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What a Queen Thought of Solomon 

First Kings 10

Don Ruhl • Savage Street, Grants Pass, Oregon • October 19, In the year of our Lord, 2016

  1. First Kings 10.1 | Testing a Wiseman

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

    1. I wish we knew her hard questions!
    2. If you could test Solomon with hard questions, what would you ask him?
  2. First Kings 10.2–3 | The Gifts of the Queen

    2 She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels that bore spices, very much gold, and precious stones; and when she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about all that was in her heart. 3 So Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing so difficult for the king that he could not explain it to her.

    1. Why did she bring all these gifts?
      1. Even as she went to see his kingdom, so she wanted him to see things from her kingdom.
      2. The abundance of her gifts may have been an outward sign of the abundance of her heart, of which she spoke to the Solomon.
      3. She wanted to be part of something grand!
      4. He had stuff from other kingdoms, she did not want to be left out.
    2. Who is the kind of person to whom you will speak all that is in your heart?
    3. I wish that we could know the answers he gave to her tough questions!
  3. First Kings 10.4–5 | The Spirit of the Queen

    4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, 5 the food on his table, the seating of his servants, the service of his waiters and their apparel, his cupbearers, and his entryway by which he went up to the house of the LORD, there was no more spirit in her.

    1. What caused her to have no more spirit in her?
    2. Why would all those things do that to her?
    3. Has anything ever done that to you?
  4. First Kings 10.6–9 | The Commendation of the Queen

    6 Then she said to the king: “It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. 7 However I did not believe the words until I came and saw with my own eyes; and indeed the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame of which I heard. 8 Happy are your men and happy are these your servants, who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom! 9 Blessed be the LORD your God, who delighted in you, setting you on the throne of Israel! Because the LORD has loved Israel forever, therefore He made you king, to do justice and righteousness.”

    1. Why did she not initially believe?
      1. What did she do?
      2. What did she find out?
      3. Is it possible that when we arrive at heaven and see God, Jesus, and the Spirit, all the angels, all the redeemed, and the beauty of heaven, that we will say that the half was not told to us?
    2. Why were Solomon’s men and servants happy?
    3. Why did she bless God?
  5. First Kings 10.10–11 | The Queen Gave an Abundance of Spices

    10 Then she gave the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold, spices in great quantity, and precious stones. There never again came such abundance of spices as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon. 11 Also, the ships of Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, brought great quantities of almug wood and precious stones from Ophir.

    1. How much gold did she give Solomon?
    2. What else did she give Solomon in abundance that it has not been equalled?
    3. What did Hiram give Solomon?
  6. First Kings 10.12 | Almug Wood Like Gopher Wood, Non-Existent Today

    12 And the king made steps of the almug wood for the house of the LORD and for the king’s house, also harps and stringed instruments for singers. There never again came such almug wood, nor has the like been seen to this day.

    1. What did Solomon have instead of the latest stereo equipment?
    2. What was also unique in the days of Solomon?
  7. First Kings 10.13 | Solomon Gave to the Queen

    13 Now King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired, whatever she asked, besides what Solomon had given her according to the royal generosity. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants.

    1. How much did Solomon give the Queen of Sheba?
    2. She returned to her country, but today we are not sure what country that was.
  8. First Kings 10.14–15 | The Annual Income of Solomon

    14 The weight of gold that came to Solomon yearly was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, 15 besides that from the traveling merchants, from the income of traders, from all the kings of Arabia, and from the governors of the country.

    1. How much gold did Solomon bring in annually?
    2. What other income did he have?
  9. First Kings 10.16–23 | An Abundance of Gold

    16 And King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels of gold went into each shield. 17 He also made three hundred shields of hammered gold; three minas of gold went into each shield. The king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon. 18 Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round at the back; there were armrests on either side of the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the armrests. 20 Twelve lions stood there, one on each side of the six steps; nothing like this had been made for any other kingdom. 21 All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Not one was silver, for this was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon. 22 For the king had merchant ships at sea with the fleet of Hiram. Once every three years the merchant ships came bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and monkeys. 23 So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.

    1. What did Solomon either cover with gold or make with gold?
    2. Describe the throne of Solomon.
    3. What did people think of using all that gold?
    4. How often did the merchant ships sail?
    5. What did they bring?
    6. Can you see how Solomon exceeded all kings in riches?
    7. What other king has written books such as Proverbs and Ecclesiastes?
  10. First Kings 10.24–25 | Solomon’s Popularity

    24 Now all the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 25 Each man brought his present: articles of silver and gold, garments, armor, spices, horses, and mules, at a set rate year by year.

    1. Why did all the Earth seek Solomon?
    2. Where did Solomon get his wisdom?
    3. What did people bring him annually?
  11. First Kings 10.26–29 | Abundance and More Abundance

    26 And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen; he had one thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king at Jerusalem. 27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and he made cedar trees as abundant as the sycamores which are in the lowland. 28 Also Solomon had horses imported from Egypt and Keveh; the king’s merchants bought them in Keveh at the current price. 29 Now a chariot that was imported from Egypt cost six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse one hundred and fifty; and thus, through their agents, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.

    1. How many chariots did he have?
    2. How many horsemen?
    3. How common was silver?
    4. Where did he get his horses?
    5. To where did he export them?