1 Kings 4:24-26

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Kings 4:20-28

Such a kingdom, and such a court, surely never any prince had, as Solomon's are here described to be. I. Such a kingdom. Never did the crown of Israel shine so brightly as it did when Solomon wore it, never in his father's days, never in the days of any of his successors; nor was that kingdom ever so glorious a type of the kingdom of the Messiah as it was then. The account here given of it is such as fully answers the prophecies which we have concerning it in Ps. 72:1-20, which is a psalm for... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 4:24

For he had dominion over all the region on this side the river ,.... Or beyond the river Euphrates, in the sense before given, 1 Kings 4:21 ; which accounts for the plenty of provisions he had, and the revenue with which he supported such a table he kept: from Tiphsah even to Azzah ; or Gaza, one of the five principalities of the Philistines. Tiphsah is thought to be the Thapsacus of Pliny F4 Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 24. which both he and Ptolemy F5 Geograph. l. 5. c. 19. ... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 4:25

And Judah and Israel dwelt safely ,.... Without fear of any injury done to their persons or properties by any enemy; which is, and will be, more abundantly fulfilled in Christ, the antitype of Solomon, Jeremiah 23:5 ; every man under his vine, and under his fig tree ; which were principal trees in the land of Judea, put for all the rest; and the phrase denotes the happy, safe, quiet, full, and peaceable enjoyment of all outward blessings, and is used of the times of the Messiah, Micah... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 4:26

And Solomon had forty thousand stalls for horses ,.... In 2 Chronicles 9:25 ; it is only four thousand; and therefore some think that here is a mistake of the copier, of "arbaim", forty, for "arbah", four; which it is thought might be through divine permission, in such lesser matters, without any prejudice to the authority of the Scriptures in matters of faith and practice; but without supposing this, a reconciliation may be made, by observing, that here the writer, as Ben Gersom notes,... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Kings 4:25

Every man under his vine - They were no longer obliged to dwell in fortified cities for fear of their enemies; they spread themselves over all the country, which they everywhere cultivated; and had always the privilege of eating the fruits of their own labors. This is the meaning of the phrase. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Kings 4:26

Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses - and twelve thousand horsemen - In 2 Chronicles 9:25 , instead of forty thousand stalls, we read four thousand; and even this number might be quite sufficient to hold horses for twelve thousand horsemen; for stalls and stables may be here synonymous. In 1 Kings 10:26 ; it is said he had one thousand four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen; and this is the reading in 2 Chronicles 1:14 . In 2 Chronicles 9:25 ,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 4:20-25

The Golden Age. It has been cynically said that men always place the golden age in the past or in the future. Possibly they are not so far wrong after all. For, if our historian is true, there has been such a period in the history of the world. And if the Holy Gospel is true, there will be such a period hereafter. The reign of Solomon was the Augustan, the golden age, of Israel. The reign of Jesus, of which Solomon's empire was a foreshadowing, will be the golden age of the world. Let... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 4:20-25

A Prosperous Reign. This chapter presents a general view of the prosperity of Solomon's reign, much of which was owing to the extraordinary, glory of the reign of David. Such a rule as David's sowed seeds of blessing m the land which it was Solomon's privilege to reap. David united the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, and Solomon came into quiet possession of the completed commonwealth. David laid the foundation, Solomon developed the fabric and adorned it. Each succeeding generation inherits... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 4:24

For [the connexion seems to be: Solomon could well support such lavish expenditure, because] he had dominion over all the region on this side [ בְּעֵבֶר strictly means, on the other side, beyond ( עָבַר , transiit ) . But here it must obviously mean on the west side, for Solomon's rule did not extend east of the Euphrates. The use of this word in this sense ( Joshua 5:1 ; Joshua 9:1 ; Joshua 12:7 ; 1 Chronicles 26:30 ; Ezra 8:36 ; Nehemiah 2:7 ) is generally... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 4:25

And Judah and Israel [here we have the copula, the absence of which in 1 Kings 4:20 suggests a corruption or confusion of the text] dwelt safely [Heb. confidently. Cf. 8:11 ; 1 Samuel 12:11 ], every man under his vine and under his fig tree. [A proverbial expression (see 2 Kings 18:31 , where it is used by Rabshakeh; Micah 4:4 ; Zechariah 3:10 ) to denote rest and the undisturbed enjoyment of the fruits of the earth, not necessarily, as Keil, "the most costly products of... read more

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