1 Kings 4

1 And king Solomon was king over all Israel.

King Solomon ruled over all of Israel.

2 And these are the princes whom he had: Azariah the son of Zadok was priest;

These were his officials: Azariah, son of Zadok, was the priest;

3 Elihoreph and Ahiah, the sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, chronicler;

Elihoreph and Ahijah, sons of Shisha, were the king's secretaries. Jehoshaphat, son of Ahilud, kept the royal records.

4 and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the host; and Zadok and Abiathar were priests;

Benaiah son of Jehoiada was the army commander. Zadok and Abiathar were priests.

5 and Azariah the son of Nathan was over the superintendents; and Zabud the son of Nathan was principal officer, the king's friend;

Azariah, son of Nathan, was in charge of the governors. Zabud, son of Nathan, was a priest and the king's counselor.

6 and Ahishar was over the household; and Adoniram the son of Abda was over the levy-service.

Ahishar was the palace manager. Adoniram, son of Abda, was in charge of those forced to work for the king.

7 And Solomon had twelve superintendents over all Israel; and they provided food for the king and his household: each man his month in the year had to make provision.

Solomon had twelve area governors whose responsibilities covered the whole of Israel, providing food for the king and his household. Each one in turn arranged supplies for one month of the year.

8 And these are their names: Ben-Hur, in mount Ephraim.

Their names were: Ben-hur, in the hill country of Ephraim;

9 Ben-Deker in Makaz, and in Shaalbim, and Beth-shemesh, and Elon-Beth-hanan.

Ben-deker in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-shemesh and Elon-beth-hanan;

10 Ben-Hesed, in Arubboth; he had Sochoh, and all the land of Hepher.

Ben-hesed in Arubboth (Socoh and all the land of Hepher was his);

11 Ben-Abinadab had all the upland of Dor; Taphath the daughter of Solomon was his wife.

Ben-abinadab, in the whole of Naphath-dor (Taphath, the daughter of Solomon, was his wife);

12 Baana the son of Ahilud had Taanach and Megiddo, and all Beth-shean, which is by Zaretan beneath Jizreel, from Beth-shean to Abel-Meholah, as far as beyond Jokneam.

Baana, son of Ahilud, in Taanach and Megiddo, the whole of Beth-shan near Zarethan below Jezreel, and from Beth-shan to Abel-meholah and across to Jokmeam;

13 Ben-Geber, in Ramoth-Gilead; he had the villages of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead; he had the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty great cities with walls and bars of bronze.

Ben-geber, in Ramoth-gilead (the towns of Jair, son of Manasseh, in Gilead belonged to him, as well as the region of Argob in Bashan, with sixty great cities having walls and bronze bars);

14 Ahinadab the son of Iddo, at Mahanaim.

Ahinadab, son of Iddo, in Mahanaim;

15 Ahimaaz, in Nephtali; he also took Basmath the daughter of Solomon as wife.

Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he had married Basemath the daughter of Solomon);

16 Baanah the son of Hushai, in Asher and in Aloth.

Baana, son of Hushai, in Asher and in Aloth;

17 Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar.

Jehoshaphat, son of Paruah, in Issachar;

18 Shimei the son of Ela, in Benjamin.

Shimei, son of Ela, in Benjamin;

19 Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the land of Sihon the king of the Amorites, and of Og the king of Bashan; and [he was] the only superintendent that was in the land.

Geber son of Uri in the land of Gilead, (the former country of Sihon, king of the Amorites, and of Og, king of Bashan. There was also a governor who was over the land of Judah).

20 Judah and Israel were many, as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and making merry.

Judah and Israel had become as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They ate, they drank, they were happy.

21 And Solomon ruled over all kingdoms from the river to the land of the Philistines, and as far as the border of Egypt: they brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his life.

Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River to the land of the Philistines, right up to the border of Egypt. They presented tribute to Solomon and served him during his lifetime.

22 And Solomon's provision for one day was thirty measures of fine flour, and sixty measures of meal,

The food required every day for Solomon's court was thirty cors of the best flour and sixty cors of meal;

23 ten fatted oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pastures, and a hundred sheep, besides harts, and gazelles, and fallow-deer, and fatted fowl.

ten fattened cattle, twenty range cattle, one hundred sheep, as well as deer, gazelles, roe deer, and fattened poultry.

24 For he had dominion over all on this side the river, from Tiphsah as far as Gazah, over all the kings on this side the river; and he had peace on all sides round about.

For Solomon ruled over the whole region west of the Euphrates, from Tiphsah to Gaza—over all the kingdoms west of the Euphrates. And he had peace on all sides around him. He had peace on every border.

25 And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under his vine and under his fig-tree, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, all the days of Solomon.

During Solomon's lifetime, everyone in Judah and Israel lived in safety, from Dan to Beersheba. Each one had their own vine and fig tree.

26 And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen.

Solomon had 40,000 stalls for his chariot horses, and 12,000 charioteers.

27 And those officers provided food for king Solomon, and for all who came to king Solomon's table, every man in his month: they let nothing be wanting.

Every month the area governors provided in turn food for King Solomon and all who ate at his table. They made sure that nothing was missing.

28 And the barley, and the straw for the horses and coursers, they brought to the place where [the superintendents] were, every man according to his charge.

They also delivered barley and straw where they were needed for the chariot horses and cart-horses.

29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and very great understanding and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea-shore.

God gave to Solomon wisdom, very great discernment, and understanding as extensive as the sand on the seashore.

30 And Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the sons of the east, and all the wisdom of Egypt.

Solomon's wisdom was greater than that of all the Eastern wise men, greater than all of Egypt's wisdom.

31 For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the nations round about.

He was wiser than anyone, wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, wiser than Heman, Calcol, and Darda, sons of Mahol. His reputation spread through the nations around.

32 And he spoke three thousand proverbs; and his songs were a thousand and five.

Solomon composed three thousand proverbs and one thousand and five songs.

33 And he spoke of the trees, from the cedar-tree that is on Lebanon even to the hyssop that springs out of the wall; he spoke also of cattle, and of fowls, and of creeping things, and of fishes.

He was able to discuss knowledge of trees, from the cedar in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows in the wall. He taught about animals, birds, reptiles, and fish.

34 And there came of all peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom.

People from all nations came to hear Solomon's wisdom. They were sent by all the kings of the earth, who had heard about his wisdom.