1 Kings 10
Contemporary English Version
The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon
(2 Chronicles 9.1-12)
10 (A) The Queen of Sheba heard how famous Solomon was, so she went to Jerusalem to test him with difficult questions. 2 She took along several of her officials, and she loaded her camels with gifts of spices, jewels, and gold. When she arrived, she and Solomon talked about everything she could think of. 3 He answered every question, no matter how difficult it was.
4-5 The Queen was amazed at Solomon's wisdom. She was breathless when she saw his palace, the food on his table, his officials, his servants in their uniforms, the people who served his food, and the sacrifices he offered at the Lord's temple. 6 She said:
Solomon, in my own country I had heard about your wisdom and all you've done. 7 But I didn't believe it until I saw it with my own eyes! And there's so much I didn't hear about. You are wiser and richer than I was told. 8 Your wives[a] and officials are lucky to be here where they can listen to the wise things you say.
9 I praise the Lord your God. He is pleased with you and has made you king of Israel. The Lord has always loved Israel, so he has given them a king who will rule fairly and honestly.
10 The Queen of Sheba gave Solomon more than four tons of gold, many jewels, and more spices than anyone had ever brought into Israel.
11-13 In return, Solomon gave her the gifts he would have given any other ruler, but he also gave her everything else she wanted. Then she and her officials went back to their own country.
Solomon's Wealth
(2 Chronicles 9.13-28)
King Hiram's ships brought gold, juniper wood, and jewels from the country of Ophir. Solomon used the wood to make steps[b] for the temple and palace, and harps and other stringed instruments for the musicians. It was the best juniper wood anyone in Israel had ever seen.
14 Solomon received almost 23 tons of gold a year. 15 The merchants and traders, as well as the kings of Arabia and rulers from Israel, also gave him gold.
16 Solomon made 200 gold shields and used almost seven kilograms of gold for each one. 17 He also made 300 smaller gold shields, using almost two kilograms for each one, and he put the shields in his palace in Forest Hall.
18 His throne was made of ivory and covered with pure gold. 19-20 The back of the throne was rounded at the top, and it had armrests on each side. There was a statue of a lion on both sides of the throne, and there was a statue of a lion at both ends of each of the six steps leading up to the throne. No other throne in the world was like Solomon's.
21 Since silver was almost worthless in those days, everything was made of gold, even the cups and dishes used in Forest Hall.
22 Solomon had a lot of seagoing ships.[c] Every three years he sent them out with Hiram's ships to bring back gold, silver, and ivory, as well as monkeys and peacocks.[d]
23 He was the richest and wisest king in the world. 24 People from every nation wanted to hear the wisdom God had given him. 25 Year after year people came and brought gifts of silver and gold, as well as clothes, weapons, spices, horses, or mules.
26 (B) Solomon had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses that he kept in Jerusalem and other towns.
27 (C) While he was king, there was silver everywhere in Jerusalem, and cedar was as common as ordinary sycamore trees in the foothills.
28-29 (D) Solomon's merchants bought his horses and chariots in the regions of Musri and Kue.[e] They paid 600 pieces of silver for a chariot and 150 pieces of silver for a horse. They also sold horses and chariots to the Hittite and Syrian kings.
Footnotes
- 10.8 wives: Two ancient translations; Hebrew “men.”
- 10.11-13 steps: Or “stools” or “railings.”
- 10.22 seagoing ships: The Hebrew text has “ships of Tarshish,” which may have been a Phoenician city in Spain. “Ships of Tarshish” probably means large, seagoing ships.
- 10.22 peacocks: Or “baboons.”
- 10.28,29 Musri and Kue: Hebrew “Egypt and Kue.” Musri and Kue were regions located in what is today southeast Turkey.
1 Kings 10
International Children’s Bible
The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon
10 Now the queen of Sheba heard about Solomon’s fame. So she came to test him with hard questions. 2 She traveled to Jerusalem with a very large group of servants. There were many camels carrying spices, jewels and much gold. She came to Solomon and talked with him about all that she had in mind. 3 Solomon answered all her questions. Nothing was too hard for him to explain to her. 4 The queen of Sheba learned that Solomon was very wise. She saw the palace he had built. 5 She saw his many officers and the food on his table. She saw the palace servants and their good clothes. She was shown the servants who served him at feasts. And she was shown the whole burnt offerings he made in the Temple of the Lord. All these things amazed her.
6 So she said to King Solomon, “I heard in my own country about your achievements and wisdom. And all of it is true. 7 I could not believe it then. But now I have come and seen it with my own eyes. I was not told even half of it! Your wisdom and wealth are much greater than I had heard. 8 Your men and officers are very lucky! In always serving you, they are able to hear your wisdom! 9 Praise the Lord your God! He was pleased to make you king of Israel. The Lord has constant love for Israel. So he made you king to keep justice and to rule fairly.”
10 Then the queen of Sheba gave the king about 9,000 pounds of gold. She also gave him many spices and jewels. No one since that time has brought more spices into Israel than the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon.
11 (Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir. They also brought from there very much juniper wood and jewels. 12 Solomon used the juniper wood to build supports for the Temple of the Lord and the palace. He also used it to make harps and lyres for the musicians. Such fine juniper wood has not been brought in or seen since that time.)
13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba many gifts. He gave her gifts that a king would give to another ruler. Then he gave her whatever else she wanted and asked for. After this, she and her servants went back to her own country.
Solomon’s Wealth
14 Every year King Solomon received about 50,000 pounds of gold. 15 Besides that he also received gold from the traders and merchants. And he received gold from the kings of Arabia and governors of the land.
16 King Solomon made 200 large shields of hammered gold. Each shield contained about seven and one-half pounds of gold. 17 He also made 300 smaller shields of hammered gold. They each contained about three and three-fourths pounds of gold. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.
18 Then King Solomon built a large throne of ivory. And he covered it with pure gold. 19 There were six steps leading up to the throne. The back of the throne was round at the top. There were armrests on both sides of the chair. And beside each armrest was a statue of a lion. 20 Twelve lions stood on the six steps. There was one lion at each end of each step. Nothing like this had ever been made for any other kingdom. 21 All of Solomon’s drinking cups were made of gold. All of the dishes in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made from silver. In Solomon’s time people did not think silver was valuable.
22 King Solomon also had many trading ships at sea, along with Hiram’s ships. Every three years the ships returned. They brought back gold, silver, ivory, apes and baboons.
23 So Solomon had more riches and wisdom than all the other kings on earth. 24 People everywhere wanted to see King Solomon. They wanted to hear the wisdom God had given him. 25 Every year everyone who came brought a gift. They brought things made of gold and silver, along with clothes, weapons, spices, horses and mules.
26 So Solomon had many chariots and horses. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 chariot soldiers. He kept some in special cities for the chariots. And he kept some with him in Jerusalem. 27 In Jerusalem silver was as common as stones while Solomon was king. Cedar trees were as common as the fig trees growing on the mountain slopes. 28 Solomon brought in horses from Egypt and Kue. His traders bought them in Kue and brought them to Israel. 29 A chariot from Egypt cost about 15 pounds of silver. And a horse cost about 3¾ pounds of silver. The traders also sold horses and chariots to the kings of the Hittites and the Arameans.
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