2 Chronicles 1
PATwas not known till the beginning of the third century, when that author, half Jew and half Christian, lived.
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JxND Solomon the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom.) After the death of Adonijah and Joab, he was confirmed in his authority and government. And the Lord his God iva& with him, and magnified him exceedingly.’) In the Targum it is paraphrased, TJie Word of the Lord was his helper, and raised him to a great height ofglory. jyi OW, in the first year of Cyrits king of Persia.] This is that famous Cyrus, who, a hundred and forty years before the temple was destroyed, and two hundred years before he was born, was mentioned by name in the prophecy of Isaiah, as designed by God for the restoring his people, (Isa.xliv. nit. xlv. 1.4.) Which prophecy, it is probable, Daniel shewed to Cyrus, which made him set forth the following edict: which was not put forth in the first year of his empire, for then the Jews were not his subjects, but the first year after his conquest of Babylon, where the Jews then lived in captivity. (See Scaliger, in his Isagoge, lib. iii. p. 260. and De Emend. Temporum,lib. vi. p. 576.) (Tliat the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah the prophet might be fulfilled).] Who foretold, that, after seventy years were accomplished, the king of Babylon and the’ Chaldeans should be destroyed, and the people of
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Then Solomon spake unto all Israel, to the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and to the judges, and to every governor in all Israel, the chief of the fathers.) Before that great assembly, mentioned in the foregoing chapter, in the midst of -which he was anointed, went home, Solomon discoursed with them about his intentions of going to Gibeon to worship God, by offering a great sacrifice, and desired them to accompany him.
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So Solomon, and all the congregation with him, went to the high place that ivas at Gibeon.) This verse, shews, that this was the thing about which he spake unto them. (See 1 Kings iii. 4.). For there was the tabernacle of the congregation of God, which Moses, the servant of the Lord, had made in the ivilderness.) But it was there without the ark, which was.inthe city of David, while the tabernacle was in Gibeon. How these came to be separated, so that the ark was without the tabernacle and its vessels; and the vessels, and the altar with the tabernacle, without the seat of the glory of God, is not easy to be resolved. Conradus Pellicanus supposes, that even then, in those days, God would have them to know, he did not regard the ceremonious worship, when the people w T ere under the government and instruction of such men as Samuel and David: and they w T ere free from idolatry. Then the Lord did not exact so strictly the legal services, as he did in times of peace and tranquillity, when they were most necessary for the people; lest, after their custpm, when they lived in ease and prosperity, they should fall into superstition, and admire the rites of the gentiles. And with such questions as these he thinks the Jews may be very strongly urged: How came it to pass that, in the days of Samuel and David, the legal worship was not observed more precisely? How came the ark to be separated from the altars, which were made for the ark, and not the contrary? Who dispensed with David to build another tabernacle for the ark, and neglect that built by Moses? And how came Solomon to sacrifice in another, place, than that which the Lord had chosen?
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But the ark of God had David brought upfront. Kirjath-jearim to the place which David had prepared for it:* for he had pitched a tent for it at Jerusalem.) See 2 Sam. vi. 2. 17.
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Moreover, the brazen altar that Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son ofllur, had made, he put before the taber-. nacle of the Lord.) One would think that this altar did notstand in its right place, till Solomon set it where it used to stand: but the words may be translated as in the margin, xvas there before the tabernacle. And Solomon and the congregation, sought unto it.) I think this is better translated by Victorinus Strigelius, So-, lomon and the congregation were wont to frequent it;- with* sacrifices by which they sought the favour of God.
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And Solomon went up thither to the brazenaltar* before the Lord, which was at the tabernacle of the congre-. gation.) This is said to be before the Lord, though the ark was not there, because God was pleased graciously to ac-. cept the sacrifices offered before the place, where he was. wont to dwell, though wanting the token of his.gloriouspresence. And offered a thousand burnt-offerings upon it.) He of-. fered them by the ministry of the priests. And burnt-offerings here signify (as Pellicanus with great reason thinks) the sacrifice of peace-offerings, the general name being put for the special. For it is not reasonable to think, a thousand offerings were wholly burnt upon the altar: but, in all. probability, he made a feast for all that were there present, as had been done when this great assembly offered so -freely at his inauguration, (1 Chron. xxix. 22.)
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In that night did God appear to Solomon.) Im-^ mediately after the offering of these sacrifices. And said unto him, Ask what I shall give thee.) See 1 Kings iii. 5. This was a declaration that he accepted* his prayers which accompanied those sacrifices, and would*, grant whatsoever he desired.
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And Solomon said unto God, Thou hast shewed. great mercy unto David my father, and hast made me to reign in his stead.) An admirable example unto those who make petitions unto God, that they should in the first place thank him lor the great benefits they have received, (1 Kings iii. G.)
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Now, O Lord God, let thy. promise unto David my father be established, viz.) That God would be a fa-. ther to him, and make him his son, (2 Sam. vii. 14.)..
And iliem that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon, where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia. Which gave them liberty to return to their country. Such was the law of war in ancient times; all the people of a city or country that were conquered became slaves to the conqueror; and appertained to the public or private persons who had taken them, according to the laws settled in every nation for the dividend of the booty. Thus we find at the sacking of Troy, all that remained alive were made slaves, even queen Hecuba, and her daughters. The Greek and Roman histories are full of such examples.,
To fulfil the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath. Because the Jews, among other precepts, had violated that of letting their land rest from ploughing and sowing every seventh year, God gave their land a long sabbath, or rest, for no less than ten times seven years; which Jeremiah threatened, chap. xxv. 9. 12. xxix. 10. If it be true, that they had neglected this law for the space of four hundred and thirty years; but had ploughed their ground, &e. in the seventh, as well as in all other years; then the judgment of God upon them was very remarkable, in making their ground rest, and be free from tillage, just as long as it should have been if they had observed his law: for in the space of four hundred and thirty years, there ought to have been sixty and five years of rest and intermission. (See Gulielmus Vorstius, upon David Ganz’s Tzemuch David, p. 212.) To fulfil threescore and ten years.] These years ended in the first or second year of Cyru*; but when they began is variously disputed. HermannuS Witsius hath lately argued strongly, that it was in the fourth year of Jehoiakim: for then Jeremiah said, The whole land shall be a desolation, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years, chap.xxv. 11. which is further explained, ver. 17, 18. Which is the opinion also of Hermannus Conringius, in his Adversaria Chronologica, cap. 14. and of Johannes Vorstius, in his Exercitatio Secunda de Captivitate Babylonica; and thus our Usher, ad A. Mundi 3394. Though other great men date these seventy years from the captivity of Zedekiah. (See Scaliger, de EmendiTemporum, lib. vi. p. 575.)
Now, in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia (that the word of the Lord, spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah, might be accomplished)’, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made the proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,
Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, All the kingdoms of the earth liath the Lord God of heaven given me; and he hath charged me to build him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah: who is there among you of all his people? the Lord his God be with him, and let him go up.] These two verses, which conclude this book, begin the next, where I will explain them; and only take notice here, that thus the Targum translates this proclamation: " Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, All the kingdoms of this earth hath the Word of the Lord God of heaven delivered unto mie; and he commanded me to build him a sanctuary in Jerusalem," &c. Which evidently shews, this paraphrast believed the Word dwelt in the sanctuary. THE BOOK OF EZRA. AT is generally thought by all sorts of writers, that Ezra himself wrote this book which bears his name. And there is the less doubt of it, if he WTOte the foregoing book: for he begins this book as that ended; which is an argument they had the same author: it being an ancient way of writing, as Grotius observes out of Polybius, who concludes one book, and begins the next with the same words. But the learned Huetius is of opinion, that Ezra did not write the first six chapters of this book, but some other person: for it is evident they were written in the time of Darius, when the author speaks of himself as then at Jerusalem, (chap. v. 3, 4. 9.) Whereas Ezra went up from Babylon in the reign of Artaxerxes, (chap. vii. 1.) and then it is manifest wrote the four remaining chapters, as appears from chap. vii. 27,28. ix. 5. x. 1. Therefore, when the Talmudistsand other Hebrew doctors say Ezra wrote this book, they are to be understood (he thinks) to speak of the latter part of it.