Chronological
10 When the queen of Sheba heard of [the constant connection of] the fame of Solomon with the name of the Lord, she came to prove him with hard questions (problems and riddles).
2 She came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels bearing spices, very much gold, and precious stones. When she had come to Solomon, she communed with him about all that was in her mind.
3 Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from the king which he failed to explain to her.
4 When the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon’s wisdom and skill, the house he had built,
5 The food of his table, the seating of his officials, the standing at attention of his servants, their apparel, his cupbearers, his ascent by which he went up to the house of the Lord [or the burnt offerings he sacrificed], she was breathless and overcome.
6 She said to the king, It was a true report I heard in my own land of your acts and sayings and wisdom.
7 I did not believe it until I came and my eyes had seen. Behold, the half was not told me. You have added wisdom and goodness exceeding the fame I heard.
8 Happy are your men! Happy are these your servants who stand continually before you, hearing your wisdom!
9 Blessed be the Lord your God, Who delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! Because the Lord loved Israel forever, He made you king to execute justice and righteousness.
10 And she gave the king 120 talents of gold and of spices a very great store and precious stones. Never again came such abundance of spices as these the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon.
11 The navy also of Hiram brought from Ophir gold and a great plenty of almug (algum) wood and precious stones.
12 Of the almug wood the king made pillars for the house of the Lord and for the king’s house, and lyres also and harps for the singers. No such almug wood came again or has been seen to this day.
13 King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all she wanted, whatever she asked, besides his gifts to her from his royal bounty. So she returned to her own country, she and her servants.
14 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one [particular] year was 666 talents of gold,
15 Besides what the traders brought and the traffic of the merchants and from all the [tributary] kings and governors of the land of Arabia.
16 King Solomon made 200 large shields of beaten gold; 600 shekels of gold went into each shield.
17 And he made 300 shields of beaten gold; three minas of gold went into each shield. The king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.
18 Also the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with the finest gold.
19 The throne had six steps, and attached at the rear of the top of the throne was a round covering or canopy. On either side of the seat were armrests, and two lions stood beside the armrests.
20 Twelve lions stood there, one on either end of each of the six steps; there was nothing like it ever made in any kingdom.
21 All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. None were of silver; it was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon.
22 For the king had a fleet of ships of Tarshish at sea with the fleet of Hiram. Once every three years the fleet of ships of Tarshish came bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
23 So King Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom (skill).
24 And all the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom which God had put in his mind.
25 Every man brought tribute: vessels of silver and gold, garments, equipment, spices, horses, and mules, so much year by year.
26 Solomon collected chariots and horsemen; he had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, which he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem.
27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars as plentiful as the sycamore trees in the lowlands.
28 Solomon’s horses were brought out of Egypt, and the king’s merchants received them in droves, each at a price.(A)
29 A chariot could be brought out of Egypt for 600 shekels of silver, and a horse for 150. And so to all the kings of the Hittites and of Syria they were exported by the king’s merchants.
11 But King Solomon [defiantly] loved many foreign women—the [a]daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites.
2 They were of the very nations of whom the Lord said to the Israelites, You shall not mingle with them, neither shall they mingle with you, for surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods. Yet Solomon clung to these in love.(B)
3 He had 700 wives, princesses, and 300 concubines, and his wives turned away his heart from God.
4 For when Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not perfect (complete and whole) with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father.
5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abominable idol of the Ammonites!(C)
6 Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and went not fully after the Lord, as David his father did.
7 Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abominable idol of Moab, on the hill opposite Jerusalem, and for Molech the abominable idol of the Ammonites.
8 And he did so [b]for all of his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
9 And the Lord was angry with Solomon because his heart was turned from the Lord, the God of Israel, Who had appeared to him twice,
10 And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods, but he did not do what the Lord commanded.
11 Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, Because you are doing this and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely rend the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant!
12 However, in your days I will not do it, for David your father’s sake. But I will rend it out of the hand of your son!
13 However, I will not tear away all the kingdom, but will give one tribe to your son for David My servant’s sake and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.
14 The Lord stirred up an adversary against Solomon, Hadad the Edomite; he was of royal descent in Edom.
15 For when David was in Edom, and Joab the commander of Israel’s army went up to bury the slain, he slew every male in Edom.
16 For Joab and all Israel remained there for six months, until he had cut off every male in Edom.
17 But Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his father’s servants, to Egypt, Hadad being yet a little child.
18 They set out from Midian and came to Paran, and took men with them out of Paran and came to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave [young] Hadad a house and land and ordered provisions for him.
19 Hadad found great favor with Pharaoh, so that he gave him in marriage the sister of his own wife Tahpenes the queen.
20 The sister of Tahpenes bore Hadad Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh’s house; and Genubath was in Pharaoh’s household among the sons of Pharaoh.
21 But when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers and that Joab the commander of Israel’s army was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart, that I may go to my own country.
22 Then Pharaoh said to him, But what have you lacked with me that now you want to go to your own country? He replied, Nothing. However, let me go anyhow.
23 God raised up for [Hadad] another adversary, Rezon son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah.
24 Rezon gathered men about him and became leader of a marauding band after the slaughter by David. They went to Damascus and dwelt and made [Rezon] king in Damascus.
25 And Rezon was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, besides the mischief that Hadad did. Rezon abhorred Israel and reigned over Syria.
26 Jeroboam son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon’s servant, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow woman, rebelled against the king—
27 And for this reason: Solomon built the Millo and repaired the breaches of the city of David his father.
28 The man Jeroboam was a mighty man of courage. Solomon, seeing that the young man was industrious, put him in charge over all the [forced] labor of the house of Joseph.
29 At that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the way. Ahijah had clad himself with a new garment; and they were alone in the field.
30 Ahijah caught the new garment he wore and tore it into twelve pieces.
31 He said to Jeroboam, You take ten pieces, for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, Behold, I will tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon and will give you ten tribes.
32 But he shall have one tribe, for My servant David’s sake and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel,
33 Because they have forsaken Me and have worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites, and have not walked in My ways, to do what is right in My sight, keeping My statutes and My ordinances as did David his father.
34 However, I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand; but I will make him ruler all the days of his life for David My servant’s sake, whom I chose because he kept My commandments and My statutes.
35 But I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand and give it to you, ten tribes.
36 Yet to his son I will give one tribe, that David My servant may always have a light before Me in Jerusalem, the city where I have chosen to put My Name.
37 And I will take you, and you shall reign according to all that your soul desires; and you shall be king over Israel.
38 And if you will hearken to all I command you and will walk in My ways and do right in My sight, keeping My statutes and My commandments, as David My servant did, I will be with you and build you a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you.
39 And I will for this afflict the descendants of David, but not forever.
40 Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled into Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until Solomon died.
41 The rest of the acts of Solomon—and all that he did, and his wisdom (skill)—are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon?
42 The time Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.
43 And Solomon slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David his father. Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.
9 When the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to Jerusalem to test him with hard questions, accompanied by very many attendants and camels bearing spices, much gold, and precious stones. And when she came to Solomon, she talked with him of all that was on her mind.
2 And Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from [him] which he was unable to make clear to her.
3 And when the queen of Sheba had seen Solomon’s wisdom, the house he had built,
4 The food of his table, the seating of his officials, the [standing at] attention of his servants, their apparel, his cupbearers also and their apparel, and his burnt offerings which he offered at the house of the Lord, there was no more spirit in her.
5 She said to the king, The report which I heard in my own land of your acts and sayings and of your wisdom was true,
6 But I did not believe their words until I came and my eyes had seen it. Behold, the half of the greatness of your wisdom was not told me; you surpass the fame that I heard of you.
7 Happy are your wives and men, and happy are these your servants who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom!
8 Blessed be the Lord your God, Who delighted in you and set you on His throne to be king for the Lord your God! Because your God loved Israel and would establish them forever, He made you king over them, to do justice and righteousness.
9 She gave the king 120 talents of gold, a very large quantity of spices, and precious stones; such spice was not anywhere as that which the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon.
10 The servants of Huram and [those] of Solomon, who brought gold from Ophir, also brought algum trees and precious stones.
11 The king made of the algum trees terraces or walks to the house of the Lord and to the king’s palace, and lyres and harps for the singers; none such had ever been seen before in the land of Judah.
12 And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatever she asked, besides what she had brought to the king. So she with her servants returned to her own land.
13 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents,
14 Besides what traders and merchants brought; and all the kings of Arabia and governors of the country brought gold and silver to Solomon.
15 And King Solomon made 200 large shields or bucklers of beaten gold; 600 shekels of beaten gold went into each shield.
16 And he made 300 shields of beaten gold, with 300 shekels of gold spread on each shield. And the king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.
17 Moreover, [he] made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with pure gold.
18 There were six steps to the throne and a gold footstool attached to the throne, and arms on each side of the seat, with two lions standing beside the arms.
19 And twelve lions stood there one on either end of each of the six steps. The like of it was never made in any kingdom before.
20 King Solomon’s drinking vessels were all of gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; silver was not counted as anything in the days of Solomon.
21 For the king’s ships went to Tarshish with Huram’s servants; once every three years the ships of Tarshish came bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
22 King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.
23 And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom which God had put into his mind.
24 And every man brought his tribute: silver and gold articles, robes, armor, spices, horses, and mules, so much year by year.
25 Solomon had 4,000 stalls for horses and chariots, and 12,000 horsemen, stationed in chariot cities or at Jerusalem with the king.(A)
26 And he ruled over [a]all the kings from the [Euphrates] River to the land of Philistia and to the frontier of Egypt.
27 The king made silver in Jerusalem as common as stones, and cedar wood as plentiful as sycamore trees in the lowlands.
28 And they imported horses for Solomon from Egypt and from all lands.
29 Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, from first to last, are they not written in the history of Nathan the prophet and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite and in the visions of Iddo the seer concerning Jeroboam the son of Nebat?
30 Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.
31 Then Solomon slept with his fathers; he was buried in the city of David his father. Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.
Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation