I Kings 10 · מלכים א

And when the queen of Sheva heard of the fame of Shelomo, and what he had done in the name of the Lord, she came to prove him with riddles.

And she came to Yerushalayim with a very great train, with camels that bore spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Shelomo, she spoke to him of all that was in her heart,

and Shelomo answered her all her questions: there was not anything hid from the king, which he told her not.

And when the queen of Sheva had seen all Shelomo’s wisdom, and the house that he had built,

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 to the house of the Lord; there was no more spirit in her.

And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in my own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom.

But I believed not the words, until I came, and my eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame which I heard.

Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, who stand continually before thee, and who hear thy wisdom.

May the Lord thy God, be blessed, who delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Yisra᾽el: because the Lord loved Yisra᾽el for ever, therefore he made thee king, to do justice and righteousness.

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 Sheva gave to king Shelomo.

And also the ship of Ḥiram, that brought gold from Ofir, brought in from Ofir a great amount of almug wood, and precious stones.

And the king made of the almug wood a railing for the house of the Lord, and for the king’s house, lyres also and lutes for singers: there came no such almug wood, nor were seen to this day.

And king Shelomo gave to the queen of Sheva all her desire, whatever she asked, besides that which Shelomo gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants.

Now the weight of gold that came to Shelomo in one year was six hundred and sixty six talents of gold,

besides what he had of the merchantmen, and of the traffic of the merchants, and of all the kings of the ῾Erev (Arabia), and of the governors of the country.

And king Shelomo made two hundred targets of beaten gold: six hundred shekels of gold went to one target.

And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three pound of gold went to one shield: and the king put them in the house of the forest of the Levanon.

Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the best gold.

The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round behind: and there were arm rests on either side on the seat, and two lions stood beside the arm rests.

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.

And all king Shelomo’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Levanon were of pure gold; none were of silver: that was considered nothing in the days of Shelomo.

For the king had at sea a ship of Tarshish with a ship of Ḥiram: once in three years the ship of Tarshish came, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.

So king Shelomo exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom.

And all the earth sought of Shelomo, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.

And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, and so it was year by year.

And Shelomo gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he placed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Yerushalayim.

And the king made silver to be in Yerushalayim like stones, and he made cedars to be like the sycamore trees that are in the lowlands for abundance.

And Shelomo had horses brought from Miżrayim and from Qeve; the king’s merchants took the horses from Qeve at a fixed price.

And a chariot going out of Miżrayim would cost six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse, a hundred and fifty: and so by their means they brought them out also for all the kings of Ḥittin and the kings of Aram.