1 Kings 4:31

31 For he was wiser than all men--than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the surrounding nations.

1 Kings 4:31 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 4:31

For he was wiser than all men
Not only that lived in his time, but in ages past since the fall of Adam, and in times to come, especially in natural wisdom and knowledge, in all the branches of it; for though some men excel in some part of knowledge, yet not in all, as Solomon did:

than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of
Mahol;
men of the same names are said to be sons of Zerah, grandson of Judah, ( 1 Chronicles 2:6 ) ; wherefore these are either other men, or their father had two names; or Mahol here may be an appellative, and describe the character of these then, and point at what they were famous for, as that they were sons of music, piping, and dancing, as Mahol may signify; the Jews have a tradition ^F15, that Ethan is Abraham, and Heman Moses, and Chalcol Joseph:

and his fame was in all nations round about;
not for his riches and grandeur only, but chiefly for his wisdom.

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FOOTNOTES:

F15 Hieron. Trad. Heb. in 2 Reg. fol. 80. 1.

1 Kings 4:31 In-Context

29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore.

30 Thus Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the men of the East and all the wisdom of Egypt.

31 For he was wiser than all men--than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the surrounding nations.

32 He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs were one thousand and five.

33 Also he spoke of trees, from the cedar tree of Lebanon even to the hyssop that springs out of the wall; he spoke also of animals, of birds, of creeping things, and of fish.