OET-RV 1KI Chapter 10

10 Now the queen from Sheva had heard a report about how Yahweh had blessed Shelomoh, and she came to test him with difficult questions.[ref] 2 She came to Yerushalem with lots of her top people, camels carrying spices and gemstones and a lot of gold. Then she went to Shelomoh and started asking him everything that had been on her mind. 3 He answered all her questions—there wasn’t any topic that he wasn’t able to shed light on. 4 When the queen from Sheva saw the extent of Shelomoh’s wisdom, the palace that he’d built, 5 the food on his table, the seating of his servants, the uniforms and the service of his waiters, and the burnt offerings that he sacrificed at Yahweh’s temple, she was totally lost for words.

6 She told the king, “Wow, everything that I heard about you back in my own country, and about how wise you are, is true. 7 I hadn’t believed it until I got here and saw it with my own eyes, but then I find that what I heard is only half of how incredible it is. Your wisdom and your goodness is way more than what I’d heard described. 8 Your men are so fortunate and especially your servants who’re always standing in front of you and able to hear the wise things that you say. 9 May your God Yahweh be blessed, who was pleased with you and placed you on Israel’s throne. He appointed you as king to rule them fairly and honestly because Yahweh loves Israel forever.”

10 Then the queen gave to king four tonnes of gold and very many spices and precious gemstones. Never again did King Shelomoh receive more spices than what the queen gave him that day.

11 King Hiram’s fleet also brought gold from Ofir as well as a lot of almug wood and precious gemstones. 12 The king used the almug timber to make railings[fn] for the temple and the palace, and lyres and harps for the musicians. Such a quantity and quality of almug wood has never again been brought in or seen in Israel to this day.

13 Then King Solomon gave the queen from Sheva everything she wanted—whatever she requested on top of what he had already given to her. Then she departed with her servants and returned to her country.

14 The amount of gold that came to Shelomoh in one year was around twenty-two tonnes, 15 not counting what came from explorers and traders, and all the Arab kings, and the governors of the land.

16 King Shelomoh had two hundred body shields made from beaten gold overlaid over wood—each shield took six kilograms of gold. 17 He also had three hundred smaller shields made—each of them covered with two kilograms of gold—and placed in his ‘Lebanon Forest Hall’.

18 The king had a large ivory throne made and overlaid with pure gold. 19 It had six steps going up to it and the seat-back was rounded at the top. It had armrests on both sides, then a lion on each side next to the armrests, 20 plus twelve lions standing one on each side of the six steps. There was nothing like it in any other kingdom.

21 All of Shelomoh’s cups were gold, and the various dishes in the ‘Lebanon Forest Hall’ were also pure gold. Nothing was made out of silver because it was considered to be of little value during Shelomoh’s time 22 because the king had a fleet of ships that joined King Hiram’s fleet. Every three years the fleet would return bringin gold and silver, ivory, monkeys and baboons.[fn]

23 King Shelomoh became richer and wiser than any other king in the world, 24 and even people from distant countries would come to see Shelomoh to listen to the wisdom that God had given him. 25 Every visitor would bring a gift: gold containers, clothes, weapons, spices, horses and mules. This continued year after year.

26 Shelomoh acquired 1,400 chariots and twelve thousand horsemen. He stationed most of them in his chariot cities and some with him there in Yerushalem.[ref] 27 While he was king, silver in Yerushalem was given a value similar to stones, and cedar timber was given a value like that of the sycamores that grow in plenty in the lowlands.[ref] 28 Shelomoh acquired horses from Egypt and from Kue—his traders would acquire them from Kue for the king for a price.[ref] 29 An Egyptian chariot went for six hundred silver coins and a horse for one hundred and fifty. Then they’d export them again to the Hittite and Aramean kings.