King Solomons Throne As soon as Achashverosh proclaimed himself King of Persia, he decided to use King Solomons throne, which had been captured from Jerusalem, as his own. King Solomons throne was the most wonderful throne that any king ever sat upon. It was fashioned of ivory and covered with gold. It was set with rubies, sapphires, emeralds and other precious stones that shone with the most brilliant, the most dazzling, the most fascinating hues and colors. Six steps led to the seat, and each step served to remind the king of one of the six special commandments that the kings of Israel were commanded to observe. On the first step a golden lion lay, facing a golden ox on the opposite side. On the second step a golden wolf faced a golden lamb. On the third step a golden tiger faced a golden camel; on the fourth a golden eagle faced a golden peacock; on the fifth a golden cat faced a golden rooster, and on the sixth a golden hawk faced a golden dove. Higher still, above the throne, a golden dove held a golden hawk in its beak. On the side, rising over the throne stood an exquisite menorah of pure gold decorated with golden cups, knobs, flowers, blossoms and petals. On each side of the Menorah seven branches turned upwards. On the branches of one side were engraved the names of the seven fathers of the world: Adam, Noah, Shem, Abraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov, with Iyov (Job) in the center. On the other seven branches of the Menorah the names of the most pious men were engraved: Levi, Kehot and Amram, Moshe and Aaron, Eldad and Medad, with Chur in the center. On each side of the throne there was a special golden chair, one for the High Priest, and one for the Segan (assistant High Priest), surrounded by seventy golden chairs for the seventy elders of the Sanhedrin (Supreme Court Judges). Twenty-four golden vines formed a huge canopy above the throne. When King Solomon stepped upon the throne, a mechanism was set in motion. As soon as he stepped upon the first step, the golden ox and the golden lion each stretched out one foot to support him and help him rise to the next step. On each side, the animals helped the King up until he was comfortably seated upon the throne. No sooner was he seated than a golden eagle brought the great crown and held it just above King Solomons brow, so that it should not weigh heavily on his head. Thereupon the golden dove flew over the Holy Ark and brought out a tiny scroll of the Torah and placed it in King Solomons lap, in accordance with the commandment of the Torah that the Torah shall always be with the king and should guide him in his reign over the Jewish People. The High Priest, the Segan and all the seventy elders would rise to greet the King, and would sit down to hear the cases brought for judgment. King Solomons throne was the talk of all the reigning kings and princes. They came to marvel at its wonders and admire its beauty. Many years later, when King Pharaoh-Necheh invaded the land of Yehudah, he carried away this wonderful throne, but when he set his foot on the first step, the golden lion gave him such a kick in the thigh that he toppled over and remained a cripple for life. That is why he was named Necheh, the lame one. Still later, when Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the Temple and subsequently conquered Egypt as well, he carried the throne away to Babylon. But when he tried to ascend it, the lion threw him over, and he did not venture to sit on it again. Later, King Darius of Persia conquered Babylon and carried the throne with him to Media. Now when Achashverosh tried to ascend the throne, he too got a kick in the pants and toppled down. Achashverosh did not try to sit on it again. Instead he sent for a team of great Egyptian engineers and ordered them to construct for him a throne similar to King Solomons. For nearly three years the great Egyptian masters worked on a throne for the King, and at last they completed it. On this occasion Achashverosh ordered a great feast.
Posted on: Tue, 04 Mar 2014 06:00:00 +0000
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