Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y.
"Hitherto struggles within and hostility without had rendered the Hebrew peasants almost impervious to foreign influences; now, all at once, the bars were thrown down, and these came rushing in like a tidal wave. The horse took the place of the ass; metal weapons and tools supplanted the rude ones of flint and wood; walled cities arose on the sites of the primitive towns with their mud and stone hovels; the rude barracks of David grew into a palace; the simple gathering of followers about Saul, as he sat under his tamarisk-tree in Ramah, developed into a great Oriental court; luxuries undreamed of before came to be regarded as necessities; foreign spices, apes, peacocks, ivory, precious stones and woods aroused the curiosity and delighted the senses of the inhabitants of the gay capital."[5]
Nations entering into commercial relations with Solomon expected as a matter of course that their gods would be welcomed in the land of the Hebrews. Many of the commercial treaties were cemented by marriage alliances, and the princesses who came into the king's harem brought their own forms of worship with them. Places of worship had to be provided for them, and the idolatry of later years may be traced back in a large measure to the laxity of this period.
The adornment of Jerusalem demanded much of the king's attention. In place of the simple quarters which had sufficed for David, a noble palace arose. Apartments for the queens were needed. It has recently been insisted that instead of the three hundred and sixty wives credited to Solomon, he had but seventy, but a few more or less seem of little moment. The harem rivaled that of Persia, and the cost of maintaining so elaborate a court was out of all proportion to the resources of the kingdom. The people were taxed to the utmost. The Canaanites, who had long been permitted to live in peace by the side of the Hebrews, were now reduced to slavery and put at forced labor, quite as the Hebrews had been in Egypt.
Notwithstanding, many ties bound the people to their king. They took great pride in the splendor of their capital, and especially were they gratified by the erection of the temple in Jerusalem. Hither David had brought the ark of the covenant, which had been recovered from the Philistines, and here with due ceremony the center of the kingdom had already been made the religious center as well. It seems probable that to Solomon the temple was but a necessary adjunct to his court buildings. Among most ancient peoples temples were erected in connection with the king's palace. It gave added dignity and inspired wonder. To the masses it probably meant much more. Certainly it grew later to be the center for their religious enthusiasm and spirit.
Nor was Solomon's popularity based alone upon his achievements. He had a way of awakening personal popularity. He attained a wide reputation for his so-called "wisdom." As we follow his reckless policy of plunging his country on to ruin, this far-famed wisdom is not at once apparent. It consisted in subtlety, quick wit, ready answers and apt sayings, so much in favor among all oriental peoples. His wisdom is well exemplified by the stories told of the visit of the Queen of Sheba to his court, and her tests as to the truth of his famed gift. It is probable that this Arabian queen came to negotiate commercial advantages-for her subjects, but we are told only the ostensible reason for her coming: to test the wisdom of Solomon, whose fame had reached her kingdom. The dusky queen of renowned beauty brought costly presents to the Hebrew king, and received high honor and attention at his court. Stories have survived of questions put to his majesty by this queen. Two bouquets were held out before him, apparently alike, yet one was just gathered from his garden, and the other had been fashioned by the maidens of the queen. The simple tale is told in a little poem entitled "King Solomon and the Bees," and we leave the verses to complete it.
King Solomon and the Bees.
A Tale of the Talmud.
When Solomon was reigning in his glory,
Unto his throne the Queen of Sheba came,
(So in the Talmud you may read the story)
Drawn by the magic of the monarch's fame,
To see the splendors of his court, and bring
Some fitting tribute to the mighty king.