1 Kings 4

1 Solomon was the king who ruled all of Israel,

And king Solomon reigned over all Israel:

2 and these were his most important officials: Zadok’s son Azariah was the priest.

And these were the princes which he had: Azarias the son of Sadoc the priest:

3 Shisha’s sons Elihoreph and Ahijah were the [official] secretaries. Ahilud’s son Jehoshaphat was the one who announced to the people the king’s decisions.

Elihoreph, and Ahia, the sons of Sisa, scribes: Josaphat the son of Ahilud, recorder:

4 Benaiah was the commander of the army. Zadok and Abiathar were also priests.

Banaias the son of Joiada, over the army: and Sadoc and Abiathar priests.

5 Nathan’s son Azariah was the administrator of the governors. Another of Nathan’s sons, Zabud, was a priest and the king’s chief advisor.

Azarias the son of Nathan, over them that were about the king: Zabud, the son of Nathan the priest, the king’s friend:

6 Ahishar supervised the servants who worked in the palace. Abda’s son Adoniram supervised the men who were forced to do work [for the government].

And Ahisar governor of the house: and Adoniram the son of Abda over the tribute.

7 Solomon appointed twelve men, one to govern [each of the regions] in Israel. They also were required to provide food for the king and all the others who lived and worked in the palace. Each man was required to provide from his own region the food for one month each year.

And Solomon had twelve governors over all Israel, who provided victuals for the king and for his household: for every one provided necessaries, each man his month in the year.

8 Their names were: Ben-Hur, for the hilly area of the tribe of Ephraim.

And these are their names: Benhur, in mount Ephraim,

9 Ben-Deker, for Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-Shemesh, and Elon-Bethhanan [cities];

Bendecar, in Macces, and in Salebim, and in Bethsames, and in Elon, and in Bethanan.

10 Ben-Hesed, for Arubboth and Socoh [towns] and the area near Hepher [town];

Benhesed in Aruboth: his was Socho, and all the land of Epher.

11 Ben-Abinadab, who was married to Solomon’s daughter Taphath, for all the Dor district;

Benabinadab, to whom belonged all Nephath-Dor, he had Tapheth the daughter of Solomon to wife.

12 Ahilud’s son Baana, for Taanach and Megiddo [towns], and all the region near Zarethan [city], and from Beth-Shan [city] south of Jezreel as far as Abel-Meholah [town] and Jokmeam [city];

Bana the son of Ahilud, who governed Thanac and Mageddo, and all Bethsan, which is by Sarthana beneath Jezrael, from Bethsan unto Abelmehula over against Jecmaan.

13 Ben-Geber, for Ramoth [city] in [the] Gilead [region], and for the villages in Gilead that belonged to Jair, who was a descendant of Manasseh, and the Argob area in [the] Bashan [region]. There were 60 large towns in that region altogether, each town with a wall around it and bronze bars across the gates.

Bengaber in Ramoth Galaad: he had the towns of Jair the son of Manasses in Galaad, he was chief in all the country of Argob, which is in Basan, threescore great cities with walls, and brazen bolts.

14 Iddo’s son Ahinadab, for Mahanaim [city east of the Jordan River];

Abinadab the son of Addo was chief in Manaim.

15 Ahimaaz, who had married Solomon’s daughter Basemath, for [the territory of the tribe of] Naphtali;

Achimaas in Nephtali: he also had Basemath the daughter of Solomon to wife.

16 Hushai’s son Baana, for [the territory of the tribe of] Asher and for Aloth [town];

Baana the son of Husi, in Aser and in Baloth.

17 Paruah’s son Jehoshaphat, for [the territory of the tribe of] Issachar;

Josaphat the son of Pharue, in Issachar.

18 Ela’s son Shimei, for [the territory of the tribe of] Benjamin;

Semei the son of Ela in Benjamin.

19 Uri’s son Geber, for the Gilead region, the land that Sihon the king of the Amor people-group [formerly ruled], and the Bashan [area], which was the area that Og [formerly ruled]. [In addition to all those], Solomon appointed one governor for the [territory of the] tribe of Judah.

Gaber the son of Uri, in the land of Galaad, in the land of Sehon the king of the Amorrhites and of Og the king of Basan, over all that were in that land.

20 There were as many people in Judah and Israel as there are grains of sand [HYP] on the seashore. They [had plenty to] eat and drink and they were happy.

Juda and Israel were innumerable, as the sand of the sea in multitude: eating and drinking, and rejoicing.

21 Solomon’s kingdom extended from the Euphrates [River in the northeast] to the Philistia area [in the west] and to the border of Egypt [in the south]. The [conquered] people in those areas paid taxes and were under Solomon’s control for the rest of his life.

And Solomon had under him all the kingdoms from the river to the land of the Philistines, even to the border of Egypt: and they brought him presents, and served him, all the days of his life.

22 [To feed the people in his palace and his guests] Solomon needed people to bring to him every day 150 bushels of fine flour and 300 bushels of wheat,

And the provision of Solomon for each day was thirty measures of fine flour, and threescore measures of meal,

23 ten cattle that were kept in stalls/barns, 20 cattle that were kept in pastures, 100 sheep, and (deer and gazelles and roebucks/three kinds of deer), and poultry.

Ten fat oxen and twenty out of the pastures, and a hundred rams, besides venison of harts, roes, and buffles, and fatted fowls.

24 Solomon ruled over all the area west of the Euphrates [River], from Tiphsah [city in the northeast] to Gaza [city in the southwest]. He ruled over all the kings in that area. And there was peace between his [government] and the [governments of] nearby countries.

For he had all the country which was beyond the river, from Thaphsa to Gazan, and all the kings of those countries: and he had peace on every side round about.

25 All during the years that Solomon ruled, the people of Judah and Israel lived safely. Each family had its own grapevines and fig trees.

And Juda and Israel dwelt without any fear, every one under his vine, and under his fig tree, from Dan to Bersabee, all the days of Solomon.

26 Solomon had 4,000 stalls for the horses [that pulled] his chariots and 12,000 men who rode on horses (OR, in the chariots).

And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of chariot horses, and twelve thousand for the saddle.

27 His twelve governors supplied the food that King Solomon needed for himself and for all those who ate in the palace. Each governor supplied food for one month each year. They provided everything [LIT] that Solomon required.

And the foresaid governors of the king fed them: and they furnished the necessaries also for king Solomon’s table, with great care in their time.

28 They also brought [stalks of] barley and wheat for the fast horses [that pulled the chariots] and for the [other work] horses. They brought it to the places where the horses were kept.

They brought barley also and straw for the horses, and beasts, to the place where the king was, according as it was appointed them.

29 God enabled Solomon to be extremely wise and to have great insight/understanding. He understood about more things than the number of grains of sand on the seashore [HYP].

And God gave to Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart as the sand that is on the sea shore.

30 He was wiser than all the wise men in Arabia and Mesopotamia and all the wise men in Egypt.

And the wisdom of Solomon surpassed the wisdom of all the Orientals, and of the Egyptians,

31 Ethan from Ezrah and Heman and Calcol and Darda and the sons of Mahol were [considered to be] very wise, but Solomon was wiser than all of them. People in all the nearby countries heard about Solomon.

And he was wiser than all men: wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Dorda the sons of Mahol, and he was renowned in all nations round about.

32 He composed/wrote 3,000 (proverbs/wise sayings) and more than 1,000 songs.

Solomon also spoke three thousand parables: and his poems were a thousand and five.

33 He talked about various kinds of plants, from the [huge] cedar trees in Lebanon to the [tiny] hyssop plants that grow in cracks in walls. He also talked about wild animals and birds and reptiles and fish.

And he treated about trees from the cedar that is in Libanus, unto the hyssop that cometh out of the wall: and he discoursed of beasts, and of fowls, and of creeping things, and of fishes.

34 People came from all over the world to hear the wise things that Solomon said. Many kings sent men to listen to him [and then return and tell them what Solomon said].

And they came from all nations to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and from all the kings of the earth, who heard of his wisdom.