The cities that Huram had given to Solomon. But in the book of Kings the text says that Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the region of Galilee, and the only things it says Hiram gave to Solomon are cedar timber, cypress timber, and gold (1 Kgs 9:11)! It is possible to explain that Hiram gave cities in his land to Solomon, who settled Israelites in them in order to secure them, and that Solomon likewise gave cities in the Galilee to Hiram: all this was to secure the treaty between them. In Kings, then, it mentions what Solomon gave to Hiram, and in this book it mentions what Hiram gave to Solomon.

And [Solomon] marshaled his power against [Hamath-zobah]—until he conquered it.

These were King Solomon’s prefects—two hundred and fifty foremen over the people. But in the book of Kings it says “five hundred and fifty” (1 Kgs 9:23)! The [additional] three hundred were alien-converts, who were prefects over three thousand three hundred [others], as we have written above (2 Chr 2:1). These two hundred and fifty, however, were Israelites, who were prefects over those three hundred, who were [themselves] prefects over the rest. In the book of Kings, then, the text counts all the prefects together—Israelites and alien-converts—who numbered five hundred and fifty. But in this book it does not count the alien-convert prefects, only the Israelite ones. For in saying “three thousand six hundred” (2 Chr 2:1), it counts the alien-convert prefects among the rest of the alien-converts: because the workers numbered only three thousand three hundred as it says in the book of Kings (1 5:30), it emerges that the [additional] three hundred were the prefects.

In David’s house—in a collective sense. This means to say: in any of David’s houses.

For they are sacred. Even though the Ark was in only one of the houses, which was consecrated for it, [Solomon] nonetheless considered all the houses to be consecrated, because the Ark had entered the area. So he declared: [Pharaoh’s daughter] “may not dwell with me” from this day on, now that I have built her a house. This, in fact, is the reason he built her a house—so that she not dwell in the sacred area. But even so, she did dwell there for twenty years until the work on his house was completed.

The Ark of the Lord has entered (ba’ah) them. The text refers to the Ark in the feminine. The same is true for: “And the Ark of God nilqeḥah (=has been captured)” (1 Sam 4:17).

They did not depart miṣvat ha-melekh. This elides a prepositional mem: it means mi-miṣvat ha-melekh (=from the commandment of the king).

Musad the House of the Lord until its completion. This also elides a prepositional mem, so that it means mi-musad (=from the founding of). That is, from the day of its founding until its completion, all the work was well-executed.

At that time Solomon went to Ezion-geber and to Eloth. This refers to his conquest of these cities and his construction of a ship there, as the text says in the book of Kings (1 9:26).

Four hundred and fifty talents of gold. But in the book of Kings it says “four hundred and twenty” (1 Kgs 9:28)! It might be that they used the thirty [additional] talents of gold for travel expenses.