24 After Pharaoh’s daughter had come up from the City of David to the palace Solomon had built for her, he constructed the terraces. (NIV)
The King James Version and NASB (New American Standard Bible) do not translate the last word of this verse but just present the Hebrew word: the Millo. This was a construction project Solomon undertook later in his reign, “after Pharaoh’s daughter had come up…to the palace Solomon had built for her.”
What was the millo? Although there is a little bit of disagreement about it among some scholars, it seems best to take it as the NIV does, as a terrace or set of terraces in the landscaping of Jerusalem. This understanding is based on the language of the text. The word millo is similar to the Akkadian term mulu, which refers to earthworks or steeply sloped landscaping, often with a defensive military purpose. The ancient Jewish Targum (commentary in Aramaic) on this passage agrees with this explanation.
To understand what this was, think of Jerusalem in Solomon’s time as being two hills: the lower southern hill with the City of David, and the upper northern hill with the new temple structure. The fairly deep valley between the two hills evidently didn’t interfere too much with construction (there was a way around it to the west), but with the steady growth of the city a smooth transition between the hills was desirable. Archaeologists have discovered (actually, anyone visiting central Jerusalem today can see it) that the millo was made by filling in the valley with stones, foundation blocks, and so forth.
It wasn’t just made by tossing rocks into a pit; it was engineered to last, and it’s still there today on the east bank of the hill forming the slope up to the temple mount. The Hebrew verb for what Solomon did is banah, “he built.” This is a word used to describe the construction of things like forts, towers (2 Chronicles 26:9), gates (2 Chronicles 14:7), walled cities (Genesis 4:17) and other complex structures (like siege ramps, 2 Samuel 20:15). David had evidently worked on it when he first took the city (2 Samuel 5:9), but Solomon completed the project.
Solomon has such a passion for engineering and construction that he “built” this slope in central Jerusalem rather than just toss rocks in until it seemed smooth. He was a man who gave careful thought to almost everything he did.
When Isaiah prophesied the coming of Christ, he told mankind to “Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. Every valley shall be filled in…” (Luke 3:4-5, quoting Isaiah 40:3-5). Isaiah took what Solomon did, the careful filling of a valley, and applied it to repentance. Do we fill in the holes in our lives and sand down the rough spots as we make our lives ready for the Savior of the world? Now that he’s already here in the world and here in our hearts, do we let our lives get cluttered all over again? Shouldn’t we keep preparing and tidying up all the time? New rough spots—new sins—show up all the time. That doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t keep on repenting. We need to keep turning back to our Savior, letting his law and gospel work in our hearts, and letting his Holy Spirit drive us forward to lives that show our faith and our devotion to him with our good works. After all, the palace Christ has prepared for his bride is far more lavish and fabulous than the palace Solomon built for the daughter of Pharaoh. And it’s waiting for us even now.
Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in New Ulm, Minnesota. His wife, Kathryn, attended Chapel from 1987-1990 while studying Secondary Education (Theater and Math) at UW-Madison. Kathryn’s father, John Meyer, was also the first man to serve as a Vicar at Chapel.
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