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1 Kings 4-5
New English Translation

Solomon’s Royal Court and Administrators

4 King Solomon ruled over all Israel. 2 These were his officials:

Azariah son of Zadok was the priest.

3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, wrote down what happened.[a]

Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was in charge of the records.

4 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was commander of[b] the army.

Zadok and Abiathar were priests.

5 Azariah son of Nathan was supervisor of[c] the district governors.

Zabud son of Nathan was a priest and adviser to[d] the king.

6 Ahishar was supervisor of the palace.[e]

Adoniram son of Abda was supervisor of[f] the work crews.[g]

7 Solomon had twelve district governors appointed throughout Israel who acquired supplies for the king and his palace. Each was responsible for one month in the year. 8 These were their names:

Ben Hur was in charge of the hill country of Ephraim.

9 Ben Deker was in charge of Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh, and Elon Beth Hanan.

10 Ben Hesed was in charge of Arubboth; he controlled Socoh and all the territory of Hepher.

11 Ben Abinadab was in charge of Naphath Dor. (He was married to Solomon’s daughter Taphath.)

12 Baana son of Ahilud was in charge of Taanach and Megiddo, as well as all of Beth Shean next to Zarethan below Jezreel, from Beth Shean to Abel Meholah and on past Jokmeam.

13 Ben Geber was in charge of Ramoth Gilead; he controlled the villages of Jair son of Manasseh in Gilead, as well as the region of Argob in Bashan, including sixty large walled cities with bronze bars locking their gates.

14 Ahinadab son of Iddo was in charge of Mahanaim.

15 Ahimaaz was in charge of Naphtali. (He married Solomon’s daughter Basemath.)

16 Baana son of Hushai was in charge of Asher and Aloth.

17 Jehoshaphat son of Paruah was in charge of Issachar.

18 Shimei son of Ela was in charge of Benjamin.

19 Geber son of Uri was in charge of the land of Gilead (the territory which had once belonged to King Sihon of the Amorites and to King Og of Bashan). He was sole governor of the area.

Solomon’s Wealth and Fame

20 The people of Judah and Israel were as innumerable as the sand on the seashore; they had plenty to eat and drink and were happy. 21 (5:1)[h] Solomon ruled all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River[i] to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These kingdoms paid tribute as Solomon’s subjects throughout his lifetime.[j] 22 Each day Solomon’s royal court consumed[k] thirty cors[l] of finely milled flour, sixty cors of cereal, 23 ten calves fattened in the stall,[m] 20 calves from the pasture, and 100 sheep, not to mention rams, gazelles, deer, and well-fed birds. 24 His royal court was so large because[n] he ruled over all the kingdoms west of the Euphrates River from Tiphsah[o] to Gaza; he was at peace with all his neighbors.[p] 25 All the people of Judah and Israel had security; everyone from Dan to Beer Sheba enjoyed the produce of their vines and fig trees throughout Solomon’s lifetime.[q] 26 Solomon had 4,000 stalls[r] for his chariot horses and 12,000 horses. 27 The district governors acquired supplies for King Solomon and all who ate in his royal palace.[s] Each was responsible for one month in the year; they made sure nothing was lacking. 28 Each one also brought to the assigned location his quota of barley and straw for the various horses.[t]

29 God gave Solomon wisdom and very great discernment; the breadth of his understanding[u] was as infinite as the sand on the seashore. 30 Solomon was wiser than all the men of the east and all the sages of Egypt.[v] 31 He was wiser than any man, including Ethan the Ezrahite or Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol. He was famous in all the neighboring nations.[w] 32 He composed[x] 3,000 proverbs and 1,005 songs. 33 He produced manuals on botany, describing every kind of plant,[y] from the cedars of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows on walls. He also produced manuals on biology, describing[z] animals, birds, insects, and fish. 34 People from all nations came to hear Solomon’s display of wisdom;[aa] they came from all the kings of the earth who heard about his wisdom.

Solomon Gathers Building Materials for the Temple

5 (5:15)[ab] King Hiram of Tyre sent messengers[ac] to Solomon when he heard that he had been anointed king in his father’s place. (Hiram had always been an ally of David.) 2 Solomon then sent this message to Hiram: 3 “You know that my father David was unable to build a temple to honor the Lord[ad] his God, for he was busy fighting battles on all fronts while the Lord subdued his enemies.[ae] 4 But now the Lord my God has made me secure on all fronts; there is no adversary or dangerous threat. 5 So I have decided[af] to build a temple to honor the Lord[ag] my God, as the Lord instructed my father David, ‘Your son, whom I will put on your throne in your place, is the one who will build a temple to honor me.’[ah] 6 So now order some cedars of Lebanon to be cut for me. My servants will work with your servants. I will pay your servants whatever you say is appropriate, for you know that we have no one among us who knows how to cut down trees like the Sidonians.”

7 When Hiram heard Solomon’s message, he was very happy. He said, “The Lord is worthy of praise today because he[ai] has given David a wise son to rule over this great nation.” 8 Hiram then sent this message to Solomon: “I received[aj] the message you sent to me. I will give you all the cedars and evergreens you need.[ak] 9 My servants will bring the timber down from Lebanon to the sea. I will send it by sea in raft-like bundles to the place you designate.[al] There I will separate the logs[am] and you can carry them away. In exchange you will supply the food I need for my royal court.”[an]

10 So Hiram supplied the cedars and evergreens Solomon needed,[ao] 11 and Solomon supplied Hiram annually with 20,000 cors [ap] of wheat as provision for his royal court,[aq] as well as 120,000 gallons[ar] of pure[as] olive oil.[at] 12 So the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he had promised him. And Hiram and Solomon were at peace and made a treaty.[au]

13 King Solomon conscripted[av] work crews[aw] from throughout Israel, 30,000 men in all. 14 He sent them to Lebanon in shifts of 10,000 men per month. They worked in Lebanon for one month, and then spent two months at home. Adoniram was supervisor of[ax] the work crews. 15 Solomon also had 70,000 common laborers[ay] and 80,000 stonecutters[az] in the hills, 16 besides 3,300 officials[ba] who supervised the workers.[bb] 17 By royal order[bc] they supplied large valuable stones in order to build the temple’s foundation with chiseled stone. 18 Solomon’s and Hiram’s construction workers,[bd] along with men from Byblos,[be] did the chiseling and prepared the wood and stones for the building of the temple.[bf]

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 4:3 tn Heb “were scribes”; NASB, NIV, NRSV “secretaries”; TEV, NLT “court secretaries.”
  2. 1 Kings 4:4 tn Heb “was over.”
  3. 1 Kings 4:5 tn Heb “was over.”
  4. 1 Kings 4:5 tn Heb “close associate of”; KJV, ASV, NASB “the king’s friend” (a title for an adviser, not just an acquaintance).
  5. 1 Kings 4:6 tn Heb “over the house.”
  6. 1 Kings 4:6 tn Heb “was over.”
  7. 1 Kings 4:6 sn The work crews. This Hebrew word (מַס, mas) refers to a group of laborers conscripted for royal or public service.
  8. 1 Kings 4:21 sn Beginning with 4:21, the verse numbers through 5:18 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 4:21 ET = 5:1 HT, 4:22 ET = 5:2 HT, etc., through 5:18 ET = 5:32 HT. Beginning with 6:1 the numbering of verses in the English Bible and the Hebrew text is again the same.
  9. 1 Kings 4:21 tn Heb “the River” (also in v. 24). This is the standard designation for the Euphrates River in biblical Hebrew.
  10. 1 Kings 4:21 tn Heb “[They] were bringing tribute and were serving Solomon all the days of his life.”
  11. 1 Kings 4:22 tn Heb “the food of Solomon for each day was.”
  12. 1 Kings 4:22 tn As a unit of dry measure a cor was roughly equivalent to six bushels.
  13. 1 Kings 4:23 tn The words “in the stall” are added for clarification; note the immediately following reference to cattle from the pasture.
  14. 1 Kings 4:24 tn Heb “because.” The words “his royal court was so large” are added to facilitate the logical connection with the preceding verse.
  15. 1 Kings 4:24 sn Tiphsah. This was located on the Euphrates River.
  16. 1 Kings 4:24 tn Heb “for he was ruling over all [the region] beyond the River, from Tiphsah to Gaza, over all the kingdoms beyond the River, and he had peace on every side all around.”
  17. 1 Kings 4:25 tn Heb “Judah and Israel lived securely, each one under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan to Beer Sheba, all the days of Solomon.”
  18. 1 Kings 4:26 tn The Hebrew text has “40,000,” but this is probably an inflated number (nevertheless it is followed by KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV, TEV, CEV). Some Greek mss of the OT and the parallel in 2 Chr 9:25 read “4,000” (cf. NAB, NIV, NCV, NLT).
  19. 1 Kings 4:27 tn Heb “everyone who drew near to the table of King Solomon.”
  20. 1 Kings 4:28 tn Heb “barley and straw for the horses and the steeds they brought to the place which was there, each according to his measure.”
  21. 1 Kings 4:29 tn Heb “heart,” i.e., mind. (The Hebrew term translated “heart” often refers to the mental faculties.)
  22. 1 Kings 4:30 tn Heb “the wisdom of Solomon was greater than the wisdom of all the sons of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.”
  23. 1 Kings 4:31 tn Heb “his name was in all the surrounding nations.”
  24. 1 Kings 4:32 tn Heb “spoke.”
  25. 1 Kings 4:33 tn Heb “he spoke about plants.”
  26. 1 Kings 4:33 tn Heb “he spoke about.”
  27. 1 Kings 4:34 tn Heb “the wisdom of Solomon.”
  28. 1 Kings 5:1 sn The verse numbers in the English Bible differ from those in the Hebrew text (BHS) here; 5:1-18 in the English Bible corresponds to 5:15-32 in the Hebrew text. See the note at 4:21.
  29. 1 Kings 5:1 tn Heb “his servants.”
  30. 1 Kings 5:3 tn Heb “a house for the name of the Lord.” The word “name” sometimes refers to one’s reputation or honor. The “name” of the Lord sometimes designates the Lord himself, being indistinguishable from the proper name.
  31. 1 Kings 5:3 tn Heb “because of the battles which surrounded him until the Lord placed them under the soles of his feet.”
  32. 1 Kings 5:5 tn Heb “Look, I am saying.”
  33. 1 Kings 5:5 tn Heb “a house for the name of the Lord.” The word “name” sometimes refers to one’s reputation or honor. The “name” of the Lord sometimes designates the Lord himself, being indistinguishable from the proper name.
  34. 1 Kings 5:5 tn Heb “a house for my name.”
  35. 1 Kings 5:7 tn Or “Blessed be the Lord today, who….”
  36. 1 Kings 5:8 tn Heb “heard.”
  37. 1 Kings 5:8 tn Heb “I will satisfy all your desire with respect to cedar wood and with respect to the wood of evergreens.”
  38. 1 Kings 5:9 tn Heb “I will place them [on? as?] rafts in the sea to the place where you designate to me.” This may mean he would send them by raft, or that he would tie them in raft-like bundles, and have ships tow them down to an Israelite port.
  39. 1 Kings 5:9 tn Heb “smash them,” i.e., untie the bundles.
  40. 1 Kings 5:9 tn Heb “as for you, you will satisfy my desire by giving food for my house.”
  41. 1 Kings 5:10 tn Heb “and Hiram gave to Solomon cedar wood and the wood of evergreens, all his desire.”
  42. 1 Kings 5:11 sn As a unit of dry measure a cor was roughly equivalent to six bushels.
  43. 1 Kings 5:11 tn Heb “his house.”
  44. 1 Kings 5:11 tc The Hebrew text has “twenty cors,” but the ancient Greek version and the parallel text in 2 Chr 2:10 read “20,000 baths.” sn A bath was a liquid measure roughly equivalent to six gallons (about 22 liters), so this was a quantity of about 120,000 gallons (440,000 liters).
  45. 1 Kings 5:11 tn Or “pressed.”
  46. 1 Kings 5:11 tn Heb “and Solomon supplied Hiram with 20,000 cors of wheat…pure olive oil. So Solomon would give to Hiram year by year.”
  47. 1 Kings 5:12 tn Heb “a covenant,” referring to a formal peace treaty or alliance.
  48. 1 Kings 5:13 tn Heb “raised up.”
  49. 1 Kings 5:13 sn Work crews. This Hebrew word (מַס, mas) refers to a group of laborers conscripted for royal or public service.
  50. 1 Kings 5:14 tn Heb “was over.”
  51. 1 Kings 5:15 tn Heb “carriers of loads.”
  52. 1 Kings 5:15 tn Heb “cutters” (probably of stones).
  53. 1 Kings 5:16 tc Some Greek mss of the OT read “3,600”; cf. 2 Chr 2:2, 18 and NLT.
  54. 1 Kings 5:16 tn Heb “besides thirty-three hundred from the officials of Solomon’s governors who were over the work, the ones ruling over the people, the ones doing the work.”
  55. 1 Kings 5:17 tn Heb “and the king commanded.”
  56. 1 Kings 5:18 tn Heb “builders.”
  57. 1 Kings 5:18 tn Heb “the Gebalites.” The reading is problematic and some emend to a verb form meaning, “set the borders.”
  58. 1 Kings 5:18 tc The LXX includes the words “for three years.”
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1 Kings 4-5
New International Version

Solomon’s Officials and Governors

4 So King Solomon ruled over all Israel. 2 And these were his chief officials:(A)

Azariah(B) son of Zadok—the priest;

3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, sons of Shisha—secretaries;(C)

Jehoshaphat(D) son of Ahilud—recorder;

4 Benaiah(E) son of Jehoiada—commander in chief;

Zadok(F) and Abiathar—priests;

5 Azariah son of Nathan—in charge of the district governors;

Zabud son of Nathan—a priest and adviser to the king;

6 Ahishar—palace administrator;(G)

Adoniram(H) son of Abda—in charge of forced labor.(I)

7 Solomon had twelve district governors(J) over all Israel, who supplied provisions for the king and the royal household. Each one had to provide supplies for one month in the year. 8 These are their names:

Ben-Hur—in the hill country(K) of Ephraim;

9 Ben-Deker—in Makaz, Shaalbim,(L) Beth Shemesh(M) and Elon Bethhanan;

10 Ben-Hesed—in Arubboth (Sokoh(N) and all the land of Hepher(O) were his);

11 Ben-Abinadab—in Naphoth Dor(P) (he was married to Taphath daughter of Solomon);

12 Baana son of Ahilud—in Taanach and Megiddo, and in all of Beth Shan(Q) next to Zarethan(R) below Jezreel, from Beth Shan to Abel Meholah(S) across to Jokmeam;(T)

13 Ben-Geber—in Ramoth Gilead (the settlements of Jair(U) son of Manasseh in Gilead(V) were his, as well as the region of Argob in Bashan and its sixty large walled cities(W) with bronze gate bars);

14 Ahinadab son of Iddo—in Mahanaim;(X)

15 Ahimaaz(Y)—in Naphtali (he had married Basemath daughter of Solomon);

16 Baana son of Hushai(Z)—in Asher and in Aloth;

17 Jehoshaphat son of Paruah—in Issachar;

18 Shimei(AA) son of Ela—in Benjamin;

19 Geber son of Uri—in Gilead (the country of Sihon(AB) king of the Amorites and the country of Og(AC) king of Bashan). He was the only governor over the district.

Solomon’s Daily Provisions

20 The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand(AD) on the seashore; they ate, they drank and they were happy.(AE) 21 And Solomon ruled(AF) over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River(AG) to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt.(AH) These countries brought tribute(AI) and were Solomon’s subjects all his life.

22 Solomon’s daily provisions(AJ) were thirty cors[a] of the finest flour and sixty cors[b] of meal, 23 ten head of stall-fed cattle, twenty of pasture-fed cattle and a hundred sheep and goats, as well as deer, gazelles, roebucks and choice fowl.(AK) 24 For he ruled over all the kingdoms west of the Euphrates River, from Tiphsah(AL) to Gaza, and had peace(AM) on all sides. 25 During Solomon’s lifetime Judah and Israel, from Dan to Beersheba,(AN) lived in safety,(AO) everyone under their own vine and under their own fig tree.(AP)

26 Solomon had four[c] thousand stalls for chariot horses,(AQ) and twelve thousand horses.[d]

27 The district governors,(AR) each in his month, supplied provisions for King Solomon and all who came to the king’s table. They saw to it that nothing was lacking. 28 They also brought to the proper place their quotas of barley and straw for the chariot horses and the other horses.

Solomon’s Wisdom

29 God gave Solomon wisdom(AS) and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand(AT) on the seashore. 30 Solomon’s wisdom was greater than the wisdom of all the people of the East,(AU) and greater than all the wisdom of Egypt.(AV) 31 He was wiser(AW) than anyone else, including Ethan the Ezrahite—wiser than Heman, Kalkol and Darda, the sons of Mahol. And his fame spread to all the surrounding nations. 32 He spoke three thousand proverbs(AX) and his songs(AY) numbered a thousand and five. 33 He spoke about plant life, from the cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop(AZ) that grows out of walls. He also spoke about animals and birds, reptiles and fish. 34 From all nations people came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, sent by all the kings(BA) of the world, who had heard of his wisdom.[e]

Preparations for Building the Temple(BB)

5 [f]When Hiram(BC) king of Tyre heard that Solomon had been anointed king to succeed his father David, he sent his envoys to Solomon, because he had always been on friendly terms with David. 2 Solomon sent back this message to Hiram:

3 “You know that because of the wars(BD) waged against my father David from all sides, he could not build(BE) a temple for the Name of the Lord his God until the Lord put his enemies under his feet.(BF) 4 But now the Lord my God has given me rest(BG) on every side, and there is no adversary(BH) or disaster. 5 I intend, therefore, to build a temple(BI) for the Name of the Lord my God, as the Lord told my father David, when he said, ‘Your son whom I will put on the throne in your place will build the temple for my Name.’(BJ)

6 “So give orders that cedars(BK) of Lebanon be cut for me. My men will work with yours, and I will pay you for your men whatever wages you set. You know that we have no one so skilled in felling timber as the Sidonians.”

7 When Hiram heard Solomon’s message, he was greatly pleased and said, “Praise be to the Lord(BL) today, for he has given David a wise son to rule over this great nation.”

8 So Hiram sent word to Solomon:

“I have received the message you sent me and will do all you want in providing the cedar and juniper logs. 9 My men will haul them down from Lebanon to the Mediterranean Sea(BM), and I will float them as rafts by sea to the place you specify. There I will separate them and you can take them away. And you are to grant my wish by providing food(BN) for my royal household.”

10 In this way Hiram kept Solomon supplied with all the cedar and juniper logs he wanted, 11 and Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand cors[g] of wheat as food(BO) for his household, in addition to twenty thousand baths[h][i] of pressed olive oil. Solomon continued to do this for Hiram year after year. 12 The Lord gave Solomon wisdom,(BP) just as he had promised him. There were peaceful relations between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.(BQ)

13 King Solomon conscripted laborers(BR) from all Israel—thirty thousand men. 14 He sent them off to Lebanon in shifts of ten thousand a month, so that they spent one month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram(BS) was in charge of the forced labor. 15 Solomon had seventy thousand carriers and eighty thousand stonecutters in the hills, 16 as well as thirty-three hundred[j] foremen(BT) who supervised the project and directed the workers. 17 At the king’s command they removed from the quarry(BU) large blocks of high-grade stone(BV) to provide a foundation of dressed stone for the temple. 18 The craftsmen of Solomon and Hiram(BW) and workers from Byblos(BX) cut and prepared the timber and stone for the building of the temple.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 4:22 That is, probably about 5 1/2 tons or about 5 metric tons
  2. 1 Kings 4:22 That is, probably about 11 tons or about 10 metric tons
  3. 1 Kings 4:26 Some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 2 Chron. 9:25); Hebrew forty
  4. 1 Kings 4:26 Or charioteers
  5. 1 Kings 4:34 In Hebrew texts 4:21-34 is numbered 5:1-14.
  6. 1 Kings 5:1 In Hebrew texts 5:1-18 is numbered 5:15-32.
  7. 1 Kings 5:11 That is, probably about 3,600 tons or about 3,250 metric tons
  8. 1 Kings 5:11 Septuagint (see also 2 Chron. 2:10); Hebrew twenty cors
  9. 1 Kings 5:11 That is, about 120,000 gallons or about 440,000 liters
  10. 1 Kings 5:16 Hebrew; some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 2 Chron. 2:2,18) thirty-six hundred
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