1 Kings 3:2

Solomon Requests Wisdom

1 Now ^aSolomon made a treaty with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and married Pharaoh’s daughter; then he brought her ^bto the City of David until he had finished building his ^cown house, and ^dthe house of the Lord, and ^ethe wall all around Jerusalem.

2 ^aMeanwhile the people sacrificed at the high places, because there was no house built for the name of the Lord until those days.

3 And Solomon ^aloved the Lord, ^bwalking in the statutes of his father David, except that he sacrificed and burned incense at the high places.

4 Now ^athe king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, ^bfor that was the great high place: Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.

5 ^aAt Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon ^bin a dream by night; and God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?”

6 ^aAnd Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father, because he ^bwalked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You ^chave given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.

Commentaries:

Adam Clarke

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1 Kings 3:2

The people sacrificed in high places - Could there be any sin in this, or was it unlawful till after the temple was built? for prophets, judges, the kings which preceded Solomon, and Solomon himself, sacrificed on high places, such as Gibeon, Gilgal, Shiloh, Hebron, Kirjath-jearim, etc. But after the temple was erected, it was sinful to offer sacrifices in any other place; yet here it is introduced as being morally wrong, and it is introduced, I Kings 3:3, as being an exceptionable trait in the character of Solomon. The explanation appears to be this: as the ark and tabernacle were still in being, it was not right to offer sacrifices but where they were; and wherever they were, whether on a high place or a plain, there sacrifices might be lawfully offered, previously to the building of the temple. And the tabernacle was now at Gibeon, II Chronicles 1:3. Possibly the high places may be like those among the Hindoos, large raised-up terraces, on which they place their gods when they bathe, anoint, and worship them. Juggernaut and Krishnu have large terraces or high places, on which they are annually exhibited. But there was no idol in the above case.

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