1 KingsChapter 10

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¹The queen of Sheba heard how famous Solomon was. She heard how his fame had to do with the name of the LORD. So she came to test him with hard questions. ²She came to Jerusalem with a very large group of travelers. Her camels carried spices, lots of gold, and precious stones. She came to Solomon and talked with him about everything that was on her mind. ³Solomon answered all her questions. Nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her. ⁴The queen of Sheba saw how wise Solomon was. She saw the palace he had built. ⁵She saw the food on his table and the way his officials sat. She saw how his servants served and what they wore. She saw his cupbearers. She saw the burnt offerings he gave at the house of the LORD. It took her breath away. ⁶She said to the king, "In my own country I heard about what you have said and how wise you are. It is all true! ⁷But I didn't believe it until I came and saw it with my own eyes. Really, I wasn't told even half of it! Your wisdom and riches are far greater than what I heard. ⁸How happy your men must be! How happy are these servants of yours! They always stand near you and hear your wisdom. ⁹Praise the LORD your God! He was pleased with you and put you on the throne of Israel. The LORD loves Israel forever. That's why he made you king, so you would do what is fair and right." ¹⁰Then she gave the king about 9,000 pounds of gold. She gave him lots of spices and precious stones too. No one ever again brought in as many spices as the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon.a ¹¹(Hiram's ships brought gold from Ophir. They also brought from Ophir large loads of almug wood and precious stones. ¹²The king used the almug wood to make steps for the house of the LORD and for the king's palace. He also made lyres and harps for the singers. No almug wood like that had ever come in before. None like it has been seen again to this day.) ¹³King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she wanted and asked for. This was on top of the gifts he had already given her out of his royal riches. Then she and her servants left and went back to her own country. ¹⁴Each year Solomon received about 50,000 pounds of gold.b ¹⁵This did not count the money from the merchants and traders. It also did not count what came from all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land. ¹⁶King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold. Each shield had about 15 pounds of gold in it.c ¹⁷He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold. Each one had almost 4 pounds of gold in it. The king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.d ¹⁸The king also made a large throne out of ivory. He covered it with pure gold. ¹⁹The throne had six steps. Its back was rounded at the top. The seat had armrests on both sides. A lion stood beside each armrest. ²⁰Twelve lions stood on the six steps. There was one at each end of every step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any kingdom. ²¹All of King Solomon's cups were made of gold. All the dishes and tools in the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. None were made of silver. In Solomon's days, silver was thought to be worth nothing. ²²The king had trading ships at sea, called ships of Tarshish. They sailed with Hiram's ships. Once every three years the ships came back. They carried gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. ²³So King Solomon was richer and wiser than all the other kings of the earth. ²⁴People from all over the world wanted to meet Solomon. They wanted to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart. ²⁵Year after year, each one who came brought a gift. They brought things made of silver and gold. They brought clothes, weapons, spices, horses, and mules. ²⁶Solomon gathered 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses. He kept them in the chariot cities. He also kept some with him in Jerusalem. ²⁷The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones. Cedar was as common as the sycamore trees in the hills to the west. ²⁸Solomon's horses were brought in from Egypt and Kue. The king's traders bought them from Kue. ²⁹They could buy a chariot from Egypt for about 15 pounds of silver. A horse cost almost 4 pounds of silver. They also sold them to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.e