The Aaron Papers  www.the-aaron-papers.net 

  First Kings

1 Now king David was old and stricken in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he got no heat. ²why his servants said unto him, Let there be sought for my lord the king a young virgin: and let her stand before the king, and cherish him; and let her lie in your bosom, that my lord the king may get heat. ³So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the borders of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king. ⁴And the damsel was very fair; and she cherished the king, and ministered to him; but the king knew her not.

⁵Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will be king: and he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. ⁶And his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why has you done so? and he was also a very goodly man; and he was born after Absalom. ⁷And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest: and they following Adonijah helped him. ⁸But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shim-i, and Rei, and the mighty men that belonged to David, were not with Adonijah. ⁹And Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fatlings by the stone of Zoheleth, which is beside En-rogel; and he called all his brethren, the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah, the king’s servants: ¹⁰but Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he called not.

¹¹Then Nathan spoke unto Bath-She-ba the mother of Solomon, saying, has you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith does reign, and David our lord knows it not? ¹²Now therefore come, let me, I pray you, give you counsel, that you may save your own life, and the life of your son Solomon. ¹³Go and get you in unto king David, and say unto him, did not you, my lord, O king, swear unto your handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? why then does Adonijah reign? ¹⁴Behold, while you yet talkest there with the king, I also will come in after you, and confirm your words. ¹⁵And Bath-She-ba went in unto the king into the chamber: and the king was very old; and Abishag the Shunammite was ministering unto the king. ¹⁶And Bath-She-ba bowed, and did obeisance unto the king. And the king said, What would you? ¹⁷And she said unto him, My lord, you swore by Jehovah your God unto your handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne. ¹⁸And now, behold, Adonijah reigns; and you, my lord the king, know it not: ¹⁹and he has slain oxen and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and has called all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the priest, and Joab the captain of the host; but Solomon your servant has he not called. ²⁰And you, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are upon you, that you should tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. ²¹Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders. ²²And, lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet came in. ²³And they told the king, saying, Behold, Nathan the prophet. And when he was come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground. ²⁴And Nathan said, My lord, O king, has you said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? ²⁵For he is gone down this day, and has slain oxen and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and has called all the king’s sons, and the captains of the host, and Abiathar the priest; and, behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and say, Long live king Adonijah. ²⁶But me, even me your servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon, has he not called. ²⁷Is this thing done by my lord the king, and you have not showed unto your servants who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him? ²⁸Then king David answered and said, Call to me Bath-She-ba. And she came into the king’s presence, and stood before the king. ²⁹And the king sware, and said, As Jehovah lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all adversity, ³⁰verily as I sware unto you by Jehovah, the God of Israel, saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my stead; verily so will I do this day. ³¹Then Bath-She-ba bowed with her face to the earth, and did obeisance to the king, and said, Let my lord king David live for ever.

³²And king David said, Call to me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king. ³³And the king said unto them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon: ³⁴and let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel; and blow you the trumpet, and say, Long live king Solomon. ³⁵Then you shall come up after him, and he shall come and sit upon my throne; for he shall be king in my stead; and I have appointed him to be prince over Israel and over Judah. ³⁶And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, and said, Amen: Jehovah, the God of my lord the king, say so too. ³⁷As Jehovah has been with my lord the king, even so be he with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord king David. ³⁸So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down, and caused Solomon to ride upon king David’s mule, and brought him to Gihon. ³⁹And Zadok the priest took the horn of oil out of the Tent, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the trumpet; and all the people said, Long live king Solomon. ⁴⁰And all the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth rent with the sound of them.

⁴¹And Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard it as they had made an end of eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, why is this noise of the city being in an uproar? ⁴²While he yet spoke, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came: and Adonijah said, Come in; for you are a worthy man, and bring good tidings. ⁴³And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Verily our lord king David has made Solomon king: ⁴⁴and the king has sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they have caused him to ride upon the king’s mule; ⁴⁵and Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon; and they are come up from there rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This is the noise that you have heard. ⁴⁶And also Solomon sits on the throne of the kingdom. ⁴⁷And moreover the king’s servants came to bless our lord king David, saying, your God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and make his throne greater than your throne: and the king bowed himself upon the bed. ⁴⁸And also thus said the king, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, who has given one to sit on my throne this day, my eyes even seeing it. ⁴⁹And all the guests of Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way. ⁵⁰And Adonijah feared because of Solomon; and he arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. ⁵¹And it was told Solomon, saying, Behold, Adonijah fears king Solomon; for, lo, he has laid hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear unto me first that he will not slay his servant with the sword. ⁵²And Solomon said, If he shall show himself a worthy man, there shall not a hair of him fall to the earth; but if wickedness be found in him, he shall die. ⁵³So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and did obeisance to king Solomon; and Solomon said unto him, Go to your house.

2 Now the days of David drew near that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying, ²I am going the way of all the earth: be you strong therefore, and show yourself a man; ³and keep the charge of Jehovah your God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his ordinances, and his testimonies, according to that which is written in the law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you does, and wherever you turn yourself. ⁴That Jehovah may establish his word which he spoke concerning me, saying, If your children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail you (said he) a man on the throne of Israel. ⁵Moreover you know also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did unto me, even what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner, and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet. ⁶Do therefore according to your wisdom, and let not his hoar head go down to Sheol in peace. ⁷But show kindness unto the sons of Barzillai the Gil-e-adite, and let them be of those that eat at your table; for so they came to me when I fled from Absalom your brother. ⁸And, behold, there is with you Shim-i the son of Gera, the Benjamite, of Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Ma-ha-na-im; but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I sware to him by Jehovah, saying, I will not put you to death with the sword. ⁹Now therefore hold him not guiltless, for you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do unto him, and you shall bring his hoar head down to Sheol with blood. ¹⁰And David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David. ¹¹And the days that David reigned over Israel were forty years; seven years reigned he in He-bron, and thirty and three years reigned he in Jerusalem.

¹²And Solomon sat upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was established greatly. ¹³Then Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bath-She-ba the mother of Solomon. And she said, come you peaceably? And he said, Peaceably. ¹⁴He said moreover, I have somewhat to say unto you. And she said, Say on. ¹⁵And he said, you know that the kingdom was my, and that all Israel set their faces on me, that I should reign: howbeit the kingdom is turned about, and is become my brother’s; for it was his from Jehovah. ¹⁶And now I ask one petition of you; deny me not. And she said unto him, Say on. ¹⁷And he said, Speak, I pray you, unto Solomon the king (for he will not say you no), that he give me Abishag the Shunammite to wife. ¹⁸And Bath-She-ba said, Well; I will speak for you unto the king. ¹⁹Bath-She-ba therefore went unto king Solomon, to speak unto him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her, and bowed himself unto her, and sat down on his throne, and caused a throne to be set for the king’s mother; and she sat on his right hand. ²⁰Then she said, I ask one small petition of you; deny me not. And the king said unto her, Ask on, my mother; for I will not deny you. ²¹And she said, Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother to wife. ²²And king Solomon answered and said unto his mother, And why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ask for him the kingdom also; for he is my elder brother; even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah. ²³Then king Solomon sware by Jehovah, saying, God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own life. ²⁴Now therefore as Jehovah lives, who has established me, and set me on the throne of David my father, and who has made me a house, as he promised, surely Adonijah shall be put to death this day. ²⁵And king Solomon sent by Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him, so that he died.

²⁶And unto Abiathar the priest said the king, Get you to Anathoth, unto your own fields; for you are worthy of death: but I will not at this time put you to death, because you barest the ark of the Lord Jehovah before David my father, and because you were afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted. ²⁷So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest unto Jehovah, that he might fulfil the word of Jehovah, which he spoke concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh. ²⁸And the tidings came to Joab; for Joab had turned after Adonijah, though he turned not after Absalom. And Joab fled unto the Tent of Jehovah, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. ²⁹And it was told king Solomon, Joab is fled unto the Tent of Jehovah, and, behold, he is by the altar. Then Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, Go, fall upon him. ³⁰And Benaiah came to the Tent of Jehovah, and said unto him, Thus says the king, Come forth. And he said, no; but I will die here. And Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me. ³¹And the king said unto him, Do as he has said, and fall upon him, and bury him; that you may take away the blood, which Joab shed without cause, from me and from my father’s house. ³²And Jehovah will return his blood upon his own head, because he fell upon two men more righteous and better than he, and slew them with the sword, and my father David knew it not, to wit, Abner the son of Ner, captain of the host of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, captain of the host of Judah. ³³So shall their blood return upon the head of Joab, and upon the head of his seed for ever: but unto David, and unto his seed, and unto his house, and unto his throne, shall there be peace for ever from Jehovah. ³⁴Then Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him, and slew him; and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness.

³⁵And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his room over the host; and Zadok the priest did the king put in the room of Abiathar. ³⁶And the king sent and called for Shim-i, and said unto him, Build you a house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and go not forth there any where. ³⁷For on the day you go out, and pass over the brook Kidron, know you for certain that you shall surely die: your blood shall be upon your own head. ³⁸And Shim-i said unto the king, The saying is good: as my lord the king has said, so will your servant do. And Shim-i dwelt in Jerusalem many days. ³⁹And it came to pass at the end of three years, that two of the servants of Shim-i ran away unto Achish, son of Ma-a-chah, king of Gath. And they told Shim-i, saying, Behold, your servants are in Gath. ⁴⁰And Shim-i arose, and saddled his ass, and went to Gath to Achish, to seek his servants; and Shim-i went, and brought his servants from Gath. ⁴¹And it was told Solomon that Shim-i had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and was come again. ⁴²And the king sent and called for Shim-i, and said unto him, Did I not charge you by Jehovah, and protest unto you, saying, Know for certain, that on the day you go out, and walk abroad any where, you shall surely die? and you said unto me, The saying that I have heard is good. ⁴³Why then has you not kept the oath of Jehovah, and the commandment that I have charged you with? ⁴⁴The king said moreover to Shim-i, you know all the wickedness which your heart is privy to, that you did to David my father: therefore Jehovah shall return your wickedness upon your own head. ⁴⁵But king Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before Jehovah for ever. ⁴⁶So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he went out, and fell upon him, so that he died. And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.

3 And Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh’s daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of Jehovah, and the wall of Jerusalem round about. ²Only the people sacrificed in the high places, because there was no house built for the name of Jehovah until those days. ³And Solomon loved Jehovah, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places. ⁴And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt-offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar.

⁵In Gibeon Jehovah appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, Ask what I shall give you. ⁶And Solomon said, you have showed unto your servant David my father great lovingkindness, according as he walked before you in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with you; and you have kept for him this great lovingkindness, that you have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. ⁷And now, O Jehovah my God, you have made your servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child; I know not how to go out or come in. ⁸And your servant is in the midst of your people which you have chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. ⁹Give your servant therefore an understanding heart to judge your people, that I may discern between good and evil; for who is able to judge this your great people? ¹⁰And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. ¹¹And God said unto him, Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked for yourself long life, neither has asked riches for yourself, nor has asked the life of your enemies, but has asked for yourself understanding to discern justice; ¹²behold, I have done according to your word: lo, I have given you a wise and an understanding heart; so that there has been none like you before you, neither after you shall any arise like unto you. ¹³And I have also given you that which you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto you, all your days. ¹⁴And if you will walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as your father David did walk, then I will lengthen your days. ¹⁵And Solomon awoke; and, behold, it was a dream: and he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of Jehovah, and offered up burnt-offerings, and offered peace-offerings, and made a feast to all his servants.

¹⁶Then there came two women that were harlots, unto the king, and stood before him. ¹⁷And the one woman said, Oh, my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house. ¹⁸And it came to pass the third day after I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also; and we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house. ¹⁹And this woman’s child died in the night, because she lay upon it. ²⁰And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while your handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom. ²¹And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead; but when I had looked at it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, whom I did bear. ²²And the other woman said, no; but the living is my son, and the dead is your son. And this said, No; but the dead is your son, and the living is my son. Thus they spoke before the king. ²³Then said the king, The one says, This is my son that lives, and your son is the dead: and the other says, no; but your son is the dead, and my son is the living. ²⁴And the king said, bring me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king. ²⁵And the king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other. ²⁶Then spoke the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her heart yearned over her son, and she said, Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, It shall be neither my nor your; divide it. ²⁷Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof. ²⁸And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do justice.

4 And king Solomon was king over all Israel. ²And these were the princes whom he had: Azariah the son of Zadok, the priest; ³Elihoreph and A-hi-ah, the sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the recorder; ⁴and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the host; and Zadok and Abiathar were priests; ⁵and Azariah the son of Nathan was over the officers; and Zabud the son of Nathan was chief minister, and the king’s friend; ⁶and Ahishar was over the household; and Adoniram the son of Abda was over the men subject to taskwork. ⁷And Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided goods for the king and his household: each man had to make provision for a month in the year. ⁸And these are their names: Ben-hur, in the hill-country of E-phra-im; ⁹Ben-deker, in Makaz, and in Shaalbim, and Beth-she-mesh, and E-lon-beth-hanan; ¹⁰Ben-hesed, in Arubboth (to him pertained Socoh, and all the land of Hepher); ¹¹Ben-A-bin-a-dab, in all the height of Dor (he had Taphath the daughter of Solomon to wife); ¹²Baana the son of Ahilud, in Taanach and Megiddo, and all Beth-shean which is beside Zarethan, beneath Jezreel, from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, as far as beyond Jokmeam; ¹³Ben-geber, in Ramoth-Gil-e-ad (to him pertained the towns of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gil-e-ad; even to him pertained the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, threescore great cities with walls and brazen bars); ¹⁴Ahinadab the son of Iddo, in Ma-ha-na-im; ¹⁵Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he also took Bash-e-math the daughter of Solomon to wife); ¹⁶Baana the son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth; ¹⁷Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar; ¹⁸Shimei the son of Ela, in Benjamin; ¹⁹Geber the son of U-ri, in the land of Gil-e-ad, the country of Sihon king of the Am-or-ites and of Og king of Bashan; and he was the only officer that was in the land.

²⁰Judah and Israel were many as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and making merry. ²¹And Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the River unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of Egypt: they brought tribute, and served Solomon all the days of his life. ²²And Solomon’s provision for one day was thirty measures of fine flour, and threescore measures of meal, ²³ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pastures, and a hundred sheep, besides harts, and gazelles, and roebucks, and fatted fowl. ²⁴For he had dominion over all the region on this side the River, from Tiphsah even to Gaza, over all the kings on this side the River: and he had peace on all sides round about him. ²⁵And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under his vine and under his fig-tree, from Dan even to Beer-She-ba, all the days of Solomon. ²⁶And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. ²⁷And those officers provided goods for king Solomon, and for all that came unto king Solomon’s table, every man in his month; they let nothing be lacking. ²⁸Barley also and straw for the horses and swift steeds brought they unto the place where the officers were, every man according to his charge.

²⁹And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea-shore. ³⁰And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east, and all the wisdom of Egypt. ³¹For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and He-mam, and Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol: and his fame was in all the nations round about. ³²And he spoke three thousand proverbs; and his songs were a thousand and five. ³³And he spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Leb-a-non even unto the hyssop that springs out of the wall; he spoke also of beasts, and of birds, and of creeping things, and of fishes. ³⁴And there came of all peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom.

5 And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for Hiram was ever a lover of David. ²And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying, ³Thou know how that David my father could not build a house for the name of Jehovah his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until Jehovah put them under the soles of his feet. ⁴But now Jehovah my God has given me rest on every side; there is neither adversary, nor evil occurrence. ⁵And, behold, I purpose to build a house for the name of Jehovah my God, as Jehovah spoke unto David my father, saying, your son, whom I will set upon your throne in your room, he shall build the house for my name. ⁶Now therefore command you that they cut me cedar-trees out of Leb-a-non; and my servants shall be with your servants; and I will give you hire for your servants according to all that you shall say: for you know that there is not among us any that knows how to cut timber like unto the Sidonians. ⁷And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, Blessed be Jehovah this day, who has given unto David a wise son over this great people. ⁸And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, I have heard the message which you have sent unto me: I will do all your desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir. ⁹My servants shall bring them down from Leb-a-non unto the sea; and I will make them into rafts to go by sea unto the place that you shall appoint me, and will cause them to be broken up there, and you shall receive them; and you shall accomplish my desire, in giving food for my household.

¹⁰So Hiram gave Solomon timber of cedar and timber of fir according to all his desire. ¹¹And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year. ¹²And Jehovah gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together. ¹³And king Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men. ¹⁴And he sent them to Leb-a-non, ten thousand a month by courses; a month they were in Leb-a-non, and two months at home; and Adoniram was over the men subject to taskwork. ¹⁵And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand that were hewers in the mountains; ¹⁶besides Solomon’s chief officers that were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, who bare rule over the people that worked in the work. ¹⁷And the king commanded, and they hewed out great stones, costly stones, to lay the foundation of the house with worked stone. ¹⁸And Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the Gebalites did fashion them, and prepared the timber and the stones to build the house.

6 And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of Jehovah. ²And the house which king Solomon built for Jehovah, the length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits. ³And the porch before the temple of the house, twenty cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house; and ten cubits was the breadth thereof before the house. ⁴And for the house he made windows of fixed lattice-work. ⁵And against the wall of the house he built stories round about, against the walls of the house round about, both of the temple and of the oracle; and he made side-chambers round about. ⁶The nethermost story was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house round about, that the beams should not have hold in the walls of the house. ⁷And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready at the quarry; and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building. ⁸The door for the middle side-chambers was in the right side of the house: and they went up by winding stairs into the middle story, and out of the middle into the third. ⁹So he built the house, and finished it; and he covered the house with beams and planks of cedar. ¹⁰And he built the stories against all the house, each five cubits high: and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.

¹¹And the word of Jehovah came to Solomon, saying, ¹²Concerning this house which you are building, if you will walk in my statutes, and execute my ordinances, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I establish my word with you, which I spoke unto David your father. ¹³And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel. ¹⁴So Solomon built the house, and finished it.

¹⁵And he built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar: from the floor of the house unto the walls of the ceiling, he covered them on the inside with wood; and he covered the floor of the house with boards of fir. ¹⁶And he built twenty cubits on the hinder part of the house with boards of cedar from the floor unto the walls of the ceiling: he built them for it within, for an oracle, even for the most holy place. ¹⁷And the house, that is, the temple before the oracle, was forty cubits long. ¹⁸And there was cedar on the house within, carved with knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen. ¹⁹And he prepared an oracle in the midst of the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of Jehovah. ²⁰And within the oracle was a space of twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof; and he overlaid it with pure gold: and he covered the altar with cedar. ²¹So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold: and he drew chains of gold across before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold. ²²And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until all the house was finished: also the whole altar that belonged to the oracle he overlaid with gold. ²³And in the oracle he made two cherubim of olive-wood, each ten cubits high. ²⁴And five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub: from the uttermost part of the one wing unto the uttermost part of the other were ten cubits. ²⁵And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubim were of one measure and one form. ²⁶The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub. ²⁷And he set the cherubim within the inner house; and the wings of the cherubim were stretched forth, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house. ²⁸And he overlaid the cherubim with gold. ²⁹And he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of cherubim and palm-trees and open flowers, within and without. ³⁰And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without. ³¹And for the entrance of the oracle he made doors of olive-wood: the lintel and door-posts were a fifth part of the wall. ³²So he made two doors of olive-wood; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubim and palm-trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he spread the gold upon the cherubim, and upon the palm-trees. ³³So also made he for the entrance of the temple door-posts of olive-wood, out of a fourth part of the wall; ³⁴and two doors of fir-wood: the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding. ³⁵And he carved thereon cherubim and palm-trees and open flowers; and he overlaid them with gold fitted upon the graven work. ³⁶And he built the inner court with three courses of hewn stone, and a course of cedar beams. ³⁷In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of Jehovah laid, in the month Ziv. ³⁸And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it.

7 And Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all his house. ²For he built the house of the forest of Leb-a-non; the length thereof was a hundred cubits, and the breadth thereof fifty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits, upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars. ³And it was covered with cedar above over the forty and five beams, that were upon the pillars; fifteen in a row. ⁴And there were beams in three rows, and window was over against window in three ranks. ⁵And all the doors and posts were made square with beams: and window was over against window in three ranks. ⁶And he made the porch of pillars; the length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth thereof thirty cubits; and a porch before them; and pillars and a threshold before them. ⁷And he made the porch of the throne where he was to judge, even the porch of judgment: and it was covered with cedar from floor to floor. ⁸And his house where he was to dwell, the other court within the porch, was of the like work. He made also a house for Pharaoh’s daughter (whom Solomon had taken to wife), like unto this porch. ⁹All these were of costly stones, even of hewn stone, according to measure, sawed with saws, within and without, even from the foundation unto the coping, and so on the outside unto the great court. ¹⁰And the foundation was of costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits. ¹¹And above were costly stones, even hewn stone, according to measure, and cedar-wood. ¹²And the great court round about had three courses of hewn stone, and a course of cedar beams; like as the inner court of the house of Jehovah, and the porch of the house.

¹³And king Solomon sent and brought Hiram out of Tyre. ¹⁴He was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass; and he was filled with wisdom and understanding and skill, to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and worked all his work. ¹⁵For he fashioned the two pillars of brass, eighteen cubits high apiece: and a line of twelve cubits compassed either of them about. ¹⁶And he made two capitals of molten brass, to set upon the tops of the pillars: the height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits. ¹⁷There were nets of checker-work, and wreaths of chain-work, for the capitals which were upon the top of the pillars; seven for the one capital, and seven for the other capital. ¹⁸So he made the pillars; and there were two rows round about upon the one network, to cover the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars: and so did he for the other capital. ¹⁹And the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars in the porch were of lily-work, four cubits. ²⁰And there were capitals above also upon the two pillars, close by the belly which was beside the network: and the pomegranates were two hundred, in rows round about upon the other capital. ²¹And he set up the pillars at the porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof Ja-chin; and he set up the left pillar, and called the name thereof Boaz. ²²And upon the top of the pillars was lily-work: so was the work of the pillars finished. ²³And he made the molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in compass, and the height thereof was five cubits; and a line of thirty cubits compassed it round about. ²⁴And under the brim of it round about there were knops which did compass it, for ten cubits, compassing the sea round about: the knops were in two rows, cast when it was cast. ²⁵It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; and the sea was set upon them above, and all their hinder parts were inward. ²⁶And it was a handbreadth thick: and the brim thereof was worked like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily: it held two thousand baths. ²⁷And he made the ten bases of brass; four cubits was the length of one base, and four cubits the breadth thereof, and three cubits the height of it. ²⁸And the work of the bases was on this manner: they had panels; and there were panels between the ledges; ²⁹and on the panels that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and upon the ledges there was a pedestal above; and beneath the lions and oxen were wreaths of hanging work. ³⁰And every base had four brazen wheels, and axles of brass; and the four feet thereof had undersetters: beneath the laver were the undersetters molten, with wreaths at the side of each. ³¹And the mouth of it within the capital and above was a cubit: and the mouth thereof was round after the work of a pedestal, a cubit and a half; and also upon the mouth of it were gravings, and their panels were foursquare, not round. ³²And the four wheels were underneath the panels; and the axletrees of the wheels were in the base: and the height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit. ³³And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel: their axletrees, and their felloes, and their spokes, and their naves, were all molten. ³⁴And there were four undersetters at the four corners of each base: the undersetters thereof were of the base itself. ³⁵And in the top of the base was there a round compass half a cubit high; and on the top of the base the stays thereof and the panels thereof were of the same. ³⁶And on the plates of the stays thereof, and on the panels thereof, he graved cherubim, lions, and palm-trees, according to the space of each, with wreaths round about. ³⁷After this manner he made the ten bases: all of them had one casting, one measure, and one form. ³⁸And he made ten lavers of brass: one laver contained forty baths; and every laver was four cubits; and upon very one of the ten bases one laver. ³⁹And he set the bases, five on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house: and he set the sea on the right side of the house eastward, toward the south. ⁴⁰And Hiram made the lavers, and the shovels, and the basins. So Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he worked for king Solomon in the house of Jehovah: ⁴¹the two pillars, and the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; and the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; ⁴²and the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks; two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were upon the pillars; ⁴³and the ten bases, and the ten lavers on the bases; ⁴⁴and the one sea, and the twelve oxen under the sea; ⁴⁵and the pots, and the shovels, and the basins: even all these vessels, which Hiram made for king Solomon, in the house of Jehovah, were of burnished brass. ⁴⁶In the plain of the Jordan did the king cast them, in the clay ground between Suc-coth and Zarethan. ⁴⁷And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because they were exceeding many: the weight of the brass could not be found out.

⁴⁸And Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of Jehovah: the golden altar, and the table whereupon the showbread was, of gold; ⁴⁹and the candlesticks, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the oracle, of pure gold; and the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs, of gold; ⁵⁰and the cups, and the snuffers, and the basins, and the spoons, and the firepans, of pure gold; and the hinges, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the house, to wit, of the temple, of gold. ⁵¹Thus all the work that king Solomon worked in the house of Jehovah was finished. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated, even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, and put them in the treasuries of the house of Jehovah.

8 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the princes of the fathers’ houses of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of Jehovah out of the city of David, which is Zion. ²And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast, in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month. ³And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark. ⁴And they brought up the ark of Jehovah, and the tent of meeting, and all the holy vessels that were in the Tent; even these did the priests and the Levites bring up. ⁵And king Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be counted nor numbered for multitude. ⁶And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of Jehovah unto its place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubim. ⁷For the cherubim spread forth their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubim covered the ark and the staves thereof above. ⁸And the staves were so long that the ends of the staves were seen from the holy place before the oracle; but they were not seen without: and there they are unto this day. ⁹There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone which Moses put there at Hor-eb, when Jehovah made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. ¹⁰And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of Jehovah, ¹¹so that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud; for the glory of Jehovah filled the house of Jehovah.

¹²Then spoke Solomon, Jehovah has said that he would dwell in the thick darkness. ¹³I have surely built you a house of habitation, a place for you to dwell in for ever. ¹⁴And the king turned his face about, and blessed all the assembly of Israel: and all the assembly of Israel stood. ¹⁵And he said, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, who spoke with his mouth unto David your father, and has with his hand fulfilled it, saying, ¹⁶Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to build a house, that my name might be there; but I chose David to be over my people Israel. ¹⁷Now it was in the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of Jehovah, the God of Israel. ¹⁸But Jehovah said unto David my father, Whereas it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart: ¹⁹nevertheless you shall not build the house; but your son that shall come forth out of your loins, he shall build the house for my name. ²⁰And Jehovah has established his word that he spoke; for I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as Jehovah promised, and have built the house for the name of Jehovah, the God of Israel. ²¹And there have I set a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant of Jehovah, which he made with our fathers, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.

²²And Solomon stood before the altar of Jehovah in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven; ²³and he said, O Jehovah, the God of Israel, there is no God like you, in heaven above, or on earth beneath; who keep covenant and lovingkindness with your servants, that walk before you with all their heart; ²⁴who has kept with your servant David my father that which you did promise him: yes, you spoke with your mouth, and has fulfilled it with your hand, as it is this day. ²⁵Now therefore, O Jehovah, the God of Israel, keep with your servant David my father that which you have promised him, saying, There shall not fail you a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your children take heed to their way, to walk before me as you have walked before me. ²⁶Now therefore, O God of Israel, let your word, I pray you, be verified, which you spoke unto your servant David my father. ²⁷But will God in very deed dwell on the earth? behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain you; how much less this house that I have built! ²⁸Yet have you respect unto the prayer of your servant, and to his supplication, O Jehovah my God, to listen unto the cry and to the prayer which your servant prays before you this day; ²⁹that your eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place whereof you have said, My name shall be there; to listen unto the prayer which your servant shall pray toward this place. ³⁰And listen you to the supplication of your servant, and of your people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place: yes, hear you in heaven your dwelling-place; and when you hear, forgive. ³¹If a man sin against his neighbor, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and he come and swear before your altar in this house; ³²then hear you in heaven, and do, and judge your servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his own head, and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness. ³³When your people Israel are crushed down before the enemy, because they have sinned against you; if they turn again to you, and confess your name, and pray and make supplication unto you in this house: ³⁴then hear you in heaven, and forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which you gave unto their fathers. ³⁵When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against you; if they pray toward this place, and confess your name, and turn from their sin, when you do afflict them: ³⁶then hear you in heaven, and forgive the sin of your servants, and of your people Israel, when you teach them the good way wherein they should walk; and send rain upon your land, which you have given to your people for an inheritance. ³⁷If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, if there be blasting or mildew, locust or caterpillar; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be; ³⁸what prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all your people Israel, who shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house: ³⁹then hear you in heaven your dwelling-place, and forgive, and do, and render unto every man according to all his ways, whose heart you know; (for you, even you only, know the hearts of all the children of men;) ⁴⁰that they may fear you all the days that they live in the land which you gave unto our fathers. ⁴¹Moreover concerning the foreigner, that is not of your people Israel, when he shall come out of a far country for your name’s sake ⁴²(for they shall hear of your great name, and of your mighty hand, and of your outstretched arm); when he shall come and pray toward this house; ⁴³hear you in heaven your dwelling-place, and do according to all that the foreigner calls to you for; that all the peoples of the earth may know your name, to fear you, as does your people Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by my name. ⁴⁴If your people go out to battle against their enemy, by whatsoever way you shall send them, and they pray unto Jehovah toward the city which you have chosen, and toward the house which I have built for your name; ⁴⁵then hear you in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause. ⁴⁶If they sin against you (for there is no man that sins not), and you be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captive unto the land of the enemy, far off or near; ⁴⁷yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land where they are carried captive, and turn again, and make supplication unto you in the land of them that carried them captive, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have dealt wickedly; ⁴⁸if they return unto you with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies, who carried them captive, and pray unto you toward their land, which you gave unto their fathers, the city which you have chosen, and the house which I have built for your name: ⁴⁹then hear you their prayer and their supplication in heaven your dwelling-place, and maintain their cause; ⁵⁰and forgive your people who have sinned against you, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against you; and give them compassion before those who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them ⁵¹(for they are your people, and your inheritance, which you brought forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron); ⁵²that your eyes may be open unto the supplication of your servant, and unto the supplication of your people Israel, to listen unto them whensoever they cry unto you. ⁵³For you did separate them from among all the peoples of the earth, to be your inheritance, as you spoke by Moses your servant, when you brought our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord Jehovah.

⁵⁴And it was so, that, when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto Jehovah, he arose from before the altar of Jehovah, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread forth toward heaven. ⁵⁵And he stood, and blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying, ⁵⁶Blessed be Jehovah, that has given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there have not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by Moses his servant. ⁵⁷Jehovah our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us; ⁵⁸that he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his ordinances, which he commanded our fathers. ⁵⁹And let these my words, wherewith I have made supplication before Jehovah, be near unto Jehovah our God day and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause of his people Israel, as every day shall require; ⁶⁰that all the peoples of the earth may know that Jehovah, he is God; there is none else. ⁶¹Let your heart therefore be perfect with Jehovah our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day.

9 And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of Jehovah, and the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he was pleased to do, ²that Jehovah appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon. ³And Jehovah said unto him, I have heard your prayer and your supplication, that you have made before me: I have hallowed this house, which you have built, to put my name there for ever; and my eyes and my heart shall be there perpetually. ⁴And as for you, if you will walk before me, as David your father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, and will keep my statutes and my ordinances; ⁵then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel for ever, according as I promised to David your father, saying, There shall not fail you a man upon the throne of Israel. ⁶But if you shall turn away from following me, you or your children, and not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but shall go and serve other gods, and worship them; ⁷then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all peoples. ⁸And though this house is so high, yet shall every one that passes by it be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why has Jehovah done thus unto this land, and to this house? ⁹and they shall answer, Because they forsook Jehovah their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshipped them, and served them: therefore has Jehovah brought all this evil upon them.

¹⁰And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, wherein Solomon had built the two houses, the house of Jehovah and the king’s house ¹¹(now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar-trees and fir-trees, and with gold, according to all his desire), that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. ¹²And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him; and they pleased him not. ¹³And he said, What cities are these which you have given me, my brother? And he called them the land of Cabul unto this day. ¹⁴And Hiram sent to the king sixscore talents of gold.

¹⁵And this is the reason of the levy which king Solomon raised, to build the house of Jehovah, and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Ha-zor, and Megiddo, and Gezer. ¹⁶Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and given it for a portion unto his daughter, Solomon’s wife. ¹⁷And Solomon built Gezer, and Beth-horon the lower, ¹⁸and Baalath, and Ta-mar in the wilderness, in the land, ¹⁹and all the store-cities that Solomon had, and the cities for his chariots, and the cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build for his pleasure in Jerusalem, and in Leb-a-non, and in all the land of his dominion. ²⁰As for all the people that were left of the Am-or-ites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not of the children of Israel; ²¹their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel were not able utterly to destroy, of them did Solomon raise a levy of bondservants unto this day. ²²But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bondservants; but they were the men of war, and his servants, and his princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots and of his horsemen. ²³These were the chief officers that were over Solomon’s work, five hundred and fifty, who bare rule over the people that worked in the work. ²⁴But Pharaoh’s daughter came up out of the city of David unto her house which Solomon had built for her: then did he build Millo. ²⁵And three times a year did Solomon offer burnt-offerings and peace-offerings upon the altar which he built unto Jehovah, burning incense therewith, upon the altar that was before Jehovah. So he finished the house. ²⁶And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion-geber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of E-dom. ²⁷And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon. ²⁸And they came to O-phir, and brought from there gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.

10 And when the queen of She-ba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of Jehovah, she came to prove him with hard questions. ²And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones; and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart. ³And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not anything hid from the king which he told her not. ⁴And when the queen of She-ba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built, ⁵and 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 unto the house of Jehovah; there was no more spirit in her. ⁶And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in my own land of your acts, and of your wisdom. ⁷Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and my eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me; your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame which I heard. ⁸Happy are your men, happy are these your servants, that stand continually before you, and that hear your wisdom. ⁹Blessed be Jehovah your God, who delighted in you, to set you on the throne of Israel: because Jehovah loved Israel for ever, therefore made he you king, to do justice and righteousness. ¹⁰And 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 She-ba gave to king Solomon. ¹¹And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from O-phir, brought in from O-phir great plenty of almug-trees and precious stones. ¹²And the king made of the almug-trees pillars for the house of Jehovah, and for the king’s house, harps also and psalteries for the singers: there came no such almug-trees, nor were seen, unto this day. ¹³And king Solomon gave to the queen of She-ba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, besides that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned, and went to her own land, she and her servants.

¹⁴Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold, ¹⁵besides that which the traders brought, and the traffic of the merchants, and of all the kings of the mingled people, and of the governors of the country. ¹⁶And king Solomon made two hundred bucklers of beaten gold; six hundred shekels of gold went to one buckler. ¹⁷And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three pounds of gold went to one shield: and the king put them in the house of the forest of Leb-a-non. ¹⁸Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the finest gold. ¹⁹There were six steps to the throne, and the top of the throne was round behind; and there were stays on either side by the place of the seat, and two lions standing beside the stays. ²⁰And 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. ²¹And all king Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Leb-a-non were of pure gold: none were of silver; it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon. ²²For the king had at sea a navy of Tarshish with the navy of Hiram: once every three years came the navy of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks. ²³So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. ²⁴And all the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. ²⁵And they brought every man his tribute, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, and armor, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year. ²⁶And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, that he bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem. ²⁷And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore-trees that are in the lowland, for abundance. ²⁸And the horses which Solomon had were brought out of Egypt; and the king’s merchants received them in droves, each drove at a price. ²⁹And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty; and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, did they bring them out by their means.

11 Now king Solomon loved many foreign women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, E-dom-ites, Sidonians, and Hittites; ²of the nations concerning which Jehovah said unto the children of Israel, you shall not go among them, neither shall they come among you; for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon split unto these in love. ³And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. ⁴For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not perfect with Jehovah his God, as was the heart of David his father. ⁵For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. ⁶And Solomon did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, and went not fully after Jehovah, as did David his father. ⁷Then did Solomon build a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, in the mount that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the children of Ammon. ⁸And so did he for all his foreign wives, who burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.

⁹And Jehovah was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned away from Jehovah, the God of Israel, who had appeared unto him twice, ¹⁰and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which Jehovah commanded. ¹¹why Jehovah said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of you, and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely rend the kingdom from you, and will give it to your servant. ¹²Notwithstanding in your days I will not do it, for David your father’s sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of your son. ¹³Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but I will give one tribe to your son, for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.

¹⁴And Jehovah raised up an adversary unto Solomon, Ha-dar the Edomite: he was of the king’s seed in E-dom. ¹⁵For it came to pass, when David was in E-dom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain, and had crushed every male in E-dom ¹⁶(for Joab and all Israel remained there six months, until he had cut off every male in E-dom); ¹⁷that Ha-dar fled, he and certain E-dom-ites of his father’s servants with him, to go into Egypt, Ha-dar being yet a little child. ¹⁸And they arose out of Mid-i-an, and came to Par-an; and they took men with them out of Par-an, and they came to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave him a house, and appointed him goods, and gave him land. ¹⁹And Ha-dar found great favor in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen. ²⁰And the sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh’s house; and Genubath was in Pharaoh’s house among the sons of Pharaoh. ²¹And when Ha-dar heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host was dead, Ha-dar said to Pharaoh, Let me depart, that I may go to my own country. ²²Then Pharaoh said unto him, But what has you lacked with me, that, behold, you seek to go to your own country? And he answered, Nothing: howbeit only let me depart. ²³And God raised up another adversary unto him, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah. ²⁴And he gathered men unto him, and became captain over a troop, when David slew them of Zobah: and they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus. ²⁵And he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, besides the mischief that Ha-dar did: and he abhorred Israel, and reigned over Syria.

²⁶And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an E-phra-imite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow, he also lifted up his hand against the king. ²⁷And this was the reason why he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breach of the city of David his father. ²⁸And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor; and Solomon saw the young man that he was industrious, and he gave him charge over all the labor of the house of Joseph. ²⁹And it came to pass at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet A-hi-ah the Shilonite found him in the way; now A-hi-ah had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field. ³⁰And A-hi-ah laid hold of the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces. ³¹And he said to Jeroboam, Take you ten pieces; for thus says Jehovah, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to you ³²(but he shall have one tribe, for my servant David’s sake and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel); ³³because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon; and they have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in my eyes, and to keep my statutes and my ordinances, as did David his father. ³⁴Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand; but I will make him prince all the days of his life, for David my servant’s sake whom I chose, who kept my commandments and my statutes; ³⁵but I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand, and will give it unto you, even ten tribes. ³⁶And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a lamp alway before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there. ³⁷And I will take you, and you shall reign according to all that your soul desires, and shall be king over Israel. ³⁸And it shall be, if you will listen unto all that I command you, and will walk in my ways, and do that which is right in my eyes, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with you, and will build you a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto you. ³⁹And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever. ⁴⁰Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam; but Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.

⁴¹Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon? ⁴²And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years. ⁴³And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.

12 And Rehoboam went to She-chem: for all Israel were come to She-chem to make him king. ²And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was yet in Egypt, where he had fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt, ³and they sent and called him), that Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came, and spoke unto Rehoboam, saying, ⁴Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make you the grievous service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve you. ⁵And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed. ⁶And king Rehoboam took counsel with the old men, that had stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, saying, What counsel give you me to return answer to this people? ⁷And they spoke unto him, saying, If you will be a servant unto this people this day, and will serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants for ever. ⁸But he forsook the counsel of the old men which they had given him, and took counsel with the young men that were grown up with him, that stood before him. ⁹And he said unto them, What counsel give you, that we may return answer to this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke that your father did put upon us lighter? ¹⁰And the young men that were grown up with him spoke unto him, saying, Thus shall you say unto this people that spoke unto you, saying, your father made our yoke heavy, but make you it lighter unto us; thus shall you speak unto them, My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins. ¹¹And now whereas my father did load you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. ¹²So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king said, saying, Come to me again the third day. ¹³And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the counsel of the old men which they had given him, ¹⁴and spoke to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke: my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. ¹⁵So the king listened not unto the people; for it was a thing brought about of Jehovah, that he might establish his word, which Jehovah spoke by A-hi-ah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

¹⁶And when all Israel saw that the king listened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to your own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents. ¹⁷But as for the children of Israel that dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. ¹⁸Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the men subject to taskwork; and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. And king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. ¹⁹So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day. ²⁰And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was returned, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only. ²¹And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, that were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. ²²But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying, ²³Speak unto Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, saying, ²⁴Thus says Jehovah, you shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is of me. So they listened unto the word of Jehovah, and returned and went their way, according to the word of Jehovah.

²⁵Then Jeroboam built She-chem in the hill-country of E-phra-im, and dwelt therein; and he went out from there, and built Pen-u-el. ²⁶And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now will the kingdom return to the house of David: ²⁷if this people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of Jehovah at Jerusalem, then will the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah; and they will kill me, and return to Rehoboam king of Judah. ²⁸Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold; and he said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold your gods, O Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt. ²⁹And he set the one in Beth-el, and the other put he in Dan. ³⁰And this thing became a sin; for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan. ³¹And he made houses of high places, and made priests from among all the people, that were not of the sons of Levi. ³²And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he went up unto the altar; so did he in Beth-el, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Beth-el the priests of the high places that he had made. ³³And he went up unto the altar which he had made in Beth-el on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart: and he ordained a feast for the children of Israel, and went up unto the altar, to burn incense.

13 And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of Jehovah unto Beth-el: and Jeroboam was standing by the altar to burn incense. ²And he cried against the altar by the word of Jehovah, and said, O altar, altar, thus says Jehovah: Behold, a son shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon you shall he sacrifice the priests of the high places that burn incense upon you, and men’s bones shall they burn upon you. ³And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which Jehovah has spoken: Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out. ⁴And it came to pass, when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar in Beth-el, that Jeroboam put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back again to him. ⁵The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of Jehovah. ⁶And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Entreat now the favor of Jehovah your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me again. And the man of God entreated Jehovah, and the king’s hand was restored him again, and became as it was before. ⁷And the king said unto the man of God, Come home with me, and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward. ⁸And the man of God said unto the king, If you will give me half your house, I will not go in with you, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place;