1 Rois 10

The queen of Sheba visits Solomon

¹The queen of Sheba heard of Solomon’s fame, a fame bound up with the name of the LORD, and she came to test him with difficult questions.^{a 2}She arrived in Jerusalem with a very large company, with camels carrying spices, a great quantity of gold, and precious stones. When she came to Solomon, she talked with him about everything she had on her mind. ³Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hidden for the king to explain to her. ⁴When the queen of Sheba saw the full extent of Solomon’s wisdom, and the palace he had built, ⁵the food on his table, the seating of his officials, the service of his attendants and their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he offered at the house of the LORD, she was left breathless.^{b 6}She said to the king, “It was true, the report that reached me in my own country about your words and your wisdom. ⁷But I did not believe what was said until I came and saw it with my own eyes. And indeed, I was not told even half. Your wisdom and prosperity go far beyond the report I heard. ⁸How happy your men must be! How happy are these officials of yours, who stand before you all the time and hear your wisdom!^{c 9}Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! Because the LORD loves Israel forever, he has made you king, to do justice and righteousness.” ¹⁰Then she gave the king about 9,000 pounds of gold, a very great quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again did such an abundance of spices come in as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon. ¹¹Hiram’s fleet, which carried gold from Ophir, also brought from Ophir a great quantity of almug wood and precious stones.^{d 12}The king used the almug wood to make supports for the house of the LORD and the royal palace, as well as lyres and harps for the singers. No such almug wood has come in again or been seen to this day.^{e 13}King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she desired and asked for, on top of the gifts he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she turned and went back to her own country, she and her servants.

Solomon’s wealth

¹⁴The weight of the gold that came to Solomon in one year was about 50,000 pounds of gold, ¹⁵not counting what came from the traveling traders and the business of the merchants, and from all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land.^{f 16}King Solomon made 200 large shields of beaten gold, with about 15 pounds of gold going into each shield. ¹⁷He also made 300 shields of beaten gold, with about 3 3/4 pounds of gold going into each shield. The king placed them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.^g

¹⁸Then the king made a great ivory throne and overlaid it with the finest gold. ¹⁹The throne had six steps, and the back of the throne had a rounded top. On either side of the seat were armrests, with two lions standing beside the armrests.^{h 20}Twelve lions stood there on the six steps, one at each end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any kingdom. ²¹All King Solomon’s drinking cups were gold, and all the utensils in the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. None were silver; in Solomon’s days silver was not thought of as anything. ²²For the king had a fleet of Tarshish ships at sea along with Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years the Tarshish ships would come in, bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes and peacocks.^{i 23}So King Solomon grew greater in riches and in wisdom than all the kings of the earth. ²⁴The whole earth sought an audience with Solomon, to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart. ²⁵Each of them brought a gift: articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons and spices, horses and mules, so much every year.

²⁶Solomon built up a force of 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.^{j 27}The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and he made cedar as plentiful as the sycamore-fig trees of the Shephelah. ²⁸Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue; the king’s traders bought them from Kue at the going price.^{kl 29}A chariot could be imported from Egypt for about 15 pounds of silver, and a horse for about 3 3/4 pounds. In the same way they exported them, through the king’s traders, to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.