The Queen of Sheba
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1Now when 2the queen of 3Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came 4to test him with hard questions.
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She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels 5bearing spices and very much gold and precious stones. And when she came to Solomon, she told him all that was on her mind.
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And Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from the king that he could not explain to her.
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And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built,
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the food of his table, the seating of his officials, and the attendance of his servants, their clothing, his cupbearers, and his burnt offerings that he offered at the house of the LORD, there was no more breath in her.
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And she said to the king, "The report was true that I heard in my own land of your words and of your wisdom,
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but I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report that I heard.
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6Happy are your men! Happy are your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!
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7Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! 8Because the LORD loved Israel forever, he has made you king, 9that you may execute justice and righteousness."
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10Then she gave the king 120 talentsa of gold, and a very great quantity of spices and precious stones. Never again came such an abundance of spices as these that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
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Moreover, 11the fleet of Hiram, which brought 12gold from Ophir, brought from Ophir a very great amount of almug wood and precious stones.
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And the king made of the almug wood supports for the house of the LORD and for the king's house, also lyres and harps for the singers. No such almug wood has come or been seen to this day.
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And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired, whatever she asked besides what was given her by the bounty of King Solomon. So she turned and went back to her own land with her servants.
Solomon's Great Wealth
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besides that which came from the explorers and from the business of the merchants, and from all the kings of the west and from the governors of the land.
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And he made 300 14shields of beaten gold; three minasc of gold went into each shield. And the king put them in 15the House of the Forest of Lebanon.
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The king also made a great ivory throne and overlaid it with the finest gold.
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The throne had six steps, and at the back of the throne was a calf's head, and on each side of the seat were armrests and two lions standing beside the armrests,
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while twelve lions stood there, one on each end of a step on the six steps. The like of it was never made in any kingdom.
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All King Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of 16the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. None were of silver; silver was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon.
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For the king had 17a fleet of ships of Tarshish at sea with the fleet of Hiram. Once every three years the fleet of ships of Tarshish used to come bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.d
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And the whole earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind.
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Every one of them brought his present, articles of silver and gold, garments, myrrh, spices, horses, and mules, so much year by year.
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19And Solomon gathered together 20chariots and horsemen. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, whom he stationed in the 21chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem.
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And the king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made cedar as plentiful as 22the sycamore of the Shephelah.
The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.
(English Standard Version - The Holy Bible Online)