Adam Clarke's Bible Commentary Verse 5. It-held three thousand baths.] In 1 Kings vii. 26, it is said to hold only two thousand baths. As this book was written after the Babylonish captivity, it is very possible that reference is here made to the Babylonish bath which might have been less than the Jewish. We have already seen that the cubit of Moses, or of the ancient Hebrews, was longer than the Babylonish by one palm; see on chap. iii. 3. It might be the same with the measures of capacity; so that two thousand of the ancient Jewish baths might have been equal to three thousand of those used after the captivity. The Targum cuts the knot by saying, "It received three thousand baths of dry measure, and held two thousand of liquid measure."
Matthew Henry Commentary
- The furniture of the temple.
--Here is a further account of the furniture of God's house. Bot 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 wa not mentioned in the book of Kings. On this all the sacrifices wer 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 an goats could not possibly do. And, with the smoke of the sacrifices their hearts might ascend to heaven, in holy desires towards God an his favour. In all our devotions we must keep the eye of faith fixe 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 _________________________________________________
Original Hebrew ועביו5672 טפח2947 ושׂפתו8193 כמעשׂה4639 שׂפת8193 כוס3563 פרח6525 שׁושׁנה7799 מחזיק2388 בתים1324 שׁלשׁת7969 אלפים505 יכיל׃3557
