1 Kings 4:33

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Kings 4:29-34

Solomon's wisdom was more his glory than his wealth, and here we have a general account of it. I. The fountain of his wisdom: God gave it him, 1 Kgs. 4:29. He owns it himself. Prov. 2:6; The Lord giveth wisdom. He gives the powers of reason (Job 38:36), preserves and improves them. The ordinary advances of them are owing to his providence, the sanctification of them to his grace, and this extraordinary pitch at which they arrived in Solomon to a special grant of his favour to him in answer to... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 4:33

And he spake of trees ,.... Of all trees, herbs, and plants, of the nature, virtues, and use them: from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon : a mountain on the northern border of Judea, famous for cedars, the tallest and largest of trees: even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall ; which grew about Jerusalem, and in the mountains of it, as an Arabic writes testifies F16 Isaac Ben Omram apud Bochart. Hierozoic. par. 1. l. 2. c. 50. Colossians 590 . , the lowest and... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Kings 4:33

He spake of trees - beasts - fowl - creeping things , and of fishes - This is a complete system of natural history, as far as relates to the animal and vegetable kingdoms, and the first intimation we have of any thing of the kind: Solomon was probably the first natural historian in the world. O, how must the heart of Tournefort, Ray, Linne, Buffon, Cuvier, Swammerdam, Blosch, and other naturalists, be wrung, to know that these works of Solomon are all and for ever lost!... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 4:33

And he spare of [ i.e; discoursed, treated, not necessarily wrote] trees [In his proverbs and songs he exceeded the children of the East. But his knowledge was not only speculative, but scientific. In his acquaintance with natural history he outshone the Egyptians, 1 Kings 4:20 ], from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon [A favourite illustration. The Jews had a profound admiration for all trees, and of these they justly regarded the cedar as king. Cf. 9:15 ; Psalms 80:10 ; ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 4:33

The voice of Nature speaking for God. This is given as an example of the wisdom for which Solomon was justly famed. His information was at once accurate and far reaching. Nothing escaped the notice of his observant eye, nothing was too insignificant to deserve his attention. The" hyssop" which was remarkable neither for size nor beauty, neither for fragrance nor utility, as well as the noble "cedar," was the subject of his research and discourse. I. THE GERM OF HIS KNOWLEDGE ... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - 1 Kings 4:33

Trees ... - A keen appreciation of the beauties of nature, and a habit of minute observation, are apparent in the writings of Solomon that remain to us. The writer here means to say that Solomon composed special works on these subjects. The Lebanon cedars were the most magnificent of all the trees known to the Hebrews, and hence, represent in the Old Testament the grandest of vegetable productions. (Psalms 104:16; Song of Solomon 5:15; Ezekiel 31:3, etc.) For the hyssop, see Exodus 12:22... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - 1 Kings 4:32-33

1 Kings 4:32-33. He spake three thousand proverbs That is, short, deep, and useful sentences, whereof a great part are contained in the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. Songs Whereof the most divine and chief are in the Canticles. And he spake of trees That is, of all plants, of their nature and qualities. From the cedar-tree unto the hyssop From the greatest to the least. That springeth out of the wall Dr. Waterland renders the original here, Hyssop that runneth out to the... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 4:1-34

The administration of the kingdom (4:1-34)Details are now given of how Solomon administered Israel. First the leading religious, civil and army officials are listed (4:1-6). Solomon revised the taxation system by dividing the country into twelve zones, each of which had to provide the royal household with all its food supplies for one month of the year. These twelve zones apparently replaced the former tribal areas (7-19).Neighbouring nations that had become part of the Israelite empire also... read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - 1 Kings 4:33

1 Kings 4:33. He spake of trees, &c.— The several books which treated of the nature and virtue of animals as well as plants, are supposed to have been lost in the Babylonish captivity; but Eusebius, as he is quoted by Anastasius, informs us, that king Hezekiah, seeing the abuse which his subjects made of Solomon's works, by placing too much confidence in the remedies which he prescribed, and the natural secrets which he discovered, thought proper to suppress them all. Notwithstanding this,... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - 1 Kings 4:33

33. he spake of trees, from the cedar . . . to the hyssop—all plants, from the greatest to the least. The Spirit of God has seen fit to preserve comparatively few memorials of the fruits of his gigantic mind. The greater part of those here ascribed to him have long since fallen a prey to the ravages of time, or perished in the Babylonish captivity, probably because they were not inspired. read more

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