Solomon's Officials
1 Solomon was king of all Israel, 2 and these were his high officials:
The priest: Azariah son of Zadok3 The court secretaries: Elihoreph and Ahijah, sons of ShishaIn charge of the records: Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud4 Commander of the army: Benaiah son of JehoiadaPriests: Zadok and Abiathar5 Chief of the district governors: Azariah son of NathanRoyal Adviser: the priest Zabud son of Nathan6 In charge of the palace servants: AhisharIn charge of the forced labor: Adoniram son of Abda7 Solomon appointed twelve men as district governors in Israel. They were to provide food from their districts for the king and his household, each man being responsible for one month out of the year. 8 The following are the names of these twelve officers and the districts they were in charge of:
Benhur: the hill country of Ephraim9 Bendeker: the cities of Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh, Elon, and Beth Hanan10 Benhesed: the cities of Arubboth and Socoh and all the territory of Hepher11 Benabinadab, who was married to Solomon's daughter Taphath: the whole region of Dor12 Baana son of Ahilud: the cities of Taanach, Megiddo, and all the region near Beth Shan, near the town of Zarethan, south of the town of Jezreel, as far as the city of Abel Meholah and the city of Jokmeam13 Bengeber: the city of Ramoth in Gilead, and the villages in Gilead belonging to the clan of Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, and the region of Argob in Bashan, sixty large towns in all, fortified with walls and with bronze bars on the gates14 Ahinadab son of Iddo: the district of Mahanaim15 Ahimaaz, who was married to Basemath, another of Solomon's daughters: the territory of Naphtali16 Baana son of Hushai: the region of Asher and the town of Bealoth17 Jehoshaphat son of Paruah: the territory of Issachar18 Shimei son of Ela: the territory of Benjamin19 Geber son of Uri: the region of Gilead, which had been ruled by King Sihon of the Amorites and King Og of BashanBesides these twelve, there was one governor over the whole land.
Solomon's Prosperous Reign
20 The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashore; they ate and drank, and were happy. 21 Solomon's kingdom included all the nations from the Euphrates River to Philistia and the Egyptian border. They paid him taxes and were subject to him all his life.
22 The supplies Solomon needed each day were 150 bushels of fine flour and 300 bushels of meal; 23 10 stall-fed cattle, 20 pasture-fed cattle, and 100 sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and poultry.
24 Solomon ruled over all the land west of the Euphrates River, from Tiphsah on the Euphrates as far west as the city of Gaza. All the kings west of the Euphrates were subject to him, and he was at peace with all the neighboring countries. 25 As long as he lived, the people throughout Judah and Israel lived in safety, each family with its own grapevines and fig trees.
26 Solomon had forty thousand stalls for his chariot horses and twelve thousand cavalry horses. 27 His twelve governors, each one in the month assigned to him, supplied the food King Solomon needed for himself and for all who ate in the palace; they always supplied everything needed. 28 Each governor also supplied his share of barley and straw, where it was needed, for the chariot horses and the work animals.
29 God gave Solomon unusual wisdom and insight, and knowledge too great to be measured. 30 Solomon was wiser than the wise men of the East or the wise men of Egypt. 31 He was the wisest of all men: wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol, and his fame spread throughout all the neighboring countries. 32 He composed three thousand proverbs and more than a thousand songs. 33 He spoke of trees and plants, from the Lebanon cedars to the hyssop that grows on walls; he talked about animals, birds, reptiles, and fish. 34 Kings all over the world heard of his wisdom and sent people to listen to him.
© Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.