11 And strengthen himself doth Solomon son of David over his kingdom, and Jehovah his God 'is' with him, and maketh him exceedingly great. 2 And Solomon saith to all Israel, to heads of the thousands, and of the hundreds, and to judges, and to every honourable one of all Israel, heads of the fathers, 3 and they go—Solomon, and all the assembly with him—to the high place that 'is' in Gibeon, for there hath been God's tent of meeting, that Moses, servant of Jehovah, made in the wilderness, 4 but the ark of God had David brought up from Kirjath-Jearim, when David prepared for it, for he stretched out for it a tent in Jerusalem; 5 and the altar of brass that Bezaleel son of Uri, son of Hur made, he put before the tabernacle of Jehovah; and Solomon and the assembly seek to it. 6 And Solomon goeth up thither, on the altar of brass, before Jehovah, that 'is' at the tent of meeting, and causeth to ascend upon it a thousand burnt-offerings. 7 In that night hath God appeared to Solomon, and saith to him, 'Ask—what do I give to thee?' 8 And Solomon saith to God, 'Thou hast done with David my father great kindness, and hast caused me to reign in his stead. 9 Now, O Jehovah God, is Thy word with David my father stedfast, for Thou hast caused me to reign over a people numerous as the dust of the earth; 10 now, wisdom and knowledge give to me, and I go out before this people, and I come in, for who doth judge this Thy great people?' 11 And God saith to Solomon, 'Because that this hath been with thy heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, and honour, and the life of those hating thee, and also many days hast not asked, and dost ask for thyself wisdom and knowledge, so that thou dost judge My people over which I have caused thee to reign— 12 the wisdom and the knowledge is given to thee, and riches and wealth and honour I give to thee, that there hath not been so to the kings who 'are' before thee, and after thee it is not so.'
13 And Solomon cometh in 'from' the high place that 'is' in Gibeon to Jerusalem, from before the tent of meeting, and reigneth over Israel,
14 and Solomon gathereth chariots and horsemen, and he hath a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, and he placeth them in the cities of the chariots, and with the king in Jerusalem. 15 And the king maketh the silver and the gold in Jerusalem as stones, and the cedars he made as sycamores that 'are' in the low country, for abundance. 16 And the source of the horses that 'are' to Solomon 'is' from Egypt and from Keva; merchants of the king from Keva take at a price, 17 and they come up, and bring out from Egypt a chariot for six hundred silverlings, and a horse for fifty and a hundred, and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of Aram—by their hand they bring out.
21 And Solomon saith to build a house for the name of Jehovah, and a house for his kingdom, 2 and Solomon numbereth seventy thousand men bearing burden, and eighty thousand men hewing in the mountain, and overseers over them—three thousand and six hundred. 3 And Solomon sendeth unto Huram king of Tyre, saying, 'When thou hast dealt with David my father, then thou dost send to him cedars to build for him a house to dwell in; 4 lo, I am building a house to the name of Jehovah my God, to sanctify 'it' to Him, to make perfume before Him, perfume of spices, and a continual arrangement, and burnt-offerings at morning and at evening, at sabbaths, and at new moons, and at appointed seasons of Jehovah our God; to the age this 'is' on Israel. 5 'And the house that I am building 'is' great, for greater 'is' our God than all gods; 6 and who doth retain strength to build to Him a house, for the heavens, even the heavens of the heavens, do not contain Him? and who 'am' I that I do build to Him a house, except to make perfume before Him? 7 'And now, send to me a wise man to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and knowing to grave gravings with the wise men who 'are' with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father prepared; 8 and send to me cedar-trees, firs, and algums from Lebanon, for I have known that thy servants know to cut down trees of Lebanon, and lo, my servants 'are' with thy servants, 9 even to prepare for me trees in abundance, for the house that I am building 'is' great and wonderful. 10 'And lo, to hewers, to those cutting the trees, I have given beaten wheat to thy servants, cors twenty thousand, and barley, cors twenty thousand, and wine, baths twenty thousand, and oil, baths twenty thousand.'
11 And Huram king of Tyre saith in writing, and sendeth unto Solomon: 'In the love of Jehovah to His people He hath given thee king over them.' 12 And Huram saith, 'Blessed 'is' Jehovah, God of Israel, who made the heavens and the earth, who hath given to David the king a wise son, knowing wisdom and understanding, who doth build a house for Jehovah, and a house for his kingdom. 13 'And now, I have sent a wise man having understanding, of Huram my father, 14 (son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father a man of Tyre), knowing to work in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stones, and in wood, in purple, in blue, and in fine linen, and in crimson, and to grave any graving, and to devise any device that is given to him, with thy wise men, and the wise men of my lord David thy father. 15 'And, now, the wheat, and the barley, the oil, and the wine, as my lord said, let him send to his servants, 16 and we—we cut trees out of Lebanon, according to all thy need, and bring them in to thee—floats by sea, to Joppa, and thou dost take them up to Jerusalem.' 17 And Solomon numbereth all the men, the sojourners who 'are' in the land of Israel, after the numbering with which David his father numbered them, and they are found a hundred and fifty thousand, and three thousand, and six hundred; 18 and he maketh of them seventy thousand burden-bearers, and eighty thousand hewers in the mountain, and three thousand and six hundred overseers, to cause the people to work.
31 And Solomon beginneth to build the house of Jehovah, in Jerusalem, in the mount of Moriah, where He appeared to David his father, in the place that David had prepared, in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite, 2 and he beginneth to build in the second 'day', in the second month, in the fourth year of his reign. 3 And 'in' these hath Solomon been instructed to build the house of God: The length 'in' cubits by the former measure 'is' sixty cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits. 4 As to the porch that 'is' on the front, the length 'is' by the front of the breadth of the house, twenty cubits, and the height a hundred and twenty, and he overlayeth it within with pure gold. 5 And the large house he hath covered with fir-trees, and he doth cover it with good gold, and causeth to ascend on it palms and chains, 6 and he overlayeth the house with precious stone for beauty, and the gold 'is' gold of Parvaim, 7 and he covereth the house, the beams, the thresholds, and its walls, and its doors, with gold, and hath graved cherubs on the walls. 8 And he maketh the most holy house: its length 'is' by the front of the breadth of the house twenty cubits, and its breadth twenty cubits, and he covereth it with good gold, to six hundred talents; 9 and the weight of the nails 'is' fifty shekels of gold, and the upper chambers he hath covered with gold.
10 And he maketh in the most holy house two cherubs, image work, and he overlayeth them with gold; 11 as to the wings of the cherubs, their length 'is' twenty cubits, the wing of the one 'is' five cubits, touching the wall of the house, and the other wing 'is' five cubits, touching the wing of the other cherub. 12 And the wing of the other cherub 'is' five cubits touching the wall of the house, and the other wing 'is' five cubits, adhering to the wing of the other cherub. 13 The wings of these cherubs are spreading forth twenty cubits, and they are standing on their feet and their faces 'are' inward. 14 And he maketh the vail of blue, and purple, and crimson, and fine linen, and causeth cherubs to go up on it.
15 And he maketh at the front of the house two pillars, thirty and five cubits in length, and the ornament that 'is' on their heads five cubits. 16 And he maketh chains in the oracle, and putteth on the heads of the pillars, and maketh a hundred pomegranates, and putteth on the chains. 17 And he raiseth up the pillars on the front of the temple, one on the right, and one on the left, and calleth the name of that on the right Jachin, and the name of that on the left Boaz.
101 'Verily, verily, I say to you, He who is not entering through the door to the fold of the sheep, but is going up from another side, that one is a thief and a robber; 2 and he who is entering through the door is shepherd of the sheep; 3 to this one the doorkeeper doth open, and the sheep hear his voice, and his own sheep he doth call by name, and doth lead them forth; 4 and when his own sheep he may put forth, before them he goeth on, and the sheep follow him, because they have known his voice; 5 and a stranger they will not follow, but will flee from him, because they have not known the voice of strangers.' 6 This similitude spake Jesus to them, and they knew not what the things were that he was speaking to them;
7 Jesus said therefore again to them, 'Verily, verily, I say to you—I am the door of the sheep; 8 all, as many as came before me, are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them; 9 I am the door, through me if any one may come in, he shall be saved, and he shall come in, and go out, and find pasture. 10 'The thief doth not come, except that he may steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they may have life, and may have 'it' abundantly. 11 'I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd his life layeth down for the sheep; 12 and the hireling, and not being a shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, doth behold the wolf coming, and doth leave the sheep, and doth flee; and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep; 13 and the hireling doth flee because he is an hireling, and is not caring for the sheep. 14 'I am the good shepherd, and I know my 'sheep', and am known by mine, 15 according as the Father doth know me, and I know the Father, and my life I lay down for the sheep, 16 and other sheep I have that are not of this fold, these also it behoveth me to bring, and my voice they will hear, and there shall become one flock—one shepherd. 17 'Because of this doth the Father love me, because I lay down my life, that again I may take it; 18 no one doth take it from me, but I lay it down of myself; authority I have to lay it down, and authority I have again to take it; this command I received from my Father.'
19 Therefore, again, there came a division among the Jews, because of these words, 20 and many of them said, 'He hath a demon, and is mad, why do ye hear him?' 21 others said, 'These sayings are not those of a demoniac; is a demon able blind men's eyes to open?'
22 And the dedication in Jerusalem came, and it was winter, 23 and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the porch of Solomon,
(Read John 10:1-5)
Here is a parable or similitude, taken from the customs of the East, in the management of sheep. Men, as creatures depending on their Creator, are called the sheep of his pasture. The church of God in the world is as a sheep-fold, exposed to deceivers and persecutors. The great Shepherd of the sheep knows all that are his, guards them by his providence, guides them by his Spirit and word, and goes before them, as the Eastern shepherds went before their sheep, to set them in the way of his steps. Ministers must serve the sheep in their spiritual concerns. The Spirit of Christ will set before them an open door. The sheep of Christ will observe their Shepherd, and be cautious and shy of strangers, who would draw them from faith in him to fancies about him.
(Read John 10:6-9)
Many who hear the word of Christ, do not understand it, because they will not. But we shall find one scripture expounding another, and the blessed Spirit making known the blessed Jesus. Christ is the Door. And what greater security has the church of God than that the Lord Jesus is between it and all its enemies? He is a door open for passage and communication. Here are plain directions how to come into the fold; we must come in by Jesus Christ as the Door. By faith in him as the great Mediator between God and man. Also, we have precious promises to those that observe this direction. Christ has all that care of his church, and every believer, which a good shepherd has of his flock; and he expects the church, and every believer, to wait on him, and to keep in his pasture.
(Read John 10:10-18)
Christ is a good Shepherd; many who were not thieves, yet were careless in their duty, and by their neglect the flock was much hurt. Bad principles are the root of bad practices. The Lord Jesus knows whom he has chosen, and is sure of them; they also know whom they have trusted, and are sure of Him. See here the grace of Christ; since none could demand his life of him, he laid it down of himself for our redemption. He offered himself to be the Saviour; Lo, I come. And the necessity of our case calling for it, he offered himself for the Sacrifice. He was both the offerer and the offering, so that his laying down his life was his offering up himself. From hence it is plain, that he died in the place and stead of men; to obtain their being set free from the punishment of sin, to obtain the pardon of their sin; and that his death should obtain that pardon. Our Lord laid not his life down for his doctrine, but for his sheep.
(Read John 10:19-21)
Satan ruins many, by putting them out of conceit with the word and ordinances. Men would not be laughed out of their necessary food, yet suffer themselves thus to be laughed out of what is far more necessary. If our zeal and earnestness in the cause of Christ, especially in the blessed work of bringing his sheep into his fold, bring upon us evil names, let us not heed it, but remember our Master was thus reproached before us.
(Read John 10:22-30)
All who have any thing to say to Christ, may find him in the temple. Christ would make us to believe; we make ourselves doubt. The Jews understood his meaning, but could not form his words into a full charge against him. He described the gracious disposition and happy state of his sheep; they heard and believed his word, followed him as his faithful disciples, and none of them should perish; for the Son and the Father were one. Thus he was able to defend his sheep against all their enemies, which proves that he claimed Divine power and perfection equally with the Father.
