SOLOMON, 149
religion, and that he begins the letter * with the words : " In the name of the Merciful God," Solomon built the Temple also by the help of the spirits, who even went on building after his death, while he remained sitting on his throne till a worm gnawed him. 2
Once when Solomon became arrogant he was driven from the kingdom, and a spirit reigned in his stead until he repented. 3 The Sanhedrin 4 gives the following brief account : " At first Solomon reigned even over the exalted ones, as it is written : 5 Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord; but afterwards only over his own stick, as it is written : 6 What profit hath man of all his labour ? and further/ this was my portion from all my labour." 8 When he repented, he gave up his useless extravagances, and had his horses disabled, 9 to which the following passage alludes : 10 " It is wisely ordained that the reasons for the commandments are not given; they were given in two
'^ " Sura XXVII. SO.
2 Sura XXXIV. 13. Cf . on this point Gittin, 68.
3 Sura XXXVIII. 83-5. 4 Sanhedrin, 20.
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5 1 Chronicles, xxix. 23. 6 Ecolesiastes, i. 3.
7 Bcclesiastes, ii. 10.
8 Of. also Midr. Rabba on Numbers, par. H ; on Canticles, iii. 4 ; and on Ruth, ii. 14.
9 Sura XXXVIII. 29-32. 10 Sanhedrin, 21.
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