is my son, and the dead is thy son." And this said, "No; but the dead is thy son, and the living is my son." Thus they spake before the king.

999

Then said the king, "The one saith, "This is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead:' and the other saith, 'Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living." And the king said, "Fetch me a sword." And they brought a sword before the king. And the king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other." Then spake the woman. whose the living child was unto the king, for her heart yearned over her son, and she said, "Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it." But the other said, "It shall be neither mine nor thine; divide it.” Then the king answered and said, "Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof." And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do justice.

And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea-shore. And Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east, and all the wisdom of Egypt. For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol: and his fame was in all the nations round about. And he spake three thousand proverbs; and his songs were a thousand and five. And he spake of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall: he spake also of beasts, and of birds, and of creeping things, and of fishes. And there came of all peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom.

LXXV

THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE

(I Kings v, vi: 37, 38)

And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father; for Hiram was ever a lover of David. And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying, "Thou knowest how that David my father could not build a house for the name of Jehovah his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until Jehovah put them under the soles of his feet. But now Jehovah my God hath given me rest on every side; there is neither adversary, nor evil occurrence. And, behold, I purpose to build a house for the name of Jehovah my God, as Jehovah spake unto David my father, saying, 'Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build the house for my name.' Now therefore command thou that they cut me cedar-trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy servants; and I will give thee hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt say; for thou knowest that there is not among us any that knoweth how to cut timber like unto the Sidonians.'

And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, "Blessed be Jehovah this day, who hath given unto David a wise son over this great people." And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, "I have heard the message which thou hast sent unto me: I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir. My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon unto the sea; and I will make them into rafts to go by sea unto the place that thou shalt appoint me, and will cause them to be broken up there, and thou shalt receive them; and thou shalt

accomplish my desire in giving food for my household." So Hiram gave Solomon timber of cedar and timber of fir according to all his desire. And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures1 of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year. And Jehovah gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together.

And king Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men. And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses; a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home: and Adoniram was over the men subject to task-work. And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand that were hewers in the mountains; besides Solomon's chief officers that were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, who bare rule over the people that wrought in the work. And the king commanded, and they hewed out great stones, costly stones, to lay the foundation of the house with wrought stone. And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders and the Gebalites did fashion them, and prepared the timber and the stones to build the house.

In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of Jehovah laid, in the month Ziv. And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven

years in building it.

1. See note on page 197.

2. The second month of the Jewish sacred year, and the eighth of th civil year, corresponding to our April-May. Bul was the eighth montu of the sacred year and the second of the civil year, corresponding to our October.

LXXVI

THE ROYAL PALACE

(I Kings vii: 1-12)

And Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all his house. For he built the house of the forest of Lebanon; the length thereof was a hundred cubits,1 and the breadth thereof fifty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits, upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars. And it was covered with cedar above over the forty and five beams, that were upon the pillars; fifteen in a row. And there were beams in three rows, and window was over against window in three ranks. And all the doors and posts were made square with beams: and window was over against window in three ranks. And he made the porch of pillars; the length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth thereof thirty cubits; and a porch before them; and pillars and a threshold before them. And he made the porch of the throne where he was to judge, even the porch of judgment: and it was covered with cedar from floor to floor. And his house where he was to dwell, the other court within the porch, was of the like work. He made also a house for Pharaoh's daughter (whom Solomon had taken to wife), like unto this porch.

All these were of costly stones, even of hewn stone, according to measure, sawed with saws, within and without, even from the foundation unto the coping, and so on the outside unto the great court. And the foundation was of costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits. And above were costly stones. even hewn stone, according to measure, and cedar

1. See note on page .

wood. And the great court round about had three courses of hewn stone, and a course of cedar beams; like as the inner court of the house of Jehovah, and the porch of the house.

LXXVII

THE VISIT OF THE QUEEN OF SHEBA TO SOLOMON

(I Kings x:1-13)

And when the queen of Sheba1 heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of Jehovah, she came to prove him with hard questions. And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones; and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart. And Solomon told2 her all her questions: there was not anything hid from the king which he told her not. And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built, and the food of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up into the house of Jehovah; there was no more spirit in her. And she said to the king, "It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thine acts, and of thy wisdom. Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half

1. A country on the shores of the Arabian Gulf, 1500 miles from Jerusalem.

2. Answered.

3. Sacrifices; some authorities, however, define the word as a passageway or bridge connecting the Temple and the Palace, which were separated by a ravine.

4. Doubt.