SEV Biblia, Chapter 9:28
los cuales fueron a Ofir, y tomaron de allí oro, cuatrocientos veinte talentos, y lo trajeron al rey Salomón.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 9:28
Verse 28. And they came to Ophir] No man knows certainly, to this day, where this Ophir was situated. There were two places of this name; one somewhere in India, beyond the Ganges, and another in Arabia, near the country of the Sabaeans, mentioned by Job, Job xxii. 24: Then shalt thou lay up gold as dust; and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the brooks. And Job xxviii. 16: It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire. Calmet places this country at the sources of the Euphrates and Tigris. But there are several reasons to prove that this was not the Ophir of the Bible, which it seems was so situated as to require a voyage of three years long to go out, load, and return. Mr. Bruce has discussed this subject at great length; see his Travels, vol. ii., chap. iv., p. 354, &c. He endeavours to prove that Ezion-geber is situated on the Elanitic branch of the Arabian Gulf or Red Sea. 2. That Tharshish is Moka, near to Melinda, in the Indian Ocean, in about three degrees south latitude. 3. That Ophir lies somewhere in the land of Sofala, or in the vicinity of the Zimbeze river, opposite the island of Madagascar, where there have been gold and silver mines in great abundance from the remotest antiquity. And he proves, 4. That no vessel could perform this voyage in less than THREE years, because of the monsoons; that more time need not be employed, and that this is the precise time mentioned in chap. x. 22. 5. That this is the country of the queen of Sheba, or Sabia, or Azeba, who on her visit to Solomon, brought him one hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices and precious stones great store, chap. x. 10. And that gold, ivory, silver, &c., are the natural productions of this country. To illustrate and prove his positions he has given a map on a large scale, "showing the track of Solomon's fleet in their three years' voyage from the Elanitic Gulf to Ophir and Tharshish;" to which, and his description, I must refer the reader.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 28. And they came to Ophir , etc.] About which place there are various opinions; some take it to be the little island of Zocatora, on the eastern coast of Africa, at a small distance from the straits of Babelmandel; others the island of Ceylon; others Sofala in Africa; some Peru in America; Vatablus the island of Hispaniola in the West Indies, discovered by Columbus, and who thought himself that he had found the land of Ophir, because of the quantity of gold in it; others the southern part of Arabia; but the most reasonable opinion is, says my author f192 , that it is a rich country in Malacca, which is a peninsula in the true Red sea (that part of the ocean which divides Asia from Africa), known by the name of the “golden Chersonese”, and which agrees with Josephus f193 ; and at twelve leagues from Malacca there is a very high mountain, which by the natives is called Ophir, and is reported to be, or to have been, very rich in gold, though at present only some tin mines are worked there; and Kircher f194 says the word Ophir is a Coptic or Egyptian word, by which the ancient Egyptians used to call that India which contains the kingdoms of Malabar, Zeilan, the golden Chersonese, and, the islands belonging to it, Sumatra, Molucca, Java, and other neighbouring golden islands. So Varrerius f195 thinks that all that coast in which are contained Pegu, Malaca, and Somatra, is Ophir; which places, besides gold, abound with elephants, apes, and parrots. In the island of Sumatra gold is now found, especially in Achin, in great plenty; in which is a mountain, called the “golden mountain”, near the mines Reland takes Ophir to be the country round about a city called Oupara or Suphara, in the East Indies, where now stands Goa, the most famous mart in all India at this day for many of those things Solomon traded thither for. Though after all perhaps there was no such place originally as Ophir in India; only the gold brought from thence was like that of Ophir in Arabia, and therefore they called the place so from whence it was had; (see Job 22:24) and fetched from thence gold four hundred and twenty talents , and brought it to King Solomon; which according to Brerewood amounted to 1,890,000 pounds of our money; and according to another writer f199 5,132,400 ducats of gold. Abarbinel says a talent of gold was equal to 12,300 Venetian ducats; in ( 2 Chronicles 8:18) it is said, that four hundred and fifty talents of gold were brought to Solomon; perhaps thirty might be expended in the voyage, or paid to Hiram’s servants for their wages, as some Jewish writers observe; or in the bulk or ore it might be four hundred and fifty talents, but when purified only four hundred and twenty, as Grotius remarks; either way removes the difficulty; though some think different voyages are respected here and there; of the gold of Ophir frequent mention is made in Scripture.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 15-28 - Here is a further account of Solomon's greatness. He began at the righ end, for he built God's house first, and finished that before he bega his own; then God blessed him, and he prospered in all his othe buildings. Let piety begin, and profit follow; leave pleasure to the last. Whatever pains we take for the glory of God, and to profi others, we are likely to have the advantage. Canaan, the holy land, the glory of all lands, had no gold in it; which shows that the bes produce is that which is for the present support of life, our own an others; such things did Canaan produce. Solomon got much by his merchandise, and yet has directed us to a better trade, within reach of the poorest. Wisdom is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold, Pr 3:14 __________________________________________________________________
Original Hebrew
ויבאו 935 אופירה 211 ויקחו 3947 משׁם 8033 זהב 2091 ארבע 702 מאות 3967 ועשׂרים 6242 ככר 3603 ויבאו 935 אל 413 המלך 4428 שׁלמה׃ 8010
