Week
17
I
Kings 1-11
Solomon
Key
Verse I Kings 6: 12 12 “Concerning this house
that you are building, if you will walk in my statutes, obey my ordinances, and
keep all my commandments by walking in them, then I will establish my promise
with you, which I made to your father David.
1 King
David was old and advanced in years; and although they covered him with
clothes, he could not get warm. 2 So his
servants said to him, “Let a young virgin be sought for my lord the king, and
let her wait on the king, and be his attendant; let her lie in your bosom, so
that my lord the king may be warm.” 3 So they searched for a
beautiful girl throughout all the territory of Israel, and found Abishag the
Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4 The girl was very
beautiful. She became the king’s attendant and served him, but the king did not
know her sexually.
5 Now
Adonijah son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king”; he prepared
for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. 6 His father had never at
any time displeased him by asking, “Why have you done thus and so?” He was also
a very handsome man, and he was born next after Absalom. 7 He conferred with Joab
son of Zeruiah and with the priest Abiathar, and they supported Adonijah. 8 But the priest Zadok,
and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the prophet Nathan, and Shimei, and Rei, and
David’s own warriors did not side with Adonijah.
9 Adonijah
sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fatted cattle by the stone Zoheleth, which is
beside En-rogel, and he invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the
royal officials of Judah, 10 but he
did not invite the prophet Nathan or Benaiah or the warriors or his brother
Solomon.
11 Then
Nathan said to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, “Have you not heard that Adonijah
son of Haggith has become king and our lord David does not know it? 12 Now therefore come, let
me give you advice, so that you may save your own life and the life of your son
Solomon. 13 Go in
at once to King David, and say to him, ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear to
your servant, saying: Your son Solomon shall succeed me as king, and he shall
sit on my throne? Why then is Adonijah king?’ 14 Then while you are still
there speaking with the king, I will come in after you and confirm your words.”
15 So
Bathsheba went to the king in his room. The king was very old; Abishag the
Shunammite was attending the king. 16 Bathsheba bowed and did
obeisance to the king, and the king said, “What do you wish?” 17 She said to him, “My
lord, you swore to your servant by the Lord your God, saying: Your son Solomon shall
succeed me as king, and he shall sit on my throne. 18 But now suddenly
Adonijah has become king, though you, my lord the king, do not know it. 19 He has sacrificed oxen,
fatted cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the children of the
king, the priest Abiathar, and Joab the commander of the army; but your servant
Solomon he has not invited. 20 But
you, my lord the king—the eyes of all Israel are on you to tell them who shall
sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. 21 Otherwise it will come
to pass, when my lord the king sleeps with his ancestors, that my son Solomon
and I will be counted offenders.”
22 While
she was still speaking with the king, the prophet Nathan came in. 23 The king was told, “Here
is the prophet Nathan.” When he came in before the king, he did obeisance to
the king, with his face to the ground. 24 Nathan said, “My lord
the king, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall succeed me as king, and he shall sit
on my throne’? 25 For
today he has gone down and has sacrificed oxen, fatted cattle, and sheep in
abundance, and has invited all the king’s children, Joab the commander[a] of the army, and the priest Abiathar, who
are now eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ 26 But he did not invite
me, your servant, and the priest Zadok, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and your
servant Solomon. 27 Has
this thing been brought about by my lord the king and you have not let your
servants know who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
The Accession of Solomon
28 King
David answered, “Summon Bathsheba to me.” So she came into the king’s presence,
and stood before the king. 29 The
king swore, saying, “As the Lord lives, who has saved my life from every
adversity, 30 as I
swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel,
‘Your son Solomon shall succeed me as king, and he shall sit on my throne in my
place,’ so will I do this day.” 31 Then
Bathsheba bowed with her face to the ground, and did obeisance to the king, and
said, “May my lord King David live forever!”
32 King
David said, “Summon to me the priest Zadok, the prophet Nathan, and Benaiah son
of Jehoiada.” When they came before the king, 33 the king said to them,
“Take with you the servants of your lord, and have my son Solomon ride on my
own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. 34 There let the priest
Zadok and the prophet Nathan anoint him king over Israel; then blow the
trumpet, and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ 35 You shall go up
following him. Let him enter and sit on my throne; he shall be king in my
place; for I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.” 36 Benaiah son of Jehoiada
answered the king, “Amen! May the Lord, the God of my lord the
king, so ordain. 37 As the Lord has been with my lord the king, so may he
be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King
David.”
38 So the
priest Zadok, the prophet Nathan, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the
Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down and had Solomon ride on King David’s
mule, and led him to Gihon. 39 There
the priest Zadok took the horn of oil from the tent and anointed Solomon. Then
they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!” 40 And all the people went
up following him, playing on pipes and rejoicing with great joy, so that the
earth quaked at their noise.
41 Adonijah
and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished feasting. When
Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “Why is the city in an uproar?”42 While
he was still speaking, Jonathan son of the priest Abiathar arrived. Adonijah
said, “Come in, for you are a worthy man and surely you bring good news.” 43 Jonathan answered Adonijah,
“No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king; 44 the king has sent with
him the priest Zadok, the prophet Nathan, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the
Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they had him ride on the king’s mule; 45 the priest Zadok and the
prophet Nathan have anointed him king at Gihon; and they have gone up from
there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you
heard. 46 Solomon
now sits on the royal throne. 47 Moreover
the king’s servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘May God
make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater
than your throne.’ The king bowed in worship on the bed 48 and went on to pray
thus, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who
today has granted one of my offspring[b] to sit on my throne and permitted me to
witness it.’”
49 Then
all the guests of Adonijah got up trembling and went their own ways.50 Adonijah,
fearing Solomon, got up and went to grasp the horns of the altar.51 Solomon
was informed, “Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon; see, he has laid hold of the
horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will
not kill his servant with the sword.’” 52 So Solomon responded,
“If he proves to be a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the
ground; but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.” 53 Then King Solomon sent
to have him brought down from the altar. He came to do obeisance to King
Solomon; and Solomon said to him, “Go home.”
David’s Instruction to
Solomon
2 When
David’s time to die drew near, he charged his son Solomon, saying: 2 “I am about to go the
way of all the earth. Be strong, be courageous, 3 and keep the charge of
the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping
his statutes, his commandments, his ordinances, and his testimonies, as it is
written in the law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all that you do and
wherever you turn. 4 Then
the Lord will establish his word that he spoke
concerning me: ‘If your heirs take heed to their way, to walk before me in
faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail
you a successor on the throne of Israel.’
5 “Moreover
you know also what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me, how he dealt with the two
commanders of the armies of Israel, Abner son of Ner, and Amasa son of Jether,
whom he murdered, retaliating in time of peace for blood that had been shed in
war, and putting the blood of war on the belt around his waist, and on the
sandals on his feet. 6 Act
therefore according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to
Sheol in peace. 7 Deal
loyally, however, with the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be
among those who eat at your table; for with such loyalty they met me when I
fled from your brother Absalom. 8 There
is also with you Shimei son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim, who cursed
me with a terrible curse on the day when I went to Mahanaim; but when he came
down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by theLord, ‘I
will not put you to death with the sword.’ 9 Therefore do not hold
him guiltless, for you are a wise man; you will know what you ought to do to
him, and you must bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol.”
Death of David
10 Then
David slept with his ancestors, and was buried in the city of David. 11 The time that David
reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and
thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 12 So Solomon sat on the
throne of his father David; and his kingdom was firmly established.
Solomon Consolidates His
Reign
13 Then
Adonijah son of Haggith came to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother. She asked, “Do you
come peaceably?” He said, “Peaceably.” 14 Then he said, “May I
have a word with you?” She said, “Go on.” 15 He said, “You know that
the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel expected me to reign; however, the
kingdom has turned about and become my brother’s, for it was his from the Lord. 16 And now I have one
request to make of you; do not refuse me.” She said to him, “Go on.” 17 He said, “Please ask
King Solomon—he will not refuse you—to give me Abishag the Shunammite as my
wife.” 18 Bathsheba
said, “Very well; I will speak to the king on your behalf.”
19 So
Bathsheba went to King Solomon, to speak to him on behalf of Adonijah. The king
rose to meet her, and bowed down to her; then he sat on his throne, and had a
throne brought for the king’s mother, and she sat on his right. 20 Then she said, “I have
one small request to make of you; do not refuse me.” And the king said to her,
“Make your request, my mother; for I will not refuse you.” 21 She said, “Let Abishag
the Shunammite be given to your brother Adonijah as his wife.” 22 King Solomon answered
his mother, “And why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Ask for
him the kingdom as well! For he is my elder brother; ask not only for him but
also for the priest Abiathar and for Joab son of Zeruiah!” 23 Then King Solomon swore
by the Lord, “So
may God do to me, and more also, for Adonijah has devised this scheme at the
risk of his life! 24 Now
therefore as the Lord lives, who has established me and placed me
on the throne of my father David, and who has made me a house as he promised,
today Adonijah shall be put to death.” 25 So King Solomon sent
Benaiah son of Jehoiada; he struck him down, and he died.
26 The
king said to the priest Abiathar, “Go to Anathoth, to your estate; for you
deserve death. But I will not at this time put you to death, because you
carried the ark of the Lord God before my father David, and because you
shared in all the hardships my father endured.” 27 So Solomon banished
Abiathar from being priest to the Lord, thus fulfilling the
word of the Lord that he had spoken concerning the house of
Eli in Shiloh.
28 When
the news came to Joab—for Joab had supported Adonijah though he had not
supported Absalom—Joab fled to the tent of the Lord and grasped the horns of the altar. 29 When it was told King
Solomon, “Joab has fled to the tent of the Lord and now is beside the altar,” Solomon sent
Benaiah son of Jehoiada, saying, “Go, strike him down.” 30 So Benaiah came to the
tent of the Lord and said to him, “The king commands, ‘Come
out.’” But he said, “No, I will die here.” Then Benaiah brought the king word
again, saying, “Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me.” 31 The king replied to him,
“Do as he has said, strike him down and bury him; and thus take away from me
and from my father’s house the guilt for the blood that Joab shed without cause. 32 TheLord will bring back his bloody deeds on his own
head, because, without the knowledge of my father David, he attacked and killed
with the sword two men more righteous and better than himself, Abner son of
Ner, commander of the army of Israel, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of the
army of Judah. 33 So
shall their blood come back on the head of Joab and on the head of his
descendants forever; but to David, and to his descendants, and to his house,
and to his throne, there shall be peace from the Lordforevermore.” 34 Then Benaiah son of
Jehoiada went up and struck him down and killed him; and he was buried at his
own house near the wilderness. 35 The
king put Benaiah son of Jehoiada over the army in his place, and the king put
the priest Zadok in the place of Abiathar.
36 Then
the king sent and summoned Shimei, and said to him, “Build yourself a house in
Jerusalem, and live there, and do not go out from there to any place whatever. 37 For on the day you go
out, and cross the Wadi Kidron, know for certain that you shall die; your blood
shall be on your own head.” 38 And
Shimei said to the king, “The sentence is fair; as my lord the king has said,
so will your servant do.” So Shimei lived in Jerusalem many days.
39 But it
happened at the end of three years that two of Shimei’s slaves ran away to King
Achish son of Maacah of Gath. When it was told Shimei, “Your slaves are in
Gath,”40 Shimei
arose and saddled a donkey, and went to Achish in Gath, to search for his
slaves; Shimei went and brought his slaves from Gath. 41 When Solomon was told
that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and returned, 42 the king sent and
summoned Shimei, and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by the Lord, and solemnly adjure
you, saying, ‘Know for certain that on the day you go out and go to any place
whatever, you shall die’? And you said to me, ‘The sentence is fair; I accept.’ 43 Why then have you not
kept your oath to the Lord and the commandment with which I charged
you?”44 The
king also said to Shimei, “You know in your own heart all the evil that you did
to my father David; so the Lord will bring back your evil on your own head. 45 But King Solomon shall
be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the Lordforever.” 46 Then the king commanded
Benaiah son of Jehoiada; and he went out and struck him down, and he died.
So the
kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
Solomon’s Prayer for
Wisdom
3 Solomon
made a marriage alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt; he took Pharaoh’s daughter
and brought her into the city of David, until he had finished building his own
house and the house of the Lord and the wall around Jerusalem. 2 The people were sacrificing
at the high places, however, because no house had yet been built for the name
of the Lord.
3 Solomon
loved the Lord, walking in the
statutes of his father David; only, he sacrificed and offered incense at the
high places. 4 The
king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the principal high place;
Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5 At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night;
and God said, “Ask what I should give you.” 6 And Solomon said, “You
have shown great and steadfast love to your servant my father David, because he
walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of
heart toward you; and you have kept for him this great and steadfast love, and
have given him a son to sit on his throne today. 7 And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in
place of my father David, although I am only a little child; I do not know how
to go out or come in. 8 And
your servant is in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a great
people, so numerous they cannot be numbered or counted. 9 Give your servant
therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between
good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?”
10 It
pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. 11 God said to him,
“Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or
riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself
understanding to discern what is right, 12 I now do according to
your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no one like you has
been before you and no one like you shall arise after you. 13 I give you also what you
have not asked, both riches and honor all your life; no other king shall
compare with you. 14 If you
will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father
David walked, then I will lengthen your life.”
15 Then
Solomon awoke; it had been a dream. He came to Jerusalem where he stood before
the ark of the covenant of the Lord. He offered up burnt
offerings and offerings of well-being, and provided a feast for all his
servants.
Solomon’s Wisdom in
Judgment
16 Later,
two women who were prostitutes came to the king and stood before him.17 The one
woman said, “Please, my lord, this woman and I live in the same house; and I
gave birth while she was in the house. 18 Then on the third day
after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. We were together; there was no
one else with us in the house, only the two of us were in the house. 19 Then this woman’s son
died in the night, because she lay on him. 20 She got up in the middle
of the night and took my son from beside me while your servant slept. She laid
him at her breast, and laid her dead son at my breast. 21 When I rose in the morning
to nurse my son, I saw that he was dead; but when I looked at him closely in
the morning, clearly it was not the son I had borne.”22 But the
other woman said, “No, the living son is mine, and the dead son is yours.” The
first said, “No, the dead son is yours, and the living son is mine.” So they
argued before the king.
23 Then
the king said, “The one says, ‘This is my son that is alive, and your son is
dead’; while the other says, ‘Not so! Your son is dead, and my son is the
living one.’”24 So the king said, “Bring
me a sword,” and they brought a sword before the king.25 The
king said, “Divide the living boy in two; then give half to the one, and half
to the other.” 26 But the
woman whose son was alive said to the king—because compassion for her son burned
within her—“Please, my lord, give her the living boy; certainly do not kill
him!” The other said, “It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it.” 27 Then the king responded:
“Give the first woman the living boy; do not kill him. She is his mother.”28 All
Israel heard of the judgment that the king had rendered; and they stood in awe
of the king, because they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him, to
execute justice.
Solomon’s Administrative
Officers
4 King
Solomon was king over all Israel, 2 and these were his high
officials: Azariah son of Zadok was the priest; 3 Elihoreph and Ahijah
sons of Shisha were secretaries; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was recorder; 4 Benaiah son of Jehoiada
was in command of the army; Zadok and Abiathar were priests; 5 Azariah son of Nathan
was over the officials; Zabud son of Nathan was priest and king’s friend; 6 Ahishar was in charge of
the palace; and Adoniram son of Abda was in charge of the forced labor.
7 Solomon
had twelve officials over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his
household; each one had to make provision for one month in the year. 8 These were their names:
Ben-hur, in the hill country of Ephraim; 9 Ben-deker, in Makaz,
Shaalbim, Beth-shemesh, and Elon-beth-hanan; 10 Ben-hesed, in Arubboth (to
him belonged Socoh and all the land of Hepher); 11 Ben-abinadab, in all
Naphath-dor (he had Taphath, Solomon’s daughter, as his wife); 12 Baana son of Ahilud, in
Taanach, Megiddo, and all Beth-shean, which is beside Zarethan below Jezreel,
and from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, as far as the other side of Jokmeam; 13 Ben-geber, in
Ramoth-gilead (he had the villages of Jair son of Manasseh, which are in
Gilead, and he had the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty great cities
with walls and bronze bars); 14 Ahinadab
son of Iddo, in Mahanaim; 15 Ahimaaz,
in Naphtali (he had taken Basemath, Solomon’s daughter, as his wife); 16 Baana son of Hushai, in
Asher and Bealoth; 17 Jehoshaphat
son of Paruah, in Issachar; 18 Shimei
son of Ela, in Benjamin; 19 Geber
son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the country of King Sihon of the Amorites
and of King Og of Bashan. And there was one official in the land of Judah.
Magnificence of
Solomon’s Rule
20 Judah
and Israel were as numerous as the sand by the sea; they ate and drank and were
happy. 21 [c] Solomon was sovereign over all the kingdoms
from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, even to the border of Egypt;
they brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life.
22 Solomon’s
provision for one day was thirty cors of choice flour, and sixty cors of meal,23 ten fat
oxen, and twenty pasture-fed cattle, one hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles,
roebucks, and fatted fowl. 24 For he
had dominion over all the region west of the Euphrates from Tiphsah to Gaza,
over all the kings west of the Euphrates; and he had peace on all sides. 25 During Solomon’s
lifetime Judah and Israel lived in safety, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, all of
them under their vines and fig trees. 26 Solomon also had forty
thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. 27 Those officials supplied
provisions for King Solomon and for all who came to King Solomon’s table, each
one in his month; they let nothing be lacking. 28 They also brought to the
required place barley and straw for the horses and swift steeds, each according
to his charge.
Fame of Solomon’s Wisdom
29 God
gave Solomon very great wisdom, discernment, and breadth of understanding as
vast as the sand on the seashore, 30 so that Solomon’s wisdom
surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east, and all the wisdom of
Egypt. 31 He was
wiser than anyone else, wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Calcol, and
Darda, children of Mahol; his fame spread throughout all the surrounding
nations. 32 He
composed three thousand proverbs, and his songs numbered a thousand and five. 33 He would speak of trees,
from the cedar that is in the Lebanon to the hyssop that grows in the wall; he
would speak of animals, and birds, and reptiles, and fish. 34 People came from all the
nations to hear the wisdom of Solomon; they came from all the kings of the
earth who had heard of his wisdom.
Preparations and
Materials for the Temple
5 [d] Now King Hiram of Tyre sent his servants to
Solomon, when he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father;
for Hiram had always been a friend to David. 2 Solomon sent word to
Hiram, saying, 3 “You
know that my father David could not build a house for the name of the Lord his God because of the warfare with which
his enemies surrounded him, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet.[e] 4 But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side;
there is neither adversary nor misfortune. 5 So I intend to build a
house for the name of the Lord my God, as the Lordsaid to my father David,
‘Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, shall build the house
for my name.’ 6 Therefore
command that cedars from the Lebanon be cut for me. My servants will join your
servants, and I will give you whatever wages you set for your servants; for you
know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut timber like the
Sidonians.”
7 When
Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly, and said, “Blessed be
the Lord today, who has given to David a wise son to
be over this great people.”8 Hiram sent word to
Solomon, “I have heard the message that you have sent to me; I will fulfill all
your needs in the matter of cedar and cypress timber. 9 My servants shall bring
it down to the sea from the Lebanon; I will make it into rafts to go by sea to
the place you indicate. I will have them broken up there for you to take away.
And you shall meet my needs by providing food for my household.” 10 So Hiram supplied
Solomon’s every need for timber of cedar and cypress. 11 Solomon in turn gave
Hiram twenty thousand cors of wheat as food for his household, and twenty cors
of fine oil. Solomon gave this to Hiram year by year. 12 So the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him.
There was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and the two of them made a treaty.
13 King
Solomon conscripted forced labor out of all Israel; the levy numbered thirty
thousand men. 14 He sent
them to the Lebanon, ten thousand a month in shifts; they would be a month in
the Lebanon and two months at home; Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor. 15 Solomon also had seventy
thousand laborers and eighty thousand stonecutters in the hill country, 16 besides Solomon’s three
thousand three hundred supervisors who were over the work, having charge of the
people who did the work.17 At the king’s command,
they quarried out great, costly stones in order to lay the foundation of the
house with dressed stones. 18 So
Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the Gebalites did the stonecutting
and prepared the timber and the stone to build the house.
Solomon Builds the Temple
6 In the
four hundred eightieth year after the Israelites came out of the land of Egypt,
in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which
is the second month, he began to build the house of the Lord. 2 The house that King
Solomon built for the Lord was sixty cubits long, twenty cubits wide,
and thirty cubits high. 3 The
vestibule in front of the nave of the house was twenty cubits wide, across the
width of the house. Its depth was ten cubits in front of the house. 4 For the house he made
windows with recessed frames.[f] 5 He also built a
structure against the wall of the house, running around the walls of the house,
both the nave and the inner sanctuary; and he made side chambers all around. 6 The lowest story[g] was five cubits wide, the middle one was
six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for around the outside of
the house he made offsets on the wall in order that the supporting beams should
not be inserted into the walls of the house.
7 The
house was built with stone finished at the quarry, so that neither hammer nor
ax nor any tool of iron was heard in the temple while it was being built.
8 The
entrance for the middle story was on the south side of the house: one went up
by winding stairs to the middle story, and from the middle story to the third. 9 So he built the house,
and finished it; he roofed the house with beams and planks of cedar. 10 He built the structure
against the whole house, each story[h] five cubits high, and it was joined to the
house with timbers of cedar.
11 Now the
word of the Lord came to Solomon, 12 “Concerning this house
that you are building, if you will walk in my statutes, obey my ordinances, and
keep all my commandments by walking in them, then I will establish my promise
with you, which I made to your father David. 13 I will dwell among the
children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.”
14 So
Solomon built the house, and finished it. 15 He lined the walls of
the house on the inside with boards of cedar; from the floor of the house to
the rafters of the ceiling, he covered them on the inside with wood; and he
covered the floor of the house with boards of cypress. 16 He built twenty cubits of
the rear of the house with boards of cedar from the floor to the rafters, and
he built this within as an inner sanctuary, as the most holy place. 17 The house, that is, the
nave in front of the inner sanctuary, was forty cubits long. 18 The cedar within the
house had carvings of gourds and open flowers; all was cedar, no stone was
seen. 19 The
inner sanctuary he prepared in the innermost part of the house, to set there
the ark of the covenant of the Lord. 20 The interior of the
inner sanctuary was twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits
high; he overlaid it with pure gold. He also overlaid the altar with cedar.[i]21 Solomon
overlaid the inside of the house with pure gold, then he drew chains of gold
across, in front of the inner sanctuary, and overlaid it with gold. 22 Next he overlaid the
whole house with gold, in order that the whole house might be perfect; even the
whole altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary he overlaid with gold.
The Furnishings of the
Temple
23 In the
inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olivewood, each ten cubits high.24 Five
cubits was the length of one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the length of
the other wing of the cherub; it was ten cubits from the tip of one wing to the
tip of the other. 25 The
other cherub also measured ten cubits; both cherubim had the same measure and
the same form. 26 The
height of one cherub was ten cubits, and so was that of the other cherub. 27 He put the cherubim in
the innermost part of the house; the wings of the cherubim were spread out so
that a wing of one was touching the one wall, and a wing of the other cherub
was touching the other wall; their other wings toward the center of the house
were touching wing to wing. 28 He also
overlaid the cherubim with gold.
29 He
carved the walls of the house all around about with carved engravings of
cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, in the inner and outer rooms. 30 The floor of the house
he overlaid with gold, in the inner and outer rooms.
31 For the
entrance to the inner sanctuary he made doors of olivewood; the lintel and the
doorposts were five-sided.[j] 32 He covered the two doors
of olivewood with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers; he
overlaid them with gold, and spread gold on the cherubim and on the palm trees.
33 So also
he made for the entrance to the nave doorposts of olivewood, four-sided each, 34 and two doors of cypress
wood; the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the
other door were folding. 35 He
carved cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, overlaying them with gold evenly
applied upon the carved work. 36 He
built the inner court with three courses of dressed stone to one course of
cedar beams.
37 In the
fourth year the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid, in the month of Ziv. 38 In the eleventh year, in
the month of Bul, which is the eighth month, the house was finished in all its
parts, and according to all its specifications. He was seven years in building
it.
Solomon’s Palace and
Other Buildings
7 Solomon
was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished his entire house.
2 He
built the House of the Forest of the Lebanon one hundred cubits long, fifty
cubits wide, and thirty cubits high, built on four rows of cedar pillars, with
cedar beams on the pillars. 3 It was
roofed with cedar on the forty-five rafters, fifteen in each row, which were on
the pillars. 4 There
were window frames in the three rows, facing each other in the three rows. 5 All the doorways and
doorposts had four-sided frames, opposite, facing each other in the three rows.
6 He made
the Hall of Pillars fifty cubits long and thirty cubits wide. There was a porch
in front with pillars, and a canopy in front of them.
7 He made
the Hall of the Throne where he was to pronounce judgment, the Hall of Justice,
covered with cedar from floor to floor.
8 His own
house where he would reside, in the other court back of the hall, was of the
same construction. Solomon also made a house like this hall for Pharaoh’s
daughter, whom he had taken in marriage.
9 All
these were made of costly stones, cut according to measure, sawed with saws,
back and front, from the foundation to the coping, and from outside to the
great court.10 The foundation was of
costly stones, huge stones, stones of eight and ten cubits.11 There
were costly stones above, cut to measure, and cedarwood. 12 The great court had
three courses of dressed stone to one layer of cedar beams all around; so had
the inner court of the house of the Lord, and the vestibule of
the house.
Products of Hiram the
Bronzeworker
13 Now
King Solomon invited and received Hiram from Tyre. 14 He was the son of a
widow of the tribe of Naphtali, whose father, a man of Tyre, had been an
artisan in bronze; he was full of skill, intelligence, and knowledge in working
bronze. He came to King Solomon, and did all his work.
15 He cast
two pillars of bronze. Eighteen cubits was the height of the one, and a cord of
twelve cubits would encircle it; the second pillar was the same.[k] 16 He also made two
capitals of molten bronze, to set on the tops of the pillars; the height of the
one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five
cubits. 17 There
were nets of checker work with wreaths of chain work for the capitals on the
tops of the pillars; seven[l] for the one capital, and seven[m] for the other capital. 18 He made the columns with
two rows around each latticework to cover the capitals that were above the
pomegranates; he did the same with the other capital. 19 Now the capitals that
were on the tops of the pillars in the vestibule were of lily-work, four cubits
high. 20 The
capitals were on the two pillars and also above the rounded projection that was
beside the latticework; there were two hundred pomegranates in rows all around;
and so with the other capital. 21 He set
up the pillars at the vestibule of the temple; he set up the pillar on the
south and called it Jachin; and he set up the pillar on the north and called it
Boaz. 22 On the
tops of the pillars was lily-work. Thus the work of the pillars was finished.
23 Then he
made the molten sea; it was round, ten cubits from brim to brim, and five
cubits high. A line of thirty cubits would encircle it completely. 24 Under its brim were
panels all around it, each of ten cubits, surrounding the sea; there were two
rows of panels, cast when it was cast. 25 It stood on twelve oxen,
three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing
east; the sea was set on them. The hindquarters of each were toward the inside. 26 Its thickness was a
handbreadth; its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a
lily; it held two thousand baths.[n]
27 He also
made the ten stands of bronze; each stand was four cubits long, four cubits
wide, and three cubits high. 28 This
was the construction of the stands: they had borders; the borders were within
the frames; 29 on the
borders that were set in the frames were lions, oxen, and cherubim. On the
frames, both above and below the lions and oxen, there were wreaths of beveled
work. 30 Each
stand had four bronze wheels and axles of bronze; at the four corners were
supports for a basin. The supports were cast with wreaths at the side of each. 31 Its opening was within
the crown whose height was one cubit; its opening was round, as a pedestal is
made; it was a cubit and a half wide. At its opening there were carvings; its
borders were four-sided, not round. 32 The four wheels were
underneath the borders; the axles of the wheels were in the stands; and the
height of a wheel was a cubit and a half. 33 The wheels were made
like a chariot wheel; their axles, their rims, their spokes, and their hubs
were all cast.34 There were four supports
at the four corners of each stand; the supports were of one piece with the
stands. 35 On the
top of the stand there was a round band half a cubit high; on the top of the
stand, its stays and its borders were of one piece with it. 36 On the surfaces of its
stays and on its borders he carved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, where each
had space, with wreaths all around. 37 In this way he made the
ten stands; all of them were cast alike, with the same size and the same form.
38 He made
ten basins of bronze; each basin held forty baths,[o] each basin measured four cubits; there was
a basin for each of the ten stands. 39 He set five of the
stands on the south side of the house, and five on the north side of the house;
he set the sea on the southeast corner of the house.
40 Hiram
also made the pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Hiram finished all the work
that he did for King Solomon on the house of the Lord: 41 the two pillars, the two
bowls of the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars, the two
latticeworks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the tops of
the pillars; 42 the
four hundred pomegranates for the two latticeworks, two rows of pomegranates
for each latticework, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the
pillars; 43 the ten
stands, the ten basins on the stands; 44 the one sea, and the
twelve oxen underneath the sea.
45 The
pots, the shovels, and the basins, all these vessels that Hiram made for King
Solomon for the house of the Lord were of burnished bronze. 46 In the plain of the
Jordan the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan.47 Solomon
left all the vessels unweighed, because there were so many of them; the weight
of the bronze was not determined.
48 So
Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of the Lord: the golden altar, the
golden table for the bread of the Presence, 49 the lampstands of pure
gold, five on the south side and five on the north, in front of the inner
sanctuary; the flowers, the lamps, and the tongs, of gold; 50 the cups, snuffers,
basins, dishes for incense, and firepans, of pure gold; the sockets for the
doors of the innermost part of the house, the most holy place, and for the
doors of the nave of the temple, of gold.
51 Thus
all the work that King Solomon did on the house of the Lord was finished. Solomon brought in the things
that his father David had dedicated, the silver, the gold, and the vessels, and
stored them in the treasuries of the house of the Lord.
Dedication of the Temple
8 Then
Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the
leaders of the ancestral houses of the Israelites, before King Solomon in
Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion. 2 All the people of Israel
assembled to King Solomon at the festival in the month Ethanim, which is the
seventh month. 3 And all
the elders of Israel came, and the priests carried the ark. 4 So they brought up the
ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting,
and all the holy vessels that were in the tent; the priests and the Levites
brought them up. 5 King
Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, who had assembled before him, were
with him before the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and oxen that they could not
be counted or numbered. 6 Then
the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, in the inner sanctuary of the
house, in the most holy place, underneath the wings of the cherubim. 7 For the cherubim spread
out their wings over the place of the ark, so that the cherubim made a covering
above the ark and its poles. 8 The
poles were so long that the ends of the poles were seen from the holy place in
front of the inner sanctuary; but they could not be seen from outside; they are
there to this day. 9 There
was nothing in the ark except the two tablets of stone that Moses had placed
there at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites, when
they came out of the land of Egypt. 10 And when the priests
came out of the holy place, a cloud filled the house of the Lord, 11 so that the priests
could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord.
12 Then
Solomon said,
“The Lord has said that he would dwell in thick darkness.
13 I have built you an exalted house,
a place for you to dwell in forever.”
13 I have built you an exalted house,
a place for you to dwell in forever.”
Solomon’s Speech
14 Then
the king turned around and blessed all the assembly of Israel, while all the
assembly of Israel stood. 15 He
said, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who
with his hand has fulfilled what he promised with his mouth to my father David,
saying,16 ‘Since
the day that I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city
from any of the tribes of Israel in which to build a house, that my name might
be there; but I chose David to be over my people Israel.’ 17 My father David had it
in mind to build a house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 18 But the Lord said to my father David, ‘You did well to
consider building a house for my name; 19 nevertheless you shall
not build the house, but your son who shall be born to you shall build the
house for my name.’ 20 Now the Lord has upheld the promise that he made; for I
have risen in the place of my father David; I sit on the throne of Israel, as
the Lordpromised,
and have built the house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 21 There I have provided a
place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with our ancestors when he
brought them out of the land of Egypt.”
Solomon’s Prayer of
Dedication
22 Then
Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of
Israel, and spread out his hands to heaven. 23 He said, “O Lord, God of Israel, there
is no God like you in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and
steadfast love for your servants who walk before you with all their heart, 24 the covenant that you
kept for your servant my father David as you declared to him; you promised with
your mouth and have this day fulfilled with your hand. 25 Therefore, OLord, God of Israel, keep
for your servant my father David that which you promised him, saying, ‘There
shall never fail you a successor before me to sit on the throne of Israel, if
only your children look to their way, to walk before me as you have walked
before me.’ 26 Therefore,
O God of Israel, let your word be confirmed, which you promised to your servant
my father David.
27 “But
will God indeed dwell on the earth? Even heaven and the highest heaven cannot
contain you, much less this house that I have built! 28 Regard your servant’s
prayer and his plea, O Lord my God, heeding the cry and the prayer that
your servant prays to you today; 29 that your eyes may be
open night and day toward this house, the place of which you said, ‘My name
shall be there,’ that you may heed the prayer that your servant prays toward
this place. 30 Hear
the plea of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this
place; O hear in heaven your dwelling place; heed and forgive.
31 “If
someone sins against a neighbor and is given an oath to swear, and comes and
swears before your altar in this house, 32 then hear in heaven, and
act, and judge your servants, condemning the guilty by bringing their conduct
on their own head, and vindicating the righteous by rewarding them according to
their righteousness.
33 “When
your people Israel, having sinned against you, are defeated before an enemy but
turn again to you, confess your name, pray and plead with you in this house, 34 then hear in heaven,
forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them again to the land that
you gave to their ancestors.
35 “When
heaven is shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against you,
and then they pray toward this place, confess your name, and turn from their
sin, because you punish[p] them, 36 then hear in heaven, and
forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel, when you teach them the
good way in which they should walk; and grant rain on your land, which you have
given to your people as an inheritance.
37 “If
there is famine in the land, if there is plague, blight, mildew, locust, or
caterpillar; if their enemy besieges them in any[q] of their cities; whatever plague, whatever
sickness there is; 38 whatever
prayer, whatever plea there is from any individual or from all your people
Israel, all knowing the afflictions of their own hearts so that they stretch
out their hands toward this house; 39 then hear in heaven your
dwelling place, forgive, act, and render to all whose hearts you know—according
to all their ways, for only you know what is in every human heart— 40 so that they may fear
you all the days that they live in the land that you gave to our ancestors.
41 “Likewise
when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes from a distant land
because of your name 42 —for
they shall hear of your great name, your mighty hand, and your outstretched
arm—when a foreigner comes and prays toward this house,43 then
hear in heaven your dwelling place, and do according to all that the foreigner
calls to you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear
you, as do your people Israel, and so that they may know that your name has
been invoked on this house that I have built.
44 “If
your people go out to battle against their enemy, by whatever way you shall
send them, and they pray to the Lord toward the city that you have chosen and
the house that I have built for your name, 45 then hear in heaven
their prayer and their plea, and maintain their cause.
46 “If
they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you are angry
with them and give them to an enemy, so that they are carried away captive to
the land of the enemy, far off or near; 47 yet if they come to
their senses in the land to which they have been taken captive, and repent, and
plead with you in the land of their captors, saying, ‘We have sinned, and have
done wrong; we have acted wickedly’; 48 if they repent with all
their heart and soul in the land of their enemies, who took them captive, and
pray to you toward their land, which you gave to their ancestors, the city that
you have chosen, and the house that I have built for your name; 49 then hear in heaven your
dwelling place their prayer and their plea, maintain their cause 50 and forgive your people
who have sinned against you, and all their transgressions that they have committed
against you; and grant them compassion in the sight of their captors, so that
they may have compassion on them 51 (for they are your
people and heritage, which you brought out of Egypt, from the midst of the
iron-smelter). 52 Let
your eyes be open to the plea of your servant, and to the plea of your people
Israel, listening to them whenever they call to you. 53 For you have separated
them from among all the peoples of the earth, to be your heritage, just as you
promised through Moses, your servant, when you brought our ancestors out of
Egypt, O Lord God.”
Solomon Blesses the
Assembly
54 Now
when Solomon finished offering all this prayer and this plea to the Lord, he arose from facing
the altar of the Lord, where he had knelt
with hands outstretched toward heaven; 55 he stood and blessed all
the assembly of Israel with a loud voice:
56 “Blessed
be the Lord, who
has given rest to his people Israel according to all that he promised; not one
word has failed of all his good promise, which he spoke through his servant
Moses. 57 The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our
ancestors; may he not leave us or abandon us, 58 but incline our hearts
to him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, his statutes,
and his ordinances, which he commanded our ancestors. 59 Let these words of mine,
with which I pleaded before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, and may he maintain
the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel, as each day
requires; 60 so that
all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God; there is no other. 61 Therefore devote
yourselves completely to the Lord our God, walking in his statutes and
keeping his commandments, as at this day.”
Solomon Offers Sacrifices
62 Then
the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before the Lord. 63 Solomon offered as
sacrifices of well-being to the Lord twenty-two thousand oxen and one hundred
twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the people of Israel dedicated the
house of the Lord. 64 The same day the king
consecrated the middle of the court that was in front of the house of the Lord; for there he offered
the burnt offerings and the grain offerings and the fat pieces of the
sacrifices of well-being, because the bronze altar that was before the Lord was too small to receive the burnt
offerings and the grain offerings and the fat pieces of the sacrifices of
well-being.
65 So
Solomon held the festival at that time, and all Israel with him—a great
assembly, people from Lebo-hamath to the Wadi of Egypt—before the Lord our God, seven days.[r]66 On the
eighth day he sent the people away; and they blessed the king, and went to
their tents, joyful and in good spirits because of all the goodness that the Lord had shown to his servant David and to his
people Israel.
God Appears Again to
Solomon
9 When
Solomon had finished building the house of the Lord and the king’s house and all that Solomon
desired to build, 2 the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time, as he
had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3 The Lord said to him, “I have heard your prayer and
your plea, which you made before me; I have consecrated this house that you
have built, and put my name there forever; my eyes and my heart will be there
for all time.4 As for you, if you will
walk before me, as David your father walked, with integrity of heart and
uprightness, doing according to all that I have commanded you, and keeping my
statutes and my ordinances, 5 then I
will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised your father
David, saying, ‘There shall not fail you a successor on the throne of Israel.’
6 “If you
turn aside from following me, you or your children, and do not keep my
commandments and my statutes that I have set before you, but go and serve other
gods and worship them, 7 then I
will cut Israel off from the land that I have given them; and the house that I
have consecrated for my name I will cast out of my sight; and Israel will
become a proverb and a taunt among all peoples. 8 This house will become a
heap of ruins;[s] everyone passing by it will be astonished,
and will hiss; and they will say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this
house?’ 9 Then
they will say, ‘Because they have forsaken the Lord their God, who brought their ancestors out
of the land of Egypt, and embraced other gods, worshiping them and serving
them; therefore the Lord has brought this disaster upon them.’”
10 At the
end of twenty years, in which Solomon had built the two houses, the house of
the Lord and the king’s house, 11 King Hiram of Tyre
having supplied Solomon with cedar and cypress timber and gold, as much as he
desired, King Solomon gave to Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. 12 But when Hiram came from
Tyre to see the cities that Solomon had given him, they did not please him. 13 Therefore he said, “What
kind of cities are these that you have given me, my brother?” So they are
called the land of Cabul[t] to this day. 14 But Hiram had sent to
the king one hundred twenty talents of gold.
Other Acts of Solomon
15 This is
the account of the forced labor that King Solomon conscripted to build the
house of the Lord and his own house, the Millo and the wall
of Jerusalem, Hazor, Megiddo, Gezer 16 (Pharaoh king of Egypt
had gone up and captured Gezer and burned it down, had killed the Canaanites
who lived in the city, and had given it as dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s
wife; 17 so
Solomon rebuilt Gezer), Lower Beth-horon, 18 Baalath, Tamar in the
wilderness, within the land, 19 as well
as all of Solomon’s storage cities, the cities for his chariots, the cities for
his cavalry, and whatever Solomon desired to build, in Jerusalem, in Lebanon,
and in all the land of his dominion. 20 All the people who were
left of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the
Jebusites, who were not of the people of Israel— 21 their descendants who
were still left in the land, whom the Israelites were unable to destroy
completely—these Solomon conscripted for slave labor, and so they are to this
day. 22 But of
the Israelites Solomon made no slaves; they were the soldiers, they were his
officials, his commanders, his captains, and the commanders of his chariotry
and cavalry.
23 These
were the chief officers who were over Solomon’s work: five hundred fifty, who
had charge of the people who carried on the work.
24 But
Pharaoh’s daughter went up from the city of David to her own house that Solomon
had built for her; then he built the Millo.
25 Three
times a year Solomon used to offer up burnt offerings and sacrifices of
well-being on the altar that he built for the Lord, offering incense[u] before the Lord. So he completed the
house.
Solomon’s Commercial
Activity
26 King
Solomon built a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber, which is near Eloth on the shore
of the Red Sea,[v] in the land of Edom. 27 Hiram sent his servants
with the fleet, sailors who were familiar with the sea, together with the
servants of Solomon. 28 They
went to Ophir, and imported from there four hundred twenty talents of gold,
which they delivered to King Solomon.
Visit of the Queen of
Sheba
10 When
the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon (fame due to[w] the name of the Lord), she came to test him with
hard questions. 2 She
came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels bearing spices, and
very much gold, and precious stones; and when she came to Solomon, she told him
all that was on her mind.3 Solomon answered all her
questions; there was nothing hidden from the king that he could not explain to
her. 4 When
the queen of Sheba had observed all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he
had built, 5 the
food of his table, the seating of his officials, and the attendance of his
servants, their clothing, his valets, and his burnt offerings that he offered
at the house of the Lord, there was no more
spirit in her.
6 So she
said to the king, “The report was true that I heard in my own land of your
accomplishments and of your wisdom, 7 but I did not believe
the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. Not even half had been
told me; your wisdom and prosperity far surpass the report that I had heard. 8 Happy are your wives![x] Happy are these your servants, who
continually attend you and hear your wisdom! 9 Blessed be theLord your God, who has delighted in you and set
you on the throne of Israel! Because the Lord loved Israel forever, he has made you king
to execute justice and righteousness.” 10 Then she gave the king
one hundred twenty talents of gold, a great quantity of spices, and precious
stones; never again did spices come in such quantity as that which the queen of
Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 Moreover,
the fleet of Hiram, which carried gold from Ophir, brought from Ophir a great quantity
of almug wood and precious stones. 12 From the almug wood the
king made supports for the house of the Lord, and for the king’s
house, lyres also and harps for the singers; no such almug wood has come or
been seen to this day.
13 Meanwhile
King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba every desire that she expressed, as
well as what he gave her out of Solomon’s royal bounty. Then she returned to
her own land, with her servants.
14 The
weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred sixty-six
talents of gold, 15 besides
that which came from the traders and from the business of the merchants, and
from all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land. 16 King Solomon made two
hundred large shields of beaten gold; six hundred shekels of gold went into
each large shield. 17 He made
three hundred shields of beaten gold; three minas of gold went into each
shield; and the king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon. 18 The king also made a
great ivory throne, and overlaid it with the finest gold. 19 The throne had six
steps. The top of the throne was rounded in the back, and on each side of the
seat were arm rests and two lions standing beside the arm rests,20 while
twelve lions were standing, one on each end of a step on the six steps. Nothing
like it was ever made in any kingdom. 21 All King Solomon’s
drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest
of Lebanon were of pure gold; none were of silver—it was not considered as
anything 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 used to come bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and
peacocks.[y]
23 Thus
King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. 24 The whole earth sought
the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind. 25 Every one of them
brought a present, objects of silver and gold, garments, weaponry, spices,
horses, and mules, so much year by year.
26 Solomon
gathered together chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and
twelve thousand horses, 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 he made cedars as
numerous as the sycamores of the Shephelah. 28 Solomon’s import of
horses was from Egypt and Kue, and the king’s traders received them from Kue at
a price. 29 A
chariot could be imported from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a
horse for one hundred fifty; so through the king’s traders they were exported
to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.
Solomon’s Errors
11 King
Solomon loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite,
Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women, 2 from the nations
concerning which the Lord had said to the Israelites, “You shall not
enter into marriage with them, neither shall they with you; for they will
surely incline your heart to follow their gods”; Solomon clung to these in
love. 3 Among
his wives were seven hundred princesses and three hundred concubines; and his
wives turned away his heart. 4 For
when Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his
heart was not true to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father
David. 5 For
Solomon followed Astarte the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom the
abomination of the Ammonites. 6 So
Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not completely
follow the Lord, as his father David
had done. 7 Then
Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Molech
the abomination of the Ammonites, on the mountain east of Jerusalem. 8 He did the same for all
his foreign wives, who offered incense and sacrificed to their gods.
9 Then
the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart
had turned away from theLord, the God of Israel, who
had appeared to him twice, 10 and had
commanded him concerning this matter, that he should not follow other gods; but
he did not observe what the Lord commanded. 11 Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this has been your
mind and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded
you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and give it to your servant. 12 Yet for the sake of your
father David I will not do it in your lifetime; I will tear it out of the hand
of your son. 13 I will
not, however, tear away the entire kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son,
for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have
chosen.”
Adversaries of Solomon
14 Then
the Lord raised up an adversary against Solomon,
Hadad the Edomite; he was of the royal house in Edom. 15 For when David was in
Edom, and Joab the commander of the army went up to bury the dead, he killed
every male in Edom 16 (for
Joab and all Israel remained there six months, until he had eliminated every
male in Edom); 17 but
Hadad fled to Egypt with some Edomites who were servants of his father. He was
a young boy at that time. 18 They
set out from Midian and came to Paran; they took people with them from Paran
and came to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave him a house, assigned him
an allowance of food, and gave him land. 19 Hadad found great favor
in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him his sister-in-law for a wife, the
sister of Queen Tahpenes. 20 The
sister of Tahpenes gave birth by him to his son Genubath, whom Tahpenes weaned
in Pharaoh’s house; Genubath was in Pharaoh’s house among the children of
Pharaoh. 21 When
Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his ancestors and that Joab the
commander of the army was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Let me depart, that I
may go to my own country.” 22 But
Pharaoh said to him, “What do you lack with me that you now seek to go to your
own country?” And he said, “No, do let me go.”
23 God raised
up another adversary against Solomon,[z] Rezon son of Eliada, who had fled from his
master, King Hadadezer of Zobah. 24 He gathered followers
around him and became leader of a marauding band, after the slaughter by David;
they went to Damascus, settled there, and made him king in Damascus. 25 He was an adversary of
Israel all the days of Solomon, making trouble as Hadad did; he despised Israel
and reigned over Aram.
Jeroboam’s Rebellion
26 Jeroboam
son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother’s
name was Zeruah, a widow, rebelled against the king. 27 The following was the
reason he rebelled against the king. Solomon built the Millo, and closed up the
gap in the wall[aa] of the city of his father David. 28 The man Jeroboam was
very able, and when Solomon saw that the young man was industrious he gave him
charge over all the forced labor of the house of Joseph. 29 About that time, when
Jeroboam was leaving Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him on
the road. Ahijah had clothed himself with a new garment. The two of them were
alone in the open country 30 when
Ahijah laid hold of the new garment he was wearing and tore it into twelve
pieces.31 He then
said to Jeroboam: Take for yourself ten pieces; for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel,
“See, I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon, and will give
you ten tribes. 32 One
tribe will remain his, for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of
Jerusalem, the city that I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.33 This is
because he has[ab] forsaken me, worshiped Astarte the goddess
of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites,
and has[ac] not walked in my ways, doing what is right
in my sight and keeping my statutes and my ordinances, as his father David did. 34 Nevertheless I will not
take the whole kingdom away from him but will make him ruler all the days of
his life, for the sake of my servant David whom I chose and who did keep my
commandments and my statutes;35 but I will take the
kingdom away from his son and give it to you—that is, the ten tribes. 36 Yet to his son I will give
one tribe, so that my servant David may always have a lamp before me in
Jerusalem, the city where I have chosen to put my name. 37 I will take you, and you
shall reign over all that your soul desires; you shall be king over Israel. 38 If you will listen to
all that I command you, walk in my ways, and do what is right in my sight by
keeping my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did, I will be
with you, and will build you an enduring house, as I built for David, and I
will give Israel to you. 39 For
this reason I will punish the descendants of David, but not forever.” 40 Solomon sought therefore
to kill Jeroboam; but Jeroboam promptly fled to Egypt, to King Shishak of
Egypt, and remained in Egypt until the death of Solomon.
Death of Solomon
41 Now the
rest of the acts of Solomon, all that he did as well as his wisdom, are they
not written in the Book of the Acts of Solomon? 42 The time that Solomon
reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years. 43 Solomon slept with his
ancestors and was buried in the city of his father David; and his son Rehoboam
succeeded him.