1 Kings 4
4
Solomon's officials
1-6Here is a list of Solomon's highest officials while he was king of Israel:
Azariah son of Zadok was the priest;
Elihoreph and Ahijah sons of Shisha were the secretaries;
Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud kept the government records;
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was the army commander;
Zadok and Abiathar were priests;
Azariah son of Nathan was in charge of the regional officers;
Zabud son of Nathan was a priest and the king's adviser;
Ahishar was the prime minister;
Adoniram son of Abda was in charge of the forced labour.
7Solomon chose twelve regional officers, who took turns bringing food for him and his household. Each officer provided food from his region for one month of the year. 8These were the twelve officers:
The son of Hur was in charge of the hill country of Ephraim.
9The son of Deker was in charge of the towns of Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-Shemesh, and Elon-Beth-Hanan.
10The son of Hesed was in charge of the towns of Arubboth and Socoh, and the region of Hepher.
11The son of Abinadab was in charge of Naphath-Dor and was married to Solomon's daughter Taphath.
12Baana son of Ahilud was in charge of the towns of Taanach and Megiddo. He was also in charge of the whole region of Beth-Shan near the town of Zarethan, south of Jezreel from Beth-Shan to Abel-Meholah to the other side of Jokmeam.
13The son of Geber was in charge of the town of Ramoth in Gilead and the villages in Gilead belonging to the family of Jair, a descendant of Manasseh. He was also in charge of the region of Argob in Bashan, which had sixty walled towns with bronze bars on their gates.
14Ahinadab son of Iddo was in charge of the territory of Mahanaim.
15Ahimaaz was in charge of the territory of Naphtali and was married to Solomon's daughter Basemath.
16Baana son of Hushai was in charge of the territory of Asher and the town of Bealoth.
17Jehoshaphat son of Paruah was in charge of the territory of Issachar.
18Shimei son of Ela was in charge of the territory of Benjamin.
19Geber son of Uri was in charge of Gilead, where King Sihon of the Amorites and King Og of Bashan had lived.
And one officer was in charge of the territory of Judah.#4.19 of Judah: One ancient translation; these words are not in the Hebrew text.
The size of Solomon's kingdom
20There were so many people living in Judah and Israel while Solomon was king that they seemed like grains of sand on a beach. Everyone had enough to eat and drink, and they were happy.
21Solomon ruled every kingdom between the River Euphrates and the land of the Philistines down to Egypt. These kingdoms paid him taxes as long as he lived.#Gn 15.18; 2 Ch 9.26.
22Every day, Solomon needed five thousand litres of fine flour, ten thousand litres of coarsely-ground flour, 23ten grain-fed cattle, twenty pasture-fed cattle, one hundred sheep, as well as deer, gazelles, and geese.
24Solomon ruled the whole region west of the River Euphrates, from Tiphsah to Gaza, and he was at peace with all the countries around him. 25Everyone living in Israel, from the town of Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south, was safe as long as Solomon lived. Each family sat undisturbed beneath its own grapevines and fig trees.
26Solomon had forty thousand stalls of chariot horses and twelve thousand chariot soldiers.#1 K 10.26; 2 Ch 1.14; 9.25.
27Each of the twelve regional officers brought food to Solomon and his household for one month of the year. They provided everything he needed, 28as well as barley and straw for the horses.
Solomon's wisdom
29Solomon was brilliant. God had blessed him with insight and understanding. 30-31He was wiser than anyone else in the world, including the wisest people of the east and of Egypt. He was even wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Mahol's three sons, Heman, Calcol, and Darda. Solomon became famous in every country around Judah and Israel.#Ps 89 Title. 32Solomon wrote three thousand wise sayings and composed more than a thousand songs.#Pr 1.1; 10.1; 25.1; Sgs 1.1. 33He could talk about all kinds of plants, from large trees to small bushes, and he taught about animals, birds, reptiles, and fish. 34Kings all over the world heard about Solomon's wisdom and sent people to listen to him teach.
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© British and Foreign Bible Society 2012
1 Kings 4
4
Solomon’s Administration
(2 Chronicles 9:26)
1When King Solomon was the king of all Israel, 2these were his officials:
Azariah, son of Zadok, was the ⌞chief⌟ priest.
3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, were scribes.
Jehoshaphat, son of Ahilud, was the royal historian.
4 Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, was commander of the army.
Zadok and Abiathar were priests.
5 Azariah, son of Nathan, was in charge of the district governors.
Zabud, son of Nathan, was the king’s adviser.
6 Ahishar was in charge of the palace.
Adoniram, son of Abda, was in charge of forced labor.
7Solomon appointed 12 district governors in Israel. They were to provide food for the king and his palace. Each one had to supply food for one month every year. 8Their names were
Benhur, who was in charge of the hills of Ephraim,
9 Bendeker, who was in charge of Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh, and Elon Beth Hanan, and
10 Benhesed, who was in charge of Arubboth, Socoh, and the entire region of Hepher.
11 Benabinadab had the entire region of Dor.
(Solomon’s daughter Taphath was his wife.)
12 Baana, son of Ahilud, had Taanach, Megiddo, and all of Beth Shean.
(This was near Zarethan, below Jezreel, from Beth Shean to Abel Meholah and over to Jokmeam.)
13 Bengeber was in charge of Ramoth Gilead; he had the settlements of Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, in Gilead.
He ⌞also⌟ had the territory of Argob in Bashan, 60 large cities with walls and bronze bars across their gates.
14 Ahinadab, son of Iddo, was in charge of Mahanaim.
15 Ahimaaz was in charge of Naphtali.
(He also married Solomon’s daughter Basemath.)
16 Baana, son of Hushai, was in charge of Asher and Aloth.
17 Jehoshaphat, son of Paruah, was in charge of Issachar.
18 Shimei, son of Ela, was in charge of Benjamin.
19 Geber, son of Uri, was in charge of Gilead, the territory of King Sihon the Amorite and King Og of Bashan. (There was only one governor in that territory.) #4:19 “There was … territory” Masoretic Text; Greek “There was also one governor in the territory of Judah.”
20The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They ate and drank and lived happily.#4:20 1 Kings 4:21–34 in English Bibles is 1 Kings 5:1–14 in the Hebrew Bible.
21Solomon ruled all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River to the country of the Philistines and as far as the Egyptian border. These kingdoms paid taxes and were subject to Solomon as long as he lived.
22Solomon’s food supply for one day was 180 bushels of flour, 360 bushels of coarse flour, 2310 fattened cows, 20 cows from the pasture, and 100 sheep in addition to deer, gazelles, fallow deer, and fattened birds. 24He controlled all the territory west of the Euphrates River from Tiphsah to Gaza and all of its kings. So he lived in peace with all the neighboring countries. 25As long as Solomon lived, Judah and Israel (from Dan to Beersheba) lived securely, everyone under his own vine and fig tree.
26Solomon had stalls for 40,000 chariot horses. He also had 12,000 chariot soldiers.#4:26 Or “12,000 cavalry horses.” 27Each of the governors provided food for one month every year for King Solomon and all who ate at his table. The governors saw to it that nothing was in short supply. 28They brought their quota of barley and straw for the chariot horses to the proper places.
Solomon’s Wisdom
29God gave Solomon wisdom—keen insight and a mind as limitless as the sand on the seashore. 30Solomon’s wisdom was greater than that of all the eastern people and all the wisdom of the Egyptians. 31He was wiser than anyone, than Ethan the Ezrahite, or Heman, Calcol, or Darda, Mahol’s sons. His fame spread to all the nations around him.
32Solomon spoke 3,000 proverbs and wrote 1,005 songs. 33He described and classified trees—from the cedar in Lebanon to the hyssop growing out of the wall. He described and classified animals, birds, reptiles, and fish. 34People came from every nation to hear his wisdom; they came from all the kings of the earth who had heard about his wisdom.
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