1 Kings 10:14–28

Solomon’s Wealth

¹⁴The weight ^dof gold that came to Solomon annually was 25 tons, ^e15besides what came from merchants, ^ftraders’ merchandise, and all the Arabian kings and governors of the land. ^g

¹⁶King Solomon made 200 large shields of hammered gold; 15 pounds ^hof gold went into each shield. ¹⁷He made 300 small shields of hammered gold; about four pounds ⁱof gold went into each shield. The king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon. ^j

¹⁸The king also made a large ivory throne and overlaid it with fine gold. ¹⁹The throne had six steps; there was a rounded top at the back of the throne, armrests on either side of the seat, and two lions standing beside the armrests. ²⁰Twelve lions were standing there on the six steps, one at each end. Nothing like it had ever been made in any other kingdom.

²¹All of King Solomon’s drinking cups were gold, and all the utensils of the House of the Forest of Lebanon ^kwere pure gold. ^lThere was no silver, since it was considered as nothing in Solomon’s time, ²²for the king had ships of Tarshish ^mat sea with Hiram’s fleet, and once every three years the ships of Tarshish would arrive bearing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. ^no

²³King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the world in riches and in wisdom. ^p24The whole world wanted an audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom that God had put in his heart. ^q25Every man would bring his annual tribute: items ^rof silver and gold, clothing, weapons, ^sspices, and horses and mules. ^t

²⁶Solomon accumulated 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen ^uand stationed them in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. ^v27The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, ^wand he made cedar ^xas abundant as sycamore in the Judean foothills. ²⁸Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and Kue. ^yThe king’s traders bought them from Kue at the going price. ^z