1 Kings 10
10
Queen of Sheba
1When the queen of Sheba heard reports about Solomon, due to the LORD’s name,#10.1 Heb uncertain she came to test him with riddles. 2Accompanying her to Jerusalem was a huge entourage with camels carrying spices, a large amount of gold, and precious stones. After she arrived, she told Solomon everything that was on her mind. 3Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too difficult for him to answer. 4When the queen of Sheba saw how wise Solomon was, the palace he had built, 5the food on his table, the servants’ quarters, the function and dress of his attendants, his cupbearers, and the entirely burned offerings that he offered at the LORD’s temple, it took her breath away.
6“The report I heard about your deeds and wisdom when I was still at home is true,” she said to the king. 7“I didn’t believe it until I came and saw it with my own eyes. In fact, the half of it wasn’t even told to me! You have far more wisdom and wealth than I was told. 8Your people and these servants who continually serve you and get to listen to your wisdom are truly happy! 9Bless the LORD your God because he was pleased to place you on Israel’s throne. Because the LORD loved Israel with an eternal love, the LORD made you king to uphold justice and righteousness.”
10The queen gave the king one hundred twenty kikkars of gold, a great quantity of spice, and precious stones. Never again has so much spice come to Israel as when the queen of Sheba gave this gift to King Solomon. 11Hiram’s fleet went to Ophir and brought back gold, much almug wood, and precious stones. 12The king used the almug wood to make parapets for the LORD’s temple and for the royal palace as well as lyres and harps for the musicians. To this day, that much almug wood hasn’t come into or been seen in Israel. 13King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she wanted and all that she had asked for, in addition to what he had already given her from his own personal funds. Then she and her servants returned to her homeland.
Solomon’s wealth
14Solomon received an annual income of six hundred sixty-six kikkars of gold, 15not including income from the traders, the merchants and their profits, all the Arabian kings, and the officials of the land. 16King Solomon made two hundred body-sized shields of hammered gold, using fifteen pounds#10.16 Or six hundred (shekels) of gold in each shield, 17and three hundred small shields of hammered gold, using sixty ounces#10.17 three manehs of gold in each shield. The king placed these in the Forest of Lebanon Palace.
18The king also made a large ivory throne and covered it with pure gold. 19Six steps led up to the throne, and the back of the throne was rounded at the top. Two lions stood beside the armrests on both sides of the throne. 20Another twelve lions stood on both sides of the six steps. No other kingdom had anything like this. 21All of King Solomon’s drinking cups were made of gold, and all the items in the Forest of Lebanon Palace were made of pure gold, not silver, since even silver wasn’t considered good enough in Solomon’s time! 22The royal fleet of Tarshish-style ships was at sea with Hiram’s fleet, returning once every three years with gold, silver, ivory, monkeys, and peacocks.#10.22 Heb uncertain
23King Solomon far exceeded all the earth’s kings in wealth and wisdom, 24and so the whole earth wanted an audience with Solomon in order to hear his God-given wisdom. 25Year after year they came with tribute: objects of silver and gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.
26Solomon acquired more and more chariots and horses until he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses that he kept in chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. 27In Jerusalem, the king made silver as common as stones and cedar as plentiful as sycamore trees that grow in the foothills. 28Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and Kue, purchased from Kue by the king’s agents at the going price. 29They would import a chariot from Egypt for six hundred pieces of silver and a horse for one hundred fifty, and then export them to all the Hittite and Aramean kings.
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1 Kings 10: CEB
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2011 Common English Bible. All rights reserved.
1 Kings 10
10
The Visit of the Queen of Sheba
(2 Chr 9.1–12)
1 #
Mt 12.42; Lk 11.31 The queen of Sheba heard of Solomon's fame,#10.1 Probable text (see 2 Chr 9.1) Solomon's fame; Hebrew Solomon's fame concerning the name of the LORD. and she travelled to Jerusalem to test him with difficult questions. 2She brought with her a large group of attendants, as well as camels loaded with spices, jewels, and a large amount of gold. When she and Solomon met, she asked him all the questions that she could think of. 3He answered them all; there was nothing too difficult for him to explain. 4The queen of Sheba heard Solomon's wisdom and saw the palace he had built. 5She saw the food that was served at his table, the living quarters for his officials, the organization of his palace staff and the uniforms they wore, the servants who waited on him at feasts, and the sacrifices he offered in the Temple. It left her breathless and amazed. 6She said to King Solomon, “What I heard in my own country about you#10.6 you; or your deeds. and your wisdom is true! 7But I couldn't believe it until I had come and seen it all for myself. But I didn't hear even half of it; your wisdom and wealth are much greater than what I was told. 8How fortunate are your wives!#10.8 Some ancient translations wives; Hebrew men. And how fortunate your servants, who are always in your presence and are privileged to hear your wise sayings! 9Praise the LORD your God! He has shown how pleased he is with you by making you king of Israel. Because his love for Israel is eternal, he has made you their king so that you can maintain law and justice.”
10She presented to King Solomon the gifts she had brought: more than four tonnes of gold and a very large amount of spices and jewels. The amount of spices she gave him was by far the greatest that he ever received at any time.
11(Hiram's fleet, which had brought gold from Ophir, also brought from there a large amount of juniper wood and jewels. 12Solomon used the wood to build railings in the Temple and the palace, and also to make harps and lyres for the musicians. It was the finest juniper wood ever imported into Israel; none like it has ever been seen again.)
13King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she asked for, besides all the other customary gifts that he had generously given her. Then she and her attendants returned to the land of Sheba.
King Solomon's Wealth
(2 Chr 9.13–28)
14Every year King Solomon received almost 23 tonnes of gold 15in addition to the taxes#10.15 Some ancient translations taxes; Hebrew men. paid by merchants, the profits from trade, and tribute paid by the Arabian kings and the governors of the Israelite districts.
16Solomon made 200 large shields, and had each one overlaid with almost seven kilogrammes of gold. 17He also made 300 smaller shields, overlaying each one of them with almost two kilogrammes of gold. He had all these shields placed in the Hall of the Forest of Lebanon.#10.17 Hall of the Forest of Lebanon: See 7.2–3.
18He also had a large throne made. Part of it was covered with ivory and the rest of it was covered with the finest gold. 19-20The throne had six steps leading up to it, with the figure of a lion at each end of every step, a total of twelve lions. At the back of the throne was the figure of a bull's head, and beside each of the two arms was the figure of a lion. No throne like this had ever existed in any other kingdom.
21All of Solomon's drinking cups were made of gold, and all the utensils in the Hall of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. No silver was used, since it was not considered valuable in Solomon's day. 22He had a fleet of ocean-going ships sailing with Hiram's fleet. Every three years his fleet would return, bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and monkeys.
23King Solomon was richer and wiser than any other king, 24and the whole world wanted to come and listen to the wisdom that God had given him. 25Everyone who came brought him a gift — articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons, spices, horses, and mules. This continued year after year.
26 #
1 Kgs 4.26
Solomon built up a force of 1,400 chariots and 12,000 cavalry horses. Some of them he kept in Jerusalem and the rest he stationed in various other cities. 27During his reign silver was as common in Jerusalem as stone, and cedar was as plentiful as ordinary sycomore in the foothills of Judah. 28#Deut 17.16The king's agents controlled the export of horses from Musri#10.28 Probable text Musri; Hebrew Egypt. and Cilicia,#10.28 Musri and Cilicia: Two ancient countries in what is now south-east Turkey, which were centres of horse breeding in Solomon's time. 29and the export of chariots from Egypt. They supplied the Hittite and Syrian kings with horses and chariots, selling chariots for 600 pieces of silver each and horses for 150 each.
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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.