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<center><h1>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary
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on the Whole Bible</h1>
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[<A HREF="MHC00000.HTM">Table of Contents</A>]<BR>
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Matthew Henry<BR><I>Commentary on the Whole Bible</I> (1708)
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<!-- (Begin Body) -->
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<CENTER>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+3><B>S E C O N D C H R O N I C L E S</B></FONT>
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<BR>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+2>CHAP. II.</FONT>
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<HR SIZE=1 WIDTH=50>
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</CENTER>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>
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<P>
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Solomon's trading, which we read of in the close of the foregoing
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chapter, and the encouragement he gave both to merchandise and
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manufacturers, were very commendable. But building was the work he was
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designed for, and to that business he is here applying himself. Here
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is,
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I. Solomon's determination to build the temple and a royal palace, and
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his appointing labourers to be employed herein,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:1,2,17,18">ver. 1, 2, 17, 18</A>.
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II. His request to Huram king of Tyre to furnish him both with artists
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and materials,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:3-10">ver. 3-10</A>.
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III. Huram's obliging answer to, and compliance with, his request,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:11-16">ver. 11-16</A>.</P>
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</FONT>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_1"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_2"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_3"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_4"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_5"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_6"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_7"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_8"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_9"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_10"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec1"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Preparations to Build the Temple.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1015.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>1 And Solomon determined to build a house for the name of the
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L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, and a house for his kingdom.
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2 And Solomon told out threescore and ten thousand men to bear
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burdens, and fourscore thousand to hew in the mountain, and three
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thousand and six hundred to oversee them.
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3 And Solomon sent to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, As thou
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didst deal with David my father, and didst send him cedars to
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build him a house to dwell therein, <I>even so deal with me.</I>
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4 Behold, I build a house to the name of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> my God, to
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dedicate <I>it</I> to him, <I>and</I> to burn before him sweet incense, and
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for the continual showbread, and for the burnt offerings morning
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and evening, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the
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solemn feasts of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> our God. This <I>is an ordinance</I> for
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ever to Israel.
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5 And the house which I build <I>is</I> great: for great <I>is</I> our
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God above all gods.
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6 But who is able to build him a house, seeing the heaven and
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heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who <I>am</I> I then, that I
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should build him a house, save only to burn sacrifice before
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him?
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7 Send me now therefore a man cunning to work in gold, and in
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silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson,
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and blue, and that can skill to grave with the cunning men that
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<I>are</I> with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did
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provide.
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8 Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of
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Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in
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Lebanon; and, behold, my servants <I>shall be</I> with thy servants,
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9 Even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I
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am about to build <I>shall be</I> wonderful great.
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10 And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that
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cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty
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thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine,
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and twenty thousand baths of oil.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Solomon's wisdom was given him, not merely for speculation, to
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entertain himself (though it is indeed a princely entertainment), nor
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merely for conversation, to entertain his friends, but for action; and
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therefore to action he immediately applies himself. Observe,</P>
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<P>
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I. His resolution within himself concerning his business
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:1"><I>v.</I> 1</A>):
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<I>He determined to build,</I> in the first place, a <I>house for the
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name of the Lord.</I> It is fit that he who is the first should be
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served--first a temple and then a palace, a house not so much for
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himself, or his own convenience and magnitude, as for the kingdom, for
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the honour of it among its neighbours and for the decent reception of
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the people whenever they had occasion to apply to their prince; so that
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in both he aimed at the public good. Those are the wisest men that lay
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out themselves most for the honour of the name of the Lord and the
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welfare of communities. We are not born for ourselves, but for God and
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our country.</P>
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<P>
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II. His embassy to Huram, king of Tyre, to engage his assistance in the
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prosecution of his designs. The purport of his errand to him is much
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the same here as we had it
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Ki+5:2-6">1 Kings v. 2</A>,
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&c., only here it is more largely
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set forth.</P>
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<P>
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1. The reasons why he makes this application to Huram are here more
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fully represented, for information to Huram as well as for inducement.
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(1.) He pleads his father's interest in Huram, and the kindness he had
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received from him
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:3"><I>v.</I> 3</A>):
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<I>As thou didst deal with David, so deal with me.</I> As we must show
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kindness to, so we may expect kindness from, our fathers' friends, and
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with them should cultivate a correspondence.
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(2.) He represents his design in building the temple: he intended it
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for a place of religious worship
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:4"><I>v.</I> 4</A>),
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that all the offerings which God had appointed for the honour of his
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name might be offered up there. The house was built that it might be
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dedicated to God and used in his service. This we should aim at in all
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our business, that our havings and doings may be all to the glory of
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God. He mentions various particular services that were there to be
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performed, for the instruction of Huram. The mysteries of the true
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religion, unlike those of the Gentile superstition, coveted not
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concealment.
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(3.) He endeavors to inspire Huram with very great and high thoughts of
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the God of Israel, by expressing the mighty veneration he had for his
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holy name: <I>Great is our God above all gods,</I> above all idols,
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above all princes. Idols are nothing, princes are little, and both
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under the control of the God of Israel; and therefore,
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[1.] "The house must be great; not in proportion to the greatness of
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that God to whom it is to be dedicated (for between finite and infinite
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there can be no proportion), but in some proportion to the great value
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and esteem we have for this God."
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[2.] "Yet, be it ever so great, it cannot be a habitation for the great
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God. Let not Huram think that the God of Israel, like the gods of the
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nations, <I>dwells in temples made with hands,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ac+17:24">Acts xvii. 24</A>.
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No, the <I>heaven of heavens cannot contain him.</I> It is intended
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only for the convenience of his priests and worshippers, that they may
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have a fit place wherein to burn sacrifice before him."
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[3.] He looked upon himself, though a mighty prince, as unworthy the
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honour of being employed in this great work: <I>Who am I that I should
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build him a house?</I> It becomes us to go about every work for God
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with a due sense of our utter insufficiency for it and our incapacity
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to do any thing adequate to the divine perfections. It is part of the
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wisdom wherein we ought to walk towards those that are without
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carefully to guard against all misapprehension which any thing we say
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or do may occasion concerning God; so Solomon does here in his treaty
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with Huram.</P>
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<P>
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2. The requests he makes to him are more particularly set down here.
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(1.) He desired Huram would furnish him with a good hand to work
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:7"><I>v.</I> 7</A>):
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<I>Send me a man.</I> He had <I>cunning men</I> with him in Jerusalem
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and Judah, whom David provided,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Ch+22:15">1 Chron. xxii. 15</A>.
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Let them not think but that Jews had some among them that were artists.
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But "<I>send me a man</I> to direct them. There are ingenious men in
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Jerusalem, but not such engravers as are in Tyre; and therefore, since
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temple-work must be the best in its kind, let me have the best workmen
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that can be got."
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(2.) With good materials to work on
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>),
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cedar and other timber in abundance
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:8,9"><I>v.</I> 8, 9</A>);
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for the house must be <I>wonderfully great,</I> that is, very stately
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and magnificent, no cost must be spared, nor any contrivance wanting in
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it.</P>
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<P>
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3. Here is Solomon's engagement to maintain the workmen
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:10"><I>v.</I> 10</A>),
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to give them so much wheat and barley, so much wine and oil. He did not
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feed his workmen with bread and water, but with plenty, and every thing
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of the best. Those that employ labourers ought to take care they be not
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only well paid, but well provided for with sufficient of that which is
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wholesome and fit for them. Let the rich masters do for their poor
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workmen as they would be done by if the tables were turned.</P>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_11"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_12"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_13"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_14"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_15"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_16"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_17"> </A>
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<A NAME="2Ch2_18"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec2"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Solomon's Treaty with Hiram.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1015.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>11 Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he
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sent to Solomon, Because the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> hath loved his people, he hath
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made thee king over them.
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12 Huram said moreover, Blessed <I>be</I> the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> God of Israel,
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that made heaven and earth, who hath given to David the king a
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wise son, endued with prudence and understanding, that might
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build a house for the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, and a house for his kingdom.
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13 And now I have sent a cunning man, endued with
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understanding, of Huram my father's,
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14 The son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father
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<I>was</I> a man of Tyre, skilful to work in gold, and in silver, in
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brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber, in purple, in blue, and
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in fine linen, and in crimson; also to grave any manner of
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graving, and to find out every device which shall be put to him,
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with thy cunning men, and with the cunning men of my lord David
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thy father.
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15 Now therefore the wheat, and the barley, the oil, and the
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wine, which my lord hath spoken of, let him send unto his
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servants:
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16 And we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as thou shalt
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need: and we will bring it to thee in floats by sea to Joppa; and
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thou shalt carry it up to Jerusalem.
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17 And Solomon numbered all the strangers that <I>were</I> in the
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land of Israel, after the numbering wherewith David his father
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had numbered them; and they were found a hundred and fifty
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thousand and three thousand and six hundred.
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18 And he set threescore and ten thousand of them <I>to be</I>
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bearers of burdens, and fourscore thousand <I>to be</I> hewers in the
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mountain, and three thousand and six hundred overseers to set the
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people a work.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Here we have,
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I. The return which Huram made to Solomon's embassy, in which he shows
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a great respect for Solomon and a readiness to serve him. Meaner people
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may learn of these great ones to be neighbourly and complaisant.
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1. He congratulates Israel on having such a king as Solomon was
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>):
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<I>Because the Lord loved his people, he has made thee king.</I> Note,
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A wise and good government is a great blessing to a people, and may
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well be accounted a singular token of God's favour. He does not say,
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<I>Because he loved</I> thee (though that was true,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Sa+12:24">2 Sam. xii. 24</A>)
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<I>he made thee king,</I> but because he <I>loved his people.</I>
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Princes must look upon themselves as preferred for the public good, not
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for their own personal satisfaction, and should rule so as to prove
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that they were given in love and not in anger.
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2. He blesses God for raising up such a successor to David,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:12"><I>v.</I> 12</A>.
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It should seem that Huram was not only very well affected to the Jewish
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nation, and well pleased with their prosperity, but that he was
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proselyted to the Jewish religion, and worshipped Jehovah, <I>the God
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of Israel</I> (who was now known by that name to the neighbouring
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nations), as <I>the God that made heaven and earth,</I> and as the
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fountain of power as well as being; for he sets up kings. Now that the
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people of Israel kept close to the law and worship of God, and so
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preserved their honour, the neighbouring nations were as willing to be
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instructed by them in the true religion as Israel had been, in the days
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of their apostasy, to be infected with the idolatries and superstitions
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of their neighbours. This made them high, that they lent to many
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nations and did not borrow, lent truth to them, and did not borrow
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error from them; as when they did the contrary it was their shame.
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3. He sent him a very ingenious curious workman, that would not fail
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to answer his expectations in every thing, one that had both Jewish and
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Gentile blood meeting in him; for his mother was an Israelite (Huram
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though she was of the tribe of Dan, and therefore says so here,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:14"><I>v.</I> 14</A>,
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but it seems she was of the tribe of Naphtali,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Ki+7:14">1 Kings vii. 14</A>),
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but his father was a Tyrian--a good omen of uniting Jew and Gentile in
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the gospel temple, as it was afterwards when the building of the second
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temple was greatly furthered by Darius
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ezr+6:1-12">Ezra vi.</A>),
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who is supposed to have been the son of Esther--an Israelite by the
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mother's side.
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4. He engaged for the timber, as much as he would have occasion for,
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and undertook to deliver it at Joppa, and withal signified his
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dependence upon Solomon for the maintenance of the workmen as he had
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promised,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:15,16"><I>v.</I> 15, 16</A>.
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This agreement we had,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Ki+5:8,9">1 Kings v. 8, 9</A>.</P>
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<P>
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II. The orders which Solomon gave about the workmen. He would not
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employ the free-born Israelites in the drudgery work of the temple
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itself, not so much as to be overseers of it. In this he employed the
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strangers who were proselyted to the Jewish religion, who had not lands
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of inheritance in Canaan as the Israelites had, and therefore applied
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to trades, and got their living by their ingenuity and industry. There
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were, at this time, vast numbers of them in the land
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>),
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who, if they were of any of the devoted nations, perhaps fell within
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the case, and therefore fell under the law, of the Gibeonites, to be
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hewers of wood for the congregation: if not, yet being in many respects
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well provided for by the law of Moses, and put upon an equal footing
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with the native Israelites, they were bound in gratitude to do what
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they could for the service of the temple. Yet, no doubt, they were well
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paid in money or money's worth: the law was, <I>Thou shalt not oppress
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a stranger.</I> The distribution of them we have here
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:2"><I>v.</I> 2</A>,
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and again
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+2:18"><I>v.</I> 18</A>),
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in all 150,000. Canaan was a fruitful land, that found meat for so many
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mouths more than the numerous natives; and the temple was a vast
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building, that found work for so many bands. Mr. Fuller suggests that
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the expedient peculiar to this structure, of framing all beforehand,
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must needs increase the work. I think it rather left so much the more
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room for this vast multitude of hands to be employed in it; for in the
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forest of Lebanon they might all be at work together, without crowding
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one another, which they could not have been upon Mount Sion. And, if
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there had not been such vast numbers employed, so large and curious a
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fabric, which was begun and ended in seven years, might, for aught I
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know, have been as long in building as St. Paul's.</P>
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