from their branches,
and leaves that hung down from them. Those trees anti plants covered the
stone that was beneath them, and their leaves were wrought so prodigious
thin and subtile, that you would think they were in motion; but the other
part up to the roof, was plastered over, and, as it were, embroidered with
colors and pictures. He, moreover, built other edifices for pleasure; as
also very long cloisters, and those situate in an agreeable place of the
palace; and among them a most glorious dining room, for feastings and compotations,
and full of gold, and such other furniture as so fine a room ought to have
for the conveniency of the guests, and where all the vessels were made
of gold. Now it is very hard to reckon up the magnitude and the variety
of the royal apartments; how many rooms there were of the largest sort,
how many of a bigness inferior to those, and how many that were subterraneous
and invisible; the curiosity of those that enjoyed the fresh air; and the
groves for the most delightful prospect, for the avoiding the heat, and
covering of their bodies. And, to say all in brief, Solomon made the whole
building entirely of white stone, and cedar wood, and gold, and silver.
He also adorned the roofs and walls with stones set in gold, and beautified
them thereby in the same manner as he had beautified the temple of God
with the like stones. He also made himself a throne of prodigious bigness,
of ivory, constructed as a seat of justice, and having six steps to it;
on every one of which stood, on each end of the step two lions, two other
lions standing above also; but at the sitting place of the throne hands
came out and received the king; and when he sat backward, he rested on
half a bullock, that looked towards his back; but still all was fastened
together with gold.
3. When Solomon had completed all this in twenty years' time, because
Hiram king of Tyre had contributed a great deal of gold, and more silver
to these buildings, as also cedar wood and pine wood, he also rewarded
Hiram with rich presents; corn he sent him also year by year, and wine
and oil, which were the principal things that he stood in need of, because
he inhabited an island, as we have already said. And besides these, he
granted him certain cities of Galilee, twenty in number, that lay not far
from Tyre; which, when Hiram went to, and viewed, and did not like the
gift, he sent word to Solomon that he did not want such cities as they
were; and after that time these cities were called the land of Cabul; which
name, if it be interpreted according to the language of the Phoenicians,
denotes what does not please. Moreover, the king of Tyre sent sophisms
and enigmatical sayings to Solomon, and desired he would solve them, and
free them from the ambiguity that was in them. Now so sagacious and understanding
was Solomon, that none of these problems were too hard for him; but he
conquered them all by his reasonings, and discovered their hidden meaning,
and brought it to light. Menander also, one who translated the Tyrian archives
out of the dialect of the Phoenicians into the Greek language, makes mention
of these two kings, where he says thus: "When Abibalus was dead,.
his son Hiram received the kingdom from him, who, when he had lived fifty-three
years, reigned thirty-four. He raised a bank in the large place, and dedicated
the golden pillar which is in Jupiter's temple. He also went and cut down
materials of timber out of the mountain called Libanus, for the roof of
temples; and when he had pulled down the ancient temples, he both built
the temple of Hercules and that of Astarte; and he first set up the temple
of Hercules in the month Peritius; he also made an expedition against the
Euchii, or Titii, who did not pay their tribute, and when he had subdued
them to himself he returned. Under this king there was Abdemon, a very
youth in age, who always conquered the difficult problems which Solomon,
king of Jerusalem, commanded him to explain. Dius also makes mention of
him, where he says thus: "When Abibalus was dead, his son Hiram reigned.
He raised the eastern parts of the city higher, and made the city itself
larger. He also joined the temple of Jupiter, which before stood by itself,
to the city, by raising a bank in the middle between them; and he adorned
it with donations of gold. Moreover, he went up to Mount Libanus, and cut
down materials of wood for the building of the temples." He says also,
that Solomon, who was then king of Jerusalem, sent riddles to Hiram, and
desired to receive the like from him, but that he who could not solve them
should pay money to them that did solve them, and that Hiram accepted the
conditions; and when he was not able to solve the riddles proposed by Solomon,
he paid a great deal of money for his fine; but that he afterward did solve
the proposed riddles by means of Abdemon, a man of Tyre; and that Hiram
proposed other riddles, which, when Solomon could not solve, he paid back
a great deal of money to Hiram." This it is which Dius wrote.
CHAPTER 6.
HOW SOLOMON FORTIFIED THE CITY OF JERUSALEM, AND BUILT GREAT
CITIES; AND HOW HE BROUGHT SOME OF THE CANAANITES INTO SUBJECTION, AND
ENTERTAINED THE QUEEN OF EGYPT AND OF ETHIOPIA.
1. Now when the king saw that the walls of Jerusalem stood in need of
being better secured, and made stronger, (for he thought the wails that
encompassed Jerusalem ought to correspond to the dignity of the city,)
he both repaired them, and made them higher, with great towers upon them;
he also built cities which might be counted among the strongest, Hazor
and Megiddo, and the third Gezer, which had indeed belonged to the Philistines;
but Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, had made an expedition against it, and
besieged it, and taken it by force; and when he had slain all its inhabitants,
he utterly overthrew it, and gave it as a present to his daughter, who
had been married to Solomon; for which reason the king rebuilt it, as a
city that was naturally strong, and might be useful in wars, and the mutations
of affairs that sometimes happen. Moreover, he built two other cities not
far from it, Beth-horon was the name of one of them, and Baalath of the
other. He also built other cities that lay conveniently for these, in order
to the enjoyment of pleasures and delicacies in them, such as were naturally
of a good temperature of the air, and agreeable for fruits ripe in their
proper seasons, and well watered with springs. Nay, Solomon went as far
as the desert above Syria, and possessed himself of it, and built there
a very great city, which was distant two days' journey from Upper Syria,
and one day's journey from Euphrates, and six long days' journey from Babylon
the Great. Now the reason why this city lay so remote from the parts of
Syria that are inhabited is this, that below there is no water to be had,
and that it is in that place only that there are springs and pits of water.
When he had therefore built this city, and encompassed it with very strong
walls, he gave it the name of Tadmor, and that is the name it is still
called by at this day among the Syrians, but the Greeks name it Palmyra.
2. Now Solomon the king was at this time engaged in building these cities.
But if any inquire why all the kings of Egypt from Menes, who built Memphis,
and was many years earlier than our forefather Abraham, until Solomon,
where the interval was more than one thousand three hundred years, were
called Pharaohs, and took it from one Pharaoh that lived after the kings
of that interval, I think it necessary to inform them of it, and this in
order to cure their ignorance, and to make the occasion of that name manifest.
Pharaoh, in the Egyptian tongue, signifies a king
(16)
but I suppose they made use of other names from their childhood; but when
they were made kings, they changed them into the name which in their own
tongue denoted their authority; for thus it was also that the kings of
Alexandria, who were called formerly by other names, when they took the
kingdom, were named Ptolemies, from their first king. The Roman emperors
also were from their nativity called by other names, but are styled Caesars,
their empire and their dignity imposing that name upon them, and not suffering
them to continue in those names which their fathers gave them. I suppose
also that Herodotus of Halicarnassus, when he said there were three hundred
and thirty kings of Egypt after Menes, who built Memphis, did therefore
not tell us their names, because they were in common called Pharaohs; for
when after their death there was a queen reigned, he calls her by her name
Nicaule, as thereby declaring, that while the kings were of the male line,
and so admitted of the same nature, while a woman did not admit the same,
he did therefore set down that her name, which she could not naturally
have. As for myself, I have discovered from our own books, that after Pharaoh,
the father-in-law of Solomon, no other king of Egypt did any longer use
that name; and that it was after that time when the forenamed queen of
Egypt and Ethiopia came to Solomon, concerning whom we shall inform the
reader presently; but I have now made mention of these things, that I may
prove that our books and those of the Egyptians agree together in many
things.
3. But king Solomon subdued to himself the remnant of the Canaanites
that had not before submitted to him; those I mean that dwelt in Mount
Lebanon, and as far as the city Hamath; and ordered them to pay tribute.
He also chose out of them every year such as were to serve him in the meanest
offices, and to do his domestic works, and to follow husbandry; for none
of the Hebrews were servants [in such low employments]: nor was it reasonable,
that when God had brought so many nations under their power, they should
depress their own people to such mean offices of life, rather than those
nations; while all the Israelites were concerned in warlike affairs, and
were in armor; and were set over the chariots and the horses, rather than
leading the life of slaves. He appointed also five hundred and fifty rulers
over those Canaanites who were reduced to such domestic slavery, who received
the entire care of them from the king, and instructed them in those labors
and operations wherein he wanted their assistance.
4. Moreover, the king built many ships in the Egyptian Bay of the Red
Sea, in a certain place called Ezion-geber: it is now called Berenice,
and is not far from the city Eloth. This country belonged formerly to the
Jews, and became useful for shipping from the donations of Hiram king of
Tyre; for he sent a sufficient number of men thither for pilots, and such
as were skillful in navigation, to whom Solomon gave this command: That
they should go along with his own stewards to the land that was of old
called Ophir, but now the Aurea Chersonesus, which belongs to India, to
fetch him gold. And when they had gathered four hundred talents together,
they returned to the king again.
5. There was then a woman queen of Egypt and Ethiopia;
(17)
she was inquisitive into philosophy, and one that on other accounts also
was to be admired. When this queen heard of the virtue and prudence of
Solomon, she had a great mind to see him; and the reports that went every
day abroad induced her to come to him, she being desirous to be satisfied
by her own experience, and not by a bare hearing; (for reports thus heard
are likely enough to comply with a false opinion, while they wholly depend
on the credit of the relators;) so she resolved to come to him, and that
especially in order to have a trial of his wisdom, while she proposed questions
of very great difficulty, and entreated that he would solve their hidden
meaning. Accordingly she came to Jerusalem with great splendor and rich
furniture; for she brought with her camels laden with gold, with several
sorts of sweet spices, and with precious stones. Now, upon the king's kind
reception of her, he both showed a great desire to please her, and easily
comprehending in his mind the meaning of the curious questions she propounded
to him, he resolved them sooner than any body could have expected. So she
was amazed at the wisdom of Solomon, and discovered that it was more excellent
upon trial than what she had heard by report beforehand; and especially
she was surprised at the fineness and largeness of his royal palace, and
not less so at the good order of the apartments, for she observed that
the king had therein shown great wisdom; but she was beyond measure astonished
at the house which was called the Forest of Lebanon, as also at
the magnificence of his daily table, and the circumstances of its preparation
and ministration, with the apparel of his servants that waited, and the
skillful and decent management of their attendance: nor was she less affected
with those daily sacrifices which were offered to God, and the careful
management which the priests and Levites used about them. When she saw
this done every day, she was in the greatest admiration imaginable, insomuch
that she was not able to contain the surprise she was in, but openly confessed
how wonderfully she was affected; for she proceeded to discourse with the
king, and thereby owned that she was overcome with admiration at the things
before related; and said, "All things indeed, O king, that came to
our knowledge by report, came with uncertainty as to our belief of them;
but as to those good things that to thee appertain, both such as thou thyself
possessest, I mean wisdom and prudence, and the happiness thou hast from
thy kingdom, certainly the same that came to us was no falsity; it was
not only a true report, but it related thy happiness after a much lower
manner than I now see it to be before my eyes. For as for the report, it
only attempted to persuade our hearing, but did not so make known the dignity
of the things themselves as does the sight of them, and being present among
them. I indeed, who did not believe what was reported, by reason of the
multitude and grandeur of the things I inquired about, do see them to be
much more numerous than they were reported to be. Accordingly I esteem
the Hebrew people, as well as thy servants and friends, to be happy, who
enjoy thy presence and hear thy wisdom every day continually. One would
therefore bless God, who hath so loved this country, and those that inhabit
therein, as to make thee king over them."
6. Now when the queen had thus demonstrated in words how deeply the
king had affected her, her disposition was known by certain presents, for
she gave him twenty talents of gold, and an immense quantity of spices
and precious stones. (They say also that we possess the root of that balsam
which our country still bears by this woman's gift.)
(18)
Solomon also repaid her with many good things, and principally by bestowing
upon her what she chose of her own inclination, for there was nothing that
she desired which he denied her; and as he was very generous and liberal
in his own temper, so did he show the greatness of his soul in bestowing
on her what she herself desired of him. So when this queen of Ethiopia
had obtained what we have already given an account of, and had again communicated
to the king what she brought with her, she returned to her own kingdom.
CHAPTER 7.
HOW SOLOMON GREW RICH, AND FELL DESPERATELY IN LOVE WITH
WOMEN AND HOW GOD, BEING INCENSED AT IT, RAISED UP ADER AND JEROBOAM AGAINST
HIM. CONCERNING THE DEATH OF SOLOMON.
1. ABOUT the same time there were brought to the king from the Aurea
Chersonesus, a country so called, precious stones, and pine trees, and
these trees he made use of for supporting the temple and the palace, as
also for the materials of musical instruments, the harps and the psalteries,
that the Levites might make use of them in their hymns to God. The wood
which was brought to him at this time was larger and finer than any that
had ever been brought before; but let no one imagine that these pine trees
were like those which are now so named, and which take that their denomination
from the merchants, who so call them, that they may procure them to be
admired by those that purchase them; for those we speak of were to the
sight like the wood of the fig tree, but were whiter, and more shining.
Now we have said thus much, that nobody may be ignorant of the difference
between these sorts of wood, nor unacquainted with the nature of the genuine
pine tree; and we thought it both a seasonable and humane thing, when we
mentioned it, and the uses the king made of it, to explain this difference
so far as we have done.
2. Now the weight of gold that was brought him was six hundred and sixty-six
talents, not including in that sum what was brought by the merchants, nor
what the toparchs and kings of Arabia gave him in presents. He also cast
two hundred targets of gold, each of them weighing six hundred shekels.
He also made three hundred shields, every one weighing three pounds of
gold, and he had them carried and put into that house which was called
The Forest of Lebanon. He also made cups of gold, and of [precious]
stones, for the entertainment of his guests, and had them adorned in the
most artificial manner; and he contrived that all his other furniture of
vessels should be of gold, for there was nothing then to be sold or bought
for silver; for the king had many ships which lay upon the sea of Tarsus,
these he commanded to carry out all sorts of merchandise unto the remotest
nations, by the sale of which silver and gold were brought to the king,
and a great quantity of ivory, and Ethiopians, and apes; and they finished
their voyage, going and returning, in three years' time.
3. Accordingly there went a great fame all around the neighboring countries,
which proclaimed the virtue and wisdom of Solomon, insomuch that all the
kings every where were desirous to see him, as not giving credit to what
was reported, on account of its being almost incredible: they also demonstrated
the regard they had for him by the presents they made him; for they sent
him vessels of gold, and silver, and purple garments, and many sorts of
spices, and horses, and chariots, and as many mules for his carriages as
they could find proper to please the king's eyes, by their strength and
beauty. This addition that he made to those chariots and horses which he
had before from those that were sent him, augmented the number of his chariots
by above four hundred, for he had a thousand before, and augmented the
number of his horses by two thousand, for he had twenty thousand before.
These horses also were so much exercised, in order to their making a fine
appearance, and running swiftly, that no others could, upon the comparison,
appear either finer or swifter; but they were at once the most beautiful
of all others, and their swiftness was incomparable also. Their riders
also were a further ornament to them, being, in the first place, young
men in the most delightful flower of their age, and being eminent for their
largeness, and far taller than other men. They had also very long heads
of hair hanging down, and were clothed in garments of Tyrian purple. They
had also dust of gold every day sprinkled on their hair, so that their
heads sparkled with the reflection of the sun-beams from the gold. The
king himself rode upon a chariot in the midst of these men, who were still
in armor, and had their bows fitted to them. He had on a white garment,
and used to take his progress out of the city in the morning. There was
a certain place about fifty furlongs distant from Jerusalem, which is called
Etham, very pleasant it is in fine gardens, and abounding in rivulets of
water;
(19)
thither did he use to go out in the morning, sitting on high [in his chariot.]
4. Now Solomon had a divine sagacity in all things, and was very diligent
and studious to have things done after an elegant manner; so he did not
neglect the care of the ways, but he laid a causeway of black stone along
the roads that led to Jerusalem, which was the royal city, both to render
them easy for travelers, and to manifest the grandeur of his riches and
government. He also parted his chariots, and set them in a regular order,
that a certain number of them should be in every city, still keeping a
few about him; and those cities he called the cities of his chariots.
And the king made silver as plentiful in Jerusalem as stones in the
street; and so multiplied cedar trees in the plains of Judea, which did
not grow there before, that they were like the multitude of common sycamore
trees. He also ordained the Egyptian merchants that brought him their merchandise
to sell him a chariot, with a pair of horses, for six hundred drachmae
of silver, and he sent them to the kings of Syria, and to those kings that
were beyond Euphrates.
5. But although Solomon was become the most glorious of kings, and the
best beloved by God, and had exceeded in wisdom and riches those that had
been rulers of the Hebrews before him, yet did not he persevere in this
happy state till he died. Nay, he forsook the observation of the laws of
his fathers, and came to an end no way suitable to our foregoing history
of him. He grew mad in his love of women, and laid no restraint on himself
in his lusts; nor was he satisfied with the women of his country alone,
but he married many wives out of foreign nations; Sidontans, and Tyrians,
and Ammonites, and Edomites; and he transgressed the laws of Moses, which
forbade Jews to marry any but those that were of their own people. He also
began to worship their gods, which he did in order to the gratification
of his wives, and out of his affection for them. This very thing our legislator
suspected, and so admonished us beforehand, that we should not marry women
of other countries, lest we should be entangled with foreign customs, and
apostatize from our own; lest we should leave off to honor our own God,
and should worship their gods. But Solomon was Gllen headlong into unreasonable
pleasures, and regarded not those admonitions; for when he had married
seven hundred wives,
(20)
the daughters of princes and of eminent persons, and three hundred concubines,
and those besides the king of Egypt's daughter, he soon was governed by
them, till he came to imitate their practices. He was forced to give them
this demonstration of his kindness and affection to them, to live according
to the laws of their countries. And as he grew into years, and his reason
became weaker by length of time, it was not sufficient to recall to his
mind the institutions of his own country; so he still more and more contemned
his own God, and continued to regard the gods that his marriages had introduced
nay, before this happened, he sinned, and fell into an error about the
observation of the laws, when he made the images of brazen oxen that supported
the brazen sea,
(21)
and the images of lions about his own throne; for these he made, although
it was not agreeable to piety so to do; and this he did, notwithstanding
that he had his father as a most excellent and domestic pattern of virtue,
and knew what a glorious character he had left behind him, because of his
piety towards God. Nor did he imitate David, although God had twice appeared
to him in his sleep, and exhorted him to imitate his father. So he died
ingloriously. There came therefore a prophet to him, who was sent by God,
and told him that his wicked actions were not concealed from God; and threatened
him that he should not long rejoice in what he had done; that, indeed,
the kingdom should not be taken from him while he was alive, because God
had promised to his father David that he would make him his successor,
but that he would take care that this should befall his son when he :was
dead; not that he would withdraw all the people from him, but that he would
give ten tribes to a servant of his, and leave only two tribes to David's
grandson for his sake, because he loved God, and for the sake of the city
of Jerusalem, wherein he should have a temple.
6. When Solomon heard this he was grieved, and greatly confounded, upon
this change of almost all that happiness which had made him to be admired,
into so bad a state; nor had there much time passed after the prophet had
foretold what was coming before God raised up an enemy against him, whose
name was Ader, who took the following occasion of his enmity to him. He
was a child of the stock of the Edomites, and of the blood royal; and when
Joab, the captain of David's host, laid waste the land of Edom, and destroyed
all that were men grown, and able to bear arms, for six months' time, this
Hadad fled away, and came to Pharaoh the king of Egypt, who received him
kindly, and assigned him a house to dwell in, and a country to supply him
with food; and when he was grown up he loved him exceedingly, insomuch
that he gave him his wife's sister, whose name was Tahpenes, to wife, by
whom he had a son; who was brought up with the king's children. When Hadad
heard in Egypt that both David and Joab were dead, he came to Pharaoh,
and desired that he would permit him to go to his own country; upon which
the king asked what it was that he wanted, and what hardship he had met
with, that he was so desirous to leave him. And when he was often troublesome
to him, and entreated him to dismiss him, he did not then do it; but at
the time when Solomon's affairs began to grow worse, on account of his
forementioned transgressions
(22)
and God's anger against him for the same, Hadad, by Pharaoh's permission,
came to Edom; and when he was not able to make the people forsake Solomon,
for it was kept under by many garrisons, and an innovation was not to be
made with safety, he removed thence, and came into Syria; there he lighted
upon one Rezon, who had run away from Hadadezer, king of Zobah, his master,
and was become a robber in that country, and joined friendship with him,
who had already a band of robbers about him. So he went up, and seized
upon that part of Syria, and was made king thereof. He also made incursions
into the land of Israel, and did it no small mischief, and spoiled it,
and that in the lifetime of Solomon. And this was the calamity which the
Hebrews suffered by Hadad.
7. There was also one of Solomon's own nation that made an attempt against
him, Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had an expectation of rising, from
a prophecy that had been made to him long before. He was left a child by
his father, and brought up by his mother; and when Solomon saw that he
was of an active and bold disposition, he made him the curator of the walls
which he built round about Jerusalem; and he took such care of those works,
that the king approved of his behavior, and gave him, as a reward for the
same, the charge of the tribe of Joseph. And when about that time Jeroboam
was once going out of Jerusalem, a prophet of the city Shilo, whose name
was Ahijah, met him and saluted him; and when he had taken him a little
aside to a place out of the way, where there was not one other person present,
he rent the garment he had on into twelve pieces, and bid Jeroboam take
ten of them; and told him beforehand, that "this is the will of God;
he will part the dominion of Solomon, and give one tribe, with that which
is next it, to his son, because of the promise made to David for his succession,
and will have ten tribes to thee, because Solomon hath sinned against him,
and delivered up himself to women, and to their gods. Seeing therefore
thou knowest the cause for which God hath changed his mind, and is alienated
from Solomon, be thou
8. So Jeroboam was elevated by these words of the prophet; and being
a young man,
(23)
of a warm temper, and ambitious of greatness, he could not be quiet; and
when he had so great a charge in the government, and called to mind what
had been revealed to him by Ahijah, he endeavored to persuade the people
to forsake Solomon, to make a disturbance, and to bring the government
over to himself. But when Solomon understood his intention and treachery,
he sought to catch him and kill him; but Jeroboam was informed of it beforehand,
and fled to Shishak, the king of Egypt, and there abode till the death
of Solomon; by which means he gained these two advantages to suffer no
harm from Solomon, and to be preserved for the kingdom. So Solomon died
when he was already an old man, having reigned eighty years, and lived
ninety-four. He was buried in Jerusalem, having been superior to all other
kings in happiness, and riches, and wisdom, excepting that when he was
growing into years he was deluded by women, and transgressed the law; concerning
which transgressions, and the miseries which befell the Hebrews thereby,
I think proper to discourse at another opportunity.
CHAPTER 8.
HOW, UPON THE DEATH OF SOLOMON THE PEOPLE |
