1 Kings10

The Queen of Sheba visited King Solomon, drawn by his fame and wisdom, to test him with hard questions. She was profoundly astonished by his understanding, the grandeur of his kingdom, and his immense wealth, confessing that his renown surpassed all reports. She presented him with lavish gifts, and he reciprocated, demonstrating his unparalleled prosperity and wisdom among all kings of the earth.
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The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon

1
And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of Jehovah, she came to prove him with hard questions. ​
2
And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones; and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.
3
And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not anything hid from the king which he told her not. ​
4
And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built,
5
and the food 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 Jehovah; there was no more spirit in her. ​
6
And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thine acts, and of thy wisdom.
7
Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me; thy wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame which I heard.
8
Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, that stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom.
9
Blessed be Jehovah thy God, who delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because Jehovah loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do justice and righteousness. ​
10
And she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones: there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon. ​
11
And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug-trees and precious stones.
12
And the king made of the almug-trees pillars for the house of Jehovah, and for the king’s house, harps also and psalteries for the singers: there came no such almug-trees, nor were seen, unto this day.
13
And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, besides that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned, and went to her own land, she and her servants.

Solomon's Unparalleled Wealth

14
Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold, ​
15
besides that which the traders brought, and the traffic of the merchants, and of all the kings of the mingled people, and of the governors of the country.
16
And king Solomon made two hundred bucklers of beaten gold; six hundred shekels of gold went to one buckler.
17
And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three pounds of gold went to one shield: and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon. ​
18
Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the finest gold.
19
There were six steps to the throne, and the top of the throne was round behind; and there were stays on either side by the place of the seat, and two lions standing beside the stays.
20
And 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.
21
And all king Solomon’s drinking vessels 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 nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon. ​
22
For the king had at sea a navy of Tarshish with the navy of Hiram: once every three years came the navy of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks. ​
23
So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom.
24
And all the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.
25
And they brought every man his tribute, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, and armor, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.

Military Strength and Extensive Trade

26
And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, that he bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem. ​
27
And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore-trees that are in the lowland, for abundance.
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And the horses which Solomon had were brought out of Egypt; and the king’s merchants received them in droves, each drove at a price.
29
And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty; and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, did they bring them out by their means. ​

Study Notes for 1 Kings 10

Verse 1

The Queen of Sheba, likely ruling a kingdom in Southern Arabia (modern Yemen/Ethiopia), traveled a vast distance to test Solomon’s wisdom, which was famous internationally and associated with the name of the LORD.

Verse 3

The text emphasizes that Solomon’s God-given wisdom was comprehensive; he could answer all the Queen’s complex inquiries and riddles (hard questions).

Verse 5

The Queen was overwhelmed not only by the material wealth but also by the perfect organization, order, and reverence displayed by Solomon’s court and his ascent to the Temple, suggesting divine favor.

Verse 9

This foreign monarch recognizes that Solomon's kingship is rooted in Yahweh’s loyal, enduring love for Israel, and his purpose is to establish justice and righteousness.

Verse 10

A talent was a large unit of weight, meaning 120 talents of gold amounted to roughly 4.5 tons, illustrating the immense value of the gift.

Verse 14

The figure 666 talents of gold received annually is specific and massive, symbolizing the peak of Israel’s worldly wealth and human achievement under Solomon.

Verse 17

These gold targets and shields were likely for ceremonial display rather than combat. The accumulation of immense personal wealth and military hardware subtly begins to violate the warnings given to future kings in Deuteronomy 17.

Verse 21

This hyperbolic statement emphasizes the extreme abundance of gold in Jerusalem; silver, though valuable elsewhere, was treated as common material in Solomon’s court.

Verse 22

The 'navy of Tharshish' was likely a designation for a long-distance, deep-sea trading fleet, indicating Solomon’s control over maritime routes reaching distant lands for exotic goods.

Verse 26

Solomon's massive acquisition of chariots and horses directly contravened the divine instruction that the king should not multiply horses for himself (Deuteronomy 17:16), indicating a reliance on worldly military power rather than God.

Verse 29

These verses confirm Solomon’s vast trade network, where he acted as a lucrative middleman, importing horses and chariots from Egypt and reselling them to neighboring kingdoms like the Hittites and Syrians.

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