Charles Ellicott Commentary 1 Kings 7:49

"and the candlesticks, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the oracle, of pure gold; and the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs, of gold;" — 1 Kings 7:49 (ASV)

The candlesticks of pure gold. — Whether these ten candlesticks were to supersede the one seven-lighted candlestick made for the Tabernacle (Exodus 25:31–40; Exodus 37:17–26), or were to be used in addition to it, we are not told. The latter supposition is, however, far more probable, both because it seems most unlikely that the old sacred candlestick should have been disused, and because in the second Temple only the one seven-lighted candlestick was provided, and (as the sculpture on the Arch of Titus shows) was carried in the Roman triumph after the destruction of the city. (In 2 Chronicles 4:8; 2 Chronicles 4:19, there is a mention of ten tables for shewbread, similarly ranged on each side of the Holy Place, probably in the same way, additional to the one proper table.)

Josephus, in his rhetorical exaggeration, declares that Solomon made ten thousand candlesticks and ten thousand tables; but he distinguishes the one proper candlestick and table from the rest. The candlestick is elaborately described in the history of the construction of the Tabernacle, as of great costliness of material and workmanship. Placed in the Holy Place, opposite to the table of shewbread, and fed carefully with the sacred oil, it appears to have symbolized the gift of light to the world, as the shewbread the gift of life and sustenance, flowing from the presence of God.

The flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs are the parts of the candlestick (Exodus 25:37–38); the flowers being the ornaments of the stem and branches, the lamps being the seven lights, and the tongs being used for trimming.

The various articles here mentioned are also enumerated in the description of the furniture of the Tabernacle, Exodus 25:29–38.

The snuffers. — The word is derived from a root signifying “to prune,” and is used for pruning knives in Isaiah 2:4 and Micah 4:3. Some accordingly render it here by “knives,” but the common rendering “snuffers” suits the derivation well enough.

The spoons. — The name signifies simply “something hollow;” and in Numbers 7:86 the spoons are said to have been full of incense, and to have “weighed ten shekels apiece.” The right meaning is probably “incense pans.”

The censers. — This rendering is clearly erroneous. It should be snuff-dishes, or ash-pans, as in Exodus 25:38.