I Kings Chapter 9
1 When Solomon had finished building the House of the Lord and the royal palace and everything that Solomon had set his heart on constructing,
2 the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon.
3 The Lord said to him, “I have heard the prayer and the supplication which you have offered to Me. I consecrate this House which you have built and I set My name there forever. My eyes and My heart shall ever be there.
4 As for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked before Me, wholeheartedly and with uprightness, doing all that I have commanded you [and] keeping My laws and My rules,
5 then I will establish your throne of kingship over Israel forever, as I promised your father David, saying, ‘Your line on the throne of Israel shall never end.’
6 [But] if you and your descendants turn away from Me and do not keep the commandments [and] the laws which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them,
7 then I will sweep Israel off the land which I gave them; I will reject the House which I have consecrated to My name; and Israel shall become a proverb and a byword among all peoples.
8 And as for this House, once so exalted, everyone passing by it shall be appalled and shall hiss. And when they ask, ‘Why did the Lord do thus to the land and to this House?’
9 they shall be told, ‘It is because they forsook the Lord their God who freed them from the land of Egypt, and they embraced other gods and worshiped them and served them; therefore the Lord has brought all this calamity upon them.’?”
10 At the end of the twenty years during which Solomon constructed the two buildings, the Lord’s House and the royal palace—
11 since King Hiram of Tyre had supplied Solomon with all the cedar and cypress timber and gold that he required—King Solomon in turn gave Hiram twenty towns in the region of Galilee.
12 But when Hiram came from Tyre to inspect the towns that Solomon had given him, he was not pleased with them.
13 “My brother,” he said, “what sort of towns are these you have given me?” So they were named the land of Cabul, as is still the case.
14 However, Hiram sent the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold.
15 This was the purpose of the forced labor which Solomon imposed: It was to build the House of the Lord, his own palace, the Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and [to fortify] Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer.
(16 Pharaoh king of Egypt had come up and captured Gezer; he destroyed it by fire, killed the Canaanites who dwelt in the town, and gave it as dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife.)
17 So Solomon fortified Gezer, lower Beth-horon,
18 Baalith, and Tamar in the wilderness, in the land [of Judah],
19 and all of Solomon’s garrison towns, chariot towns, and cavalry towns—everything that Solomon set his heart on building in Jerusalem and in the Lebanon, and throughout the territory that he ruled.
20 All the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites who were not of the Israelite stock—
21 those of their descendants who remained in the land and whom the Israelites were not able to annihilate—of these Solomon made a slave force, as is still the case.
22 But he did not reduce any Israelites to slavery; they served, rather, as warriors and as his attendants, officials, and officers, and as commanders of his chariotry and cavalry.
23 These were the prefects that were in charge of Solomon’s works and were foremen over the people engaged in the work, who numbered 550.
24 As soon as Pharaoh’s daughter went up from the City of David to the palace that he had built for her, he built the Millo.
25 Solomon used to offer burnt offerings and sacrifices of well-being three times a year on the altar that he had built for the Lord, and he used to offer incense on the one that was before the Lord. And he kept the House in repair.
26 King Solomon also built a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber, which is near Eloth on the shore of the Sea of Reeds in the land of Edom.
27 Hiram sent servants of his with the fleet, mariners who were experienced on the sea, to serve with Solomon’s men.
28 They came to Ophir; there they obtained gold in the amount of four hundred and twenty talents, which they delivered to King Solomon.
אמר רב יהודה אמר רב ששה חדשים נצטרע דוד ונסתלקה הימנו שכינה ופירשו ממנו סנהדרין
נצטרע דכתיב (תהלים נא, ט) תחטאני באזוב ואטהר תכבסני ומשלג אלבין
נסתלקה הימנו שכינה דכתיב (תהלים נא, יד) השיבה לי ששון ישעך ורוח נדיבה תסמכני
ופרשו ממנו סנהדרין דכתי' (תהלים קיט, עט) ישובו לי יראיך וגו'
ששה חדשים מנלן דכתי' (מלכים א ב, יא) והימים אשר מלך דוד על ישראל ארבעים שנה
Rav Yehudah said in the name of Rav: David was afflicted with leprosy for six months, and the divine presence departed from him, and the sanhedrin separated from him.
He was afflicted with leprosy, as it says, "Purge me with hyssop till I am pure; wash me till I am whiter than snow." (Psalms 51:9)
The divine presence departed from him, as it says, "Let me again rejoice in Your help; let a vigorous spirit sustain me." (Psalms 51:14)
And the sanhedrin separated from him, as it says, "May those who fear You, those who know Your decrees, turn again to me." (Psalms 119:79)
From where do we learn six months? As it says, "The length of David’s reign over Israel was forty years." (I Kings 2:11)
בחברון מלך שבע שנים ובירושלים מלך שלשים ושלש שנים וכתיב (שמואל ב ה, ה) בחברון מלך על יהודה שבע שנים וששה חדשים וגו' והני ששה חדשים לא קחשיב ש"מ נצטרע
אמר לפניו רבש"ע מחול לי על אותו עון מחול לך (תהלים פו, יז)
עשה עמי אות לטובה ויראו שונאי ויבושו כי אתה ה' עזרתני ונחמתני א"ל בחייך איני מודיע אבל אני מודיע בחיי שלמה בנך
בשעה שבנה שלמה את בית המקדש ביקש להכניס ארון לבית קדשי הקדשים דבקו שערים זה בזה אמר עשרים וארבעה רננות ולא נענה אמר (תהלים כד, ז) שאו שערים ראשיכם והנשאו פתחי עולם ויבא מלך הכבוד מי זה מלך הכבוד ה' עזוז וגבור ה' גבור מלחמה ונאמר (תהלים כד, ט) שאו שערים ראשיכם ושאו פתחי עולם ויבא מלך הכבוד וגו' ולא נענה כיון שאמר (דברי הימים ב ו, מב) ה' אלהים אל תשב פני משיחך זכרה לחסדי דויד עבדך
מיד נענה באותה שעה נהפכו פני שונאי דוד כשולי קדירה וידעו כל ישראל שמחל לו הקב"ה על אותו העון
David reigned for seven years in Hebron, and in Jerusalem he reigned for 33 years. As it states, "In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months ..." (2 Samuel 5:5) Those six months were not counted, learn from this that he was afflicted with leprosy.
He said before him, "Master of the universe, forgive me of this sin." He forgave him.
"Show me a sign of Your favor, that my enemies may see and be frustrated because You, O Lord, have given me aid and comfort." (Psalms 87:17) He replied, "In your lifetime I will not make it known, but I will make it known in the lifetime of your son Solomon."
When Solomon built the temple, he wanted to bring the ark into the holy of holies, but the gates stuck to one another. He said twenty four psalms but was not answered. He said, "O gates, lift up your heads! Up high, you everlasting doors, so the King of glory may come in! Who is the King of glory?— the Lord, mighty and valiant, the Lord, valiant in battle." (Psalms 24:7-8) And it says, "O gates, lift up your heads! Lift them up, you everlasting doors, so the King of glory may come in!" (Psalms 24:9) and he was not answered. Once he said, "O Lord God, do not reject Your anointed one; remember the loyalty of Your servant David.” (2 Chronicles 6:42), he was immediately answered
At that exact moment, the faces of David's enemies turned black like a pot, and all of Israel knew that the Holy One had forgiven him of his sin.
1 Kings Chapter 10:1-13
1 The queen of Sheba heard of Solomon’s fame, through the name of the Lord, and she came to test him with hard questions.
2 She arrived in Jerusalem with a very large retinue, with camels bearing spices, a great quantity of gold, and precious stones. When she came to Solomon, she asked him all that she had in mind.
3 Solomon had answers for all her questions; there was nothing that the king did not know, [nothing] to which he could not give her an answer.
4 When the queen of Sheba observed all of Solomon’s wisdom, and the palace he had built,
5 the fare of his table, the seating of his courtiers, the service and attire of his attendants, and his wine service, and the burnt offerings that he offered at the House of the Lord, she was left breathless.
6 She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own land about you and your wisdom was true.
7 But I did not believe the reports until I came and saw with my own eyes that not even the half had been told me; your wisdom and wealth surpass the reports that I heard.
8 How fortunate are your men and how fortunate are these your courtiers, who are always in attendance on you and can hear your wisdom!
9 Praised be the Lord your God, who delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel. It is because of the Lord’s everlasting love for Israel that He made you king to administer justice and righteousness.”
10 She presented the king with one hundred and twenty talents of gold, and a large quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again did such a vast quantity of spices arrive as that which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.—
11 Moreover, Hiram’s fleet, which carried gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir a huge quantity of almug wood and precious stones.
12 The king used the almug wood for decorations in the House of the Lord and in the royal palace, and for harps and lyres for the musicians. Such a quantity of almug wood has never arrived or been seen to this day.—
13 King Solomon, in turn, gave the queen of Sheba everything she wanted and asked for, in addition to what King Solomon gave her out of his royal bounty. Then she and her attendants left and returned to her own land.
(ב) שמעה שמעו לשם ה' ר''ל שחכמתו היא אלהית, לא טבעית
"She heard of Solomon's fame, through the name of the Lord" - This means that Solomon's wisdom was divine, not natural.
Malbim = Meïr Leibush ben Yehiel Michel Weiser, Ukraine, 1809-1879
Rabbi Yosef Kara on I Kings 10:1
"And she came to test him with hard questions" - She took young maidens and men with her, and dressed them all in men's clothing, and she brought them before Solomon, to test him regarding which of them are male and which are female. And he acted with wisdom, and commanded his servants to bring nuts and scatter them on the ground. The males gathered the nuts from a standing position, whereas the females crouched on their knees and gathered, and thus Solomon knew.
(Yosef Kara - 1065-1135, Troyes, France. Possibly a student of Rashi.)
1 Kings Chapter 10:14-29
14 The weight of the gold which Solomon received every year was 666 talents of gold,
15 besides what came from tradesmen, from the traffic of the merchants, and from all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the regions.
16 King Solomon made 200 shields of beaten gold—600 shekels of gold to each shield—
17 and 300 bucklers of beaten gold—three minas of gold to each buckler. The king placed them in the Lebanon Forest House.
18 The king also made a large throne of ivory, and he overlaid it with refined gold.
19 Six steps led up to the throne, and the throne had a back with a rounded top, and arms on either side of the seat. Two lions stood beside the arms,
20 and twelve lions stood on the six steps, six on either side. No such throne was ever made for any other kingdom.
21 All King Solomon’s drinking cups were of gold, and all the utensils of the Lebanon Forest House were of pure gold: silver did not count for anything in Solomon’s days.
22 For the king had a Tarshish fleet on the sea, along with Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years, the Tarshish fleet came in, bearing gold and silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
23 King Solomon excelled all the kings on earth in wealth and in wisdom.
24 All the world came to pay homage to Solomon and to listen to the wisdom with which God had endowed him;
25 and each one would bring his tribute—silver and gold objects, robes, weapons and spices, horses and mules—in the amount due each year.
26 Solomon assembled chariots and horses. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses, which he stationed in the chariot towns and with the king in Jerusalem.
27 The king made silver as plentiful in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars as plentiful as sycamores in the Shephelah.
28 Solomon’s horses were procured from Mizraim and Kue. The king’s dealers would buy them from Kue at a fixed price.
29 A chariot imported from Mizraim cost 600 shekels of silver, and a horse 150; these in turn were exported by them to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Arameans.