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 Arophaeus; Arophaeus'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 defence. 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 hindrance 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 Rues;
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 Solomon 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 skilful 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 island6."
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 THE 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,7 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 one through another. Every one of these
rooms had five cubits in breadth,8 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 cubits9; 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 Naphthali, 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 skilful 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,10 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 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;11
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,12
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],13
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,
Nabloe and Cinyroe, [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.14
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,15 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 Hyperberetoeus. 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.16 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 came 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 death 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 multitude
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,17 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 and plants covered the stone
that was beneath them, and their leaves were wrought so prodigious thin and
subtle, 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 walls 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,18
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 skilful 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;19 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 skilful 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).20
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;21
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; Sidonians, 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
fallen headlong into unreasonable pleasures, and regarded not those admonitions;
for when he had married seven hundred wives,22 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,23
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 Taphenes, 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,24
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 righteous and keep the laws, because
he hath proposed to thee the greatest of all rewards for thy piety, and the
honor thou shalt pay to God, namely, to be as greatly exalted as thou knowest
David to have been."
8. So Jeroboam was elevated by these words
of the prophet; and being a young man25 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 FORSOOK HIS SON REHOBOAM, AND ORDAINED
JEROBOAM KING OVER THE TEN TRIBES
1. Now when Solomon was dead, and his son Rehoboam (who was born of an
Ammonite wife; whose name was Naamah) had succeeded him in the kingdom, the
rulers of the multitude sent immediately into Egypt, and called back Jeroboam;
and when he was come to them, to the city Shechem, Rehoboam came to it also,
for he had resolved to declare himself king to the Israelites while they were
there gathered together. So the rulers of the people, as well as Jeroboam, came
to him, and besought him, and said that he ought to relax, and to be gentler
than his father, in the servitude he had imposed on them, because they had borne
a heavy yoke, and that then they should be better affected to him, and be well
contented to serve him under his moderate government, and should do it more
out of love than fear. But Rehoboam told them they should come to him again
in three days' time, when he would give an answer to their request. This delay
gave occasion to a present suspicion, since he had not given them a favorable
answer to their mind immediately; for they thought that he should have given
them a humane answer off-hand, especially since he was but young. However, they
thought that this consultation about it, and that he did not presently give
them a denial, afforded them some good hope of success.
2. Rehoboam now called his father's friends,
and advised with them what sort of answer he ought to give to the multitude;
upon which they gave him the advice which became friends, and those that knew
the temper of such a multitude. They advised him to speak in a way more popular
than suited the grandeur of a king, because he would thereby oblige them to
submit to him with goodwill, it being most agreeable to subjects that their
kings should be almost upon the level with them. But Rehoboam rejected this
so good, and in general so profitable, advice, (it was such, at least, at that
time when he was to be made king,) God himself, I suppose, causing what was
most advantageous to be condemned by him. So he called for the young men who
were brought up with him, and told them what advice the elders had given him,
and bade them speak what they thought he ought to do. They advised him to give
the following answer to the people (for neither their youth nor God himself
suffered them to discern what was best):—that his little finger should be thicker
than his father's loins; and if they had met with hard usage from his father,
they should experience much rougher treatment from him; and if his father had
chastised them with whips, they must expect that he would do it with scorpions.26
The king was pleased with this advice, and thought it agreeable to the dignity
of his government to give them such an answer. Accordingly, when the multitude
was come together to hear his answer on the third day, all the people were in
great expectation, and very intent to hear what the king would say to them,
and supposed they should hear somewhat of a kind nature; but he passed by his
friends, and answered as the young men had given him counsel. Now this was done
according to the will of God, that what Ahijah had foretold might come to pass.
3. By these words the people were struck
as it were by all iron hammer, and were so grieved at the words, as if they
had already felt the effects of them; and they had great indignation at the
king; and all cried out aloud, and said, "We will have no longer any relation
to David or his posterity after this day." And they said further, "We only leave
to Rehoboam the temple which his father built"; and they threatened to forsake
him. Nay, they were so bitter, and retained their wrath so long, that when he
sent Adoram, which was over the tribute, that he might pacify them, and render
them milder, and persuade them to forgive him, if he had said any thing that
was rash or grievous to them in his youth, they would not hear it, but threw
stones at him, and killed him. When Rehoboam saw this, he thought himself aimed
at by those stones with which they had killed his servant, and feared lest he
should undergo the last of punishments in earnest; so he got immediately into
his chariot, and fled to Jerusalem, where the tribe of Judah and that of Benjamin
ordained him king; but the rest of the multitude forsook the sons of David from
that day, and appointed Jeroboam to be the ruler of their public affairs. Upon
this Rehoboam, Solomon's son, assembled a great congregation of those two tribes
that submitted to him, and was ready to take a hundred and eighty thousand chosen
men out of the army, to make an expedition against Jeroboam and his people,
that he might force them by war to be his servants; but he was forbidden of
God by the prophet [Shemaiah] to go to war, for that it was not just that brethren
of the same country should fight one against another. He also said that this
defection of the multitude was according to the purpose of God. So he did not
proceed in this expedition. And now I will relate first the actions of Jeroboam
the king of Israel, after which we will relate what are therewith connected,
the actions of Rehoboam, the king of the two tribes; by this means we shall
preserve the good order of the history entire.
4. When therefore Jeroboam had built him
a palace in the city Shechem, he dwelt there. He also built him another at Penuel,
a city so called. And now the feast of tabernacles was approaching in a little
time, Jeroboam considered, that if he should permit the multitude to go to worship
God at Jerusalem, and there to celebrate the festival, they would probably repent
of what they had done, and be enticed by the temple, and by the worship of God
there performed, and would leave him, and return to their first kings; and if
so, he should run the risk of losing his own life; so he invented this contrivance;
He made two golden heifers, and built two little temples for them, the one in
the city Bethel, and the other in Dan, which last was at the fountains of the
Lesser Jordan,27 and he put the heifers into both
the little temples, in the forementioned cities. And when he had called those
ten tribes together over whom he ruled, he made a speech to the people in these
words: "I suppose, my countrymen, that you know this, that every place hath
God in it; nor is there any one determinate place in which he is, but he every
where hears and sees those that worship him; on which account I do not think
it right for you to go so long a journey to Jerusalem, which is an enemy's city,
to worship him. It was a man that built the temple: I have also made two golden
heifers, dedicated to the same God; and the one of them I have consecrated in
the city Bethel, and the other in Dan, to the end that those of you that dwell
nearest those cities may go to them, and worship God there; and I will ordain
for you certain priests and Levites from among yourselves, that you may have
no want of the tribe of Levi, or of the sons of Aaron; but let him that is desirous
among you of being a priest, bring to God a bullock and a ram, which they say
Aaron the first priest brought also." When Jeroboam had said this, he deluded
the people, and made them to revolt from the worship of their forefathers, and
to transgress their laws. This was the beginning of miseries to the Hebrews,
and the cause why they were overcome in war by foreigners, and so fell into
captivity. But we shall relate those things in their proper places hereafter.
5. When the feast [of tabernacles] was just
approaching, Jeroboam was desirous to celebrate it himself in Bethel, as did
the two tribes celebrate it in Jerusalem. Accordingly he built an altar before
the heifer, and undertook to be high priest himself. So he went up to the altar,
with his own priests about him; but when he was going to offer the sacrifices
and the burnt-offerings, in the sight of all the people, a prophet, whose name
was Jadon, was sent by God, and came to him from Jerusalem, who stood in the
midst of the multitude, and in the hearing of the king, and directing his discourse
to the altar, said thus:—"God foretells that there shall be a certain man of
the family of David, Josiah by name, who shall slay upon thee those false priests
that shall live at that time, and upon thee shall burn the bones of those deceivers
of the people, those impostors and wicked wretches. However, that this people
may believe that these things shall so come to pass, I foretell a sign to them
that shall also come to pass. This altar shall be broken to pieces immediately,
and all the fat of the sacrifices that is upon it shall be poured upon the ground."
When the prophet had said this, Jeroboam fell into a passion, and stretched
out his hand, and bid them lay hold of him; but that hand which he stretched
out was enfeebled, and he was not able to pull it in again to him, for it was
become withered, and hung down, as if it were a dead hand. The altar also was
broken to pieces, and all that was upon it was poured out, as the prophet had
foretold should come to pass. So the king understood that he was a man of veracity,
and had a Divine foreknowledge; and entreated him to pray to God that he would
restore his right hand. Accordingly the prophet did pray to God to grant him
that request. So the king, having his hand recovered to its natural state, rejoiced
at it, and invited the prophet to sup with him; but Jadon said that he could
not endure to come into his house, nor to taste of bread or water in this city,
for that was a thing God had forbidden him to do; as also to go back by the
same way which he came, but he said he was to return by another way. So the
king wondered at the abstinence of the man, but was himself in fear, as suspecting
a change of his affairs for the worse, from what had been said to him.
CHAPTER
9
HOW JADON THE PROPHET WAS PERSUADED BY ANOTHER LYING PROPHET AND RETURNED [TO
BETHEL,] AND WAS AFTERWARDS SLAIN BY A LION; AS ALSO, WHAT WORDS THE WICKED
PROPHET MADE USE OF TO PERSUADE THE KING, AND THEREBY ALIENATED HIS MIND FROM
GOD
1. Now there was a certain wicked man in that city, who was a false prophet,
whom Jeroboam had in great esteem, but was deceived by him and his flattering
words. This man was bedrid, by reason or the infirmities of old age: however,
he was informed by his sons concerning the prophet that was come from Jerusalem,
and concerning the signs done by him; and how, when Jeroboam's right hand had
been enfeebled, at the prophet's prayer he had it revived again. Whereupon he
was afraid that this stranger and prophet should be in better esteem with the
king than himself, and obtain greater honor from him: and he gave orders to
his sons to saddle his ass presently, and make all ready that he might go out.
Accordingly they made haste to do what they were commanded, and he got upon
the ass and followed after the prophet; and when he had overtaken him, as he
was resting himself under a very large oak tree that was thick and shady, he
at first saluted him, but presently he complained of him, because he had not
come into his house, and partaken of his hospitality. And when the other said
that God had forbidden him to taste of any one's provision in that city, he
replied, that "for certain God had not forbidden that I should set food before
thee, for I am a prophet as thou art, and worship God in the same manner that
thou dost; and I am now come as sent by him, in order to bring thee into my
house, and make thee my guest." Now Jadon gave credit to this lying prophet,
and returned back with him. But when they were at dinner, and merry together,
God appeared to Jadon, and said that he should suffer punishment for transgressing
his commands,—and he told him what that punishment should be for he said that
he should meet with a lion as he was going on his way, by which lion he should
be torn in pieces, and be deprived of burial in the sepulchres of his fathers;
which things came to pass, as I suppose, according to the will of God, that
so Jeroboam might not give heed to the words of Jadon as of one that had been
convicted of lying. However, as Jadon was again going to Jerusalem, a lion assaulted
him, and pulled him off the beast he rode on, and slew him; yet did he not at
all hurt the ass, but sat by him, and kept him, as also the prophet's body.
This continued till some travelers that saw it came and told it in the city
to the false prophet, who sent his sons, and brought the body unto the city,
and made a funeral for him at great expense. He also charged his sons to bury
himself with him and said that all which he had foretold against that city,
and the altar, and priests, and false prophets, would prove true; and that if
he were buried with him, he should receive no injurious treatment after his
death, the bones not being then to be distinguished asunder. But now, when he
had performed those funeral rites to the prophet, and had given that charge
to his sons, as he was a wicked and an impious man, he goes to Jeroboam, and
says to him, "And wherefore is it now that thou art disturbed at the words of
this silly fellow?" And when the king had related to him what had happened about
the altar, and about his own hand, and gave him the names of divine man, and
an excellent prophet, he endeavored by a wicked trick to weaken that his opinion;
and by using plausible words concerning what had happened, he aimed to injure
the truth that was in them; for he attempted to persuade him that his hand was
enfeebled by the labor it had undergone in supporting the sacrifices, and that
upon its resting awhile it returned to its former nature again; and that as
to the altar, it was but new, and had borne abundance of sacrifices, and those
large ones too, and was accordingly broken to pieces, and fallen down by the
weight of what had been laid upon it. He also informed him of the death of him
that had foretold those things, and how he perished; [whence he concluded that]
he had not any thing in him of a prophet, nor spake any thing like one. When
he had thus spoken, he persuaded the king, and entirely alienated his mind from
God, and from doing works that were righteous and holy, and encouraged him to
go on in his impious practices;28 and accordingly
he was to that degree injurious to God, and so great a transgressor, that he
sought for nothing else every day but how he might be guilty of some new instances
of wickedness, and such as should be more detestable than what he had been so
insolent as to do before. And so much shall at present suffice to have said
concerning Jeroboam.
CHAPTER
10
CONCERNING REHOBOAM, AND HOW GOD INFLICTED PUNISHMENT UPON HIM FOR HIS IMPIETY
BY SHISHAK [KING OF EGYPT]
1. Now Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, who, as we said before, was king
of the two tribes, built strong and large cities, Bethlehem, and Etam, and Tekoa,
and Bethzur, and Shoco, and Adullam, and Ipan, and Maresha, and Ziph, and Adoriam,
and Lachish, and Azekah, and Zorah, and Aijalon, and Hebron; these he built
first of all in the tribe of Judah. He also built other large cities in the
tribe of Benjamin, and walled them about, and put garrisons in them all, and
captains, and a great deal of corn, and wine, and oil, and he furnished every
one of them plentifully with other provisions that were necessary for sustenance;
moreover, he put therein shields and spears for many ten thousand men. The priests
also that were in all Israel, and the Levites, and if there were any of the
multitude that were good and righteous men, they gathered themselves together
to him, having left their own cities, that they might worship God in Jerusalem;
for they were not willing to be forced to worship the heifers which Jeroboam
had made; and they augmented the kingdom of Rehoboam for three years. And after
he had married a woman of his own kindred, and had by her three children born
to him, he married also another of his own kindred, who was daughter of Absalom
by Tamar, whose name was Maachah, and by her he had a son, whom he named Abijah.
He had moreover many other children by other wives, but he loved Maachah above
them all. Now he had eighteen legitimate wives, and thirty concubines; and he
had born to him twenty-eight sons and threescore daughters; but he appointed
Abijah, whom he had by Maachah, to be his successor in the kingdom, and intrusted
him already with the treasures and the strongest cities.
2. Now I cannot but think that the greatness
of a kingdom, and its change into prosperity, often become the occasion of mischief
and of transgression to men; for when Rehoboam saw that his kingdom was so much
increased, he went out of the right way unto unrighteous and irreligious practices,
and he despised the worship of God, till the people themselves imitated his
wicked actions: for so it usually happens, that the manners of subjects are
corrupted at the same time with those of their governors, which subjects then
lay aside their own sober way of living, as a reproof of their governors' intemperate
courses, and follow their wickedness as if it were virtue; for it is not possible
to show that men approve of the actions of their kings, unless they do the same
actions with them. Agreeable whereto it now happened to the subjects of Rehoboam;
for when he was grown impious, and a transgressor himself, they endeavored not
to offend him by resolving still to be righteous. But God sent Shishak, king
of Egypt, to punish them for their unjust behavior towards him, concerning whom
Herodotus was mistaken, and applied his actions to Sesostris; for this Shishak,29
in the fifth year of the reign of Rehoboam, made an expedition [into Judea]
with many ten thousand men; for he had one thousand two hundred chariots in
number that followed him, and threescore thousand horsemen, and four hundred
thousand footmen. These he brought with him, and they were the greatest part
of them Libyans and Ethiopians. Now therefore when he fell upon the country
of the Hebrews, he took the strongest cities of Rehoboam's kingdom without fighting;
and when he had put garrisons in them, he came last of all to Jerusalem.
3. Now when Rehoboam, and the multitude
with him, were shut up in Jerusalem by the means of the army of Shishak, and
when they besought God to give them victory and deliverance, they could not
persuade God to be on their side. But Shemaiah the prophet told them, that God
threatened to forsake them, as they had themselves forsaken his worship. When
they heard this, they were immediately in a consternation of mind; and seeing
no way of deliverance, they all earnestly set themselves to confess that God
might justly overlook them, since they had been guilty of impiety towards him,
and had let his laws lie in confusion. So when God saw them in that disposition,
and that they acknowledge their sins, he told the prophet that he would not
destroy them, but that he would, however, make them servants to the Egyptians,
that they may learn whether they will suffer less by serving men or God. So
when Shishak had taken the city without fighting, because Rehoboam was afraid,
and received him into it, yet did not Shishak stand to the covenants he had
made, but he spoiled the temple, and emptied the treasures of God, and those
of the king, and carried off innumerable ten thousands of gold and silver, and
left nothing at all behind him. He also took away the bucklers of gold, and
the shields, which Solomon the king had made; nay, he did not leave the golden
quivers which David had taken from the king of Zobah, and had dedicated to God;
and when he had thus done, he returned to his own kingdom. Now Herodotus of
Halicarnassus mentions this expedition, having only mistaken the king's name;
and [in saying that] he made war upon many other nations also, and brought Syria
of Palestine into subjection, and took the men that were therein prisoners without
fighting. Now it is manifest that he intended to declare that our nation was
subdued by him; for he saith that he left behind him pillars in the land of
those that delivered themselves up to him without fighting, and engraved upon
them the secret parts of women. Now our king Rehoboam delivered up our city
without fighting. He says withal,30 that the Ethiopians
learned to circumcise their privy parts from the Egyptians, with this addition,
that the Phoenicians and Syrians that live in Palestine confess that they learned
it of the Egyptians. Yet it is evident that no other of the Syrians that live
in Palestine, besides us alone, are circumcised. But as to such matters, let
every one speak what is agreeable to his own opinion.
4. When Shishak was gone away, king Rehoboam
made bucklers and shields of brass, instead of those of gold, and delivered
the same number of them to the keepers of the king's palace. So, instead of
warlike expeditions, and that glory which results from those public actions,
he reigned in great quietness, though not without fear, as being always an enemy
to Jeroboam, and he died when he had lived fifty-seven years, and reigned seventeen.
He was in his disposition a proud and a foolish man, and lost [part of his]
dominions by not hearkening to his father's friends. He was buried in Jerusalem,
in the sepulchres of the kings; and his son Abijah succeeded him in the kingdom,
and this in the eighteenth year of Jeroboam's reign over the ten tribes; and
this was the conclusion of these affairs. It must be now our business to relate
the affairs of Jeroboam, and how he ended his life; for he ceased not nor rested
to be injurious to God, but every day raised up altars upon high mountains,
and went on making priests out of the multitude.
CHAPTER
11
CONCERNING THE DEATH OF A SON OF JEROBOAM. HOW JEROBOAM WAS BEATEN BY ABIJAH
WHO DIED A LITTLE AFTERWARD AND WAS SUCCEEDED IN HIS KINGDOM BY ASA. AND ALSO
HOW, AFTER THE DEATH OF JEROBOAM, BAASHA DESTROYED HIS SON NADAB AND ALL THE
HOUSE OF JEROBOAM
1. However, God was in no long time ready to return Jeroboam's wicked
actions, and the punishment they deserved, upon his own head, and upon the heads
of all his house. And whereas a soil of his lay sick at that time, who was called
Abijah, he enjoined his wife to lay aside her robes, and to take the garments
belonging to a private person, and to go to Ahijah the prophet, for that he
was a wonderful man in foretelling futurities, it having been he who told me
that I should be king. He also enjoined her, when she came to him, to inquire
concerning the child, as if she were a stranger, whether he should escape this
distemper. So she did as her husband bade her, and changed her habit, and came
to the city Shiloh, for there did Ahijah live. And as she was going into his
house, his eyes being then dim with age, God appeared to him, and informed him
of two things; that the wife of Jeroboam was come to him, and what answer he
should make to her inquiry. Accordingly, as the woman was coming into the house
like a private person and a stranger, he cried out, "Come in, O thou wife of
Jeroboam! Why concealest thou thyself? Thou art not concealed from God, who
hath appeared to me, and informed me that thou wast coming, and hath given me
in command what I shall say to thee." So he said that she should go away to
her husband, and speak to him thus: "Since I made thee a great man when thou
wast little, or rather wast nothing, and rent the kingdom from the house of
David, and gave it to thee, and thou hast been unmindful of these benefits,
hast left off my worship, hast made thee molten gods and honored them, I will
in like manner cast thee down again, and will destroy all thy house, and make
them food for the dogs and the fowls; for a certain king is rising up, by appointment,
over all this people, who shall leave none of the family of Jeroboam remaining.
The multitude also shall themselves partake of the same punishment, and shall
be cast out of this good land, and shall be scattered into the places beyond
Euphrates, because they have followed the wicked practices of their king, and
have worshipped the gods that he made, and forsaken my sacrifices. But do thou,
O woman, make haste back to thy husband, and tell him this message; but thou
shalt then find thy son dead, for as thou enterest the city he shall depart
this life; yet shall he be buried with the lamentation of all the multitude,
and honored with a general mourning, for he was the only person of goodness
of Jeroboam's family." When the prophet had foretold these events, the woman
went hastily away with a disordered mind, and greatly grieved at the death of
the forenamed child. So she was in lamentation as she went along the road, and
mourned for the death of her son, that was just at hand. She was indeed in a
miserable condition at the unavoidable misery of his death, and went apace,
but in circumstances very unfortunate, because of her son: for the greater haste
she made, she would the sooner see her son dead, yet was she forced to make
such haste on account of her husband. Accordingly, when she was come back, she
found that the child had given up the ghost, as the prophet had said; and she
related all the circumstances to the king.
2. Yet did not Jeroboam lay any of these
things to heart, but he brought together a very numerous army, and made a warlike
expedition against Abijah, the son of Rehoboam, who had succeeded his father
in the kingdom of the two tribes; for he despised him because of his age. But
when he heard of the expedition of Jeroboam, he was not affrighted at it, but
proved of a courageous temper of mind, superior both to his youth and to the
hopes of his enemy; so he chose him an army out of the two tribes, and met Jeroboam
at a place called Mount Zemaraim, and pitched his camp near the other, and prepared
everything necessary for the fight. His army consisted of four hundred thousand,
but the army of Jeroboam was double to it. Now as the armies stood in array,
ready for action and dangers, and were just going to fight, Abijah stood upon
an elevated place, and beckoning with his hand, he desired the multitude and
Jeroboam himself to hear first with silence what he had to say. And when silence
was made, he began to speak, and told them,—"God had consented that David and
his posterity should be their rulers for all time to come, and this you yourselves
are not unacquainted with; but I cannot but wonder how you should forsake my
father, and join yourselves to his servant Jeroboam, and are now here with him
to fight against those who, by God's own determination, are to reign, and to
deprive them of that dominion which they have still retained; for as to the
greater part of it, Jeroboam is unjustly in possession of it. However, I do
not suppose he will enjoy it any longer; but when he hath suffered that punishment
which God thinks due to him for what is past, he will leave off the transgressions
he hath been guilty of, and the injuries he hath offered to him, and which he
hath still continued to offer and hath persuaded you to do the same: yet when
you were not any further unjustly treated by my father, than that he did not
speak to you so as to please you, and this only in compliance with the advice
of wicked men, you in anger forsook him, as you pretended, but, in reality,
you withdrew yourselves from God, and from his laws, although it had been right
for you to have forgiven a man that was young in age, and not used to govern
people, not only some disagreeable words, but if his youth and unskilfulness
in affairs had led him into some unfortunate actions, and that for the sake
of his father Solomon, and the benefits you received from him; for men ought
to excuse the sins of posterity on account of the benefactions of parents; but
you considered nothing of all this then, neither do you consider it now, but
come with so great an army against us. And what is it you depend upon for victory?
Is it upon these golden heifers, and the altars that you have on high places,
which are demonstrations of your impiety, and not of religious worship? Or is
it the exceeding multitude of your army which gives you such good hopes? Yet
certainly there is no strength at all in an army of many ten thousands, when
the war is unjust; for we ought to place our surest hopes of success against
our enemies in righteousness alone, and in piety towards God; which hope we
justly have, since we have kept the laws from the beginning, and have worshipped
our own God, who was not made by hands out of corruptible matter; nor was he
formed by a wicked king, in order to deceive the multitude; but who is his own
workmanship,31 and the beginning and end of all things.
I therefore give you counsel even now to repent, and to take better advice,
and to leave off the prosecution of the war; to call to mind the laws of your
country, and to reflect what it hath been that hath advanced you to so happy
a state as you are now in."
3. This was the speech which Abijah made
to the multitude. But while he was still speaking Jeroboam sent some of his
soldiers privately to encompass Abijah round about, on certain parts of the
camp that were not taken notice of; and when he was thus within the compass
of the enemy, his army was affrighted, and their courage failed them; but Abijah
encouraged them, and exhorted them to place their hopes on God, for that he
was not encompassed by the enemy. So they all at once implored the Divine assistance,
while the priests sounded with the trumpet, and they made a shout, and fell
upon their enemies, and God brake the courage and cast down the force of their
enemies, and made Abijah's army superior to them; for God vouchsafed to grant
them a wonderful and very famous victory; and such a slaughter was now made
of Jeroboam's army32 as is never recorded to have
happened in any other war, whether it were of the Greeks or of the Barbarians,
for they overthrew [and slew] five hundred thousand of their enemies, and they
took their strongest cities by force, and spoiled them; and besides those, they
did the same to Bethel and her towns, and Jeshanah and her towns. And after
this defeat Jeroboam never recovered himself during the life of Abijah, who
yet did not long survive, for he reigned but three years, and was buried in
Jerusalem in the sepulchres of his forefathers. He left behind him twenty-two
sons, and sixteen daughters; and he had also those children by fourteen wives;
and Asa his son succeeded in the kingdom; and the young man's mother was Michaiah.
Under his reign the country of the Israelites enjoyed peace for ten years.
4. And so far concerning Abijah, the son
of Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, as his history hath come down to us. But Jeroboam,
the king of the ten tribes, died when he had governed them two and twenty years;
whose son Nadab succeeded him, in the second year of the reign of Asa. Now Jeroboam's
son governed two years, and resembled his father in impiety and wickedness.
In these two years he made an expedition against Gibbethon, a city of the Philistines,
and continued the siege in order to take it; but he was conspired against while
he was there by a friend of his, whose name was Baasha, the son of Ahijah, and
was slain; which Baasha took the kingdom after the other's death, and destroyed
the whole house of Jeroboam. It also came to pass, according as God had foretold,
that some of Jeroboam's kindred that died in the city were torn to pieces and
devoured by dogs, and that others of them that died in the fields were torn
and devoured by the fowls. So the house of Jeroboam suffered the just punishment
of his impiety, and of his wicked actions.
CHAPTER
12
HOW ZERAH, KING OF THE ETHIOPIANS, WAS BEATEN BY ASA; AND HOW ASA, UPON BAASHA'S
MAKING WAR AGAINST HIM, INVITED THE KING OF THE DAMASCENS TO ASSIST HIM; AND
HOW, ON THE DESTRUCTION OF THE HOUSE OF BAASHA, ZIMRI GOT THE KINGDOM AS DID
HIS SON AHAB AFTER HIM
1. Now Asa, the king of Jerusalem, was of an excellent character, and
had a regard to God, and neither did nor designed any thing but what had relation
to the observation of the laws. He made a reformation of his kingdom, and cut
off whatsoever was wicked therein, and purified it from every impurity. Now
he had an army of chosen men that were armed with targets and spears; out of
the tribe of Judah three hundred thousand; and out of the tribe of Benjamin,
that bore shields and drew bows, two hundred and fifty thousand. But when he
had already reigned ten years, Zerah, king of Ethiopia,33
made an expedition against him, with a great army, of nine hundred thousand
footmen, and one hundred thousand horsemen, and three hundred chariots, and
came as far as Mareshah, a city that belonged to the tribe of Judah. Now when
Zerah had passed so far with his own army, Asa met him, and put his army in
array over against him, in a valley called Zephathah, not far from the city;
and when he saw the multitude of the Ethiopians, he cried out, and besought
God to give him the victory, and that he might kill many ten thousands of the
enemy: "For," said he, "I depend on nothing else but that assistance which I
expect from thee, which is able to make the fewer superior to the more numerous,
and the weaker to the stronger; and thence it is alone that I venture to meet
Zerah, and fight him."
2. While Asa was saying this, God gave him
a signal of victory, and joining battle cheerfully on account of what God had
foretold about it, he slew a great many of the Ethiopians; and when he had put
them to flight, he pursued them to the country of Gerar; and when they left
off killing their enemies, they betook themselves to spoiling them, (for the
city Gerar was already taken,) and to spoiling their camp, so that they carried
off much gold, and much silver, and a great deal of [other] prey, and camels,
and great cattle, and flocks of sheep. Accordingly, when Asa and his army had
obtained such a victory, and such wealth from God, they returned to Jerusalem.
Now as they were coming, a prophet, whose name was Azariah, met them on the
road, and bade them stop their journey a little; and began to say to them thus:—that
the reason why they had obtained this victory from God was this, that they had
showed themselves righteous and religious men, and had done every thing according
to the will of God; that therefore, he said, if they persevered therein, God
would grant that they should always overcome their enemies, and live happily;
but that if they left off his worship, all things shall fall out on the contrary;
and a time should come,34 wherein no true prophet
shall be left in your whole multitude, nor a priest who shall deliver you a
true answer from the oracle; but your cities shall be overthrown, and your nation
scattered over the whole earth, and live the life of strangers and wanderers.
So he advised them, while they had time, to be good, and not to deprive themselves
of the favor of God. When the king and the people heard this, they rejoiced;
and all in common, and every one in particular, took great care to behave themselves
righteously. The king also sent some to take care that those in the country
should observe the laws also.
3. And this was the state of Asa, king of
the two tribes. I now return to Baasha, the king of the multitude of the Israelites,
who slew Nadab, the son of Jeroboam, and retained the govern