The Queen of Sheba (2 Chronicles 9:1–12)
1 CPDV Then, too, the queen of Sheba, having heard of the fame of Solomon in the name of the Lord, arrived to test him with enigmas. BSB BSB: Now when the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with difficult questions.
2 CPDV And entering into Jerusalem with a great retinue, and with riches, and with camels carrying aromatics, and with an exceedingly great quantity of gold and precious stones, she went to king Solomon. And she spoke to him all that she held in her heart. BSB BSB: She arrived in Jerusalem with a very large caravan—with camels bearing spices, gold in great abundance, and precious stones. And she came to Solomon and spoke to him all that was on her mind.
3 CPDV And Solomon taught her, in all the words that she had proposed to him. There was not any word which was able to be hidden from the king, or which he did not answer for her. BSB BSB: And Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too difficult for the king to explain.
4 CPDV Then, when the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built, BSB BSB: When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon, the palace he had built,
5 CPDV and the food of his table, and the dwelling places of his servants, and the rows of his ministers, and their apparel, and the cupbearers, and the holocausts that he was offering in the house of the Lord, she had no longer any spirit in her. BSB BSB: the food at his table, the seating of his servants, the service and attire of his attendants, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he presented at the house of the LORD, it took her breath away.
6 CPDV And she said to the king: “The word is true, which I have heard in my own land, BSB BSB: She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your words and wisdom is true.
7 CPDV about your words and your wisdom. But I did not believe those who explained it to me, until I went myself and saw it with my own eyes. And I have discovered that the half of it has not been told to me: your wisdom and works are greater than the report that I have heard. BSB BSB: But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told to me. Your wisdom and prosperity have far exceeded the report I heard.
8 CPDV Blessed are your men, and blessed are your servants, who stand before you always, and who hear your wisdom. BSB BSB: How blessed are your men! How blessed are these servants of yours who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom!
9 CPDV Blessed is the Lord your God, whom you have greatly pleased, and who has placed you upon the throne of Israel. For the Lord loves Israel forever, and he has appointed you as king, so that you may accomplish judgment and justice.” BSB BSB: Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you to set you on the throne of Israel. Because of the LORD’s eternal love for Israel, He has made you king to carry out justice and righteousness.”
10 CPDV Then she gave the king one hundred twenty talents of gold, and an exceedingly great amount of aromatics and precious stones. No greater quantity of aromatics was ever again brought forth as these, which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon. BSB BSB: Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, a great quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again were spices in such abundance brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 CPDV Then, too, the navy of Hiram, which carried gold from Ophir, brought an exceedingly great quantity of thyine wood and precious stones from Ophir. BSB BSB: (The fleet of Hiram that brought gold from Ophir also brought from Ophir a great cargo of almug wood and precious stones.
12 CPDV And the king made, from the thyine wood, the posts of the house of the Lord, and of the house of the king, and citharas and lyres for the musicians. No thyine trees of this kind were ever again brought forth or seen, even to the present day. BSB BSB: The king made the almug wood into steps for the house of the LORD and for the king’s palace, and into lyres and harps for the singers. Never before had such almug wood been brought in, nor has such been seen again to this day.)
13 CPDV Then king Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all that she desired and requested of him, aside from what he himself had offered to her from his royal bounty. And she returned and went away to her own land, with her servants. BSB BSB: King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired—whatever she asked—besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she left and returned to her own country, along with her servants.
Solomon’s Wealth and Splendor (2 Chronicles 1:14–17; 2 Chronicles 9:13–28)
14 CPDV Now the weight of the gold that was brought to Solomon each year was six hundred sixty-six talents of gold, BSB BSB: The weight of gold that came to Solomon each year was 666 talents,
15 CPDV aside from what was brought to him by the men who were over the tributes, and by the merchants, and by those selling every kind of small item, and by all the kings of Arabia, and by the rulers of the land. BSB BSB: not including the revenue from the merchants, traders, and all the Arabian kings and governors of the land.
16 CPDV Also, king Solomon made two hundred large shields from the purest gold. He dispensed six hundred shekels of gold for the layers of one shield. BSB BSB: King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels of gold went into each shield.
17 CPDV And for the three hundred crescent-shaped shields of tested gold, there were three hundred minas of gold covering one shield. And the king placed these in the house of the forest of Lebanon. BSB BSB: He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold; three minas of gold went into each shield. And the king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.
18 CPDV Also, king Solomon made a great throne from ivory. And he clothed it with a great quantity of red gold. BSB BSB: Additionally, the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with pure gold.
19 CPDV The throne had six steps, and the summit of the throne was rounded in the back section. And there were two hands, on one side and the other, holding the seat. And two lions were standing beside each hand, BSB BSB: The throne had six steps, and its back had a rounded top. There were armrests on both sides of the seat, with a lion standing beside each armrest.
20 CPDV with twelve little lions standing upon the six steps, on one side and the other. No similar work has been made, ever in any kingdom. BSB BSB: Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like this had ever been made for any kingdom.
21 CPDV Moreover, all the vessels from which king Solomon would drink were of gold. And all the items in the house of the forest of Lebanon were of the purest gold. There was no silver, nor was any accounting made of silver in the days of Solomon. BSB BSB: All King Solomon’s drinking cups were gold, and all the utensils of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. There was no silver, because it was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon.
22 CPDV For the navy of the king, once every three years, went with the navy of Hiram by sea to Tarshish, bringing from there gold, and silver, and elephant tusks, and primates, and peacocks. BSB BSB: For the king had the ships of Tarshish at sea with Hiram’s fleet, and once every three years the ships of Tarshish would arrive bearing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
23 CPDV And so, king Solomon was magnified above all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. BSB BSB: So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.
24 CPDV And all the earth desired to see the face of Solomon, so as to hear his wisdom, which God had granted to his heart. BSB BSB: The whole world sought an audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom that God had put in his heart.
25 CPDV And each one brought him gifts, vessels of silver and of gold, clothing and weapons of war, as well as aromatics, and horses, and mules, throughout each year. BSB BSB: Year after year, each visitor would bring his tribute: articles of silver and gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.
27 CPDV And he caused silver to be as abundant in Jerusalem as stones, and he supplied a multitude of cedars like the sycamores that grow in the plains. BSB BSB: The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as abundant as sycamore in the foothills.
28 CPDV And horses were brought for Solomon from Egypt and from Kue. For the merchants of the king were buying these from Kue. And they paid out the established price. BSB BSB: Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and Kue; the royal merchants purchased them from Kue.
29 CPDV Now a four-horse chariot would be sent from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for one hundred and fifty. And in this manner, all the kings of the Hittites and of Syria were selling horses. BSB BSB: A chariot could be imported from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. Likewise, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and to the kings of Aram.
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