1 Kings 4
4
Solomon’s Officials
1King Solomon ruled over Israel, # 2Sm 5:5; 8:15 2and these were his officials: # 1Kg 12:6
Azariah son of Zadok, priest;
3Elihoreph and Ahijah the sons of Shisha, secretaries;
Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud, court historian;
4Benaiah son of Jehoiada, in charge of the army;
Zadok and Abiathar, priests;
5Azariah son of Nathan, in charge of the deputies;
Zabud son of Nathan, a priest and adviser to the king;
6Ahishar, in charge of the palace;
and Adoniram son of Abda, in charge of forced labor.
7Solomon had 12 deputies for all Israel. They provided food for the king and his household; each one made provision for one month out of the year. # 1Kg 4:27 8These were their names:
Ben-hur, in the hill country of Ephraim;
9Ben-deker, in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-shemesh, and Elon-beth-hanan;
10Ben-hesed, in Arubboth (he had Socoh and the whole land of Hepher);
11Ben-abinadab, in all Naphath-dor (Taphath daughter of Solomon was his wife);
12Baana son of Ahilud, in Taanach, Megiddo, and all Beth-shean which is beside Zarethan below Jezreel, from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, as far as the other side of Jokmeam;
13Ben-geber, in Ramoth-gilead (he had the villages of Jair son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead, and he had the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, 60 great cities with walls and bronze bars);
14Ahinadab son of Iddo, in Mahanaim;
15Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he also had married a daughter of Solomon — Basemath);
16Baana son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth;
17Jehoshaphat son of Paruah, in Issachar;
18Shimei son of Ela, in Benjamin;
19Geber son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan.
There was one deputy in the land of Judah. # LXX; MT omits of Judah
Solomon’s Provisions
20Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand by the sea; # Gn 22:17; 1Kg 3:8 they were eating, drinking, and rejoicing. 21 # 1Kg 5:1 in HbSolomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River to the land of the Philistines and as far as the border of Egypt. # Gn 15:18; 2Ch 9:26 They offered tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life. # 2Sm 8:2,6
22Solomon’s provisions for one day were 150 bushels # Lit 30 cors of fine flour and 300 bushels # Lit 60 cors of meal, 2310 fattened oxen, 20 range oxen, and 100 sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and pen-fed poultry, # Hb obscure # 1Kg 10:5; Neh 5:18 24for he had dominion over everything west of the Euphrates from Tiphsah to Gaza and over all the kings west of the Euphrates. He had peace on all his surrounding borders. 25Throughout Solomon’s reign, Judah and Israel lived in safety from Dan to Beer-sheba, # Jdg 20:1; 1Sm 3:20 each man under his own vine and his own fig tree. # Mc 4:3-4; Zch 3:10 26Solomon had 40,000 # 2Ch 9:25 reads 4,000 stalls stalls of horses for his chariots, and 12,000 horsemen. # Dt 17:16; 1Kg 10:26; 2Ch 1:14 27Each of those deputies for a month in turn provided food for King Solomon and for everyone who came to King Solomon’s table. They neglected nothing. 28Each man brought the barley and the straw for the chariot teams and the other horses # Est 8:10,14 to the required place according to his assignment. # Lit judgment
Solomon’s Wisdom and Literary Gifts
29God gave Solomon wisdom, very great insight, and understanding # 1Kg 3:12 as vast as the sand on the seashore. 30Solomon’s wisdom was greater than the wisdom of all the people of the East, # Gn 29:1 greater than all the wisdom of Egypt. # Is 19:11; Ac 7:22 31He was wiser than anyone # 1Kg 3:12 — wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, # 1Ch 15:19; Pss 88, 89 titles and Heman, Calcol, and Darda, sons of Mahol. # 1Ch 2:6 His reputation extended to all the surrounding nations. # 1Kg 10:1,6
32Solomon composed 3,000 proverbs, # Pr 1:1; Ec 9:12 and his songs numbered 1,005. # Sg 1:1 33He described trees, from the cedar in Lebanon to the hyssop growing out of the wall. He also taught about animals, birds, reptiles, and fish. 34People came from everywhere, sent by every king on earth who had heard of his wisdom, to listen to Solomon’s wisdom. # 1Kg 10:1,6
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1 Kings 4
4
Solomon’s Wisdom: Political Administration
1King Solomon was king over all Israel. 2Now these are the officials who were his: Azariah the son of Zadok was the priest. 3Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, were the secretaries; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was the recorder. 4Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the army, and Zadok and Abiathar were priests. 5Azariah the son of Nathan was over the governors, and Zabud the son of Nathan was a priest, an advisor to the king. 6Ahishar was over the palace, and Adoniram the son of Abda was over the forced labor. 7Solomon had twelve governors over all Israel, and they sustained the king and his palace, each one was to sustain for each month of the year.#Literally “a month in the year he was over one to sustain” 8These are their names: Ben-Hur was in the hill country of Ephraim. 9Ben-Deker was in Makaz and in Shaalbim and in Beth-Shemesh and Elon of Beth-Hanan. 10Ben-Hesed was in the Arubbot; Socoh and all the land of Hepher were his. 11Ben-Abinadab was in all of Naphat of Dor; Taphath the daughter of Solomon was his wife. 12Baanah the son of Ahilud was in Taanach and Megiddo and all Beth-Shean which is beside Zarethan below Jezreel, of Beth-Shean up to Abel-Meholah up to the other side of Jokmeam. 13Ben-Geber was in Ramoth-Gilead; the villages of Jair, the son of Manasseh which are in the Gilead were his, and the region of Argob which is in the Bashan, sixty great cities, with walls having crossbars of bronze, were his. 14Ahinadab the son of Iddo was in Mahanaim. 15Ahimaaz was in Naphtali; he moreover also had taken Basemath the daughter of Solomon as wife. 16Baanah the son of Hushai was in Asher and Bealoth. 17Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah was in Issachar. 18Shimei the son of Ela was in Benjamin. 19Geber the son of Uri was in the land of Gilead, the land of Sihon, the king of the Amorites, and of Og, the king of Bashan; one governor which was over the land. 20Judah and Israel were as many as the sand which is on the seashore in abundance, eating and drinking and rejoicing!
Solomon’s Wisdom: Prosperity
21#1 Kings 4:21–5:18 in the English Bible is 5:1–32 in the Hebrew Bible Now Solomon was ruling over all the kingdoms from the River#That is, the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, and up to the border of Egypt, who were bringing tribute and were serving Solomon all the days of his life. 22The food of Solomon for one day was thirty dry measures of choice meal and sixty dry measures of flour; 23ten stall-fed oxen and twenty pasture-fed oxen and a hundred sheep, besides deer and buck gazelles and roebucks and well-fed fowls. 24For he was ruling over all the west of the River#That is, the Euphrates from Tiphsah up to Gaza, over all the kings west of the River;#That is, the Euphrates and he had peace from every side all around. 25Judah and Israel lived in security, each man under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan as far as Beersheba, all the days of Solomon.
26Now Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his war chariots and twelve thousand horsemen. 27These governors sustained King Solomon and all who came near to the table of King Solomon, each in his month; they did not omit anything. 28The barley and the straw for the horses and for packhorses they brought to the place where they were, each according to his share.
Solomon’s Wisdom: Literature, Zoology, Biology, Dendrology
29God gave wisdom to Solomon and very great discernment, as well as breadth of understanding,#Literally “width of heart” as the sand which is on the edge of the seashore. 30The wisdom of Solomon was greater than the wisdom of all the people#Or “sons/children” of the east and more than all the wisdom of Egypt. 31He was wiser than all the men: Ethan the Ezrahite; Heman, Calcol, and Darda the children of Mahol; and he was very well known.#Literally “his name was among all the peoples around” 32He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs were one thousand and five. 33He spoke concerning the trees, from the cedar which is in Lebanon up to the hyssop which grows on the wall; he also spoke concerning the animals, concerning the birds, concerning the creeping things, and concerning the fish. 34They came from all the nations to hear the wisdom of Solomon; from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom.
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