1 KINGS
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
1 Kings 1
1 Now king David was old [and] stricken in years; and they covered him with
clothes, but he gat no heat.
2 Wherefore 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 let her cherish
him, and let her lie in thy bosom, that my lord the king may get heat.
3 So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the coasts of
4 And the damsel [was] very fair, and cherished the king, and ministered to
him: but the king knew her not.
5 Then 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.
6 And his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why hast thou
done so? and he also [was a] very goodly [man]; and [his mother] bare him after
Absalom.
7 And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the
priest: and they following Adonijah helped [him].
8 But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah
the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty
men which [belonged] to David, were not with Adonijah.
9 And Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the
stone of Zoheleth, which [is] by Enrogel,
and called all his brethren the king's sons, and all the men of Judah the
king's servants:
10 But Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the
mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he called not.
11 Wherefore Nathan spake unto Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, Hast
thou not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith doth reign, and David our lord knoweth
[it] not?
12 Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son
Solomon.
13 Go and get thee in unto king David, and say unto him, Didst not thou, my
lord, O king, swear unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son
shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? why then doth Adonijah reign?
14 Behold, while thou yet talkest there with the
king, I also will come in after thee, and confirm thy words.
15 And Bathsheba went in unto the king into the chamber: and the king was very
old; and Abishag the Shunammite
ministered unto the king.
16 And Bathsheba bowed, and did obeisance unto the king. And the king said,
What wouldest thou?
17 And she said unto him, My lord, thou swarest by
Yahweh thy God unto thine handmaid, [saying], Assuredly Solomon thy son shall
reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne.
18 And now, behold, Adonijah reigneth;
and now, my lord the king, thou knowest [it] not:
19 And he hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath
called all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the
priest, and Joab the captain of the host: but Solomon
thy servant hath he not called.
20 And thou, my lord, O king, the eyes of all
21 Otherwise it shall come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his
fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders.
22 And, lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet also came
in.
23 And 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.
24 And Nathan said, My lord, O king, hast thou said, Adonijah
shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne?
25 For he is gone down this day, and hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep
in abundance, and hath called all the king's sons, and the captains of the
host, and Abiathar the priest; and, behold, they eat
and drink before him, and say, God save king Adonijah.
26 But me, [even] me thy servant, and Zadok the
priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada,
and thy servant Solomon, hath he not called.
27 Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast not shewed [it] unto
thy servant, who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?
28 Then king David answered and said, Call me Bathsheba. And she came into the
king's presence, and stood before the king.
29 And the king sware, and said, [As] Yahweh liveth, That hath redeemed my soul out of all distress,
30 Even as I sware unto thee by Yahweh, God of
Israel, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall
sit upon my throne in my stead; even so will I certainly do this day.
31 Then Bathsheba bowed with [her] face to the earth, and did reverence to the
king, and said, Let my lord king David live for ever.
32 And king David said, Call me Zadok the priest, and
Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king.
33 The king also said unto them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and
cause Solomon my son to ride upon mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon:
34 And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet
anoint him there king over Israel: and blow ye with the trumpet, and say, God
save king Solomon.
35 Then ye shall come up after him, that he may come and sit upon my throne;
for he shall be king in my stead: and I have appointed him to be ruler over
36 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada
answered the king, and said, Amen: Yahweh, God of my lord the king, say so
[too].
37 As Yahweh hath 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.
38 So 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.
39 And Zadok the priest took an horn of oil out of
the tabernacle, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the trumpet; and all the
people said, God save king Solomon.
40 And 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.
41 And 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, Wherefore [is this] noise of the city
being in an uproar?
42 And while he yet spake, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar
the priest came: and Adonijah said unto him, Come in;
for thou [art] a valiant man, and bringest good
tidings.
43 And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Verily
our lord king David hath made Solomon king.
44 And the king hath 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:
45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have
anointed him king in Gihon: and they are come up from
thence rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This [is] the noise that ye have
heard.
46 And also Solomon sitteth on the throne of the
kingdom.
47 And moreover the king's servants came to bless our lord king David, saying,
God make the name of Solomon better than thy name, and make his throne greater
than thy throne. And the king bowed himself upon the bed.
48 And also thus said the king, Blessed [be] Yahweh, God of Israel, Which hath
given [one] to sit on my throne this day, mine eyes even seeing [it].
49 And all the guests that [were] with Adonijah were
afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way.
50 And Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose,
and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.
51 And it was told Solomon, saying, Behold, Adonijah feareth king Solomon: for, lo, he hath caught hold on the
horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear unto me to day that he will
not slay his servant with the sword.
52 And Solomon said, If he will shew himself a worthy man, there shall not an
hair of him fall to the earth: but if wickedness shall be found in him, he
shall die.
53 So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came
and bowed himself to king Solomon: and Solomon said unto him, Go to thine
house.
1 Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; and he charged Solomon
his son, saying,
2 I go the way of all the earth: be thou strong therefore, and shew thyself a
man;
3 And keep the charge of Yahweh thy God, to walk in His ways, to keep His
statutes, and His commandments, and His judgments, and His testimonies, as it
is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest
prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest
thyself:
4 That Yahweh may continue His word which He spake concerning me, saying, If
thy 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 thee (said He) a man on the
throne of Israel.
5 Moreover thou knowest also what Joab
the son of Zeruiah did to me, [and] 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.
6 Do therefore according to thy wisdom, and let not his hoar head go down to
the grave in peace.
7 But shew kindness unto the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be of those that eat at thy table:
for so they came to me when I fled because of Absalom thy brother.
8 And, behold, [thou hast] with thee Shimei the son
of Gera, a Benjamite of Bahurim, which cursed me with a grievous curse in the day
when I went to Mahanaim: but he came down to meet me
at Jordan, and I sware to him by Yahweh, saying, I
will not put thee to death with the sword.
9 Now therefore hold him not guiltless: for thou [art] a wise man, and knowest what thou oughtest to do
unto him; but his hoar head bring thou down to the grave with blood.
10 So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of
11 And the days that David reigned over
12 Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was
established greatly.
13 And Adonijah the son of Haggith
came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, Comest
thou peaceably? And he said, Peaceably.
14 He said moreover, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And she said, Say on.
15 And he said, Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine,
and [that] all
16 And now I ask one petition of thee, deny me not. And she said unto him, Say
on.
17 And he said, Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the king, (for he will not say
thee nay,) that he give me Abishag the Shunammite to wife.
18 And Bathsheba said, Well; I will speak for thee unto the king.
19 Bathsheba 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 seat to be set for
the king's mother; and she sat on his right hand.
20 Then she said, I desire one small petition of thee; [I pray thee], say me
not nay. And the king said unto her, Ask on, my mother: for I will not say thee
nay.
21 And she said, Let Abishag the Shunammite
be given to Adonijah thy brother to wife.
22 And king Solomon answered and said unto his mother, And why dost thou ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ask for him the kingdom also; for he [is] mine
elder brother; even for him, and for Abiathar the
priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah.
23 Then king Solomon sware by Yahweh, saying, God do
so to me, and more also, if Adonijah have not spoken
this word against his own life.
24 Now therefore, [as] Yahweh liveth, Which hath
established me, and set me on the throne of David my father, and Who hath made
me an house, as He promised, Adonijah shall be put to
death this day.
25 And king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the
son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him that he died.
26 And unto Abiathar the priest said the king, Get
thee to Anathoth, unto thine own fields; for thou
[art] worthy of death: but I will not at this time put thee to death, because
thou barest the ark of the Lord Yahweh before David my father, and because thou
hast been afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted.
27 So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest
unto Yahweh; that he might fulfil the word of Yahweh,
which He spake concerning the house of Eli in
28 Then tidings came to Joab: for Joab
had turned after Adonijah, though he turned not after
Absalom. And Joab fled unto the tabernacle of Yahweh,
and caught hold on the horns of the altar.
29 And it was told king Solomon that Joab was fled
unto the tabernacle of Yahweh; and, behold, [he is] by the altar. Then Solomon
sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada,
saying, Go, fall upon him.
30 And Benaiah came to the tabernacle of Yahweh, and
said unto him, Thus saith the king, Come forth. And he said, Nay; but I will
die here. And Benaiah brought the king word again,
saying, Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me.
31 And the king said unto him, Do as he hath said, and fall upon him, and bury
him; that thou mayest take away the innocent blood,
which Joab shed, from me, and from the house of my
father.
32 And Yahweh shall return his blood upon his own head, who fell upon two men
more righteous and better than he, and slew them with the sword, my father
David not knowing [thereof, 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.
33 Their blood shall therefore return upon the head of Joab,
and upon the head of his seed for ever: but upon David, and upon his seed, and
upon his house, and upon his throne, shall there be peace for ever from Yahweh.
34 So 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.
35 And 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.
36 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said
unto him, Build thee an house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and go not forth
thence any whither.
37 For it shall be, [that] on the day thou goest out, and passest
over the brook Kidron, thou shalt know for certain
that thou shalt surely die: thy blood shall be upon thine own head.
38 And Shimei said unto the king, The saying [is]
good: as my lord the king hath said, so will thy servant do. And Shimei dwelt in
39 And it came to pass at the end of three years, that two of the servants of Shimei ran away unto Achish son
of Maachah king of
40 And Shimei arose, and saddled his ass, and went to
41 And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from
42 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said
unto him, Did I not make thee to swear by Yahweh, and protested unto thee,
saying, Know for a certain, on the day thou goest out, and walkest
abroad any whither, that thou shalt surely die? and thou saidst
unto me, The word [that] I have heard [is] good.
43 Why then hast thou not kept the oath of Yahweh, and the commandment that I
have charged thee with?
44 The king said moreover to Shimei, Thou knowest all the wickedness which thine heart is privy to,
that thou didst to David my father: therefore Yahweh shall return thy
wickedness upon thine own head;
45 And king Solomon [shall be] blessed, and the throne of David shall be
established before Yahweh for ever.
46 So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; which went out, and fell upon him, that he died.
And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
1 And Solomon made affinity with
Pharaoh king of
2 Only the people sacrificed in high places, because there was no house built
unto the name of Yahweh, until those days.
3 And Solomon loved Yahweh, walking in the statutes of David his father: only
he sacrificed and burnt incense in high places.
4 And the king went to
5 In
6 And Solomon said, Thou hast
shewed unto Thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked
before Thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with
Thee; and Thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that Thou hast given him
a son to sit on his throne, as [it is] this day.
7 And now, O Yahweh my God, Thou hast made Thy servant king instead of David my
father: and I [am but] a little child: I know not [how] to go out or come in.
8 And Thy servant [is] in the midst of Thy people which Thou hast chosen, a
great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.
9 Give therefore Thy servant an understanding heart to judge Thy people, that I
may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this Thy so great a
people?
10 And the speech pleased Yahweh, that Solomon had asked this thing.
11 And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not
asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast
asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to
discern judgment;
12 Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and
an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither
after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
13 And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be any among the kings like
unto thee all thy days.
14 And if thou wilt walk in My ways, to keep My statutes and My commandments,
as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.
15 And Solomon awoke; and, behold, [it was] a dream. And he came to
16 Then came there two women, [that were] harlots, unto the king, and stood
before him.
17 And the one woman said, O my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and
I was delivered of a child with her in the house.
18 And it came to pass the third
day after that 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.
19 And this woman's child died in the night; because she overlaid it.
20 And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while thine
handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom.
21 And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead:
but when I had considered it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, which I
did bear.
22 And the other woman said, Nay; but the living [is] my son, and the dead [is]
thy son. And this said, No; but the dead [is] thy son, and the living [is] my
son. Thus they spake before the king.
23 Then said the king, The one saith, This [is] my son that liveth, and thy son [is] the dead: and the other saith, Nay; but thy son [is] the dead, and my son [is] the living.
24 And the king said, Bring me a
sword. And they brought a sword before the king.
25 And the king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one,
and half to the other.
26 Then spake the woman whose the living child [was] unto the king, for her
bowels yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the living
child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor
thine, [but] divide [it].
27 Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise
slay it: she [is] the mother thereof.
28 And all
1 So king
Solomon was king over all
2 And these [were] the princes
which he had; Azariah the son of Zadok
the priest,
3 Elihoreph and Ahiah, the
sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat
the son of Ahilud, the recorder.
4 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada
[was] over the host: and Zadok and Abiathar [were] the priests:
5 And Azariah the son of Nathan [was] over the
officers: and Zabud the son of Nathan [was] principal
officer, [and] the king's friend:
6 And Ahishar [was] over the household: and Adoniram the son of Abda [was]
over the tribute.
7 And Solomon had twelve officers over all
8 And these [are] their names: The son of Hur, in
9 The son of Dekar,
in Makaz, and in Shaalbim,
and Bethshemesh, and Elonbethhanan:
10 The son of Hesed, in Aruboth;
to him [pertained] Sochoh, and all the land of Hepher:
11 The son of Abinadab, in all the region of Dor; which had Taphath the
daughter of Solomon to wife:
12 Baana the son of Ahilud;
[to him pertained] Taanach and Megiddo, and all Bethshean, which [is] by Zartanah
beneath Jezreel, from Bethshean
to Abelmeholah, [even] unto [the place that is]
beyond Jokneam:
13 The son of Geber, in Ramothgilead;
to him [pertained] the towns of Jair the son of Manasseh,
which [are] in Gilead; to him [also pertained] the region of Argob, which [is] in Bashan,
threescore great cities with walls and brasen bars:
14 Ahinadab the son of Iddo
[had] Mahanaim:
15 Ahimaaz [was] in Naphtali;
he also took Basmath the daughter of Solomon to wife:
16 Baanah the son of Hushai
[was] in Asher and in Aloth:
17 Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah,
in Issachar:18 Shimei the son of Elah,
in Benjamin:
19 Geber the son of Uri [was] in the country of
Gilead, [in] the country of Sihon king of the
Amorites, and of Og king of Bashan;
and [he was] the only officer which [was] in the land.
20
21 And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the river unto the land of the
Philistines, and unto the border of
22 And Solomon's provision for one day was thirty measures of fine flour, and
threescore measures of meal,
23 Ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pastures, and an hundred sheep,
beside harts, and roebucks, and fallowdeer, and
fatted fowl.
24 For he had dominion over all [the region] on this side the river, from Tiphsah even to Azzah, over all
the kings on this side the river: and he had peace on all sides round about
him.
25 And
26 And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve
thousand horsemen.
27 And those officers provided victual for king Solomon, and for all that came
unto king Solomon's table, every man in his month: they lacked nothing.
28 Barley also and straw for the horses and dromedaries brought they unto the
place where [the officers] were, every man according to his charge.
29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness
of heart, even as the sand that [is] on the sea shore.
30 And Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east
country, and all the wisdom of
31 For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite,
and Heman, and Chalcol, and
Darda, the sons of Mahol:
and his fame was in all nations round about.
32 And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and
five.
33 And he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that [is] in
34 And there came of all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings
of the earth, which had heard of his wisdom.
1 And Hiram king of
2 And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,
3 Thou knowest how that David my father could not
build an house unto the name of Yahweh his God for the wars which were about
him on every side, until Yahweh put them under the soles of his feet.
4 But now Yahweh my God hath given me rest on every side, [so that there is]
neither adversary nor evil occurrent.
5 And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of Yahweh my God, as
Yahweh spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy
throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto My name.
6 Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar trees out of
7 And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced
greatly, and said, Blessed [be] Yahweh this day, Which hath given unto David a
wise son over this great people.
8 And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, I have considered the things which thou sentest to me for: [and] I will do all thy desire
concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir.
9 My servants shall bring [them] down from
10 So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees [according to] all his
desire.
11 And 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.
12 And Yahweh gave Solomon wisdom, as He promised him: and there was peace
between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together.
13 And king Solomon raised a levy out of all
14 And he sent them to
15 And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore
thousand hewers in the mountains;
16 Beside the chief of Solomon's officers which [were] over the work, three
thousand and three hundred, which ruled over the people that wrought in the
work.
17 And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, [and]
hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house.
18 And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew [them], and the stonesquarers: so they prepared timber and stones to build
the house.
1 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 Zif, which [is] the second month, that he began to build
the house of Yahweh.
2 And the house which king Solomon built for Yahweh, the length thereof [was]
threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty [cubits], and the height
thereof thirty cubits.
3 And 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.
4 And for the house he made windows of narrow lights.
5 And against the wall of the house he built chambers round about, [against]
the walls of the house round about, [both] of the temple and of the oracle: and
he made chambers round about:
6 The nethermost chamber [was] five cubits broad, and the middle [was] six
cubits broad, and the third [was] seven cubits broad: for without [in the wall]
of the house he made narrowed rests round about, that [the beams] should not be
fastened in the walls of the house.
7 And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before
it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe [nor] any tool
of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.
8 The door for the middle chamber [was] in the right side of the house: and
they went up with winding stairs into the middle [chamber],
and out of the middle into the third.
9 So he built the house, and
finished it; and covered the house with beams and boards of cedar.
10 And [then] he built chambers against all the house,
five cubits high: and they rested on the house [with] timber of cedar.
11 And the word of Yahweh came to Solomon, saying,
12 [Concerning] this house which thou art in building, if thou wilt walk in My
statutes, and execute My judgments, and keep all My commandments to walk in
them; then will I perform My word with thee, which I spake unto David thy
father:
13 And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake My
people Israel.
14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it.
15 And he built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar, both the
floor of the house, and the walls of the ceiling: [and] he covered [them] on
the inside with wood, and covered the floor of the house with planks of fir.
16 And he built twenty cubits on the sides of the house, both the floor and the
walls with boards of cedar: he even built [them] for it within, [even] for the
oracle, [even] for the most holy [place].
17 And the house, that [is], the temple before it, was forty cubits [long].
18 And the cedar of the house within [was] carved with knops and open flowers:
all [was] cedar; there was no stone seen.
19 And the oracle he prepared in the house within, to set there the ark of the
covenant of Yahweh.
20 And the oracle in the forepart [was] twenty cubits in length, and twenty
cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof: and he overlaid it
with pure gold; and [so] covered the altar [which was of] cedar.
21 So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold: and he made a partition
by the chains of gold before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold.
22 And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the
house: also the whole altar that [was] by the oracle he overlaid with gold.
23 And within the oracle he made two cherubims [of]
olive tree, [each] ten cubits high.
24 And 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.
25 And the other cherub [was] ten cubits: both the cherubims
[were] of one measure and one size.
26 The height of the one cherub [was] ten cubits, and so [was it] of the other
cherub.
27 And he set the cherubims within the inner house:
and they stretched forth the wings of the cherubims,
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.
28 And he overlaid the cherubims with gold.
29 And he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, within and
without.
30 And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without.
31 And for the entering of the oracle he made doors [of] olive tree: the lintel
[and] side posts [were] a fifth part [of the wall].
32 The two doors also [were of] olive tree; and he carved upon them carvings of
cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, and
overlaid [them] with gold, and spread gold upon the cherubims,
and upon the palm trees.
33 So also made he for the door of the temple posts [of] olive tree, a fourth
part [of the wall].
34 And the two doors [were of] fir tree: the two leaves of the one door [were]
folding, and the two leaves of the other door [were] folding.
35 And he carved [thereon] cherubims and palm trees
and open flowers: and covered [them] with gold fitted upon the carved work.
36 And he built the inner court with three rows of hewed stone, and a row of
cedar beams.
37 In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of Yahweh laid, in the
month Zif:
38 And 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.
1 But Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all
his house.
2 He built also the house of the
3 And [it was] covered with cedar above upon the beams, that [lay] on forty
five pillars, fifteen [in] a row.
4 And [there were] windows [in] three rows, and light [was] against light [in]
three ranks.
5 And all the doors and posts [were] square, with the windows: and light [was]
against light [in] three ranks.
6 And he made a porch of pillars; the length thereof [was] fifty cubits, and
the breadth thereof thirty cubits: and the porch [was] before them: and the
[other] pillars and the thick beam [were] before them.
7 Then he made a porch for the throne where he might judge, [even] the porch of
judgment: and [it was] covered with cedar from one side of the floor to the
other.
8 And his house where he dwelt [had] another court within the porch, [which]
was of the like work. Solomon made also an house for Pharaoh's daughter, whom
he had taken [to wife], like unto this porch.
9 All these [were of] costly stones, according to the measures of hewed stones,
sawed with saws, within and without, even from the foundation unto the coping,
and [so] on the outside toward the great court.
10 And the foundation [was of] costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten
cubits, and stones of eight cubits.
11 And above [were] costly stones, after the measures of hewed stones, and
cedars.
12 And the great court round about [was] with three rows of hewed stones, and a
row of cedar beams, both for the inner court of the house of Yahweh, and for
the porch of the house.
13 And king Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of
14 He [was] a widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali,
and his father [was] a man of
15 For he cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece: and a line
of twelve cubits did compass either of them about.
16 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:
17 [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.
18 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.
19 And the chapiters that [were] upon the top of the
pillars [were] of lily work in the porch, four cubits.
20 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.
21 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.
22 And upon the top of the pillars [was] lily work: so was the work of the
pillars finished.
23 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.
24 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.
25 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.
26 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.
27 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.
28 And the work of the bases [was] on this [manner]: they had borders, and the
borders [were] between the ledges:
29 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.
30 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.
31 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.
32 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.
33 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.
34 And [there were] four undersetters to the four
corners of one base: [and] the undersetters [were] of
the very base itself.
35 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.
36 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.
37 After this [manner] he made the ten bases: all of them had one casting, one
measure, [and] one size.
38 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. 39 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.
40 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 Yahweh:
41 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;
42 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;
43 And the ten bases, and ten lavers on the bases;
44 And one sea, and twelve oxen under the sea;
45 And the pots, and the shovels, and the basons: and
all these vessels, which Hiram made to king Solomon for the house of Yahweh,
[were of] bright brass.
46 In the plain of Jordan did the king cast them, in the clay ground between
Succoth and Zarthan.
47 And Solomon left all the vessels [unweighed],
because they were exceeding many: neither was the weight of the brass found
out.
48 And Solomon made all the vessels that [pertained] unto the house of Yahweh:
the altar of gold, and the table of gold, whereupon the shewbread
[was],
49 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,
50 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.
51 So was ended all the work that king Solomon made for the house of Yahweh.
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 Yahweh.
1 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 Yahweh out of the city of David, which [is] Zion.
2 And all the men of
3 And all the elders of
4 And they brought up the ark of Yahweh, 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.
5 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.
6 And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of Yahweh unto his place,
into the oracle of the house, to the most holy [place, even] under the wings of
the cherubims.
7 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.
8 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.
9 [There was] nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put
there at Horeb, when Yahweh made [a covenant] with
the children of
10 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy [place],
that the cloud filled the house of Yahweh,
11 So that the priests could not
stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of Yahweh had filled the
house of Yahweh.
12 Then spake Solomon, Yahweh said that He would dwell in the thick darkness.
13 I have surely built Thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for Thee to
abide in for ever.
14 And the king turned his face about, and blessed all the congregation of
Israel: (and all the congregation of Israel stood;)
15 And he said, Blessed [be] Yahweh, God of Israel, Which spake with His mouth
unto David my father, and hath with His hand fulfilled [it], saying,
16 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.
17 And it was in the heart of David my father to build an house for the name of
Yahweh, God of Israel.
18 And Yahweh 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.
19 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 And Yahweh 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
21 And I have set there a place for the ark, wherein [is] the covenant of
Yahweh, which He made with our fathers, when He brought them out of the
22 And Solomon stood before the altar of Yahweh in the presence of all the
congregation of
23 And he said, Yahweh, 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:
24 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.
25 Therefore now, Yahweh, 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.
26 And now, O God of Israel, let Thy word, I pray Thee, be verified, which Thou
spakest unto Thy servant David my father.
27 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?
28 Yet have Thou respect unto the prayer of Thy servant, and to his
supplication, O Yahweh my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which
Thy servant prayeth before Thee to day:
29 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.
30 And hearken Thou to the supplication of Thy servant, and of Thy people
31 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:
32 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.
33 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:
34 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.
35 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:
36 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.
37 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];
38 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:
39 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;)
40 That they may fear Thee all the days that they live in the land which Thou gavest unto our fathers.
41 Moreover concerning a stranger, that [is] not of Thy people Israel, but
cometh out of a far country for Thy name's sake;
42 (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;
43 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.
44 If Thy people go out to battle against their enemy, whithersoever Thou shalt
send them, and shall pray unto Yahweh toward the city which Thou hast chosen,
and [toward] the house that I have built for Thy name:
45 Then hear Thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain
their cause.
46 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;
47 [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;
48 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:
49 Then hear Thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven Thy dwelling
place, and maintain their cause,
50 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:
51 For they [be] Thy people, and Thine inheritance, which Thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the
furnace of iron:
52 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.
53 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
54 And it was [so], that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this
prayer and supplication unto Yahweh, he arose from before the altar of Yahweh,
from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven.
55 And he stood, and blessed all the congregation of
56 Blessed [be] Yahweh, That hath given rest unto His people
57 Yahweh our God be with us, as He was with our fathers: let Him not leave us,
nor forsake us:
58 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.
59 And let these my words,
wherewith I have made supplication before Yahweh, be nigh unto Yahweh 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:
60 That all the people of the earth may know that Yahweh [is] God, [and that
there is] none else.
61 Let your heart therefore be perfect with Yahweh our God, to walk in His
statutes, and to keep His commandments, as at this day.
62 And the king, and all
63 And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered unto
Yahweh, two and twenty thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep.
So the king and all the children of
64 The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that [was] before
the house of Yahweh: for there he offered burnt offerings, and meat offerings,
and the fat of the peace offerings: because the brasen
altar that [was] before Yahweh [was] too little to receive the burnt offerings,
and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings.
65 And at that time Solomon held a feast, and all
66 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 Yahweh
had done for David His servant, and for
1 And it came to pass, when Solomon
had finished the building of the house of Yahweh, and the king's house, and all
Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do,
2 That Yahweh appeared to Solomon the second time, as He had appeared unto him
at Gibeon.
3 And Yahweh 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.
4 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:
5 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] 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:
7 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:
8 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 Yahweh
done thus unto this land, and to this house?
9 And they shall answer, Because they forsook Yahweh their God, Who brought
forth their fathers out of the
10 And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, when Solomon had built the
two houses, the house of Yahweh, 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.
12 And Hiram came out from
13 And he said, What cities [are] these which thou hast given me, my brother?
And he called them the
14 And Hiram sent to the king sixscore talents of
gold.
15 And this [is] the reason of the levy which king Solomon raised; for to build
the house of Yahweh, and his own house, and Millo,
and the wall of
16 [For] Pharaoh king of
17 And Solomon built Gezer, and Bethhoron
the nether,
18 And Baalath, and Tadmor
in the wilderness, in the land,
19 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.
20 [And] all the people [that were]
left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which
[were] not of the children of
21 Their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of
22 But of the children of
23 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.
24 But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of
25 And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt offerings and peace
offerings upon the altar which he built unto Yahweh, and he burnt incense upon
the altar that [was] before Yahweh. So he finished the house.
26 And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Eziongeber,
which [is] beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red sea,
in the
27 And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the
sea, with the servants of Solomon. 28 And they came to Ophir,
and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought [it]
to king Solomon.
1 And when the queen of
2 And she came to
3 And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not [any] thing hid from
the king, which he told her not.
4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house that
he had built,
5 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 Yahweh; there was no more spirit in her.
6 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 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 Happy [are] thy men, happy [are] these thy servants, which stand continually
before thee, [and] that hear thy wisdom.
9 Blessed be Yahweh thy God, Which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne
of
10 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
11 And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir,
brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees, and precious stones.
12 And the king made of the almug trees pillars for
the house of Yahweh, and for the king's house, harps also and psalteries for
singers: there came no such almug trees, nor were
seen unto this day.
13 And king Solomon gave unto the queen of
14 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred
threescore and six talents of gold,
15 Beside [that he had] of the merchantmen, and of the traffick
of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of
16 And king Solomon made two hundred targets [of] beaten gold: six hundred
[shekels] of gold went to one target.
17 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
18 Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the
best gold.
19 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.
20 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.
21 And all king Solomon's drinking vessels [were of] gold, and all the vessels
of the house of the
22 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.
23 So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for
wisdom.
24 And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put
in his heart.
25 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.
26 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
27 And the king made silver [to be] in
29 And a chariot came up and went out of
1 But king Solomon loved many
strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites,
Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians,
[and] Hittites;
2 Of the nations [concerning] which Yahweh said unto the children of Israel, Ye
shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: [for] surely they
will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.
3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and
his wives turned away his heart.
4 For 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 Yahweh his God, as
[was] the heart of David his father.
5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the
Zidonians, and after Milcom
the abomination of the Ammonites.
6 And Solomon did evil in the sight of Yahweh, and went not fully after Yahweh,
as [did] David his father.
7 Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh,
the abomination of
8 And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and
sacrificed unto their gods.
9 And Yahweh was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from Yahweh,
God of Israel, Which had appeared unto him twice,
10 And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after
other gods: but he kept not that which Yahweh commanded.
11 Wherefore Yahweh said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and
thou hast not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded thee, I
will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.
12 Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father's sake:
[but] I will rend it out of the hand of thy son.
13 Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; [but] will give one tribe to thy son for
David My servant's sake, and for
14 And Yahweh stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad
the Edomite: he [was] of the king's seed in
15 For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab
the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain, after he had smitten
every male in Edom;
16 (For six months did Joab remain there with all
Israel, until he had cut off every male in Edom:)
17 That Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his father's servants with him, to go into
Egypt; Hadad [being] yet a little child.
18 And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran: and they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to
19 And Hadad found great favour in the sight of
Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen.
20 And the sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes
weaned in Pharaoh's house: and Genubath was in
Pharaoh's household among the sons of Pharaoh.
21 And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept
with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the
host was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart,
that I may go to mine own country.
22 Then Pharaoh said unto him, But what hast thou lacked with me, that, behold,
thou seekest to go to thine own country? And he
answered, Nothing: howbeit let me go in any wise.
23 And God stirred him up [another] adversary, Rezon
the son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah:
24 And he gathered men unto him, and became captain over a band, when David
slew them [of Zobah]: and they went to Damascus, and
dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus.
25 And he was an adversary to
26 And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon's
servant, whose mother's name [was] Zeruah, a widow
woman, even he lifted up [his] hand against the king.
27 And this [was] the cause that he lifted up [his] hand against the king:
Solomon built Millo, [and] repaired the breaches of
the city of David his father.
28 And the man Jeroboam [was] a mighty man of valour:
and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler
over all the charge of the house of Joseph.
29 And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that
the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite
found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two
[were] alone in the field:
30 And Ahijah caught the new garment that [was] on
him, and rent it [in] twelve pieces:
31 And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith Yahweh, the
God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and
will give ten tribes to thee:
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:)
33 Because that they have forsaken Me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth
the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh
the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the
children of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways, to
do [that which is] right in Mine eyes, and [to keep] My statutes and My
judgments, as [did] David his father.
34 Howbeit 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, because he kept My commandments
and My statutes:
35 But I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand, and will give it unto
thee, [even] ten tribes.
36 And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David My servant may have a
light alway before Me in
37 And I will take thee, and thou
shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth,
and shalt be king over
38 And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt
walk in My ways, and do [that is] right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My
commandments, as David My servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee
a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.
39 And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever.
40 Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And Jeroboam arose, and fled into
41 And 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?
42 And the time that Solomon reigned in
43 And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his
father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.
1 And Rehoboam
went to Shechem: for all
2 And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat,
who was yet in
3 That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of
Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying,
4 Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous
service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we
will serve thee.
5 And he said unto them, Depart yet [for] three days, then come again to me.
And the people departed.
6 And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that
stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise
that I may answer this people?
7 And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people
this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them,
then they will be thy servants for ever.
8 But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and
consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, [and] which stood
before him:
9 And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we may answer this people, who
have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke which thy father did put upon us
lighter?
10 And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying, Thus
shalt thou speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made
our yoke heavy, but make thou [it] lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto
them, My little [finger] shall be thicker than my father's loins.
11 And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your
yoke: my father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with
scorpions.
12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam
the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again the third
day.
13 And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the old men's counsel
that they gave him;
14 And spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made
your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father [also] chastised you
with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
15 Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was from
Yahweh, that He might perform His saying, which Yahweh spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto
Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
16 So when all
17 But [as for] the children of
18 Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram,
who [was] over the tribute; and all
19 So
20 And it came to pass, when all
Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, 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.
21 And when Rehoboam was come to
22 But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of
God, saying,
23 Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of
Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the
people, saying,
24 Thus saith Yahweh, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the
children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from Me.
They hearkened therefore to the word of Yahweh, and returned to depart,
according to the word of Yahweh.
25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem in
26 And Jeroboam said in his heart,
Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:
27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of Yahweh at Jerusalem,
then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, [even] unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go
again to Rehoboam king of Judah.
28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves [of] gold, and said
unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O
Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
29 And he set the one in
30 And this thing became a sin: for
the people went [to worship] before the one, [even] unto Dan.
31 And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the
people, which were not of the sons of Levi.
32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of
the month, like unto the feast that [is] in
33 So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day
of the eighth month, [even] in the month which he had devised of his own heart;
and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the
altar, and burnt incense.
1 And, behold, there came a man of
God out of
2 And he cried against the altar in the word of Yahweh, and said, O altar,
altar, thus saith Yahweh; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of
David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high
places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee.
3 And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This [is] the sign which Yahweh hath
spoken; Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that [are] upon it shall
be poured out.
4 And it came to pass, when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God,
which had cried against the altar in
5 The 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 Yahweh.
6 And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat
now the face of Yahweh thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored
me again. And the man of God besought Yahweh, and the king's hand was restored
him again, and became as [it was] before.
7 And the king said unto the man of God, Come home with me, and refresh
thyself, and I will give thee a reward.
8 And the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt give me half thine house,
I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this
place:
9 For so was it charged me by the word of Yahweh, saying, Eat no bread, nor
drink water, nor turn again by the same way that thou camest.
10 So he went another way, and returned not by the way that he came to
11 Now there dwelt an old prophet in
12 And their father said unto them, What way went he? For his sons had seen
what way the man of God went, which came from
13 And he said unto his sons, Saddle me the ass. So they saddled him the ass:
and he rode thereon,
14 And went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak: and he
said unto him, [Art] thou the man of God that camest
from
15 Then he said unto him, Come home with me, and eat bread.
16 And he said, I may not return with thee, nor go in with thee: neither will I
eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place:
17 For it was said to me by the word of Yahweh, Thou shalt eat no bread nor
drink water there, nor turn again to go by the way that thou camest.
18 He said unto him, I [am] a prophet also as thou [art]; and an angel spake
unto me by the word of Yahweh, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine
house, that he may eat bread and drink water. [But] he lied unto him.
19 So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water.
20 And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of Yahweh came
unto the prophet that brought him back:
21 And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith
Yahweh, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of Yahweh, and hast not kept
the commandment which Yahweh thy God commanded thee,
22 But camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk
water in the place, of the which [Yahweh] did say to thee, Eat no bread, and
drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers.
23 And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and after he had drunk, that
he saddled for him the ass, [to wit], for the prophet whom he had brought back.
24 And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him: and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, the
lion also stood by the carcase.
25 And, behold, men passed by, and saw the carcase
cast in the way, and the lion standing by the carcase:
and they came and told [it] in the city where the old prophet dwelt.
26 And when the prophet that
brought him back from the way heard [thereof], he said, It
[is] the man of God, who was disobedient unto the word of Yahweh: therefore
Yahweh hath delivered him unto the lion, which hath torn him, and slain him,
according to the word of Yahweh, which He spake unto him.
27 And he spake to his sons, saying, Saddle me the ass. And they saddled [him].
28 And he went and found his carcase cast in the way,
and the ass and the lion standing by the carcase: the
lion had not eaten the carcase, nor torn the ass.
29 And the prophet took up the carcase of the man of
God, and laid it upon the ass, and brought it back: and the old prophet came to
the city, to mourn and to bury him.
30 And he laid his carcase in his own grave; and they
mourned over him, [saying], Alas, my brother!
31 And it came to pass, after he had buried him, that he spake to his sons,
saying, When I am dead, then bury me in the sepulchre
wherein the man of God [is] buried; lay my bones beside his bones:
32 For the saying which he cried by the word of Yahweh against the altar in
Bethel, and against all the houses of the high places which [are] in the cities
of Samaria, shall surely come to pass.
33 After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made again of
the lowest of the people priests of the high places: whosoever would, he
consecrated him, and he became [one] of the priests of the high places.
34 And this thing became sin unto the house of Jeroboam, even to cut [it] off,
and to destroy [it] from off the face of the earth.
1 At that time Abijah
the son of Jeroboam fell sick.
2 And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that
thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold,
there [is] Ahijah the prophet, which told me that [I
should be] king over this people.
3 And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to
him: he shall tell thee what shall become of the child.
4 And Jeroboam's wife did so, and arose, and went to
5 And Yahweh said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of
Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he [is] sick: thus and
thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she
shall feign herself [to be] another [woman].
6 And it was [so], when Ahijah heard the sound of her
feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam;
why feignest thou thyself [to be] another? for I [am]
sent to thee [with] heavy [tidings].
7 Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith Yahweh, God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted
thee from among the people, and made thee prince over My
people
8 And rent the kingdom away from
the house of David, and gave it thee: and [yet] thou hast not been as My
servant David, who kept My commandments, and who followed Me with all his
heart, to do [that] only [which was] right in Mine eyes;
9 But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and
made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke Me to anger, and hast cast
Me behind thy back:
10 Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will
cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the
wall, [and] him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the
remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh
away dung, till it be all gone.
11 Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the
dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the
fowls of the air eat: for Yahweh hath spoken [it].
12 Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: [and] when thy feet enter
into the city, the child shall die.
13 And all
14 Moreover Yahweh shall raise Him up a king over
15 For Yahweh shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and He
shall root up Israel out of this good land, which He gave to their fathers, and
shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves,
provoking Yahweh to anger.
16 And He shall give
17 And Jeroboam's wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah:
[and] when she came to the threshold of the door, the child died;
18 And they buried him; and all
19 And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred, and how he reigned,
behold, they [are] written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of
20 And the days which Jeroboam reigned [were] two and twenty years: and he
slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in
his stead.
21 And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in
22 And
23 For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high
hill, and under every green tree.
24 And there were also sodomites in
the land: [and] they did according to all the abominations of the nations which
Yahweh cast out before the children of
26 And he took away the treasures of the house of Yahweh the treasures of the
king's house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold
which Solomon had made.
27 And king Rehoboam made in their stead brasen shields, and committed [them] unto the hands of the
chief of the guard, which kept the door of the king's house.
28 And it was [so], when the king went into the house of Yahweh, that the guard
bare them, and brought them back into the guard chamber.
29 Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that
he did, [are] they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of
30 And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam
all [their] days.
31 And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was
buried with his fathers in the city of
1 Now in the eighteenth year of
king Jeroboam the son of Nebat reigned
Abijam over
2 Three years reigned
he in
3 And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him:
and his heart was not perfect with Yahweh his God, as the heart of David his
father.
4 Nevertheless for David's sake did Yahweh his God give him a lamp in Jerusalem,
to set up his son after him, and to establish Jerusalem:
5 Because David did [that which was] right in the eyes of Yahweh, and turned
not aside from any [thing] that He commanded him all the days of his life, save
only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.
6 And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all
the days of his life.
7 Now the rest of the acts of Abijam, and all that he
did, [are] they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of
8 And Abijam slept with his fathers; and they buried
him in the city of
9 And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of
10 And forty and one years reigned he in
11 And Asa did [that which was] right in the eyes of
Yahweh, as [did] David his father.
12 And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and removed all the idols
that his fathers had made.
13 And also Maachah his mother, even her he removed
from [being] queen, because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa destroyed her idol, and burnt [it] by the brook Kidron.
14 But the high places were not
removed: nevertheless Asa's heart was perfect with
Yahweh all his days.
15 And he brought in the things which his father had dedicated, and the things
which himself had dedicated, into the house of Yahweh, silver, and gold, and
vessels.
16 And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of
17 And Baasha king of
18 Then Asa took all the silver and the gold [that
were] left in the treasures of the house of Yahweh, and the treasures of the
king's house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants: and king Asa sent them to Benhadad, the
son of Tabrimon, the son of Hezion,
king of Syria, that dwelt at Damascus, saying,
19 [There is] a league between me and thee, [and] between my father and thy
father: behold, I have sent unto thee a present of silver and gold; come and
break thy league with Baasha king of Israel, that he
may depart from me.
20 So Benhadad hearkened unto king Asa, and sent the captains of the hosts which he had
against the cities of
21 And it came to pass, when Baasha heard [thereof],
that he left off building of Ramah, and dwelt in Tirzah.
22 Then king Asa made a proclamation throughout all
23 The rest of all the acts of Asa, and all his
might, and all that he did, and the cities which he built, [are] they not
written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of