1 Kings 10
10
The Visit of the Queen of Sheba
1Now the queen of Sheba had heard of the fame of Solomon regarding the name of Yahweh, and she came to test him with hard questions. 2So she came to Jerusalem with very great wealth; with camels carrying spices, very much gold, and precious stones. She came to Solomon, and she spoke to him all that was on her heart. 3Solomon answered all of her questions;#Literally “Solomon told her all of her words” there was not a thing hidden from the king which he could not explain to her. 4When the queen of Sheba observed all the wisdom of Solomon and the house which he had built, 5the food of his table, the seat of his servants, the manner#Literally “service” of his servants and their clothing, his cupbearers, and his burnt offerings which he offered in the house of Yahweh, she was breathless.#Literally “and there was not in her spirit/breath any longer” 6Then she said to the king, “The report which I heard in my land was true concerning your accomplishments and your wisdom. 7I had not believed the report to be true until I came and my eyes had seen, and behold! The half had not been told to me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass#Literally “You have added wisdom and prosperity to” the report that I had heard. 8Happy are your men and happy are these your servants who stand before you continually hearing your wisdom. 9May Yahweh your God be blessed, who has delighted in you to set you on the throne of Israel, because of the love of Yahweh for Israel forever, and he has made you king to execute justice and righteousness.” 10Then she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, abundant spices, and precious stones. Spices as these did not come again in such abundance as that which the queen of Sheba brought to King Solomon.
11Moreover, the fleet of ships of Hiram which carried the gold from Ophir also brought from Ophir abundant amounts of almug wood and precious stones. 12The king made a raised structure for the house of Yahweh and for the house of the king out of the almug wood, as well as lyres and harps for the singers. This much almug wood has not come nor been seen again up to this day. 13King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all of her desire that she asked, besides that which King Solomon freely offered her.#Literally “according to the hand of King Solomon” Then she turned and went to her land with her servants.
14The weight of the gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, 15apart from that of the men of the traders and the profits of the traders, and all the kings of the Arabs and the governors of the land. 16King Solomon made two hundred shields of hammered gold; six hundred measures of gold went up over each shield. 17Also he made three hundred small shields of hammered gold; three minas of gold went up over each of the small shields; and the king put them into the House of the Forest of Lebanon. 18The king also made a large ivory throne, and he overlaid it with fine gold. 19Six steps led up to the throne, and there was a circular top to the throne behind it, and armrests were on each side of the seat,#Literally “from this and from this” with two lions standing beside the armrests. 20Twelve lions were standing there, six on each of the six steps on either side;#Literally “from this and from this” nothing like this was made for any of the kingdoms. 21All of the drinking vessels of King Solomon were gold, and all the vessels for the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. There was no silver; it was not considered as something valuable in the days of Solomon. 22For the fleet of Tarshish belonged to the king and was on the sea with the fleet of Hiram; once every three years the fleet of Tarshish used to come carrying gold and silver, ivory, apes, and baboons.
23King Solomon was greater than all the kings of the earth with respect to wealth and wisdom. 24All of the earth was seeking the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom which God had put in his heart. 25They were each bringing his gift; objects of silver and objects of gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules. This used to happen year after year.#Literally “A thing of year to year”
26Solomon gathered chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses. He stationed them in the cities of the chariots and with the king in Jerusalem. 27The king made the silver in Jerusalem as the stones, and the cedars he made as the sycamore fig trees which are in the Shephelah in abundance. 28The import of the horses which were Solomon’s was from Egypt and from Kue; the traders of the king received horses from Kue at a price. 29A chariot went up and went out from Egypt at six hundred silver shekels and a horse at a hundred and fifty. So it was for all the kings of the Hittites and for the kings of Aram; by their hand they were exported.
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1 Kings 10
10
Visit of the Queen of Sheba
1When the queen of Sheba heard of Solomon’s fame, which brought honor to the name of the Lord,#10:1 Or which was due to the name of the Lord. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain. she came to test him with hard questions. 2She arrived in Jerusalem with a large group of attendants and a great caravan of camels loaded with spices, large quantities of gold, and precious jewels. When she met with Solomon, she talked with him about everything she had on her mind. 3Solomon had answers for all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her. 4When the queen of Sheba realized how very wise Solomon was, and when she saw the palace he had built, 5she was overwhelmed. She was also amazed at the food on his tables, the organization of his officials and their splendid clothing, the cup-bearers, and the burnt offerings Solomon made at the Temple of the Lord.
6She exclaimed to the king, “Everything I heard in my country about your achievements#10:6 Hebrew your words. and wisdom is true! 7I didn’t believe what was said until I arrived here and saw it with my own eyes. In fact, I had not heard the half of it! Your wisdom and prosperity are far beyond what I was told. 8How happy your people#10:8 Greek and Syriac versions and Latin Vulgate read your wives. must be! What a privilege for your officials to stand here day after day, listening to your wisdom! 9Praise the Lord your God, who delights in you and has placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king so you can rule with justice and righteousness.”
10Then she gave the king a gift of 9,000 pounds#10:10 Hebrew 120 talents [4,000 kilograms]. of gold, great quantities of spices, and precious jewels. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11(In addition, Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir, and they also brought rich cargoes of red sandalwood#10:11 Hebrew almug wood; also in 10:12. and precious jewels. 12The king used the sandalwood to make railings for the Temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and to construct lyres and harps for the musicians. Never before or since has there been such a supply of sandalwood.)
13King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba whatever she asked for, besides all the customary gifts he had so generously given. Then she and all her attendants returned to their own land.
Solomon’s Wealth and Splendor
14Each year Solomon received about 25 tons#10:14 Hebrew 666 talents [23 metric tons]. of gold. 15This did not include the additional revenue he received from merchants and traders, all the kings of Arabia, and the governors of the land.
16King Solomon made 200 large shields of hammered gold, each weighing more than fifteen pounds.#10:16 Hebrew 600 [shekels] of gold [6.8 kilograms]. 17He also made 300 smaller shields of hammered gold, each weighing nearly four pounds.#10:17 Hebrew 3 minas [1.8 kilograms]. The king placed these shields in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.
18Then the king made a huge throne, decorated with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19The throne had six steps and a rounded back. There were armrests on both sides of the seat, and the figure of a lion stood on each side of the throne. 20There were also twelve other lions, one standing on each end of the six steps. No other throne in all the world could be compared with it!
21All of King Solomon’s drinking cups were solid gold, as were all the utensils in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. They were not made of silver, for silver was considered worthless in Solomon’s day!
22The king had a fleet of trading ships of Tarshish that sailed with Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years the ships returned, loaded with gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.#10:22 Or and baboons.
23So King Solomon became richer and wiser than any other king on earth. 24People from every nation came to consult him and to hear the wisdom God had given him. 25Year after year everyone who visited brought him gifts of silver and gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.
26Solomon built up a huge force of chariots and horses.#10:26 Or charioteers; also in 10:26b. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses. He stationed some of them in the chariot cities and some near him in Jerusalem. 27The king made silver as plentiful in Jerusalem as stone. And valuable cedar timber was as common as the sycamore-fig trees that grow in the foothills of Judah.#10:27 Hebrew the Shephelah. 28Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt#10:28a Possibly Muzur, a district near Cilicia; also in 10:29. and from Cilicia#10:28b Hebrew Kue, probably another name for Cilicia.; the king’s traders acquired them from Cilicia at the standard price. 29At that time chariots from Egypt could be purchased for 600 pieces of silver,#10:29a Hebrew 600 [shekels] of silver, about 15 pounds or 6.8 kilograms in weight. and horses for 150 pieces of silver.#10:29b Hebrew 150 [shekels], about 3.8 pounds or 1.7 kilograms in weight. They were then exported to the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.
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