1 Kings 10:12

The Holy Bible, Berean Study Bible

Contextual Overview

¹Now when the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with difficult questions. ²She arrived in Jerusalem with a very large caravan, with camels bearing spices, gold in great abundance, and precious stones. So she came to Solomon and spoke to him all that was on her mind. ³And Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too difficult for the king to explain. ⁴When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon, the palace he had built, ⁵the food at his table, the seating of his servants, the service and attire of his attendants and cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he presented at the house of the LORD, it took her breath away. ⁶She said to the king, "The report I heard in my own country about your words and wisdom is true. ⁷But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told to me. Your wisdom and prosperity have far exceeded the report I heard. ⁸How blessed are your men! How blessed are these servants of yours who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom! ⁹Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you to set you on the throne of Israel. Because of the LORD's eternal love for Israel, He has made you king to carry out justice and righteousness." ¹⁰Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, a great quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again was such an abundance of spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

pillars: or, rails, Heb. a prop

harps: 1 Chronicles 23:5, 1 Chronicles 25:1-31, Psalms 92:1-3, Psalms 150:3-5, Revelation 14:2, Revelation 14:3

Reciprocal: 2 Chronicles 9:11 - harps Revelation 18:12 - merchandise

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the king made of the almug trees pillars for the house of the Lord, and for the king's house,.... Or terraces, as in 2 Chronicles 9:11, causeways; and means the ascent or causeway he made from his own house to the temple; the pavement of which, as Jarchi interprets the word here, was made of the wood of these trees; or the supports of it, or rather the rails on each side, on which men might stay themselves as they passed along, as Ben Gersom; and since this ascent was admired by the queen of Sheba, it is particularly observed what wood it was made of, and from whence it came:

harps also, and psalteries for singers; these musical instruments were made of the same wood; Josephus i says of amber, and that their number was 400,000:

there came no such almug trees, nor were seen unto this day; not in the land of Israel, neither before nor since, see 2 Chronicles 9:11.

i Antiqu. l. 8. c. 3. sect. 8.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Pillars - The Hebrew word signifies ordinarily a “prop” (margin). It is generally supposed to mean in this place a “railing,” or “balustrade,” a sense which connects and harmonises the present passage with the parallel passage in Chronicles (marginal reference), where Solomon is said to have made of the almug-wood “stairs” for the temple and for his own house.

Harps - The Jewish harp כנור kı̂nnôr was of a triangular shape, and had ordinarily ten strings. It probably resembled the more ancient harp of the Assyrians, which was played with a plectrum, as was (ordinarily) the “kinnor.”

Psalteries - The psaltery, or viol. Hebrew: נבל nebel; Greek: νάβλα nabla, was a stringed instrument played with the hand; perhaps a lyre, like those on Hebrew coins, the sounding-board of which is shaped like a jug; or, perhaps, a sort of guitar, with a hollow jug-shaped body at the lower end.