The queen of Sheba
1 Kings 10:1-13
The queen of Sheba heard about Solomon’s wisdom. She traveled to Jerusalem with camels loaded with gifts, to test him with hard questions. Solomon answered everything, and the queen blessed the Lord, the God of Solomon. 1 Kings 10:1-13
The story, in plain words
The queen of Sheba heard about Solomon’s fame. She came to visit him to test him with hard questions. 1 Kings 10:1
She arrived in Jerusalem with many people and with camels carrying spices, gold and precious stones. 1 Kings 10:2
She asked Solomon all the questions she had prepared. 1 Kings 10:2
Solomon answered everything: there was nothing he could not explain to her. 1 Kings 10:3 The queen saw Solomon’s wisdom, the Temple he had built and the order of his…
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See the mapWhat the Bible says
1 Kings 10:1-13
1And the queen of Saba, having; heard of the fame of Solomon in the name of the Lord, came to try him with hard questions. 2And entering into Jerusalem with a great train, and riches, and camels that carried spices, and an immense quantity of gold, and precious stones, she came to king Solomon, and spoke to him all that she had in her heart. 3And Solomon informed her of all the things she proposed to him: there was not any word the king was ignorant of, and which he could not answer her. 4And when the queen of Saba saw all the wisdom of Solomon, and the house which he had built, 5And the meat of his table, and the apartments of his servants, and the order of his ministers, and their apparel, and the cupbearers, and the holocausts, which he offered in the house of the Lord: she had no longer any spirit in her, 6And she said to the king: The report is true, which I heard in my own country, 7Concerning thy words, and concerning thy wisdom. And I did not believe them that told me, till I came myself, and saw with my own eyes, and have found that the half hath not been told me: thy wisdom and thy works, exceed the fame which I heard. 8Blessed are thy men, and blessed are thy servants, who stand before thee always, and hear thy wisdom. 9Blessed be the Lord thy God, whom thou hast pleased, and who hath set thee upon the throne of Israel, because the Lord hath loved Israel for ever, and hath appointed thee king, to do judgment and justice. 10And she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices a very great store, and precious stones: there was brought no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Saba gave to king Solomon. 11(The navy also of Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, brought from Ophir great plenty of thyine trees, and precious stones. 12And the king made of the thyine trees the rails of the house of the Lord, and of the king’s house, and citterns and harps for singers: there were no such thyine trees as these brought, nor seen unto this day.) 13And king Solomon gave the queen of Saba all that she desired, and asked of him: besides what he offered he himself of his royal bounty. And she returned, and went to her own country with her servants.
Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner revision), public domain.
To talk about together
- The queen made a very long trip just to listen to someone wise. What trip would you make to learn something important?
- The queen did not believe what she was told until she saw it. Does that happen to you too?
- For the child: If you could ask someone very wise a hard question, what would you ask?