SERIES L --- THE NATION DIVIDES --- LESSON 13

SOLOMON’S FAME

THE WEALTH OF KING SOLOMON

From 1 Kings 4:1-34; 2 Chronicles 1:14-17

King Solomon was a very wise and wealthy king, ruling over a territory which stretched from the Euphrates River in the north to a point going southward through the Philistine country to the border of Egypt. The leaders of these territories sent him an annual tribute, along with their pledge to serve him. Throughout all this land there was peace during Solomon’s reign and each family in Judah and Israel owned its private home and garden. Solomon lived in luxury at his palace. The food supplies each day at the palace was one hundred and ninety-five bushels of fine flour, three hundred and ninety bushels of meal, ten fat oxen, twenty pasture-fed cattle and one hundred sheep, as well as deer, gazelles, roebucks and fat fowl. King Solomon had forty thousand stalls for chariot horses and twelve thousand horsemen to drive the chariots. Each month Solomon’s officials provided barley and straw for the king’s horses wherever they were stabled. They also made sure that the king had all he needed for his table and for his guests. A supervisor checked his officials and their work. The whole of Israel was wealthy and filled with peace and comfort for all its many people. Here is a list of Solomon’s officials, with their family relationship and their work:

1 -- Azariah the son of Zadok; high priest.
2 -- Elihoreph and Ahiah the sons of Shisha; scribes.
3 -- Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud; recorder, in charge of history and archives.
4 -- Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; army commander.
5 -- Zadok and Abiathar; priests.
6 -- Azariah the son of Nathan; in charge of all officials.
7 -- Zabud the son of Nathan; priest and personal friend to the king.
8 -- Ahishar; manager of the household at the palace.
9 -- Adoniram the son of Abda; in charge of forced labour.

This is a list of the twelve officials who provided food for the king’s palace. Each was responsible for one month of the year; one officer was in charge of all twelve:

1 -- Ben-Hur, from the hill country of Ephraim.
2 -- Ben-dekar, from Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-shemesh and Elon-Beth-hanan.
3 -- Ben-hesed, from Aruboth, which included Socoh and the land of Hepher.
4 -- Ben-Abinadab, from the territory around Dor. He was King Solomon’s son-in-law, for he married the princess Taphath.
5 -- Baana the son of Ahilud, whose territory included Taanach and Megiddo, Beth-shean by Zartanah below Jezreel, as well as all the territory from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah and thence to Jokneam.
6 -- Ben-Geber, in charge of the territory at Ramoth-Gilead, including the towns of lair the son of Manasseh in Gilead and the territory of Argob in Bashan. This territory included sixty walled cities with bronze gates.
7 -- Ahinadab the son of Iddo, from Mahanaim.
8 -- Ahimaaz, from Naphtali. He married Basmath, another of Solomon’s daughters.
9 -- Baanah the son of Hushai, from Asher and Aloth.
10 -- Shimei the son of Elah, from Benjamin.
11 -- Geber the son of Uri, from the country of Gilead, which included the territory previously ruled by King Sihon of the Amorites and King Og of Bashan.

YHVH gave Solomon unusual wisdom and understanding, with a great breadth of learning. He was wiser than any other king of his time or the wise men of the east and those of Egypt. His wisdom was greater than that of Ethan the Ezrahite and of Heman, Chalcol or Darda, who were the sons of Mahol. Because of his great wisdom, he became very famous in the surrounding nations. King Solomon wrote three thousand proverbs and a thousand and five songs. He knew much about trees, from the cedars of Lebanon to the lowly hyssop which grows out of the city wall. He also knew much about animals, birds, reptiles and fish. Many kings from the surrounding lands sent representatives to listen to his wise counsel.

COMMENTARY

SOLOMON’S TAXES

The period of Solomon’s rule is often described as Israel’s [golden age.] It entered a period of peace and prosperity unknown before in its history. The country itself was larger than it had ever been; Solomon’s Israel extended from Egypt to Mesopotamia. The cost of maintaining such an empire was huge and the burden was placed mostly on the people. Israelite men were required to labour for the king one month out of every three. Heavy taxes were demanded of everyone and Solomon devised a system to make sure everyone paid. Instead of keeping the kingdom divided along tribal lines, as David had, Solomon broke the country into twelve districts that included new territories as well. Each district paid its taxes a different month of the year. The amount was the same; enough to keep the royal palace and staff supplied for one month. The olive growers gave olives and oil, the herders sheep and goats, farmers grain and straw. The amounts were precisely measured, sometimes by pottery jugs whose sizes were established by the government. Government-supplied seals on the handle gave proof that the jar held the legal amount. People who lived in cities paid their taxes in weights of silver. District officials supervised the tax collection in each region. From the local collection points, they shipped agricultural products to special storehouses scattered throughout the country. They also saw to it that appropriate amounts of barley and straw for the king’s horses reached the stables of the chariot cities; settlements populated with chariots and horsemen to protect the country’s borders. Many of the details of the district officers’ job remain unknown. They were obviously important, well-paid men, and they helped Solomon’s government maintain a far greater control over the people of Israel than did the government of David or of Saul.

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1S 15

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Matza & Humility

What is the reason we eat this matzah? Because when the King of Kings, the Holy One, blessed be He, revealed Himself to them and redeemed them, there was insufficient time for our ancestors’ dough to become leavened. As it says: “The dough, which they brought out of Egypt, they baked into unleavened bread, because they were driven out from Egypt and they were not able to delay, and they had not prepared any provisions.” (Exodus 12:39) Stop for a moment and think about the following scenario – You are a slave, born to a family of slaves for generations upon generations. One day, after a cascade of events that afflicted your oppressors, you are told that you have 6 hours to leave. What do you take? What do you eat? Do you panic? The story of Exodus is well known and well documented, from the original text in the Torah to even the most recent Hollywood version of Prince of Egypt by Spielberg – the Jews left with Matza in hand, because “…They were not able to delay, and they had not prepared any provisions”. Wait a minute….is that really true? The 10 plagues afflicted Egypt for close to an entire year!! According to our Sages, each plague (except for the last plague of Death to the Firstborn) came down on Egypt for an entire week, and there was at least one week between each plague until the next one afflicted the Egyptians. According to some Sages, each plague with its aftermath lasted an entire month. So, at least 9 months of plagues! In essence, the Nation of Israel had 9 months to prepare for the moment of Exodus, and they managed to pack their animals and clothes, but couldn’t prepare in enough time for baking their food? Lastly, before the tenth plague, Death to the Firstborn, the Jewish people needed to prepare 5 days in advance in order to avoid the Angel of Death by taking a lamb, tying it to their bedpost, slaughter the lamb and use the blood on their doorpost (Mezuzah). So, how is it that when it came to their food they suddenly didn’t have time to prepare? One answer is in the inherent spiritual quality of Matza – humility. Matza is unleavened bread and essentially the only difference betwen bread and Matza is the amount the dough is allowed to rise. Bread uses yeast and is allowed to rise, whereas Matza is not allowed to rise, but the ingredients are identical, aside from yeast. So the difference is air. Air refers to one’s arrogance. Matza lacks arrogance, lacks air, and therefore reflects humility. The definition of humility, based on Rabbi Avraham Cook is as follows: Know Your Place! Humility doesn’t mean to be lowly and lacking self esteem, rather knowing what your specific role is at that specific moment. Humility is taking initiative at the right time, and knowing when to back down and wait. Arrogance is overstepping boundaries and inflating your ego when the situation doesn’t call for it, just for the sake of self promotion. The People of Israel had to know when to take a stance and when to wait until the last minute. Despite the fact that there was much preparation and build up to the moment of Exodus. They were humble enough not to leave until it was the actual moment to leave – and then they baked their bread quickly in order to have sustenance for their journey in the desert, but not a moment sooner than God allocated to them. True humility, knowing the precise moment to take initiative, and how long to wait. According to this explanation, the baking of the Matza was deliberately last minute and in haste, not out of surprise of lack of planning. The People of Israel expressed their true humility and connection to God by following God’s very precise instructions how to leave Egypt, and not taking initiative until the opportune moment, after the tenth plague and not a moment sooner. In our lives, do we take initiative at the right moment? Do we overstep our boundaries? Do we project arrogance or humility to our colleagues, family and friends? Are we able to have the patience to wait until the right moment to “Carpe Diam” and seize the day, or are we too impulsive because we want to do things ‘our way’? My blessing to everyone, is that we learn true humility from Matza and know the difference between when to step up and when to take a step back. It’s a fine balance indeed, but once achieved it will help guide us to a more balanced living experience.
-Ariel Tal

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