2 Crônicas 8

2 Crônicas 8

Barnes: Skillful sailors. Solomon probably bore the expenses and his friend, the Tyrian king, furnished him with expert sailors; for the Jews, at no period of their history, had any skill in maritime affairs, their navigation being confined to the lakes of their own country, from which they could never acquire any nautical skill. The Tyrians, on the contrary, lived on and in the sea. Andrew Hill: The Phoenicians were well known in the ancient world for their shipbuilding technology and seamanship, so Solomon’s alliance with Hiram of Tyre for the purpose of maritime trade is a natural one (cf. Isa. 23:1–4; Ezek. 27:4, 8–9). These joint Israelite-Phoenician maritime expeditions are three-year trading junkets; in addition to the gold, algumwood (ebony?), gemstones, silver, ivory, and exotic animals are among the goods returned to port at Ezion Geber (cf. 2 Chron. 9:10, 21). It is unclear what Solomon’s merchants trade for the gold and other products, but cedar timber from Phoenicia was always in demand for royal building projects, and the Israelites probably traded surplus grain, olive oil, and other foodstuffs (since famine and crop failure has always been a part of the lifecycle on the fringes of the Mediterranean basin). ISBE - OPHIR At all times the geographical position of Ophir has been a subject of dispute, the claims of three different regions being principally advanced, namely (1) India and the Far East, (2) Africa, (3) Arabia. (1) India and the Far East. All the wares mentioned are more or less appropriate to India, even including the fuller list of 1 Ki 10:22. "Almug"-wood is conjectured to be the Indian sandal-wood. Another argument is based on the resemblance between the Septuagint form of the word (Sophera) and the Coptic name for India (Sophir). A closer identification is sought with Abhira, a people dwelling at the mouths of the Indus. Supara, an ancient city on the west coast of India near the modern Goa, is also suggested. Again, according to Wildman, the name denotes a vague extension eastward, perhaps as far as China. (2) Africa. This country is the greatest gold-producing region of the three. Sofala, a seaport near Mozambique on the east coast of Africa, has been advanced as the site of Ophir, both on linguistic grounds and from the nature of its products, for there all the articles of 1 Ki 10:22 could be procured. But Gesenius shows that Sofala is merely the Arabic form of the Hebrew shephelah. Interest in this region as the land of Ophir was renewed, however, by Mauch's discovery at Zimbabye of great ruins and signs of old Phoenician civilization and worked-out gold mines. According to Bruce (I, 440), a voyage from Sofala to Ezion-geber would have occupied quite three years owing to the monsoons. (3) Arabia. The claim of Southeastern Arabia as the land of Ophir has on the whole more to support it than that of India or of Africa. The Ophir of Gen 10:29 beyond doubt belonged to this region, and the search for Ophir in more distant lands can be made only on the precarious assumption that the Ophir of Ki is not the same as the Ophir of Gen. Of the various products mentioned, the only one which from the Old Testament notices can be regarded as clearly native to Ophir is the gold, and according to Pliny and Strabo the region of Southeastern Arabia bordering on the Persian Gulf was a famous gold-producing country. The other wares were not necessarily produced in Ophir, but were probably brought there from more distant lands, and thence conveyed by Solomon's merchantmen to Ezion-geber. If the duration of the voyage (3 years) be used as evidence, it favors this location of Ophir as much as that on the east coast of Africa. It seems therefore the least assailable view that Ophir was a district on the Persian Gulf in Southeastern Arabia and served in old time as an emporium of trade between the East and West. A. S. Fulton PAUL APPLE - DEVOTIONAL QUESTIONS: 1) How does this political dominion and geographical expansion compare to the ultimate eschatological fulfillment of the ultimate borders of the Promised Land? 2) Why such a distinction in how Solomon treated subjugated foreigners and native Israelites when it came to employing them in various roles for his building projects? 3) Why does this account of Solomon’s marriage to the daughter of Pharaoh appear in this context? 4) Why does the Chronicler gloss over some of the weaknesses and moral failures of Solomon? QUOTES FOR REFLECTION: J. Parker: (Quoted in Biblical Illustrator) -- Solomon was great in burnt offerings. Do not men sometimes make up in burnt offerings what they lack in moral consistency? Is not an ostentatious religion sometimes the best proof of internal decay? It ought not to be so. The outward and inward should correspond. The action should be the incarnation of the thought. It is beautiful to look upon the Church engaged in much church-building and in strenuous endeavours against public sin; yet we must never forget that all this may possibly coexist with internal loss, decay, corruption. All action does not spring from life. Sometimes we try to make up by complex mechanism what is wanting in real vitality. It is often easier to offer burnt offering than to do some deed of moral heroism. August Konkel: The petition of Solomon for Israel and all peoples makes the temple the place of prayer from which they call to the Creator of the universe. The dedication prayer expresses the condition under which prayer may be made efficacious. In seeking the face of God, it is necessary to be humble; earthly citizens are in every way subservient to the Creator. But petitions made with such an attitude of trust have an unfailing response: God will hear from heaven and will heal (2 Chron 7:14). The eyes of the Lord are ever open to the place that makes confession of his dominion in all the earth. Eugene Merrill: Solomon’s spiritual devotion, evidenced by the many sacrifices he gave at the dedication of the temple (7:5), was typical of his religious commitment, in the view of the chronicler. True, 2 Chronicles does not mention Solomon’s introduction of pagan shrines and worship, a point stressed in 1 Kings 11:1-13. But the chronicler, though he surely knew those things, did narrate what must have been Solomon’s general practice of fulfilling Mosaic sacrificial requirements (2 Chron. 8:12-13). Solomon also maintained the priestly and Levitical divisions established by his father (vv. 14-15). Last but not least, Solomon had begun and had completed the temple, his highest religious achievement. Andrew Reynolds: The Greatness of Solomon (8-9) 1. Political (8:1-11) -- Building cities 2. Religious (8:12-16) – Sacrifices -- Temple personnel 3. Economic (8:17-9:31) -- Queen of Sheba BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR 1-2 CHRONICLES NOTE: SOME CAN BE BORROWED FROM ARCHIVE.ORG Archer, Gleason L. Jr. A survey of Old Testament introduction (BORROW). Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1964. Baxter, J. Sidlow. Explore the Book Vol. 2 Judges to Esther . Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1960. Boda, Mark J. Cornerstone Biblical Commentary – 1-2 Chronicles. (Digital version) Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2010. Braun, Roddy. Word Biblical Commentary – Volume 14 –1 Chronicles (BORROW). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2018. Cooper, Derek. Reformation Commentary on Scripture – Old Testament V – 1-2 Samuel, 1-2 Kings, 1-2 Chronicles. (Digital version) Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2016. Constable, Thomas - 1&2 Chronicles (ONLINE) Daniel, Ron - Teaching Notes - 1 Chronicles; 2 Chronicles (ONLINE) Dillard, Raymond B. Word Biblical Commentary – Volume 15 – 2 Chronicles (BORROW) Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2018. Ellison, H. L. The New Bible commentary, revised – 1 & 2 Chronicles (BORROW). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1970. Guzik, David. Enduring Word Bible Commentary 1 Chronicles; 2 Chronicles (ONLINE) Hill, Andrew E. The NIV Application Commentary – 1 & 2 Chronicles. (Digital version) Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003. Keil, C. F. and Delitzsch, F. Commentary on the Old Testament – 1 Chronicles & 2 Chronicles. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1975. Konkel, August H. Believers Church Bible Commentary – 1 & 2 Chronicles. (Multipart video series also available) Harrisonburg, VA: Herald Press, 2016. Mabie, Frederick J. The Expositor’s Bible Commentary Revised Edition – 1 & 2 Chronicles. (Digital Version) Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2010. MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Study Bible (BORROW). Nelson Bibles, 2006. Olley, John W. (ED: IAIN DUGUID) ESV Expository Commentary, Vol. III – 1 Samuel – 2 Chronicles. (Digital Version) Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019. Payne, J. Barton. The Expositor’s Bible Commentary – 1 & 2 Chronicles. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1988. Schultz, John. - 1 Chronicles (177 pages), 2 Chronicles (239 pages) (ONLINE) Selman, Martin J. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries – 1 Chronicles. (BORROW)Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1994. Selman, Martin J. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries – 2 Chronicles. (BORROW) Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1994. Sherwin, Simon & Mabie, Frederick J. Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary -- 1 & 2 Chronicles. (Digital Version) Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009. Thompson, J.A. The New American Commentary – Volume 9 – 1, 2 Chronicles. (Digital Version) Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group, 1994. Utley, Bob. 1 Chronicles Table of Contents; 2 Chronicles Table of Contents http://www.freebiblecommentary.org/old_testament_studies/VOL07BOT/VOL07BOT.html Walton, John, et al - The IVP Bible Background Commentary Old Testament IVP - InterVarsity Press 2000. Wiersbe, Warren W. Be Restored – Trusting God to See Us Through – OT Commentary – 2 Samuel & 1 Chronicles. (BORROW) Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2010. Wiersbe, Warren W. Be Distinct – Standing Firmly Against the World’s Tides – OT Commentary – 2 Kings & 2 Chronicles. (BORROW) Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2010. Williamson, H.G.M. New Century Bible Commentary – 1 and 2 Chronicles. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock Publishers 1982. Wood, Leon. A Survey of Israel’s History. (BORROW) Grand Rapids: MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1970. Believer's Study Bible (Digital Version) Ryrie Study Bible - BORROW Defender's Study Bible - BORROW