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Who consumed the provisions for the king's table? Not only the servants, but also the multitude of the bodyguards: shield-bearers and spear-bearers, and the rulers dining with him. QUES. XVII. Who are those around Ethan and Heman, whom Solomon surpassed in wisdom? At that time there were some famous 80.681 in wisdom; for which reason he also made mention of them by name. But Ethan and Heman were of the psalmists, praising God with lyres, and lutes, and cymbals. QUES. XVIII. How is one to understand the phrase, "He spoke of trees, from the cedar of Lebanon, and even to the hyssop that grows out of the wall," and what follows. It is said that he had discoursed on the natures and the powers both of herbs and of trees, and indeed also of irrational animals; from this, I think, those who wrote medical books also drew very many things; and composed the classifications of the hot and cold, and indeed also of the dry and the moist, and by what measure this herb is hotter or colder than that one; and what part of this animal is an antidote for what ailment; for example, the gall of the hyena, or the fat of the lion, or the blood of the bull, or the flesh of vipers. For the wise among the physicians have written about these things, having taken the first starting-points from the things written by Solomon. QUES. XIX. What is, "And Pharaoh gave them as a farewell gift to his daughter, Solomon's wife? The cities which he had taken he gave to her as a dowry, having betrothed her to Solomon. QUES. XX. How is one to understand the phrase, "Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants, to anoint Solomon in place of David his father? He called the appointment anointing; not that the foreigner anointed the king of Israel; but as a paternal friend, he assented to the kingship. QUES. XXI. What does 'macheir' mean? It is interpreted as a measure; "For Solomon gave, it says, to Hiram twenty thousand cors of wheat, macheir for his household, and twenty thousand beth of crushed oil." But others interpreted 'beth' as 'batos'. 80.684 And the 'batos' is a measure of the Palestinians, holding seventy-four choes, as Josephus said. QUES. XXII. Why then did he not begin the building immediately upon becoming king, but in the fourth year? He prepared the materials first; then he laid the foundations; this the historian also taught; "And he prepared the stones, and the timbers, in three years for the building of the house." QUES. XXIII. If he built the temple with unhewn stones, wherefore was there need of so many stonecutters? The temple itself he built of unhewn stones, as divine Providence willed such naturally formed stones to be found, so that no iron tool was needed for fitting, but beyond all building art they were joined to each other. But with cut stones he built the enclosure of the sanctuary, and the royal palace, and the wall of the metropolis, and the other cities, which he made more fortified. And in summary I will describe the construction of the temple. Its length was sixty cubits, and its width twenty. And it was turned not toward the east; so that those praying would not worship the rising sun, but the Lord of the sun. And let no one be surprised, if, when divine Scripture has said the length is forty cubits, and the width twenty, I said the length is sixty. For after a little it also makes mention of the other twenty, showing the holy of holies. These it also names Dabir. Therefore the rest of the temple was forty cubits, and the Holy of Holies twenty. And other small chambers were built together with the temple on the outside, so as both to hold the structure together, and that none of the Levites should touch the walls of the temple. For it was accessible only to the priests to enter into the first temple, called the Holy Place; but into the innermost shrine and sanctuary, which it named the Holy of Holies, not even to these was it permitted to enter. For only the high priest was commanded to venture into the untouchable places; and not even he always, but in the seventh month, on the day of atonement. And in those small chambers, built in a circle around the temple, 80.685 the vessels of the divine liturgy were stored. And of the temple

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Τὰ χορηγούμενα τῇ τραπέζῃ τοῦ βασιλέως τίνες ἀνήλισκον; Οὐχ οἱ θεράποντες μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν σωμα τοφυλάκων τὸ πλῆθος· ἀσπιδηφόροι καὶ δορυφόροι, καὶ οἱ συνεσθιόμενοι ἄρχοντες. ΕΡΩΤ. ΙΖʹ. Τίνες οἱ περὶ τὸν Αἰθὰμ καὶ Αἰμὰν, οὒς ἀπέκρυψεν ὁ Σολομὼν τῇ σοφίᾳ; Κατ' ἐκεῖνο καιροῦ ἦσάν τινες ἐν σοφίᾳ ἐπί 80.681 σημοι· ὅθεν αὐτῶν καὶ ὀνομαστὶ ἐμνήσθη. Ὁ δὲ Αἰθὰμ καὶ Αἰμὰν τῶν ψαλτῳδῶν ἦσαν, ἐν κινύ ραις, καὶ ναύλαις, καὶ κυμβάλοις τὸν Θεὸν ἀν υμνοῦντες. ΕΡΩΤ. ΙΗʹ. Πῶς νοητέον τὸ, "Ἐλάλησε περὶ τῶν ξύλων, ἀπὸ τῆς κέδρου τῆς ἐν τῷ Λιβάνῳ, καὶ ἕως τῆς ὑσσώπου τῆς ἐκπορευομένης ἐκ τοῦ τοίχου," καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Καὶ τὰς φύσεις, καὶ τὰς δυνάμεις, καὶ τῶν βοτα νῶν, καὶ τῶν δένδρων, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τῶν ἀλόγων ζώων πεφυσιολογηκέναι αὐτὸν εἴρηκεν· ἐντεῦθεν οἶμαι καὶ τοὺς τὰς ἰατρικὰς βίβλους συγγεγραφότας ἐρανίσασθαι πάμπολλα· καὶ τῶν θερμῶν καὶ ψυ χρῶν, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τῶν ξηρῶν καὶ τῶν ὑγρῶν συν θεῖναι τὰς τάξεις, καὶ ἥδε τῆσδε τῆς βοτάνης ὅσῳ τινὶ μέτρῳ θερμοτέρα ἢ ψυχροτέρα· καὶ τοῦδε τοῦ ζώου τόδε τὸ μόριον τίνος πάθους ἀλεξιφάρμακον· οἷον ἡ τῆς ὑαίνης χολὴ, ἢ τὸ λεόντειον στέαρ, ἢ τὸ ταύρειον αἷμα, ἢ τῶν ἐχιδνῶν αἱ σάρκες. Περὶ τού των γὰρ οἱ σοφοὶ τῶν ἰατρῶν συγγεγράφασιν, ἐκ τῶν Σολομῶντι συγγεγραμμένων εἰληφότες τῶν πρώτων τὰς ἀφορμάς. ΕΡΩΤ. ΙΘʹ. Τί ἐστι, "Καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτὰς Φαραὼ ἀποστολὰς τῇ θυγατρὶ αὐτοῦ, γυναικὶ Σολομῶντος; Ἃς εἷλε πόλεις προῖκα αὐτῇ δέδωκε, τῷ Σολο μῶντι κατεγγυήσας. ΕΡΩΤ. Κʹ. Πῶς νοητέον τὸ, "Ἀπέστειλε Χιρὰμ βασιλεὺς Τύρου τοὺς παῖδας αὑτοῦ, χρῖσαι τὸν Σο λομῶντα ἀντὶ ∆αβὶδ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ; Χρίσιν τὴν χειροτονίαν ἐκάλεσεν· οὐχ ὅτι ὁ ἀλ λόφυλος ἔχριε τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ τὸν βασιλέα· ἀλλ' ὡς πα τρῷος φίλος, σύμψηφος ἐγένετο τῇ βασιλείᾳ. ΕΡΩΤ. ΚΑʹ. Τὸ μαχεὶρ τί σημαίνει; Μέτρον ἑρμηνεύεται· "Ἔδωκε γὰρ, φησὶν, ὁ Σο λομὼν τῷ Χιρὰμ εἴκοσι χιλιάδας κόρων πυροῦ μαχεὶρ τῷ οἴκῳ αὐτοῦ καὶ εἴκοσι χιλιάδας βὲθ ἐλαίου κεκομμένου." Τὸ δὲ βὲθ οἱ ἄλλοι βάτον ἡρ 80.684 μήνευσαν. Ὁ δὲ βάτος μέτρον ἐστὶ Παλαιστίνων, ἑβδομήκοντα καὶ τέσσαρας χόας χωροῦν, ὡς Ἰώσηπος ἔφησεν. ΕΡΩΤ. ΚΒʹ. Τί δήποτε οὐκ εὐθὺς βασιλεύσας, ἀλλ' ἐν τετάρτῳ ἔτει τῆς οἰκοδομίας ἤρξατο; Τὰς ὕλας ηὐτρέπισε πρότερον· εἶθ' οὕτω κατέπηξε τὰ θεμέλια· τοῦτο καὶ ὁ ἱστοριογράφος ἐδίδαξε· "Καὶ ἡτοίμασε τοὺς λίθους, καὶ τὰ ξύλα, τρισὶν ἔτεσιν εἰς τὴν οἰκοδομὴν τοῦ οἴκου." ΕΡΩΤ. ΚΓʹ. Εἰ λίθοις ἀπελεκήτοις τὸν ναὸν ᾠκοδόμησε, ποῦ τοσούτων ἐδεῖτο λατόμων; Αὐτὸν τὸν ναὸν ἐξ ἀπελεκήτων ᾠκοδόμησε λίθων, τῆς θείας Προνοίας τοιούτους αὐτοφυεῖς εὑρεθῆναι λίθους ἐθελησάσης, ὥστε μηδενὸς εἰς ἁρμονίαν δεη θῆναι σιδήρου, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν οἰκοδομικὴν τέχνην ἀλλήλοις συναρμοσθῆναι. Τοῖς δὲ τμητοῖς λίθοις τὸν τοῦ ἱεροῦ περίβολον ἐδομήσατο, καὶ τὰ βασίλεια, καὶ τὸ τῆς μητροπόλεως τεῖχος, καὶ τὰς ἄλλας πόλεις, ἃς ὀχυρωτέρας ἀπέφηνεν. Ἐν κεφαλαίῳ δὲ τοῦ νεὼ τὴν οἰκοδομίαν ἐκφράσω. Τούτου τὸ μῆκος ἑξήκον τα πήχεων ἦν, εἴκοσι δὲ τὸ εὖρος. Ἐτέτραπτο δὲ οὐ πρὸς ἕω· ἵνα οἱ προσευχόμενοι μὴ τὸν ἥλιον ἀνίσχοντα προσκυνῶσιν, ἀλλὰ τὸν τοῦ ἡλίου ∆εσπό την. Θαυμαζέτω δὲ μηδεὶς, εἰ τῆς θείας Γραφῆς τεσσαράκοντα πήχεων τὸ μῆκος, εἴκοσι δὲ τὸ εὖρος εἰρηκυίας, τὸ μῆκος ἑξήκοντα εἶπον ἐγώ. Μετ' ὀλίγα γὰρ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων εἴκοσι ἐπιμέμνηται, τὰ ἅγια τῶν ἁγίων ἐπιδεικνῦσα. Ταῦτα καὶ ∆αβεὶρ ὀνομάζει. Οὐκοῦν τεσσαράκοντα μὲν πήχεων ὁ ἄλλος ναὸς ἦν, εἴκοσι δὲ τῶν ἁγίων τὰ Ἅγια. Συνῳκοδό μηντο δὲ τῷ ναῷ καὶ ἔξωθεν οἰκίσκοι ἕτεροι, ὥστε καὶ τὴν οἰκοδομὴν συνέχειν, καὶ μηδένα τῶν Λευϊ τῶν προσψαύειν τοῖς τοῦ ναοῦ τοίχοις. Μόνοις γὰρ τοῖς ἱερεῦσιν εἰσιτητὸν ἦν εἰς τὸν πρῶτον ναὸν τὸν καλούμενον Ἅγια· εἰς δὲ τὸ ἄδυτον καὶ ἀνάκτορον, ἅπερ Ἅγια τῶν ἁγίων ὠνόμασεν, οὐδὲ τούτοις ἐπι βαίνειν ἐξῆν. Μόνος γὰρ ὁ ἀρχιερεὺς τῶν ἀψαύστων κατατολμᾷν ἐπετέτακτο· καὶ οὐδ' οὗτος ἀεὶ, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ ἑβδόμῳ μηνὶ, τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ ἱλασμοῦ. Ἐν δέ γε τοῖς οἰκίσκοις ἐκείνοις, τοῖς ἐν κύκλῳ τοῦ ναοῦ δεδο 80.685 μημένοις, τὰ τῆς θείας λειτουργείας ἀπετίθεντο σκεύη. Τοῦ δὲ τοῦ ναοῦ