Ephrem the Syrian

And Solomon replied, “If he is a man of character, not a single hair of his will fall to the ground.

“"Not one of his hairs shall fall to the ground," that is, he shall not undergo any punishment of the guilty, if he proves to be innocent; but he will deserve capital punishment, if he is found to conspire against my sovereignty.”

Solomon had twelve governors over all Israel to provide food for the king and his household.

“The officials elected by Solomon designate the order of the chosen ones whom Christ affirmed in his grace and appointed as rulers of his people.”

At that time Solomon assembled before him in Jerusalem the elders of Israel—all the tribal heads and family leaders of the Israelites—to bring up the ark of the covenant of…

“The two weeks [of festivity] and the two solemn celebrations were accomplished by the people of the Lord with the greatest joy.”

Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven, and said: “O LORD, God of Israel…

“Now notice that Solomon did not only pray for his people but also for the foreigners and the strangers who distrusted the nation of Israel and were often hostile to it, so that the son of David might show the God of David to everyone…”

Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, a great quantity of spices, and precious stones.

“The queen of Sheba was a type of our church. She came from her distant land to king Solomon, the church came together from the four regions of the world to Christ.”

The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as abundant as sycamore in the foothills.

“This means that the knowledge of divine things must be imparted to all nations everywhere through the advent and manifestation of Christ; and Isaiah predicted the coming of Christ in the clearest way by saying, "The earth will be full of the knowledge of the…”

King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh—women of Moab, Ammon, Edom, and Sidon, as well as Hittite women.

“In the previous chapters the Scripture related the marriage of Solomon with the daughter of Pharaoh and did not rebuke him because she was the one wife only who did not secretly practice the religion of her homeland and was no reason of offense for…”

After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves and said to the people, “Going up to Jerusalem is too much for you.

“While he prepared to establish the reign which was reserved to him by God according to the predictions of the prophets Shemaiah and Ahijah, Jeroboam thought that nothing could be more useful for his purpose than kindling the hatred of the two opposite parties to…”

Then the word of the LORD came to Jehu son of Hanani against Baasha, saying:

“[Baasha] was appointed king by God and was sent to restore the true religion which had been destroyed by Jeroboam and his successor Nadab, and to take revenge on the evil that was committed as well as impiety.”

In the thirty-eighth year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria twenty-two years.

“This is that Ahab who thought that he would make little progress in the new religion [i.e., idolatry] if he worshiped only the gods introduced by Jeroboam.”

“Leave here, turn eastward, and hide yourself by the Brook of Cherith, east of the Jordan.

“From the typological point of view this symbol has two meanings. The stream [wadi] of Elijah prefigures that, at the fullness of time, the Messiah will come and will send the sinners to the stream that comes out of the sanctuary, just like the one…”

“Get up and go to Zarephath of Sidon, and stay there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.”

“God sends Elijah to a city of [Gentile] people in order to change his hardness into mercy. He who had given him power over rain and dew did not want to withdraw by force what he had granted him.”

Later, the son of the woman who owned the house became ill, and his sickness grew worse and worse, until no breath remained in him.

“Observe carefully the tears of that woman, and see her humility in her grief, because she does not at all blame the judgment of God or rise against the prophet.”

Then he stretched himself out over the child three times and cried out to the LORD, “O LORD my God, please let this boy’s life return to him!”

“"He stretched himself on the child three times and cried out to the Lord, 'O Lord my God, let this child's life come into him again.' " These words contain many symbols.”

After a long time, in the third year of the drought, the word of the LORD came to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain…

“"After many days the word of the Lord came to Elijah, in the third year of the drought, saying, 'Go, present yourself to Ahab; I will send rain on the earth.' " The Lord, by giving life back to the child, granted grace to Elijah.”

When Ahab saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, O troubler of Israel?”

“"When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, "Is it you, you troubler of Israel?" He answered, "I have not troubled Israel; but you have, and your father's house."”

Now summon all Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel, along with the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah who eat at…

“"Have all Israel assemble for me at Mount Carmel." Now, it is amazing how the king obeyed Elijah, who asked him for a general gathering of the people; and how also the people obeyed him humbly, even though he bitterly reproached them for their evil…”

Then Elijah said to the people, “I am the only remaining prophet of the LORD, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets.

“When Elijah said, "I alone am left as a prophet to the Lord," he was not speaking against the just, because they were no [longer] to be found. Rather he was denouncing sinners, because they had done away with [the just].”

And they took the bull that was given them, prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, shouting, “O Baal, answer us!”

“"They limped about the altar that they had made." This means they had cut the bull in pieces and passed among the pieces lying on the altar by going from side to side.”

Then Elijah ordered them, “Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let a single one escape.”

“"Elijah brought them down to the Wadi Kishon, and cut their throats there." There is no doubt that the people rose against the prophets of shame and brought them before Elijah. But it is not entirely clear who killed them.”

And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a heavy rain.”

“"Elijah said to Ahab, 'Go up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of rushing rain.' " Elijah, after acknowledging that the people, thanks to the miracle that he had showed them, had turned away from their evil thoughts, and that the priests of…”

On the seventh time the servant reported, “There is a cloud as small as a man’s hand rising from the sea.”

“"Look, a little cloud no bigger than a person's hand is rising out of the sea." Before going up, Elijah prayed seven times.”

Meanwhile, the sky grew dark with clouds and wind, and a heavy rain began to fall. So Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel.

“In my opinion Elijah accorded a great honor to Ahab, of which he was unworthy, when he ran in front of him like a servant. And there are two reasons for this.”

Then the prophet quickly removed the bandage from his eyes, and the king of Israel recognized him as one of the prophets.

“In the course of these events Ahab's indulgence toward a man who was notoriously impious and an open and arrogant despiser of divine majesty fully deserved to be condemned, just as Saul's clemency toward the king of the Amalekites was reproached with good reason by…”

So the king died and was brought to Samaria, where they buried him.

“You see, not all the humiliations with which Elijah had threatened Ahab were accomplished, thanks to [the king's] profound repentance, nor was Ahab's corpse devoured by birds or wild beasts.”