Solomon

13King Solomon sent for a man named Hiram. Hiram lived in the city of Tyre.

And king Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre.

NoteTyre was a busy city by the sea, north of Israel. Its people were famous for building and for working with metal.

14His mother was a widow from the family group of Naphtali. His father came from Tyre and worked with metal. Hiram was very wise and skilled at every kind of metal work. He came to King Solomon and did all his work.

He was a widow’s son 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 cunning to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his work.

NoteA widow is a woman whose husband has died. The family groups were the twelve big families of Israel, and Naphtali was one. The King James Bible says "brass," but the metal was really bronze. Bronze is made by mixing copper and tin.

15He poured two pillars out of melted metal. Each pillar was eighteen cubits tall. A string wrapped around one measured twelve cubits.

For he cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece: and a line of twelve cubits did compass either of them about.

NoteTo pour melted metal, workers made a hollow shape called a mold. They poured the hot liquid metal in and let it cool hard. Eighteen cubits is about as tall as three grown-ups standing on each other.

16He also made two top pieces of melted metal to sit on the pillars. Each top piece was five cubits high.

And he made two chapiters of molten brass, to set upon the tops of the pillars: the height of the one chapiter was five cubits, and the height of the other chapiter was five cubits:

NoteThe top piece is the decorated part that sits on the very top of a pillar. It is like a fancy hat for the post.

17He made woven nets and chains for the top pieces on the pillars. There were seven of them for each top piece.

And nets of checker work, and wreaths of chain work, for the chapiters which were upon the top of the pillars; seven for the one chapiter, and seven for the other chapiter.

18He made the pillars. Around each net he put two rows of pomegranates, a round red fruit. These covered the top pieces of the pillars.

And he made the pillars, and two rows round about upon the one network, to cover the chapiters that were upon the top, with pomegranates: and so did he for the other chapiter.

NoteA pomegranate is a fruit with a tough red skin. Inside are many juicy seeds. They grew all over that land, so people loved to carve them.

19The top pieces on the pillars by the porch were shaped like lilies. They stood four cubits high.

And the chapiters that were upon the top of the pillars were of lily work in the porch, four cubits.

NoteA lily is a flower with petals that curve open at the top. The metal tops were shaped to look like that flower.

20Each top piece also had pomegranates above the rounded part near the net. Two hundred pomegranates stood in rows all around each top piece.

And the chapiters upon the two pillars had pomegranates also above, over against the belly which was by the network: and the pomegranates were two hundred in rows round about upon the other chapiter.

21He set the pillars up at the porch of the temple, the LORD's house. The pillar on the right he named Jachin. The pillar on the left he named Boaz.

And he set up the pillars in the porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof Jachin: and he set up the left pillar, and called the name thereof Boaz.

NoteThese two names come from the old Hebrew language. Jachin means something like "he will make it strong and steady." Boaz means something like "in him is strength."

22The tops of the pillars were shaped like lilies. So the work on the pillars was done.

And upon the top of the pillars was lily work: so was the work of the pillars finished.

23He made a huge round tank of melted metal, called the Sea. It measured ten cubits across the top. It was five cubits deep and thirty cubits around.

And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.

NoteIt was called the Sea because it was so big and held so much water. Priests used the water in it for washing. Ten cubits across is wider than a car is long.

24Under its rim ran rows of round buds. There were ten buds in every cubit, all the way around. They were poured as part of the tank.

And under the brim of it round about there were knops compassing it, ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about: the knops were cast in two rows, when it was cast.

NoteBuds are flowers that have not opened yet. These were small round shapes made of metal, not real flowers.

25The tank rested on twelve metal oxen. Three faced north, three west, three south, and three east. Their back ends all pointed inward.

It 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 above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.

NoteOxen are big, strong cattle. People used them to pull carts and plows. These oxen were made of metal, not alive.

26The metal was as thick as a hand is wide. The rim curved out like the edge of a cup, like a lily flower. The tank held two thousand baths.

And it was an hand breadth thick, and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies: it contained two thousand baths.

NoteA hand breadth is how wide your hand is across, about four inches. A bath was a way to measure water, about six big buckets. Two thousand baths is more water than a small swimming pool holds.

27He also made ten metal stands. Each one was four cubits long, four cubits wide, and three cubits high.

And he made 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.

NoteThese stands were like low metal carts. Each one had wheels and held a big bowl of water.

28The stands were built like this. They had flat side panels set between upright bars.

And the work of the bases was on this manner: they had borders, and the borders were between the ledges:

29On the panels were lions, oxen, and cherubim, which are heavenly creatures with wings. Above the bars was a small stand. Below the lions and oxen hung thin, carved wreaths.

And on the borders that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and cherubims: and upon the ledges there was a base above: and beneath the lions and oxen were certain additions made of thin work.

NoteCherubim are creatures with wings that serve God. People often carved or drew them in the temple. Nobody made pictures of God himself.

30Each stand had four metal wheels with metal axles. Supports stood at the four corners. These poured supports held up a washing bowl, with wreaths beside them.

And every base had four brasen wheels, and plates of brass: and the four corners thereof had undersetters: under the laver were undersetters molten, at the side of every addition.

NoteAn axle is the bar that wheels turn around on. Supports are strong pieces that hold something up from below.

31The opening at the top of each stand was one cubit deep. The opening was round, a cubit and a half across. Carvings and borders ran around it. The panels were square, not round.

And the mouth of it within the chapiter and above was a cubit: but the mouth thereof was round after the work of the base, a cubit and an half: and also upon the mouth of it were gravings with their borders, foursquare, not round.

32Four wheels sat under the panels. The axles of the wheels were joined to the stand. Each wheel was a cubit and a half tall.

And under the borders were four wheels; and the axletrees of the wheels were joined to the base: and the height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit.

33The wheels were made like chariot wheels. Their axles, hubs, rims, and spokes were all poured metal.

And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel: their axletrees, and their naves, and their felloes, and their spokes, were all molten.

NoteA chariot was a small cart pulled by horses. People rode in it to fight or to travel fast.

34Each stand had four supports, one at every corner. They were made as part of the stand itself.

And there were four undersetters to the four corners of one base: and the undersetters were of the very base itself.

35On top of each stand was a round band half a cubit high. The bars and panels on top were part of the stand too.

And in the top of the base was there a round compass of half a cubit high: and on the top of the base the ledges thereof and the borders thereof were of the same.

36He carved cherubim, lions, and palm trees on the bars and panels. He fit them wherever there was room. Carved wreaths went all around.

For on the plates of the ledges thereof, and on the borders thereof, he graved cherubims, lions, and palm trees, according to the proportion of every one, and additions round about.

37He made all ten stands this way. They were poured the same, and all were the same size and shape.

After this manner he made the ten bases: all of them had one casting, one measure, and one size.

38He also made ten metal bowls for washing. Each bowl held forty baths and was four cubits across. One bowl sat on each of the ten stands.

Then made he ten lavers of brass: one laver contained forty baths: and every laver was four cubits: and upon every one of the ten bases one laver.

NoteForty baths is about as much water as a big bathtub holds. Priests used this water to wash things for worship.

39He put five stands on the right side of the house and five on the left. He set the big tank on the right side, at the southeast corner.

And he put five bases 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 over against the south.

NoteThe front of the temple faced east, toward the sunrise. So the "right side" meant the south side of the building.

40Hiram made the washing bowls, the shovels, and the sprinkling bowls. So Hiram finished all the work he did for King Solomon on the LORD's house.

And Hiram made the lavers, and the shovels, and the basons. So Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he made king Solomon for the house of the LORD:

NoteSprinkling bowls held liquid that priests sprinkled at the altar. The shovels were for scooping out ashes from the fire.

41He made the two pillars. He made the two bowl-shaped top pieces for them. He made the two nets that covered those bowl-shaped tops.

The two pillars, and the two bowls of the chapiters that were on the top of the two pillars; and the two networks, to cover the two bowls of the chapiters which were upon the top of the pillars;

42He made four hundred pomegranates for the two nets. Two rows went on each net, covering the bowl-shaped tops on the pillars.

And four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, even two rows of pomegranates for one network, to cover the two bowls of the chapiters that were upon the pillars;

43He made the ten stands and the ten bowls that sat on them.

And the ten bases, and ten lavers on the bases;

44He made the one big tank and the twelve oxen that held it up.

And one sea, and twelve oxen under the sea;

45He made the pots, the shovels, and the sprinkling bowls. Everything Hiram made for King Solomon for the LORD's house was shiny bronze.

And the pots, and the shovels, and the basons: and all these vessels, which Hiram made to king Solomon for the house of the LORD, were of bright brass.

NoteBronze is a hard metal made by mixing copper and tin. When it is rubbed and polished, it shines like gold.

46The king had them poured in the flat land near the Jordan River. The molds were made in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarthan.

In the plain of Jordan did the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarthan.

NoteSuccoth and Zarthan were two towns near the Jordan River. The ground there had thick clay, good for making molds.

47Solomon never weighed any of these things. There were far too many of them. So no one knew how much the metal weighed.

And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because they were exceeding many: neither was the weight of the brass found out.

NotePeople usually weighed metal to know how much it was worth. There was so much here that nobody even tried.

48Solomon made all the things used in the LORD's house. He made the gold altar. He made the gold table that held the special bread set before God.

And Solomon made all the vessels that pertained unto the house of the LORD: the altar of gold, and the table of gold, whereupon the shewbread was,

NoteAn altar is a special table where gifts were burned for God. The special bread was twelve loaves kept on the gold table. Fresh loaves were put out every week.

49He made lampstands of pure gold, five on the right and five on the left. They stood in front of the inner room. He also made gold flowers, lamps, and tongs.

And the candlesticks of pure gold, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the oracle, with the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs of gold,

NoteA lampstand is a stand that holds small oil lamps, like a big candle holder. Tongs are metal tools for picking up hot things.

50He made bowls, wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, dishes, and pans for burning incense. All of them were pure gold. The hinges were gold too, for the doors of the inner room, the Most Holy Place, and for the doors of the main hall.

And the bowls, and the snuffers, and the basons, and the spoons, and the censers of pure gold; and the hinges of gold, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the house, to wit, of the temple.

NoteWick trimmers cut the burnt string in a lamp so it burns bright. Incense is a sweet-smelling stuff that gives off smoke when burned. The Most Holy Place was the innermost room of the temple. Only one priest could go in, and only once a year.

51So all the work King Solomon did for the LORD's house was finished. Then Solomon brought in the gifts his father David had given to God. He put the silver, the gold, and the objects in the treasure rooms of the LORD's house.

So was ended all the work that king Solomon made for the house of the LORD. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated; even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, did he put among the treasures of the house of the LORD.

NoteTo dedicate something means to give it to God for his use only. After that it was never used for anything else.

1Then Solomon called the leaders of Israel to come to him in Jerusalem. He called the elders, the heads of the tribes, and the family leaders. They came to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD. It was in the City of David, also called Zion.

Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.

NoteIsrael was made of twelve big family groups called tribes. Elders were older men everyone trusted to help lead. The ark of the covenant was a wooden box covered with gold. A covenant is a promise two sides agree to keep. God's promise to Israel was kept safe inside that box.

2All the men of Israel came to King Solomon for the feast. This was in the month called Ethanim, the seventh month of the year.

And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month.

NoteThe feast was a big holiday that lasted many days. Families came from all over and ate together. The month called Ethanim came in the fall, near our September and October.

3When all the elders of Israel had come, the priests picked up the ark. Priests were the men who served God at the worship place.

And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark.

NoteA priest was a man whose whole job was serving God. Only priests were allowed to carry the ark. They lifted it with long poles resting on their shoulders. No one was supposed to touch the box itself.

4They carried up the ark of the LORD. They also brought the special tent where people used to meet with God. They brought all the holy dishes and tools from that tent. The priests and the Levites carried them. Levites were men from Levi's family who helped the priests.

And they brought up the ark of the LORD, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, even those did the priests and the Levites bring up.

NoteBefore the temple was built, God's worship place was a big tent. People took it down and carried it as they traveled. The Levites were one family group chosen to help the priests with their work.

5King Solomon and all the people stood with him in front of the ark. They gave God many sheep and oxen as gifts. There were far too many to count.

And 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 told nor numbered for multitude.

NoteGiving an animal to God was called a sacrifice. The animal was killed and burned on the altar as a gift. Oxen are large, strong cattle, much like big cows.

6The priests carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place. That place was the inside room of the temple, called the Most Holy Place. They set it under the wings of the cherubim. The cherubim were two large winged figures carved for that room.

And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims.

NoteThe Most Holy Place was the small room deep inside the temple. It was the most special room of all, and almost nobody went in. Cherubim are angel-like beings with wings. Here they were two tall carved figures standing over the ark.

7The cherubim spread their two wings over the place of the ark. Their wings covered the ark and the poles used to carry it.

For the cherubims spread forth their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves thereof above.

NoteThe poles stayed in rings on the sides of the ark. That way people could carry it without ever touching it.

8The poles were pulled out so far that their ends could be seen. People in the holy room in front could see them. But no one outside that room could see them. The poles are still there today.

And they drew out the staves, that the ends of the staves were seen out in the holy place before the oracle, and they were not seen without: and there they are unto this day.

NoteThe holy room was the larger room just outside the Most Holy Place. Only priests worked in there.

9Nothing was inside the ark except two flat stones. Moses had put them there at Mount Horeb. That is where God made his agreement with the people of Israel. It was after they came out of Egypt.

There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.

NoteThe two flat stones had God's ten rules written on them. We call them the Ten Commandments. Horeb is another name for Mount Sinai, the mountain where Moses met God.

10When the priests came out of the holy room, a cloud filled the LORD's house.

And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD,

Note"The house of the LORD" means the temple. It was the new building for worshiping God.

11The priests could not stay and do their work because of the cloud. The bright, shining presence of the LORD had filled his house.

So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD.

NoteIn the Bible, God's glory means a bright, shining light. It showed people that God himself was really there.

12Then Solomon said, "The LORD said he would live in the thick dark cloud."

Then spake Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.

NoteLong before this, God came down to Mount Sinai inside a thick dark cloud. Solomon is remembering that day.

13"I have built you a house to live in. It is a lasting place for you to stay forever."

I have surely built thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever.

NoteThe "house" here is the temple. It is not a house with beds and a kitchen.

14All the people of Israel were standing there. The king turned around to face them. He spoke good words over them and asked God to bless them.

And the king turned his face about, and blessed all the congregation of Israel: (and all the congregation of Israel stood;)

NoteTo bless people means to say kind words and ask God to be good to them.

15He said, "Praise the LORD, the God of Israel. He spoke a promise to my father David with his mouth. Now he has done it with his own hand. This is what he said:

And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which spake with his mouth unto David my father, and hath with his hand fulfilled it, saying,

NoteDavid was Solomon's father. He was the king of Israel before Solomon was.

16'Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I did not choose a city. I did not pick any town in Israel for a house to hold my name. But I did choose David to lead my people Israel.'

Since 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 an house, that my name might be therein; but I chose David to be over my people Israel.

Note"A house for my name" means a place where people would know God and worship him.

17"My father David really wanted to build a house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.

And it was in the heart of David my father to build an house for the name of the LORD God of Israel.

18But the LORD said to my father David, 'You wanted to build a house for my name. It was good that you wanted this.

And the LORD said unto David my father, Whereas it was in thine heart to build an house unto my name, thou didst well that it was in thine heart.

19But you are not the one who will build it. Your own son will build the house for my name.'

Nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; but thy son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house unto my name.

20"The LORD has done just what he said. I have taken my father David's place. I sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised. And I have built the house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.

And the LORD hath performed his word that he spake, and I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and have built an house for the name of the LORD God of Israel.

NoteA throne is the special chair a king sits on. Sitting on the throne means being the king.

21I have made a place there for the ark. Inside it is the agreement the LORD made with our fathers. He made it when he brought them out of Egypt."

And I have set there a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant of the LORD, which he made with our fathers, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.

22Then Solomon stood in front of the altar of the LORD. All the people of Israel were watching. Solomon lifted his hands up toward the sky.

And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven:

NoteAn altar was a big stone table. Gifts for God were burned on top of it. People often prayed standing up with their hands lifted high.

23He said, "LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you. Not in heaven above, and not on earth below. You keep your agreement. You show steady love to your servants who follow you with their whole heart.

And he said, LORD God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart:

Note"Mercy" in the King James means kind love that never stops. To "walk before" God means to live the way he asks.

24You kept the promise you made to your servant David, my father. You said it with your mouth. You have done it with your hand, as we see today.

Who hast kept with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him: thou spakest also with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thine hand, as it is this day.

25So now, LORD, God of Israel, keep the other promise you made to David. You said, 'You will always have a man to sit on Israel's throne. This will be true if your children are careful to follow me, as you did.'

Therefore now, LORD God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel; so that thy children take heed to their way, that they walk before me as thou hast walked before me.

Note"There shall not fail thee a man" means David's own family would keep being kings.

26And now, God of Israel, please make your promise to my father David come true.

And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my father.

27But will God really live here on earth? The sky and the highest heaven cannot hold you. This house I built is far too small for you.

But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded?

Note"The heaven of heavens" means the whole sky and everything past it. It means as far up as anyone can imagine.

28Still, please listen to my prayer and my asking, LORD my God. Hear the crying and praying I am doing before you today.

Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee to day:

Note"Supplication" is an old word. It means asking hard for help, like begging.

29Watch over this house night and day. This is the place you said, 'My name will be there.' Please hear the prayers I pray toward this place.

That thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place.

30Hear me and hear your people Israel when we pray toward this place. Listen in heaven, where you live. And when you hear, please forgive.

And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place: and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place: and when thou hearest, forgive.

31Suppose a man does wrong to his neighbor. He is told to make a promise to tell the truth. He comes and makes that promise at your altar in this house.

If any man trespass against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house:

NoteBack then, people settled arguments by making a promise out loud at the altar. Saying it before God meant you must tell the truth. It worked a little like a courtroom does today.

32Then listen in heaven and act. Judge between your servants. Say the guilty man is guilty, and let his wrong come back on him. Say the good man is right, and give him what his goodness deserves.

Then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head; and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness.

NoteTo "justify" someone means to say out loud that he did nothing wrong.

33Suppose your people Israel lose a battle because they sinned against you. Then they turn back to you. They say your name, and they pray and beg you in this house.

When thy people Israel be smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee, and shall turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, and make supplication unto thee in this house:

Note"Smitten down before the enemy" means losing a battle in a war.

34Then listen in heaven. Forgive the sin of your people Israel. Bring them back to the land you gave their fathers.

Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which thou gavest unto their fathers.

35Suppose the sky is shut and no rain falls, because they sinned against you. Then they pray toward this place. They say your name and turn away from their sin, because you made them suffer.

When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou afflictest them:

NoteFarmers needed rain to grow their food. No rain meant no crops, and then no one had enough to eat.

36Then listen in heaven. Forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Teach them the right way to live. And send rain on your land, the land you gave your people to keep.

Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, that thou teach them the good way wherein they should walk, and give rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance.

NoteAn inheritance is something a family is given to keep. They pass it down to their children.

37Suppose there is no food in the land. Or a sickness spreads. Or the crops dry up or turn moldy. Or bugs eat the plants. Or an enemy army surrounds their cities. Any trouble or any illness may come.

If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust, or if there be caterpiller; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be;

Note"Pestilence" is a sickness that spreads fast to many people. "Blasting" and "mildew" ruin crops: hot dry wind, and fuzzy mold. Locusts are grasshoppers that fly in huge swarms. They can eat a whole field in a single day. To "besiege" a city means an army circles it so no food gets in.

38Then someone may pray and beg you. Or all your people Israel may pray. Each one knows the trouble in his own heart. Each one lifts his hands toward this house.

What prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house:

Note"The plague of his own heart" means the sad or hard thing inside a person. Lifting your hands toward the temple was how people prayed.

39Then listen in heaven, where you live. Forgive them and act. Give each person what fits the way he has lived. You know his heart. You alone know what is inside every person.

Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;)

40Then they will honor you as long as they live. They will live in the land you gave our fathers.

That they may fear thee all the days that they live in the land which thou gavest unto our fathers.

NoteTo "fear" God here does not mean being scared of him. It means honoring him and taking him seriously.

41Now think about a foreigner, someone who is not one of your people Israel. He comes from a country far away because he has heard about you.

Moreover concerning a stranger, that is not of thy people Israel, but cometh out of a far country for thy name’s sake;

NoteA "stranger" meant someone from another country. Other countries had their own gods, not the God of Israel.

42People will hear about your great name. They will hear about your strong hand and your powerful arm. So this foreigner will come and pray toward this house.

(For they shall hear of thy great name, and of thy strong hand, and of thy stretched out arm;) when he shall come and pray toward this house;

NoteA "stretched out arm" is a word picture for God's strength. Think of someone reaching out to help.

43Then listen in heaven, where you live. Do what that foreigner asks you to do. Then everyone on earth will know your name. They will honor you, just as your people Israel do. And they will know this house I built carries your name.

Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for: that all people of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel; and that they may know that this house, which I have builded, is called by thy name.

NoteA house "called by thy name" is a house that belongs to God. Everyone would know whose house it was.

44Suppose your people go out to fight their enemies, wherever you send them. And they pray to you, turning toward the city you chose and the house I built for your name.

If thy people go out to battle against their enemy, whithersoever thou shalt send them, and shall pray unto the LORD toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house that I have built for thy name:

NoteWhen people prayed, they turned to face Jerusalem. Facing that way helped them remember God's house.

45Then listen in heaven to their prayer and their asking. Stand up for them.

Then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause.

Note"Maintain their cause" means stand up for them. It is like having a helper speak for you.

46Suppose they sin against you, for everyone sins. And you become angry and let an enemy win. That enemy takes them away to his own land, near or far.

If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near;

NoteCaptives are people an enemy carries off to another country. They had to live there and could not go home.

47But in that faraway land, they may think again. They may feel sorry and turn back. They may beg you and say, 'We have sinned. We have done wrong. We have been wicked.'

Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness;

NoteTo repent means to be sorry and to turn around and do right.

48They may come back to you with their whole heart, there in their enemies' land. They may pray toward the land you gave their fathers, and toward the city you chose, and toward the house I built for your name.

And so return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy name:

49Then listen in heaven, where you live. Hear their prayer and their asking. Stand up for them.

Then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling place, and maintain their cause,

50Forgive your people for the sins they did against you. Forgive every wrong thing they did. And make the people who took them away feel kind toward them.

And forgive thy people that have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee, and give them compassion before them who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them:

NoteCompassion means feeling sorry for someone and being kind to them.

51They are your people. They belong to you. You brought them out of Egypt. That land was like a furnace, a fire hot enough to melt iron.

For they be thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron:

NoteA furnace is a very hot oven used for melting metal. Israel had been slaves in Egypt, and the work was that hard.

52Please watch over me and hear me when I ask. Watch over your people Israel too. Listen to them whenever they call to you.

That thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto thee.

53You set them apart from all the other peoples on earth to be your own. You said this through Moses, your servant, when you brought our fathers out of Egypt, LORD God."

For thou didst separate them from among all the people of the earth, to be thine inheritance, as thou spakest by the hand of Moses thy servant, when thou broughtest our fathers out of Egypt, O LORD God.

NoteMoses was the leader who brought Israel out of Egypt long before this. God gave the people his rules through Moses.

54Solomon finished this whole prayer. He had been kneeling in front of the altar of the LORD, with his hands lifted toward the sky. Now he stood up.

And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven.

NoteKneeling down with your hands lifted up was a normal way to pray then.

55He stood and spoke good words over all the people of Israel. He said in a loud voice:

And he stood, and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying,

56"Praise the LORD. He has given his people Israel peace and rest, just as he promised. He made good promises through Moses, his servant. Not one word of them has failed.

Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.

Note"Rest" here means being safe at home. It means no more wandering and no more war.

57May the LORD our God stay with us, as he was with our fathers. May he never leave us or turn away from us.

The LORD our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us:

NoteTo forsake someone means to leave them behind for good.

58May he turn our hearts toward him. May we walk in all his ways. May we keep his commands, his rules, and his laws, which he gave our fathers.

That he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.

Note"Statutes" and "judgments" are two old words for God's rules and laws.

59May the LORD our God keep my prayer close to him, day and night. Then he will stand up for me, his servant, and for his people Israel, each day as they need.

And let these my words, wherewith I have made supplication before the LORD, be nigh unto the LORD our God day and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause of his people Israel at all times, as the matter shall require:

60Then everyone on earth will know that the LORD is God. There is no other God at all.

That all the people of the earth may know that the LORD is God, and that there is none else.

61So give your whole heart to the LORD our God. Live by his rules and keep his commands, as you are doing today."

Let your heart therefore be perfect with the LORD our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day.

NoteA "perfect" heart does not mean never making a mistake. It means loving God with your whole heart.

62Then the king and all Israel with him gave gifts to the LORD.

And the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before the LORD.

63Solomon gave peace offerings to the LORD. He gave 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep. In this way the king and all Israel gave the LORD's house to him.

And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered unto the LORD, two and twenty thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD.

NotePeace offerings were happy gifts. Part was burned for God, and the rest was cooked and eaten. Everyone shared the meal together, like a giant party.

64That same day the king set apart the middle of the yard in front of the LORD's house. He offered burnt gifts, grain gifts, and the fat of the peace offerings there. He did this because the bronze altar was too small to hold them all.

The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of the LORD: for there he offered burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings: because the brasen altar that was before the LORD was too little to receive the burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings.

NoteTo "hallow" a place means to set it apart just for God. A burnt gift was burned up completely. A grain gift was flour or bread, not meat. The King James calls it a "meat offering," but long ago meat just meant food. The altar was covered in bronze, a strong metal, and it was too small for so many gifts.

65At that time Solomon and all Israel held a feast. A huge crowd came, from the way into Hamath all the way to the brook of Egypt. They feasted before the LORD our God for seven days, then seven more. That was fourteen days in all.

And at that time Solomon held a feast, and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days.

NoteHamath was far to the north. The brook of Egypt was far to the south. So people came from every corner of the land.

66On the eighth day Solomon sent the people home. They spoke good words over the king and went to their tents. They were happy and glad inside. God had been so good to David his servant and to Israel his people.

On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the LORD had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people.

NoteThis was the day after the second week of feasting ended. "Went unto their tents" simply means they went home.

1Solomon finished building the temple, God's house. He also finished his own palace. He built everything else he wanted to build.

And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he was pleased to do,

NoteA palace is a very big house where a king lives.

2Then the LORD came to Solomon a second time. He had come to him before at a place called Gibeon.

That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon.

NoteGibeon was a town near Jerusalem. Solomon had gone there to worship God once before.

3The LORD said, "I heard you when you prayed and asked me for help. I have made this house holy, set apart just for me. My name will be here forever. I will always watch over it and love it.

And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.

NotePutting his name on a house meant the house belonged to him. It was the place where people could come and pray to him.

4"Now you must live the way your father David lived. He had an honest heart and did what was right. Do everything I have told you to do. Keep all my rules and my laws.

And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:

NoteDavid was Solomon's father. He was king of Israel before Solomon was.

5"If you do, I will keep your family ruling Israel forever. I promised your father David this. I said someone from his family would always be king.

Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.

6"But you and your children may turn away from me. You may stop keeping the commands and rules I gave you. You may go and serve other gods and bow down to them.

But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them:

NoteThe people living nearby prayed to gods made of wood and stone. Bowing down was how you showed a god you belonged to him.

7"If that happens, I will take Israel out of the land I gave them. I will push away this house, even though I made it holy for my name. Then people everywhere will make fun of Israel.

Then 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 people:

NoteThe King James says Israel will be "a proverb and a byword." That means people would use Israel's name as a joke.

8"This house is grand now. But everyone who walks past it will be shocked. They will whistle in surprise. They will ask, 'Why did the LORD do this to this land and this house?'

And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?

NoteThe King James says people will "hiss." Long ago, whistling or hissing was how you showed you were shocked. We might gasp instead.

9"Others will answer, 'Because they left the LORD their God. He brought their fathers out of Egypt. But they held on to other gods and bowed down and served them. That is why the LORD sent all this trouble on them.'"

And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD brought upon them all this evil.

NoteLong before this, the Israelites were slaves in Egypt. God brought them out and led them to this land.

10Twenty years went by while Solomon built the two buildings. One was the temple, God's house. The other was his own palace.

And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, when Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the LORD, and the king’s house,

11Hiram, the king of Tyre, had helped Solomon a lot. He sent cedar wood, pine wood, and gold, as much as Solomon wanted. So Solomon gave Hiram twenty towns in the land of Galilee.

(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.

NoteTyre was a rich city by the sea, north of Israel. Cedar and pine are trees. Their wood was strong and smelled good, so it was the best wood for building.

12Hiram left Tyre to go look at the towns Solomon gave him. He did not like them.

And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him; and they pleased him not.

13He said, "What kind of towns are these, my brother?" He named that area the land of Cabul. People still call it that.

And he said, What cities are these which thou hast given me, my brother? And he called them the land of Cabul unto this day.

NoteKings called each other "my brother" to be friendly, even when they were not family. The name Cabul sounded like the words for "good for nothing." Hiram was saying the towns were not worth much.

14Hiram had sent the king one hundred twenty talents of gold.

And Hiram sent to the king sixscore talents of gold.

NoteA talent was a heavy weight, about as much as a big dog. One hundred twenty talents of gold was a huge amount.

15Solomon made people work for him without pay. This is what they built: the temple, his own palace, the walls that held up the hill, the wall around Jerusalem, and the cities of Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer.

And this is the reason of the levy which king Solomon raised; for to build the house of the LORD, and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer.

NoteThe King James calls the walls that held up the hill "Millo." Nobody today knows exactly what it was. Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer were cities that sat on important roads. Strong walls there kept enemies out.

16Long before, Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, had attacked the city of Gezer. He burned it and killed the Canaanites who lived there. Then he gave the city to his daughter as a wedding gift. She had married Solomon.

For Pharaoh 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 present unto his daughter, Solomon’s wife.

NotePharaoh was the word Egyptians used for their king, the way we say president. The Canaanites were people who lived in this land before the Israelites came. When a daughter got married, her father often gave a gift to help the new family.

17So Solomon rebuilt Gezer. He also built Lower Beth-horon.

And Solomon built Gezer, and Bethhoron the nether,

NoteThe King James calls it "Bethhoron the nether." Nether is an old word for lower. There were two towns with that name, an upper one and a lower one.

18He built Baalath and Tadmor out in the dry, empty land.

And Baalath, and Tadmor in the wilderness, in the land,

19He built towns where he stored supplies. He built towns for his chariots and for the men who rode his horses. He built whatever he wanted in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and everywhere else he ruled.

And all the cities of store that Solomon had, and cities for his chariots, and cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.

NoteA chariot was a small cart with two wheels, pulled by fast horses. Soldiers rode in them to fight.

20Some people still lived in the land who were not Israelites. They were the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.

And all the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which were not of the children of Israel,

NoteThese were five groups of people who lived in the land before the Israelites came. Each group had its own towns and its own gods.

21The Israelites had not been able to destroy these people completely. Their children were still in the land. Solomon made them work for him without pay. They still do this work today.

Their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel also were not able utterly to destroy, upon those did Solomon levy a tribute of bondservice unto this day.

Note"Today" means the day the writer wrote this book, long, long ago. It does not mean today for us.

22But Solomon did not make any Israelites work as slaves. They were his soldiers, his helpers, and his leaders. Some led his army. Some drove his chariots or rode his horses.

But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bondmen: but they were men of war, and his servants, and his princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots, and his horsemen.

NoteA slave was someone who had to work and was not allowed to leave or say no.

23Five hundred fifty men were the chief bosses over Solomon's building work. They told the workers what to do.

These were the chief of the officers that were over Solomon’s work, five hundred and fifty, which bare rule over the people that wrought in the work.

24Pharaoh's daughter moved up from the City of David. She went to the house Solomon had built for her. After that, he built the walls that held up the hill.

But 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.

NoteThe City of David was the oldest part of Jerusalem. It sat on a hill, and King David had lived there.

25Three times each year, Solomon brought gifts to God. He burned offerings on the altar he had built for the LORD. He also burned sweet-smelling incense there. So the temple was finished.

And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt offerings and peace offerings upon the altar which he built unto the LORD, and he burnt incense upon the altar that was before the LORD. So he finished the house.

NoteAn altar was a big stone table. People burned gifts to God on top of it. A burnt offering was an animal given to God and burned there. Incense is a sweet-smelling powder. When it burns, the good smell floats up with the smoke. Solomon did this three times a year, at Israel's three big holidays.

26King Solomon also built a group of ships at a place called Ezion-geber. It is near Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom.

And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Eziongeber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red sea, in the land of Edom.

NoteEdom was a dry land south of Israel. Ezion-geber was a town on the water where ships could be built and loaded.

27Hiram sent his own men to sail with those ships. They knew the sea well. They worked with Solomon's men.

And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon.

NoteHiram's people lived by the sea and sailed all the time. They were the best sailors anyone knew.

28They sailed to a place called Ophir. They brought back four hundred twenty talents of gold and gave it to King Solomon.

And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.

NoteOphir was a faraway land famous for very fine gold. Nobody today knows for sure where it was.

1The queen of Sheba heard how famous Solomon was, and how the LORD had made him wise. So she came to test him with hard questions.

And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions.

NoteSheba was a rich land far to the south of Israel. People there sold gold and sweet-smelling spices. When you see the LORD in big letters, it is God's own name. Kings back then liked to test each other with riddles and hard questions.

2She came to Jerusalem with a very large group of travelers. Her camels carried spices, lots of gold, and beautiful stones. When she met Solomon, she told him everything she was thinking about.

And 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.

NoteCamels are big animals that carry heavy loads across dry, sandy land. Spices are bits of special plants that smell sweet. People used them in food and perfume, and they cost a lot.

3Solomon answered every one of her questions. Nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her.

And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not any thing hid from the king, which he told her not.

4The queen of Sheba saw how wise Solomon was. She also saw the palace he had built.

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

5She saw the food on his table and where his helpers sat. She saw his servants at work, and their fine clothes, and the men who poured his drinks. She saw the gifts he brought to the LORD's house. It took her breath away.

And the meat 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 the LORD; there was no more spirit in her.

NoteThe LORD's house was the temple in Jerusalem. It was a special building where people came to worship God.

6She said to the king, "What I heard back home was true. People told me about your words and your wisdom."

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

7"I did not believe it until I came and saw it myself. They did not tell me even half of it! You are wiser and richer than the stories said."

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

8"How happy your men must be! How happy are these servants who stand near you every day and hear you speak."

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

9"Praise the LORD your God! He was glad to put you on the throne of Israel. The LORD loves Israel forever. So he made you king, to be fair and to do what is right."

Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the LORD loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and justice.

NoteA throne is the fancy chair a king sits on. Sitting on the throne means being the king. Israel was the land Solomon ruled, and its people.

10She gave the king 120 talents of gold. She also gave many spices and beautiful stones. Never again did so many spices come as the ones she gave Solomon.

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.

NoteA talent was a way to weigh things, about 75 pounds. That is heavier than most first graders. So 120 talents of gold was a huge pile.

11King Hiram's ships brought gold from a place called Ophir. They also brought lots of almug wood and beautiful stones from there.

And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees, and precious stones.

NoteHiram was the king of Tyre, a country close by. He and Solomon were friends who traded with each other. No one today knows for sure where Ophir was. It was famous for gold. Almug was a rare wood brought from far away by ship.

12The king used the almug wood to make steps for the LORD's house and his own palace. He also made harps and other music instruments for the singers. Wood like that never came again, and no one has seen it since.

And the king made of the almug trees pillars for the house of the LORD, and for the king’s house, harps also and psalteries for singers: there came no such almug trees, nor were seen unto this day.

NoteHarps have strings that you pluck with your fingers. Singers played them while they sang.

13King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she asked for. He also gave her more gifts from his own riches. Then she and her servants went back home to her own country.

And king Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants.

14Each year, Solomon was given 666 talents of gold.

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

NoteA talent weighed about 75 pounds. All that gold together weighed more than twenty tons.

15That did not even count the money he got from traders and spice sellers. It also did not count the gifts from the kings of Arabia and the local rulers.

Beside that he had of the merchantmen, and of the traffick of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia, and of the governors of the country.

NoteTraders are people who buy things in one place and sell them in another. Arabia is a dry, sandy land to the south and east of Israel.

16King Solomon made two hundred large shields out of hammered gold. Each shield used six hundred shekels of gold.

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

NoteA shekel was a small weight, less than half an ounce. Six hundred shekels of gold is about fifteen pounds. Shields were carried in battle to block arrows and swords. Gold is soft and heavy, so these gold ones were only for show.

17He also made three hundred smaller shields of hammered gold. Each one used about three pounds of gold. He put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.

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 Lebanon.

NoteLebanon was the land just north of Israel. Its tall cedar trees were famous, and kings paid a lot for that wood. The House of the Forest of Lebanon was a great hall in the palace. Its rows of cedar pillars stood like trees, which is how it got its name.

18The king also made a great throne, a king's chair, out of ivory. He covered it with the finest gold.

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

NoteIvory is the smooth, creamy white part of an elephant's tusks. It was rare and cost a lot.

19The throne had six steps, and its back had a round top. There were arm rests on both sides of the seat. A carved lion stood beside each arm rest.

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

20Twelve carved lions stood on the six steps, one at each end. No other kingdom ever had a throne like it.

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.

21All of King Solomon's drinking cups were made of gold. Every dish in the House of the Forest of Lebanon was pure gold. None of them were silver. In Solomon's day, silver was not worth much.

And all king Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; none were of silver: it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon.

22The king had big trading ships at sea, sailing with Hiram's ships. Once every three years they came back. They brought gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.

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

NoteThese were big, strong ships built to sail very far. Apes are monkeys. Peacocks are birds with huge, colorful tails. Nobody in Israel had ever seen animals like these.

23So King Solomon had more riches and more wisdom than any other king on earth.

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

24People from everywhere wanted to come and see Solomon. They wanted to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart.

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

25Year after year, every visitor brought him a gift. They brought silver and gold things, clothes, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.

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

NoteA mule is an animal like a horse, but smaller and very strong. Mules are good at carrying heavy loads.

26Solomon collected chariots, which are carts pulled by horses, and men to drive them. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses. He kept them in special cities and with him in Jerusalem.

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

27The king made silver as easy to find in Jerusalem as stones. He made cedar wood as common as the sycamore trees in the low hills.

And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore trees that are in the vale, for abundance.

NoteCedar wood came from far away and cost a lot of money. Sycamore trees grew everywhere and were cheap. Saying cedar was like sycamore means Solomon had piles of it.

28Solomon's horses were brought from Egypt and from a place called Kue. The king's traders bought them there and paid for them.

And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yarn: the king’s merchants received the linen yarn at a price.

NoteKue was a land far to the north, where Turkey is today. It was known for raising very good horses.

29A chariot from Egypt cost six hundred pieces of silver, and a horse cost a hundred fifty. Solomon's traders also sold them to the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.

And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and an horse for an 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.

NotePeople did not use coins yet. They weighed out pieces of silver to pay for things. The Hittites lived north of Israel. Syria was the land just north too.