1 Kings 7:11

7:11 Above the foundation¹ the best² stones, chiseled to the right size,³ were used along with cedar.

1 Kings 5:17

5:17 By royal order⁴ they supplied large valuable stones in order to build the temple’s foundation with chiseled stone.

1 Kings 7:10

7:10 The foundation was made of large valuable stones, measuring either 15 feet or 12 feet.⁵

1 Kings 7:9

7:9 All of these were built with the best⁶ stones, chiseled to the right size⁷ and cut with a saw on all sides,⁸ from the foundation to the edge of the roof⁹ and from the outside to the great courtyard.

1 Kings 10:11

10:11 (Hiram’s fleet, which carried gold from Ophir, also brought from Ophir a very large quantity of fine timber and precious gems.

1 Kings 10:2

10:2 She arrived in Jerusalem¹⁰ with a great display of pomp,¹¹ bringing with her camels carrying spices,¹² a very large quantity of gold, and precious gems. She visited Solomon and discussed with him everything that was on her mind.

1 Kings 10:10

10:10 She gave the king 120 talents¹³ 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.¹⁴

¹tn Heb “on top,” or “above.”

²tn Or “valuable” (see 5:17).

³tn Heb “according to the measurement of chiseled [stone].”

⁴tn Heb “and the king commanded.”

⁷tn Heb “stones of ten cubits and stones of eight cubits” (it is unclear exactly what dimension is being measured). If both numbers refer to the length of the stones (cf. NCV, CEV, NLT), then perhaps stones of two different sizes were used in some alternating pattern.

¹⁰tn Or “valuable” (see 5:17).

¹¹tn Heb “according to the measurement of chiseled [stone].”

¹²tn Heb “inside and out.”

¹³tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew word טְפָחוֹת (tÿfakhot) is uncertain, but it is clear that the referent stands in opposition to the foundation.

¹³map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹⁴tn Heb “with very great strength.” The Hebrew term חַיִל (khayil, “strength”) may refer here to the size of her retinue (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV) or to the great wealth she brought with her.

¹⁵tn Or “balsam oil.”

¹⁶tn 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.”

¹⁷tn Heb “there has not come like those spices yet for quantity which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.”