Among the great achievements of Solomon first place must be assigned to
the superb Temple built by him. He was long in doubt as to where he was
to build it. A heavenly voice directed him to go to Mount Zion at
night, to a field owned by two brothers jointly. One of the brothers
was a bachelor and poor, the other was blessed both with wealth and a
large family of children. It was harvesting time. Under cover of night,
the poor brother kept adding to the other's heap of grain, for,
although he was poor, he thought his brother needed more on account of
his large family. The rich brother, in the same clandestine way, added
to the poor brother's store, thinking that though he had a family to
support, the other was without means. This field, Solomon concluded,
which had called forth so remarkable a manifestation of brotherly love,
was the best site for the Temple, and he bought it. (57)
Every detail of the equipment and ornamentation of the Temple testifies
to Solomon's rare wisdom. Next to the required furniture, he planted
golden trees, which bore fruit all the time the building stood. When
the enemy entered the Temple, the fruit dropped from the trees, but
they will put forth blossoms again when it is rebuilt in the days of
the Messiah. (58)
Solomon was so assiduous that the erection of the Temple took but seven
years, about half the time for the erection of the king's palace, in
spite of the greater magnificence of the sanctuary. In this respect, he
was the superior of his father David, who first built a house for
himself, and then gave thought to a house for God to dwell in. Indeed,
it was Solomon's meritorious work in connection with the Temple that
saved him from being reckoned by the sages as one of the impious kings,
among whom his later actions might properly have put him. (59)
According to the measure of the zeal displayed by Solomon were the help
and favor shown him by God. During the seven years it took to build the
Temple, not a single workman died who was employed about it, nor even
did a single one fall sick. And as the workmen were sound and robust
from first to last, so the perfection of their tools remained
unimpaired until the building stood complete. Thus the work suffered no
sort of interruption. After the dedication of the Temple, however, the
workmen died off, lest they build similar structures for the heathen
and their gods. Their wages they were to receive from God in the world
to come, (60) and the master workman, Hiram, (61) was rewarded by being
permitted to reach Paradise alive. (62)
The Temple was finished in the month of Bul, now called Marheshwan, but
the edifice stood closed for nearly a whole year, because it was the
will of God that the dedication take place in the month of Abraham's
birth. Meantime the enemies of Solomon rejoiced maliciously. "Was it
not the son of Bath-sheba," they said, "who built the Temple? How,
then, could God permit His Shekinah to rest upon it?" When the
consecration of the house took place, and "the fire came down from
heaven," they recognized their mistake. (63)
The importance of the Temple appeared at once, for the torrential rains
which annually since the deluge had fallen for forty days beginning
with the month of Marheshwan, for the first time failed to come, and
thenceforward appeared no more. (64)
The joy of the people over the sanctuary was so great that they held
the consecration ceremonies on the Day of Atonement. It contributed not
a little to their ease of mind that a heavenly voice was heard to
proclaim: "You all shall have a share in the world to come."
The great house of prayer reflected honor not only on Solomon and the
people, but also on King David. The following incident proves it: When
the Ark was about to be brought into the Holy of Holies, the door of
the sacred chamber locked itself, and it was impossible to open it.
Solomon prayed fervently to God, but his entreaties had no effect until
he pronounced the words: "Remember the good deeds of David thy
servant." The Holy of Holies then opened of itself, and the enemies of
David had to admit that God had wholly forgiven his sin. (65)
In the execution of the Temple work a wish cherished by David was
fulfilled. He was averse to having the gold which he had taken as booty
from the heathen places of worship during his campaigns used for the
sanctuary at Jerusalem, because he feared that the heathen would boast,
at the destruction of the Temple, that their gods were courageous, and
were taking revenge by wrecking the house of the Israelitish God.
Fortunately Solomon was so rich that there was no need to resort to the
gold inherited from his father, and so David's wish was fulfilled. (66)