Still
Solomon looks great, and every thing in this chapter adds to his
magnificence. We read nothing indeed of his charity, of no hospitals he
built, or alms-houses; he made his kingdom so rich that it did not need
them; yet, no question, many poor were relieved from the abundance of his
table. A church he had built, never to be equalled; schools or colleges he
need not build any, his own palace is an academy, and his court a rendezvous
of wise and learned men, as well as the centre of all the circulating riches
of that part of the world. I. What abundance of wisdom there was there
appears from the application the queen of Sheba made to him, and the great
satisfaction she had in her entertainment there (ver. 1-13), and others
likewise, ver. 24. II. What abundance of wealth there was there appears here
by the gold imported, with other things, yearly (ver. 14, 15), and in a
triennial return, ver. 22. Gold presented (ver. 25), and gold used in
targets and shields (ver. 16, 17), and vessels, ver. 21. A stately throne
made, ver. 18-20. His chariots and horsemen, ver. 26. His trade with Egypt,
ver. 28, 29. And the great plenty of silver and cedars among his people,
ver. 27. So that, putting all together, it must be owned, as it is here said
(ver. 23), that "king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for
riches, and for wisdom." Yet what was he to the King of kings? Where
Christ is, by his word and Spirit, "Behold, a greater than Solomon is
there."
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Visit
of the Queen of Sheba.
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B.
C. 990.
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1 And when the queen of Sheba heard of the
fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD,
she came to prove him with hard questions. 2 And she came to
Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very
much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she
communed with him of all that was in her heart. 3 And Solomon
told her all her questions: there was not any thing hid from the
king, which he told her not. 4 And when the queen of Sheba had
seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house that he had built, 5
And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the
attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his
ascent by which he went up unto the house of the LORD;
there was no more spirit in her. 6 And she said to the king, It
was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy
wisdom. 7 Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and
mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy
wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard. 8 Happy are
thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before
thee, and that hear thy wisdom. 9 Blessed be the LORD
thy God, which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel:
because the LORD
loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and
justice. 10 And she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents
of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones: there came no
more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king
Solomon. 11 And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from
Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees, and precious
stones. 12 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 singers: there came
no such almug trees, nor were seen unto this day. 13 And king
Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked,
beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned
and went to her own country, she and her servants.
We have here an account of the visit which the queen of Sheba made to
Solomon, no doubt when he was in the height of his piety and prosperity. Our
Saviour calls her the queen of the south, for Sheba lay south of
Canaan. The common opinion is that it was in Africa; and the Christians in
Ethiopia, to this day, are confident that she came from their country, and
that Candace was her successor, who is mentioned Acts viii. 27. But it is
more probable that she came from the south part of Arabia the happy. It
should seem she was a queen regent, sovereign of her country. Many a kingdom
would have been deprived of its greatest blessings if a Salique law had been
admitted into its constitution. Observe,
I. On what errand the queen of Sheba came--not to treat of trade or
commerce, to adjust the limits of their dominions, to court his alliance for
their mutual strength or his assistance against some common enemy, which are
the common occasions of the congress of crowned heads and their interviews,
but she came, 1. To satisfy her curiosity; for she had heard of his fame,
especially for wisdom, and she came to prove him, whether he was so great a
man as he was reported to be, v. 1. Solomon's fleet sailed near the
coast of her country, and probably might put in there for fresh water;
perhaps it was thus that she heard of the fame of Solomon, that he
excelled in wisdom all the children of the east, and nothing would serve her
but she would go herself and know the truth of the report. 2. To receive
instruction from him. She came to hear his wisdom, and thereby to
improve her own (Matt. xii. 42), that she might be the better able to govern
her own kingdom by his maxims of policy. Those whom God has called to any
public employment, particularly in the magistracy and ministry, should, by
all means possible, be still improving themselves in that knowledge which
will more and more qualify them for it, and enable them to discharge their
trust well. But, it should seem, that which she chiefly aimed at was to be
instructed in the things of God. She was religiously inclined, and had heard
not only of the fame of Solomon, but concerning the name of the Lord
(v. 1), the great name of that God whom Solomon worshipped and from
whom he received his wisdom, and with this God she desired to be better
acquainted. Therefore does our Saviour mention her enquiries after God, by
Solomon, as an aggravation of the stupidity of those who enquire not after
God by our Lord Jesus Christ, though he, having lain in his bosom, was much
better able to instruct them.
II. With what equipage she came, with a very great retinue, agreeable to her
rank, intending to try Solomon's wealth and generosity, as well as his
wisdom, what entertainment he could and would give to a royal visitant, v.
2. Yet she came not as one begging, but brought enough to bear her charges,
and abundantly to recompense Solomon for his attention to her, nothing mean
or common, but gold, and precious stones, and spices, because she came to
trade for wisdom, which she would purchase at any rate.
III. What entertainment Solomon gave her. He despised not the weakness of
her sex, blamed her not for leaving her own business at home to come so long
a journey, and put herself and him to so much trouble and expense merely to
satisfy her curiosity; but he made her welcome and all her train, gave her
liberty to put all her questions, though some perhaps were frivolous, some
captious, and some over-curious; he allowed her to commune with him of
all that was in her heart (v. 2) and gave her a satisfactory
answer to all her questions (v. 3), whether natural, moral,
political, or divine. Were they designed to try him? he gave them such turns
as abundantly satisfied her of his uncommon knowledge. Were they designed
for her own instruction? (as we suppose most of them were), she received
abundant instruction from him, and he made things surprisingly easy which
she apprehended insuperably difficult, and satisfied her that there was a
divine sentence in the lips of this king. But he informed her no
doubt, with particular care, concerning God, and his law and instituted
worship. He had taken it for granted (ch. viii. 42) that strangers
would hear of his great name, and would come thither to enquire after
him; and now that so great a stranger came we may be sure he was not wanting
to assist and encourage her enquiries, and give her a description of the
temple, and the officers and services of it, that she might be persuaded to
serve the Lord whom she now sought.
IV. How she was affected with what she saw and heard in Solomon's court.
Divers things are here mentioned which she admired, the buildings and
furniture of his palace, the provision that was made very day for his table
(when she saw that perhaps she wondered where there were mouths for all that
meat, but when she saw the multitude of his attendants and guests she was as
ready to wonder where was the meat for all those mouths), the orderly
sitting of his servants, every one in his place, and the ready attendance of
his ministers, without any confusion, their rich liveries, and the propriety
with which his cup-bearers waited at his table. These things she admired, as
adding much to his magnificence. But, above all these, the first thing
mentioned (which contained all) is his wisdom (v. 4), of the
transcendency of which she now had incontestable proofs: and the last thing
mentioned, which crowned all, is his piety, the ascent by which he went
up to the house of the Lord, with what gravity and seriousness, and an
air of devotion in his countenance, he appeared, when he went to the temple
to worship God, with as much humility then as majesty at other times. Many
of the ancient versions read it, The burnt-offerings which he offered in
the house of the Lord; she observed with what a generous bounty he
brought his sacrifices, and with what a pious fervour he attended the
offering of them; never did she see so much goodness with so much greatness.
Every thing was so surprising that there was no more spirit in her, but she
stood amazed; she had never seen the like.
V. How she expressed herself upon this occasion. 1. She owned her
expectation far out-done, though it was highly raised by the report she
heard, v. 6, 7. She is far from repenting her journey or calling
herself a fool for undertaking it, but acknowledges it was well worth
her while to come so far for the sight of that which she could not believe
the report of. Usually things are represented to us, both by common fame and
by our own imagination, much greater than we find them when we come to
examine them; but here the truth exceeded both fame and fancy. Those who,
through grace, are brought to experience the delights of communion with God
will say that the one-half was not told them of the pleasures of Wisdom's
ways and the advantages of her gates. Glorified saints, much more, will say
that it was a true report which they heard of the happiness of heaven, but
that the thousandth part was not told them, 1 Cor. ii. 9. 2. She pronounced
those happy that constantly attended him, and waited on him at table: "Happy
are thy men, happy are these thy servants (v. 8); they may
improve their own wisdom by hearing thine." She was tempted to envy
them and to which herself one of them. Note, It is a great advantage to be
in good families, and to have opportunity of frequent converse with those
that are wise, and good, and communicative. Many have this happiness who
know not how to value it. With much more reason may we say this of Christ's
servants, Blessed are those that dwell in his house, they will be still
praising him. 3. She blessed God, the giver of Solomon's wisdom and
wealth, and the author of his advancement, who had made him king, (1.) In
kindness to him, that he might have the larger opportunity of doing good
with his wisdom: He delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of
Israel, v. 9. Solomon's preferment began in the prophet's calling
him Jedidiah, because the Lord loved him, 2 Sam. xii. 25. It more
than doubles our comforts if we have reason to hope they come from God's
delight in us. It was his pleasure concerning thee (so it may be
read) to set thee on the throne, not for thy merit's sake, but
because it so seemed good unto him. (2.) In kindness to the people, because
the Lord loved Israel for ever, designed them a lasting bliss, long to
survive him that laid the foundations of it. "He has made thee king,
not that thou mayest live in pomp and pleasure, and do what thou wilt, but to
do judgment and justice." This she kindly reminded Solomon of, and
no doubt he took it kindly. Both magistrates and ministers must be more
solicitous to do the duty of their places than to secure the honours and
profits of them. To this she attributes his prosperity, not to his wisdom,
for bread is not always to the wise (Eccl. ix. 11), but whoso doeth
judgment and justice, it shall be well with him, Jer. xxii. 15.
Thus giving of thanks must be made for kings, for good kings,
for such kings; they are what God makes them to be.
VI. How they parted. 1. She made a noble present to Solomon of gold and
spices, v. 10. David had foretold concerning Solomon that to
him should be given of the gold of Sheba, Ps. lxxii. 15. The present of
gold and spices which the wise men of the east brought to Christ was
signified by this, Matt. ii. 11. Thus she paid for the wisdom she had
learned and did not think she bought it dearly. Let those that are taught of
God give him their hearts, and the present will be more acceptable than this
of gold and spices. Mention is made of the great abundance Solomon had of
his own, notwithstanding she presented and he accepted this gold. What we
present to Christ he needs not, but will have us so to express our
gratitude. The almug-trees are here spoken of (v. 11, 12) as
extraordinary, because perhaps much admired by the queen of Sheba. 2.
Solomon was not behind-hand with her: He gave her whatsoever, she asked,
patterns, we may suppose, of those things that were curious, by which she
might make the like; or perhaps he gave her his precepts of wisdom and piety
in writing, besides that which he gave her of his royal bounty, v.
13. Thus those who apply to our Lord Jesus will find him not only greater
than Solomon, and wiser, but more kind; whatsoever we ask, it shall be done
for us; nay, he will, out of his divine bounty, which infinitely exceeds
royal bounty, even Solomon's, do for us more than we are able to ask or
think.
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Solomon's
Wealth.
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B.
C. 990.
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14 Now the weight of gold that came to
Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of
gold, 15 Beside that he had of the merchantmen, and of
the traffick of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia, and of
the governors of the country. 16 And king Solomon made two
hundred targets of beaten gold: six hundred shekels of gold
went to one target. 17 And he made three hundred shields of
beaten gold; three pound of gold went to one shield: and the king put them
in the house of the forest of Lebanon. 18 Moreover the king made
a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the best gold. 19
The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round behind:
and there were stays on either side on the place of the seat, and two
lions stood beside the stays. 20 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. 21 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. 22 For the king had at sea a navy of
Tharshish with the navy of Hiram: once in three years came the navy of
Tharshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.
23 So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for
wisdom. 24 And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his
wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 25 And they brought
every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments,
and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
26 And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a
thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he
bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem.
27 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 vale, for
abundance. 28 And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and
linen yarn: the king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price.
29 And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels
of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty: and so for all the kings of
the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, did they bring them out by
their means.
We have here a further account of Solomon's prosperity.
I. How he increased his wealth. Though he had much, he still coveted to have
more, being willing to try the utmost the things of this world could do to
make men happy. 1. Besides the gold that came from Ophir (ch. ix.
28), he brought so much into his country from other places that the whole
amounted, every year, to 666 talents (v. 14), an ominous
number, compare Rev. xiii. 18, and Ezra ii. 13. 2. He received a great deal
in customs from the merchants, and in land-taxes from the countries his
father had conquered and made tributaries to Israel, v. 15. 3. He was
Hiram's partner in a Tharshish fleet, of and for Tyre, which imported once
in three years, not only gold, and silver, and ivory, substantial goods and
serviceable, but apes to play with and peacocks to please the eye with their
feathers, v. 22. I wish this may not be an evidence that Solomon and
his people, being overcharged with prosperity, by this time grew childish
and wanton. 4. He had presents made him, every year, from the neighbouring
princes and great men, to engage the continuance of his friendship, not so
much because they feared him or were jealous of him as because they loved
him and admired his wisdom, had often occasion to consult him as an oracle,
and sent him these presents by way of recompence for his advice in politics,
and (whether it became his grandeur and generosity or no we will not
enquire) he took all that came, even garments and spices, horses and mules, v.
24, 25. 5. He traded to Egypt for horses and linen-yarn (or, as some read
it, linen-cloth), the staple commodities of that country, and had his
own merchants or factors whom he employed in this traffic and who were
accountable to him, v. 28, 29. The custom to be paid to the king of
Egypt for exported chariots and horses out of Egypt was very high, but (as
bishop Patrick understands it) Solomon, having married his daughter, got him
to compound for the customs, so that he could bring them up cheaper than his
neighbours, which obliged them to buy them of him, which he was wise enough
no doubt to make his advantage of. This puts an honour upon the trading part
of a nation, and sets a tradesman not so much below a gentleman as some
place him, that Solomon, one of the greatest men that ever was, thought it
no disparagement to him to deal in trade. In all labour there is profit.
II. What use he made of his wealth. He did not hoard it up in his coffers,
that he might have it to look upon and leave behind him. He has, in his
Ecclesiastes, so much exposed the folly of hoarding that we cannot suppose
he would himself be guilty of it. No, God that had given him riches, and
wealth, and honour, gave him also power to eat thereof, and to take his
portion, Eccles. v. 19.
1. He laid out his gold in fine things for himself, which he might the
better be allowed to do when he had before laid out so much in fine things
for the house of God. (1.) He made 200 targets, and 300 shields, of beaten
gold (v. 16, 17), not for service, but for state, to be carried
before him when he appeared in pomp. With us, magistrates have swords
and maces carried before them, as the Romans had their rods
and axes, in token of their power to correct and punish the bad, to
whom they are to be a terror. But Solomon had shields and targets
carried before him, to signify that he took more pleasure in using his power
for the defence and protection of the good, to whom he would be a praise.
Magistrates are shields of the earth. (2.) He made a stately throne,
on which he sat, to give laws to his subjects, audience to ambassadors, and
judgment upon appeals, v. 18-20. It was made of ivory, or elephants'
teeth, which was very rich; and yet, as if he had so much gold that he knew
not what to do with it, he overlaid that with gold, the best gold.
Yet some think he did not cover the ivory all over, but here and there. He
rolled it, flowered it, or inlaid it, with gold. The stays or arms of this
stately chair were supported by the images of lions in gold; so were the
steps and paces by which he went up to it, to be a memorandum to him of that
courage and resolution wherewith he ought to execute judgment, not fearing
the face of man. The righteous, in that post, is bold as a lion.
(3.) He made all his drinking vessels, and all the furniture of his table,
even at his country seat, of pure gold, v. 21. He did not grudge
himself what he had, but took the credit and comfort of it, such as it was.
That is good that does us good.
2. He made it circulate among his subjects, so that the kingdom was as rich
as the king; for he had no separate interests of his own to consult, but
sought the welfare of his people. Those princes are not governed by
Solomon's maxims who think it policy to keep their subjects poor. Solomon
was herein a type of Christ, who is not only rich himself, but enriches all
that are his. Solomon was instrumental to bring so much gold into the
country, and disperse it, that silver was nothing accounted of, v.
21. There was such plenty of it in
Jerusalem
that it was as the stones; and cedars, that used to be great rarities, were
as common as sycamore trees, v. 27. Such is the nature of
worldly wealth, plenty of it makes it the less valuable; much more should
the enjoyment of spiritual riches lessen our esteem of all earthly
possessions. If gold in abundance would make silver to seem so
despicable, shall not wisdom, and grace, and the foretastes of heaven, which
are far better than gold, make earthly wealth seem much more despicable?
Lastly, Well, thus rich, thus great, was Solomon, and thus did he exceed
all the kings of the earth, v. 23. Now let us remember, 1. That
this was he who, when he was setting out in the world, did not ask
for the wealth and honour of it, but asked for a wise and understanding
heart. The more moderate our desires are towards earthly things the
better qualified we are for the enjoyment of them and the more likely to
have them. See, in Solomon's greatness, the performance of God's promise (ch.
iii. 13), and let it encourage us to seek first the righteousness of
God's kingdom. 2. That this was he who, having tasted all these
enjoyments, wrote a whole book to show the vanity of all worldly things and
the vexation of spirit that attends them, their insufficiency to make us
happy and the folly of setting our hearts upon them, and to recommend to us
the practice of serious godliness, as that which is the whole of man, and
will do infinitely more towards the making of us easy and happy than all the
wealth and power that he was master of, and which, through the grace of God,
is within our reach, when the thousandth part of Solomon's greatness is a
thousand times more than we can ever be so vain as to promise ourselves in
this world.
