1 Kings 4

1 And King Solomon is king over all Israel,

So King Solomon ruled over Israel,

2 and these [are] the heads whom he has: Azariah son of Zadok [is] the priest;

and these were his chief officials: Azariah son of Zadok was the priest;

3 Elihoreph and Ahiah sons of Shisha [are] scribes; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud [is] remembrancer;

Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, were secretaries; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder;

4 and Benaiah son of Jehoiada [is] over the host; and Zadok and Abiathar [are] priests;

Benaiah son of Jehoiada was in charge of the army; Zadok and Abiathar were priests;

5 and Azariah son of Nathan [is] over the officers; and Zabud son of Nathan [is] minister, friend of the king;

Azariah son of Nathan was in charge of the governors; Zabud son of Nathan was a priest and adviser to the king;

6 and Ahishar [is] over the household, and Adoniram son of Abda [is] over the tribute.

Ahishar was in charge of the palace; and Adoniram son of Abda was in charge of the forced labor.

7 And Solomon has twelve officers over all Israel, and they have sustained the king and his household—a month in the year is on each one for sustenance;

Solomon had twelve governors over all Israel to provide food for the king and his household. Each one would arrange provisions for one month of the year,

8 and these [are] their names: Ben-Hur in the hill-country of Ephraim;

and these were their names: Ben-hur in the hill country of Ephraim;

9 Ben-Dekar in Makaz, and Shaalbim, and Beth-Shemesh, and Elon-Beth-Hanan;

Ben-deker in Makaz, in Shaalbim, in Beth-shemesh, and in Elon-beth-hanan;

10 Ben-Hesed, in Aruboth, has Sochoh and all the land of Hepher;

Ben-hesed in Arubboth (Socoh and all the land of Hepher belonged to him);

11 Ben-Abinadab [has] all the elevation of Dor; Taphath daughter of Solomon became his wife;

Ben-abinadab in Naphath-dor (Taphath, a daughter of Solomon, was his wife);

12 Baana Ben-Ahilud [has] Taanach and Megiddo, and all Beth-Shean, which [is] by Zartanah beneath Jezreel, from Beth-Shean to Abel-Meholah, to beyond Jokneam;

Baana son of Ahilud in Taanach, in Megiddo, and in all of Beth-shean next to Zarethan below Jezreel, from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah and on past Jokmeam;

13 Ben-Geber, in Ramoth-Gilead, has the small towns of Jair son of Manasseh, which [are] in Gilead; he has a portion of Argob that [is] in Bashan—sixty great cities [with] wall and bronze bar;

Ben-geber in Ramoth-gilead (the villages of Jair son of Manasseh in Gilead belonged to him, as well as the region of Argob in Bashan with its sixty great cities with walls and bronze bars);

14 Ahinadab son of Iddo [has] Mahanaim;

Ahinadab son of Iddo in Mahanaim;

15 Ahimaaz [is] in Naphtali; he also has taken Basemath daughter of Solomon for a wife;

Ahimaaz in Naphtali (he had married Basemath, a daughter of Solomon);

16 Baanah Ben-Hushai [is] in Asher, and in Aloth;

Baana son of Hushai in Asher and in Aloth;

17 Jehoshaphat Ben-Paruah [is] in Issachar;

Jehoshaphat son of Paruah in Issachar;

18 Shimei Ben-Elah [is] in Benjamin;

Shimei son of Ela in Benjamin;

19 Geber Ben-Uri [is] in the land of Gilead, the land of Sihon king of the Amorite, and of Og king of Bashan: and [he is] the one officer who [is] in the land.

Geber son of Uri in the land of Gilead, including the territories of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan. There was also one governor in the land of Judah.

20 Judah and Israel [are] many, as the sand that [is] by the sea for multitude, eating and drinking and rejoicing.

The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand on the seashore, and they were eating and drinking and rejoicing.

21 And Solomon has been ruling over all the kingdoms, from the River [to] the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt: they are bringing a present near, and serving Solomon, all [the] days of his life.

And Solomon reigned over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These kingdoms offered tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life.

22 And the provision of Solomon for one day is thirty cors of flour, and sixty cors of meal,

Solomon’s provisions for a single day were thirty cors of fine flour, sixty cors of meal,

23 ten fat oxen, and twenty feeding oxen, and one hundred sheep, apart from deer, and roe, and fallow-deer, and fatted beasts of the stalls,

ten fat oxen, twenty range oxen, and a hundred sheep, as well as deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fattened poultry.

24 for he is ruling over all beyond the river, from Tiphsah and to Gaza, over all the kings beyond the River, and he has peace from all his surrounding servants.

For Solomon had dominion over everything west of the Euphrates —over all the kingdoms from Tiphsah to Gaza—and he had peace on all sides.

25 And Judah dwells—and Israel—in confidence, each under his vine, and under his fig tree, from Dan even to Beer-Sheba, all the days of Solomon.

Throughout the days of Solomon, Judah and Israel dwelt securely from Dan to Beersheba, each man under his own vine and his own fig tree.

26 And Solomon has forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen.

Solomon had 4,000 stalls for his chariot horses and 12,000 horses.

27 And these officers have sustained King Solomon and everyone drawing near to the table of King Solomon, each [in] his month; they let nothing be lacking.

Each month the governors in turn provided food for King Solomon and all who came to his table. They saw to it that nothing was lacking.

28 And the barley and the straw, for horses and for dromedaries, they bring to the place where they are, each according to his ordinance.

Each one also brought to the required place their quotas of barley and straw for the chariot horses and other horses.

29 And God gives very much wisdom and understanding to Solomon, and breadth of heart, as the sand that [is] on the edge of the sea;

And God gave Solomon wisdom, exceedingly deep insight, and understanding beyond measure, like the sand on the seashore.

30 and the wisdom of Solomon is greater than the wisdom of any of the sons of the east, and [greater] than all the wisdom of Egypt;

Solomon’s wisdom was greater than that of all the men of the East, greater than all the wisdom of Egypt.

31 and he is wiser than all men, [wiser] than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, sons of Mahol, and his name is in all the surrounding nations.

He was wiser than all men—wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and wiser than Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol. And his fame spread throughout the surrounding nations.

32 And he speaks three thousand allegories, and his songs [are] one thousand and five;

Solomon composed three thousand proverbs, and his songs numbered a thousand and five.

33 and he speaks concerning the trees, from the cedar that [is] in Lebanon, even to the hyssop that is coming out in the wall, and he speaks concerning the livestock, and concerning the bird, and concerning the creeping things, and concerning the fishes,

He spoke of trees, from the cedar in Lebanon to the hyssop growing in the wall, and he taught about animals, birds, reptiles, and fish.

34 and there come out [those] of all the peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth who have heard of his wisdom.

So men of all nations came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, sent by all the kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom.