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Visit of the Queen of Sheba

10 When the queen of Sheba heard of Solomon’s fame, which brought honor to the name of the Lord,[a] she came to test him with hard questions.

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Footnotes

  1. 10:1 Or which was due to the name of the Lord. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.

42 The queen of Sheba[a] will also stand up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, for she came from a distant land to hear the wisdom of Solomon. Now someone greater than Solomon is here—but you refuse to listen.

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Footnotes

  1. 12:42 Greek The queen of the south.

31 “The queen of Sheba[a] will stand up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, for she came from a distant land to hear the wisdom of Solomon. Now someone greater than Solomon is here—but you refuse to listen.

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Footnotes

  1. 11:31 Greek The queen of the south.

15 Long live the king!
    May the gold of Sheba be given to him.
May the people always pray for him
    and bless him all day long.

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10 The western kings of Tarshish and other distant lands
    will bring him tribute.
The eastern kings of Sheba and Seba
    will bring him gifts.

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The descendants of Cush were Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. The descendants of Raamah were Sheba and Dedan.

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13 But Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish will ask, ‘Do you really think the armies you have gathered can rob them of silver and gold? Do you think you can drive away their livestock and seize their goods and carry off plunder?’

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22 The merchants of Sheba and Raamah came with all kinds of spices, jewels, and gold in exchange for your wares.

23 “Haran, Canneh, Eden, Sheba, Asshur, and Kilmad came with their merchandise, too.

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20 There’s no use offering me sweet frankincense from Sheba.
    Keep your fragrant calamus imported from distant lands!
I will not accept your burnt offerings.
    Your sacrifices have no pleasing aroma for me.”

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Vast caravans of camels will converge on you,
    the camels of Midian and Ephah.
The people of Sheba will bring gold and frankincense
    and will come worshiping the Lord.

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I listen carefully to many proverbs
    and solve riddles with inspiration from a harp.

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28 And this is what he says to all humanity:
‘The fear of the Lord is true wisdom;
    to forsake evil is real understanding.’”

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Visit of the Queen of Sheba

When the queen of Sheba heard of Solomon’s fame, she came to Jerusalem to test him with hard questions. She arrived 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. Solomon had answers for all her questions; nothing was too hard for him to explain to her. When the queen of Sheba realized how wise Solomon was, and when she saw the palace he had built, she 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 their robes, and the burnt offerings[a] Solomon made at the Temple of the Lord.

She exclaimed to the king, “Everything I heard in my country about your achievements[b] and wisdom is true! I 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 your great wisdom! It is far beyond what I was told. How happy your people must be! What a privilege for your officials to stand here day after day, listening to your wisdom! Praise the Lord your God, who delights in you and has placed you on the throne as king to rule for him. Because God loves Israel and desires this kingdom to last forever, he has made you king over them so you can rule with justice and righteousness.”

Then she gave the king a gift of 9,000 pounds[c] of gold, great quantities of spices, and precious jewels. Never before had there been spices as fine as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

10 (In addition, the crews of Hiram and Solomon brought gold from Ophir, and they also brought red sandalwood[d] and precious jewels. 11 The king used the sandalwood to make steps[e] for the Temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and to construct lyres and harps for the musicians. Never before had such beautiful things been seen in Judah.)

12 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba whatever she asked for—gifts of greater value than the gifts she had given him. Then she and all her attendants returned to their own land.

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Footnotes

  1. 9:4 As in Greek and Syriac versions (see also 1 Kgs 10:5); Hebrew reads and the ascent.
  2. 9:5 Hebrew your words.
  3. 9:9 Hebrew 120 talents [4,000 kilograms].
  4. 9:10 Hebrew algum wood (also in 9:11); perhaps a variant spelling of almug. Compare parallel text at 1 Kgs 10:11-12.
  5. 9:11 Or gateways. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.

12 Samson said to them, “Let me tell you a riddle. If you solve my riddle during these seven days of the celebration, I will give you thirty fine linen robes and thirty sets of festive clothing. 13 But if you can’t solve it, then you must give me thirty fine linen robes and thirty sets of festive clothing.”

“All right,” they agreed, “let’s hear your riddle.”

14 So he said:

“Out of the one who eats came something to eat;
    out of the strong came something sweet.”

Three days later they were still trying to figure it out.

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20 So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. 21 Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe.

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And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.

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34 In fact, in his public ministry he never taught without using parables; but afterward, when he was alone with his disciples, he explained everything to them.

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35 This fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet:

“I will speak to you in parables.
    I will explain things hidden since the creation of the world.[a]

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Footnotes

  1. 13:35 Some manuscripts do not include of the world. Ps 78:2.

11 He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets[a] of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not.

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Footnotes

  1. 13:11 Greek the mysteries.

Cry out for insight,
    and ask for understanding.
Search for them as you would for silver;
    seek them like hidden treasures.
Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord,
    and you will gain knowledge of God.
For the Lord grants wisdom!
    From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

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Let the wise listen to these proverbs and become even wiser.
    Let those with understanding receive guidance
by exploring the meaning in these proverbs and parables,
    the words of the wise and their riddles.

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19 The caravans from Tema search for this water;
    the travelers from Sheba hope to find it.

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34 And kings from every nation sent their ambassadors to listen to the wisdom of Solomon.

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31 He was wiser than anyone else, including Ethan the Ezrahite and the sons of Mahol—Heman, Calcol, and Darda. His fame spread throughout all the surrounding nations.

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