(For forty years Solomon reigned in Jerusalem, and during nearly all this time the land was peaceful and prosperous. The empire of Solomon was greater in extent than the territory {482} ruled over by any king which came after him. At last the great king died and was buried in Jerusalem, the city which his father had made the capital.)
And King Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion-geber, which is beside Elath, at the head of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, sailors that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon. And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to King Solomon.
And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees and precious stones. And the king made of the almug trees pillars for the house of the Lord, and for the king"s house, harps also and psalteries for the singers: there came no such almug trees, nor were seen, unto this day.
Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold, beside that which the traders brought, and the traffic of the merchants, and of all the kings of the mingled people, and of the governors of the country. And King Solomon made two hundred bucklers of beaten gold: six hundred shekels of gold went to one buckler. And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three pounds of gold went to one shield: and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.
Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the finest gold. There were six steps to the throne, and the top of the throne was round behind: {483} and there were arms on either side of the seat, and two lions standing beside the arms. And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps: there was not the like made in any kingdom. And all King Solomon"s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold: none were of silver; it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon.
For the king had at sea a navy of Tarshish with the navy of Hiram: once every three years came the navy of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peac.o.c.ks.
So King Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. And all the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which G.o.d had put in his heart. And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, and armor, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
And Solomon gathered together chariots and hors.e.m.e.n: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand hors.e.m.e.n, which he bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem. And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycamore trees that are in the lowland, for abundance.
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NOTES
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NOTES.
ABRAHAM. HIS JOURNEYS.
_Ur of the Chaldees_ was an ancient city on the great plain of Babylon.
_Haran_. A city lying far to the north of Ur, northeast of Palestine, on the road from the east to the Mediterranean coast.
_Canaan, Palestine, the Land of Israel_, are all names which have been used at different times for the same country. Canaan is the oldest Biblical name. It means "the lowlands" near the Mediterranean, but was used for the whole country.
_Shechem_. A city in the middle of Canaan, in a valley between two mountains, Ebal and Gerizim.
_Oak of Mamre_. The name suggests an oak that was connected with a sacred place. Its exact site is not known, but it must be somewhere near Hebron.
_Beth-el_ was a sacred place, in later times very important. It is on the great road north and south, about twelve miles north of Jerusalem.
_Ai_ was about two miles east, in the head of a valley which falls rapidly toward the Jordan.
_The South_ was used as the name of the country to the south of Canaan, as we use "the South" and "the West" to mean sections of our own country.
DIVISION OF THE LAND.
_Plain of the Jordan_. The river Jordan runs through a deep valley, which broadens out in its southern part into a plain. It was warm, rich and fertile. Here were situated the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.
_Zoar_. One of the cities of the Plain of the Jordan, perhaps on higher ground than the others.
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_Hebron_, near which the oaks of Mamre were, lies about twenty miles south of Jerusalem. It was from very early time regarded as a sacred city. It is still a town of considerable size.
THE FIGHT OF THE FIVE KINGS.
_The five kings_ were from Babylonia and the mountain country of Elam beyond Babylonia. As the story stands, the king of Elam had conquered Babylonia and the land of Canaan. After a time, part of the land of Canaan revolted, and he came, with his Babylonian allies, to punish the rebellious Canaanites.
_Slime pits_. Pits of bitumen, a black, sometimes sticky mineral, which is found in the valley of Jordan.
_Dan_. A town in the north of Palestine. The story makes Abraham"s chase of the kings extend all the length of the land afterwards held by the Hebrews.
_Hobah_. A town north of Damascus, not mentioned elsewhere in the Bible.
_Damascus_. A very old city, northeast of Palestine. It is situated in a beautiful spot, watered by two rivers, and has been the starting point of caravans for the east, west, and south since long before the days of Abraham.
_Melchizedek_. King of Salem. Salem was probably Jerusalem.
Melchizedek was, like many other ancient kings, also the chief priest of his city. As such, it was right that he should bless the returning chief in war.
A COVENANT BETWEEN G.o.d AND ABRAHAM.
_Euphrates_. The greatest river of western Asia. It rises in the mountains of Armenia and flows to the Persian gulf. The Bible often calls it simply "the Great River."
_Beer-sheba_. The farthest town to the south in Palestine. "From Dan to Beer-sheba" was used to mean all the land from the north to the south.
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[Ill.u.s.tration]
EN ROGEL, FROM THE SOUTH
From a photograph taken by Prof. H. G. Mitch.e.l.l and used by his kind permission.
A nearer view of the famous old well outside the walls of Jerusalem.
[End ill.u.s.tration]
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_Wilderness of Paran_. The half desert country lying south of Palestine.
TESTING OF ABRAHAM.