1 Kings 3:4

1 Kings 3:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar.
• New International Version (NIV)The king went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices, for that was the most important high place, and Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place. Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.
• New Living Translation (NLT)The most important of these places of worship was at Gibeon, so the king went there and sacrificed 1,000 burnt offerings.

Context of 1 Kings 3:4

2Meanwhile the people sacrificed at the high places, because there was no house built for the name of the Lord until those days. 3And Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of his father David, except that he sacrificed and burned incense at the high places. Now the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place: Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?” 6And Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.

1 Kings 3:4 word by word

וַיֵּ֨לֶךְ הַמֶּ֤לֶךְ גִּבְעֹ֙נָה֙ לִזְבֹּ֣חַ שָׁ֔ם כִּ֥י הִ֖יא הַבָּמָ֣ה הַגְּדוֹלָ֑ה אֶ֤לֶף עֹלוֹת֙ יַעֲלֶ֣ה שְׁלֹמֹ֔ה עַ֖ל הַמִּזְבֵּ֥חַ הַהֽוּא׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• wentיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
• to Gibeonגִּבְעוֹןgib‛ôn · GibeonH1391
• to sacrificeזָבַחzâbach · to sacrificeH2076
• there; for thatהוּאhû' hîy' · he/she/itH1931
• the greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
• high placeבָּמָהbâmâh · high placeH1116
• a thousandאֶ֫לֶף'eleph · thousandH505
• burnt offeringsעֹלָה‛ôlâh ‛ôlâh · burnt offeringH5930
• did Solomonשְׁלֹמֹהshelômôh · SolomonH8010
• offerעָלָה‛âlâh · to ascend: offer upH5927
• upon that altarמִזְבֵּחַmizbêach · altarH4196

Cross-references for 1 Kings 3:4

• 1 Kings 9:2that the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon.
• Joshua 9:3But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai,
• Joshua 10:2that they feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all its men were mighty.
• 1 Chronicles 16:39and Zadok the priest and his brethren the priests, before the tabernacle of the Lord at the high place that was at Gibeon,
• 1 Chronicles 21:29For the tabernacle of the Lord and the altar of the burnt offering, which Moses had made in the wilderness, were at that time at the high place in Gibeon.
• 2 Chronicles 1:3Then Solomon, and all the assembly with him, went to the high place that was at Gibeon; for the tabernacle of meeting with God was there, which Moses the servant of the Lord had made in the wilderness.
• 1 Kings 8:63And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered to the Lord, twenty-two thousand bulls and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the Lord.
• 2 Chronicles 1:6And Solomon went up there to the bronze altar before the Lord, which was at the tabernacle of meeting, and offered a thousand burnt offerings on it.
• 2 Chronicles 29:32And the number of the burnt offerings which the assembly brought was seventy bulls, one hundred rams, and two hundred lambs; all these were for a burnt offering to the Lord.
• 2 Chronicles 30:24For Hezekiah king of Judah gave to the assembly a thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep, and the leaders gave to the assembly a thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep; and a great number of priests sanctified themselves.
• Isaiah 40:16And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, Nor its beasts sufficient for a burnt offering.
• Matthew 6:6But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

Commentaries on 1 Kings 3:4

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Gibeon - The transfer to Gibeon of the “tabernacle of the congregation,” and the brass “altar of burnt offerings” made by Moses, which were removed there from Nob (compare 1 Samuel 21:6, with marginal references “i,” “k”), had made it “the great high-place,” more sacred, i. e., than any other in the holy land, unless it were Mount Zion where the ark had been conveyed by David. For the position of Gibeon, see Joshua 9:3 note. A thousand burnt offerings did…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4The city of Gibeon was six miles northwest of Jerusalem. Its altar was known as the great high place. It was a major worship site for large sacrifices. Gibeon also hosted the tabernacle (a sacred tent used for worship) (1 Chronicles 16:39–40; 21:29; 2 Chronicles 1:2–6).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there--The old tabernacle and the brazen altar which Moses had made in the wilderness were there (1Ch 16:39; 21:29; 2Ch 1:3-6). The royal progress was of public importance. It was a season of national devotion. The king was accompanied by his principal nobility (2Ch 1:2); and, as the occasion was most probably one of the great annual festivals which lasted seven days, the rank of the offerer and the succession of…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Kings 3:4

• Children
• Dream
• Gibeon
• High Places
• Prayer
• Solomon

In the dictionaries

• Gibeon
• Solomon
• High place
• Affinity
• Divide
• Yearn
• Abishag
• Altar
• Bamah
• Criticism

Commentaries on 1 Kings 3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings