Paraphrase of the Hard Texts of Scripture, Scripture 11
I. KINGS.
CAP. I.
11 That Adonijah doth raigne.THat Adonijah hath plotted for the Kingdome, and hath in a sort possessed himselfe of it.
50 And Adonijah arose, and went and caught hold of the hornes of the altar.And Adonijah, which had not the grace to consult with God in his challenge of the crowne of Israel, now, through feare, had recourse to the alt…r of God, as thinking, under the protection thereof, to avoid that death, which by his usurpation he had deserved.
CAP. II.
5 And shed the blood of warre in peace; and put the blood of warre upon his girdle that was upon his loines, and in his shooes that were on his feet.HOw in a profession of peace he did, after an hostile manner, shed the blood of two noble Captaines, Abner, and Amasa; and put up his sword all bloody, into his sheath, and walkt with his feet distained with innocent blood, in a bold and carelesse fashion, thinking to beare out his hatefull murder.
9 Hold him not guiltlesse.Take thou all advantages, to let him feele how heynously he hath offended; and proceed against him upon any other just pretence.
22 Aske for him the Kingdome also; for he is my elder brother; even for him, and for Abiathar the Priest, and for Ioab the sonne of Zerviah.Adonijah hath already the advantage of age, for he is my elder brother, and of the guard and strength of soldiery, for Joab is joyned to him, and of the countenance of the Priesthood, for Abiathar is for him, & now, what wants he but a match with the Kings owne bed-fellow? yeeld him this, and I, by that wisedome (wherwith God hath indued me) know well that his next step will be into the throne.
Since he will needs die there, there let him die;31 Doe as he hath said, and fall upon him, &c. for the law of God doth not allow any protection for wilfull murder, from his owne Tabernacle or altar; rather he defiles the Altar, then the Altar can assure him.
CAP. III.
ANd Salomon made affinity with Pharaoh King of Aegypt, and tooke Pharaohs daughter to wife,1 And tooke Pharaohs daughter, &c. upon her yeelded conformitie to that holy religion, which he professed.
In the meane time, till the house of God was finished,2 OnelyOnly the people sacrificed in the high places; because there was no house built unto the name of the Lord, untill those dayes. wise and holy Salomon would not allow the people to sacrifice any other where, then in those high places, which his father had consecrated, that is, in Gibeon, where was the Tabernacle, and in Hierusalem where the Arke was.
CAP. IIII.
FRom the famous river Euphrates,21 From the River unto the land of the Philistims, and unto the land of Aegypt. unto the land of the Philistims, and from thence unto the borders of Aegypt.
Whereas those of the East, and of Aegypt,30 And Solomons wisdome excelled the wisedome of all the children of the East Countrie, and all the wisedome of Aegypt. were famous above all the world, for the fame of their wisedome, and knowledge of all the secrets of nature, of the motions of the heavens, and of the vertues and operations of all plants, and of the qualities of all sensitive creatures; Salomon exceeded them all in all these kindes.
He spake three thousand wise sentences,32 He spake three thousand proverbs. out of which are collected those which in the book of his Proverbs are reserved to the use of posterity, as the sacred monuments of a divine wisedome.
Out of that divine illumination,33 And he spake of trees, from the Cedar that is in Lebanon, to the hyssop that springeth out of the wall. which was given to him from above, he discoursed of all plants, from the tallest Cedar to the very hysop, or mosse, that growes upon the wall.
CAP. V.
4 There is neither adversarie, nor evill occurrent.THere is neither any publike enemie, nor any crosse accident that might hinder this holy worke of building a Temple to the Lord.
CAP. VI.
SO great a worke could not be suddenly done; there must be a just time for the gathering of all the materialls,1 In the fourth yeare of Solomons raigne over Israel, in the monethmonth of Zif, which is the second monethmonth. for felling, hewing, seasoning of the timber; In the fourth yeare therefore of his raigne did Salomon begin this magnificent structure of the Temple; and in the second monethmonth, which by Gods owne computation was the monethmonth of Aprill.
4 And for the house he made windowes of narrow lights.And for the temple he made windowes, narrow without and large within, for the more cleare transmitting of the light into all the parts of the house.
30 And the floore of the house hee over-laid with gold within and without.And the floore of the temple he overlaid with gold, not onelyonly in that part which was within the partition of the Oracle, or holy of holies, but in the outer part thereof also.
38 In the monethmonth Bul.In the monethmonth of October.
CAP. VII.
21 And he set up the pillers in the porch of the tēple: and set up the right piller and called the name thereof Iachin, and he set up the left piller and called the name of it Boaz.TO figure out the firmnesse and stabilitie of his Church for ever, he erected two brazen pillers in the porch of the temple, and called the one [God shall establish,] and the other, [In it is strength] implying both what invincible strength the Church of God should have; and whence it should be received.
23 And he made a molten Sea, ten cubits from the one brim unto the other.And he made a large and vast vessell of brasse, for the use of their manifold washings, which seemed like to some spatious pond, or sea, for the quantity of water, which it contained: the widenesse whereof was ten cubites from the one side to the other.
26 It contained two thousand bathes.It contained two thousand of those measures, whereof every one held sixe gallons of our account.
CAP. VIII.
9 There was nothing in the Arke save the two Tables of stone.WIthin the Arke under the cover thereof, there was nothing but the two tables of the Law; but on the verge of the Arke, were Aarons blossomed rod, and the pot of Manna reserved.
The Lord hath said that the thicke cloud in his most holy place should bee the testimonie of his presence there.12 The Lord said that he would dwell in the thicke darknesse.
If in a case of some great trespasse against a mans life,31 If any man trespasse against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to sweare, and the oath come before thine altar in this house. good name, estate, there cannot be other evidences brought forth, so as the matter must necessarily be determined by the oath of the party accused; and that oath shall be solemnly required of him before thy presence, at thine holy Altar.
And Salomon, by command and instinct from God,64 The same day did the King hallow the middle of the court which was before the house of the Lord, &c. because the brazen altar was too little, &c. required the Priests to sanctifie the pavement of the outer court, which was called the Court of the Priests, to the use of the sacrifices; for that the brazen Altar (how great soever it was) could not be capable of these many offerings.
A great congregation of all the subjects of Salomon from the Easterne borders of his dominions,65 A great Congregation from the entring in of Hamath unto the River of Aegypt. to the Westerne that reach unto that arme of Nilus, which runnes towards Palestine.
CAP. IX.
HOw meane and base are these townes which thou hast given me,13 What cities are these which thou hast given me my brother? And he called them the land of Cabul unto this day. in lieu of those great things wherewith I have furnished thee? and he called them; The displeasing land to this day; being twenty cities in that upper Galilee, which was after called Galilee of the Gentiles.
CAP. X.
SHe was so astonished at the exceeding wisedome of Salomon,5 There was no more spirit in her. that she was even transported from herselfe with admiration.
Great plenty of the trees of Heben wood,11 Great plenty of Almug trees. which for the solidnesse, and shining brightnesse, were fit for the use and ornament of his building, and for instruments.
And Salomon,29 And a charet came up & went out of Aegypt for sixe hundred Shekels of silver, and an horse for an hundred and fifty; and so for all the Kings of the Hivites, and for the Kings of Syria, did they bring them out by their meanes. through the favour of his father in law, the King of Aegypt, had the benefit of all the trade of Aegypt, for charets and horses (wherewith that country had wont to furnish the neighbour regions) to passe through the hands of his merchants, to his behoofe; so as, if the Kings of the Hivites or of Syria would have either charets, or horses, they must obtaine them from the meanes of Solomons merchants, at a set rate; their charets must cost them sixe hundred Shekels, their horses an hundred and fifty.
CAP. XI.
1 But King Solomon loved many strange womē, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, &c.BUt Solomon after he had holily & happily raigned five or sixe and twenty yeares, at last gave himselfe over to his inordinate lusts, and added to the daughter of Pharaoh his lawfull wife, a number of women that were strangers, both in nation, and religion.
5 For Solomon went after Ashtaroth the goddesse of the Zidonians, &c.For Solomon gave way and countenance to the Idolatry of his wives, whom he willingly admitted to build houses, and altars to Ashtaroth.
7 Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh the abhomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Ierusalem.Then did Solomon consent to the building of an high place for Chemosh, the abhominable Idol of the Moabites, and that in the very face of the temple, on an hill over against Jerusalem.
That David my servant may have one of his seed eminent in honor,36 That David my servant may have a light alwaies before me, &c. and authority alwayes, &c.
CAP. XII.
THe easiest impositions that I shall lay upon you, shall bee more grievous then the heaviest that you complaine of,10 My little finger shall be thicker then my fathers loines. from my father.
I have ordered, and contrived this busines for the just punishment of thy fathers defection from me.24 For this thing is from me.
Behold, O Israel, the remembrances, and representations of that God, which brought thee out of the land of Aegypt;28 Behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Aegypt. In, and by these maist thou recall and worship that deity.
In stead of Gods Temple at Jerusalem, he set up houses of pretended devotion, wherein he appointed God to be worshipped in his owne Idolatrous fashion; and ordained Priests accordingly,31 And he made an house of high places and made Priests of the lowest of the people. men that were of other tribes, besides the sacred tribe of Levi, and men of base condition, fit for the Idols he had set up.
And he appointed, of his owne head, the feast of Tabernacles, to be kept, not in the seventh monethmonth, as God had appointed,33 He offered, &c. on the fifteenth day of the eight monethmonth, even in the monethmonth which he had devised, &c. but in the eight, which was October; that so the place, and time, and priests, and gods, might be all of his owne devising.
CAP. XIII.
NOt onelyonly did Jeroboam ordaine base Priests out of undue tribes, to offer unto God, but himselfe also,1 And Ieroboam stood by the altar to burne incense. would be taking presumptuously upon him, the execution of this sacred function; he stood therefore by the altar to burne incence.
CAP. XIV.
See 1 Sam. 25.22.10 That pisseth against a wall.
AS well him who for his more sure defence hath shut up himselfe within the strong walls of your cities,10 And him that is shut up and left in Israel. as he that is left at libertie in the fields and villages.
CAP. XV.
See chapter 11. verse, 36.4 Gave him a lampe in Ierusalem.
HE was not miscarried into any hainous & enormous crime,5 He turned not aside from any thing, &c. save onelyonly in the matter of Vriah the Hittite. whereby his profession was notoriously blemished all the dayes of his life, save onelyonly into that his murther of Vriah the Hittite, & the sinnes that were appendant unto it.
Those high places wherein akars were built unto God in an ungrounded devotion;14 But the high places were not remoued. (contrary to the charge of God, who had appropriated his worship to the place which he should choose to put his name there) remained still entire, and undemolished; and were put to that unwarrantable use.
CAP. XVII.
THere shall not bee deaw,1 There shall not be dew nor raine these yeares, but according to my word. nor raine for the space of these three yeares, and more, (that this drought may bring a just dearth upon Israel) neither shall it then fall, but upon my prayer to that God, who hath thus decreed to punish Israel, and to confirme his mission of mee.
CAP. XVIII.
10 There is no nation or Kingdome whither my Lord hath not sent to seek thee; and when they said he is not here, he tooke an oath of the kingdome, &c.THere is no nation, or kingdome round about bordering upon Israel, whither my Lord hath not sent to seeke thee; and of all those neighbouring kingdomes whether tributarie to him, or allyed, he hath by oath inquired of thy presence.
17 Art thou he that troubleth Israel.Art thou the man that hast brought this grievous judgement of dearth, and drought upon Israel?
29 They prophesied untill the time of the offering of the evening sacrifies.They ranne up and downe in a furious raving and distracted fashion, untill the time that the evening sacrifice was, by Gods appointment, wont to be offered.
41 Here is a sound of abundance of raine.I have a sure intimation from God that there is very great store of raine comming.
CAP. XIX.
18 Yea I have left mee seven thousand, euen all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and eueryevery mouth which hath not kissed him.VVHereas thou complainest that thou art left alone; know, that I have reserved to my selfe many thousands, that are not at all infected with the Idolatry of Baal; having neither in heart, nor in outward gesture, yeelded themselves to the adoration of those false Gods.
20 Let me I pray thee kisse my father & my mother.Let me goe and take leave of my father and mother, ere I betake my selfe to follow thee.
CAP. XX.
4 I am thine, and all that I have.I Doe acknowledge my selfe a tributary unto thee, and yeeld my selfe over as thy liege-man.
9 All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first, I will doe; but this thing I may not doe.Thy first message, which challenged a power and interest in my silver, and gold, and houses, and land, I was willing to yeeld unto, but this, that thou shouldst utterly take them away out of my possession, I may by no meanes assent unto.
CAP. XXI.
3 The Lord forbid it me, that I give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.WEre it a thing free and lawfull for me to doe, I should not sticke at the motion, but thou knowest, that God hath expressely forbidden a finall alienation of the land of our inheritance; I dare not sinne to pleasure thee. See Levit. 25.23.
7 Doest thou now governe the Kingdome of Israel?Is it for thee, that art the King of Israel, to take a deniall of so meane a suite, or to be thus affectd with the repulse? hast not thou power enough to give thy selfe satisfaction? other spirits would become soverainty; away with this poore dejectednesse.
Proclaime a fast,9 Proclaime a fast, &c. as those that have cause of a publike humiliation for this hainous sinne of Naboths blasphemie.
That the world may see how well I accept of a penitent & serious humiliation,29 Because Ahab humbleth himselfe before me, I will not bring the evill in his dayes. I will so farre regard this dejectednesse of Ahab, (though I know it is not out of sound contrition for his sinne; or any true grounds of grace,) as that I will deferre these my threatned evills, during his dayes, and reserve them for his posterity.
CAP. XXII.
WHat needest thou aske me this question?15 And he said, Goe, and prosper. thy Prophets have sufficiently assured thee already; goe up, as they have bidden thee, no doubt thou shalt prosper; thou hast their word for security.
Then I must needs tell thee,17 And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills as sheepe that have not a shepheard. that God hath revealed to me, that Israel shall in this warre be put to flight, and stray like sheepe, that have lost their shepheard; even so shall they be distressed in their wandring, having lost thee their King and master.
It is certainely revealed to me by an infallible vision from God, that he in his just judgement,19 I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heauen, &c. hath decreed to give power to an evill spirit to delude these thy foure hundred prophets, with lies,20 And the Lord said, Who shal perswade Ahab that hee may goe up and fall at Ramoth Gilead. and to give thee over to be mis-led by their delusions, to thine owne destruction: and this I doe as surely know, as if I had seene the Lord sitting on his throne,21 And there came forth a spirit and said; I will perswade him. and consulting upon the way, and meanes of plaguing thee with these present seducements; and giving leave and commission to the evill spirit to worke this mischiefe unto thee.
A certaine man drew a bow,34 And a certaine man drew a bow at a venture, and smote the King of Israel betweene the joints of his harnesse, &c. without any aime or intention of any speciall marke, but onelyonly roving, in common, at the army of Israel; and behold the arrow was, by a divine providence, directed to strike the King of Israel, betweene the joynts of his harnesse.