2 Chronicles 9:12

And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which she had brought unto the king. So she turned, and went away to her own land, she and her servants.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(12) Beside that which she had brought unto the king.—It can hardly be meant that Solomon returned her own presents. If the reading be sound, we may understand return presents, i.e., gifts equal in value to those which she had bestowed. Or better, we may regard the clause as a parenthetic note of the chronicler’s, to the effect that the giving of presents was not all on one side. Solomon showed himself as royally generous as his visitor. Putting the clause first would make this meaning clearer: “And quite apart from what she brought the king, Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all her desire.” Bertheau, however, proposes a slight change in the Hebrew text, so as to get the sense, “beside what the king had brought for her.” 1Kings 10:13 is much clearer: “besides what he had given her, according to the hand of king Solomon.” LXX. translates, “besides all that she brought to king Solomon;” the Vulg., “and far more than she had brought him,” which may be a trace of the original reading; the Syriac, “besides what he had given her.” Syriac and Arabic add, “and he revealed to her all that was in her heart.”

She turned.—Hāphak, for pānāh of Kings, which is more usual in this sense.

Benson Commentary

2 Chronicles 9:12. Besides that which she had brought unto the king — Over and above that which was an equivalent for the presents she had made him. See note on 1 Kings 10:13.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

9:1-12 This history has been considered, 1Ki 10; yet because our Saviour has proposed it as an example in seeking after him, Mt 12:42, we must not pass it over without observing, that those who know the worth of true wisdom will grudge no pains or cost to obtain it. The queen of Sheba put herself to a great deal of trouble and expense to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and yet, learning from him to serve God, and do her duty, she thought herself well paid for her pains. Heavenly wisdom is that pearl of great price, for which, if we part with all, we make a good bargain.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Beside that which she had brought unto the king - It is difficult to assign any sense to these words as they now stand in the Hebrew text. A slight alteration will give the meaning: "Beside that which the king had brought for her;" which is in conformity with 1 Kings 10:13.

The narrative here is parallel with that in marginal reference, from which it varies but little, and to which it adds nothing.

2 Chronicles 9:12Beside that which she had brought unto the king - It is difficult to assign any sense to these words as they now stand in the Hebrew text. A slight alteration will give the meaning: "Beside that which the king had brought for her;" which is in conformity with 1 Kings 10:13.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

CHAPTER 9

2Ch 9:1-12. The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon; She Admires His Wisdom and Magnificence.

1-4. when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon—(See on [428]1Ki 10:1-13). It is said that among the things in Jerusalem which drew forth the admiration of Solomon's royal visitor was "his ascent by which he went up into the house of the Lord." This was the arched viaduct that crossed the valley from Mount Zion to the opposite hill. In the commentary on the passage quoted above, allusion was made to the recent discovery of its remains. Here we give a full account of what, for boldness of conceptions for structure and magnificence, was one of the greatest wonders in Jerusalem. "During our first visit to the southwest corner of the area of the mosque, we observed several of the large stones jutting out from the western wall, which at first seemed to be the effect of a bursting of the wall from some mighty shock or earthquake. We paid little regard to this at the moment; but on mentioning the fact not long after to a circle of our friends, the remark was incidentally dropped that the stones had the appearance of having once belonged to a large arch. At this remark, a train of thought flashed across my mind, which I hardly dared to follow out until I had again repaired to the spot, in order to satisfy myself with my own eyes as to the truth or falsehood of the suggestion. I found it even so. The courses of these immense stones occupy their original position; their external surface is hewn to a regular curve; and, being fitted one upon another, they form the commencement or foot of an immense arch which once sprung out from this western wall in a direction towards Mount Zion, across the Tyropœon valley. This arch could only have belonged to the bridge, which, according to Josephus, led from this part of the temple to the Xystus (covered colonnade) on Zion; and it proves incontestably the antiquity of that portion from which it springs" [Robinson]. The distance from this point to the steep rock of Zion Robinson calculates to be about three hundred and fifty feet, the probable length of this ancient viaduct. Another writer adds, that "the arch of this bridge, if its curve be calculated with an approximation to the truth, would measure sixty feet, and must have been one of five sustaining the viaduct (allowing for the abutments on either side), and that the piers supporting the center arch of this bridge must have been of great altitude—not less, perhaps, than one hundred and thirty feet. The whole structure, when seen from the southern extremity of the Tyropœon, must have had an aspect of grandeur, especially as connected with the lofty and sumptuous edifices of the temple, and of Zion to the right and to the left" [Isaac Taylor's Edition of Traill's Josephus].

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Besides that which she had brought; besides what he gave her of his royal bounty, as it is expressed, 1 Kings 10:13, which was in compensation for her presents, as is here noted.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

See Chapter Introduction

Geneva Study Bible

And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, {f} beside that which she had brought unto the king. So she turned, and went away to her own land, she and her servants.

(f) That is, which the king gave her for recompense of the treasure which she brought.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

12. besides that which she had brought unto the king] This means that the king beside returning the queen the value of her presents to him, also gave her additional gifts; cp. 1 Kings 10:13.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 12. - Beside that which she had brought unto the king. The parallel has not this obscure clause, but has, "beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal Bounty." Professor Dr. Murphy explains our clause as purporting to say this: Solomon gave all the queen's desire in the way of bounty, "beside" all that belonged as an equivalent for "what she had brought." She got so much sheer gift, beside all that, according to the then Eastern custom, was her due. 2 Chronicles 9:12

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

The visit of the queen of Sheba. Cf. 1 Kings 10:1-13. - This event is narrated as a practical proof of Solomon's extraordinary wisdom. The narrative agrees so exactly in both texts, with the exception of some few quite unimportant differences, that we must regard them as literal extracts from an original document which they have used in common. For the commentary on this section, see on 1 Kings 10:1-13.