Text -- 1 Kings 10:3-29 (NET)

10:3 Solomon answered all her questions; there was no question too complex for the king. 10:4 When the queen of Sheba saw for herself Solomon’s extensive wisdom, the palace he had built, 10:5 the food in his banquet hall, his servants and attendants, their robes, his cupbearers, and his burnt offerings which he presented in the Lord’s temple, she was amazed. 10:6 She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your wise sayings and insight was true! 10:7 I did not believe these things until I came and saw them with my own eyes. Indeed, I didn’t hear even half the story! Your wisdom and wealth surpass what was reported to me. 10:8 Your attendants, who stand before you at all times and hear your wise sayings, are truly happy! 10:9 May the Lord your God be praised because he favored you by placing you on the throne of Israel! Because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel, he made you king so you could make just and right decisions.” 10:10 She gave the king 120 talents of gold, a very large quantity of spices, and precious gems. The quantity of spices the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon has never been matched. 10:11 (Hiram’s fleet, which carried gold from Ophir, also brought from Ophir a very large quantity of fine timber and precious gems. 10:12 With the timber the king made supports for the Lord’s temple and for the royal palace and stringed instruments for the musicians. No one has seen so much of this fine timber to this very day.) 10:13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she requested, besides what he had freely offered her. Then she left and returned to her homeland with her attendants.

Solomon’s Wealth

10:14 Solomon received 666 talents of gold per year, 10:15 besides what he collected from the merchants, traders, Arabian kings, and governors of the land. 10:16 King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; 600 measures of gold were used for each shield. 10:17 He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold; three minas of gold were used for each of these shields. The king placed them in the Palace of the Lebanon Forest. 10:18 The king made a large throne decorated with ivory and overlaid it with pure gold. 10:19 There were six steps leading up to the throne, and the back of it was rounded on top. The throne had two armrests with a statue of a lion standing on each side. 10:20 There were twelve statues of lions on the six steps, one lion at each end of each step. There was nothing like it in any other kingdom. 10:21 All of King Solomon’s cups were made of gold, and all the household items in the Palace of the Lebanon Forest were made of pure gold. There were no silver items, for silver was not considered very valuable in Solomon’s time. 10:22 Along with Hiram’s fleet, the king had a fleet of large merchant ships that sailed the sea. Once every three years the fleet came into port with cargoes of gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. 10:23 King Solomon was wealthier and wiser than any of the kings of the earth. 10:24 Everyone in the world wanted to visit Solomon to see him display his God-given wisdom. 10:25 Year after year visitors brought their gifts, which included items of silver, items of gold, clothes, perfume, spices, horses, and mules. 10:26 Solomon accumulated chariots and horses. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses. He kept them in assigned cities and in Jerusalem. 10:27 The king made silver as plentiful in Jerusalem as stones; cedar was as plentiful as sycamore fig trees are in the lowlands. 10:28 Solomon acquired his horses from Egypt and from Que; the king’s traders purchased them from Que. 10:29 They paid 600 silver pieces for each chariot from Egypt and 150 silver pieces for each horse. They also sold chariots and horses to all the kings of the Hittites and to the kings of Syria.

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)

Wesley: 1Ki 10:4

Or, the houses, the temple and the king's house, in both which there were evidences of singular wisdom.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:5

The order and manner in which his courtiers, or other subjects (who all were his servants in a general sense) sat down at meals, at several tables in his court.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:5

Upon the king, both at his table, and in his court; and when he went abroad to the temple or other places.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:5

Both the costliness of it, and especially the agreeableness of it to their several places and offices.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:5

From his own palace. See 2Ki 16:18, but the ancients, and some others, translate the words thus, and the burnt-offerings which he offered up in the house of the Lord; under which, is the chief, all other sacrifices are understood: when she saw the manner of his offering sacrifices to the Lord; which doubtless she would not neglect to see; and in the ordering of which she might discern many characters of excellent wisdom, especially when she had so excellent an interpreter as Solomon was, to inform her of the reasons of all the circumstances of that service.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:5

She was astonished, and could scarcely determine whether she really saw these things, or whether it was only a pleasant dream.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:8

_With much more reason may we say this of Christ's servants: Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be always praising thee.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:14

_Which amounts to about three millions of our money. And this gold did not come from Ophir in India, or Tharshish; but from Arabia and Ethiopia, which then were replenished with gold, though exhausted by the insatiable avarice of succeeding Ages.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:15

men - Heb. of the searchers; either merchants, who use to search out commodities: or, the gatherers of the king's revenues, who used to search narrowly into all wares, that the king might not be defrauded of his rights.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:15

merchants - Or rather, of the merchants in general, as the word is often used. So this and the former particular contain both the branches of the king's revenue, what he had from the land, and what he had from the merchants and traders.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:15

Of those parts of Arabia which were next to Canaan, which were either conquered by David, or submitted to pay tribute to Solomon. But we must not think all these to be kings of large dominions; many of them were only governors of cities, and the territories belonging to them, such as were formerly in Canaan, and were anciently called kings.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:15

Or, of the land; the land of Arabia: whereof some parts were so far conquered, that he had governors of his own over them, who were each of them to take care of the king's revenue in his jurisdiction; and part only so far, that they still had kings of their own, but such as were tributaries to him.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:16

For pomp and magnificence, and to be carried before him, by his guard, when he went abroad. The Roman magistrates had rods and axes carried before them, in token of their power to correct the bad: but Solomon shields and targets, to shew he took more pleasure in his power to defend and protect the good.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:17

Smaller than targets.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:19

Made like the half of a circle.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:21

Comparatively. Such hyperbolical expressions are frequent both in scripture and other authors. But if gold in abundance, would make silver seem so despicable, shall not wisdom and grace, and the foretastes of heaven, make gold seem much more so?

Wesley: 1Ki 10:22

Ships that went to Tharshish. For Tharshish was the name of a place upon the sea, famous for its traffick with merchants, and it was a place very remote from Judea, as appears from the three years usually spent in that voyage. But whether it was Spain, where in those times there was abundance of gold and silver, as Strabo and others affirm; or, some place in the Indies, it is needless to determine.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:24

That is, all the kings of the earth, (as it is expressed 2Ch 9:23,) namely of those parts of the earth.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:28

_The two chief commodities of Egypt.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:28

Solomon received them from Pharaoh at a price agreed between them, and gave this privilege to his merchants, for a tribute to be paid out of it.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:29

This is not to be understood of the chariots and horses themselves, but for the lading of chariots and horses, which consisting of fine linen and silk, were of great value: and the king's custom, together with the charges of the journey, amounted to these sums.

Wesley: 1Ki 10:29

A people dwelling principally in the northern and eastern parts of Canaan, Jos 1:4, whom the Israelites, contrary to their duty, suffered to live amongst them, Jdg 3:5, who afterwards grew numerous and potent, and, it may be, sent out colonies (after the manner of the ancient times) into some parts of Syria and Arabia. And possibly, these kings of the Hittites may be some of those kings of Arabia, 1Ki 10:15.

JFB: 1Ki 10:6

The proofs she obtained of Solomon's wisdom--not from his conversation only, but also from his works; the splendor of his palace; the economy of his kitchen and table; the order of his court; the gradations and gorgeous costume of his servants; above all, the arched viaduct that led from his palace to the temple (2Ki 16:18), and the remains of which have been recently discovered [ROBINSON]--overwhelmed her with astonishment. [See on 2Ch 9:4.]

JFB: 1Ki 10:9

(See on 1Ki 5:7). It is quite possible, as Jewish writers say, that this queen was converted, through Solomon's influence, to the worship of the true God. But there is no record of her making any gift or offering in the temple.

JFB: 1Ki 10:10

£720,00.

JFB: 1Ki 10:11

Parenthetically, along with the valuable presents of the queen of Sheba, is mentioned a foreign wood, which was brought in the Ophir ships. It is thought by some to be the sandalwood; by others, to be the deodar--a species of fragrant fir, much used in India for sacred and important works. Solomon used it for stairs in his temple and palace (2Ch 9:11), but chiefly for musical instruments.

JFB: 1Ki 10:13

That is, Solomon not only gave his illustrious guest all the insight and information she wanted; but, according to the Oriental fashion, he gave her ample remuneration for the presents she had brought.

JFB: 1Ki 10:14-15

666 talents, equal to £3,996,000. The sources whence this was derived are not mentioned; nor was it the full amount of his revenue; for this was "Beside that he had of the merchantmen, and of the traffic of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia, and of the governors of the country." The great encouragement he gave to commerce was the means of enriching his royal treasury. By the fortifications which he erected in various parts of his kingdom, (particularly at such places as Thapsacus, one of the passages of Euphrates, and at Tadmor, in the Syrian desert), he gave complete security to the caravan trade from the depredations of the Arab marauders; and it was reasonable that, in return for this protection, he should exact a certain toll or duty for the importation of foreign goods. A considerable revenue, too, would arise from the use of the store cities and khans he built; and it is not improbable that those cities were emporia, where the caravan merchants unloaded their bales of spices and other commodities and sold them to the king's factors, who, according to the modern practice in the East, retailed them in the Western markets at a profit. "The revenue derived from the tributary kings and from the governors of the country" must have consisted in the tribute which all inferior magistrates periodically bring to their sovereigns in the East, in the shape of presents of the produce of their respective provinces.

JFB: 1Ki 10:16-17

These defensive arms were anciently made of wood and covered with leather; those were covered with fine gold. 600 shekels were used in the gilding of each target--300 for each shield. They were intended for the state armory of the palace (see 1Ki 14:26).

JFB: 1Ki 10:18-26

It seems to have been made not of solid ivory, but veneered. It was in the form of an armchair, with a carved back. The ascent to it was by six steps, on each of which stood lions, in place of a railing--while a lion, probably of gilt metal, stood at each side, which, we may suppose from the analogy of other Oriental thrones, supported a canopy. A golden footstool is mentioned (2Ch 9:18) as attached to this throne, whose magnificence is described as unrivalled.

JFB: 1Ki 10:22

Tartessus in Spain. There gold, and especially silver, was obtained, anciently, in so great abundance that it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon. But "Tarshish" came to be a general term for the West (Jon 1:3).

JFB: 1Ki 10:22

On the Mediterranean.

JFB: 1Ki 10:22

That is, every third year. Without the mariner's compass they had to coast along the shore. The ivory, apes, and peacocks might have been purchased, on the outward or homeward voyage, on the north coast of Africa, where the animals were to be found. They were particularized, probably as being the rarest articles on board.

JFB: 1Ki 10:26-29

(See on 2Ch 1:14 [and 2Ch 9:25].)

Clarke: 1Ki 10:3

Solomon told her all her questions - Riddles, problems, fables, apologues, etc., formed the principal part of the wisdom of the East; indeed they use and delight in them to the present day. See the case of Samson and his friends, Jdg 14:12 (note), Jdg 14:14 (note), and the notes there.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:4

Had seen all Solomon’ s wisdom - By the answers which he gave to her subtle questions

Clarke: 1Ki 10:4

And the house that he had built - Most probably his own house.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:5

The meat of his table - The immense supply of all kinds of food daily necessary for the many thousands which were fed at and from his table. See 1Ki 4:22-23 (note)

Clarke: 1Ki 10:5

And the sitting of his servants - The various orders and distinctions of his officers

Clarke: 1Ki 10:5

The attendance of his ministers - See the account of these and their attendance, 1Ki 4:1, etc

Clarke: 1Ki 10:5

And their apparel - The peculiarity of their robes, and their splendor and costliness

Clarke: 1Ki 10:5

And his cup-bearers - The original משקיו mashkaiv may as well be applied to his beverage, or to his drinking utensils, as to his cup-bearers

Clarke: 1Ki 10:5

And his ascent by which he went up - It seems very strange that the steps to the temple should be such a separate matter of astonishment. The original is ועלתו אשר יעלה בית יהוה which all the versions have translated, And the holocausts which he offered in the house of the Lord. The Vulgate, Septuagint, Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic, all express this sense: so does the German translation of Luther, from which, in this place, we have most pitifully departed: And seine Brandopfer, die er in dem Hause des Herrn opferte ; "And his burnt-offering which he offered in the house of the Lord.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:5

There was no more spirit in her - She was overpowered with astonishment; she fainted. I have seen precisely the same effect produced; a lady who was herself an artist, viewing some exquisitely finished oriental paintings, was so struck with astonishment that she twice nearly fainted, and was obliged to leave the room. What happened to the queen of Sheba is a natural and not an uncommon effect which will be produced in a delicate sensible mind at the sight of rare and extraordinary productions of art

Of the profusion of Solomon’ s sacrifices we have already had proof, 1Ki 8:63; 1Ki 9:25.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:8

Happy are thy men - All these are very natural expressions from a person in her state of mind.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:10

A hundred and twenty talents of gold - The worth of these one hundred and twenty talents of gold, according to Mr. Reynolds, is equal to £843,905. 10s. 4 3/4d. of our British sterling. But the spices and precious stones might have been yet of more value. After this verse the 13th should be read, which is here most evidently misplaced; and then the account of the queen of Sheba will be concluded, and that of Solomon’ s revenue will stand without interruption.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:11

Great plenty of almug trees - In the parallel place, 2Ch 9:10, 2Ch 9:11, these are called algum trees, the ם mem and the ג gimel being transposed; probably the latter is the more correct orthography. What the algum trees were we do not exactly know. The Vulgate calls it ligna thyina , the thya or lignum vitae wood; and Mr. Parkhurst thinks that the original אלגומים algumim , comes from אל al , not, and גם gem , to fill; because the lignum vitae is of so close a texture that it can imbibe no water, and cannot be affected by wet weather. The Septuagint translate it ξυλα πυκινα, pine timber; the Syriac kaise dakisotho , probably cypress wood, or what the translators render ligna brasilica ; the Arabic translates coloured wood, and subjoins a paraphrase, for that wood was by nature painted with various colors. Perhaps the Arabic comes nearest the truth; wood shaded of different colors, such as the rose wood and such like, which are brought to us from various parts of the East Indies. The whole passage as it stands in the Arabic is this: "And the ships of Hiram brought gold from the land of Hind, (India), and they carried also much coloured wood, (but this wood is naturally painted of various colors), and very precious jewels. And Solomon put some of that same painted wood which was brought to him in the house of the Lord, and in his own house; and with it he adorned them."And for inlaying and veneering nothing can be finer than this wood.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:13

All her desire whatsoever she asked - Some imagine she desired progeny from the wise king of Israel; and all the traditions concerning her state that she had a son by Solomon called Menilek, who was brought up at the Israelitish court, succeeded his mother in the kingdom of Saba, and introduced among his subjects the Jewish religion. See at the end of the chapter, 1Ki 10:29 (note).

Clarke: 1Ki 10:14

The weight of gold - was six hundred threescore and six talents - This would amount in our money to £4,683, 675 12s. 8 1/2d. sterling

This seems to be what he got annually of bullion; but independently of this, he had tribute of all the kings of Arabia, duties from merchantmen, and the traffic of spice merchants; see 1Ki 10:25.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:16

Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold - I have already conjectured that the צנה tsinnah might resemble the Highland targe or target, with a dagger projecting from the Umbo or center.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:17

He made three hundred shields - The מגן magen was a large shield by which the whole body was protected

Mr. Reynolds computes that the two hundred targets, on each of which were employed three hundred shekels of gold, were worth £28,131 16s. 9 1/2d

And the three hundred shields, in forming each of which three pounds of gold were employed, were worth £210,976 7s. 7d.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:19

The throne was round behind: and there were stays on either side - This description seems to indicate that the throne was in the form of one of our ancient round-topped, two-armed chairs. This throne or chair of state was raised on a platform, the ascent to which consisted of six steps. What we call stays is in the Hebrew ידת yadoth , hands, which serves to confirm the conjecture above.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:22

A navy of Tharshish - For probable conjectures concerning this place, and the three years’ voyage, see at the end of this, 1Ki 10:29 (note) and the preceding chapter, 1 Kings 9 (note)

Clarke: 1Ki 10:22

Apes - קפים kophim ; probably a species of monkey rather than ape.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:23

Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches - Mr. Reynolds, stating the yearly tribute of Solomon, 666 talents of gold, at about four times as much as his father left him, hence reckons that he had £4,909, 371 8s. 8d. each year, £94,410 19s. 9 1/4d. per week, £13,487 5s. 8d. per day, taking each day, week, and year, one with another.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:25

They brought every man his present - This means tribute; and it shows us of what sort that tribute was, viz., vessels of gold and silver, probably ingots; garments of very rich stuffs; armor, for little of this kind was ever made in Judea; spices, which doubtless sold well in that country; horses, which were very rare; and mules, the most necessary animal for all the purposes of life.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:26

He had a thousand and four hundred chariots - See the note on 1Ki 4:26.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:27

Made silver - as stones - He destroyed its value by making it so exceedingly plenty

Clarke: 1Ki 10:27

As the sycamore trees - He planted many cedars, and doubtless had much cedar wood imported; so that it became as common as the sycamore trees, which appear to have grown there in great abundance. This is considered to be a tree that partakes of the nature of the fig tree, and of the mulberry. Of the former it has the fruit, and of the latter the leaves; that is, the fruit had a considerable resemblance to the fig, and the leaf to that of the mulberry tree: hence its name sycamore, from the Greek συκον, a fig, and μορεα, a mulberry tree.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:28

Horses brought out of Egypt - It is thought that the first people who used horses in war were the Egyptians; and it is well known that the nations who knew the use of this creature in battle had greatly the advantage of those who did not. God had absolutely prohibited horses to be imported or used; but in many things Solomon paid little attention to the Divine command

Clarke: 1Ki 10:28

And linen yarn - The original word, מקוה mikveh , is hard to be understood, if it be not indeed a corruption

The versions are all puzzled with it: the Vulgate and Septuagint make it a proper name: "And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and from Coa, or Tekoa."Some think it signifies a tribute, thus Bochart: "They brought horses to Solomon out of Egypt; and as to the tribute, the farmers of this prince received it at a price."They farmed the tribute, gave so much annually for it, taking the different kinds to themselves, and giving a round sum for the whole

Some suppose that Mikveh signifies the string or cord by which one horse’ s head is tied to the tail of another; and that the meaning is, Solomon brought droves of horses, thus tied, out of Egypt

Rabbi Solomon Jarchi, in his comment on the parallel place, 2Ch 1:14, says that מקוה mikveh signifies a collection or drove of horses, or what the Germans call stutte , a stud. He observes on that place, "That he has heard that there was a company of merchants in Egypt, who bought horses from the Egyptians at a certain price, on condition that no person should be permitted to bring a horse out of Egypt but through them."Houbigant supposes the place to be corrupt, and that for מקוה mikveh we should read מרכבה mercabah , chariots: "And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and chariots; and the king’ s merchants received the chariots at a price: and a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver,"etc. This makes a very good and consistent sense; but none of the versions acknowledged it, nor is there any various reading here in any of the MSS. yet collated

If we understand it of thread, it may refer to the byssus or fine flax for which Egypt was famous; but I do not see on what authority we translate it linen thread. Bochart’ s opinion appears to me the most probable, as the text now stands; but the charge contended for by Houbigant makes the text far more simple and intelligible.

Clarke: 1Ki 10:29

A chariot came up - for six hundred shekels - This was the ordinary price of a chariot, as a hundred and fifty shekels were for a horse

Clarke: 1Ki 10:29

Kings of the Hittites - These must have been the remains of the original inhabitants of Canaan, who had gone to some other country, probably Syria, and formed themselves into a principality there. It seems that neither horses nor chariots came out of Egypt but by means of Solomon’ s servants

Defender: 1Ki 10:11

Hiram was king of Tyre, the great capital of the Phoenicians, whose seafaring and exploring exploits were legendary. Despite the pagan religion of the Phoenicians, Hiram was on very friendly terms with both David and Solomon, even providing an abundance of cedar trees from Lebanon, along with skilled workmen, for construction of the temple and other building projects (1Ki 5:1-10, 1Ki 5:18; 1Ki 9:11-14).

Defender: 1Ki 10:11

Ophir's location is uncertain, though it had to be reached by ships from Ezion-Geber on the Red Sea (1Ki 9:26-28). The city was known even in Job's day, probably before the time of Abraham (Job 22:24). In view of its exotic trade, many believe it was as far away as India."

Defender: 1Ki 10:22

Although Tharshish (Tarshish) is frequently mentioned in the Old Testament, its location is uncertain. It may refer simply to ore-carrying vessels, since the word is similar to that for "smeltry." However, Tarshish was the name of a son of Javan (Gen 10:4), the ancestor of the Greeks, and most of the references seem clearly to mean a specific city, or country (Jon 1:3; Isa 23:6). There are at least eight references to "the ships of Tarshish" (2Ch 9:21), so Tarshish seems to have been a sea-faring people, like the Phoenicians with whom they are often connected, as here. Possibly it refers to Carthage, a colony of Phoenicia, or possibly to Tartessos in Spain. Some have suggested a reference to the British Isles, because of the ancient smelters there, and a few believe that the ships of Tarshish even sailed to America, as well as India."

Defender: 1Ki 10:23

During this period - around 1000 b.c. - the greatest nations of the earth included Assyria and Egypt, but not even these compared to Israel under Solomon. For example, Egypt's Pharaoh made a treaty with Solomon and gave him his daughter for wife (1Ki 3:1)."

TSK: 1Ki 10:3

told her : 2Ch 9:2; Pro 1:5, Pro 1:6, Pro 13:20; Isa 42:16; Mat 13:11; Joh 7:17; 1Co 1:30; Col 2:3

questions : Heb. words

hid from the king : 1Ki 10:1, 1Ki 3:12; 2Sa 14:17, 2Sa 14:20; Dan 2:20-23; Heb 4:12, Heb 4:13

TSK: 1Ki 10:4

Solomon’ s : 1Ki 3:28, 1Ki 4:29-31; 2Ch 9:3, 2Ch 9:4; Ecc 12:9; Mat 12:42

the house : 1Kings 6:1-7:51

TSK: 1Ki 10:5

the meat : 1Ki 4:22, 1Ki 4:23

attendance : Heb. standing

cupbearers : or, butlers, ascent. The original weolatho asher yaaleh baith yehowah , is rendered by the LXX and Vulgate, και την ολοκουτωσιν αυτου ην ανεφερεν εν οικω Κυριου ; et holocausta , que offerebat in domo Domini , ""And the burnt offerings (or holocausts) which he offered in the house of the Lord;""with which the Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic agree; and so also Luther, Und feine Brandopfer, die er in dem Hause des Herrn opferte ; and this seems to be the true sense of the passage. 2Ki 16:18; 1Ch 9:18, 1Ch 26:16; 2Ch 23:13; Eze 44:3, Eze 46:2

there was no : Jos 5:1; 2Ch 9:4

TSK: 1Ki 10:6

report : Heb. word, 2Ch 9:5, 2Ch 9:6 *marg.

acts : or, sayings

TSK: 1Ki 10:7

I believed : Isa 64:4; Zec 9:17; Mar 16:11; Joh 20:25-29; 1Co 2:9; 1Jo 3:2

thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame : Heb. thou hast added wisdom and goodness to the fame

TSK: 1Ki 10:8

happy are these : 2Ch 9:7, 2Ch 9:8; Pro 3:13, Pro 3:14, Pro 8:34, Pro 10:21, Pro 13:20; Luk 10:39-42, Luk 11:28, Luk 11:31

TSK: 1Ki 10:9

Blessed : 1Ki 5:7; Psa 72:17-19

delighteth : Psa 18:19, Psa 22:8; Isa 42:1, Isa 62:4

because the : Deu 7:8; 1Ch 17:22; 2Ch 2:11

to do : 2Sa 8:15, 2Sa 23:3; Psa 72:2; Pro 8:15, Pro 8:16; Isa 9:7, Isa 11:4, Isa 11:5, Isa 32:1, Isa 32:2; Jer 23:5, Jer 23:6; Rom 13:3, Rom 13:4

TSK: 1Ki 10:10

she gave : 1Ki 10:2, 1Ki 9:14; Psa 72:10, Psa 72:15; Mat 2:11

an hundred : According to Mr. Reynolds, equal to 843,905£ 10s. 4d. sterling.

spices : Gen 43:11; Exo 30:34

and precious : Pro 3:13-15, Pro 20:15; Rev 21:11

TSK: 1Ki 10:11

from Ophir : 1Ki 9:27, 1Ki 9:28; 2Ch 8:18; Psa 45:9

almug : 2Ch 2:8, 2Ch 9:10, 2Ch 9:11, algum trees

TSK: 1Ki 10:12

pillars : or, rails, Heb. a prop

harps : 1Ch 23:5, 25:1-31; Psa 92:1-3, Psa 150:3-5; Rev 14:2, Rev 14:3

TSK: 1Ki 10:13

all her desire : 1Ki 10:2, 1Ki 9:1; Psa 20:4, Psa 37:4; Mat 15:28; Joh 14:13, Joh 14:14; Eph 3:20

which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty : Heb. which he gave her, according to the hand of king Solomon

TSK: 1Ki 10:14

am 2989-3029, bc 1015-975

was six hundred : Equal to 4,683,675£ 12s. 8d. sterling; which was what he got annually in bullion. See note on 1Ki 9:28.

TSK: 1Ki 10:15

all the kings : 1Ch 9:24; 2Ch 9:13, 2Ch 9:14; Psa 72:10; Isa 21:13; Gal 4:25

governors : or, captains

TSK: 1Ki 10:16

two hundred : Mr. Reynolds computes that these 200 targets were worth 28,131£ 16s. 9d.; and that the 300 shields were worth 210,976£ 7s. 7d. 1Ki 14:26-28; 2Ch 9:15, 2Ch 9:16, 2Ch 12:9, 2Ch 12:10

TSK: 1Ki 10:17

in the house : 1Ki 7:2

TSK: 1Ki 10:18

a great throne : 2Ch 9:17-19; Psa 45:6, Psa 110:1, Psa 122:5; Heb 1:3, Heb 1:8; Rev 20:11

ivory : 1Ki 10:22, 1Ki 22:39; Psa 45:8; Eze 27:6; Amo 6:4; Rev 18:12

TSK: 1Ki 10:19

behind : Heb. on the hinder part thereof

stays : Heb. hands. 1Ki 10:19

TSK: 1Ki 10:20

lions : Gen 49:9; Num 23:24, Num 24:9; Rev 5:5

the like made : Heb. so made

TSK: 1Ki 10:21

drinking : 2Ch 9:20-22

the house : 1Ki 10:17, 1Ki 7:2

none were of silver : or, there was no silver in them

TSK: 1Ki 10:22

Tharshish : 1Ki 22:48; Gen 10:4; 2Ch 9:21, 2Ch 20:36, 2Ch 20:37; Psa 48:7, Psa 72:10; Isa 2:16; Isa 23:1, Isa 23:6, Isa 23:10, Isa 60:9, Isa 66:19; Eze 27:12; Jon 1:3, Tarshish

ivory : or, elephant’ s teeth, 1Ki 10:18; Amo 3:15

apes : Kophim , rather monkeys, the same as the Syriac )pwq , Greek κηφος , κηπος , or κηβος , and Roman Cephus , which animal both Pliny and Solinus inform us was brought from Ethiopia. The same name appears in the monkeys, called KEIIIEN ̱̌ Language:English } in the Prenestine Pavement, and in the French cep or ceb .

peacocks : Job 39:13

TSK: 1Ki 10:23

exceeded : Mr. Reynolds, stating Solomon’ s income at about four times as much as his father left him, reckons that he had each year 142,242,034£. 9s. 7d., each week 2,735,423£ 14s. 9d., and each day, 390,770£ 16s. 4d. 1Ki 3:12, 1Ki 3:13, 1Ki 4:29-34; 2Ch 9:22, 2Ch 9:23; Psa 89:27; Eph 3:8; Col 1:18, Col 1:19; Col 2:2, Col 2:3

TSK: 1Ki 10:24

to : Heb. the face of

which God : 1Ki 3:9, 1Ki 3:12, 1Ki 3:28; Pro 2:6; Dan 1:17, Dan 2:21, Dan 2:23, Dan 5:11; Jam 1:5

TSK: 1Ki 10:25

every man : 1Ki 10:10; Jdg 3:15; 1Sa 10:27; 2Sa 8:2, 2Sa 8:10; 2Ch 26:8; Job 42:11; Psa 72:10, Psa 72:15; Isa 36:16; Mat 2:11

and mules : 1Ki 1:33, 1Ki 18:5; Gen 36:24; Ezr 2:66; Est 8:10, Est 8:14; Isa 66:20; Eze 27:14

a rate : 2Ki 17:4; 2Ch 9:24

TSK: 1Ki 10:26

Solomon : 1Ki 4:26; Deu 17:16; 2Ch 1:14, 2Ch 9:25; Isa 2:7

in the cities : 2Ch 9:25

TSK: 1Ki 10:27

the king : 2Ch 1:15-17, 2Ch 9:27; Job 22:24, Job 22:25

made : Heb. gave

TSK: 1Ki 10:28

Solomon : etc. Heb. the going forth of the horses which was Solomon’ s

horses brought : Deu 17:16; 2Ch 1:16, 2Ch 1:17, 2Ch 9:28; Isa 31:1-3, Isa 36:9

and linen yarn : Gen 41:42; Pro 7:16; Isa 19:9; Eze 27:7

TSK: 1Ki 10:29

for six hundred : This was the ordinary price of a chariot, as 150 shekels was that of a horse. It seems that neither horses nor chariots came out of Egypt but by means of Solomon’ s servants.

the kings : Jos 1:4; 2Ki 7:6

their means : Heb. their hand, Hos 12:10; Mal 1:1

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)

Barnes: 1Ki 10:5

And the meat of his table - Compare 1Ki 4:22-23. The scene here described receives very apt illustration from the Assyrian banquet scenes, where we have numerous guests sitting, dressed handsomely in fringed robes, with armlets upon their arms, and bracelets round their wrists, attendants standing behind them, and magnificent drinking-cups, evidently of a costly metal, in the hands of the guests, which are filled from a great wine-bowl at one end of the chamber.

And his ascent by which he went up - A rendering preferable to "the burnt-offering which he cffered in."The "ascent"was probably a private way by which the king passed from his palace on the western hill, across the ravine (Tyropoeum) and up the eastern hill, to the west side of the temple area (compare the marginal reference).

Barnes: 1Ki 10:9

Blessed be the Lord thy God - This acknowledgment of Yahweh falls below the confessions of Hiram 2Ch 2:12 and Cyrus Ezr 1:3. It does not imply more than an admission of His power as a local deity; namely, that He is the God of the Jews and of their country.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:10

Strabo relates that the Sabaeans were enormously wealthy, and used gold and silver in a most lavish manner in their furniture, their utensils, and even on the walls, doors, and roofs of their houses. That the gold of Sheba should be given to Solomon was prophesied by the writer of Ps 72 (see the marginal reference). The immense abundance of spices in Arabia, and especially in the Yemen or Sabaean country, is noted by many writers. According to Strabo, the spice-trade of Arabia was in the hands of two nations, the Sabaeans and the Gerrhaeans. The spices in which they dealt seem to have been only in part the produce of Arabia itself; some of the most important kinds, as the cinnamon and the cassia, must have been imported from India, since Arabia does not yield them. The chief precious stones which Arabia now yields are the onyx and the emerald. Anciently she is said to have produced other gems. Pearls, too, were readily procurable in Arabia from the Persian Gulf fishery.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:11

The navy of Hiram - i. e., Solomon’ s navy in the Red Sea, which was chiefly manned by subjects of Hiram. (see the marginal reference).

Almug-trees - Probably the sandal-wood tree (pterocarpus santalinus). The wood is very heavy, hard, and fine grained, and of a beautiful garnet color, which, according to the rabbinical writers, was the color of the algum. One of the names of the red sandal-wood, in its own native country (India) is "valguka,"a word of which "algum"is a natural corruption.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:12

Pillars - The Hebrew word signifies ordinarily a "prop"(margin). It is generally supposed to mean in this place a "railing,"or "balustrade,"a sense which connects and harmonises the present passage with the parallel passage in Chronicles (marginal reference), where Solomon is said to have made of the almug-wood "stairs"for the temple and for his own house.

Harps - The Jewish harp כנור kı̂nnôr was of a triangular shape, and had ordinarily ten strings. It probably resembled the more ancient harp of the Assyrians, which was played with a plectrum, as was (ordinarily) the "kinnor."

Psalteries - The psaltery, or viol. Hebrew: נבל nebel ; Greek: νάβλα nabla , was a stringed instrument played with the hand; perhaps a lyre, like those on Hebrew coins, the sounding-board of which is shaped like a jug; or, perhaps, a sort of guitar, with a hollow jug-shaped body at the lower end.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:14

Six hundred threescore and six talents of gold - About 3,646, 350 of our money. Solomon’ s annual revenue exceeded that of Oriental empires very much greater in extent than his, and must have made him one of the richest, if not the very richest, of the monarchs of his time.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:15

There is no mention in the original of "spice merchants."Two classes of traders are spoken of; but both expressions are general.

Kings of Arabia - Rather, "kings of the mingled people"(compare Jer 25:24). These were probably tribes half Jewish, half Arabian, on the borders of the western desert. They are regarded as Arabs by the author of Chronicles (marginal reference).

Governors - The word used here is thought to be of Aryan origin. It appears to have been a title given by the Persians to petty governors, inferior to the great satraps of provinces. We find it borne by, among others, Tatnai Ezr 5:6, Zerubbabel Hag 1:1, and Nehemiah Neh 5:14. It can scarcely have been in use among the Jews so early as Solomon, and we must therefore suppose it to have been substituted by the writer of Kings for some corresponding Semitic title. The empire of Solomon was not a state governed from a single center by an organisation of satrapies or provinces (1Ki 4:21 note). But exceptionally, in some parts of the empire, the kings had been superseded by "governors"(compare 1Ki 20:24).

Barnes: 1Ki 10:16

The "targets"seem to have been long shields protecting the whole body, while the "shields"of the next verse were bucklers of a smaller size, probably round, and much lighter. They may be compared with the Assyrian long shield, and the ordinary Assyrian round shield. As the amount of gold used in each of the larger shields was only 600 shekels - worth from 650 to 700 of our money - and that used in the smaller ones was only half as much it is evident that the metal did not form the substance of the shields, but was laid as a coating or plating over them.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:17

These shields, together with the 500 taken by David from Hadadezer 2Sa 8:7 were hung round the outer walls of a building, reckoned as belonging to the "house of the Forest of Lebanon,"but separate from it, and called sometimes "the Tower of David"Son 4:4, or from its use "the armoury"Son 4:4; Isa 22:8. The practice of hanging shields outside walls for ornamentation seems to have existed at Tyre Eze 27:10-11, Rome, Athens, and elsewhere. Traces of it are thought to be found in the Assyrian sculptures.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:18

It is, on the whole, probable that the substance of the throne was wood, and that the ivory, cut into thin slabs, and probably carved in patterns, was applied externally as a veneer. This is found to have been the practice in Assyria. The gold was probably not placed over the ivory, but covered other parts of the throne.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:19

Representations of thrones are frequent in the Egyptian and Assyrian sculptures. They have no steps up to them, but frequently stand upon square bases. The back appears to be flat at the top, not rounded. Assyrian thrones have "stays"or arms on either side, and they stand generally upon lion’ s feet. They are always accompanied by a footstool.

Lions stood beside the stays - The arms of Assyrian thrones are occasionally supported by figures of animals. The throne of Rameses II at Medinet Abou has a sphinx at the side and a lion below the sphinx. The figure of the lion is naturally adopted by any imaginative race as an emblem of sovereignty. In the present case its adoption seems to have grown directly out of the poetic imagery of inspired prophets, who, living before the time of Solomon, had compared Israel Num 23:24; Num 24:9, and more particularly Judah Gen 49:9, to a lion. The "twelve lions"of 1Ki 10:20 were probably intended to be emblematic of the twelve tribes. Josephus adds to the description of Solomon’ s throne here given, that the seat was supported by a golden ox or bull, with its head turned over its shoulder. As the lion was especially emblematic of Judah, so was the ox or bull of Ephraim. (Hos 4:16; Hos 10:11; Jer 31:18, etc.)

Barnes: 1Ki 10:20

Solomon’ s throne, as described, is certainly grander than any of which we have a representation, either in Assyria or Egypt. Much more, then, would it transcend the thrones in inferior kingdoms.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:22

This is given as the reason of the great plentifulness of silver in the time of Solomon. The "navy of Tharshish"(not the same as the navy of Ophir, 1Ki 9:26) must therefore have imported very large quantities of that metal. Tharshish, or Tartessus, in Spain, had the richest silver mines known in the ancient world, and had a good deal of gold also; apes and ivory were produced by the opposite coast of Africa; and, if north Africa did not produce "peacocks,"which is uncertain, she may have produced the birds called here "tukkiyim,"which some translate "parrots,"others "guinea-fowl"- the latter being a purely African bird. The etymology of the Hebrew words here rendered "ivory,""apes,"and "peacocks,"is uncertain; but even if of Indian origin, the Jews may have derived their first knowledge of ivory, apes, and peacocks, through nations which traded with India, and may thus have got the words into their language long before the time of Solomon. The names once fixed would be retained, whatever the quarter from where the things were procured afterward.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:23-24

See the marginal references. By "all the earth"we are, of course, only to understand the kings or people of neighboring nations.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:25

His present - i. e., his tribute (1Ki 4:21 note). A statement illustrated by Egyptian and Assyrian sculptures on slabs and obelisks. Tribute-bearers from the subject kings, bring not only the fixed rate of bullion, but a tribute in kind besides, consisting of the most precious products of their respective countries.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:26

See 1Ki 4:26 note. Until the time of Solomon, war-chariots had not been in use among the Jews, except to a very small extent 1Ch 18:4. Hence, it was necessary for him to put himself on an equality in this respect with neighboring powers.

Cities for chariots - They were probably fortresses upon the borders of his territory, in which he maintained the standing army necessary for the support of his dominion.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:27

Made silver as stones - This strong hyperbole marks in the most striking way the great wealth and prosperity of the capital during Solomon’ s reign. The lavish expenditure which impoverished the provinces, and produced, or helped to produce, the general discontent that led to the outbreak under Jeroboam, enriched the metropolis, which must have profited greatly by the residence of the court, the constant influx of opulent strangers, and the periodical visits of all Israelites not hindered by some urgent reason at the great festivals.

The "sycomore-trees in the vale"(Shephelah) are mentioned also in 1Ch 27:28. Like the olives and the vines, they were placed by David under a special overseer, on account of their value. The tree meant seems to be the sycomore proper, or "fig-mulberry,"which is still common in Palestine, and is highly esteemed both on account of its fruit and its timber.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:28

The word translated "linen yarn"is thought now by Hebraists to mean "a troop"or "company."If the present reading is retained, they would translate the passage - "As for the bringing up of Solomon’ s horses out of Egypt, a band of the king’ s merchants fetched a band (or troop) of horses at a price."But the reading is very uncertain. The Septuagint had before them a different one, which they render "and from Tekoa."Tekoa, the home of Amos Amo 1:1, was a small town on the route from Egypt to Jerusalem, through which the horses would have naturally passed. The monuments of the 18th and of later dynasties make it clear that the horse, though introduced from abroad, became very abundant in Egypt. During the whole period of Egyptian prosperity the corps of chariots constituted a large and effective portion of the army. That horses were abundant in Egypt at the time of the Exodus is evident from Exo 9:3; Exo 14:9, Exo 14:23, Exo 14:28; Deu 17:16. That they continued numerous in later times appears from frequent allusions, both in the Historical Books of Scripture and in the prophets, as 2Ki 7:6; 2Ki 18:24; Isa 36:9; Eze 17:15, etc. The monuments show that the horse was employed by the Egyptians in peace no less than in war, private persons being often represented as paying visits to their friends in chariots.

Barnes: 1Ki 10:29

Taking the shekel at about three shillings of our money, six hundred silver shekels would be equal to about 90; and 150 shekels to 22 British pounds and 10 shillings. "Average"price seems to be in each case intended; and we may account for the comparatively high price of the chariot by supposing that by "chariot"is intended the entire equipage, including car, harness, and trained horses, of which there would be two at least, if not three. The "horses"mentioned separately from the chariots are not chariot-horses, but chargers for the cavalry.

The kings of the Hittites - See 2Ki 7:6 note. The kings intended were probably Solomon’ s vassals, whose armies were at his disposal if he required their aid.

Poole: 1Ki 10:3

All her questions Heb. all her matters ; he satisfied her in all things she desired to know. There was not any thing she asked which Solomon did not both understand himself, and acquaint her with.

Poole: 1Ki 10:4

Or, the houses , the singular number being put for the plural, to wit, both the temple and the king’ s house, in both which there were evidences of singular wisdom.

Poole: 1Ki 10:5

The sitting of his servants i.e. the order and manner in which his courtiers or other subjects (who all were his servants in a general sense) sat down at meals, at several tables in his court.

The attendance of his ministers to wit, upon the king, both at his table, and elsewhere in his court; and when he went abroad to the temple or other places,

Their apparel both the costliness of it:, and especially the conveniency of it to their several places and offices.

His ascent by which he went up unto the house of the Lord from his own palace. See 2Ki 16:18 . But the ancients, and some others translate the words thus, and the burnt-offerings which he offered up in the house of the Lord ; under which, as the chief, all other sacrifices are understood: when she saw the manner of his offering sacrifices to the Lord, which doubtless she would not neglect to see; and in the ordering of which she might discern really characters of excellent wisdom, especially when she had so excellent an interpreter as Solomon was to inform her of the reasons of all the circumstances of that service.

There was no more spirit in her she was astonished, and rapt up in a kind of ecstasy, and could scarce determine whether she did really see these things, or whether it was not only a pleasant dream.

Poole: 1Ki 10:7

I believed not the words which the reporters used concerning him; or, the things reported; they seemed incredible, and above the perfection of human nature.

Prosperity or, happiness ; or, virtue ; Heb. goodness .

Poole: 1Ki 10:9

Blessed be the Lord thy God he deserves all blessing and praise, for delighting to honour and advance so worthy a person.

To set thee on the throne of Israel for it was God’ s special act to make him king rather than his elder brother.

To do judgment and justice i.e. to execute just judgment among them, to govern them with right and equity. She tacitly admonisheth Solomon, that he was not made king that he might live in ease, and pleasure, and splendour, but for the good of his people.

Poole: 1Ki 10:12

Almug trees called also (by an inversion of the letters, which is usual among the Hebrews) algum trees , 2Ch 2:8 9:10 ; whereof there were some in Lebanon, 2Ch 2:8 , but the best sort came from Ophir, as is here said.

Pillars or supporters , either for the ascent or stairs, by which they went from the king’ s house to the temple; see 1Ch 26:16 2Ch 9:11 ; or for divers parts both of the Lord’ s and of the king’ s house.

Poole: 1Ki 10:14

Which amounts to about two millions of our money. And this gold did not come from Ophir in India, or Tarshish; but from Arabia and Ethiopia, and other parts, which then were well replenished with gold, though since exhausted by the insatiable avarice of succeeding ages.

Poole: 1Ki 10:15

Of the merchantmen Heb. of the searchers , or spies, i.e. either merchants, who use to inquire and search out commodities, and all advantages of trade; or rather, the publicans or gatherers of the king’ s revenues, who used to search narrowly into all wares and dealings, that the king might not be defrauded of his rights.

Of the spice merchants or rather, of the merchants in general, as that word is oft used in Eze 27 , and elsewhere. So this and the former particular contain both the branches of the king’ s revenue, what he had from the land and fruits thereof, and what he had from the merchants and traders in other commodities.

Of all the kings of Arabia to wit, of those parts of Arabia which were next to Canaan, which were either conquered by David, or submitted to pay tribute to Solomon. But we must not think all these to be kings of large dominions, but many of them only governors of cities, and the territories belonging to them, such as were formerly in Canaan, and were anciently called kings. Of the country , or, of the land , or, of that land , for there is an article in the Hebrew; i.e. either of the land of Canaan; or rather, of the land of Arabia; whereof some parts were so far conquered, that he had governors of his own over them, who were each of them to take care of the king’ s revenue in his jurisdiction; and part only so far that they still had kings of their own, but such as were tributaries to him.

Poole: 1Ki 10:16

For pomp and magnificence, and (as may be thought from the use of the brazen shields, 1Ki 14:27,28 ) to be carried before him by his guard when he went abroad.

Poole: 1Ki 10:17

Three pound or, three hundred shekels , as it is expressed 2Ch 9:16 .

Poole: 1Ki 10:18

Overlaid it not wholly, but in part, here and there, which made it more beautiful to the eye. Probably the main substance of it was ivory, but some cavities were left in it which were filled with gold.

Poole: 1Ki 10:19

Round behind made like the half of a circle.

Two lions: these and the following lions seem added, to express either the tribe from which Solomon sprung, compared to a lion, Gen 49:9 ; or rather, that majesty and power wherewith a prince is adorned and armed, which his subjects cannot resist; or the duty of a prince in the execution of judgment, which ought to be done with great courage and magnanimity.

Poole: 1Ki 10:21

Comparatively; such hyperbolical expressions being frequent, both in Scripture and other authors.

Poole: 1Ki 10:22

A navy of Tharshish either, first, the ships of the sea, which may seem to be called Tarshish, as Psa 48:7 Isa 60:9 , from an eminent part of the sea near Judea, so called. Or rather, the ships that went to Tarshish; for Tarshish was the name of a certain place upon the sea, famous for its traffic with merchants, as it is manifest from Isa 23:6,10 66:19 Jer 10:9 Eze 27:12 ; and it was a place very remote from Judea, as appears from the three years usually spent in that voyage. But whether it was Spain, where in those times there was abundance of gold and silver, as Strabo and others affirm, or some place in the Indies, it is needless to determine.

Poole: 1Ki 10:24

All the earth i.e. all the kings of the earth, (as it is expressed, 2Ch 9:23 ) to wit, of those parts of the earth; which synecdoche is very frequent.

Poole: 1Ki 10:26

Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen like a wise prince, in deep peace providing for war.

A thousand and four hundred chariots: See Poole "1Ki 4:26".

Poole: 1Ki 10:27

Sycamore trees were vile and common. See Isa 9:10 .

Poole: 1Ki 10:28

Horses and linen yarn the two chief commodities of Egypt. See Pro 7:16 Son 1:9 Isa 3:23 Eze 27:7 .

The king’ s merchants received the linen yarn for a price Solomon received them from Pharaoh at a certain price agreed between them, and gave this privilege to his merchants, for a tribute to be paid to him out of it.

Poole: 1Ki 10:29

A chariot: this is not to be understood of the chariots and horses themselves, (for then all horses had been set at an equal price, which is most absurd,) but by a metonymy, for the lading of chariots and horses, which consisting of fine linen and silk, &c., were of great value; and the king’ s custom, together with the charges of the journey, amounted to these sums.

The Hittites a people dwelling principally in the northern and eastern parts of Canaan, Jos 1:4 , whom the Israelites, contrary to their duty, spared, and suffered to live among them, Jud 3:5 , who afterwards, it seems, grew numerous and potent, and, it may be, they sent out colonies (after the manner of the ancient times) into some parts of Syria and Arabia and possibly these kings of the Hittites may be some of those kings of Arabia, 1Ki 10:15 .

Haydock: 1Ki 10:4

House, the palace, or rather the temple, (Calmet) or both. (Menochius) ---

Dion (37) and Tacitus extol the grandeur of the temple, which Titus destroyed. What would they have said of that built by Solomon? (Calmet)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:5

In her. She fainted away in rapture and astonishment. (Haydock) ---

Thus the church of the Gentiles is taught, by the gospel, to lay aside the spirit of pride, &c. (Worthington)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:9

Justice. Kings are given by God, either in his mercy or in his anger. (Calmet) ---

They are not appointed for themselves alone. (Menochius) ---

This queen was moved to take so long a journey, to hear and to see Solomon, as a figure of the many potentates who should embrace the Christian faith. (Worthington)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:11

Thyine. Pliny ([Natural History?] iii. 16.) mentions a species of tall and incorruptible trees, called thya. The wood was odoriferous, and very costly. Citri et mensarum insania, quas feminæ viris contra margaritas regerunt. (B. xiii., and xv. 16.) Calypso burnt it, to perfume her whole island. (Homer) ---

It ws used as a sort of incense in sacrifices, and thence received its name. (Haydock) ---

Septuagint translate, "plained;" and elsewhere, pine-trees, which is adopted by St. Jerome, 2 Paralipomenon ii. 8. (Calmet) ---

Hebrew reads almuggim in one place, and algumin in the other, the letters being transposed; "for I suppose, says Kennicott, it will hardly be said that these trees were both almug and algum." (Haydock) ---

One word might be the Ethiopian pronunciation. (Huet) ---

Yet Kimchi observes, that such transpositions of letter are very common among the Hebrews. (Du Hamel) ---

Solomon had desired Hiram to send him some algum, or "gum bearing" wood: but as there was not sufficient, or so fine, in Libanus as in Ophir, or in foreign parts, he procured more from those countries. The wood might probably resemble that of settim, or of black acacia, (Exodus xxv. 5.) whence the gum of Arabia is extracted. Acanthos, in Thebais, was celebrated for its fine thorn-trees, and for its gum. (Strabo xvii.) (Calmet) ---

It is placed near Memphis. (Pliny, [Natural History?] iv 10.) ---

The Rabbins commonly understand the Hebrew to mean, "coral," which is not fit for instruments, much less for architecture. Others translate ebony, or Brazil wood, but without reason. (Calmet) (Tirinus)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:12

Rails. Hebrew mihsad, "pillars, supporters, or banisters." (Haydock) ---

Most interpreters suppose the rails were on each side of the road, leading from the palace to the temple. (Calmet) ---

Paralipomenon stairs. ---

Citterns, or harps and lyres. (Haydock) ---

Hebrew, "kinnoroth and nebalim."

Haydock: 1Ki 10:14

Gold. His stated revenue was, 4,646,350 l. sterling. (Haydock)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:15

Merchants: wholesale. (Menochius) ---

Arabia, the desert, which was peopled by various nations. Arab means, "a mixture, or assemblage," as well as "the night, and a fruitless country." Septuagint seem to have read abor, "all the kings of the other side" the Euphrates, who were also called Arabs. See chap. iv. 24. ---

Country around Judea, comprising the Phylarchs of Arabia, (Genesis xvii. 20.) and the Philistine Satraps.

Haydock: 1Ki 10:16

Shields. Hebrew tsinnu is rather indeterminate, denoting something sharp or pointed; "a dart," &c. (Calmet) ---

Paralipomenon spears. Some of the shields were made with a point, projecting from the middle, (Haydock) with which the enemy might be wounded. (Menochius) ---

These arms were used when the king went to the temple, and were reposited in the arsenal, at his return, chap. xiv. 28.

Haydock: 1Ki 10:17

Targets, smaller than the former, and resembling a crescent. Ducit Amazonidum lunatis agmina peltis. (Virgil, Æneid i.) (Calmet)

--- Paralipomenon reads, shields. ---

Fine. Septuagint, "ductile." Hebrew sseut, "beaten, refined," &c. ---

Hundred is omitted in Hebrew and Septuagint, (Haydock) but is found in 2 Paralipomenon (ix. 16.) where we read 300 of gold, in like manner as 600 of gold in the preceding verse, without specifying the particular weight in either. These targets or shields, seem to have been heavier than the former, and designed only for ornament, being placed in the great hall, as they weighed each 375 Roman pounds, or 18,000 sicles; (Calmet) unless minæ, pound, be here put for sicle; as Josephus ([Antiquities?] ii. 3.) says that sons of Jacob sold their brother for twenty pieces of silver, Genesis xxxvii. 28. (Menochius) ---

Salien thinks that 200 shields were each worth 600 sicles, and these 300 targets weighed each 300 sicles of gold. (Haydock)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:18

Ivory. Hebrew, "of the tooth" (or horn) of elephants: people do not agree of which the ivory is formed. See Pliny ([Natural History?] viii. 3.) for the former sentiment, and for the latter, Varro vi. Ezechiel (xxvii. 15.) seems to unite both sentiments, calling it, "horns of the tooth." (Haydock) ---

Ivory may, in effect, be wrought like horn. ---

Finest. Hebrew, "gold of Uphas." This was the country whence it was brought; (Jeremias x. 9.) probably Colchis, where the river Phasis, or Phison, flows, Genesis ii. 11. (Calmet) ---

The Chaldean calls Uphas, (in Jeremias) Ophir; and Huet supposes that Paz and Parvaim designate the same place, chap. ix. 28., and Job xxviii. 17. (Du Hamel) ---

In Paralipomenon, we only read, pure gold, which would suffer the ivory to appear in some places. (Calmet)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:19

Behind, like an alcove, (Haydock) placed in the porch of the palace, chap. vii. 8. ---

Hands, for the elbows to rest on. In Paralipomenon, St. Jerome translates, "little" arms. The feet might also be made in this shape. Josephus ([Antiquities?] viii. 5.) represents them as forming the seat: (Calmet) and the Septuagint place them on each side: "the fore-parts of oxen, projecting from the back of the throne, and hands on the throne, on each side of the seat." In Paralipomenon also, we find a foot-stool of gold. (Haydock)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:21

No silver vessels, (Calmet) though there was a great abundance of that metal, ver. 27. It was not deemed worthy to be admitted at the king's table. (Haydock)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:22

To Tharsis. This word in Hebrew signifies, "the sea," Isaias ii. 16., and xxiii. 10. (Menochius) ---

But when it signifies some particular place, (Haydock) it probably refers to Tarsus of Cilicia, which was once the most famous mart on the Mediterranean, though not perhaps in the days of Solomon, but after it had been embellished by the Assyrian kings. "Ships of Tharsis," often denote such as were fit for a long voyage; and of this description were the fleets of Solomon and of Hiram, which sailed from Asiongaber to Ophir, and touched at various ports, where they procured what they wanted. (Calmet) ---

Hebrew, "the king had at sea a navy of Tharsis....once in three years: the navy of Tharsis came, bringing gold," &c. (Haydock) ---

Teeth. Hebrew Shenhabim. The latter word is commonly rendered elephants, k being lost at the beginning. (Bochart) ---

Syriac and Arabic intimate, that the elephants were brought alive. Perhaps n may be dropped after b; so that we should read, ebnim, as [in] Ezechiel xxvii. 15., and translate ivory and ebony; the one being remarkable for its white, and the other for is black colour. Both might be procured on the coasts of Ethiopia, by which the fleet passed. The Persians, and Sesostris, required the people of the country to pay both for tribute. (Pliny, [Natural History?] xii. 14.; Diodorus i.) ---

Apes. Hebrew Kophim. Greek Kepos . There was a peculiar species in Ethiopia, which the Egyptians adored at Babylon, near Memphis, and was exhibited by Julius Cæsar, in the public shews. (Solin.; Bochart) ---

Peacocks is not expressed in the Septuagint. (Calmet) ---

The Roman edition, instead of elephants, &c., inserts, "stones" &c., intended for the various edifices and towns, which Solomon fortified, to keep under the nations of Chanaan, whom he forced to labour, &c. But the Alexandrian copy has, Greek: taonon, "peacocks," as thuciim is rendered (Haydock) by the Chaldean, Syriac, &c. (Calmet) ---

Huet observes, that these birds were scarcely known in the time of Alexander, and would therefore understand , psittacos, "parrots." (Du Hamel) ---

But peacocks were called, "birds of Media," as they were very common in that country, (Calmet) and about Babylon. (Diodorus ii.) ---

The fleet of Solomon might advance as far as the confines of Media. Josephus adds, that it brought home Ethiopian slaves, who were in high esteem in a country where eunuchs were employed to guard the women, (Calmet) as there would be less danger of too great familiarity. (Haydock)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:24

The earth; or, the kings of, &c., Paralipomenon.

Haydock: 1Ki 10:26

Hunderd chariots. Paralipomenon, forty thousand horses, in the stables, and 12,000 chariots and horsemen; though the chariots may be referred to the former number, conformably to the Hebrew, and to chap. iv. 26. (Menochius) ---

Many of the horses were not employed in the chariots, (Salien) which were 1400 in number, 2 Paralipomenon i. 14. (Menochius)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:27

Sycamores, (Hebrew shikmim ) which were formerly very common in Palestine, as they are still about Cairo, in Egypt. The fruit resembles figs, as the leaves do the mulberry tree; whence the name is a compound of Greek: sukon, "a fig," and Greek: moria, "a mulberry;" though some would prefer Greek: moros, "a fool," to denote that the fruit is "insipid." It is however sweeter than wild figs, and proceeds from the trunk of the tree. (Calmet)

Haydock: 1Ki 10:29

Fifty, upon an average. ---

Hethites: some had retired, and built Lusa; (Judges i. 26.) others dwelt beyond Libanus, 4 Kings vii. 4. These kings sold horses to Solomon; or, according to the Hebrew, the Jews had the traffic of horses in their own hands. (Calmet) ---

Protestants, "and so for all the kings....did they bring them out by their means." Septuagint, "thus to all the kings....of Syria, on the seashore, they came out." (Haydock) ---

The merchants sold horses to these kings, at 150 sicles a piece. (Calmet)

Gill: 1Ki 10:3

And Solomon told her all her questions,.... Answered them, told her the meaning of everything she inquired about, expounded her riddles, solved her objections, and gave her satisfaction in all things she proposed unto him:

there was not anything hid from the king, which he told her not; there was not anything, though ever so abstruse and difficult, but what he understood, and gave her a clear and plain solution of.

Gill: 1Ki 10:4

And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom,.... Which she perceived by his answers to things relative to all sorts of science, natural, civil, and divine:

and the house that he had built; the singular for the plural, "house for houses"; the house of the Lord, his own house, that for Pharaoh's daughter, and the house of the forest of Lebanon; in all which there appeared not only surprising grandeur and magnificence, but exquisite art and skill; there was a great display of his wisdom in the form and contrivance of them. Josephus ^p says, what exceedingly surprised her, and raised her admiration, was the house of the forest of Lebanon.

Gill: 1Ki 10:5

And the meat of his table,.... The various sorts of it, the different dishes, and the multitude of them; see 1Ki 4:22.

and the sitting of his servants; at table, either with him, or at tables by themselves, yet in his presence; for these were his nobles and courtiers, who were placed in order, according to their rank and degree, which showed wisdom:

and the attendance of his ministers; or the "standing" ^q of those that waited, both at the king's table, and the tables of the lords, who each had their proper place and business assigned; so that the utmost decorum was observed, and no confusion or disorder to be seen:

and their apparel: their several liveries, which were distinct according to the posts and offices in which they were, and which no doubt were rich and splendid, as well as various:

and his cup bearers; to serve him and his nobles with wine when called for; though the word signifies liquors ^r, and may design the various sorts of wines, and other drinkables, used by him, of which there was great plenty:

and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the Lord; the steps which he had made to go up from his palace to the temple; which were so curiously devised, and so artificially wrought, that it gave the queen, among other things, a sensible proof of his great wisdom, as well as of his religion and piety. The Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Arabic versions, and some others, render the words, "and the burnt offerings which he offered in the house of the Lord"; and so Josephus ^s understood them; she was shown the service of the house of the Lord, as much as could be admitted, and perhaps was told the meaning of it; all which she saw, both in his own house, and in the house of God, and greatly surprised her:

so that there was no more spirit in her; she was quite astonished; like one in an ecstasy, she had no power for a time to speak, what she saw and heard so affected her.

Gill: 1Ki 10:6

And she said to the king,.... When she was a little come to herself:

it was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom; which she was ready to call in question when she first heard it; at least she thought it was greatly exaggerated, but now she found it was strictly true.

Gill: 1Ki 10:7

Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it,.... That is, she did not believe the whole of what was related to her; somewhat of it she credited, and supposed there was something grand and extraordinary in it, or she would never have taken such a journey; but she did not believe that all could be true; she thought things were too much magnified:

and, behold, the half was not told me; of what she now saw and heard:

thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard; the inward endowments of his mind, and the outward magnificence of his court, exceeded the relation of them to her; they were beyond expression, they were so great that reporters could not hyperbolize upon them, nor even come up to them in their account of them, and in which yet men are apt to exceed.

Gill: 1Ki 10:8

Happy are thy men,.... The men of Israel, that had a king over them so wise, so great, so good:

happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and hear thy wisdom; who were now present, and to whom she pointed, and may respect not his nobles and courtiers only, but his menial servants, who had an opportunity of often hearing the wise sayings which dropped from his lips; and which no doubt were means of greatly improving their knowledge and understanding in things natural and divine.

Gill: 1Ki 10:9

Blessed be the Lord thy God,.... Of whom she might have better notions than when she came out of her own country:

which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel; loved him with a love of complacency and delight, was Jedidiah, as he called him, beloved of the Lord, and therefore he chose him and preferred him to be king before his elder brother:

because the Lord loved Israel for ever; to establish them as a kingdom for ever as they were, so long as obedient to him; see 2Ch 9:8,

therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and justice; not merely for the sake of honour and glory, much less to indulge to pleasure and luxury, and still less to oppression and tyranny; but to administer justice and judgment to the people, which is the principal end of government; see Psa 72:1.

Gill: 1Ki 10:10

And she gave the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold,.... The same sum that Hiram sent him; see Gill on 1Ki 9:14 this fulfilled the prophecy, so far as it respected Solomon, Psa 72:15.

and of spices very great store, and precious stones; see 1Ki 10:2 there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon; that is, into Judea. Josephus reports ^t, that some say that the balsamic plant, which Judea was afterwards so famous for, was brought by this queen, and a gift of hers to Solomon; and Diodorus Siculus ^u speaks of it as in Arabia, and not to be found in any other part of the world.

Gill: 1Ki 10:11

And the navy also of Hiram that brought gold from Ophir,.... This perhaps was before Solomon was concerned with Hiram in navigation and merchandise; though in 2Ch 9:10 both their servants are said to bring it; and it is here inserted perhaps to show that Solomon had not his gold, at least all of it, from the queen of Sheba; but much from Hiram, who fetched it from Ophir; and as this was in India, as observed on 1Ki 9:28, many writers make mention of gold in that part of the world, as Diodorus Siculus ^w, Strabo ^x, Dionysius ^y, Curtius ^z, Pliny ^a, and others: and this navy also

brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees: or algum trees, by transposition of letters, 2Ch 9:10, which some of the Jewish writers ^b take to be coral, which is not likely; others Brasil, rather ebony, which was peculiar to India, as both Solinus ^c and Virgil ^d say; Strabo ^e makes mention of strange trees in India:

and precious stones; of which there is great variety and plenty in that country, as related by Dionysius ^f, as diamonds, beryls, jaspers, topazes, and amethysts, and by Curtius ^g, Solinus ^h, and others.

Gill: 1Ki 10:12

And the king made of the almug trees pillars for the house of the Lord, and for the king's house,.... Or terraces, as in 2Ch 9:11, causeways; and means the ascent or causeway he made from his own house to the temple; the pavement of which, as Jarchi interprets the word here, was made of the wood of these trees; or the supports of it, or rather the rails on each side, on which men might stay themselves as they passed along, as Ben Gersom; and since this ascent was admired by the queen of Sheba, it is particularly observed what wood it was made of, and from whence it came:

harps also, and psalteries for singers; these musical instruments were made of the same wood; Josephus ⁱ says of amber, and that their number was 400,000:

there came no such almug trees, nor were seen unto this day; not in the land of Israel, neither before nor since, see 2Ch 9:11.

Gill: 1Ki 10:13

And King Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her desire,

whatsoever she asked,.... Some curious things she saw, and was desirous of, she asked for, and had them:

besides that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty; of his own good will and pleasure, without asking:

so she turned and went to her own country: the country of Sheba in Arabia Felix:

she and her sergeants: the train or retinue she brought with her, which was large, 1Ki 10:2.

Gill: 1Ki 10:14

Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and sixty and six talents of gold. From Ophir and Tarshish, and wherever he traded; which was of our money, according to Berewood ^k, 2,997,000 pounds; or as another learned man ^l, who makes it equal to 5,138,520 ducats of gold.

Gill: 1Ki 10:15

Besides that he had of the merchantmen, and of the traffic of the spice merchants,.... What they paid him as a duty or custom for the importation of their goods:

and of all the kings of Arabia; who were subject to him, and paid him a yearly tribute, or at least made presents, see 1Ki 4:21.

and of the governors of the country; who were viceroys or deputy governors of countries conquered by his father, and who collected tribute from the people, and paid it to him.

Gill: 1Ki 10:16

And King Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold,.... Which were a larger sort of shields, which covered the whole body; and these were made of gold beaten with the hammer, or drawn into plates, being melted like wax; so the Poeni or Carthaginians made shields of gold ^m:

six hundred shekels of gold went to one target; which is to be understood not of the weight, but of the price or value of them, which amounted to four hundred and fifty pounds of our money; so Brerewood ⁿ.

Gill: 1Ki 10:17

And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold,.... Which were a lesser sort:

three pounds of gold went to one shield; or three hundred shekels, as in 2Ch 9:16 a hundred shekels made one pound; so that these were but half the value of the former, and one of them was worth but two hundred and twenty five pounds: Eupolemus ^o, an Heathen writer, makes mention of those golden shields Solomon made, and which were made for show, and not for war, as follows:

and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon; one part of which was made an armoury of, see Son 4:4.

Gill: 1Ki 10:18

Moreover, the king made a great throne of ivory,.... To sit on and judge his people; and ivory being white, may denote the purity, justice, and equity with which he judged; the white throne in Rev 20:11 may be an allusion to this; the ivory he had from Tarshish, 1Ki 10:22.

and overlaid it with the best gold; for the greater splendour and majesty of it; not that he covered it all over, for then the ivory would not be seen, but interlined it, or studded it with it, whereby it appeared the more beautiful and magnificent. Such a throne of gold and ivory was decreed to Caesar by the Romans ^p.

Gill: 1Ki 10:19

The throne had six steps,.... Up to the footstool of the throne, which was of gold, 2Ch 9:18 and was high, that everyone in court might see him, and the better hear the sentence he gave:

and the top of the throne was round behind; had a semicircle at the top of it, like an alcove:

and there were stays on either side on the place of the seat; or "hands" ^q, such as the arms of a chair, to lean and rest upon:

and two lions stood beside the stays; which were not only ornamental, and for support of the stays, but expressive of majesty, and of undaunted courage and resolution to do justice, and of the danger such expose themselves to, who oppose magistrates in the discharge of their office; and in which Solomon was a type of Christ, the lion of the tribe of Judah; and for the same reasons were the like portraits on the steps, as follows.

Gill: 1Ki 10:20

And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps,.... There was a lion on each side of every step, a symbol of royal power, as before observed; so the Egyptians placed lions under the throne of Orus ^r:

there was not the like made in any kingdom; for the matter and form of it, for its grandeur and magnificence; there was none at least at that time, whatever has been since; for this is the first throne of ivory we read of.

Gill: 1Ki 10:21

And all King Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold,.... Such quantities of it were brought to him from Ophir, and paid to him in tribute, and given him as presents:

and all the vessels of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; not only what were used in his palace at Jerusalem, but in his country house at some little distance:

none were of silver; it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon; to make plate of; or silver plate was but little esteemed, and scarce any use of it made in Solomon's palace, if at all: though doubtless it was elsewhere, and especially silver as money.

Gill: 1Ki 10:22

For the king had at sea a navy of Tharshish, with the navy of Hiram,.... Tharshish was not the place the navy went from, but whither it went to, as appears from 2Ch 9:21 and designs not Tarsus in Cilicia; nor Tartessus in Spain, or Gades, or which was however near it; though it appears from Strabo ^s and Mela ^t that the Phoenicians were acquainted with those parts, and were possessed of them; and particularly, according to Velleius Paterculus ^u, the navy of Tyre traded thither before the days of Solomen; and Vitringa ^w is clear in it, that these were ships that traded to Tartessus, with the ships of Tyre; and it is more likely that that place is meant than Carthage, now called Tunis, in Africa; though the Targum here calls it the navy, the navy of Africa; but as Tharshish is sometimes used for the sea in general, here it may signify a particular sea, so called: and which Josephus ^x names the Tarsic sea, the same with the Indian sea; and points to the same country where Ophir was, which was washed by it, and to which the two fleets joined were bound. This is observed, to account for it how Solomon came by so much gold:

once in three years came the navy of Tharshish; it returned in such a space of time; navigation not being improved as now, and sailing by coasts, and what with their stay abroad to sell and purchase goods, and to refit their ships, as well as sometimes contrary winds, they were so long in performing this voyage, which is now done in a few months:

bringing gold and silver; so that silver was accounted of, and used for some purposes, though not for the king's plate:

ivory, and apes, and peacocks; ivory is the elephant's tooth, as the word signifies; some of those are of an almost incredible size; some are said to be of ninety, others one hundred and twenty five pounds weight; Vartomannus ^y says, he saw in Sumatra, where some place Ophir, one that weighed three hundred and thirty pounds; though, according to the Ethiopians ^z the ivory is from the horns; and so say ^a Pausanias and others, see Eze 27:15 but it is commonly supposed to be of the two teeth in the upper jaw that stands out; and whether they are called horns or teeth, they are the same of which ivory is: of elephants there were large numbers in India, bigger and stronger than those in Africa; which latter were afraid of the former, as Diodorus Siculus ^b, Curtius ^c, and Pliny ^d relate; so Virgil ^e speaks of ivory as fetched from India and Horace ^f also, which must be East India, for there are no ivory nor apes in the West Indies ^g: "apes" or "monkeys" were then, as now, brought from those parts. Strabo ^h reports, that when the Macedonians under Alexander were there, such a vast number of them came out of the woods, and placed themselves on the open hills, that they took them for an army of men set in battle array to fight them. Vartomannus ⁱ speaks of monkeys in the country of Calecut, of a very small price: near Surat apes are in great esteem, nor will they suffer them to be killed on any account ^k. There are various sorts of apes, some more like to goats, others to dogs, others to lions, and some to other animals, as Philostorgius ^l relates; and who also says the sphinx is one sort of them, and which he describes on his own sight of it as resembling mankind in many things, and as a very subtle animal; and so Solinus ^m reckons such among apes; but what come nearest in name and sound to the "kuphim" of Solomon here are those Pliny ⁿ calls "cephi", whose fore feet he says are like the hands of men, and their hinder feet like the feet and thighs of men; and Strabo ^o describes a creature found in Ethiopia, called by him "ceipus" or "cepus", which has a face like a satyr, and the rest of it is between a dog and a bear. There is a creature called "cebus" by Aristotle ^p, and is described as having a tail, and all the rest like a man; according to Ludolf ^q, "cephus" is the "orangoutang" of the Indians. The word for peacocks should rather be rendered "parrots", so Junius; which are well known to come from India ^r, and from thence only, according to Pausanias ^s; Vartomannus ^t says, that at Calecut there are parrots of sundry colours, as green and purple, and others of mixed colours, and such a multitude of them, that men are appointed to keep them from the rice in the fields, as we keep crows from corn; and that they are of a small price, one is sold for two pence, or half a souse; and the number of them may be accounted for, because the Brachmans, the priests, reckon them sacred, and therefore the Indians eat them not ^u. Curtius ^w designs these, when he says, in India are birds, which are taught to imitate man's voice; and Solinus ^x says, that India only produces the green parrot, that is, the East Indies, the West Indies not being then discovered; though some ^y think they were, and that it was thither Solomon's navy went: certain it is there are parrots of various colours in the West Indies, which P. Martyr of Angleria frequently makes mention of in his Decades. Huetius ^z derives the Hebrew word here used from תכה, which he says signifies to "join" or "adhere" to anything, as these birds will; cling to, and hang by their bills and nails on a branch of a tree, &c. so that they are not easily separated from it; the word is used in Deu 33:3 and, according to some, in this sense. But, after all, if it should be insisted on, as it is by many, that "peacocks" are meant, these also are found in India. Alexander the great first saw them in this country, which so amazed him, that he threatened to punish those severely that should kill any of them ^a. Vartomannus ^b makes mention of them as in great numbers in some parts of India; and they are caught and sold at an easy rate at Surat ^c, and make part both of their game, and of their grand entertainments ^d; Aeianus ^e often speaks of them as in India in great numbers, and in great esteem.

Gill: 1Ki 10:23

So King Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom. In which he was an eminent type of Christ; see Eph 3:8.

Gill: 1Ki 10:24

And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. For it was all of God, a peculiar gift of his; by "all the earth" is meant the inhabitants of it, and only them, and those the more principal; who came from the several parts of it, hearing the fame of his wisdom, to know the truth of it, and to improve themselves by it.

Gill: 1Ki 10:25

And they brought every man his present,.... To recommend them, and introduce them into his presence:

vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, and horses, and mules, a rate year by year; everyone brought according to the commodities of his country; and they did yearly, out of great respect to him, and in veneration of him for his wisdom, and for the advantages they received by his wise counsels and instructions; besides, it was the custom of the eastern countries not to pay a visit, especially to great personages, without carrying a present.

Gill: 1Ki 10:26

And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen,.... Both for war; for though it was a time of peace, he provided against the worst, lest an enemy should come upon him suddenly, and when unprepared:

and he had one thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen; of the latter See Gill on 1Ki 4:26.

whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem; some of the horsemen were quartered in the cities where the chariots were placed, and some of them in Jerusalem, to be near the king's person, and to be a guard to him on occasion. Josephus ^f says, half of them were in Jerusalem about the king, and the rest were dispersed through the king's villages.

Gill: 1Ki 10:27

And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones,.... By the vast quantity he received from Tarshish; this is an hyperbolical expression:

and cedars made he to be as the sycamore trees that are the vale for abundance; not by the growth of them, but by the importation of them from the dominion of Hiram; this is said in the same figurative way; of the sycamore trees, Rauwolff says ^g, they are what the Moors and Arabians calls "mumeitz"; which he describes to be as large and as high as white mulberry trees, and having almost the same leaves, but rounder, and their fruit not unlike our figs, only sweeter, and no little seeds within, and not so good; and are therefore not esteemed, and are commonly sold to the poorer sort, and that they grow in all fields and grounds; of which See Gill on Amo 7:14.

Gill: 1Ki 10:28

And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt,.... To mount his horsemen with, and draw his chariots; which seems contrary to the command in Deu 17:16.

and linen yarn; the king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price; or rather linen itself; or linen garments, as Ben Gersom; linen being the staple commodity of Egypt, see Isa 19:9, but no mention is made of yarn in 2Ch 9:28, and the word rendered "linen yarn" signifies a confluence or collection of waters and other things; and the words may be rendered, "as for the collection, the king's merchants received the collection at a price"; that is, the collection of horses, a large number of them got together for sale; these they took at a price set upon them ^h, which is as follows.

Gill: 1Ki 10:29

And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver,.... Which, reckoning at two shillings and six pence a shekel, amounted to seventy five pounds; but a shekel was not worth more than two shillings and four pence farthing:

and an horse for one hundred and fifty; and this being the fourth part of the above sum, the Jews gather from hence that there were four horses in a chariot; the horses must be reckoned one with another, the whole collection of them, or otherwise no doubt but one horse was better than another; and it was a pretty large price to give for a horse in those times; which, taking a shekel at the lowest rate, must be upwards of ten pounds; and which is too great a sum still for a custom or tribute to be paid for them, whether to Pharaoh or Solomon, as some understand it:

and so for all the kings of the Hittites; perhaps the same with the kings of Arabia, 1Ki 10:15 and for the kings of Syria; those of Damascus, Zobah, &c.

did they bring them out by their means; that is, by the means of Solomon's merchants, who bought them out of Egypt, and sold them to these kings.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:3

¹ tn Heb “Solomon declared to her all her words; there was not a word hidden from the king which he did not declare to her.” If riddles are specifically in view (see v. 1), then one might translate, “Solomon explained to her all her riddles; there was no riddle too complex for the king.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:4

¹ tn Heb “all the wisdom of Solomon.”

² tn Heb “house.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:5

¹ tn Heb “the food on his table.”

² tn Heb “the seating of his servants and the standing of his attendants.”

³ tn Heb “there was no breath still in her.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:6

¹ tn Heb “about your words [or perhaps, “deeds”] and your wisdom.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:7

¹ tn Heb “the half was not told to me.”

² tn Heb “good.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:8

¹ tn Heb “How happy are your men! How happy are these servants of yours, who stand before you continually, who hear your wisdom!”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:9

¹ tn Or “delighted in.”

² tn Heb “to do justice and righteousness.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:10

¹ tn The Hebrew term כִּכָּר (kikkar, “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 9,000 pounds of gold (cf. NCV, NLT); CEV “five tons”; TEV “4,000 kilogrammes.”

² tn Heb “there has not come like those spices yet for quantity which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:12

¹ tn This Hebrew architectural term occurs only here. The meaning is uncertain; some have suggested “banisters” or “parapets”; cf. TEV, NLT “railings.” The parallel passage in 2 Chr 9:11 has a different word, meaning “tracks,” or perhaps “steps.”

² tn Two types of stringed instruments are specifically mentioned, the כִּנּוֹר (kinnor, “zither” [?]), and נֶבֶל (nevel, “harp”).

³ tn Heb “there has not come thus, the fine timber, and there has not been seen to this day.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:13

¹ tn Heb “besides what he had given her according to the hand of King Solomon.”

² tn Heb “turned and went.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:14

¹ tn The Hebrew term כִּכָּר (kikkar, “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 50,000 pounds of gold (cf. NCV); CEV, NLT “twenty-five tons”; TEV “almost 23,000 kilogrammes.”

² tn Heb “the weight of the gold which came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents of gold.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:15

¹ tn Heb “traveling men.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:16

¹ tn The Hebrew text has simply “six hundred,” with no unit of measure given.

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:17

¹ sn Three minas. The mina was a unit of measure for weight.

² sn The Palace of the Lebanon Forest. This name was appropriate because of the large amount of cedar, undoubtedly brought from Lebanon, used in its construction. The cedar pillars in the palace must have given it the appearance of a forest.

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:19

¹ tn Heb “[There were] armrests on each side of the place of the seat, and two lions standing beside the armrests.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:20

¹ tn Heb “nothing like it had been made for all the kingdoms.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:21

¹ tn Heb “there was no silver, it was not regarded as anything in the days of Solomon.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:22

¹ tn Heb “a fleet of Tarshish [ships].” This probably refers to large ships either made in or capable of traveling to the distant western port of Tarshish.

² tn Heb “the fleet of Tarshish [ships].”

³ tn Heb “came carrying.”

⁴ tn The meaning of this word is unclear. Some suggest “baboons.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:23

¹ tn Heb “King Solomon was greater than all the kings of the earth with respect to wealth and with respect to wisdom.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:24

¹ tc The Old Greek translation and Syriac Peshitta have “all the kings of the earth.” See 2 Chr 9:23.

² tn Heb “and all the earth was seeking the face of Solomon to hear his wisdom which God had placed in his heart.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:25

¹ tn Heb “and they were bringing each one his gift, items of silver…and mules, the matter of a year in a year.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:26

¹ tn Or “gathered.”

² tn Heb “he placed them in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem.”

map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:27

¹ tn The words “as plentiful” are added for clarification.

² tn Heb “he made.”

³ tn Heb “as the sycamore fig trees which are in the Shephelah.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:28

¹ sn From Egypt. Because Que is also mentioned, some prefer to see in vv. 28-29 a reference to Mutsur. Que and Mutsur were located in Cilicia/Cappadocia (in modern southern Turkey). See HALOT 625 s.v. מִצְרַיִם.

NET Notes: 1Ki 10:29

¹ tn Heb “and a chariot went up and came out of Egypt for six hundred silver [pieces], and a horse for one hundred fifty, and in the same way to all the kings of the Hittites and to the kings of Aram by their hand they brought out.”

Geneva Bible: 1Ki 10:5

And the ^{( b )} meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her.

^{( b )} That is, the whole order, and trade of his house.

Geneva Bible: 1Ki 10:8

Happy [are] thy men, happy [are] these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, [and] that hear thy ^{( c )} wisdom.

^{( c )} But much more happy are they, who hear the wisdom of God revealed in his word.

Geneva Bible: 1Ki 10:9

Blessed be the LORD thy God, which ^{( d )} delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the LORD loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do ^{( e )} judgment and justice.

^{( d )} It is a chief sign of God's favour, when godly and wise rulers fit in the throne of justice.

^{( e )} This is the reason kings are appointed.

Geneva Bible: 1Ki 10:15

Beside [that he had] of the merchantmen, and of the traffick of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia, and of the governors of the ^{( f )} country.

^{( f )} That is, Arabia, which for the great abundance of all things was called Happy.

Geneva Bible: 1Ki 10:19

The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne [was] round behind: and [there were] ^{( g )} stays on either side on the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the stays.

^{( g )} As the chair bows, or places to lean upon.

Geneva Bible: 1Ki 10:22

For the king had at sea a navy of Tharshish with the navy of Hiram: once in three years came the navy of ^{( h )} Tharshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.

^{( h )} By Tharshish is meant Cilicia, which was abundant in the variety of precious things.

Commentary -- Verse Range Notes

TSK Synopsis: 1Ki 10:1-29

1 The queen of Sheba admires the wisdom of Solomon.

14 Solomon's gold.

16 His targets.

18 The throne of ivory.

21 His vessels.

24 His presents.

26 His chariots and horse.

28 His tribute.

MHCC: 1Ki 10:1-13

The queen of Sheba came to Solomon to hear his wisdom, thereby to improve her own. Our Saviour mentions her inquiries after God, by Solomon, as showing the stupidity of those who inquire not after God, by our Lord Jesus Christ. By waiting and prayer, by diligently searching the Scriptures, by consulting wise and experienced Christians, and by practising what we have learned, we shall be delivered from difficulties. Solomon's wisdom made more impression upon the queen of Sheba than all his prosperity and grandeur. There is a spiritual excellence in heavenly things, and in consistent Christians, to which no reports can do justice. Here the truth exceeded; and all who, through grace, are brought to commune with God, will say the one half was not told them of the pleasures and the advantages of wisdom's ways. Glorified saints, much more, will say of heaven, that the thousandth part was not told them, 1Co 2:9. She pronounced them happy that constantly attended Solomon. With much more reason may we say of Christ's servants, Blessed are they that dwell in his house; they will be still praising him. She made a noble present to Solomon. What we present to Christ, he needs not, but will have us do so to express our gratitude. The believer who has been with Jesus, will return to his station, discharge his duties with readiness, and from better motives; looking forward to the day when, being absent from the body, he shall be present with the Lord.

MHCC: 1Ki 10:14-29

Solomon increased his wealth. Silver was nothing accounted of. Such is the nature of worldly wealth, plenty of it makes it the less valuable; much more should the enjoyment of spiritual riches lessen our esteem of all earthly possessions. If gold in abundance makes silver to be despised, shall not wisdom, and grace, and the foretastes of heaven, which are far better than gold, make gold to be lightly esteemed? See in Solomon's greatness the performance of God's promise, and let it encourage us to seek first the righteousness of God's kingdom. This was he, who, having tasted all earthly enjoyments, wrote a book, to show the vanity of all worldly things, the vexation of spirit that attends them, and the folly of setting our hearts upon them: and to recommend serious godliness, as that which will do unspeakably more to make us happy, that all the wealth and power he was master of; and, through the grace of God, it is within our reach.

Matthew Henry: 1Ki 10:1-13

We have here an account of the visit which the queen of Sheba made to Solomon, no doubt when he was in the height of his piety and prosperity. Our Saviour calls her the queen of the south, for Sheba lay south of Canaan. The common opinion is that it was in Africa; and the Christians in Ethiopia, to this day, are confident that she came from their country, and that Candace was her successor, who is mentioned Act 8:27. But it is more probable that she came from the south part of Arabia the happy. It should seem she was a queen regent, sovereign of her country. Many a kingdom would have been deprived of its greatest blessings if a Salique law had been admitted into its constitution. Observe,

I. On what errand the queen of Sheba came - not to treat of trade or commerce, to adjust the limits of their dominions, to court his alliance for their mutual strength or his assistance against some common enemy, which are the common occasions of the congress of crowned heads and their interviews, but she came, 1. To satisfy her curiosity; for she had heard of his fame, especially for wisdom, and she came to prove him, whether he was so great a man as he was reported to be, 1Ki 10:1. Solomon's fleet sailed near the coast of her country, and probably might put in there for fresh water; perhaps it was thus that she heard of the fame of Solomon, that he excelled in wisdom all the children of the east, and nothing would serve her but she would go herself and know the truth of the report. 2. To receive instruction from him. She came to hear his wisdom, and thereby to improve her own (Mat 12:42), that she might be the better able to govern her own kingdom by his maxims of policy. Those whom God has called to any public employment, particularly in the magistracy and ministry, should, by all means possible, be still improving themselves in that knowledge which will more and more qualify them for it, and enable them to discharge their trust well. But, it should seem, that which she chiefly aimed at was to be instructed in the things of God. She was religiously inclined, and had heard not only of the fame of Solomon, but concerning the name of the Lord (1Ki 10:1), the great name of that God whom Solomon worshipped and from whom he received his wisdom, and with this God she desired to be better acquainted. Therefore does our Saviour mention her enquiries after God, by Solomon, as an aggravation of the stupidity of those who enquire not after God by our Lord Jesus Christ, though he, having lain in his bosom, was much better able to instruct them.

II. With what equipage she came, with a very great retinue, agreeable to her rank, intending to try Solomon's wealth and generosity, as well as his wisdom, what entertainment he could and would give to a royal visitant, 1Ki 10:2. Yet she came not as one begging, but brought enough to bear her charges, and abundantly to recompense Solomon for his attention to her, nothing mean or common, but gold, and precious stones, and spices, because she came to trade for wisdom, which she would purchase at any rate.

III. What entertainment Solomon gave her. He despised not the weakness of her sex, blamed her not for leaving her own business at home to come so long a journey, and put herself and him to so much trouble and expense merely to satisfy her curiosity; but he made her welcome and all her train, gave her liberty to put all her questions, though some perhaps were frivolous, some captious, and some over-curious; he allowed her to commune with him of all that was in her heart (1Ki 10:2) and gave her a satisfactory answer to all her questions (1Ki 10:3), whether natural, moral, political, or divine. Were they designed to try him? he gave them such turns as abundantly satisfied her of his uncommon knowledge. Were they designed for her own instruction? (as we suppose most of them were), she received abundant instruction from him, and he made things surprisingly easy which she apprehended insuperably difficult, and satisfied her that there was a divine sentence in the lips of this king. But he informed her no doubt, with particular care, concerning God, and his law and instituted worship. He had taken it for granted (1Ki 8:42) that strangers would hear of his great name, and would come thither to enquire after him; and now that so great a stranger came we may be sure he was not wanting to assist and encourage her enquiries, and give her a description of the temple, and the officers and services of it, that she might be persuaded to serve the Lord whom she now sought.

IV. How she was affected with what she saw and heard in Solomon's court. Divers things are here mentioned which she admired, the buildings and furniture of his palace, the provision that was made very day for his table (when she saw that perhaps she wondered where there were mouths for all that meat, but when she saw the multitude of his attendants and guests she was as ready to wonder where was the meat for all those mouths), the orderly sitting of his servants, every one in his place, and the ready attendance of his ministers, without any confusion, their rich liveries, and the propriety with which his cup-bearers waited at his table. These things she admired, as adding much to his magnificence. But, above all these, the first thing mentioned (which contained all) is his wisdom (1Ki 10:4), of the transcendency of which she now had incontestable proofs: and the last thing mentioned, which crowned all, is his piety, the ascent by which he went up to the house of the Lord, with what gravity and seriousness, and an air of devotion in his countenance, he appeared, when he went to the temple to worship God, with as much humility then as majesty at other times. Many of the ancient versions read it, The burnt-offerings which he offered in the house of the Lord; she observed with what a generous bounty he brought his sacrifices, and with what a pious fervour he attended the offering of them; never did she see so much goodness with so much greatness. Every thing was so surprising that there was no more spirit in her, but she stood amazed; she had never seen the like.

V. How she expressed herself upon this occasion. 1. She owned her expectation far out-done, though it was highly raised by the report she heard, 1Ki 10:6, 1Ki 10:7. She is far from repenting her journey or calling herself a fool for undertaking it, but acknowledges it was well worth her while to come so far for the sight of that which she could not believe the report of. Usually things are represented to us, both by common fame and by our own imagination, much greater than we find them when we come to examine them; but here the truth exceeded both fame and fancy. Those who, through grace, are brought to experience the delights of communion with God will say that the one-half was not told them of the pleasures of Wisdom's ways and the advantages of her gates. Glorified saints, much more, will say that it was a true report which they heard of the happiness of heaven, but that the thousandth part was not told them, 1Co 2:9. 2. She pronounced those happy that constantly attended him, and waited on him at table: " Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants (1Ki 10:8); they may improve their own wisdom by hearing thine."She was tempted to envy them and to which herself one of them. Note, It is a great advantage to be in good families, and to have opportunity of frequent converse with those that are wise, and good, and communicative. Many have this happiness who know not how to value it. With much more reason may we say this of Christ's servants, Blessed are those that dwell in his house, they will be still praising him. 3. She blessed God, the giver of Solomon's wisdom and wealth, and the author of his advancement, who had made him king, (1.) In kindness to him, that he might have the larger opportunity of doing good with his wisdom: He delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel, 1Ki 10:9. Solomon's preferment began in the prophet's calling him Jedidiah, because the Lord loved him, 2Sa 12:25. It more than doubles our comforts if we have reason to hope they come from God's delight in us. It was his pleasure concerning thee (so it may be read) to set thee on the throne, not for thy merit's sake, but because it so seemed good unto him. (2.) In kindness to the people, because the Lord loved Israel for ever, designed them a lasting bliss, long to survive him that laid the foundations of it. "He has made thee king, not that thou mayest live in pomp and pleasure, and do what thou wilt, but to do judgment and justice. "This she kindly reminded Solomon of, and no doubt he took it kindly. Both magistrates and ministers must be more solicitous to do the duty of their places than to secure the honours and profits of them. To this she attributes his prosperity, not to his wisdom, for bread is not always to the wise (Ecc 9:11), but whoso doeth judgment and justice, it shall be well with him, Jer 22:15. Thus giving of thanks must be made for kings, for good kings, for such kings; they are what God makes them to be.

VI. How they parted. 1. She made a noble present to Solomon of gold and spices, 1Ki 10:10. David had foretold concerning Solomon that to him should be given of the gold of Sheba, Psa 72:15. The present of gold and spices which the wise men of the east brought to Christ was signified by this, Mat 2:11. Thus she paid for the wisdom she had learned and did not think she bought it dearly. Let those that are taught of God give him their hearts, and the present will be more acceptable than this of gold and spices. Mention is made of the great abundance Solomon had of his own, notwithstanding she presented and he accepted this gold. What we present to Christ he needs not, but will have us so to express our gratitude. The almug-trees are here spoken of (1Ki 10:11, 1Ki 10:12) as extraordinary, because perhaps much admired by the queen of Sheba. 2. Solomon was not behind-hand with her: He gave her whatsoever, she asked, patterns, we may suppose, of those things that were curious, by which she might make the like; or perhaps he gave her his precepts of wisdom and piety in writing, besides that which he gave her of his royal bounty, 1Ki 10:13. Thus those who apply to our Lord Jesus will find him not only greater than Solomon, and wiser, but more kind; whatsoever we ask, it shall be done for us; nay, he will, out of his divine bounty, which infinitely exceeds royal bounty, even Solomon's, do for us more than we are able to ask or think.

Matthew Henry: 1Ki 10:14-29

We have here a further account of Solomon's prosperity.

I. How he increased his wealth. Though he had much, he still coveted to have more, being willing to try the utmost the things of this world could do to make men happy. 1. Besides the gold that came from Ophir (1Ki 9:28), he brought so much into his country from other places that the whole amounted, every year, to 666 talents (1Ki 10:14), an ominous number, compare Rev 13:18, and Ezr 2:13. 2. He received a great deal in customs from the merchants, and in land-taxes from the countries his father had conquered and made tributaries to Israel, 1Ki 10:15. 3. He was Hiram's partner in a Tharshish fleet, of and for Tyre, which imported once in three years, not only gold, and silver, and ivory, substantial goods and serviceable, but apes to play with and peacocks to please the eye with their feathers, 1Ki 10:22. I wish this may not be an evidence that Solomon and his people, being overcharged with prosperity, by this time grew childish and wanton. 4. He had presents made him, every year, from the neighbouring princes and great men, to engage the continuance of his friendship, not so much because they feared him or were jealous of him as because they loved him and admired his wisdom, had often occasion to consult him as an oracle, and sent him these presents by way of recompence for his advice in politics, and (whether it became his grandeur and generosity or no we will not enquire) he took all that came, even garments and spices, horses and mules, 1Ki 10:24, 1Ki 10:25. 5. He traded to Egypt for horses and linen-yarn (or, as some read it, linen-cloth ), the staple commodities of that country, and had his own merchants or factors whom he employed in this traffic and who were accountable to him, 1Ki 10:28, 1Ki 10:28. The custom to be paid to the king of Egypt for exported chariots and horses out of Egypt was very high, but (as bishop Patrick understands it) Solomon, having married his daughter, got him to compound for the customs, so that he could bring them up cheaper than his neighbours, which obliged them to buy them of him, which he was wise enough no doubt to make his advantage of. This puts an honour upon the trading part of a nation, and sets a tradesman not so much below a gentleman as some place him, that Solomon, one of the greatest men that ever was, thought it no disparagement to him to deal in trade. In all labour there is profit.

II. What use he made of his wealth. He did not hoard it up in his coffers, that he might have it to look upon and leave behind him. He has, in his Ecclesiastes, so much exposed the folly of hoarding that we cannot suppose he would himself be guilty of it. No, God that had given him riches, and wealth, and honour, gave him also power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, Ecc 5:19.

1. He laid out his gold in fine things for himself, which he might the better be allowed to do when he had before laid out so much in fine things for the house of God. (1.) He made 200 targets, and 300 shields, of beaten gold (1Ki 10:16, 1Ki 10:17), not for service, but for state, to be carried before him when he appeared in pomp. With us, magistrates have swords and maces carried before them, as the Romans had their rods and axes, in token of their power to correct and punish the bad, to whom they are to be a terror. But Solomon had shields and targets carried before him, to signify that he took more pleasure in using his power for the defence and protection of the good, to whom he would be a praise. Magistrates are shields of the earth. (2.) He made a stately throne, on which he sat, to give laws to his subjects, audience to ambassadors, and judgment upon appeals, 1Ki 10:18-20. It was made of ivory, or elephants' teeth, which was very rich; and yet, as if he had so much gold that he knew not what to do with it, he overlaid that with gold, the best gold. Yet some think he did not cover the ivory all over, but here and there. He rolled it, flowered it, or inlaid it, with gold. The stays or arms of this stately chair were supported by the images of lions in gold; so were the steps and paces by which he went up to it, to be a memorandum to him of that courage and resolution wherewith he ought to execute judgment, not fearing the face of man. The righteous, in that post, is bold as a lion. (3.) He made all his drinking vessels, and all the furniture of his table, even at his country seat, of pure gold, 1Ki 10:21. He did not grudge himself what he had, but took the credit and comfort of it, such as it was. That is good that does us good.

2. He made it circulate among his subjects, so that the kingdom was as rich as the king; for he had no separate interests of his own to consult, but sought the welfare of his people. Those princes are not governed by Solomon's maxims who think it policy to keep their subjects poor. Solomon was herein a type of Christ, who is not only rich himself, but enriches all that are his. Solomon was instrumental to bring so much gold into the country, and disperse it, that silver was nothing accounted of, 1Ki 10:21. There was such plenty of it in Jerusalem that it was as the stones; and cedars, that used to be great rarities, were as common as sycamore trees, 1Ki 10:27. Such is the nature of worldly wealth, plenty of it makes it the less valuable; much more should the enjoyment of spiritual riches lessen our esteem of all earthly possessions. If gold in abundance would make silver to seem so despicable, shall not wisdom, and grace, and the foretastes of heaven, which are far better than gold, make earthly wealth seem much more despicable?

Lastly, Well, thus rich, thus great, was Solomon, and thus did he exceed all the kings of the earth, 1Ki 10:23. Now let us remember, 1. That this was he who, when he was setting out in the world, did not ask for the wealth and honour of it, but asked for a wise and understanding heart. The more moderate our desires are towards earthly things the better qualified we are for the enjoyment of them and the more likely to have them. See, in Solomon's greatness, the performance of God's promise (1Ki 3:13), and let it encourage us to seek first the righteousness of God's kingdom. 2. That this was he who, having tasted all these enjoyments, wrote a whole book to show the vanity of all worldly things and the vexation of spirit that attends them, their insufficiency to make us happy and the folly of setting our hearts upon them, and to recommend to us the practice of serious godliness, as that which is the whole of man, and will do infinitely more towards the making of us easy and happy than all the wealth and power that he was master of, and which, through the grace of God, is within our reach, when the thousandth part of Solomon's greatness is a thousand times more than we can ever be so vain as to promise ourselves in this world.

Keil-Delitzsch: 1Ki 10:1-13

Visit of the Queen of Saba (cf. 2Ch 9:1-12). - When the fame of Solomon's great wisdom came to the ears of the queen of Saba, probably through the Ophir voyages, she undertook a journey to Jerusalem, to convince herself of the truth of the report which had reached her, by putting it to the test by means of enigmas. שׁבא , Σαβα±́ , is not Ethiopia or Meroë, as Josephus ( Ant . viii. 6, 5), who confounds שׁבא with סבא , and the Abyssinian Christians suppose (vid., Ludolfi hist. Aeth . ii. 3), but the kingdom of the Sabaeans , who were celebrated for their trade in incense, gold, and precious stones, and who dwelt in Arabia Felix, with the capital Saba , or the Μαριάβα of the Greeks. This queen, who is called Balkis in the Arabian legend (cf. Koran, Sur . 27, and Pococke, Specim. hist. Arab . p. 60), heard the fame of Solomon יהוה לשׁם ; i.e., not "at the naming of the name of Jehovah"(Böttcher), nor "in respect of the glory of the Lord, with regard to that which Solomon had instituted for the glory of the Lord"(Thenius); nor even "serving to the glorification of God"(de Wette and Maurer); but literally, "belonging to the name of the Lord:"in other words, the fame which Solomon had acquired through the name of the Lord, or through the fact that the Lord had so glorified Himself in him (Ewald and Dietrich in Ges. Lex. s.v . ל ). "She came to try him with riddles,"i.e., to put his wisdom to the test by carrying on a conversation with him in riddles. The love of the Arabs for riddles, and their superiority in this jeu d'esprit , is sufficiently well known from the immense extent to which the Arabic literature abounds in Mashals . We have only to think of the large collections of proverbs made by Ali ben Abi Taleb and Meidani, or the Makamen of Hariri, which have been made accessible to all by F. Rückert's masterly translation into German, and which are distinguished by an amazing fulness of word-play and riddles. חידה , a riddle, is a pointed saying which merely hints at the deeper truth and leaves it to be guessed.

1Ki 10:2-3

As the queen of a wealthy country, she came with a very large retinue. חיל does not mean a military force or an armed escort (Thenius), but riches, property; namely, her numerous retinue of men ( עבדים , 1Ki 10:13), and camels laden with valuable treasures. The words יקרה ... גּמלּים are an explanatory circumstantial clause, both here and also in the Chronicles, where the cop. Vav stands before גּמלּים (cf. Ewald, §341, a ., b .). "And spake to Solomon all that she had upon her heart,"i.e., in this connection, whatever riddles she had it in her mind to lay before him; "and Solomon told her all her sayings,"i.e., was able to solve all her riddles. There is no ground for thinking of sayings of a religious nature, as the earlier commentators supposed, but simply of sayings the meaning of which was concealed, and the understanding of which indicated very deep wisdom.

1Ki 10:4-5

She saw הבּית , i.e., Solomon's palace, not the temple, and "the food of his table,"i.e., both the great variety of food that was placed upon the king's table (1Ki 5:2-3), and also the costly furniture of the table (1Ki 10:21), and "the seat of his retainers and the standing of his servants,"i.e., the places in the palace assigned to the ministers and servants of the king, which were contrived with wisdom and arranged in a splendid manner. עבדים are the chief officers of the king, viz., ministers, counsellors, and aides de camp ; משׁרתים , the court servants; מושׁב , the rooms of the courtiers in attendance; מעמד , the standing-place, i.e., the rooms of the inferior servants, "and their clothing,"which they received from the king; and משׁקיו , not his cup-bearers (lxx, Vulg.), but as in Gen 40:21, the drink, i.e., probably the whole of the drinking arrangements; ועלתו , and his ascent, by which he was accustomed to go into the house of Jehovah. עלה does not mean burnt-offering here, as the older translators have rendered it, but ascent, as in Eze 40:26, and as the Chronicles have correctly explained it by עליּתו . For burnt-offering is not to be thought of in this connection, because the queen had nothing to see or to be astonished at in the presentation of such an offering. עלתו is most likely "the king's outer entrance"into the temple, mentioned in 2Ki 16:18; and the passage before us would lead us to suppose that this was a work of art, or an artistic arrangement. וגו היה ולא , "and there was no more spirit in her:"she was beside herself with amazement, as in Jos 5:1; Jos 2:11.

1Ki 10:6-9

She then said with astonishment to Solomon, that of what her eyes now saw she had not heard the half, through the report which had reached her of his affairs and of his wisdom, and which had hitherto appeared incredible to her; and not only congratulated his servants, who stood continually near him and could hear his wisdom, but also praised Jehovah his God, that out of His eternal love to His people Israel He had given them a king to do justice and righteousness. The earlier theologians inferred from this praising of Jehovah, which involved faith in the true God, when taken in connection with Mat 12:42, that this queen had been converted to the true God, and conversed with Solomon on religious matters. But, as we have already observed at 1Ki 5:7, an acknowledgment of Jehovah as the God of Israel was reconcilable with polytheism. And the fact that nothing is said about her offering sacrifice in the temple, shows that the conversion of the queen is not to be thought of here.

1Ki 10:10

She thereupon presented to Solomon a hundred and twenty talents of gold (more than three million thalers nearly half a million sterling - Tr.]), and a very large quantity of spices and precious stones. The בּשׂמים probably included the genuine balsam of Arabia, even if בּשׂם was not the specific name of the genuine balsam. "There never more came so much of such spices of Jerusalem."Instead of לרב עוד ... בּא לא we find in the Chronicles, 1Ki 10:9, simply היה לא , "there was nothing like this balsam,"which conveys the same meaning though expressed more indefinitely, since ההוּא ecni כּבּשׂם points back to the preceding words, "balsam (spices) in great quantity."

(Note: It was this which gave rise to the legend in Josephus ( Ant . viii. 6, 6), that it was through this queen that the root of the true balsam( Opobalsamum ), which was afterwards cultivated in gardens at Jerichoand Engedi, was first of all brought to Palestine (cf. Movers, Phönizier , ii. 3, p. 226ff.).

1Ki 10:11-12

The allusion to these costly presents leads the historian to introduce the remark here, that the Ophir fleet also brought, in addition to gold, a large quantity of Algummim wood (see at 1Ki 9:28) and precious stones. Of this wood Solomon had מסעד or מסלּות made for the temple and palace. מסעד , from סעד , signifies a support, and מסלּה may be a later form for סלּם , a flight of steps or a staircase, so that we should have to think of steps with bannisters. This explanation is at any rate a safer one than that of "divans"(Thenius), which would have been quite out of place in the temple, or "narrow pannelled stripes on the floor"(Bertheau), which cannot in the smallest degree be deduced from מסעד , or "support = moveables, viz., tables, benches, footstools, boxes, and drawers"(Böttcher), which neither harmonizes with the temple, where there was no such furniture, nor with the מסלּות of the Chronicles. "And guitars and harps for the singers,"probably for the temple singers. כּנּור and נבל are string instruments; the former resembling our guitar rather than the harp, the strings being carried over the sounding-board upon a bridge, the latter being of a pitcher shape without any sounding bridge, as in the case of the harps.

1Ki 10:13

Solomon gave the queen of Saba all that she wished and asked for, beside what he gave her "according to the hand,"i.e., the might, of the king; that is to say, in addition to the presents answering to his might and his wealth, which he was obliged to give as a king, according to the Oriental custom. In the Chronicles (1Ki 10:12) we find "beside that which she had brought ( הביאה ) to the king,"which is an abbreviated expression for "beside that which he gave her in return for what she had brought to him,"or beside the return presents corresponding to her gifts to him, as it has been already correctly paraphrased by the Targum.

Keil-Delitzsch: 1Ki 10:14-15

Solomon's Wealth and the Use He Made of It (cf. 2Ch 9:13-21). - 1Ki 10:14. The gold which Solomon received in one year amounted to 666 talents, - more than seventeen million thalers (two million and a half sterling - Tr.). 666 is evidently a round number founded upon an approximative valuation. אחת בּשׁנה is rendered in the Vulg. per annos singulos ; but this is hardly correct, as the Ophir fleet, the produce of which is at any rate included, did not arrive every year, but once in three years. Thenius is wrong in supposing that this revenue merely applies to the direct taxes levied upon the Israelites. It includes all the branches of Solomon's revenue, whether derived from his commerce by sea and land (cf. 1Ki 10:28, 1Ki 10:29) or from the royal domains (1Ch 27:26-31), or received in the form of presents from foreign princes, who either visited him like the queen of Saba or sent ambassadors to him (1Ki 10:23, 1Ki 10:24), excepting the duties and tribute from conquered kings, which are specially mentioned in 1Ki 10:15. הת מאנשׁי לבד , beside what came in ( לשׁלמה בּא ) from the travelling traders and the commerce of the merchants, and from all the kings, etc. התּרים אנשׁי (a combination resembling our merchantmen; cf. Ewald, §287, e., p. 721) are probably the tradesmen or smaller dealers who travelled about in the country, and רכלים the wholesale dealers. This explanation of תּרים cannot be rendered doubtful by the objection that תּוּר only occurs elsewhere in connection with the wandering about of spies; for רכל signified originally to go about, spy out, or retail scandal, and after that to trade, and go about as a tradesman. הערב מלכי are not kings of the auxiliary and allied nations (Chald., Ges.), but kings of the mixed population, and according to Jer 25:24, more especially of the population of Arabia Deserta ( בּמּדבּר השּׁכנים ), which bordered upon Palestine; for ערב rof is a mixed crowd of all kinds of men, who either attach themselves to a nation (Exo 12:38), or live in the midst of it as foreigners (Neh 13:3), hence a number of mercenaries (Jer 50:37). In 2Ch 9:14, הערב is therefore correctly explained by the term ערב , which does not mean the whole of Arabia, but "only a tract of country not very extensive on the east and south of Palestine"(Gesenius), as these tribes were tributary of Solomon. הארץ פּחות , the governors of the land, are probably the officers named in 1Ki 4:7-19. As they collected the duties in the form of natural productions and delivered them in that form, so also did the tradesmen and merchants pay their duties, and the subjugated pastoral tribes of Arabia their tribute, in natura . This explains in a very simple manner why these revenues are separated from the revenue of Solomon which came in the form of money. פּחה is a foreign word, which first found its way into the Hebrew language after the times of the Assyrians, and sprang from the Sanscrit paksha , a companion or friend, which took the form of pakkha in Prakrit, and probably of pakha in the early Persian (vid., Benfey and Stern, die Monatsnamen , p. 195).

Keil-Delitzsch: 1Ki 10:16-17

Solomon had 500 ornamental shields made, 200 larger ones ( צנּים , scuta , targets), and 300 smaller ( מגנּים , clypei ). These shields, like all the shields of the ancients, were made of wood or basket-work, and covered with gold plate instead of leather (see my bibl. Archäol . ii. pp. 296ff.). שׁחוּט זהב does not mean aurum jugulatum , i.e., gold mixed with metal of a different kind, but, as Kimchi has shown, aurum diductum , beaten gold, from שׁחט , to stretch; since Solomon would certainly use pure gold for these ornamental shields. "Six hundred shekels of gold he spread upon one target,"that is to say, he used for gilding one target. Six hundred shekels would weigh about 17 1/2 lbs., so that the value of the gold upon a target would be more than 5000 thalers (£750 ), supposing that the Mosaic shekel is meant. But this is rendered doubtful by the fact that the gold upon the small shields is estimated at three minae. If, for example, the three minae are equal to three hundred shekels, according to 2Ch 9:16, as is generally assumed, a hundred shekels are reckoned as one mina; and as the mina only contained fifty Mosaic shekels, according to Eze 45:12, the reference must be to shekels after the king's weight (2Sa 14:26), which were only half the sacred shekels (see my bibl. Archäol . ii. p. 135). Consequently the gold plate upon one target was not quite 9 lbs., and that upon a shield not quite 4 1/2 lbs. These shields were intended for the body-guard to carry on state occasions (1Ki 14:27-28; 2Ch 12:10), and were kept in the house of the forest of Lebanon (1Ki 7:2).

Keil-Delitzsch: 1Ki 10:18-20

Solomon had a great throne of ivory made, and had it overlaid with fine gold. כּסּא־שׁן is not a throne made of ivory, but one merely ornamented with ivory; and we are to imagine the gilding as effected by laying the gold simply upon the wood, and inserting the ivory within the gold plate. מוּפז , a hophal participle of פּזז : aurum depuratum , hence = טהור in 2Ch 9:17. The throne had six steps, and a "rounded head on the hinder part thereof,"i.e., a back which was arched above or rounded off,

(Note: Instead of מאחריו לכּסּה עגול וראשׁ we have in the Chronicles מאחזים לכּסּא בּזּהב וכבשׁ , "and a footstool ingold fastened to the throne"(the plural מאחזים refersto the footstool and the steps). Now, however easily מאחזים mayhave been written by mistake for מאחריו , זהב כבשׁ cannot havegrown out of עגול ראשׁ by any such mistake. The quid-pro-quo of thelxx for עגול rof xxl ראשׁ , προτομαὶ μόσχων , in which עגול is certainly confounded with עגל , does notwarrant the conjecture of Thenius, that the Chronicler found עגל in his original and substituted כּבשׂ (lamb), whereupon כּבשׂ (lamb) was changed by another hand into כּבשׁ footstep, and ראשׁ was dropped altogether.)

and ירת , arms, i.e., arms on both sides of the seat ( השּׁבת מקום ), and two lions standing by the side of the arms. Beside this there were twelve lions upon the six steps, namely two upon each step, one on this side and one on that. Instead of אריים (1Ki 10:20) we find ארירת in 1Ki 10:19, just as we do in both verses of the Chronicles, not because the reference is to artificial, inanimate figures and not to natural lions, as Thenius supposes, but because the plural ending ים - is an unusual one with this word; and even where natural lions are spoken of, we always find ארירת in other passages (cf. Jdg 14:5; 2Sa 1:23; 2Ki 17:25; Son 4:8, etc.). The lions were symbols of the ruler's authority; and the twelve lions upon the steps may possibly have pointed to the rule over the twelve tribes of Israel, which was concentrated in the throne; not "watchers of the throne,"as Thenius thinks. This throne was so splendid a work, that the historian observes that nothing of the kind had ever been made for any other kingdom. Upon the early Assyrian monuments we do indeed find high seats depicted, which are very artistically worked, and provided with backs and arms, and some with the arms supported by figures of animals (see Layard's Nineveh and its Remains , vol. ii. p. 301), but none resembling Solomon's throne. It is not till a later age that the more splendid thrones appear (vid., Rosenmüller, A. u. N. Morgenland , iii. pp. 176ff.).

Keil-Delitzsch: 1Ki 10:21-22

The drinking vessels of Solomon also were all of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon of costly gold ( סגוּר : see at 1Ki 6:20). Silver was counted as nothing, because the Tarshish fleet arrived once in three years, bringing gold, silver, etc. (see at 1Ki 9:28).

Keil-Delitzsch: 1Ki 10:23-29

In 1Ki 10:23-29 everything that had to be stated concerning the wealth, wisdom, and revenue of Solomon is summed up as conclusion (cf. 2Ch 9:22-28 and 2Ch 1:14-17).

1Ki 10:23-25

1Ki 10:23, 1Ki 10:24 point back to 1Ki 5:9-14. ויּגדּל : Solomon became greater, not was greater, on account of the Vâv consec . כּל־הארץ , all the world, corresponds to כּל־העמּים in 1Ki 5:14. The foreigners out of all lands, who came on account of his wisdom, brought Solomon presents: gold and silver vessels, clothes ( שׂלמות , court dresses, which are still customary presents in the East), נשׁק , armour, spices, horses and mules.

1Ki 10:26-27

1Ki 10:26 is simply a repetition of 1Ki 5:6 (compare also 1Ki 9:19); and 1Ki 10:27 is merely a further extension of 1Ki 10:21. The words of 1Ki 10:27, "Solomon made silver like stones in Jerusalem, and cedars like the sycamores in the lowland for abundance,"are a hyperbolical description of his collection of enormous quantities of precious metals and costly wood. שׁקמים , sycomori , mulberry fig-trees, are very rare in Palestine in its present desolate state (see Rob. Pal . iii. 27), and are only met in any abundance in Egypt; but in ancient times they abounded in the lowlands of Palestine to such an extent, that they were used as common building wood (vid., Isa 9:9, on which Theodoret observes, τούτων ( συκαμίνων ) ἡ Παλαιστίνη πεπλήρωται ). According to 1Ch 27:28, the sycamore forests in the lowland of Judah were royal domains.

1Ki 10:28-29

(cf. 2Ch 1:16-17). "And (as for) the going out of horses from Egypt for Solomon, a company of king's merchants fetched (horses) for a definite price."This is the only possible explanation of the verse according to the Masoretic punctuation; but to obtain it, the first מקוה must be connected with סחרי in opposition to the accents, and the second must be pointed מקוה . This is the rendering adopted by Gesenius in his Thesaurus and Lexicon (ed. Dietr. s. v . מקוה ). The meaning company or troop may certainly be justified from Gen 1:10; Exo 7:19, and Lev 11:36, where the word signifies an accumulation of water. Still there is something very strange not only in the application of the word both to a company of traders and also to a troop of horses, but also in the omission of סוּסים (horses) after the second מקוה . Hence the rendering of the lxx and Vulgate deserves attention, and may possibly be the one to be preferred (as Michaelis, Bertheau on Chron ., and Movers assume). The translators of these versions have taken מקוה as the name of a place, ἐξ Ἐκουέ , or rather ἐκ Κουέ , de Coa .

(Note: That Κουέ or Κωέ is the earliest reading of the lxx, andnot the ἐκ Θεκουέ of the Cod. Vat. and Alex., is very evident fromthe statement which we find in the Onomast . of Eusebius ( ed. Larsowet Parth . p. 260), Κώδ, πλησίον Αἰγύπτου ; for which Jerome has Coa, quae est juxta Aegyptum , after the Vulgate.)

According to this, the rendering would be: "And as for the going out of horses from Egypt and Koa (or Kawe) for Solomon, the king's traders fetched them from Joa (Kawe) for a fixed price."It is true that the situation of Koa cannot be more precisely defined; but there seems to be very little doubt that it was a place for the collection of customs upon the frontier of Egypt.

1Ki 10:29

"And there came up and went out a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty shekels; and so (in the same manner as for Solomon) they led them out for all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram through their hand." מרכּבה , like רכב in 2Sa 8:4; 2Sa 10:18, and Eze 39:20, denotes a chariot with the team of horses belonging to it, possibly three horses (see at 1Ki 5:6), not quadriga (Clericus and others), or two draught horses and two as a reserve (Thenius). For the inference, that if a horse cost 150 shekels, a team of four would be obtained for 600, is not quite a certain one, since the chariot itself would certainly not be given in. A hundred and fifty shekels are a little more than 130 thalers ( § 19, 10s. - Tr.), and 600 would be 525 thalers ( § 78, 15s.). These amounts are sufficient to show how untenable the opinion of Movers is, that the sums mentioned are not the prices paid for horses and chariots, but the payment made for their exit, or the customs duty. And his other opinion is quite equally erroneous, namely that the chariots and horses were state carriages and horses of luxury intended for the king. - The merchants are called the king's traders, not because a portion of their profits went into the royal treasury as the tax upon trade (Bertheau), nor as the brokers who bought for the king (Thenius), but because they carried on their trade for the king's account. בּידם cannot be adduced as evidence to the contrary; for linguists require no proof that this cannot mean "auf ihre Hand ," as Thenius assumes. Böttcher's explanation is the right one, namely, "through their hand,"inasmuch as they brought the horses and chariots themselves even to those kings who lived at a greater distance, without employing intermediate agents. The kings of the חתּים , the Hittites in the wider sense (= Canaanites, as in Jos 1:4; 2Ki 7:6; Eze 16:3), and of Aram, were in part Solomon's vassals, since his rule extended over all the Canaanites with the exception of the Phoenicians, and over several kingdoms of Aram.

Constable: 1Ki 1:1--11:43

I. THE REIGN OF SOLOMON chs. 1--11

The Holy Spirit led the writer of Kings to give an interpretation of history, not just a chronologically sequential record of events. This is true of all the writers of the Old Testament historical books. Some of the events in Kings are not in chronological order. They appear in the text as they do to make a point that was primarily theological (i.e., to reveal a spiritual lesson from history). The writer chose the historical data he included for this purpose under the superintending inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The lesson that Kings teaches is that failure to honor the revealed will of God results in ruin and destruction.¹² For Israel the revealed will of God was the Mosaic Law and the later revelations of the prophets.

"By way of contrast with the other two books covering the historical details of the united and divided kingdoms, one might say that whereas Samuel's author uses a biographical style and Chronicles is written from a theological standpoint, the author of Kings employs a largely narrative-annalistic approach."¹³

All three major sections of Kings emphasize many theological lessons, but each one repeats and reinforces the main motif, the importance of obeying the Mosaic Law to succeed. This motif stands out clearly in the first major section dealing with Solomon's reign (chs. 1-11). The nation of Israel reached the height of its power and prestige in Solomon's day. It began to decline because of Solomon's unfaithfulness and failure to honor the Mosaic Covenant.

One writer observed that the structure of the record of Solomon's reign is as follows. Chapters 1-2 and 11:14-43 draw a frame around the whole history of Solomon's rule. Within this frame two similar sections form the body of the revelation. The first (3:1-8:66) is favorable to Solomon and the second (9:1-11:13) is critical of him.¹⁴ Each of these sections begins with a dream (3:1-15; 9:1-10a), and each ends with a revelation of Solomon's attitude toward God (chs. 6-8; 11:1-13). The first section has two parts. Part one reveals Solomon's domestic policy with sub-sections on women and wisdom (3:16-28), and administration and wisdom (4:1-5:14). Part two deals with Solomon's labor relations and has sub-sections on the contract with Hiram (5:15-18) and the corvée (5:28-33). The second section also has two parts. Part one gives more information about Solomon's labor relations and has sub-sections on the contract with Hiram (9:10b-14) and the corvée (9:15-28). Part two explains Solomon's foreign policy with sub-sections on women and wisdom (10:1-13), and wealth and wisdom (10:14-29). Thus there is both a chiastic and an unfolding structure in chapters 1-11.¹⁵

Constable: 1Ki 10:1-29

3. Solomon's greatness ch. 10

This chapter summarizes with illustrations and statistics the wisdom, acceptance, and riches with which God blessed Solomon.

Constable: 1Ki 10:1-13

The Queen of Sheba's visit 10:1-13

The writer seems to have included this event here to support his claim that Solomon's reign was so glorious that rulers came from all over the world to meet him (4:34; cf. 3:16-18). It also shows that some of Solomon's wealth came to him as voluntary gifts from admirers. Jesus used this queen's example to challenge His hearers to listen to God's wisdom through someone greater than Solomon, namely, Himself (Matt. 12:42).

The site of Sheba was about 1,200 miles southeast of Israel (present Yemen). This country had come to dominate the spice and incense trade that had made that region of Arabia famous.¹⁰⁴ The queen's primary purpose in visiting Solomon seems to have been to see if he really was as wise and rich as she had heard. Testing with questions was a challenging sport among ancient Near Eastern monarchs.¹⁰⁵

"The hard (enigmatic', REB) questions (hidot) were not just riddles', as in Judges 14:12, but included difficult diplomatic and ethical questions. According to Josephus, Hiram had made similar approaches. The test was not an academic exercise but to see if he would be a trustworthy business partner and a reliable ally capable of giving help."¹⁰⁶

She noted that God had made Solomon a blessing to those around him (v. 8) as God had promised He would do for those who obeyed His covenant. She also blessed Yahweh (v. 9), the God under whom Solomon reigned. Her gifts, which included four and one-half tons of gold, appear to have been part of a covenant treaty she negotiated with Israel for her country (cf. v. 13). In her visit we see Israel fulfilling its God-given purpose of bringing the Gentiles to Yahweh. The name of this queen in Arabian history is Balkir.

"The Jewish romantic legend that the queen desired and received a son fathered by Solomon is unsubstantiated, as is the Ethiopic tradition that the royal Abyssinian line was founded by the offspring of Solomon and the queen of Sheba."¹⁰⁷

Constable: 1Ki 10:14-29

Solomon's wealth 10:14-29

This pericope summarizes Solomon's wealth as the previous one summarized his wisdom.

God brought much wealth to Solomon, almost 25 tons of gold a year (v. 14), plus many other riches.

"Those who would consider his income of 666 talents (ca. 21.6 tons) of gold exaggeration should compare this with amounts registered in ancient Egypt about this time, where gold is like dust in the land' and Osorkon I in his first four years (ca. 924-920 BC) accumulated eighteen tons of gold, to which some of the loot taken by his father Shishak from Jerusalem should be added (cf. 14:25-27). Similar large-scale acquisition and use of gold in temple building is attested from Mesopotamia."¹⁰⁸

I do not believe we should criticize Solomon simply for being wealthy since God promised to make him rich (3:13). We should not blame a person who receives a fortune as an outright gift for having money. It was the accumulation of riches and ornaments to become materially secure and independent that God forbade. To the extent that Solomon did this--and he evidently did it somewhat--he was guilty of violating God's Law.

Solomon served as an international broker. He capitalized on Israel's strategic geographic location as the land bridge that connected three continents. He made Israel a clearinghouse through which merchandise passed and charged custom taxes as goods entered and left his country.¹⁰⁹ "Traders" probably refers to business people who passed through Israel and "merchants" to those who did business in Israel.¹¹⁰ Solomon was probably history's most successful Jewish businessman.

The gold shields he hung in the palace armory were evidently for parade use. Gold is a very soft metal and would have been inappropriate for shields that soldiers used for defense in battle (v. 17). Perhaps the 12 lions surrounding Solomon's throne represented Israel's 12 tribes (v. 20). Tarshish (v. 22; cf. Jonah 1:3) was probably Spain or Sardinia.

Kue (v. 28) was Cilicia (the Apostle Paul's home province) in modern Turkey. God forbade Israel's kings from multiplying chariots (v. 26), the most effective and dreaded military machines of their day (Deut. 17:16). God wanted His people to depend on Him primarily for their protection. Material prosperity and security often lead people to conclude that they have no needs when really our need for God never diminishes. Solomon fell into this trap. Wealth is not sinful in itself, but it does bring temptations with it (cf. James 5:1-6).

Though Solomon experienced great blessings from his faithful God, he fell prey to the sins these blessings make easier, as the writer explained in the next chapter.

Guzik: 1Ki 10:1-29

1 Kings 10 - The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon

A. The Queen's visit.

1. (1) The Queen of Sheba arrives at Jerusalem.

Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with hard questions.

a. The Queen of Sheba: Sheba (also known as Sabea) was where modern day Yemen is today (Southern Arabia). We know from geography this was a wealthy kingdom, with much gold, spices, and precious woods. History also tells us that they were known to have queens as well as kings.

i. This was a long trip - up to about 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers). She probably came as part of a trade delegation (1 Kings 10:2-5), but there is no doubt that she was highly motivated to see Solomon and his kingdom.

b. When the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him: She came to Solomon and Israel at their material zenith. The great prosperity, splendor, and wisdom of Solomon's kingdom were internationally famous.

2. (2-5) What the Queen of Sheba saw.

She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels that bore spices, very much gold, and precious stones; and when she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about all that was in her heart. So Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing so difficult for the king that he could not explain it to her. And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, the food on his table, the seating of his servants, the service of his waiters and their apparel, his cupbearers, and his entryway by which he went up to the house of the LORD, there was no more spirit in her.

a. She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue: This queen traveled in the manner of queens - with a large royal procession, heavily laden with gifts and goods for trade.

b. When she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about all that was in her heart: Solomon's kingdom was famous not only for its material prosperity, but also for his great wisdom. The Queen of Sheba had great - and seemingly difficult - questions, and Solomon answered all her questions.

i. "The hard questions were not just riddles, but included difficult diplomatic and ethical questions . . . The test was not an academic exercise but to see if he would be a trustworthy business party and a reliable ally capable of giving help." (Wiseman)

c. When the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, the food on his table . . . there was no more spirit in her: This Queen was obviously familiar with the world of royal splendor and luxury. Yet she was completely overwhelmed by the wisdom of Solomon and the glory of his kingdom.

i. "What happened to the queen of Sheba is a natural and not an uncommon effect which will be produced in a delicate sensible mind at the sight of rare and extraordinary productions of art." (Clarke)

3. (6-9) How the Queen of Sheba reacted.

Then she said to the king: "It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. However I did not believe the words until I came and saw with my own eyes; and indeed the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame of which I heard. Happy are your men and happy are these your servants, who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom! Blessed be the LORD your God, who delighted in you, setting you on the throne of Israel! Because the LORD has loved Israel forever, therefore He made you king, to do justice and righteousness."

a. Indeed the half was not told me: The Queen of Sheba heard wonderful things about Solomon and his kingdom, but upon seeing it with her own eyes she realized it was far greater than she had heard.

b. Happy are your men and happy are these your servants: It is a joyful thing to serve a great, wise, and rich king. If it was a happy thing to serve Solomon, it is a much happier thing to serve Jesus.

c. Blessed be the LORD your God, who delighted in you: This is an example of what God wanted to do for Israel under the promises of the Old Covenant. God promised Israel that if they obeyed under the Old Covenant, He would bless them so tremendously that the world would notice and give glory to the Lord GOD of Israel.

i. Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the LORD your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. . . . Then all peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they shall be afraid of you. (Deuteronomy 28:1, 10)

ii. God wanted to reach the nations through an obedient and blessed Israel. If Israel did not obey, then God would speak to the nations through a thoroughly disciplined Israel.

d. Blessed be the LORD your God: It is fair to ask if this was a true confession of faith, expressing allegiance to the God of Israel. Taken in their context, these may not be more than the queen's response to the astonishing blessing evident in Solomon's Jerusalem.

i. "Her statement about the blessings of the Lord on Israel and Solomon in verse 9 were no more than a polite reference to Solomon's God . . . There is no record that she accepted Solomon's God, who was so majestically edified by the temple." (Dilday)

ii. "Praise to the LORD implies recognition of Israel's national God and need not necessarily be an expression of personal faith." (Wiseman)

iii. If we take the Queen of Sheba as an example of a seeker, we see that Solomon impressed her with his wealth and splendor, and also impressed her personally. But she returned home without an evident expression of faith in the God of Israel. This shows that impressing seekers with facilities and programs and organization and professionalism isn't enough.

iv. Regardless of the result of her search, we can admire her seeking.

· She came from a great distance

· She came with gifts to offer

· She came to question and to learn

· She came and saw the riches of the king

· She came for an extended period

· She came telling all that was on her heart

v. Jesus used the Queen of Sheba as an example of a seeker: The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. (Matthew 12:42) If the Queen of Sheba sought Solomon and the splendor of his kingdom so diligently, how much more should people today seek Jesus and the glory of His Kingdom. She will certainly also rise up in judgment with this generation.

d. Because the LORD has loved Israel forever, therefore He made you king: This statement is especially meaningful because Solomon was not necessarily the most logical successor of his father David. There were several sons of David born before Solomon. "It was God's special act to make him king rather than his elder brother." (Poole)

4. (10-13) An exchange of gifts.

Then she gave the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold, spices in great quantity, and precious stones. There never again came such abundance of spices as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon. Also, the ships of Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, brought great quantities of almug wood and precious stones from Ophir. And the king made steps of the almug wood for the house of the LORD and for the king's house, also harps and stringed instruments for singers. There never again came such almug wood, nor has the like been seen to this day. Now King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired, whatever she asked, besides what Solomon had given her according to the royal generosity. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants.

a. There never again came such abundance of spices as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon: She came from a region rich in spices and skilled in the processing of spices.

b. Solomon had given her according to the royal generosity: To give according to the royal generosity means to give a lot. This description of Solomon's measure of generosity to the Queen of Sheba also describes the measure of God's generosity towards us.

i. According to tradition - fanciful stories, perhaps - the Queen of Sheba wanted a son by Solomon, and he obliged her. Her child was named Menilek, and he became the ancestor of all subsequent Ethiopian monarchs.

B. Solomon's great wealth.

1. (14-15) Solomon's yearly income.

The weight of gold that came to Solomon yearly was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, besides that from the traveling merchants, from the income of traders, from all the kings of Arabia, and from the governors of the country.

a. Six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold: This is a vast amount of gold, which came to Solomon yearly. One commentator sets the value of the 666 talents of gold at $281,318,400. This speaks not only to the great wealth of Solomon, but it also makes him the only other person in the Bible associated with the number 666.

i. The other Biblical connection to 666 is the end-times world dictator and opponent of God and His people often known as the Antichrist (Revelation 13:18). In fact, the Revelation passage specifically says that the number 666 is the number of a man, and the man may be Solomon.

ii. This isn't to say that Solomon was the Antichrist or that the coming Antichrist will be some weird reincarnation of Solomon. But it may indicate that the Antichrist may not be someone "pure evil" from the very beginning. Instead, he may be like Solomon - a good man corrupted.

b. Besides that from the traveling merchants: Solomon received more than 666 talents of gold a year. The 666 talents was just has "base salary."

i. The writer of 1 Kings gives us a warning signal here. He assumes that we know of the instructions for future kings of Israel in Deuteronomy 17:14-20. He assumes we know verse 17 of that passage, which says: nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself. God blessed Solomon with great riches, but Solomon allowed that blessing to turn into a danger because he disobediently multiplied silver and gold for himself.

2. (16-26) Examples of Solomon's wealth and prosperity.

And King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels of gold went into each shield. He also made three hundred shields of hammered gold; three minas of gold went into each shield. The king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon. Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold. The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round at the back; there were armrests on either side of the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the armrests. Twelve lions stood there, one on each side of the six steps; nothing like this had been made for any other kingdom. All King Solomon's drinking vessels were gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Not one was silver, for this was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon. For the king had merchant ships at sea with the fleet of Hiram. Once every three years the merchant ships came bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and monkeys. So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. Now all the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. Each man brought his present: articles of silver and gold, garments, armor, spices, horses, and mules, at a set rate year by year. And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen; he had one thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and he made cedar trees as abundant as the sycamores which are in the lowland.

a. Two hundred large shields of hammered gold . . . three hundred shields of hammered gold: These shields made beautiful displays in the House of the Forest of Lebanon, but they were of no use in battle. Gold was too heavy and too soft to be used as a metal for effective shields. This shows Solomon with the image of a warrior king, but without the substance.

i. According to Dilday, each large shield was worth about $120,000. The smaller shields were worth $30,000. $33 million was invested in gold ceremonial shields

b. Not one was silver, for this was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon: This was a statement of wealth. If taken seriously, it shows the tremendous abundance of Solomon's kingdom. Truly, King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom, and the promises of Deuteronomy 28:1-14 were fulfilled in his reign: The LORD will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. (Deuteronomy 28:12)

c. Now all the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart: This was another fulfillment of the promises of Deuteronomy 28: And the LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the LORD your God (Deuteronomy 28:13).

d. Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen; he had one thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen: In comparison to the reign of David, there were few military conflicts during the reign of Solomon, yet he still saw the importance of a strong defense.

i. Remains of Solomon's fortress and stables at Megiddo can be seen today.

e. The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones: When we think of Solomon's great wealth, we also consider that he originally did not set his heart upon riches. He deliberately asked for wisdom to lead the people of God instead of riches or fame. God promised to also give Solomon riches and fame, and God fulfilled His promise.

i. We also consider that Solomon gave an eloquent testimony to the vanity of riches as the preacher in the Book of Ecclesiastes. He powerfully showed that there was no ultimate satisfaction through materialism. We don't have to be as rich as Solomon to learn the same lesson.

3. (28-29) Solomon's interest in horses.

Also Solomon had horses imported from Egypt and Keveh; the king's merchants bought them in Keveh at the current price. Now a chariot that was imported from Egypt cost six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse one hundred and fifty; and thus, through their agents, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.

a. Solomon had horses imported from Egypt and Keveh: At the end of this great description of Solomon's wealth and splendor, we have the sound of this dark note. This was in direct disobedience to Deuteronomy 17:16, which said to the Kings of Israel: But he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, for the LORD has said to you, "You shall not return that way again."

b. Thus, through their agents, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria: This may explain why Solomon broke such an obvious commandment. Perhaps the importation of horses from Egypt began as trading as an agent on behalf of other kings. From this, perhaps Solomon could say, "I'm importing horses from Egypt but I am not doing it for myself. I'm not breaking God's command." Many examples of gross disobedience begin as clever rationalizations.

© 2004 David Guzik - No distribution beyond personal use without permission

Introduction / Outline

JFB: 1 Kings (Book Introduction)

THE FIRST AND SECOND BOOKS OF KINGS, in the ancient copies of the Hebrew Bible, constitute one book. Various titles have been given them; in the Septuagint and the Vulgate they are called the Third and Fourth Books of Kings. The authorship of these books is unknown; but the prevailing opinion is that they were compiled by Ezra, or one of the later prophets, from the ancient documents that are so frequently referred to in the course of the history as of public and established authority. Their inspired character was acknowledged by the Jewish Church, which ranked them in the sacred canon; and, besides, it is attested by our Lord, who frequently quotes from them (compare 1Ki 17:9; 2Ki 5:14 with Luk 4:24-27; 1Ki 10:1 with Mat 12:42).

JFB: 1 Kings (Outline)

• ABISHAG CHERISHES DAVID IN HIS EXTREME AGE. (1Ki 1:1-4)
• ADONIJAH USURPS THE KINGDOM. (1Ki. 1:5-31)
• SOLOMON, BY DAVID'S APPOINTMENT, IS ANOINTED KING. (1Ki. 1:32-49)
• ADONIJAH, FLEEING TO THE HORNS OF THE ALTAR, IS DISMISSED BY SOLOMON. (1Ki 1:50-53)
• DAVID DIES. (1Ki 2:1-11)
• SOLOMON SUCCEEDS HIM. (1Ki 2:12-24)
• JOAB SLAIN. (1Ki. 2:28-45)
• SHIMEI PUT TO DEATH. (1Ki 2:34-46)
• SOLOMON MARRIES PHARAOH'S DAUGHTER. (1Ki 3:1)
• HIGH PLACES BEING IN USE, HE SACRIFICES AT GIBEON. (1Ki 3:2-5)
• HE CHOOSES WISDOM. (1Ki 3:6-15)
• HIS JUDGMENT BETWEEN TWO HARLOTS. (1Ki 3:16-28)
• SOLOMON'S PRINCES. (1Ki 4:1-6)
• HIS TWELVE OFFICERS. (1Ki 4:7-21)
• HIS WISDOM. (1Ki 4:29-34)
• HIRAM SENDS TO CONGRATULATE SOLOMON. (1Ki 5:1-6)
• FURNISHES TIMBER TO BUILD THE TEMPLE. (1Ki 5:7-12)
• SOLOMON'S WORKMEN AND LABORERS. (1Ki 5:13-18)
• THE BUILDING OF SOLOMON'S TEMPLE. (1Ki 6:1-4)
• THE CHAMBERS THEREOF. (1Ki 6:5-10)
• GOD'S PROMISES UNTO IT. (1Ki 6:11-14)
• THE CEILING AND ADORNING OF IT. (1Ki 6:15-22)
• THE TIME TAKEN TO BUILD IT. (1Ki 6:37-38)
• BUILDING OF SOLOMON'S HOUSE. (1Ki 7:1)
• OF THE HOUSE OF LEBANON. (1Ki 7:2-7)
• HIRAM'S WORKS. (1Ki. 7:13-51)
• THE DEDICATION OF THE TEMPLE. (1Ki 8:1-12)
• SOLOMON'S BLESSING. (1Ki 8:12-21)
• HIS PRAYER. (1Ki. 8:22-61)
• HIS SACRIFICE OF PEACE OFFERING. (1Ki 8:62-64)
• THE PEOPLE JOYFUL. (1Ki 8:65)
• GOD'S COVENANT IN A SECOND VISION WITH SOLOMON. (1Ki 9:1-9)
• THE MUTUAL PRESENTS OF SOLOMON AND HIRAM. (1Ki 9:10-23)
• SOLOMON'S YEARLY SACRIFICES. (1Ki 9:24-28)
• THE QUEEN OF SHEBA ADMIRES THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON. (1Ki 10:1-13)
• HIS RICHES. (1Ki. 10:14-29)
• SOLOMON'S WIVES AND CONCUBINES IN HIS OLD AGE. (1Ki 11:1-8)
• GOD THREATENS HIM. (1Ki 11:9-13)
• REFUSING THE OLD MEN'S COUNSEL. (1Ki 12:1-5)
• JEROBOAM MADE KING OVER THEM. (1Ki 12:20-33)
• JEROBOAM'S HAND WITHERS. (1Ki. 13:1-22)
• THE DISOBEDIENT PROPHET SLAIN BY A LION. (1Ki 13:23-32)
• AHIJAH DENOUNCES GOD'S JUDGMENTS AGAINST JEROBOAM. (1Ki. 14:1-20)
• REHOBOAM'S WICKED REIGN. (1Ki 14:21-24)
• SHISHAK SPOILS JERUSALEM. (1Ki 14:25-31)
• ABIJAM'S WICKED REIGN OVER JUDAH. (1Ki 15:1-8)
• ASA'S GOOD REIGN. (1Ki 15:9-22)
• NADAB'S WICKED REIGN. (1Ki 15:25-34)
• JEHU'S PROPHECY AGAINST BAASHA. (1Ki 16:1-8)
• ZIMRI'S CONSPIRACY. (1Ki 16:9-22)
• OMRI BUILDS SAMARIA. (1Ki 16:23-28)
• JOSHUA'S CURSE FULFILLED UPON HIEL THE BUILDER OF JERICHO. (1Ki 16:34)
• ELIJAH, PROPHESYING AGAINST AHAB, IS SENT TO CHERITH. (1Ki 17:1-7)
• HE IS SENT TO A WIDOW OF ZAREPHATH. (1Ki 17:8-16)
• HE RAISES HER SON TO LIFE. (1Ki 17:17-24)
• ELIJAH MEETS OBADIAH. (1Ki. 18:1-16)
• ELIJAH, BY PRAYER, OBTAINS RAIN. (1Ki 18:41-46)
• ELIJAH FLEES TO BEER-SHEBA. (1Ki 19:1-3)
• ELISHA FOLLOWS ELIJAH. (1Ki 19:19-21)
• BEN-HADAD BESIEGES SAMARIA. (1Ki 20:1-12)
• THE SYRIANS ARE SLAIN. (1Ki 20:13-20)
• A PROPHET REPROVES HIM. (1Ki 20:35-42)
• NABOTH REFUSES AHAB HIS VINEYARD. (1Ki 21:1-4)
• JEZEBEL CAUSES NABOTH TO BE STONED. (1Ki 21:5-16)
• ELIJAH DENOUNCES JUDGMENTS AGAINST AHAB AND JEZEBEL. (1Ki 21:17-29)
• AHAB SLAIN AT RAMOTH-GILEAD. (1Ki. 22:1-36)

TSK: 1 Kings 10 (Chapter Introduction)

Overview

1Ki 10:1, The queen of Sheba admires the wisdom of Solomon; 1Ki 10:14, Solomon’s gold; 1Ki 10:16, His targets; 1Ki 10:18, The throne of ivory; 1Ki 10:21, His vessels; 1Ki 10:24, His presents; 1Ki 10:26, His chariots and horse; 1Ki 10:28, His tribute.

Poole: 1 Kings (Book Introduction)

FIRST BOOK OF KINGS COMMONLY CALLED

THE THIRD BOOK OF THE KINGS

THE ARGUMENT

THESE two Books called Of the Kings, because they treat of the kings of Judah and Israel, were written by the prophets, or holy men of God, living in or near their several times, and by some one of them digested into this order. But whoever was the penman, that these are a part of those Holy Scriptures which were Divinely inspired is sufficiently evident first,

From the concurring testimony of the whole Jewish church in all ages, to whom were committed the oracles of God, Rom 3:2 , who also did faithfully discharge their duty in preserving and delivering them entirely and truly to their posterity from time to time, as plainly appears, because Christ and his apostles, who reproved them freely for their several sins, never taxed them with this fault, of depraving the Holy Scriptures of the Old Testament. Secondly, Because this is manifest concerning divers parcels of them which were taken out of the records of the prophets Nathan, Ahijah, and Iddo, 2Ch 9:29 , and out of the prophecies of Isaiah and Jeremiah; and the rest doubtless were of the same nature.

Thirdly, From the approbation of these books by the New Testament, both generally, as 2Ti 3:16 , All Scripture is given by inspiration from God, &c., which is affirmed concerning all those Holy Scriptures which Timothy had known, from a child, 2Ti 3:15 , and therefore must necessarily be meant of all the books of the Old Testament, which the Jews owned for canonical Scripture; and particularly Rom 11:2,3 , &c., where a passage out of these books is quoted and owned as a part of the Holy Scripture, called the Scripture by way of eminency.

Poole: 1 Kings 10 (Chapter Introduction)

KINGS CHAPTER 10

The queen of Sheba cometh to Jerusalem; admireth Solomon’ s wisdom and glory; giveth God thanks, and Solomon presents, 1Ki 10:1-10 . His riches, 1Ki 10:11-15 ; targets, ivory throne, vessels, 1Ki 10:16-23 ; presents, chariots and horses, tribute, 1Ki 10:24-29 .

MHCC: 1 Kings (Book Introduction)

The history now before us accounts for the affairs of the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, yet with special regard to the kingdom of God among them; for it is a sacred history. It is earlier as to time, teaches much more, and is more interesting than any common histories.

MHCC: 1 Kings 10 (Chapter Introduction)

(1Ki 10:1-13) The queen of Sheba's visit to Solomon.

(v. 14-29) Solomon's wealth.

Matthew Henry: 1 Kings (Book Introduction)

An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The First Book of Kings

Many histories are books of kings and their reigns, to which the affairs of their kingdoms are reduced; this is a piece of honour that has commonly been paid to crowned heads. The holy Scripture is the history of the kingdom of God among men, under the several administrations of it; but there the King is one and his name one. The particular history now before us accounts for the affairs of the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, yet with special regard to the kingdom of God among them; for still it is a sacred history, much more instructive and not less entertaining than any of the histories of the kings of the earth, to which (those of them that are of any certainty) it is prior in time; for though there were kings in Edom before there was any king in Israel, Gen 36:31 (foreigners, in that point of state, got the precedency), yet the history of the kings of Israel lives, and will live, in holy Writ, to the end of the world, whereas that of the kings of Edom is long since buried in oblivion; for the honour that comes from God is durable, while the honour of the world is like a mushroom, which comes up in a night and perishes in a night. - The Bible began with the story of patriarchs, and prophets, and judges, men whose converse with heaven was more immediate, the record of which strengthens our faith, but is not so easily accommodated to our case, now that we expect not visions, as the subsequent history of affairs like ours under the direction of common providence; and here also we find, though not many types and figures of the Messiah, yet great expectations of him; for not only prophets, but kings, desired to see the great mysteries of the gospel, Luk 10:24 - The two books of Samuel are introductions to the books of the Kings, as they relate the origin of the royal government in Saul and of the royal family in David. These two books give us an account of David's successor, Solomon, the division of his kingdom, and the succession of the several kings both of Judah and Israel, with an abstract of their history down to the captivity. And as from the book of Genesis we may collect excellent rules of economics, for the good governing of families, so from these books we may collect rules of politics, for the directing of public affairs. There is in these books special regard had to the house and lineage of David, from which Christ came. Some of his sons trod in his steps, and others did not. The characters of the kings of Judah may be thus briefly given: - David the devout, Solomon the wise, Rehoboam the simple, Abijah the valiant, Asa the upright, Jehoshaphat the religious, Jehoram the wicked, Ahaziah the profane, Joash the backslider, Amaziah the rash, Uzziah the mighty, Jotham the peaceable, Ahaz the idolater, Hezekiah the reformer, Manasseh the penitent, Amon the obscure, Josiah the tender-hearted, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah, all wicked, and such as brought ruin quickly on themselves and their kingdom. The number of the good and bad is nearly equal, but the reigns of the good were generally long and those of the bad short, the consideration of which will make the state of Israel not altogether so bad in this period as at first it seems. In this first book we have, I. The death of David, ch. 1 and 2. II. The glorious reign of Solomon, and his building the temple (ch. 3-10), but the cloud his sun set under, ch. 11. III. The division of the kingdoms in Rehoboam, and his reign and Jeroboam's, ch. 12-14. IV. The reigns of Abijah and Asa over Judah, Baasha and Omri over Israel, ch. 15 and 16. V. Elijah's miracles, ch. 17-19. VI. Ahab's success against Benhadad, his wickedness and fall, ch. 20-22. And in all this history it appears that kings, though gods to us, are men to God, mortal and accountable.

Matthew Henry: 1 Kings 10 (Chapter Introduction)

Still Solomon looks great, and every thing in this chapter adds to his magnificence. We read nothing indeed of his charity, of no hospitals he built, or alms-houses; he made his kingdom so rich that it did not need them; yet, no question, many poor were relieved from the abundance of his table. A church he had built, never to be equalled; schools or colleges he need not build any, his own palace is an academy, and his court a rendezvous of wise and learned men, as well as the centre of all the circulating riches of that part of the world. I. What abundance of wisdom there was there appears from the application the queen of Sheba made to him, and the great satisfaction she had in her entertainment there (1Ki 10:1-13), and others likewise (1Ki 10:24). II. What abundance of wealth there was there appears here by the gold imported, with other things, yearly (1Ki 10:14, 1Ki 10:15), and in a triennial return (1Ki 10:22). Gold presented (1Ki 10:25), and gold used in targets and shields (1Ki 10:16, 1Ki 10:17), and vessels (1Ki 10:21). A stately throne made (1Ki 10:18-20). His chariots and horsemen (1Ki 10:26). His trade with Egypt (1Ki 10:28, 1Ki 10:29). And the great plenty of silver and cedars among his people (1Ki 10:27). So that, putting all together, it must be owned, as it is here said (1Ki 10:23), that " king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches, and for wisdom." Yet what was he to the King of kings? Where Christ is, by his word and Spirit, " Behold, a greater than Solomon is there."

Constable: 1 Kings (Book Introduction)

Introduction

Title

The Books of 1 and 2 Kings received their names because they document the reigns of the 40 kings of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah following David.¹

In the Hebrew Bible 1 and 2 Kings were one book until the sixteenth century. The ancients regarded them as the continuation of the narrative begun in Samuel. The Septuagint (Greek) translation of the Hebrew text, dating from about 250 B.C., was the first to divide Kings into two books. That division has continued to the present day. The Septuagint translators, however, called these two books 3 and 4 Kingdoms. First and 2 Kingdoms were our 1 and 2 Samuel. Jerome's Vulgate (Latin) translation, which dates about A.D. 400, changed the name from Kingdoms to Kings.

"The English Bible presents the books primarily as historical accounts. Their placement next to 1, 2 Chronicles demonstrates the collectors' interest in detailing all the events of Israel's history. In contrast, the Hebrew Bible places Joshua-Kings with the prophets, which highlights their common viewpoints. This decision implies that 1, 2 Kings are being treated as proclamation and history."²

Writer and Date

Most Old Testament scholars today believe several different individuals wrote and edited Kings because of theories concerning textual transmission that have gained popularity in the last 150 years. However, many conservatives have continued to follow the older tradition of the church that one individual probably put Kings together.³ This view finds support in the stylistic and linguistic features that run through the whole work and make it read like the product of a single writer. Some of these features are the way the writer described and summarized each king's reign, the consistent basis on which he evaluated all the kings, and recurring phrases and terms.

The identity of the writer is unknown today and has been for centuries. Ancient Jewish tradition suggested Ezra or Ezekiel as possible writers since both of these men were biblical writers who lived after the Babylonian exile. The record of King Jehoiachin's release from Babylonian captivity (2 Kings 25:27-30) points to a date of final composition sometime after that event. Jeremiah has traditional Talmudic support as well though he never went to Babylon but died in Egypt. Of course, someone else may have written Kings. Scholars have suggested these men only because they were famous writers who lived when Kings reached its final form.

Most non-conservatives date Kings considerably later than the sixth or fifth centuries.⁴

Scope

The historical period Kings covers totals about 413 years. The events that frame this period were Solomon's coronation as co-regent with David (973 B.C.) and Jehoiachin's release from Babylonian exile (560 B.C.).

However, most of Kings deals with the period that spans Solomon's coronation and the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C., a period of 387 years. In terms of the temple, at the beginning we see the temple built and at the end the temple burnt.

". . . 1, 2 Kings present Israel's history as a series of events that describe how and why the nation fell from the heights of national prosperity to the depths of conquest and exile."⁵

"More specifically, 1, 2 Kings explain how and why Israel lost the land it fought so hard to win in Joshua and worked so hard to organize in Judges and 1, 2 Samuel."⁶

"Plot relates the causes and effects in a story. Thus, the story line in 1, 2 Kings may be that Israel went into exile, but the plot is Israel went into exile because of its unfaithfulness to God. To make cause and effect unfold, plots normally have at least two basic aspects: conflict and resolution. A plot's conflict is the tension in a story that makes it an interesting account, while a plot's resolution is the way the conflict is settled. How the author develops these two components usually decides the shape and effectiveness of the plot."⁷

This historical period is more than twice that of the one the Books of Samuel covered, which was about 150 years in length. The Book of Judges covers about 300 years of Israel's history.

The dates of the kings of Israel and Judah that I have used in the following notes are those of Edwin Thiele.⁸ He has worked out the many problems regarding these dates more satisfactorily than anyone else in the opinion of most scholars.⁹

Message¹⁰

The fact that this book opens and closes with death should be a clue as to its message.

It opens with David's death, and it closes with Ahab's death. The intervening period of about a century and a half is a story of national decline, disruption, disintegration, and disaster. Israel and Judah passed from affluence and influence to poverty and paralysis.

There is an emphasis in this book on thrones.

Obviously there were the thrones of Judah and Israel on earth with their kings who succeeded one another. However there is also the throne in heaven with its one King. Rehoboam and Jeroboam had their successors, the kings who replaced one another. Yahweh also in a sense had His successors, the prophets who replaced one another as His messengers to the people. While the kings remind us of the thrones on earth, the prophets remind us of the throne in heaven.

The thrones on earth present a story of disruption, disintegration, and disaster in both kingdoms, Judah and Israel. This trend continued despite changes in the methods the various rulers employed to govern their people.

Solomon's method of government was oppression. He taxed the people greatly and conscripted them into government service. The result was material magnificence. He multiplied riches and manifested great displays in the temple, the palace, and throughout his kingdom. He increased the military strength of the nation. Nevertheless in the process he ground down the people. The state became more important than the people. The testimony to this appears in 12:4. The result was dissatisfaction with Solomon's method of government.

In reaction to this method Rehoboam chose a new method of government: autocracy. He decided to tighten his grip on the people so he could control them (12:14). He believed the people should trust in their rulers, but he did not trust in God. Consequently he failed. Autocracy led to revolution (12:16).

Jeroboam chose a third method of government: democracy. He let the people determine how they would live. While this resulted in more pleasant conditions for the people, it also resulted in ultimate disaster for his nation. Notice what democracy produced in Jeroboam's day: 12:27-29. People cannot rule themselves effectively. We need God to govern us. Jeroboam believed rulers should trust in the people, but he did not trust in God. Consequently he failed. He made religion convenient, and the people became corrupt (12:30-31).

Rehoboam's successors in Judah chose a method of government we could call government by policy. That is, they chose to follow precedent, the pattern of their predecessors, rather than getting and following God's direction for their nation. There were some exceptions to this approach, but on the whole this was Judah's method of government.

Jeroboam's successors in Israel, however, chose a different method of government: selfishness. The kings of Israel cared little for the people of Israel. What concerned them primarily was what they could get out of being king for themselves. That is why the story of the kingdom of Israel is a story of intrigue, assassinations, and much bloodshed.

In summary, every form of human government results in disastrous failure if people do not acknowledge God's sovereignty. People cannot govern themselves effectively. The result is always decline, disruption, and disintegration. This is one of the great revelations of 1 Kings.

However there is another throne in view in this book: the throne in heaven. Whereas 1 Kings reveals that human government always fails, it also reveals that God's government never fails. There are two ways God exercised His kingship over His people during Israel's monarchy.

First, He broke in on human life with messages that the prophets delivered. Ahijah announced the division of the kingdom (11:26-39). Later he announced the death of Jeroboam's son (14:4-16). Shemaiah directed Rehoboam not to fight against Jeroboam (12:21-24). An unnamed prophet announced the fate of Jeroboam's altar (13:1-10). Jehu announced Baasha's doom (16:1-4). Elijah vindicated Yahweh in the days of Ahab's apostasy (chs. 17-21). Another unnamed prophet rebuked Ahab for allowing Ben-Hadad to escape (20:35-43). Micaiah foretold Israel's scattering (22:8-28). These are all evidences that God was governing His people independently of the kings when they forgot Him. The heavenly throne ruled in spite of the earthly thrones.

The second way God exercised His rule, in addition to sending messages by the prophets, was by directly and indirectly intervening in the lives of His people. He appeared and spoke directly to Solomon, which resulted in the building of the temple. He raised up an adversary to Solomon, namely Jeroboam. He slew Abijah. He withheld rain and brought famine. He sent fire from heaven on Mt. Carmel. He sent rain. He appeared to Elijah in an earthquake. He enticed Ahab into battle through the mouths of lying prophets.

In short, God ruled by exercising direct and indirect influence over people, by directly intervening and by controlling circumstances occasionally. He manipulated history. God sits in perfect control and continuity over all the human chaos that peoples' failure to rule themselves causes.

The message of the book, therefore, is that when people exclude God, every method of human government will fail; but even so God is still on His throne and is in control.

If people exclude God, every method of government ends in disaster. Even though in Solomon's reign the king emphasized religious forms and ceremonies, internal development, foreign treaties, and intellectual attainment, his oppression did not bring stability and peace. Autocracy will end in revolution eventually. Democracy that locks God out can result in the most terrible consequences for the people whose interests it professes to advocate. Government by policy can only deteriorate. Selfish rulers will only rape their nations.

Man cannot govern himself because he does not know himself apart from God's Word. How can he govern others about whom he knows even less? If people do not submit to the throne in heaven, no matter what method of government they choose, they will fail. As Christians, we must remember who is in control. We must look beyond our government to our God.

First Kings also reveals God's method in the midst of human failures.

First, when a throne on earth rebels against the throne in heaven God abandons that throne on earth. He separated Himself from it. He allowed the evil choices of the rulers to work themselves out to their inevitable consequences. Departure leads to disaster. Apostasy results in awful consequences (cf. Rom. 1).

Second, God keeps some consciousness of Himself and His government alive in the hearts and minds of a remnant. The prophets spoke. All Christians exercise that ministry today. We should speak for God to our generation.

Third, God maintains ultimate control. He controls history directly and indirectly so His purposes get accomplished. The Christian never needs to panic. God has revealed His plan for history. Knowledge of the Word should give us stability in uncertain times.

What I have said is true on the national scale is also true on the individual level. If a person excludes God from his or her life, no matter how the person may live, he or she will fail. We can resist God's authority, but we cannot overcome it. People only break themselves by refusing to submit to the throne in heaven. People need reminding of the throne in heaven. These principles have worked out throughout history. God's plan moves ahead.

Constable: 1 Kings (Outline)

Outline

I. The reign of Solomon chs. 1-11

A. Solomon's succession to David's throne 1:1-2:12

1. David's declining health 1:1-4

2. Adonijah's attempt to seize the throne 1:5-53

3. David's charge to Solomon 2:1-9

4. David's death 2:10-12

B. The foundation of Solomon's reign 2:13-4:34

1. Solomon's purges 2:13-46

2. Solomon's wisdom from God ch. 3

3. Solomon's political strength ch. 4

C. Solomon's greatest contribution chs. 5-8

1. Preparations for building ch. 5

2. Temple construction ch. 6

3. Solomon's palace 7:1-12

4. The temple furnishings 7:13-51

5. The temple dedication ch. 8

D. The fruits of Solomon's reign chs. 9-11

1. God's covenant with Solomon 9:1-9

2. Further evidences of God's blessing 9:10-28

3. Solomon's greatness ch. 10

4. Solomon's apostasy ch. 11

II. The divided kingdom -1 Kings 12-2 Kings 17

A. The first period of antagonism 12:1-16:28

1. The division of the kingdom ch. 12

2. Jeroboam's evil reign in Israel 12:25-14:20

3. Rehoboam's evil reign in Judah 14:21-31

4. Abijam's evil reign in Judah 15:1-8

5. Asa's good reign in Judah 15:9-24

6. Nadab's evil reign in Israel 15:25-32

7. Baasha's evil reign in Israel 15:33-16:7

8. Elah's evil reign in Israel 16:8-14

9. Zimri's evil reign in Israel 16:15-20

10. Omri's evil reign in Israel 16:21-28

B. The period of alliance -1 Kings 16:29-2 Kings 9:29

1. Ahab's evil reign in Israel 16:29-22:40

2. Jehoshaphat's good reign in Judah 22:41-50

3. Ahaziah's evil reign in Israel -1 Kings 22:51-2 Kings 1:18

(Continued in notes on 2 Kings)

One writer observed that a chiastic structure marks the Books of Kings.¹¹

A Solomon/United Monarchy -- 1 Kings 1:1-11:25

B Jeroboam/Rehoboam; the division of the kingdom -- 1 Kings 11:26-14:31

C Kings of Judah/Israel -- 1 Kings 15:1-16:22

D The Omride dynasty; the rise and fall of the Baal cult in Israel and Judah -- -1 Kings 16:23-2 Kings 12

C' Kings of Judah/Israel -- 2 Kings 13-16

B' The fall of the Northern Kingdom -- 2 Kings 17

A' The Kingdom of Judah -- 2 Kings 18-25.

Constable: 1 Kings

1 Kings

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Copyright 2003 by Thomas L. Constable

Haydock: 1 Kings (Book Introduction)

THE THIRD BOOK OF KINGS.

INTRODUCTION.

This and the following Book are called by the holy Fathers, The Third and Fourth Book of Kings; but by the Hebrews, the First and Second. They contain the history of the kingdoms of Israel and Juda, from the beginning of the reign of Solomon to the captivity. As to the writer of these books, it seem most probable they were not written by one man, nor at one time; but as there was all along a succession of prophets in Israel, who recorded, by divine inspiration, the most remarkable things that happened in their days, these books seem to have been written by these prophets. See 2 Paralipomenon, alias 2 Chronicles ix. 29., xii. 15., xiii. 22., xx. 34., xxvi. 22., and xxxii. 32. (Challoner) --- This book informs us of the death of David, chap. ii. 11, where some Greek copies concluded the second book "of the reigns or kingdoms," as they style all the four books. Theodoret and Diodorus follow this division. The point is of no consequence; and the Hebrew editions have often varied. Origen observes, that the Jews denoted these two books from the first words, "Ouammelech David." (Eusebius, Hist. vi. 25.) (Haydock) --- In St. Jerome's time, the four books made only two. The present book details the actions of Solomon, (Calmet) till the end of the 12th chapter. Then we behold the division of the kingdom: Roboam, Abias, Asa, and Josaphat, reign over Juda; Jeroboam, &c., over Israel; while the prophets Abias, Elias, Eliseus, appear in the remaining eleven chapters. (Worthington) --- Though the memoirs seem to have been left by contemporary authors, (Haydock) one, and most probably Esdras, made the compilation, after the captivity, inserting frequently the very words of his authors, yet so as to make some additional reflections. (Calmet) --- The Rabbins generally attribute the work to Jeremias. (Haydock) --- He is more attentive to the house of David, and to display the rewards of the piety, and the punishment of vice, as well as the glory of the temple and of religion, than to describe the military exploits, which occupy so much of the profane history. (Calmet)

Gill: 1 Kings (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS

This, and the following book, properly are but one book, divided into two parts, and went with the Jews under the common name of Kings. This, in the Syriac version, is called the Book of Kings; and in the Arabic version, the Book of Solomon, the Son of David the Prophet, because it begins with his reign upon the death of his father; and, in the Vulgate Latin version, the Third Book of Kings, the two preceding books of Samuel being sometimes called the First and Second Books of Kings, they containing the reigns of Saul and David; and in the Septuagint version both this and the following book are called Kingdoms, because they treat of the kingdom of Israel and Judah, after the division in the times of Rehoboam, son of Solomon, and of the several kings of them; as of Solomon before the division, so afterwards of the kings of Judah; Rehoboam, Abijam, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, Ahaziah, Jehoash, Amaziah, Uzziah or Azariah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon, Josiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah; and of the kings of Israel, Jeroboam, Nadab, Baasha, Elah, Zimri, Omri, Ahab, Ahaziah, Jehu, Jehoahaz, Jehoash, Jeroboam the son of Joash, Zachariah, Shallum, Menahem, Pekahiah, Pekah, and Hoshea; so that these books may, with great propriety, be called the books or histories of the kings in the two kingdoms of Judah and Israel: who they were written by, is not easy to say; some think they were written by piecemeal by the prophets that lived in the several reigns successively, as Nathan, Ahijah the Shilonite, Iddo, Isaiah, and Jeremiah, and afterwards put together by an inspired writer. The Jews commonly say ^a, that Jeremiah wrote the book of the Kings, by which they mean this, and the following book; though very probably they were written by Ezra, since the history in them is carried down to the liberty granted to Jehoiachin in Babylon; but that Ezra was the writer of all the preceding historical books, and even of the Pentateuch, cannot be admitted, which is the conceit of Spinosa ^b; part of whose tract is just now republished by somebody, word for word, under a title as in the margin ^c; but that Ezra was not the writer of the Pentateuch is clear, since he refers to it as written by Moses, and as the rule of religion and worship in his times, Ezr 3:2; and it is certain these writings were in being in the times of Josiah, Amaziah, Joash, yea, of David, and even of Joshua, 2Ch 34:14; and as for the book of Joshua, that also was written long before Ezra's time; it must be written long before the times of David, before the Jebusites were expelled from Jerusalem, since the writer of it says, that they dwelt there in his days, Jos 15:63; the book of Judges must be written before the times of Samuel and David, since the former refers to the annals of it, 1Sa 12:9; and the latter alludes to some passages in it, Psa 68:7; see Jdg 5:4; and a speech of Joab's, 2Sa 11:21, shows it to be an history then extant: to which may be added, that in it Jerusalem is called Jebus, Jdg 19:10; which it never was, after it was taken by David out of the hands of the Jebusites, 2Sa 5:6; the book of Ruth very probably was written by Samuel; had it been of a later date, or written by Ezra, the genealogy with which it concludes, would doubtless have been carried further than to David: the Book of Samuel, and particularly the song of Hannah in it, were written in all probability before the penning of the hundred thirteenth psalm, Psa 113:1, in which some expressions seem to be taken from it wherefore, though the two books of Kings may be allowed to be written or compiled by Ezra, the ten preceding ones cannot be assigned to him: however, there is no room to doubt of the divine authority of these two books, when the honour our Lord has done them is observed, by quoting or referring to several histories in them; as to the account of the queen of Sheba coming to hear the wisdom of Solomon; of the famine in the times of Elijah; and of that prophet being sent to the widow of Sarepta, and of the cleansing of Naaman the Syrian in the times of Elisha, Mat 12:42 from 1Ki 17:1 2Ki 5:10; to which may be added, the quotations and references made by the apostles to passages in them, as by the Apostle Paul in Rom 11:2 from 1Ki 19:14 where this book is expressly called the Scripture; and by the Apostle James, Jam 5:17; who manifestly refers to 1Ki 17:1; and there are various things in this part of Scripture, which are confirmed by the testimonies of Heathen writers, as will be observed in the exposition of it. The use of these books is to carry on the history of the Jewish nation, to show the state of the church of God in those times, and his providential care of it amidst all the changes and vicissitudes in the state; and, above all, to transmit to us the true genealogy of the Messiah, which serves to confirm the Evangelist Matthew's account of it.

Gill: 1 Kings 10 (Chapter Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 10

This chapter contains an account of the queen of Sheba's visit to King Solomon to her great satisfaction, 1Ki 10:1, of Solomon's merchandise and riches, and the magnificence of his court, 1Ki 10:14, of the rich presents sent to him, and of the purchase of chariots and horses, and other things, he made, 1Ki 10:24.