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1 Kings 10:1-13
Amplified Bible
1 Kings 10:1-13
Amplified Bible
The Queen of Sheba
10 Now when the queen of [a]Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to test him with riddles. 2 So she came to Jerusalem with a very large caravan (entourage), with camels carrying spices, a great quantity of gold, and precious stones. When she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about everything that was on her mind [to discover the extent of his wisdom]. 3 Solomon [b]answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from the king which he did not explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, and the house (palace) which he had built, 5 the food on his table, the seating of his servants (court officials), the attendance of his waiters and their attire, his cupbearers, his [c]stairway by which he went up to the house (temple) of the Lord, she was breathless and awed [by the wonder of it all]. 6 Then she told the king, “The report which I heard in my own land about your words and wisdom is true! 7 I did not believe the report until I came and saw it with my own eyes. Behold, the half of it was not told to me. You exceed in wisdom and prosperity the report which I heard. 8 How blessed (fortunate, happy) are your men! How blessed are these your servants who stand continually before you, hearing your wisdom! 9 Blessed be the Lord your God who delighted in you to set you on the throne of Israel! Because the Lord loved Israel forever, He made you king to execute justice and righteousness.” 10 She gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold and a very great quantity of spices and precious stones. Never again did such an abundance of spices come in [to Israel] as that which the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon.
11 Also the ships of Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir a great quantity of almug wood (sandalwood) and precious stones. 12 From the almug wood (sandalwood) the king made pillars for the house of the Lord and for the king’s palace, and also lyres and harps for the singers. Such almug wood did not come in [to Israel] again, nor has it been seen to this day.
13 King Solomon [in turn] gave to the queen of Sheba everything that she wanted, whatever she asked, besides what he gave to her [d]from his royal bounty. So she returned to her own country, she and her servants.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1 Kings 10:1 The location of this ancient kingdom is uncertain, but may have included portions of modern Yemen and Ethiopia. The imperial family of Ethiopia claimed descent from a son supposedly born to Solomon and the queen of Sheba; however, there is no biblical evidence to support this claim. Ongoing archeological discoveries in Mareb, Yemen (Awam Temple) may support the area’s connection to the reign of the queen of Sheba. It has been suggested that she ruled southern Arabia and that the area being excavated was the capital of the Kingdom of Sheba.
- 1 Kings 10:3 Lit told her all her words.
- 1 Kings 10:5 Lit going up; or his burnt offering which he offered at.
- 1 Kings 10:13 Lit according to the hand of King Solomon. Following ancient custom for nobility and royalty, the king was obligated to give a visitor (especially a visiting dignitary) a greater gift than he received from the visitor. Solomon went far beyond custom in lavishing gifts on the queen.
1 Kings 10:1-13
New International Version
1 Kings 10:1-13
New International Version
The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon(A)
10 When the queen of Sheba(B) heard about the fame(C) of Solomon and his relationship to the Lord, she came to test Solomon with hard questions.(D) 2 Arriving at Jerusalem with a very great caravan(E)—with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones—she came to Solomon and talked with him about all that she had on her mind. 3 Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the palace he had built, 5 the food on his table,(F) the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he made at[a] the temple of the Lord, she was overwhelmed.
6 She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. 7 But I did not believe(G) these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth(H) you have far exceeded the report I heard. 8 How happy your people must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear(I) your wisdom! 9 Praise(J) be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord’s eternal love(K) for Israel, he has made you king to maintain justice(L) and righteousness.”
10 And she gave the king 120 talents[b] of gold,(M) large quantities of spices, and precious stones. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 (Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir;(N) and from there they brought great cargoes of almugwood[c] and precious stones. 12 The king used the almugwood to make supports[d] for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. So much almugwood has never been imported or seen since that day.)
13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for, besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 10:5 Or the ascent by which he went up to
- 1 Kings 10:10 That is, about 4 1/2 tons or about 4 metric tons
- 1 Kings 10:11 Probably a variant of algumwood; also in verse 12
- 1 Kings 10:12 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
2 Chronicles 9:1-12
Amplified Bible
2 Chronicles 9:1-12
Amplified Bible
Visit of the Queen of Sheba
9 When the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to Jerusalem to test Solomon with riddles. She was accompanied by a very large number of attendants, with camels bearing spices (balsam oil) and a large amount of gold and precious stones. And when she came to Solomon, she talked with him about all that was on her mind. 2 Solomon [a]answered all her questions; nothing was hidden from him which he did not make clear to her. 3 So when the queen of Sheba saw the [depth of] Solomon’s wisdom, and the house which he had built, 4 and the food of his table, the [vast] seating order of his officials, the attendance and service of his ministers and their attire, his cupbearers and their attire, and his [b]stairway by which he went up to the house of the Lord, she was breathless. 5 She said to the king, “The report which I heard in my own land regarding your [accomplishments and your] words and your wisdom was true, 6 but I did not believe the reports until I came and saw it with my own eyes. Behold, the half of the greatness of your wisdom was not told to me; you have surpassed the report that I heard. 7 Blessed and fortunate are your people, how blessed and fortunate are these servants of yours who stand before you continually and hear your wisdom! 8 Blessed be the Lord your God, who delighted in you, setting you on His throne as king for the Lord your God; because your God loved Israel, establishing them forever, therefore He made you king over them, to do justice and righteousness.” 9 Then she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, a very large amount of spices (balsam oil) and precious stones; there was no such spice [anywhere] like that which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
10 The servants of Huram and those of Solomon, who brought gold from Ophir, also brought almug trees and precious stones. 11 From the almug timber the king made [c]stairways for the house of the Lord and for the king’s palace, and lyres and harps for the singers; none like that was seen before in the land of Judah.
12 King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all [the things] she desired, whatever she asked, [d]besides a return for what she had brought to the king. So she returned to her own land with her servants.
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- 2 Chronicles 9:2 Lit told...her words.
- 2 Chronicles 9:4 Or burnt offerings which he offered at.
- 2 Chronicles 9:11 Or terraces.
- 2 Chronicles 9:12 Following tradition, Solomon wanted his royal visitor to leave with a greater gift than she had given him.
2 Chronicles 9:1-12
New International Version
2 Chronicles 9:1-12
New International Version
The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon(A)
9 When the queen of Sheba(B) heard of Solomon’s fame, she came to Jerusalem to test him with hard questions. Arriving with a very great caravan—with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones—she came to Solomon and talked with him about all she had on her mind. 2 Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for him to explain to her. 3 When the queen of Sheba saw the wisdom of Solomon,(C) as well as the palace he had built, 4 the food on his table, the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, the cupbearers in their robes and the burnt offerings he made at[a] the temple of the Lord, she was overwhelmed.
5 She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. 6 But I did not believe what they said until I came(D) and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half the greatness of your wisdom was told me; you have far exceeded the report I heard. 7 How happy your people must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! 8 Praise be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on his throne(E) as king to rule for the Lord your God. Because of the love of your God for Israel and his desire to uphold them forever, he has made you king(F) over them, to maintain justice and righteousness.”
9 Then she gave the king 120 talents[b] of gold,(G) large quantities of spices, and precious stones. There had never been such spices as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
10 (The servants of Hiram and the servants of Solomon brought gold from Ophir;(H) they also brought algumwood[c] and precious stones. 11 The king used the algumwood to make steps for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. Nothing like them had ever been seen in Judah.)
12 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for; he gave her more than she had brought to him. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 9:4 Or and the ascent by which he went up to
- 2 Chronicles 9:9 That is, about 4 1/2 tons or about 4 metric tons
- 2 Chronicles 9:10 Probably a variant of almugwood
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