2 Chronicles 1
1 And Solomon the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom, and the Lord his God was with him, and magnified him to a high degree.
David’s son [King] Solomon was able to gain complete control over his kingdom, because Yahweh his God helped him and enabled him to become very powerful.
2 And Solomon gave orders to all Israel, to the captains of thousands, and of hundreds, and to the rulers, and to the judges of all Israel, and the heads of the families:
[When] David [was king, he had arranged for a new] Sacred Tent [to be] made in Jerusalem. Then David [and the Israeli leaders] had brought God’s Sacred Chest from Kiriath-Jearim [city] to the new Sacred Tent in Jerusalem that he had prepared for it. But [when Solomon became the king, ] the first Sacred Tent was still at Gibeon [city]. That was the tent that Moses, the man who served God [well], had [arranged to be] made in the desert. And the bronze altar that Bezalel, the son of Uri and grandson of Hur, had made was also still in Gibeon, in front of the first Sacred Tent. [One day] Solomon summoned the army commanders of 1,000 soldiers and the commanders of 100 soldiers and the judges and all the other leaders in Israel. He told them to go with him to Gibeon. So they all went to a hill in Gibeon [where the Sacred Tent was], and Solomon and all the others with him worshiped Yahweh there.
3 And he went with all the multitude to the high place of Gabaon, where was the tabernacle of the covenant of the Lord, which Moses the servant of God made, in the wilderness.
4 For David had brought the ark of God from Cariathiarim to the place, which he had prepared for it, and where he had pitched a tabernacle for it, that is, in Jerusalem.
5 And the altar of brass, which Beseleel the son of Uri the son of Hur had made, was there before the tabernacle of the Lord: and Solomon and all the assembly sought it:
6 And Solomon went up thither to the brazen altar, before the tabernacle of the covenant of the Lord, and offered up on it a thousand victims.
Then Solomon went up to the bronze altar in front of the Sacred Tent, and he offered 1,000 animals to be [killed and] completely burned [on the altar].
7 And behold that night God appeared to him, saying: Ask what thou wilt that I should give thee.
That night God appeared to Solomon [in a dream] and said to him, “Request whatever you want me to give to you.”
8 And Solomon said to God: Thou hast shewn great kindness to my father David: and hast made me king in his stead.
Solomon replied, “You were very kind to David my father, and now you have appointed me to be the king to succeed him.
9 Now therefore, O Lord God, let thy word be fulfilled, which thou hast promised to David my father: for thou hast made me king over thy great people, which is as innumerable as the dust of the earth.
So Yahweh my God, you have caused me to become the king to rule people who are as many as the particles of dirt on the earth. So do what you promised my father David.
10 Give me wisdom and knowledge that I may come in and go out before thy people: for who can worthily judge this thy people, which is so great?
Please enable me to be wise and to know [what I should do], in order that I may rule these people [well], because there is no one who can rule all this great nation of yours [without your help].”
11 And God said to Solomon: Because this choice hath pleased thy heart, and thou hast not asked riches, and wealth, and glory, nor the lives of them that hate thee, nor many days of life: but hast asked wisdom and knowledge, to be able to judge my people, over which I have made thee king,
God replied, “[I am pleased with what] you desire; you have not requested a huge amount of money or to be honored or that your enemies be killed. And you have not requested that you live for a long time. Instead, you have requested that [I enable] you [to] be wise and [to] know [what you should do] in order that you may govern [well] my people whom I have appointed you to rule.
12 Wisdom and knowledge are granted to thee: and I will give thee riches, and wealth, and glory, so that none of the kings before thee, nor after thee, shall be like thee.
Therefore I will enable you to be wise and to know [what you should do to rule my people well]. But I will also enable you to have a huge amount of money and to be honored, more than anyone who was previously a king ever was honored, more than anyone who later becomes king will be honored.”
13 Then Solomon came from the high place of Gabaon to Jerusalem before the tabernacle of the covenant, and reigned over Israel.
Then Solomon [and the people who were with him all] left from being in front of he Sacred Tent [on the hill in Gibeon], and they returned to Jerusalem. From there he ruled the Israeli people.
14 And he gathered to himself chariots and horsemen, and he had a thousand four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen: and he placed them in the cities of the chariots, and with the king in Jerusalem.
Solomon acquired 1,400 chariots and 12,000 men who rode [on horses]. He put some of the chariots and horses in Jerusalem, and put some of them in various other cities.
15 And the king made silver and gold to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar trees as sycamores, which grow in the plains in great multitude.
During the years that Solomon was king, silver and gold were as common in Jerusalem as stones, and [lumber from] cedar trees were as plentiful as [lumber from] ordinary sycamore trees in the foothills.
16 And there were horses brought him from Egypt, and from Coa by the king’s merchants, who went, and bought at a price,
Solomon’s horses were imported/brought from Egypt and from [the] Kue [region in Turkey].
17 A chariot of four horses for six hundred pieces of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty: in like manner market was made in all the kingdoms of the Hethites, and of the kings of Syria.
In Egypt his men paid 15 pounds of silver for each chariot and 3-3/4 pounds of silver for each horse. They also exported/sold many of them to the kings of the Heth and Aram people-groups.
