| New King James Version | English Standard Version |
| 1So King Solomon was king over all Israel. | 1King Solomon was king over all Israel, |
| 2And these were his officials: Azariah the son of Zadok, the priest; | 2and these were his high officials: Azariah the son of Zadok was the priest; |
| 3Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the recorder; | 3Elihoreph and Ahijah the sons of Shisha were secretaries; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder; |
| 4Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, over the army; Zadok and Abiathar, the priests; | 4Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was in command of the army; Zadok and Abiathar were priests; |
| 5Azariah the son of Nathan, over the officers; Zabud the son of Nathan, a priest and the king’s friend; | 5Azariah the son of Nathan was over the officers; Zabud the son of Nathan was priest and king’s friend; |
| 6Ahishar, over the household; and Adoniram the son of Abda, over the labor force. | 6Ahishar was in charge of the palace; and Adoniram the son of Abda was in charge of the forced labor. |
| 7And Solomon had twelve governors over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his household; each one made provision for one month of the year. | 7Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his household. Each man had to make provision for one month in the year. |
| 8These are their names: Ben-Hur, in the mountains of Ephraim; | 8These were their names: Ben-hur, in the hill country of Ephraim; |
| 9Ben-Deker, in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh, and Elon Beth Hanan; | 9Ben-deker, in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-shemesh, and Elonbeth-hanan; |
| 10Ben-Hesed, in Arubboth; to him belonged Sochoh and all the land of Hepher; | 10Ben-hesed, in Arubboth (to him belonged Socoh and all the land of Hepher); |
| 11Ben-Abinadab, in all the regions of Dor; he had Taphath the daughter of Solomon as wife; | 11Ben-abinadab, in all Naphath-dor (he had Taphath the daughter of Solomon as his wife); |
| 12Baana the son of Ahilud, in Taanach, Megiddo, and all Beth Shean, which is beside Zaretan below Jezreel, from Beth Shean to Abel Meholah, as far as the other side of Jokneam; | 12Baana the son of Ahilud, in Taanach, Megiddo, and all Beth-shean that is beside Zarethan below Jezreel, and from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, as far as the other side of Jokmeam; |
| 13Ben-Geber, in Ramoth Gilead; to him belonged the towns of Jair the son of Manasseh, in Gilead; to him also belonged the region of Argob in Bashan—sixty large cities with walls and bronze gate-bars; | 13Ben-geber, in Ramoth-gilead (he had the villages of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead, and he had the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty great cities with walls and bronze bars); |
| 14Ahinadab the son of Iddo, in Mahanaim; | 14Ahinadab the son of Iddo, in Mahanaim; |
| 15Ahimaaz, in Naphtali; he also took Basemath the daughter of Solomon as wife; | 15Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he had taken Basemath the daughter of Solomon as his wife); |
| 16Baanah the son of Hushai, in Asher and Aloth; | 16Baana the son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth; |
| 17Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar; | 17Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar; |
| 18Shimei the son of Elah, in Benjamin; | 18Shimei the son of Ela, in Benjamin; |
| 19Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, in the country of Sihon king of the Amorites, and of Og king of Bashan. He was the only governor who was in the land. | 19Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan. And there was one governor who was over the land. |
| 20Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and rejoicing. | 20Judah and Israel were as many as the sand by the sea. They ate and drank and were happy. |
| 21So Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the River to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. They brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life. | 21Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt. They brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life. |
| 22Now Solomon’s provision for one day was thirty kors of fine flour, sixty kors of meal, | 22Solomon’s provision for one day was thirty cors of fine flour and sixty cors of meal, |
| 23ten fatted oxen, twenty oxen from the pastures, and one hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fatted fowl. | 23ten fat oxen, and twenty pasture-fed cattle, a hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fattened fowl. |
| 24For he had dominion over all the region on this side of the River from Tiphsah even to Gaza, namely over all the kings on this side of the River; and he had peace on every side all around him. | 24For he had dominion over all the region west of the Euphrates from Tiphsah to Gaza, over all the kings west of the Euphrates. And he had peace on all sides around him. |
| 25And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, each man under his vine and his fig tree, from Dan as far as Beersheba, all the days of Solomon. | 25And Judah and Israel lived in safety, from Dan even to Beersheba, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, all the days of Solomon. |
| 26Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. | 26Solomon also had 40,000 stalls of horses for his chariots, and 12,000 horsemen. |
| 27And these governors, each man in his month, provided food for King Solomon and for all who came to King Solomon’s table. There was no lack in their supply. | 27And those officers supplied provisions for King Solomon, and for all who came to King Solomon’s table, each one in his month. They let nothing be lacking. |
| 28They also brought barley and straw to the proper place, for the horses and steeds, each man according to his charge. | 28Barley also and straw for the horses and swift steeds they brought to the place where it was required, each according to his duty. |
| 29And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore. | 29And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore, |
| 30Thus Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the men of the East and all the wisdom of Egypt. | 30so that Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt. |
| 31For he was wiser than all men—than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the surrounding nations. | 31For he was wiser than all other men, wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol, and his fame was in all the surrounding nations. |
| 32He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs were one thousand and five. | 32He also spoke 3,000 proverbs, and his songs were 1,005. |
| 33Also he spoke of trees, from the cedar tree of Lebanon even to the hyssop that springs out of the wall; he spoke also of animals, of birds, of creeping things, and of fish. | 33He spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall. He spoke also of beasts, and of birds, and of reptiles, and of fish. |
| 34And men of all nations, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom, came to hear the wisdom of Solomon. | 34And people of all nations came to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and from all the kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom. |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | ESV Text Edition: 2016. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved. |
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