John Gill Commentary 1 Chronicles 29:4

"even three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, wherewith to overlay the walls of the houses;" — 1 Chronicles 29:4 (ASV)

Even three thousand talents of gold
Which, according to Scheuchzer ^F3 , amount to 36,660,000 ducats of gold; and, according to Brerewood ^F4 , to 13,500,000 pounds of our money:

of the gold of Ophir ;
which was reckoned the best gold; not Ophir in India, which was not known till Solomon's time, but in Arabia, as Bochart ^F5 has shown; so Eupolemus ^F6 , an Heathen writer, says, that David having built ships at Achan, a city of Arabia, sent miners to Urphe (supposed to be the same with Ophir) in the island of the Red sea,(See Gill on :)

and that he was able to give so great a sum out of his own substance, Dr. Prideaux ^F7 thinks, can only be accounted for by his great returns from this traffic; since these 3000 talents, according to him, amounted to 21,600,000 pounds sterling:

and seven thousand talents of refined silver ;
amounting, according to Scheuchzer ^F8 , to 31,500,000 imperials, or rix dollars; and, according to Brerewood ^F9 , to 2,625,000 pounds of our money:

to overlay the walls of the houses withal ;
the gold was to overlay the walls of the holy and most holy place, the silver to overlay the walls of the chambers built around the temple.

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FOOTNOTES:

• F3: Physica Sacra, vol. 4. p. 631.
• F4: De Ponder. & Pret. Vet. Num. c. 5.
• F5: Phaleg. l. 2. c. 27. col. 140.
• F6: Apud Euseb. Evangel. Praepar. l. 9. c. 30. p. 447.
• F7: Connection, par. 1. p. 5, 6.
• F8: Ut supra. (Physica Sacra, vol. 4. p. 631.)
• F9: Ut supra. (De Ponder. & Pret. Vet. Num. c. 5.)