And LORD said to him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, which thou have made before me. I have hallowed this house, which thou have built, to put my name there forever. And my eyes and my heart shall be there perpetuall

And as for thee, if thou will 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 will keep my statutes and my ordinances,

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

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 peoples.

And though this house is so high, yet shall every man who passes by it be astonished, and shall hiss. And they shall say, Why has LORD done thus to this land, and to this house?

and they shall answer, Because they forsook LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshipped them, and served them; therefore has LORD brought all this evil upon

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

(now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees, and with gold, according to all his desire), that king Solomon then gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.

And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him. And they did not please him.

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

And Hiram sent to the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold.

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

Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites who dwelt in the city, and given it for a portion to his daughter, Solomon's wife.

And Solomon built Gezer, and Beth-horon the nether,

and Baalath, and Tamar in the wilderness, in the land,

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

As for all the people who were left of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not of the sons of Israel,

But of the sons of Israel Solomon made no bondservants, but they were the men of war, and his servants, and his rulers, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots and of his horsemen.

These were the chief officers who were over Solomon's work, five hundred and fifty, who bore rule over the people that labored in the work.

And three times a year Solomon offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings upon the altar which he built to LORD, burning incense therewith, [upon the altar] that was before LORD. So he finished the house.

And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion-geber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom.

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

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

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

And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bore spices, and very much gold, and precious stones. And when she came to Solomon, she conversed with him of all that was in her heart.

And Solomon answered to her all her questions; there was not anything hid from the king which he did not answer.

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

and the food of his table, and the seating of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up to the house of LORD, there was no more spirit in her.

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

However I did not believe the words until I came, and my eyes had seen it. And, behold, the half was not told me; thy wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame which I heard.

Blessed be LORD thy God, who delighted in thee to set thee on the throne of Israel. Because LORD loved Israel forever, therefore he made thee king, to do justice and righteousness.

And she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices a very great store, and precious stones. There came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon.

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

And the king made pillars of the almug trees for the house of LORD, and for the king's house, also harps and psalteries for the singers. There have come no such almug trees, nor were seen, to this day.

And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatever she asked, besides that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned, and went to her own land, she and her servants.

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

besides [that which] the traders [brought], and the traffic of the merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia, and of the governors of the country.

And king Solomon made two hundred bucklers of beaten gold; six hundred [shekels] of gold went to one buckler.

And [he made] three hundred shields of beaten gold; three pounds of gold went to one shield. And the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.

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

There were six steps to the throne, and the top of the throne was round behind. And there were supports on either side by the place of the seat, and two lions standing beside the supports.

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.

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

For the king had at sea a navy of Tarshish with the navy of Hiram. Once every three years the navy of Tarshish came, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.

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

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

And every man brought his tribute, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, and armor, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.

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

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

And the horses which Solomon had were brought out of Egypt. And the king's merchants received them in herds, each herd at a price.

And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred [shekels] of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. And so for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, they brought them out by their means.

Now king Solomon loved many foreign women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites,

And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines. And his wives turned away his heart.

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 LORD his God as was the heart of David his father.

For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.

And Solomon did that which was evil in the sight of LORD, and went not fully after LORD as did David his father.

Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab on the mount that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the sons of Ammon.

And so he did for all his foreign wives, who burnt incense and sacrificed to their gods.

And LORD was angry with Solomon because his heart was turned away from LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice,

and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep that which LORD commanded.

Therefore LORD said to Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done by thee, and thou have 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.

However I will not rend away all the kingdom, but I will give one tribe to thy son, for David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen.

And LORD raised up an adversary to Solomon, Hadad the Edomite. He was of the king's seed in Edom.

For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the army was gone up to bury the slain, and had smitten every male in Edom

(for Joab and all Israel remained there six months until he had cut off every male in Edom),

that Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his father's servants with him, to go into Egypt, Hadad being yet a little child.

And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran. And they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave him a house, and appointed him provisions, and gave him land.

And Hadad found great favor in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen.

And the sister of Tahpenes bore him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh's house. And Genubath was in Pharaoh's house among the sons of Pharaoh.

And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the army was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart that I may go to my own country.

Then Pharaoh said to him, But what have thou lacked with me, that, behold, thou seek to go to thine own country? And he answered, Nothing, however only let me depart.

And God raised up [another] adversary to him, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah.

And he gathered men to him, and became captain over a troop when David killed them [of Zobah]. And they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus.

And he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, besides the mischief that Hadad [did]. And he abhorred Israel, and reigned over Syria.

And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow, he also lifted up his hand against the king.

And this was the reason why he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breach of the city of David his father.

And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor. And Solomon saw the young man that he was industrious, and he gave him charge over all the labor of the house of Joseph.

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. Now [Ahijah] had clad himself with a new garment, and the two were alone in the field.

And Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him, and tore it in twelve pieces.

And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces, for thus says LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee

(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),

because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the sons of Ammon. And they have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in my

However 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, who kept my commandments and my statutes.

But I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand, and will give it to thee, even ten tribes.

And I will give one tribe to his son, that David my servant may have a lamp always before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen for me to put my name there.

And I will take thee, and thou shall reign according to all that thy soul desires, and shall be king over Israel.

And it shall be, if thou will hearken to all that I command thee, and will walk in my ways, and do that which is right in my eyes, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did. That I will be with thee, and will

And for this I will afflict the seed of David, but not forever.

Solomon therefore sought to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.

Now 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?

And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.

And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.

And Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel came to Shechem to make him king.

And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was yet in Egypt where he had fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt,

and they sent and called him), that Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came, and spoke to Rehoboam, saying,

Thy father made our yoke grievous. Now therefore make thou lighter the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, and we will serve thee.

And he said to them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed.

And king Rehoboam took counsel with the old men who had stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, saying, What counsel give ye to me to return an answer to this people?

And they spoke to him, saying, If thou will be a servant to this people this day, and will serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants forever.

But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and took counsel with the young men that grew up with him, who stood before him.