1Salomon était roi sur tout Israël.2Voici les hauts fonctionnaires qu'il avait à son service. Azaria, le petit-fils du prêtre Tsadok,3Elihoreph et Achija, le fils de Shisha, étaient secrétaires. Josaphat, le fils d'Achilud, était archiviste.4Benaja, le fils de Jehojada, était à la tête de l'armée. Tsadok et Abiathar étaient prêtres.5Azaria, le fils de Nathan, était le chef des intendants. Zabud, le fils de Nathan, était prêtre. C'était un proche du roi.6Achishar était chef du palais royal et Adoniram, le fils d'Abda, était préposé aux corvées.7Salomon avait douze intendants sur tout Israël. Ils pourvoyaient à l'entretien du roi et de son entourage, chacun pendant un mois de l'année.8Voici leurs noms: le fils de Hur, dans la région montagneuse d'Ephraïm;9le fils de Déker, à Makats, Saalbim, Beth-Shémesh, Elon et Beth-Hanan;10le fils de Hésed, à Arubboth, qui était responsable de Soco et de toute la région de Hépher;11le fils d'Abinadab, qui était responsable de toute la région de Dor et qui avait Thaphath, la fille de Salomon, pour femme;12Baana, le fils d'Achilud, qui était responsable de Thaanac et Meguiddo, et tout Beth-Shean, toute la région qui se situe près de Tsarthan au-dessous de Jizreel et qui va de Beth-Shean jusqu'à Abel-Mehola et après Jokmeam;13le fils de Guéber, à Ramoth en Galaad, qui était responsable des bourgs de Jaïr, fils de Manassé, en Galaad ainsi que de la région d'Argob en Basan, soit de 60 grandes villes dotées de murailles et de verrous en bronze;14Achinadab, le fils d'Iddo, à Mahanaïm;15Achimaats, qui avait pris pour femme Basmath, la fille de Salomon, en Nephthali;16Baana, le fils de Hushaï, en Aser et à Bealoth;17Josaphat, le fils de Paruach, en Issacar;18Shimeï, le fils d'Ela, en Benjamin;19Guéber, le fils d'Uri, dans le pays de Galaad. Ce dernier était responsable de la région de Sihon, le roi des Amoréens, et d'Og, le roi du Basan. Il y avait un seul intendant pour ce pays.
Puissance de Salomon
20Juda et Israël étaient aussi nombreux que le sable qui est au bord de la mer. Ils mangeaient, buvaient et se réjouissaient.
1So King Solomon ruled over all Israel.2These were his chief officials: Azariah son of Zadok, the priest;3Elihoreph and Ahijah, sons of Shisha, secretaries; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud, recorder;4Benaiah son of Jehoiada, commander-in-chief; Zadok and Abiathar, priests;5Azariah son of Nathan, in charge of the district governors; Zabud son of Nathan, a priest and advisor to the king;6Ahishar, palace administrator; Adoniram son of Abda, in charge of forced labour.7Solomon had twelve district governors over all Israel, who supplied provisions for the king and the royal household. Each one had to provide supplies for one month in the year.8These are their names: Ben-Hur, in the hill country of Ephraim;9Ben-Deker, in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh and Elon Bethhanan;10Ben-Hesed, in Arubboth (Sokoh and all the land of Hepher were his);11Ben-Abinadab, in Naphoth Dor (he was married to Taphath daughter of Solomon);12Baana son of Ahilud, in Taanach and Megiddo, and in all of Beth Shan next to Zarethan below Jezreel, from Beth Shan to Abel Meholah across to Jokmeam;13Ben-Geber, in Ramoth Gilead (the settlements of Jair son of Manasseh in Gilead were his, as well as the region of Argob in Bashan and its sixty large walled cities with bronze gate bars);14Ahinadab son of Iddo, in Mahanaim;15Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he had married Basemath daughter of Solomon);16Baana son of Hushai, in Asher and in Aloth;17Jehoshaphat son of Paruah, in Issachar;18Shimei son of Ela, in Benjamin;19Geber son of Uri, in Gilead (the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and the country of Og king of Bashan). He was the only governor over the district.
Solomon’s daily provisions
20The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand on the seashore; they ate, they drank and they were happy.21And Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the River Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These countries brought tribute and were Solomon’s subjects all his life.22Solomon’s daily provisions were thirty cors[1] of the finest flour and sixty cors[2] of meal,23ten head of stall-fed cattle, twenty of pasture-fed cattle and a hundred sheep and goats, as well as deer, gazelles, roebucks and choice fowl.24For he ruled over all the kingdoms west of the River Euphrates, from Tiphsah to Gaza, and had peace on all sides.25During Solomon’s lifetime Judah and Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, lived in safety, everyone under their own vine and under their own fig-tree.26Solomon had four[3] thousand stalls for chariot horses, and twelve thousand horses.[4] (2Ch 9:25)27The district governors, each in his month, supplied provisions for King Solomon and all who came to the king’s table. They saw to it that nothing was lacking.28They also brought to the proper place their quotas of barley and straw for the chariot horses and the other horses.
Solomon’s wisdom
29God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore.30Solomon’s wisdom was greater than the wisdom of all the people of the East, and greater than all the wisdom of Egypt.31He was wiser than anyone else, including Ethan the Ezrahite – wiser than Heman, Kalkol and Darda, the sons of Mahol. And his fame spread to all the surrounding nations.32He spoke three thousand proverbs and his songs numbered a thousand and five.33He spoke about plant life, from the cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of walls. He also spoke about animals and birds, reptiles and fish.34From all nations people came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, sent by all the kings of the world, who had heard of his wisdom.[5]