International Standard Version

King James Bible

1When the queen of Sheba heard about Solomon's reputation, she traveled to Jerusalem and tested him with difficult questions. She brought along a large retinue, camels laden with spices, and lots of gold and precious stones. Upon her arrival, she spoke with Solomon about everything that was on her mind.

1And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to prove Solomon with hard questions at Jerusalem, with a very great company, and camels that bare spices, and gold in abundance, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.

2Solomon answered all of her questions. Because nothing was hidden from Solomon, he hid nothing from her.

2And Solomon told her all her questions: and there was nothing hid from Solomon which he told her not.

3When the queen of Sheba had seen Solomon's wisdom for herself, the palace that he had built,

3And when the queen of Sheba had seen the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built,

4the food set at his table, his servants who waited on him, his ministers in attendance and how they were dressed, his personal staff and how they were dressed, and even his personal stairway by which he went up to the LORD's Temple, she was breathless!

4And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel; his cupbearers also, and their apparel; and his ascent by which he went up into the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her.

5"Everything I heard about your wisdom and what you have to say is true!" she gasped,

5And she said to the king, It was a true report which I heard in mine own land of thine acts, and of thy wisdom:

6"but I didn't believe it at first! But then I came here and I've seen it for myself! It's amazing! I wasn't told half of what's really great about your wisdom. You're far better in person than what the reports have said about you!

6Howbeit I believed not their words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the one half of the greatness of thy wisdom was not told me: for thou exceedest the fame that I heard.

7How blessed are your staff! And how blessed are your employees, who serve you continually and get to listen to your wisdom!

7Happy are thy men, and happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and hear thy wisdom.

8Blessed be the LORD your God, who is delighted with you! He set you in place on his throne to be king for the LORD your God. He made you king over them so you could carry out justice and implement righteousness, because your God loves Israel and intends to establish them forever."

8Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee to set thee on his throne, to be king for the LORD thy God: because thy God loved Israel, to establish them for ever, therefore made he thee king over them, to do judgment and justice.

9Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, a vast quantity of spices, and precious stones. There were no spices comparable to those that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

9And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices great abundance, and precious stones: neither was there any such spice as the queen of Sheba gave king Solomon.

10Hiram's servants and Solomon's servants, who brought gold from Ophir, also presented algum wood and other precious stones.

10And the servants also of Huram, and the servants of Solomon, which brought gold from Ophir, brought algum trees and precious stones.

11The king used the algum wood to have steps made for the LORD's Temple and for the royal palace, as well as lyres and harps for the choir, and nothing like that wood had been seen before in the territory of Judah.

11And the king made of the algum trees terraces to the house of the LORD, and to the king's palace, and harps and psalteries for singers: and there were none such seen before in the land of Judah.

12In return, King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she wanted and requested in addition to what she had brought for the king. Afterward, she returned to her own land, accompanied by her servants.

12And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which she had brought unto the king. So she turned, and went away to her own land, she and her servants.

13Solomon received in any given year about 666 talents of gold,

13Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and threescore and six talents of gold;

14not including revenue from traders and merchants. In addition, all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the nation brought gold and silver to Solomon.

14Beside that which chapmen and merchants brought. And all the kings of Arabia and governors of the country brought gold and silver to Solomon.

15King Solomon made 200 large shields of beaten gold, overlaying each shield with the gold from 600 gold pieces,

15And king Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold: six hundred shekels of beaten gold went to one target.

16and 300 shields from beaten gold, overlaying each shield with the gold from 300 gold pieces. The king put them in his palace in the Lebanon forest.

16And three hundred shields made he of beaten gold: three hundred shekels of gold went to one shield. And the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.

17The king also made a great ivory throne and overlaid it with pure gold.

17Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold.

18Six steps led up to the throne. A golden footstool was attached to the throne, which had armrests on each side of the seat and two lions standing on either side of each armrest.

18And there were six steps to the throne, with a footstool of gold, which were fastened to the throne, and stays on each side of the sitting place, and two lions standing by the stays:

19Twelve lions were placed on both sides of the six steps leading to the throne, and nothing comparable was made for any other kingdom.

19And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps. There was not the like made in any kingdom.

20All of King Solomon's drinking vessels were made of gold, and all the vessels in his palace in the Lebanon forest were made of pure gold. Silver was never considered to be valuable during the lifetime of Solomon,

20And all the drinking vessels of king Solomon were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold: none were of silver; it was not any thing accounted of in the days of Solomon.

21because the king had ships that sailed to Tarshish accompanied by Hiram's servants. Once every three years ships from Tarshish returned, bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.

21For the king's ships went to Tarshish with the servants of Huram: every three years once came the ships of Tarshish bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.

22As a result, King Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth in regards to wealth and wisdom.

22And king Solomon passed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.

23All the kings of the earth continued to seek audiences with Solomon so they could hear the wise things that God had put in his heart.

23And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, that God had put in his heart.

24Everyone kept on bringing gifts on an annual basis, including items made of silver and gold, garments, myrrh, spices, horses, and mules.

24And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, harness, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.

25Solomon had 4,000 stalls for horses and chariots, along with 12,000 cavalry soldiers. He stationed them in various chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem.

25And Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen; whom he bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem.

26King Solomon ruled over all the kings from the Euphrates River west to the land of the Philistines and as far south as the boundary with Egypt.

26And he reigned over all the kings from the river even unto the land of the Philistines, and to the border of Egypt.

27The king made silver as common as stones in Jerusalem, and made cedar trees as abundant as sycamore trees in the Shephelah.

27And the king made silver in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar trees made he as the sycomore trees that are in the low plains in abundance.

28They also kept bringing horses to Solomon from Egypt and from all of the surrounding countries.

28And they brought unto Solomon horses out of Egypt, and out of all lands.

29Now the rest of Solomon's accomplishments, from first to last, are written in the records of Nathan the prophet, in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer pertaining to Nebat's son Jeroboam, are they not?

29Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, first and last, are they not written in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer against Jeroboam the son of Nebat?

30Solomon reigned for 40 years in Jerusalem over all of Israel.

30And Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.

31Then Solomon died, as had his ancestors, and his son Rehoboam reigned in his place.

31And Solomon slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.

The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY.

King James Bible, text courtesy of BibleProtector.com.