11 Solomon brought the daughter of Pharaoh up from the City of David to the palace he had built for her. For he said, “My wife must not live in the house of David king of Israel, because the places the ark of the Lord has entered are holy.”

12 At that time Solomon offered burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of the Lord he had built in front of the portico. 13He observed the daily requirement for offerings according to the commandment of Moses for Sabbaths, New Moons, and the three annual appointed feasts — the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles.

14 In keeping with the ordinances of his father David, Solomon appointed the divisions of the priests over their service, and the Levites for their duties to offer praise and to minister before the priests according to the daily requirement. He also appointed gatekeepers by their divisions at each gate, for this had been the command of David, the man of God. 15They did not turn aside from the king’s command regarding the priests or the Levites in any matter, including that of the treasuries.

16 Thus all the work of Solomon was carried out, from the day the foundation was laid for the house of the Lord until it was finished. So the house of the Lord was completed.

17 Then Solomon went to Ezion-geber and to Eloth on the coast of Edom. 18So Hiram sent him ships captained by his servants, along with crews of experienced sailors. They went with Solomon’s servants to Ophir and acquired from there 450 talents of gold, which they delivered to King Solomon.

1 Now when the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon, she came to test him with difficult questions. She arrived in Jerusalem with a very large caravan— with camels bearing spices, gold in abundance, and precious stones.

And she came to Solomon and spoke with him about all that was on her mind. 2And Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too difficult for him to explain.

3 When the queen of Sheba saw the wisdom of Solomon, the palace he had built, 4the food at his table, the seating of his servants, the service and attire of his attendants, the attire of his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he presented at the house of the Lord, it took her breath away.

5 She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your words and wisdom is true. 6But I did not believe the reports until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not half of the greatness of your wisdom was told to me. You have far exceeded the report I heard. 7How blessed are your men! How blessed are these servants of yours who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom! 8Blessed be the Lord your God, who has delighted in you to set you on His throne to be king for the Lord your God. Because your God loved Israel enough to establish them forever, He has made you king over them to carry out justice and righteousness.”

9 Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, a great quantity of spices, and precious stones. There had never been such spices as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

10(The servants of Hiram and of Solomon who brought gold from Ophir also brought algum wood and precious stones. 11The king made the algum wood into steps for the house of the Lord and for the king’s palace, and into lyres and harps for the singers. Never before had anything like them been seen in the land of Judah.)

12 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired — whatever she asked — far more than she had brought the king. Then she left and returned to her own country, along with her servants.

13 The weight of gold that came to Solomon each year was 666 talents, 14not including the revenue from the merchants and traders. And all the Arabian kings and governors of the land also brought gold and silver to Solomon.

15 King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels of hammered gold went into each shield. 16He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold; three hundred shekels of gold went into each shield. And the king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.

17 Additionally, the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with pure gold. 18The throne had six steps, and a footstool of gold was attached to it. There were armrests on both sides of the seat, with a lion standing beside each armrest. 19Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like this had ever been made for any kingdom.

20 All King Solomon’s drinking cups were gold, and all the utensils of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. There was no silver, because it was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon. 21For the king had the ships of Tarshish that went with Hiram’s servants, and once every three years the ships of Tarshish would arrive bearing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.

22 So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. 23All the kings of the earth sought an audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom that God had put in his heart. 24Year after year, each visitor would bring his tribute: articles of silver and gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.

25 Solomon had 4,000 stalls for horses and chariots, and 12,000 horses, which he stationed in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. 26He reigned over all the kings from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. 27The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as abundant as sycamore in the foothills. 28Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from all the lands.

29 As for the rest of the acts of Solomon, from beginning to end, are they not written in the Records of Nathan the Prophet, in the Prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the Visions of Iddo the Seer concerning Jeroboam son of Nebat? 30Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years. 31And Solomon rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of his father David. And his son Rehoboam reigned in his place.

1 Then Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. 2When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard about this, he returned from Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon. 3So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and all Israel came to Rehoboam and said, 4“Your father put a heavy yoke on us. But now you must lighten the burden of your father’s service and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.”

5 Rehoboam answered, “Come back to me in three days.” So the people departed.

6 Then King Rehoboam consulted with the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. “How do you advise me to respond to these people?” he asked.

7 They replied, “If you will be kind to these people and please them by speaking kind words to them, they will be your servants forever.”

8 But Rehoboam rejected the advice of the elders; instead, he consulted the young men who had grown up with him and served him. 9He asked them, “What message do you advise that we send back to these people who have spoken to me, saying, ‘Lighten the yoke your father put on us’?”

10 The young men who had grown up with him replied, “This is how you should answer these people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you must make it lighter.’ This is what you should tell them: ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist! 11Whereas my father burdened you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. Whereas my father scourged you with whips, I will scourge you with scorpions.’”

12 After three days, Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, since the king had said, “Come back to me on the third day.” 13And the king answered them harshly. King Rehoboam rejected the advice of the elders 14and spoke to them as the young men had advised, saying, “Whereas my father made your yoke heavy, I will add to your yoke. Whereas my father scourged you with whips, I will scourge you with scorpions.”

15 So the king did not listen to the people, and indeed this turn of events was from God, in order that the Lord might fulfill the word that He had spoken through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat.

16 When all Israel saw that the king had refused to listen to them, they answered the king:

So all the Israelites went home, 17but Rehoboam still reigned over the Israelites living in the cities of Judah.

18 Then King Rehoboam sent out Hadoram, who was in charge of the forced labor, but the Israelites stoned him to death. And King Rehoboam mounted his chariot in haste and escaped to Jerusalem. 19So to this day Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David.

9 You, however, are controlled not by the flesh, but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. 10But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. 11And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.

12 Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation, but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

15 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery that returns you to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption to sonship, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17And if we are children, then we are heirs: heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ — if indeed we suffer with Him, so that we may also be glorified with Him.

18 I consider that our present sufferings are not comparable to the glory that will be revealed in us. 19The creation waits in eager expectation for the revelation of the sons of God. 20For the creation was subjected to futility, not by its own will, but because of the One who subjected it, in hope 21that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.

22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until the present time. 23Not only that, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24For in this hope we were saved; but hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he can already see? 25But if we hope for what we do not yet see, we wait for it patiently.