1 Kings 7:48

And Solomon made all the vessels that pertained unto the house of the LORD: the altar of gold, and the table of gold, whereupon the shewbread was,

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(48) The altar of gold.—The altar of gold (1Kings 6:20; 1Kings 6:22) is the altar of incense. On it (see Exodus 30:1-10) incense was to be burnt morning and evening. The horns of the altar were to be touched with the blood of the sin offering (Leviticus 4:7; Leviticus 4:18) offered for the priests or the people; and it was to be solemnly purified by the blood of the sacrifice on the great Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:18-19). The offering of incense, therefore, pre-supposed sacrifice already offered, and atonement made for sin. To the Israelites it clearly symbolised the offering of an acceptable worship by man, as restored to the love and communion of God. (See Psalm 141:2.) The priest, as a mediator between God and man, alone entered the Holy Place and offered the incense; the people “stood praying without” (Luke 1:10). To us it symbolises the intercession of the One Mediator, offered for us in the Most Holy Place of heaven, by whom alone our worship ascends to God. (See Hebrews 9:11-12; Hebrews 9:24; Hebrews 10:19-22; Revelation 8:3.)

For the table of shewbread, see Exodus 25:23-28; Exodus 37:10-15; for the shewbread itself, see Leviticus 24:5-9. The “shewbread”—properly “bread of the face” (or presence) of God, translated in the LXX. Version as “bread of offering” or “of presentation”—was clearly of the nature of an Eucharistic offering to God of His own gift of bread—a kind of first-fruits, acknowledging that the whole sustenance of life comes from Him, and possibly also implying the truth more closely symbolised by the pot of manna, that “man doth not live by bread alone, but by every word proceeding out of the mouth of God.”

Benson Commentary

1 Kings 7:48. All the vessels that pertained to the house of the Lord — Such as God, by the mouth of Moses, had commanded to be made for his house and service, and such as Moses had made for the tabernacle; only these for the temple were larger, richer, and more in number; according to the difference, as to size and splendour, between the temple and the tabernacle, and between Solomon’s vast riches and the poverty of Moses and the Israelites in the wilderness. The altar of gold — That is, overlaid with gold. For it was made of cedar, as that of Moses was of shittim-wood, and it was only covered with gold, 1 Kings 6:20. This was the altar of incense which stood in the holy place, and is mentioned 1 Chronicles 28:18, as one of the holy things for which David left gold. And the table of show- bread — Under which, by a synecdoche, are comprehended, both all the utensils belonging to it, and the other ten tables, which were made at the same time, 2 Chronicles 4:7-8.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

7:48-51 Christ is now the Temple and the Builder; the Altar and the Sacrifice; the Light of our souls, and the Bread of life; able to supply all the wants of all that have applied or shall apply to him. Outward images cannot represent, words cannot express, the heart cannot conceive, his preciousness or his love. Let us come to him, and wash away our sins in his blood; let us seek for the purifying grace of his Spirit; let us maintain communion with the Father through his intercession, and yield up ourselves and all we have to his service. Being strengthened by him, we shall be accepted, useful, and happy.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

See the note to 1 Kings 6:20 and notes at 2 Chronicles 4:19-22.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

48. the altar of gold—that is, the altar of incense.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

All the vessels that pertained unto the house of the Lord; such as God by the mouth of Moses had commanded to be made for his house and service, and such as Moses had made; only these were larger, and richer, and more, according to the difference of the temple and tabernacle, and Solomon’s vast riches, and the poverty of Moses and the Israelites at that time.

The altar of gold, to wit, of incense, as appears from 1 Chronicles 28:18, where this is mentioned amongst the things for which David left gold, and Solomon is here said to build it; and therefore this cannot be that altar made by Moses, Exodus 25:23,24 Exo 30:1,3, which also was of shittim wood, whereas this was made of cedar, and covered with gold, 1 Kings 6:20.

The table of gold, whereupon the shewbread was; under which, by a synecdoche, are comprehended both all the utensils belonging to it, and the other ten tables which he made together with it, 2 Chronicles 4:7,8.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And Solomon made all the vessels that pertained unto the house of the Lord,.... That is, he ordered them to be made, even all that were in the tabernacle of Moses; all were newly made, excepting the ark, mercy seat, and cherubim:

the altar of gold; the altar of incense, which was made of cedar, covered with gold, 1 Kings 6:20, hence called the golden altar, Revelation 8:3.

and the table of gold, whereupon the shewbread was; this includes all the tables, for there were ten of them, 2 Chronicles 4:8 where they are said to be placed, five on the right hand, and five on the left; which, according to the Jews (k), were not on the right and left of the temple, but on the right and left of the table of Moses, and which being placed on the north side, these must be also, Exodus 40:22 there being more tables in the temple than in the tabernacle may denote the greater provision of spiritual food in the word and ordinances of the Gospel church, of which the temple was a figure, than under the legal dispensation.

(k) T. Bab. Meuachot, fol. 98. Kimchi in loc. Targum in 2 Chron. 8.

Geneva Study Bible

And Solomon made all the vessels that pertained unto the house of the LORD: the {x} altar of gold, and the table of gold, whereupon the shewbread was,

(x) This was done according to the form that the Lord prescribed to Moses in Exodus.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

48. that pertained unto the house of the Lord] The construction is like that in 1 Kings 7:45. Hence R.V. has ‘that were in the house of the Lord.’

the altar of gold] R.V. the golden altar, i.e. the altar of incense made of cedar wood and overlaid with gold.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 48. - And Solomon made all the vessels which pertained unto [neither word in Heb.] the house of the Lord: the altar of gold [the altar of incense. See on 1 Kings 6:20, 22] and the table of gold [The Heb. shows the meaning to be, He made the table out of gold, not "He made the golden table," as Keil. 2 Chronicles 4:8 (cf. ver. 19 and 1 Chronicles 28:16) speaks of ten tables] whereupon the shewbread was. 1 Kings 7:48

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

The golden vessels of the Holy Place (cf. 2 Chronicles 4:19-22). The vessels enumerated here are divided, by the repetition of סגוּר זהב in 1 Kings 7:49, 1 Kings 7:50, into two classes, which were made of fine gold; and to this a third class is added in 1 Kings 7:50 which was made of gold of inferior purity. As סגוּר זהב is governed in both instances by ויּעשׂ as an accusative of the material, the זהב (gold) attached to the separate vessels must be taken as an adjective. "Solomon made all the vessels in the house of Jehovah (i.e., had them made): the golden altar, and the golden table on which was the shew-bread, and the candlesticks ... of costly gold (סגוּר: see at 1 Kings 6:20). The house of Jehovah is indeed here, as in 1 Kings 7:40, the temple with its courts, and not merely the Holy Place, or the temple-house in the stricter sense; but it by no means follows from this that כּל־הלּלים, "all the vessels," includes both the brazen vessels already enumerated and also the golden vessels mentioned afterwards. A decisive objection to our taking the כּל (all) as referring to those already enumerated as well as those which follow, is to be found in the circumstance that the sentence commencing with ויּעשׂ is only concluded with סגוּר זהב in 1 Kings 7:49. It is evident from this that כּל־הלּלים is particularized in the several vessels enumerated from סגוּר את onwards. These vessels no doubt belonged to the Holy Place or temple-house only; though this is not involved in the expression "the house of Jehovah," but is apparent from the context, or from the fact that all the vessels of the court have already been enumerated in 1 Kings 7:40-46, and were made of brass, whereas the golden vessels follow here. That there were intended for the Holy Place is assumed as well known from the analogy of the tabernacle. יהוה בּית אשׁר merely affirms that the vessels mentioned afterwards belonged to the house of God, and were not prepared for the palace of Solomon or any other earthly purpose. We cannot infer from the expression "Solomon made" that the golden vessels were not made by Hiram the artist, as the brazen ones were (Thenius). Solomon is simply named as the builder of the temple, and the introduction of his name was primarily occasioned by 1 Kings 7:47. The "golden altar" is the altar of incense in the Holy Place, which is called golden because it was overlaid with gold-plate; for, according to 1 Kings 6:20, its sides were covered with cedar wood, after the analogy of the golden altar in the tabernacle (Exodus 30:1-5). "And the table, upon which the shew-bread, of gold." זהב belongs to השּׁלחן, to which it stands in free subjection (vid., Ewald, 287, h), signifying "the golden table." Instead of השּׁלחן we have השּׁלחנות in 2 Chronicles 4:19 (the tables), because there it has already been stated in 2 Chronicles 4:8 that ten tables were made, and put in the Holy Place. In our account that verse is omitted; and hence there is only a notice of the table upon which the loaves of shew-bread generally lay, just as in 2 Chronicles 29:18, in which the chronicler does not contradict himself, as Thenius fancies. The number ten, moreover, is required and proved to be correct in the case of the tables, by the occurrence of the same number in connection with the candlesticks. In no single passage of the Old Testament is it stated that there was only one table of shew-bread in the Holy Place of Solomon's temple.

(Note: Nothing can be learned from 2 Chronicles 29:18 concerning the number of the vessels in the Holy Place. If we were to conclude from this passage that there were no more vessels in the Holy Place than are mentioned there, we should also have to assume, if we would not fall into a most unscientific inconsistency, that there was neither a candlestick nor a golden altar of incense in the Holy Place. The correct meaning of this passage may be gathered from the words of King Abiam in 2 Chronicles 13:11 : "We lay the shew-bread upon the pure table, and light the golden candlestick every evening;" from which it is obvious that here and there only the table and the candlestick are mentioned, because usually only one table had shew-bread upon it, and only one candlestick was lighted.)

The tables were certainly made of wood, like the Mosaic table of shew-bread, probably of cedar wood, and only overlaid with gold (see at Exodus 25:23-30). "And the candlesticks, five on the right and five on the left, before the back-room." These were also made in imitation of the Mosaic candlestick (see Exodus 25:31.), and were probably placed not near to the party wall in a straight line to the right and left of the door leading into the Most Holy Place, but along the two longer sides of the Holy Place; and the same with the tables, except that they stood nearer to the side walls with the candlesticks in front of them, so that the whole space might be lighted more brilliantly. The altar of burnt-offering, on the contrary, stood in front of and very near to the entrance into the Most Holy Place (see at 1 Kings 6:20).

In the following clause (1 Kings 7:49, 1 Kings 7:50) the ornaments of the candlesticks are mentioned first, and then the rest of the smaller golden vessels are enumerated. הפּרח, the flower-work, with which the candlesticks were ornamented (see Exodus 25:33). The word is evidently used collectively here, so that the גּביעים mentioned along with them in the book of Exodus (l.c.) are included. הגּרת, the lamps, which were placed upon the shaft and arms of the candlestick (Exodus 25:37). המּלקחים, the snuffers (Exodus 25:38). ספּות, basins in Exodus 12:22, here probably deep dishes (Schalen). מזמּרות, knives. מזרקות, bowls (Schalen) or cans with spouts for the wine for the libations; according to 2 Chronicles 4:8, there were a hundred of these made. כּפּות, small flat vessels, probably for carrying the incense to the altar. מחתּות, extinguishers; see at Exodus 25:38.