Ben-deker in Makaz, in Shaalbim, in Beth-shemesh, and in Elon-beth-hanan; Ben-dekerThe name "Ben-deker" translates to "son of Deker." In the context of ancient Israel, names often carried significant meaning, reflecting lineage or character traits. The prefix "Ben-" indicates "son of," which was a common way to denote family ties and heritage. This highlights the importance of familial lineage in Israelite society, where one's identity and social standing were closely tied to one's family. Makaz
This location, though not extensively detailed in the Bible, is part of the administrative districts established by King Solomon. The mention of Makaz signifies the organized and structured governance Solomon implemented. Archaeologically, while specific evidence of Makaz is limited, the reference underscores the historical reality of Solomon's reign, marked by prosperity and administrative efficiency. Shaalbim
Shaalbim is another town within Solomon's district system. Historically, it is associated with the tribe of Dan. The name itself may derive from a root meaning "foxes" or "burrows," suggesting a landscape or characteristic feature of the area. This reflects the biblical tradition of naming places based on geographical or cultural attributes, providing insight into the life and environment of ancient Israel. Beth-shemesh
Meaning "house of the sun," Beth-shemesh was a significant city in ancient Israel, often associated with the tribe of Judah. Its name indicates a possible connection to sun worship or a location that received abundant sunlight. Historically, Beth-shemesh was a Levitical city, emphasizing its religious importance. The city's mention here highlights the integration of religious and administrative functions in Solomon's kingdom. Elon-beth-hanan
This location, like others in the verse, is part of the administrative districts. The name "Elon" can mean "oak" or "terebinth," suggesting a place characterized by such trees, while "beth-hanan" means "house of grace" or "house of favor." This combination of natural and spiritual imagery reflects the biblical theme of God's creation and favor intertwined with human habitation and governance. Persons / Places / Events 1. Ben-dekerOne of King Solomon's twelve district governors, responsible for providing provisions for the king and his household for one month each year. 2. MakazA location within the territory assigned to Ben-deker. The exact location is not well-known, but it was part of the administrative districts under Solomon's rule. 3. ShaalbimA town mentioned in the context of Ben-deker's jurisdiction. It is also referenced in the Book of Judges as a place where the Amorites lived. 4. Beth-shemeshA town with historical significance, often associated with the tribe of Dan and later with the tribe of Judah. It was a Levitical city and a site of various biblical events. 5. Elon-beth-hananAnother location within Ben-deker's district. The name suggests a place of significance, possibly related to a person named Hanan. Teaching Points God's Order and ProvisionSolomon's administrative system reflects God's desire for order and provision. Each governor had a specific role, ensuring the king's needs were met. This teaches us the importance of organization and responsibility in our own lives. Faithfulness in ServiceBen-deker's role as a governor required diligence and faithfulness. Similarly, we are called to be faithful stewards of the responsibilities God has entrusted to us, whether in our families, workplaces, or communities. The Importance of CommunityThe mention of various towns highlights the interconnectedness of the Israelite community. As believers, we are part of a larger body and should work together to support and uplift one another. Historical and Spiritual SignificanceUnderstanding the historical context of these locations can deepen our appreciation for the biblical account and its spiritual lessons. It reminds us that God works through history to accomplish His purposes. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the role of Ben-deker as a governor reflect the importance of organization and delegation in leadership? 2. In what ways can we apply the principle of faithfulness in service to our daily lives and responsibilities? 3. How does the interconnectedness of the towns in Ben-deker's district illustrate the importance of community in the body of Christ? 4. What can we learn from the historical significance of places like Beth-shemesh in understanding God's work through history? 5. How does Solomon's administrative system in 1 Kings 4:7-19 demonstrate God's provision and order, and how can we seek to implement similar principles in our personal and spiritual lives? Connections to Other Scriptures Judges 1:35Shaalbim is mentioned as a place where the Amorites persisted in living, highlighting the ongoing struggle between the Israelites and the native inhabitants of the land. Joshua 21:16Beth-shemesh is listed as a Levitical city, emphasizing its religious and cultural importance in Israel's history. 1 Kings 4:7-19This passage provides the broader context of Solomon's administrative organization, listing all twelve governors and their respective districts. People Abda, Abel, Abiathar, Abinadab, Adoniram, Ahiah, Ahijah, Ahilud, Ahimaaz, Ahinadab, Ahishar, Amorites, Argob, Asher, Azariah, Baana, Baanah, Basmath, Ben, Benaiah, Benjamin, Calcol, Chalcol, Dan, Darda, Dekar, Elah, Elihoreph, Elon, Ethan, Geber, Hanan, Heman, Hepher, Hesed, Hur, Hushai, Iddo, Issachar, Jair, Jehoiada, Jehoshaphat, Jezreel, Mahol, Manasseh, Naphtali, Nathan, Og, Paruah, Shimei, Shisha, Sihon, Solomon, Taphath, Uri, Zabud, ZadokPlaces Abel-meholah, Argob, Arubboth, Bashan, Bealoth, Beersheba, Beth-shan, Beth-shemesh, Dan, Egypt, Elonbeth-hanan, Euphrates River, Gaza, Gilead, Hepher, Jerusalem, Jezreel, Jokmeam, Lebanon, Mahanaim, Makaz, Megiddo, Naphath-dor, Ramoth-gilead, Shaalbim, Socoh, Taanach, Tiphsah, ZarethanTopics Ben, Ben-dekar, Ben-deker, Beth, Bethhanan, Bethshemesh, Beth-shemesh, Beth-she'mesh, Dekar, Deker, Elon, Elonbethhanan, Elonbeth-hanan, E'lonbeth-ha'nan, Elon-beth-hanan, Hanan, Makaz, Shaalbim, Sha-al'bim, ShemeshDictionary of Bible Themes 1 Kings 4:1-25 7236 Israel, united kingdom 1 Kings 4:5-19 5434 officer 1 Kings 4:7-19 5489 rank Library The Great Gain of Godliness
'And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, all the days of Solomon. 26. And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. 27. And those officers provided victual for king Solomon, and for all that came unto king Solomon's table, every man in his month: they lacked nothing. 28. Barley also and straw for the horses and dromedaries brought they unto the place where the officers were, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureWhether He who Raises the Unworthy to Orders Commits a Sin?
Objection 1: It would seem that he who raises the unworthy to orders commits no sin. For a bishop needs assistants appointed to the lesser offices. But he would be unable to find them in sufficient number, if he were to require of them such qualifications as the saints enumerate. Therefore if he raise some who are not qualified, he would seem to be excusable. Objection 2: Further, the Church needs not only ministers for the dispensation of things spiritual, but also for the supervision of temporalities. …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica Whether Vengeance Should be Taken on those who have Sinned Involuntarily?
Objection 1: It seems that vengeance should be taken on those who have sinned involuntarily. For the will of one man does not follow from the will of another. Yet one man is punished for another, according to Ex. 20:5, "I am . . . God . . . jealous, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generation." Thus for the sin of Cham, his son Chanaan was curse (Gn. 9:25) and for the sin of Giezi, his descendants were struck with leprosy (4 Kings 5). Again the blood …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica Stedfastness in the Old Paths.
"Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls."--Jer. vi. 16. Reverence for the old paths is a chief Christian duty. We look to the future indeed with hope; yet this need not stand in the way of our dwelling on the past days of the Church with affection and deference. This is the feeling of our own Church, as continually expressed in the Prayer Book;--not to slight what has gone before, …
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VII Adam and Zaretan, Joshua 3
I suspect a double error in some maps, while they place these two towns in Perea; much more, while they place them at so little a distance. We do not deny, indeed, that the city Adam was in Perea; but Zaretan was not so. Of Adam is mention, Joshua 3:16; where discourse is had of the cutting-off, or cutting in two, the waters of Jordan, that they might afford a passage to Israel; The waters rose up upon a heap afar off in Adam. For the textual reading "In Adam," the marginal hath "From Adam." You …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica The Fact of the Redeemer's Return was Typified in the Lives of Joseph and Solomon.
In the Old Testament there are numerous references to the Second Coming of Christ, references both direct and typical, but in every instance it was His return to the earth which was in view. The secret coming of Christ into the air, to catch up the saints to Himself, was an event quite unknown to the Old Testament prophets, an event kept secret until revealed by God to the apostle Paul who, when writing to the Corinthians upon this particular aspect of our subject, said, "Behold, I show you a mystery …
Arthur W. Pink—The Redeemer's Return Perhaps There is no Book Within the Whole Canon of Scripture So Perplexing and Anomalous...
Perhaps there is no book within the whole canon of Scripture so perplexing and anomalous, at first sight, as that entitled "Ecclesiastes." Its terrible hopelessness, its bold expression of those difficulties with which man is surrounded on every side, the apparent fruitlessness of its quest after good, the unsatisfactory character, from a Christian standpoint, of its conclusion: all these points have made it, at one and the same time, an enigma to the superficial student of the Word, and the arsenal …
F. C. Jennings—Old Groans and New Songs The Care of the Soul Urged as the one Thing Needful
Luke 10:42 -- "But one thing is needful." It was the amiable character of our blessed Redeemer, that "he went about doing good," this great motive, which animated all his actions, brought him to the house of his friend Lazarus, at Bethany, and directed his behavior there. Though it was a season of recess from public labor, our Lord brought the sentiments and the pious cares of a preacher of righteousness into the parlor of a friend; and there his doctrine dropped as the rain, and distilled as the …
George Whitefield—Selected Sermons of George Whitefield The Spiced Wine of My Pomegranate;
OR, THE COMMUNION OF COMMUNICATION. I would cause Thee to drink of spiced wine of the juice of my pomegranate."--Song of Solomon viii. 2.And of His fulness have all we received, and grace for grace."--John i. 16. THE SPICED WINE OF MY POMEGRANATE. THE immovable basis of communion having been laid of old in the eternal union which subsisted between Christ and His elect, it only needed a fitting occasion to manifest itself in active development. The Lord Jesus had for ever delighted Himself with the …
Charles Hadden Spurgeon—Till He Come A vision of Judgement and Cleansing
'And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. 2. And the Lord said unto Satan, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? 3. Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the Angel. 4. And He answered and spake unto those that stood before Him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him He said, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture The Historical Books.
1. In the Pentateuch we have the establishment of the Theocracy, with the preparatory and accompanying history pertaining to it. The province of the historical books is to unfold its practiced working, and to show how, under the divine superintendence and guidance, it accomplished the end for which it was given. They contain, therefore, primarily, a history of God's dealings with the covenant people under the economy which he had imposed upon them. They look at the course of human events on the …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible The Poetical Books (Including Also Ecclesiastes and Canticles).
1. The Hebrews reckon but three books as poetical, namely: Job, Psalms, and Proverbs, which are distinguished from the rest by a stricter rhythm--the rhythm not of feet, but of clauses (see below, No. 3)--and a peculiar system of accentuation. It is obvious to every reader that the poetry of the Old Testament, in the usual sense of the word, is not restricted to these three books. But they are called poetical in a special and technical sense. In any natural classification of the books of the …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible Kings
The book[1] of Kings is strikingly unlike any modern historical narrative. Its comparative brevity, its curious perspective, and-with some brilliant exceptions--its relative monotony, are obvious to the most cursory perusal, and to understand these things is, in large measure, to understand the book. It covers a period of no less than four centuries. Beginning with the death of David and the accession of Solomon (1 Kings i., ii.) it traverses his reign with considerable fulness (1 Kings iii.-xi.), …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links 1 Kings 4:9 NIV1 Kings 4:9 NLT1 Kings 4:9 ESV1 Kings 4:9 NASB1 Kings 4:9 KJV
1 Kings 4:9 Commentaries
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