1 Kings 10

This chapter was originally written in the Hebrew language and since the 16th century is divided into 29 verses.

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text tradition, which includes the Codex Cairensis (895), Aleppo Codex (10th century), and Codex Leningradensis (1008).{{sfn|Würthwein|1995|pp=35-37}}

There is also a translation into Koine Greek known as the Septuagint, made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint version include Codex Vaticanus (B; $\backslash mathfrak\{G\}$^B; 4th century) and Codex Alexandrinus (A; $\backslash mathfrak\{G\}$^A; 5th century).{{sfn|Würthwein|1995|pp=73-74}}{{efn|The whole book of 1 Kings is missing from the extant Codex Sinaiticus.{{Catholic Encyclopedia|wstitle=Codex Sinaiticus}}}}

• {{bibleverse|1 Kings|10:1–13|9}}: {{bibleverse|2 Chronicles|9:1–12|9}}[https://biblehub.com/bsb/1_kings/10.htm 1 Kings 10], Berean Study Bible
• {{bibleverse|1 Kings|10:14–29|9}}: {{bibleverse|2 Chronicles|1:14–17|9}}; {{bibleverse|2 Chronicles|9:13–28|9}}

File:Poynter, Sir Edward John - The Visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon.jpg

This story essentially displays Solomon's wisdom by showing a noble and wise ruler deeply impressed by him ('there was no more spirit in her' or "breathless", verse 5), with 'great spiritual and even political after-effects all the way to Ethiopia'.{{sfn|Dietrich|2007|p=240}}{{sfn|Coogan|2007|p=508 Hebrew Bible}} The keyword of this passage is "hear", used twice in the verse 1 (literally, "...the queen of Sheba heard the hearing of Solomon...") and later (verses 6, 7, 8, 24) of how the world "hear" of Solomon, a king with "hearing heart" ({{bibleverse|1 Kings|3:9|9}}).{{sfn|Leithart|2006|p=77}} The beautiful order of Solomon's table is described in a chiastic structure, framed by "houses" of Solomon and YHWH (verses 4–5; cf. 1 Kings 6–7):{{sfn|Leithart|2006|p=78}}

:A the house that he built (that is, Solomon's palace)

::B food of his table

:::C seating of his servants

:::C' standing of his attendants and attire

::B' cupbearers

:A' ascent to the house of Yahweh

:And she gave the king an 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.{{bibleverse|1 Kings|10:10|KJV}} KJV

• "120 talents": about 4{{frac|1|2}} tons, or 4 metric tons.Note on 1 Kings 10:10 in MEV One talent was about 75 pounds or 34 kilograms.Note on 1 Kings 10:10 in ESV
• "Queen of Sheba" (from {{langx|he|מַלְכַּת־ שְׁבָא}},{{citation | editor=Francis Brown | editor-link=Francis Brown (theologian) | entry=שְׁבָא | title=Hebrew and English Lexicon | publisher=Oxford University Press | year=1906 | page=985a | url=https://archive.org/details/hebrewenglishlex00browuoft}} {{Transliteration|he|malkat-šəḇā}}; {{langx|grc-x-koine|βασίλισσα Σαβὰ}} in the Septuagint{{citation | editor=Alan England Brooke | editor2=Norman McLean | editor3=Henry John Thackeray | title=The Old Testament in Greek | year=1930 | volume=II.2 | publisher=Cambridge University Press | page=243 | url=https://archive.org/download/OldTestamentGreeklxxTextCodexVaticanus/06.OTGreek.Vat.v2.LHB.p2.Kings.I.II.Brooke.McLean.1930..pdf}}): deducted by most experts to be from an African kingdom centered around the ancient kingdoms of Nubia and Aksum, in present-day Ethiopia, which location name "Sheba" was quite well known in the classical world as Arabia Felix.{{citation | author=Yosef Tobi | contribution=QUEEN OF SHEBA | title=Encyclopaedia Judaica | edition=2nd | volume=16 | year=2007 | publisher=Gale | page=765| title-link=Encyclopaedia Judaica }} Around the middle of the first millennium BCE, the Sabaeans were recorded to dwell in the Horn of Africa, the area that later became the realm of Aksum.{{citation | author=A. F. L. Beeston | contribution=SABAʾ | title=The Encyclopaedia of Islam | edition=2nd | volume=8 | publisher=Brill | year=1995 | pages=663–665| author-link=Alfred Felix Landon Beeston | title-link=The Encyclopaedia of Islam }} In the New Testament Gospels, she was referred to as the "queen of the South" ({{Langx|el|βασίλισσα νότου}}, {{Langx|la|Regina austri}}), who "came from the uttermost parts of the earth", i.e. from the extremities of the then known world, to hear the wisdom of Solomon (Matthew {{bibleverse-nb|Matthew|12:42|9}}; Luke {{bibleverse-nb|Luke|11:31|9}}).{{citation | editor=John McClintock | editor-link=John McClintock (theologian) | editor2=James Strong | editor2-link=James Strong (theologian) | entry=Sheba | title=Cyclopaedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature | volume=9 | publisher=Harper & Brothers | year=1891 | pages=626–628| title-link=Cyclopaedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature }}

The description of Solomon's wisdom and wealth in this passage centers on the glory of his throne (verse 18), greater than any of the Gentiles (verse 20), sitting on the seventh level above six steps (verse 19), and thus depicting Solomon seated in a 'sabbatical' position {{sfn|Leithart|2006|p=80}} The structure of these verses is:{{sfn|Leithart|2006|p=80}}

:A a great throne made of ivory ("tooth"), overlaid with pure gold ("refined")

::B six ascending steps to the throne

:::C the top was round at the back

::::D armrests on either side of

:::::E the place of "resting" ({{lang|he|שֶׁבֶת}}, shebeth, meaning "seat', "dwelling", "place"[https://biblehub.com/hebrew/7675.htm Strong's Hebrew 7675 "shebeth"]. Biblehub)

::::D' a pair of lions, each on the side of the armrests

:::C' twelve lions standing.

::B' on the six steps, one at either end of each step

:A' nothing like that had ever been made for any kingdom.

Everything around Solomon was literally layered in gold, such that silver 'was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon' (verse 21), against the warning in Deuteronomy 17:17 about not hoarding too much silver and gold.{{sfn|Dietrich|2007|p=240}} Solomon also profited from being an 'agent for the export of arms from Egypt to Syria and Asia Minor' (cf. Deuteronomy 17:16).{{sfn|Dietrich|2007|p=240}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=22em|

• 666
• Algum
• Arabia
• Hiram
• Hittites
• Israel
• Jerusalem
• Lebanon
• Ophir
• Shekel
• Solomon's Temple
• Tarshish
• The Embarkation of the Queen of Sheba
• Throne of Solomon}}
• Related Bible parts: Deuteronomy 17, 2 Samuel 8, 1 Kings 5, 1 Kings 6, 1 Kings 7, 1 Kings 9, 2 Chronicles 1, 2 Chronicles 9

{{notelist}}

{{reflist}}

• {{cite book | last = Collins | first = John J. | title = Introduction to the Hebrew Scriptures |chapter = Chapter 14: 1 Kings 12 – 2 Kings 25 | pages = 277–296 |publisher = Fortress Press|year = 2014 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=fbsoBAAAQBAJ |isbn = 978-1451469233}}
• {{cite book | last= Coogan| first = Michael David | author-link= Michael D. Coogan | title = The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books: New Revised Standard Version, Issue 48 | editor-last1 = Coogan | editor-first1= Michael David | editor-first2 = Marc Zvi | editor-last2 = Brettler | editor-first3 = Carol Ann | editor-last3 = Newsom | editor-first4= Pheme | editor-last4 = Perkins | edition= Augmented 3rd | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 2007 |isbn = 978-0195288810 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=HmpMPgAACAAJ}}
• {{cite book|last= Dietrich | first= Walter | chapter = 13. 1 and 2 Kings | title=The Oxford Bible Commentary | editor-first1=John | editor-last1 = Barton | editor1-link = John Barton (theologian) | editor-first2=John | editor-last2= Muddiman | editor2-link = John Muddiman | publisher = Oxford University Press | edition= first (paperback) | year = 2007 | pages = 232–266 | isbn = 978-0199277186 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ZJdVkgEACAAJ | access-date=February 6, 2019}}
• {{cite book | last= Halley | first= Henry H. | author-link= Henry Hampton Halley | title= Halley's Bible Handbook: an abbreviated Bible commentary |edition=24th (revised)| publisher= Zondervan Publishing House | date= 1965 | url= https://archive.org/details/halleysbiblehand00henr | url-access= registration| isbn= 0-310-25720-4}}
• {{Cite book | last = Hayes | first = Christine | title = Introduction to the Bible |publisher = Yale University Press | year = 2015 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=SKbkXYHxvlAC |isbn = 978-0300188271}}
• {{cite book |last= Leithart | first = Peter J. | title = 1 & 2 Kings | series = Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible | publisher= Brazos Press | year= 2006 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Z_gvin9G7LgC | isbn= 978-1587431258 }}
• {{Cite book | last= McKane | first= William | chapter= Kings, Book of |editor1-last = Metzger | editor1-first = Bruce M |editor1-link = Bruce M. Metzger | editor2-last = Coogan | editor2-first = Michael D | title = The Oxford Companion to the Bible | url= https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195046458 | url-access= registration | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 1993 | pages= [https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195046458/page/409 409]–413 | isbn = 978-0195046458 }}
• {{Cite book | editor1-last = Metzger |editor1-first = Bruce M | editor1-link = Bruce M. Metzger

| editor2-last = Coogan | editor2-first = Michael D | title = The Oxford Companion to the Bible

| publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 1993 | isbn = 978-0195046458}}

• {{cite book | last = Würthwein | first = Ernst | author-link = Ernst Würthwein | title = The Text of the Old Testament | publisher = Wm. B. Eerdmans |location = Grand Rapids, MI | year= 1995 | translator-first1 = Erroll F.| translator-last1 = Rhodes | isbn = 0-8028-0788-7 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=FSNKSBObCYwC | access-date= January 26, 2019}}

• Jewish translations:
• [https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/15894 Melachim I - I Kings - Chapter 10 (Judaica Press)]. Hebrew text and English translation [with Rashi's commentary] at Chabad.org
• Christian translations:
• [http://www.gospelhall.org/bible/bible.php?passage=1+Kings+10 Online Bible at GospelHall.org] (ESV, KJV, Darby, American Standard Version, Bible in Basic English)
• [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=11&chapter=10&version=9 1 Kings chapter 10. Bible Gateway]

{{First Book of Kings}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kings 1 10}}

10

Category:Phoenicians in the Hebrew Bible

Category:Solomon

Category:Queen of Sheba