Why did the queen of Saba come to Solomon, and what did she find?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

She came to test his fame with hard questions. He explained everything she proposed, and what she saw of his wisdom, household and offerings astonished her; she said scarcely half his wisdom had been reported and blessed God for making him king to do judgment and justice.

Chapter breakdown

The queen of Saba admires Solomon’s wisdom; the chapter records his riches, glory and death.

Hearing Solomon’s fame, the queen of Saba came to Jerusalem to test him with hard questions. She brought great riches and camels carrying spices, abundant gold and precious stones, and proposed everything in her heart. Solomon explained everything she proposed, leaving nothing unclear. She saw his wisdom and built house, the food at his table, his servants’ dwellings, his officers’ attendance and clothing, his cupbearers and their garments, and the victims offered in the Lord’s house. She was so astonished that there was no more spirit in her.

She said the reports of his virtues and wisdom in her country were true. She had not believed until seeing for herself, and found scarcely half his wisdom had been reported: his virtues exceeded it. She called his men and servants happy for always standing before him and hearing his wisdom. She blessed the Lord his God, pleased to set him on his throne as king of the Lord his God. She said God loved Israel and would preserve them for ever, and therefore made Solomon king to do judgment and justice. She gave him 120 talents of gold, abundant spices and most precious stones; there were no spices like those she gave.

Hiram’s servants with Solomon’s brought gold from Ophir, thyine trees and most precious stones. Solomon made the trees into stairs in the Lord’s house and his own, and harps and psalteries for the singing men. Such trees had never been seen in Juda. Solomon gave the queen everything she desired and requested, and many more things than she brought him. She returned to her country with her servants.

The gold brought to Solomon each year weighed 666 talents, besides what deputies of various nations and merchants customarily brought, and the gold and silver brought by Arabia’s kings and the lords of the lands. He made 200 golden spears using 600 pieces of gold for each and 300 golden shields with 300 pieces covering each shield. He put them in the armoury surrounded by a wood.

He made a great ivory throne overlaid with pure gold, with six steps, a gold footstool, two arms, one on each side, and two lions beside the arms. Twelve other little lions stood on both sides of the steps; no kingdom had such a throne. All his table vessels were gold, and those of the house of the forest of Libanus were purest gold. Silver was of no account in those days. His ships went to Tharsis with Hiram’s servants once every three years, bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes and peacocks.

Solomon was magnified above all the earth’s kings in riches and glory. They wanted to see him to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart. Each year they brought gifts: silver and gold vessels, garments, armour, spices, horses and mules. He had 40,000 horses in stables and 12,000 chariots, and horsemen, placing them in chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. He ruled over all kings from the Euphrates to the Philistines’ land and Egypt’s borders. He made silver as plentiful as stones in Jerusalem and cedars as common as sycamores in the plains. Horses came from Egypt and all countries.

The account refers the rest of Solomon’s acts, first and last, to Nathan the prophet’s words, the books of Ahias the Silonite and Addo the seer’s vision against Jeroboam son of Nabat. Solomon reigned over all Israel in Jerusalem for 40 years. He slept with his fathers and was buried in David’s city. His son Roboam reigned in his place.

The story inside

The queen’s visit begins with a purpose: she has heard Solomon’s fame and wants to test him. His complete answers and the particular things she sees lead to her astonishment, confirmation of the reports and blessing. Their gifts are recorded alongside the imported thyine trees and their uses. The account then turns from this visit to annual gold, additional receipts, spears and shields, the throne’s arrangement, vessels and three-year ships. It describes the kings seeking God-given wisdom and bringing yearly gifts, Solomon’s forces and authority, and abundant materials. The closing notice names records of other acts, his 40-year reign, death, burial and Roboam’s succession. No causal claim is added that trade itself produced every abundance or that all forty years shared one moral character.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The queen tests and then speaks from what she has seen. Solomon answers all her proposals, and the account names the table, dwellings, officers, clothing, cupbearers and offerings that astonish her. Her statement about scarcely half his wisdom being reported is not a numerical measure of every part of his court. Her blessing identifies judgment and justice as the purpose of his kingship.
2
The wealth counts concern different receipts and objects. Her gift is 120 talents; annual gold is 666 talents plus the separately named customary receipts. Each of 200 spears uses 600 gold pieces, while each of 300 shields has 300 pieces in its covering. The throne has two lions by its arms and twelve little lions on its steps, preserving their distinct positions rather than just a total.
3
The ending gives military figures, boundaries and named records without silently harmonizing them. This admitted text has 40,000 stable horses,12,000 chariots and horsemen, stationed in chariot cities and Jerusalem. Nathan, Ahias and Addo are named in different forms of record, with Addo’s vision against Jeroboam son of Nabat. The 40-year reign ends with burial in David’s city and Roboam’s succession; this is no claim that the external records have been independently recovered or verified here.

Test your recall

Solomon’s fame reaches Saba → the queen comes to test him with hard questions. He clears every proposal and she sees the named household and offerings → she is astonished and confirms the reports fell short. Imported thyine trees arrive → Solomon uses them for stairs in both houses and instruments for singers. Kings seek the wisdom God gave Solomon → they desire to see him and bring yearly presents. Solomon dies after 40 years reigning → he is buried in David’s city and Roboam succeeds him.

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 45115–45118
2 Paralipomenon Chapter 9 The queen of Saba admireth the wisdom of Solomon. His riches and glory. His death.
Lines 45120–45136
9:1. And when the queen of Saba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to try him with hard questions at Jerusalem, with great riches, and camels, which carried spices, and abundance of gold, and precious stones. And when she was come to Solomon, she proposed to him all that was in her heart. 9:2. And Solomon explained to her all that she proposed: and there was not any thing that he did not make clear unto her. 9:3. And when she had seen these things, to wit, the wisdom of Solomon, and the house which he had built, 9:4. And the meats of his table, and the dwelling places of his servants, and the attendance of his officers, and their apparel, his cupbearers also, and their garments, and the victims which he offered in the house of the Lord: there was no more spirit in her, she was so astonished.
Lines 45138–45155
9:5. And she said to the king: The word is true which I heard in my country of thy virtues and wisdom. 9:6. I did not believe them that told it, until I came, and my eyes had seen, and I had proved that scarce one half of thy wisdom had been told me: thou hast exceeded the same with thy virtues. 9:7. Happy are thy men, and happy are thy servants, who stand always before thee, and hear thy wisdom. 9:8. Blessed be the Lord thy God, who hath been pleased to set thee on his throne, king of the Lord thy God. Because God loveth Israel, and will preserve them forever: therefore hath he made thee king over them, to do judgment and justice. 9:9. And she gave to the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and spices in great abundance, and most precious stones: there were no such spices as these which the queen of Saba gave to king Solomon.
Lines 45157–45166
9:10. And the servants also of Hiram, with the servants of Solomon, brought gold from Ophir, and thyine trees, and most precious stones: 9:11. And the king made of the thyine trees stairs in the house of the Lord, and in the king’s house, and harps and psalteries for the singing men: never were there seen such trees in the land of Juda. 9:12. And king Solomon gave to the queen of Saba all that she desired, and that she asked, and many more things than she brought to him: so she returned, and went to her own country with her servants.
Lines 45168–45180
9:13. And the weight of the gold, that was brought to Solomon every year, was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold: 9:14. Beside the sum which the deputies of divers nations, and the merchants were accustomed to bring, and all the kings of Arabia, and the lords of the lands, who brought gold and silver to Solomon. 9:15. And king Solomon made two hundred golden spears, of the sum of six hundred pieces of gold, which went to every spear: 9:16. And three hundred golden shields of three hundred pieces of gold, which went to the covering of every shield: and the king put them in the armoury, which was compassed with a wood.
Lines 45182–45197
9:17. The king also made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold. 9:18. And six steps to go up to the throne, and a footstool of gold, and two arms one on either side, and two lions standing by the arms: 9:19. Moreover twelve other little lions standing upon the steps on both sides: there was not such a throne in any kingdom. 9:20. And all the vessels of the king’s table were of gold, and the vessels of the house of the forest of Libanus were of the purest gold. For no account was made of silver in those days. 9:21. For the king’s ships went to Tharsis with the servants of Hiram, once in three years: and they brought thence gold and silver, and ivory, and apes, and peacocks.
Lines 45199–45220
9:22. And Solomon was magnified above all the kings of the earth for riches and glory. 9:23. And all the kings of the earth desired to see the face of Solomon, that they might hear the wisdom which God had given in his heart. 9:24. And every year they brought him presents, vessels of silver and of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, and horses, and mules. 9:25. And Solomon had forty thousand horses in the stables, and twelve thousand chariots, and horsemen, and he placed them in the cities of the chariots and where the king was in Jerusalem. 9:26. And he exercised authority over all the kings from the river Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, and to the borders of Egypt. 9:27. And he made silver as plentiful in Jerusalem as stones: and cedars as common as the sycamores, which grow in the plains. 9:28. And horses were brought to him out of Egypt, and out of all countries.
Lines 45222–45230
9:29. Now the rest of the acts of Solomon first and last are written in the words of Nathan the prophet, and in the books of Ahias the Silonite, and in the vision of Addo the seer, against Jeroboam the son of Nabat. 9:30. And Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years. 9:31. And he slept with his fathers: and they buried him in the city of David: and Roboam his son reigned in his stead.