2 Chronicles 9
1 The queen who ruled [the] Sheba [area in Arabia] heard that Solomon had become famous, so she traveled to Jerusalem to ask him questions that were difficult [to answer]. She came with a large group of servants, and she brought camels that were loaded with spices, and valuable gems, and a lot of gold. When she met Solomon, she asked him questions about all the things/topics in which she was interested.
Now when the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon, she came to test him with difficult questions. She arrived in Jerusalem with a very large caravan—with camels bearing spices, gold in abundance, and precious stones. So she came to Solomon and spoke with him about all that was on her mind.
2 Solomon answered all her questions. He explained everything that she asked about, even things that were very difficult.
And Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too difficult for him to explain.
3 The queen realized that Solomon was very wise. She saw his palace,
When the queen of Sheba saw the wisdom of Solomon, the palace he had built,
4 she saw the food that was served on his table [every day]; she saw how his officials were seated at the table, their uniforms, the servants who served the food and wine, and the sacrifices that he took to the temple to be completely burned on the altar. She was extremely amazed.
the food at his table, the seating of his servants, the service and attire of his attendants and cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he presented at the house of the LORD, it took her breath away.
5 She said to the king, “Everything that I heard in my own country about you and about how wise you are is true!
She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your words and wisdom is true.
6 But I did not believe it was true until I came here and saw it myself. You are [extremely wise and rich, ] more than what people told me.
But I did not believe the reports until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not half of the greatness of your wisdom was told to me. You have far exceeded the report I heard.
7 The men who work for you are very fortunate! Your officials who are constantly standing in front of you and listening to the wise things that you say are also fortunate!
How blessed are your men! How blessed are these servants of yours who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom!
8 Praise Yahweh your God, who has shown that he is pleased with you by appointing you to be the king of Israel for him. God has always loved the Israeli people, and desires to assist them forever, and therefore he has appointed you to be their king, in order that you will rule them fairly and righteously.”
Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you to set you on His throne to be king for the LORD your God. Because your God loved Israel enough to establish them forever, He has made you king over them to carry out justice and righteousness.”
9 Then the queen gave to Solomon about 4-1/2 tons of gold and a large amount of spices and gems. Never had King Solomon received more spices than the queen gave him at that time.
Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, a great quantity of spices, and precious stones. There had never been such spices as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
10 King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba everything that she wanted. He gave her more than she had given to him. Then she and those who came with her returned to her own land. [In the ships that belonged to King Hiram, ] Hiram’s workers and Solomon’s workers brought gold from Ophir. They also brought a large amount of juniper wood and gems. King Solomon [told his workers] to use that wood to make railings in the temple and in his palace and also to make harps and lyres for the musicians. That wood was the the finest wood that had ever been seen in Israel.
(The servants of Hiram and of Solomon who brought gold from Ophir also brought algum wood and precious stones.
The king made the algum wood into steps for the house of the LORD and for the king’s palace, and into lyres and harps for the singers. Never before had anything like them been seen in the land of Judah.)
King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired—whatever she asked—far more than she had brought the king. Then she left and returned to her own country, along with her servants.
13 Each year there was brought to Solomon a total of 25 tons of gold.
The weight of gold that came to Solomon each year was 666 talents,
14 That was in addition to the [taxes] paid to him by the merchants and traders. Also, the kings of Arabia and the governors of [the districts in] Israel brought gold and silver to Solomon.
not including the revenue from the merchants and traders. And all the Arabian kings and governors of the land also brought gold and silver to Solomon.
15 King Solomon’s [workers took this] gold [and] hammered [it] into thin sheets and covered 200 large shields with those thin sheets of gold; they put almost 7-1/2 pounds of gold on each shield.
King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels of hammered gold went into each shield.
16 His [workers] made 300 [smaller] shields. They covered each of them with almost 4 pounds of gold. Then the king put those shields in the Hall of the Forest of Lebanon.
He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold; three hundred shekels of gold went into each shield. And the king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.
17 His [workers] also made for him a large throne. [Part of] it was covered with [decorations made from] ivory and [part of it was covered] with very fine gold.
Additionally, the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with pure gold.
18 There were six steps in front of the throne. There was a gold footstool that was attached to the throne. At each side of the throne there was an armrest, and alongside each armrest there was a [small statue of a] lion.
The throne had six steps, and a footstool of gold was attached to it. There were armrests on both sides of the seat, with a lion standing beside each armrest.
19 On the six steps there were twelve statues of lions, one on each side. No throne like that had ever existed in any other kingdom.
Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like this had ever been made for any kingdom.
20 All of Solomon’s cups were made of gold, and all the various dishes in the Hall of the Forest of Lebanon were made of gold. [They did not make things from silver], because during the years that Solomon [ruled], silver was not considered to be valuable.
All King Solomon’s drinking cups were gold, and all the utensils of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. There was no silver, because it was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon.
21 The king had a fleet of ships that sailed with the ships that King Hiram owned. Every three years the ships returned [from the places to which they had sailed], bringing gold, silver, ivory, monkeys, and baboons (OR, peacocks).
For the king had the ships of Tarshish that went with Hiram’s servants, and once every three years the ships of Tarshish would arrive bearing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
22 King Solomon became richer and wiser than any other king on the earth.
So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.
23 Kings from all over the world wanted to come and listen to the wise things that Solomon said, things that God had enabled him to know.
All the kings of the earth sought an audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom that God had put in his heart.
24 All the people who came to him brought presents: They brought things made from silver or gold, or robes, or weapons, or spices, or horses, or mules. The people continued to do this every year.
Year after year, each visitor would bring his tribute: articles of silver and gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.
25 Solomon had 4,000 stalls for his horses and chariots, and 12,000 horses. Solomon put some of them in Jerusalem and some of them in other cities where he kept his chariots.
Solomon had 4,000 stalls for horses and chariots, and 12,000 horses, which he stationed in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem.
26 Solomon ruled over all the kings in the area from the [Euphrates] River [in the northeast] to the Philistia area [in the west] to the border of Egypt [in the south].
He reigned over all the kings from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt.
27 [During the years that Solomon was] king, [he] caused silver to become as common in Jerusalem as stones; and he caused cedar trees in the foothills of Judah to become as plentiful as fig trees.
The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as abundant as sycamore in the foothills.
28 Solomon’s agents brought horses from [the] Musri [area] and other places.
Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from all the lands.
29 Lists of all the other things that Solomon did are recorded in the scrolls written by the prophet Nathan and by the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh [city], and in [the scroll in which were written] the visions that the prophet Iddo saw concerning [King] Jeroboam.
As for the rest of the acts of Solomon, from beginning to end, are they not written in the Records of Nathan the Prophet, in the Prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the Visions of Iddo the Seer concerning Jeroboam son of Nebat?
30 Solomon ruled from Jerusalem all of Israel for 40 years.
Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.
31 Then Solomon died and was buried in [the part of Jerusalem called] ‘The City of David’. And his son Rehoboam became the king.
And Solomon rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of his father David. And his son Rehoboam reigned in his place.
