1 Kings 4
4
Solomon's Officials
1Solomon was king of all Israel, 2and these were his high officials:
The priest: Azariah son of Zadok
3The court secretaries: Elihoreph and Ahijah, sons of Shisha
In charge of the records: Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud
4Commander of the army: Benaiah son of Jehoiada
Priests: Zadok and Abiathar
5Chief of the district governors: Azariah son of Nathan
Royal adviser: the priest Zabud son of Nathan
6In charge of the palace servants: Ahishar
In charge of the forced labour: Adoniram son of Abda.
7Solomon appointed twelve men as district governors in Israel. They were to provide food from their districts for the king and his household, each man being responsible for one month out of the year. 8The following are the names of these twelve officers and the districts they were in charge of:
Benhur: the hill country of Ephraim
9Bendeker: the cities of Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh, Elon, and Beth Hanan
10Benhesed: the cities of Arubboth and Socoh and all the territory of Hepher
11Benabinadab, who was married to Solomon's daughter Taphath: the whole region of Dor
12Baana son of Ahilud: the cities of Taanach, Megiddo, and all the region near Beth Shan, near the town of Zarethan, south of the town of Jezreel, as far as the city of Abel Meholah and the city of Jokmeam
13Bengeber: the city of Ramoth in Gilead, and the villages in Gilead belonging to the clan of Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, and the region of Argob in Bashan, sixty large towns in all, fortified with walls and with bronze bars on the gates
14Ahinadab son of Iddo: the district of Mahanaim
15Ahimaaz, who was married to Basemath, another of Solomon's daughters: the territory of Naphtali
16Baana son of Hushai: the region of Asher and the town of Bealoth
17Jehoshaphat son of Paruah: the territory of Issachar
18Shimei son of Ela: the territory of Benjamin
19Geber son of Uri: the region of Gilead, which had been ruled by King Sihon of the Amorites and King Og of Bashan.
Besides these twelve, there was one governor over the whole land.
Solomon's Prosperous Reign
20The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashore; they ate and drank, and were happy. 21#Gen 15.18; 2 Chr 9.26Solomon's kingdom included all the nations from the River Euphrates to Philistia and the Egyptian border. They paid him taxes and were subject to him all his life.
22The supplies Solomon needed each day were 5,000 litres of fine flour and 10,000 litres of meal; 23ten stall-fed cattle, twenty pasture-fed cattle, and a hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and poultry.
24Solomon ruled over all the land west of the River Euphrates, from Tiphsah on the Euphrates as far west as the city of Gaza. All the kings west of the Euphrates were subject to him, and he was at peace with all the neighbouring countries. 25As long as he lived, the people throughout Judah and Israel lived in safety, each family with its own grapevines and fig trees.
26 #
1 Kgs 10.26; 2 Chr 1.14; 9.25 Solomon had 40,000 stalls for his chariot horses and 12,000 cavalry horses. 27His twelve governors, each one in the month assigned to him, supplied the food King Solomon needed for himself and for all who ate in the palace; they always supplied everything needed. 28Each governor also supplied his share of barley and straw, where it was needed,#4.28 where it was needed; or wherever King Solomon was. for the chariot horses and the draught animals.
29God gave Solomon unusual wisdom and insight, and knowledge too great to be measured. 30Solomon was wiser than the wise men of the East or the wise men of Egypt. 31#Ps 89 (Title)He was the wisest of all men: wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol, and his fame spread throughout all the neighbouring countries. 32#Prov 1.1; 10.1; 25.1; Song 1.1He composed 3,000 proverbs and more than a thousand songs. 33He spoke of trees and plants, from the Lebanon cedars to the hyssop that grows on walls; he talked about animals, birds, reptiles, and fish. 34Kings all over the world heard of his wisdom and sent people to listen to him.
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.
1 Kings 4
4
1 King Solomon was king over all Israel. 2These were the princes whom he had: Azariah the son of Zadok, the priest; 3Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the recorder; 4Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the army; Zadok and Abiathar were priests; 5Azariah the son of Nathan was over the officers; Zabud the son of Nathan was chief minister, the king’s friend; 6Ahishar was over the household; and Adoniram the son of Abda was over the men subject to forced labor.
7 Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his household. Each man had to make provision for a month in the year. 8These are their names: Ben Hur, in the hill country of Ephraim; 9Ben Deker, in Makaz, in Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh, and Elon Beth Hanan; 10Ben Hesed, in Arubboth (Socoh and all the land of Hepher belonged to him); 11Ben Abinadab, in all the height of Dor (he had Taphath, Solomon’s daughter, as wife); 12Baana the son of Ahilud, in Taanach and Megiddo, and all Beth Shean which is beside Zarethan, beneath Jezreel, from Beth Shean to Abel Meholah, as far as beyond Jokmeam; 13Ben Geber, in Ramoth Gilead (the towns of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead, belonged to him; and the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty great cities with walls and bronze bars, belonged to him); 14Ahinadab the son of Iddo, in Mahanaim; 15Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he also took Basemath the daughter of Solomon as wife); 16Baana the son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth; 17Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar; 18Shimei the son of Ela, in Benjamin; 19Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan; and he was the only officer who was in the land.
20 Judah and Israel were numerous as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and making merry. 21Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the River to the land of the Philistines, and to the border of Egypt. They brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life. 22Solomon’s provision for one day was thirty cors#4:22 1 cor is the same as a homer, or about 55.9 U. S. gallons (liquid) or 211 liters or 6 bushels of fine flour, sixty measures of meal, 23ten head of fat cattle, twenty head of cattle out of the pastures, and one hundred sheep, in addition to deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fattened fowl. 24For he had dominion over all on this side the River, from Tiphsah even to Gaza, over all the kings on this side the River; and he had peace on all sides around him. 25Judah and Israel lived safely, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan even to Beersheba, all the days of Solomon. 26Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. 27Those officers provided food for King Solomon, and for all who came to King Solomon’s table, every man in his month. They let nothing be lacking. 28They also brought barley and straw for the horses and swift steeds to the place where the officers were, each man according to his duty. 29God gave Solomon abundant wisdom, understanding, and breadth of mind like the sand that is on the seashore. 30Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt. 31For he was wiser than all men—wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the nations all around. 32He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs numbered one thousand five. 33He spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon even to the hyssop that grows out of the wall; he also spoke of animals, of birds, of creeping things, and of fish. 34People of all nations came to hear the wisdom of Solomon, sent by all kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom.
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