1 Kings 10:1

EXPOSITION

THE VISIT OF THE QUEEN OF SHEBA .—The last words of the preceding chapter spoke of Solomon's fleet, of its voyages, and the treasures it brought home. The historian now proceeds to tell of one result to which these voyages led. The fame of the king and his great undertakings was so widely diffused, and excited so much wonder and curiosity, that a queen of Arabia came, among others, to see the temple and the palaces and the many marvels of Solomon's city and court. The prediction of Solomon's prayer ( 1 Kings 8:42 ) has soon had a fulfilment.

And when the queen of Sheba [There is no good ground for doubting that by שְׁבָא we are to understand the kingdom of Southern Arabia (Yemen). It is true that while Genesis 25:3 (cf. 1 Chronicles 1:32 ) speaks of Sheba, the son of Joktan, one of the colonists of southern Arabia, Genesis 10:7 and 1 Chronicles 1:9 mention another Sheba, the son of Cush, and a doubt has arisen whether this was an Arabian or an Ethiopian princess, and it is alleged that she was the latter by Josephus, who calls her "queen of Egypt and Ethopia," and by some Rabbinical writers, and in the traditions of the Abyssinian church. But the kingdoms of Sheba ( שְׁבָא ) and Saba ( סְבָא ) are entirely distinct ( Psalms 72:10 ), the latter being the name both of the capital and country of Meroe, a province of Ethopia (Joshua, Ant. 2.10. 2); while the former in like manner designates both the chief city and also the kingdom of the Sabeans ( Job 1:15 ). This tribe would seem to have grown richer and stronger than all the other Arabian peoples by means of its commercial enterprise, and it was especially famed for its gold, gems, and spices ( Ezekiel 27:22 ; Jeremiah 6:20 ; Isaiah 60:6 ; Joel 3:8 ; Job 6:19 ; Psalms 72:10 ). It is noticeable that in both kingdoms government by female sovereigns was not uncommon (cf. Acts 8:27 ); but it is very remarkable to find any country under the rule of a queen at this early date. (The idea that either of these lands was always governed by queens has no real basis.) The name of this princess, according to the Koran, was Balkis, according to Abyssinian belief, Maqueda . Whether she was a widow or virgin is unknown] heard [Heb. hearing . Doubtless through the Arab traders. The record of this visit, following immediately upon the mention of the voyages ( 1 Kings 9:26 ), is a grain of evidence in favour of locating Ophir in Arabia] of the fame (Heb. hearing ; cf. ἀκοή , which also means the thing heard, report . Compare ἀποκάλυψις καύχησις , etc.] of Solomon concerning the name [Heb. לְשְׁם , i.e; " in relation to, in connexion with, the name," etc. No doubt it was the house he had built לְשֵׁם יְיָ (cf. 1 Kings 3:2 ; 1 Kings 5:17 , 1 Kings 5:18 ; 1 Kings 8:17 , 1 Kings 8:18 , 1 Kings 8:19 , 1 Kings 8:20 , etc.) had made him famous. But the expression is somewhat unusual, and these words are omitted by the chronicler. Gesenius and Ewald, however, regard the ל as instrumental, "the fame given him by the name," etc; as 7:18 ; Ezekiel 12:12 , etc; and Wordsworth compares the use of ἐν in Greek. The LXX . and other versions read "the name of Solomon and the name of the Lord." But the text is on every ground to be retained. The alliteration in this verse (probably accidental) is to be noticed. There is also a slight paronomasia ] of the Lord, she came to prove ( LXX . πειράσαι , to test )] him with hard questions [Heb. in riddles ; LXX . ἐν αἰνίγμασι . The Arabian mind has ever delighted in dark sayings, enigmas, etc; and extensive collections of these have been made by Burckhardt and others (see Keil in loc .) According to Dius Solomon also had dialectical encounters with Hiram and with Abdemon, or, according to Menander, a younger son of Abdemon, a man of Tyre.]