2 Chronicles 2:13 - Exposition

Of Huram my father's . The words of 2 Chronicles 4:11 , 2 Chronicles 4:16 would invest these with suspicion, if nothing that occurred before did, as e.g. the parallel passage ( 1 Kings 7:13 , 1 Kings 7:14 , 1 Kings 7:40 ). There can be no doubt from these passages that the name Huram of this verse is the name of the workman sent (the lamed prefixed being only the objective sign), not the supposed name of King Hiram's father, which, as already seen, was Abibaal. But the following word translated "my father" ( אָבִי ) is less easily explained; 2 Chronicles 4:16 (" his father") is quite sufficient to negative the rendering" father" altogether. In our text altogether inappropriate, it may be called there altogether impossible. It has been proposed to render it as a proper name Abi, or as an affix of honour, Ab, equal to "master." However, Gesenius (in ' Lexicon, ' sub roe. אב (6), which see) furnishes a signification, "chief counsellor,'' which (taking it to mean chief counsellor, or as it were expert, chief referee, or even only foreman in such matters as might be in question) would well suit all the passages, and remove all difficulty.