Solomon’s Officials

King Solomon reigned over all Israel,(A) and these were his officials:(B)

Azariah son of Zadok, priest;

Elihoreph and Ahijah the sons of Shisha, secretaries;

Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud, court historian;

Benaiah son of Jehoiada, in charge of the army;

Zadok and Abiathar, priests;

Azariah son of Nathan, in charge of the deputies;

Zabud son of Nathan, a priest and adviser to the king;

Ahishar, in charge of the palace;

and Adoniram son of Abda, in charge of forced labor.

Solomon had twelve deputies for all Israel. They provided food for the king and his household; each one made provision for one month out of the year.(C) These were their names:

Ben-hur, in the hill country of Ephraim;

Ben-deker, in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-shemesh, and Elon-beth-hanan;

10 Ben-hesed, in Arubboth (he had Socoh and the whole land of Hepher);

11 Ben-abinadab, in all Naphath-dor (Taphath daughter of Solomon was his wife);

12 Baana 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;

13 Ben-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, sixty great cities with walls and bronze bars);

14 Ahinadab son of Iddo, in Mahanaim;

15 Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he also had married a daughter of Solomon—Basemath);

16 Baana son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth;

17 Jehoshaphat son of Paruah, in Issachar;

18 Shimei son of Ela, in Benjamin;

19 Geber son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the country of King Sihon of the Amorites and of King Og of Bashan.

There was one deputy in the land of Judah.[a]

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Footnotes

  1. 4:19 LXX; MT omits of Judah

Solomon’s Officials and Governors

King Solomon now ruled over all Israel, and these were his high officials:

Azariah son of Zadok was the priest.
Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, were court secretaries.
Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the royal historian.
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was commander of the army.
Zadok and Abiathar were priests.
Azariah son of Nathan was in charge of the district governors.
Zabud son of Nathan, a priest, was a trusted adviser to the king.
Ahishar was manager of the palace property.
Adoniram son of Abda was in charge of forced labor.

Solomon also had twelve district governors who were over all Israel. They were responsible for providing food for the king’s household. Each of them arranged provisions for one month of the year. These are the names of the twelve governors:

Ben-hur, in the hill country of Ephraim.
Ben-deker, in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-shemesh, and Elon-bethhanan.
10 Ben-hesed, in Arubboth, including Socoh and all the land of Hepher.
11 Ben-abinadab, in all of Naphoth-dor.[a] (He was married to Taphath, one of Solomon’s daughters.)
12 Baana son of Ahilud, in Taanach and Megiddo, all of Beth-shan[b] near Zarethan below Jezreel, and all the territory from Beth-shan to Abel-meholah and over to Jokmeam.
13 Ben-geber, in Ramoth-gilead, including the Towns of Jair (named for Jair of the tribe of Manasseh[c]) in Gilead, and in the Argob region of Bashan, including sixty large fortified towns with bronze bars on their gates.
14 Ahinadab son of Iddo, in Mahanaim.
15 Ahimaaz, in Naphtali. (He was married to Basemath, another of Solomon’s daughters.)
16 Baana son of Hushai, in Asher and in Aloth.
17 Jehoshaphat son of Paruah, in Issachar.
18 Shimei son of Ela, in Benjamin.
19 Geber son of Uri, in the land of Gilead,[d] including the territories of King Sihon of the Amorites and King Og of Bashan.
There was also one governor over the land of Judah.[e]

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Footnotes

  1. 4:11 Hebrew Naphath-dor, a variant spelling of Naphoth-dor.
  2. 4:12 Hebrew Beth-shean, a variant spelling of Beth-shan; also in 4:12b.
  3. 4:13 Hebrew Jair son of Manasseh; compare 1 Chr 2:22.
  4. 4:19a Greek version reads of Gad; compare 4:13.
  5. 4:19b As in some Greek manuscripts; Hebrew lacks of Judah. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.