New King James Version

New Living Translation

The Queen of Sheba’s Praise of Solomon

Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to test him with hard questions.

1

Visit of the Queen of Sheba

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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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.

2

She arrived in Jerusalem 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.

3

So Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing [b]so difficult for the king that he could not explain it to her.

3

Solomon had answers for all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her.

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And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built,

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When the queen of Sheba realized how very wise Solomon was, and when she saw the palace he had built,

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the food on his table, the seating of his servants, the service of his waiters and their apparel, his cupbearers, and his entryway by which he went up to the house of the Lord, there was no more spirit in her.

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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 the burnt offerings Solomon made at the Temple of the LORD.

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Then she said to the king: “It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom.

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She exclaimed to the king, “Everything I heard in my country about your achievementsb and wisdom is true!

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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.

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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 it! Your wisdom and prosperity are far beyond what I was told.

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Happy are your men and happy are these your servants, who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom!

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How happy your peoplec must be! What a privilege for your officials to stand here day after day, listening to your wisdom!

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Blessed be the Lord your God, who delighted in you, setting you on the throne of Israel! Because the Lord has loved Israel forever, therefore He made you king, to do justice and righteousness.”

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Praise the LORD your God, who delights in you and has placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the LORD’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king so you can rule with justice and righteousness.”

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Then she 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.

10

Then she gave the king a gift of 9,000 poundsd of gold, great quantities of spices, and precious jewels. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

11

Also, the ships of Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, brought great quantities of [c]almug wood and precious stones from Ophir.

11

(In addition, Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir, and they also brought rich cargoes of red sandalwoode and precious jewels.

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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 almug wood, nor has the like been seen to this day.

12

The king used the sandalwood to make railings for the Temple of the LORD and the royal palace, and to construct lyres and harps for the musicians. Never before or since has there been such a supply of sandalwood.)

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.

13

King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba whatever she asked for, besides all the customary gifts he had so generously given. Then she and all her attendants returned to their own land.

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Solomon’s Great Wealth

The weight of gold that came to Solomon yearly was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold,

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Solomon’s Wealth and Splendor

Each year Solomon received about 25 tonsf of gold.

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besides that from the traveling merchants, from the income of traders, from all the kings of Arabia, and from the governors of the country.

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This did not include the additional revenue he received from merchants and traders, all the kings of Arabia, and the governors of the land.

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And King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels of gold went into each shield.

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King Solomon made 200 large shields of hammered gold, each weighing more than fifteen pounds.g

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He also made three hundred shields of hammered gold; three minas of gold went into each shield. The king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.

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He also made 300 smaller shields of hammered gold, each weighing nearly four pounds.h The king placed these shields in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.

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Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold.

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Then the king made a huge throne, decorated with ivory and overlaid with fine gold.

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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.

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The throne had six steps and a rounded back. There were armrests on both sides of the seat, and the figure of a lion stood on each side of the throne.

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Twelve lions stood there, one on each side of the six steps; nothing like this had been made for any other kingdom.

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There were also twelve other lions, one standing on each end of the six steps. No other throne in all the world could be compared with it!

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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.

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All of King Solomon’s drinking cups were solid gold, as were all the utensils in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. They were not made of silver, for silver was considered worthless in Solomon’s day!

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For the king had merchant[e] ships at sea with the fleet of Hiram. Once every three years the merchant ships came bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and [f]monkeys.

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The king had a fleet of trading ships of Tarshish that sailed with Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years the ships returned, loaded with gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.i

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So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.

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So King Solomon became richer and wiser than any other king on earth.

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Now all the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.

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People from every nation came to consult him and to hear the wisdom God had given him.

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Each man brought his present: articles of silver and gold, garments, armor, spices, horses, and mules, at a set rate year by year.

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Year after year everyone who visited brought him gifts of silver and gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.

26

And Solomon 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.

26

Solomon built up a huge force of chariots and horses.j He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses. He stationed some of them in the chariot cities and some near him in Jerusalem.

27

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.

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The king made silver as plentiful in Jerusalem as stone. And valuable cedar timber was as common as the sycamore-fig trees that grow in the foothills of Judah.k

28

Also Solomon had horses imported from Egypt and Keveh; the king’s merchants bought them in Keveh at the current price.

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Solomon’s horses were imported from Egyptl and from Ciliciam; the king’s traders acquired them from Cilicia at the standard price.

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Now a chariot that was imported from Egypt cost six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse one hundred and fifty; and [h]thus, through their agents, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.

29

At that time chariots from Egypt could be purchased for 600 pieces of silver,n and horses for 150 pieces of silver.o They were then exported to the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.

Parallel

New King James Version

New Living Translation

1 Kings 10

1 Kings 10