1 Kings 10
King James Version
10 And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to prove him with hard questions.
2 And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.
3 And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not any thing hid from the king, which he told her not.
4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house that he had built,
5 And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the Lord; there was no more spirit in her.
6 And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom.
7 Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard.
8 Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom.
9 Blessed be the Lord thy God, which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the Lord loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and justice.
10 And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones: there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon.
11 And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees, and precious stones.
12 And the king made of the almug trees pillars for the house of the Lord, and for the king's house, harps also and psalteries for singers: there came no such almug trees, nor were seen unto this day.
13 And king Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants.
14 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold,
15 Beside that he had of the merchantmen, and of the traffick of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia, and of the governors of the country.
16 And king Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold: six hundred shekels of gold went to one target.
17 And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three pound of gold went to one shield: and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.
18 Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the best gold.
19 The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round behind: and there were stays on either side on the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the stays.
20 And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps: there was not the like made in any kingdom.
21 And all king Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; none were of silver: it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon.
22 For the king had at sea a navy of Tharshish with the navy of Hiram: once in three years came the navy of Tharshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.
23 So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom.
24 And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.
25 And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
26 And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem.
27 And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore trees that are in the vale, for abundance.
28 And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yarn: the king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price.
29 And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and an horse for an hundred and fifty: and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, did they bring them out by their means.
1 Kings 10
New King James Version
The Queen of Sheba’s Praise of Solomon(A)
10 Now when the (B)queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came (C)to test him with hard questions. 2 She came to Jerusalem with a very great [a]retinue, with camels that bore spices, very much gold, and precious stones; and when she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about all that was in her heart. 3 So Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing [b]so difficult for the king that he could not explain it to her. 4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, 5 the food on his table, the seating of his servants, the service of his waiters and their apparel, his cupbearers, (D)and his entryway by which he went up to the house of the Lord, there was no more spirit in her. 6 Then she said to the king: “It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. 7 However I did not believe the words until I came and saw with my own eyes; and indeed the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame of which I heard. 8 (E)Happy are your men and happy are these your servants, who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom! 9 (F)Blessed be the Lord your God, who (G)delighted in you, setting you on the throne of Israel! Because the Lord has loved Israel forever, therefore He made you king, (H)to do justice and righteousness.”
10 Then she (I)gave the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold, spices in great quantity, and precious stones. There never again came such abundance of spices as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon. 11 (J)Also, the ships of Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, brought great quantities of [c]almug wood and precious stones from Ophir. 12 (K)And the king made [d]steps of the almug wood for the house of the Lord and for the king’s house, also harps and stringed instruments for singers. There never again came such (L)almug wood, nor has the like been seen to this day.
13 Now King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired, whatever she asked, besides what Solomon had given her according to the royal generosity. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants.
Solomon’s Great Wealth
14 The weight of gold that came to Solomon yearly was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, 15 besides that from the (M)traveling merchants, from the income of traders, (N)from all the kings of Arabia, and from the governors of the country.
16 And King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels of gold went into each shield. 17 He also made (O)three hundred shields of hammered gold; three minas of gold went into each shield. The king put them in the (P)House of the Forest of Lebanon.
18 (Q)Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round at the back; there were armrests on either side of the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the armrests. 20 Twelve lions stood there, one on each side of the six steps; nothing like this had been made for any other kingdom.
21 (R)All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Not one was silver, for this was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon. 22 For the king had (S)merchant[e] ships at sea with the fleet of Hiram. Once every three years the merchant (T)ships came bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and [f]monkeys. 23 So (U)King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.
24 Now all the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 25 Each man brought his present: articles of silver and gold, garments, armor, spices, horses, and mules, at a set rate year by year.
26 (V)And Solomon (W)gathered chariots and horsemen; he had one thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he [g]stationed in the chariot cities and with the king at Jerusalem. 27 (X)The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and he made cedar trees as abundant as the sycamores which are in the lowland.
28 (Y)Also Solomon had horses imported from Egypt and Keveh; the king’s merchants bought them in Keveh at the current price. 29 Now a chariot that was imported from Egypt cost six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse one hundred and fifty; (Z)and [h]thus, through their agents, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 10:2 company
- 1 Kings 10:3 too
- 1 Kings 10:11 algum, 2 Chr. 9:10, 11
- 1 Kings 10:12 Or supports
- 1 Kings 10:22 Lit. ships of Tarshish, deep-sea vessels
- 1 Kings 10:22 Or peacocks
- 1 Kings 10:26 So with LXX, Syr., Tg., Vg. (cf. 2 Chr. 9:25); MT led
- 1 Kings 10:29 Lit. by their hands
1 Kings 10
English Standard Version
The Queen of Sheba
10 (A)Now when (B)the queen of (C)Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came (D)to test him with hard questions. 2 She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels (E)bearing spices and very much gold and precious stones. And when she came to Solomon, she told him all that was on her mind. 3 And Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from the king that he could not explain to her. 4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, 5 the food of his table, the seating of his officials, and the attendance of his servants, their clothing, his cupbearers, and his burnt offerings that he offered at the house of the Lord, there was no more breath in her.
6 And she said to the king, “The report was true that I heard in my own land of your words and of your wisdom, 7 but I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report that I heard. 8 (F)Happy are your men! Happy are your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! 9 (G)Blessed be the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! (H)Because the Lord loved Israel forever, he has made you king, (I)that you may execute justice and righteousness.” 10 (J)Then she gave the king 120 talents[a] of gold, and a very great quantity of spices and precious stones. Never again came such an abundance of spices as these that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 Moreover, (K)the fleet of Hiram, which brought (L)gold from Ophir, brought from Ophir a very great amount of almug wood and precious stones. 12 And the king made of the almug wood supports for the house of the Lord and for the king's house, also lyres and harps for the singers. No such almug wood has come or been seen to this day.
13 And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired, whatever she asked besides what was given her by the bounty of King Solomon. So she turned and went back to her own land with her servants.
Solomon's Great Wealth
14 (M)Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents of gold, 15 besides that which came from the explorers and from the business of the merchants, and from all the kings of the west and from the governors of the land. 16 King Solomon made 200 large shields of beaten gold; 600 shekels[b] of gold went into each shield. 17 And he made 300 (N)shields of beaten gold; three minas[c] of gold went into each shield. And the king put them in (O)the House of the Forest of Lebanon. 18 The king also made a great ivory throne and overlaid it with the finest gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and the throne had a round top,[d] and on each side of the seat were armrests and two lions standing beside the armrests, 20 while twelve lions stood there, one on each end of a step on the six steps. The like of it was never made in any kingdom. 21 All King Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of (P)the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. None were of silver; silver was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon. 22 For the king had (Q)a fleet of ships of Tarshish at sea with the fleet of Hiram. Once every three years the fleet of ships of Tarshish used to come bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.[e]
23 (R)Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. 24 And the whole earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind. 25 Every one of them brought his present, articles of silver and gold, garments, myrrh,[f] spices, horses, and mules, so much year by year.
26 (S)And Solomon gathered together (T)chariots and horsemen. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, whom he stationed in the (U)chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. 27 And the king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made cedar as plentiful as (V)the sycamore of the Shephelah. 28 And Solomon's (W)import of horses was from Egypt and Kue, and the king's traders received them from Kue at a price. 29 A chariot could be imported from Egypt for 600 shekels of silver and a horse for 150, and so through the king's traders they were exported to all the kings of (X)the Hittites and the kings of Syria.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 10:10 A talent was about 75 pounds or 34 kilograms
- 1 Kings 10:16 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
- 1 Kings 10:17 A mina was about 1 1/4 pounds or 0.6 kilogram
- 1 Kings 10:19 Or and at the back of the throne was a calf's head
- 1 Kings 10:22 Or baboons
- 1 Kings 10:25 Or armor
1 Kings 10
New American Standard Bible
The Queen of Sheba
10 (A)Now when the (B)queen of (C)Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon in relation to the name of the Lord, she came (D)to test him with riddles. 2 So she came to Jerusalem with a very large entourage, with camels (E)carrying balsam oil and a very large quantity of gold and precious stones. When she came to Solomon, she spoke to him about everything that was in her heart. 3 And Solomon [a]answered all her questions; nothing was concealed from the king which he did not explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built, 5 and the food of his table, the seating of his servants, the service of his waiters and their attire, his cupbearers, and his burnt offerings which he offered at the house of the Lord, [b]she was breathless. 6 Then she said to the king, “It was a true [c]story that I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. 7 But I did not believe the [d]stories until I came and my own eyes saw it all. And behold, the half of it was not reported to me. You have exceeded in wisdom and prosperity the report which I heard. 8 (F)Blessed are your men, and blessed are these servants of yours who stand before you continually and hear your wisdom! 9 (G)Blessed be the Lord your God who delighted in you to put you on the throne of Israel; (H)because the Lord loves Israel forever, He made you king, (I)to do justice and righteousness.” 10 Then (J)she gave the king [e]120 talents of gold, and a very large amount of balsam oil and precious stones. Never again did such a large quantity of balsam oil come in as that which the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon.
11 (K)And the ships of Hiram as well, which brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir a very great number of almug trees and precious stones. 12 (L)The king made from the almug trees supports for the house of the Lord and for the king’s house, and lyres and harps for the singers; such almug trees have not come in again, nor have they been seen to this day.
13 And King Solomon granted the queen of Sheba everything she desired, whatever she requested, besides what he gave her in proportion to [f]his royal bounty. Then she [g]departed and went to her own land [h]together with her servants.
Wealth, Splendor, and Wisdom
14 (M)Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was [i]666 talents of gold, 15 besides that from the traders, and the [j]wares of the merchants and all the kings of the (N)Arabs and the governors of the country. 16 (O)King Solomon made two hundred large shields of beaten gold, [k]using six hundred shekels of gold on each large shield. 17 And he made (P)three hundred small shields of beaten gold, [l]using [m]three minas of gold on each shield; and (Q)the king put them in the house of the timber of Lebanon. 18 Moreover, the king made a large throne of (R)ivory and overlaid it with fine gold. 19 There were six steps to the throne and a round top to the throne at its back, and [n]armrests [o]on each side of the seat, and two lions standing beside the [p]armrests. 20 Twelve lions were standing there on the six steps on the one side and on the other; nothing like it was made for [q]any other kingdom. 21 Now all King Solomon’s drinking utensils were of gold, and all the utensils of the house of the timber of Lebanon were of pure gold. None was of silver; it was not considered as amounting to anything in the days of Solomon. 22 For (S)the king had the ships of Tarshish at sea with Hiram’s ships; once every three years the ships of Tarshish would come carrying gold and silver, ivory, monkeys, and peacocks.
23 (T)So King Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth in wealth and wisdom. 24 And all the earth was seeking the [r]attention of Solomon, (U)to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 25 And (V)they were bringing, everyone, [s]a gift: articles of silver and gold, garments, weapons, balsam oil, horses, and mules, so much year by year.
26 (W)Now Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen; and he had 1,400 chariots and twelve thousand horsemen, and he [t]stationed them in the (X)chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. 27 (Y)And the king made silver as common as stones in Jerusalem, and he made cedars as plentiful as sycamore trees that are in the [u]lowland. 28 (Z)Also Solomon’s import of horses was from Egypt and Kue, and the king’s merchants acquired them from Kue for a price. 29 A chariot [v]was imported from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for 150; and [w]by the same means they exported them (AA)to all the kings of the Hittites and to the kings of the Arameans.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 10:3 Lit told her all her words
- 1 Kings 10:5 Lit there was no more breath in her
- 1 Kings 10:6 Lit word
- 1 Kings 10:7 Lit words
- 1 Kings 10:10 About 4.5 tons or 4 metric tons
- 1 Kings 10:13 Lit the hand of King Solomon
- 1 Kings 10:13 Lit turned around
- 1 Kings 10:13 Lit she and her
- 1 Kings 10:14 About 25 tons or 23 metric tons
- 1 Kings 10:15 Or traffic
- 1 Kings 10:16 Lit he brought up
- 1 Kings 10:17 Lit he brought up
- 1 Kings 10:17 About 3.8 lb. or 1.7 kg
- 1 Kings 10:19 Lit hands
- 1 Kings 10:19 Lit from this and from this at the place of the seat
- 1 Kings 10:19 Lit hands
- 1 Kings 10:20 Lit all kingdoms
- 1 Kings 10:24 Lit face
- 1 Kings 10:25 Lit his gift
- 1 Kings 10:26 As in ancient versions; MT led
- 1 Kings 10:27 Heb Shephelah
- 1 Kings 10:29 Lit came up and went out from
- 1 Kings 10:29 Lit in the same way by their hand
1 Kings 10
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 10
Solomon’s Listening Heart: The Queen of Sheba.[a] 1 (A)The queen of Sheba,[b] having heard a report of Solomon’s fame, came to test him with subtle questions. 2 She arrived in Jerusalem with a very numerous retinue, and with camels bearing spices, a large amount of gold, and precious stones. She came to Solomon and spoke to him about everything that she had on her mind. 3 King Solomon explained everything she asked about, and there was nothing so obscure that the king could not explain it to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba witnessed Solomon’s great wisdom, the house he had built, 5 the food at his table, the seating of his ministers, the attendance and dress of his waiters, his servers, and the burnt offerings he offered in the house of the Lord, it took her breath away. 6 “The report I heard in my country about your deeds and your wisdom is true,” she told the king. 7 “I did not believe the report until I came and saw with my own eyes that not even the half had been told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report I heard. 8 Happy are your servants, happy these ministers of yours, who stand before you always and listen to your wisdom. 9 Blessed be the Lord, your God, who has been pleased to place you on the throne of Israel. In his enduring love for Israel, the Lord has made you king to carry out judgment and justice.” 10 Then she gave the king one hundred and twenty gold talents, a very large quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again did anyone bring such an abundance of spices as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 Hiram’s fleet, which used to bring gold from Ophir, also brought from there a very large quantity of almug[c] wood and precious stones. 12 With this wood the king made supports for the house of the Lord and for the house of the king, and harps and lyres for the singers. Never again was any such almug wood brought or seen to the present day.
13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she desired and asked for, besides what King Solomon gave her from Solomon’s royal bounty. Then she returned with her servants to her own country.
Solomon’s Riches: Domestic Affairs.[d] 14 (B)The gold that came to Solomon in one year weighed six hundred and sixty-six gold talents, 15 in addition to what came from the tolls on travelers, from the traffic of merchants, and from all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the country. 16 (C)King Solomon made two hundred shields of beaten gold (six hundred shekels of gold went into each shield) 17 and three hundred bucklers of beaten gold (three minas of gold went into each buckler); and the king put them in the house of the Forest of Lebanon. 18 The king made a large ivory throne, and overlaid it with refined gold. 19 The throne had six steps, a back with a round top, and an arm on each side of the seat, with two lions standing next to the arms, 20 and twelve other lions standing there on the steps, two to a step, one on either side of each step. Nothing like this was made in any other kingdom. 21 All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were gold, and all the utensils in the house of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. There was no silver, for in Solomon’s time silver was reckoned as nothing. 22 For the king had a fleet of Tarshish ships[e] at sea with Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years the fleet of Tarshish ships would come with a cargo of gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
Solomon’s Renown. 23 Thus King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. 24 And the whole world sought audience with Solomon, to hear the wisdom God had put into his heart. 25 They all brought their yearly tribute: vessels of silver and gold, garments, weapons, spices, horses and mules—what was due each year.
Solomon’s Riches: Chariots and Horses. 26 (D)Solomon amassed chariots and horses; he had one thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses; these he allocated among the chariot cities and to the king’s service in Jerusalem. 27 (E)The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars as numerous as the sycamores of the Shephelah. 28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Cilicia, where the king’s merchants purchased them. 29 A chariot imported from Egypt cost six hundred shekels of silver, a horse one hundred and fifty shekels; they were exported at these rates to all the Hittite and Aramean kings.
Footnotes
- 10:1–13 The sub-unit on Solomon’s wisdom contrasts with 3:16–28. There Solomon’s gifts led him to listen to the humblest of his subjects; he accomplished justice and was revered by all his people. Here the emphasis is on his clever speech to a foreign monarch. She is duly impressed by the glory of his court, but it is she, not Solomon, who recalls the monarch’s duty of establishing justice (v. 9). The unit is interrupted briefly by a remark about Solomon’s maritime commerce (10:11–12).
- 10:1 Queen of Sheba: women rulers among the Arabs are recorded in eighth-century B.C. Assyrian inscriptions. Sheba was for centuries the leading principality in what is now Yemen.
- 10:11–12 Almug: the identification of this wood is unknown.
- 10:14–29 The material on Solomon’s riches, like that in 4:1–5:8, is organized around domestic affairs, international affairs, and chariots and horses (see note on 4:1–5:8), but contrasts with that earlier passage. There, Solomon’s domestic administration produced prosperity for all Judah and Israel (4:20); here the focus is on the wealth and luxury of Solomon’s own palace (10:14–21). There his international hegemony assured peace for all Judah and Israel (5:5); here his maritime ventures simply bring him more and more wealth (9:26–28; 10:11–12, 22). There even his livestock benefited from his prudent administration; here chariotry and horses are just another commodity to be traded (10:26–29).
- 10:22 Tarshish ships: large, strong vessels for long voyages. Tarshish was probably the ancient Tartessus, a Phoenician colony in southern Spain. Ivory, apes, and peacocks: the Hebrew words are obscure and the translations conjectural; however, the reference is certainly to exotic luxury items.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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