^7:1When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven¹ and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the Lord’s splendor filled the temple. ^7:2The priests were unable to enter the Lord’s temple because the Lord’s splendor filled the Lord’s temple. ^7:3When all the Israelites saw the fire come down and the Lord’s splendor over the temple, they got on their knees with their faces downward toward the pavement. They worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying,² “Certainly he is good; certainly his loyal love endures!”

^7:4The king and all the people were presenting sacrifices to the Lord. ^7:5King Solomon sacrificed 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep. Then the king and all the people dedicated God’s temple. ^7:6The priests stood in their assigned spots, along with the Levites who had the musical instruments used for praising the Lord.³ (These were the ones King David made for giving thanks to the Lord and which were used by David when he offered praise, saying, “Certainly his loyal love endures.”)⁴ Opposite the Levites,⁵ the priests were blowing the trumpets, while all Israel stood there. ^7:7Solomon consecrated the middle of the courtyard that is in front of the Lord’s temple. He offered burnt sacrifices, grain offerings,⁶ and the fat from the peace offerings there, because the bronze altar that Solomon had made was too small to hold all these offerings.⁷^7:8At that time Solomon and all Israel with him celebrated a festival for seven days. This great assembly included people from Lebo Hamath in the north to the Brook of Egypt in the south.⁸^7:9On the eighth day they held an assembly, for they had dedicated the altar for seven days and celebrated the festival for seven more days. ^7:10On the twenty-third day of the seventh month, Solomon⁹ sent the people home. They left¹⁰ happy and contented¹¹ because of the good the Lord had done for David, Solomon, and his people Israel.

The Lord Gives Solomon a Promise and a Warning

^7:11After Solomon finished building the Lord’s temple and the royal palace, and accomplished all his plans for the Lord’s temple and his royal palace,¹²^7:12the Lord appeared to Solomon at night and said to him: “I have answered¹³ your prayer and chosen this place to be my temple where sacrifices are to be made.¹⁴^7:13When¹⁵ I close up the sky¹⁶ so that it doesn’t rain, or command locusts to devour the land’s vegetation,¹⁷ or send a plague among my people, ^7:14if my people, who belong to me,¹⁸ humble themselves, pray, seek to please me,¹⁹ and repudiate their sinful practices,²⁰ then I will respond²¹ from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land.²²^7:15Now I will be attentive and responsive to the prayers offered in this place.²³^7:16Now I have chosen and consecrated this temple by making it my permanent home;²⁴ I will be constantly present there.²⁵^7:17You must serve me as your father David did. Do everything I commanded and obey my rules and regulations.²⁶^7:18Then I will establish your dynasty,²⁷ just as I promised your father David, ‘You will not fail to have a successor ruling over Israel.’²⁸

^7:19“But if you people²⁹ ever turn away from me, fail to obey the regulations and rules I instructed you to keep,³⁰ and decide to serve and worship other gods,³¹^7:20then I will remove you³² from my land I have given you,³³ I will abandon this temple I have consecrated with my presence,³⁴ and I will make you³⁵ an object of mockery and ridicule³⁶ among all the nations. ^7:21As for this temple, which was once majestic,³⁷ everyone who passes by it will be shocked and say, ‘Why did the Lord do this to this land and this temple?’ ^7:22Others will then answer,³⁸ ‘Because they abandoned the Lord God of their ancestors,³⁹ who led them out of Egypt. They embraced other gods whom they worshiped and served.⁴⁰ That is why he brought all this disaster down on them.’ ”

Building Projects and Commercial Efforts

^8:1After twenty years, during which Solomon built the Lord’s temple and his royal palace, ^8:2Solomon rebuilt the cities that Huram¹ had given him and settled Israelites there. ^8:3Solomon went to Hamath Zobah and seized it. ^8:4He built up Tadmor in the wilderness and all the storage cities he had built in Hamath. ^8:5He made upper Beth Horon and lower Beth Horon fortified cities with walls and barred gates,²^8:6and built up Baalath, all the storage cities that belonged to him,³ and all the cities where chariots and horses were kept.⁴ He built whatever he wanted in Jerusalem,⁵ Lebanon, and throughout his entire kingdom.⁶

^8:7Now several non-Israelite peoples were left in the land after the conquest of Joshua, including the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.⁷^8:8Their descendants remained in the land (the Israelites were unable to wipe them out). Solomon conscripted them for his work crews and they continue in that role to this very day.⁸^8:9Solomon did not assign Israelites to these work crews;⁹ the Israelites served as his soldiers, officers, charioteers, and commanders of his chariot forces.¹⁰^8:10These men worked for Solomon as supervisors; there were a total of 250 of them who were in charge of the people.¹¹

^8:11Solomon moved Pharaoh’s daughter up from the City of David¹² to the palace he had built for her, for he said, “My wife must not live in the palace of King David of Israel, for the places where the ark of the Lord has entered are holy.”

^8:12Then Solomon offered burnt sacrifices to the Lord on the altar of the Lord which he had built in front of the temple’s porch.¹³^8:13He observed the daily requirements for sacrifices that Moses had specified for Sabbaths, new moon festivals, and the three annual celebrations—the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Temporary Shelters.¹⁴^8:14As his father David had decreed, Solomon¹⁵ appointed the divisions of the priests to do their assigned tasks, the Levitical orders to lead worship and help the priests with their daily tasks,¹⁶ and the divisions of the gatekeepers to serve at their assigned gates.¹⁷ This was what David the man of God had ordered.¹⁸^8:15They did not neglect any detail of the king’s orders pertaining to the priests, Levites, and treasuries.¹⁹

^8:16All the work ordered by Solomon was completed, from the day the foundation of the Lord’s temple was laid until it was finished; the Lord’s temple was completed.

^8:17Then Solomon went to Ezion Geber and to Elat on the coast in the land of Edom. ^8:18Huram sent him ships and some of his sailors, men who were well acquainted with the sea. They sailed with Solomon’s men to Ophir,²⁰ and took from there 450 talents²¹ of gold, which they brought back to King Solomon.

Solomon Entertains a Queen

^9:1When the queen of Sheba heard about Solomon,¹ she came to challenge² him³ with difficult questions.⁴ She arrived in Jerusalem⁵ with a great display of pomp,⁶ bringing with her camels carrying spices,⁷ a very large quantity of gold, and precious gems. She visited Solomon and discussed with him everything that was on her mind. ^9:2Solomon answered all her questions; there was no question too complex for the king.⁸^9:3When the queen of Sheba saw for herself Solomon’s extensive wisdom,⁹ the palace¹⁰ he had built, ^9:4the food in his banquet hall,¹¹ his servants and attendants¹² in their robes, his cupbearers in their robes, and his burnt sacrifices which he presented in the Lord’s temple,¹³ she was amazed.¹⁴^9:5She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your wise sayings and insight¹⁵ was true! ^9:6I did not believe these things until I came and saw them with my own eyes. Indeed, I didn’t hear even half the story!¹⁶ Your wisdom surpasses what was reported to me. ^9:7Your attendants, who stand before you at all times and hear your wise sayings, are truly happy!¹⁷^9:8May the Lord your God be praised because he favored¹⁸ you by placing you on his throne as the one ruling on his behalf!¹⁹ Because of your God’s love for Israel and his lasting commitment to them,²⁰ he made you king over them so you could make just and right decisions.”²¹^9:9She gave the king 120 talents²² of gold and a very large quantity of spices and precious gems. The quantity of spices the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon has never been matched.²³^9:10(Huram’s²⁴ servants, aided by Solomon’s servants, brought gold from Ophir, as well as²⁵ fine²⁶ timber and precious gems. ^9:11With the timber the king made steps²⁷ for the Lord’s temple and royal palace as well as stringed instruments²⁸ for the musicians. No one had seen anything like them in the land of Judah prior to that.²⁹) ^9:12King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she requested, more than what she had brought him.³⁰ Then she left and returned³¹ to her homeland with her attendants.

Solomon’s Wealth

^9:13Solomon received 666 talents³² of gold per year,³³^9:14besides what he collected from the merchants³⁴ and traders. All the Arabian kings and the governors of the land also brought gold and silver to Solomon. ^9:15King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; 600 measures³⁵ of hammered gold were used for each shield. ^9:16He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold; 300 measures³⁶ of gold were used for each of those shields. The king placed them in the Palace of the Lebanon Forest.³⁷

^9:17The king made a large throne decorated with ivory and overlaid it with pure gold. ^9:18There were six steps leading up to the throne, and a gold footstool was attached to the throne.³⁸ The throne had two armrests with a statue of a lion standing on each side.³⁹^9:19There were twelve statues of lions on the six steps, one lion at each end of each step. There was nothing like it in any other kingdom.⁴⁰

^9:20All of King Solomon’s cups were made of gold, and all the household items in the Palace of the Lebanon Forest were made of pure gold. There were no silver items, for silver was not considered very valuable in Solomon’s time.⁴¹^9:21The king had a fleet of large…

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Footnotes

1 Or “the sky.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.
2 The word “saying” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
3 Heb “and the priests were standing at their posts, and the Levites with the instruments of music of the Lord.”
4 Heb “which David the king made to give thanks to the Lord, for lasting is his loyal love, when David praised by them.”
5 Heb “opposite them”; the referent (the Levites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 The Hebrew text omits reference to the grain offerings at this point, but note that they are included both in the list in the second half of the verse (see note on “offerings” at the end of this verse) and in the parallel account in 1 Kgs 8:64. The construction וְאֶת־הַמִּנְחָה (vé’et-hamminkhah; vav [ו] + accusative sign + noun with article; “grain offerings”) was probably omitted accidentally by homoioarcton. Note the וְאֶת (vé’et) that immediately follows.
7 Heb “to hold the burnt sacrifices, grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings.” Because this is redundant, the translation employs a summary phrase: “all these offerings.”
8 Heb “Solomon held the festival at that time for seven days, and all Israel was with him, a very great assembly from Lebo Hamath to the wadi of Egypt.”
9 Heb “he”; the referent (Solomon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
10 The words “they left” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
11 Heb “good of heart.”
12 Heb “and all that entered the heart of Solomon to do in the house of the Lord and in his house he successfully accomplished.”
13 Heb “I have heard.”
14 Heb “temple of sacrifice.” This means the Lord designated the temple as the place for making sacrifices, and this has been clarified in the translation.
15 Or “if.”
16 Or “heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.
17 Heb “the land,” which stands here by metonymy for the vegetation growing in it.
18 Heb “over whom my name is called.” The Hebrew idiom “call the name over” indicates ownership. See 2 Sam 12:28.
19 Heb “seek my face,” where “my face” is figurative for God’s presence and acceptance.
20 Heb “and turn from their sinful ways.”
21 Heb “hear.”
22 Here the phrase heal their land means restore the damage done by the drought, locusts and plague mentioned in v. 13.
23 Heb “my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer of this place.” Note Solomon’s request in 6:40.
24 Heb “for my name to be there perpetually [or perhaps, “forever”].”
25 Heb “and my eyes and my heart will be there all the days.”
26 Heb “As for you, if you walk before me, as David your father walked, by doing all which I commanded you, [and] you keep my rules and my regulations.” Verse 17 is actually a lengthy protasis (“if” section) of a conditional sentence, the apodosis (“then” section) of which appears in v. 18.
27 Heb “I will establish the throne of your kingdom.”
28 Heb “there will not be cut off from you a man ruling over Israel.”
29 The Hebrew pronoun is plural, suggesting that Solomon and all Israel (or perhaps Solomon and his successors) are in view. To convey this to the English reader, the translation “you people” has been employed.
30 Heb “which I placed before you.”
31 Heb “and walk and serve other gods and bow down to them.”
32 Heb “them.” The switch from the second to the third person pronoun is rhetorically effective, for it mirrors God’s rejection of his people—he has stopped addressing them as “you” and begun addressing them as “them.” However, the switch is awkward and confusing in English, so the translation maintains the direct address style.
33 Heb “them.” See the note on “you” earlier in this verse.
34 Instead of “I will throw away,” the parallel text in 1 Kgs 9:7 has “I will send away.” The two verbs sound very similar in Hebrew, so the discrepancy is likely due to an oral transmissional error. Heb “and this temple which I consecrated for my name I will throw away from before my face.”
35 Heb “him,” which appears in context to refer to Israel (i.e., “you” in direct address). Many translations understand the direct object of the verb “make” to be the temple (, , , “it”).
36 Heb “and I will make him [i.e., Israel] a proverb and a taunt,” that is, a proverbial example of destruction and an object of reproach.
37 Heb “and this house which was high/elevated.” The statement makes little sense in this context, which predicts the desolation that judgment will bring. Some treat the clause as concessive, “Even though this temple is lofty [now].” Others, following the lead of several ancient versions, emend the text to, “this temple will become a heap of ruins.”
38 Heb “and they will say.”
39 Heb “fathers.”
40 Heb “and they took hold of other gods and bowed down to them and served them.”
1 Heb “Huram” (also in v. 18). Some medieval Hebrew , along with the , , and spell the name “Hiram,” agreeing with 1 Chr 14:1. “Huram” is a variant spelling referring to the same individual.
2 Heb “and he built … [as] cities of fortification, [with] walls, doors, and a bar.”
3 Heb “Solomon.” The recurrence of the proper name is unexpected in terms of contemporary English style, so the pronoun has been used in the translation instead.
4 Heb “the cities of the chariots and the cities of the horses.”
5 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
6 Heb “and all the desire of Solomon which he desired to build in Jerusalem and in Lebanon and in all the land of his kingdom.”
7 Heb “all the people who were left from the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not from Israel.”
8 Heb “from their sons who were left after them in the land, whom the sons of Israel did not wipe out, and Solomon raised them up for a work crew to this day.”
9 Heb “and from the sons of Israel which Solomon did not assign to the laborers for his work.”
10 Heb “officers of his chariots and his horses.”
11 Heb “these [were] the officials of the governors who belonged to the king, Solomon, 250, the ones ruling over the people.”
12 The phrase the City of David refers here to the fortress of Zion in Jerusalem, not to Bethlehem. See 2 Sam 5:7.
13 Heb “the porch.”
14 The Hebrew phrase הַסֻּכּוֹת[חַג] (khag hassukot, “[festival of] huts” [or “shelters”]) is traditionally known as the Feast of Tabernacles. The rendering “booths” (cf. , , ) is probably better than the traditional “tabernacles” in light of the meaning of the term סֻכָּה (sukkah, “hut; booth”), but “booths” are frequently associated with trade shows and craft fairs in contemporary American English. The nature of the celebration during this feast as a commemoration of the wanderings of the Israelites after they left Egypt suggests that a translation like “temporary shelters” is more appropriate.
15 Heb “he”; the referent (Solomon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
16 Heb “and the Levites, according to their posts, to praise and to serve opposite the priests according to the matter of a day in its day.”
17 Heb “and the gatekeepers by their divisions for a gate and a gate.”
18 Heb “for so [was] the command of David the man of God.”
19 Heb “and they did not turn aside from the command of the king concerning the priests and the Levites with regard to any matter and with regard to the treasuries.”
20 Heb “and Huram sent to him by the hand of his servants, ships, and servants [who] know the sea, and they came with the servants of Solomon to Ophir.”
21 The Hebrew word כִּכַּר (kikar, “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, by extension, to a standard unit of weight. According to the older (Babylonian) standard the “talent” weighed 130 lbs. (58.9 kg), but later this was lowered to 108.3 lbs. (49.1 kg). More recent research suggests the “light” standard talent was 67.3 lbs. (30.6 kg). Using this as the standard for calculation, the weight of the gold was 30,285 lbs. (13,770 kg).
1 Heb “the report about Solomon.”
2 Or “test.”
3 Heb “Solomon.” The recurrence of the proper name here is redundant in terms of contemporary English style, so the pronoun has been used in the translation instead.
4 Or “riddles.”
5 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
6 Heb “with very great strength.” The Hebrew word חַיִל (khayil, “strength”) may refer here to the size of her retinue or to the great wealth she brought with her.
7 Or “balsam oil.”
8 Heb “Solomon declared to her all her words; there was not a word hidden from the king which he did not declare to her.” If riddles are specifically in view (see v. 1), then one might translate, “Solomon explained to her all her riddles; there was no riddle too complex for the king.”
9 Heb “all the wisdom of Solomon.”
10 Heb “house.”
11 Heb “the food on his table.”
12 Heb “the seating of his servants and the standing of his attendants.”
13 The Hebrew text has here, “and his upper room [by] which he was going up to the house of the Lord.” But עֲלִיָּתוֹ (’aliyyato, “his upper room”) should be emended to עֹלָתוֹ, (’olato, “his burnt sacrifice[s]”). See the parallel account in 1 Kgs 10:5.
14 Or “it took her breath away”; Heb “there was no breath still in her.”
15 Heb “about your words [or perhaps, “deeds”] and your wisdom.”
16 Heb “the half was not told to me.”
17 Heb “How happy are your men! How happy are these servants of yours, who stand before you continually, who hear your wisdom!”
18 Or “delighted in.”
19 Heb “as king for the Lord your God.”
20 Heb “to make him stand permanently.”
21 Heb “to do justice and righteousness.”
22 The Hebrew word כִּכַּר (kikar, “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, by extension, to a standard unit of weight. According to the older (Babylonian) standard the “talent” weighed 130 lbs. (58.9 kg), but later this was lowered to 108.3 lbs. (49.1 kg). More recent research suggests the “light” standard talent was 67.3 lbs. (30.6 kg). Using this as the standard for calculation, the weight of the gold was 8,076 lbs. (3,672 kg).
23 Heb “there has not been like those spices which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.”
24 Heb “Huram’s” (also in v. 21). Some medieval Hebrew , along with the , , and spell the name “Hiram,” agreeing with 1 Chr 14:1. “Huram” is a variant spelling referring to the same individual.
25 Heb “who brought gold from Ophir, brought.”
26 Heb “algum.”
27 Heb “tracks.” The parallel text in 1 Kgs 10:12 has a different term whose meaning is uncertain: “supports,” perhaps “banisters” or “parapets.”
28 Two types of stringed instruments are specifically mentioned in the Hebrew text, the כִּנּוֹר (kinnor, “zither”) and נֶבֶל (nevel, “harp”).
29 Heb “there was not seen like these formerly in the land of Judah.”
30 Heb “besides what she brought to the king.”
31 Heb “turned and went.”
32 The Hebrew word כִּכַּר (kikar, “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, by extension, to a standard unit of weight. According to the older (Babylonian) standard the “talent” weighed 130 lbs. (58.9 kg), but later this was lowered to 108.3 lbs. (49.1 kg). More recent research suggests the “light” standard talent was 67.3 lbs. (30.6 kg). Using this as the standard for calculation, the weight of the gold Solomon received annually was 44,822 lbs. (20,380 kg).
33 Heb “the weight of the gold which came to Solomon in one year was 666 units of gold.”
34 Heb “traveling men.”
35 The Hebrew text has simply “600,” with no unit of measure given.
36 The Hebrew text has simply “300,” with no unit of measure given.
37 This name was appropriate because of the large amount of cedar, undoubtedly brought from Lebanon, used in its construction. The cedar pillars in the palace must have given it the appearance of a forest. See 1 Kgs 7:2.
38 The parallel text of 1 Kgs 10:19 has instead “and the back of it was rounded on top.”
39 Heb “[There were] armrests on each side of the place of the seat, and two lions standing beside the armrests.”
40 Heb “nothing like it had been made for any kingdom.”
41 Heb “there was no silver, it was not regarded as anything in the days of Solomon.”