| Barnes' Notes on the Bible The entry of the house - The text is, by some, corrected by 1 Kings 7:50, "the hinges" of the doors of the house, etc.
Clarke's Commentary on the BibleThe doors - were of gold - That is, were overlaid with golden plates, the thickness of which we do not know. That every thing in the tabernacle and temple was typical or representative of some excellence of the Gospel dispensation may be readily credited, without going into all the detail produced by the pious author of Solomon's Temple Spiritualized. We can see the general reference and the principles of the great design, though we may not be able to make a particular application of the knops, the flowers, the pomegranates, the tongs, and the snuffers, to some Gospel doctrines: such spiritualizing is in most cases weak, silly, religious trifling; being ill calculated to produce respect for Divine revelation.
Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testamentמזמּרות, knives, probably used along with the snuffers for the cleansing and trimming of the candlesticks and lamps, are not met with among the utensils of the tabernacle, but are here mentioned (Chr. and Kings), and in 2 Kings 12:14 and Jeremiah 52:18, among the temple utensils. Along with the מזרקות, sacrificial vessels (see on 2 Chronicles 4:8), in 1 Chronicles 28:17 מזלנות, forks of gold, are also mentioned, which are not elsewhere spoken of. Among the utensils of the tabernacle we find only מזלגות of brass, flesh-forks, as an appurtenance of the altar of burnt-offering (Exodus 27:3; Exodus 38:3; Numbers 4:14; cf. 1 Samuel 2:13.), which, however, cannot be intended here, because all the utensils here enumerated belonged to the holy place. What purpose the golden forks served cannot be determined, but the mention of golden knives might lead us to presuppose that there would be golden forks as well. That the forks are not mentioned in our verse does not render their existence doubtful, for the enumeration is not complete: e.g., the ספּות, 1 Kings 7:50, are also omitted. כּפּות, vessels for the incense, and מחתּות, extinguishers, as in 1 Kings 7:50. Instead of דּלתותיו הבּית וּפּתח הבּית , "and as regards the opening (door) of the house, its door-leaves," in 1 Kings 7:50 we have הבּית לדלתות והפּתת, "and the hinges of the door-leaves of the house." This suggests that פתח is only an orthographical error for פּתת; but then if we take it to be so, we must alter דּלתותיו into לדלתותיו. And, moreover, the expression הבּית פּתת, door-hinges of the house, is strange, as פּות properly denotes a recess or space between, and which renders the above-mentioned conjecture improbable. The author of the Chronicle seems rather himself to have generalized the expression, and emphasizes merely the fact that even the leaves of the doors in the most holy place and on the holy place were of gold; - of course not of solid gold; but they were, as we learn from 2 Chronicles 3:7, overlaid with gold. This interpretation is favoured by the simple זהב being used without the predicate סגוּר. To the sing. פּתח no objection can be made, for the word in its fundamental signification, "opening," may easily be taken collectively.
Geneva Study BibleAnd the snuffers, and the basons, and the spoons, and the censers, of pure gold: and the entry of the house, the inner doors thereof for the most holy place, and the doors of the house of the temple, were {i} of gold. (i) That is, covered with plates of gold.
Wesley's Notes 4:22 Of gold - In part; they were made of wood, but covered with golden plates.
King James Translators' Notesbasons: or, bowls
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary4:1-22 The furniture of the temple. - Here is a further account of the furniture of God's house. Both without doors and within, there was that which typified the grace of the gospel, and shadowed out good things to come, of which the substance is Christ. There was the brazen altar. The making of this was not mentioned in the book of Kings. On this all the sacrifices were offered, and it sanctified the gift. The people who worshipped in the courts might see the sacrifices burned. They might thus be led to consider the great Sacrifice, to be offered in the fulness of time, to take away sin, and put an end to death, which the blood of bulls and goats could not possibly do. And, with the smoke of the sacrifices, their hearts might ascend to heaven, in holy desires towards God and his favour. In all our devotions we must keep the eye of faith fixed upon Christ. The furniture of the temple, compared with that of the tabernacle, showed that God's church would be enlarged, and his worshippers multiplied. Blessed be God, there is enough in Christ for all.
Matthew Henry's Whole Bible CommentaryVerses 11-22 We have here such a summary both of the brass-work and the gold-work of the temple as we had before (1 Ki. 7:13, etc.), in which we have nothing more to observe than, 1. That Huram the workman was very punctual: He finished all that he was to make (v. 11), and left no part of his work undone. Huram, his father, he is called, v. 16. Probably it was a sort of nickname by which he was commonly known, Father Huram; for the king of Tyre called him Huram Abi, my father, in compliance with whom Solomon called him his, he being a great artist and father of the artificers in brass and iron. He acquitted himself well both for ingenuity and industry. 2. Solomon was very generous. He made all the vessels in great abundance (v. 18), many of a sort, that many hands might be employed, and so the work might go on with expedition, or that some might be laid up for use when others were worn out. Freely he has received, and he will freely give. When he had made vessels enough for the present he could not convert the remainder of the brass to his own use; it is devoted to God, and it shall be used for him. |
