18
The king also made a large ivory throne and covered it with pure gold.
19
Six steps led up to the throne, and the back of the throne was rounded at the top. Two lions stood beside the armrests on both sides of the throne.
20
Another twelve lions stood on both sides of the six steps. No other kingdom had anything like this.
21
All of King Solomon's drinking cups were made of gold, and all the items in the Forest of Lebanon Palace were made of pure gold, not silver, since even silver wasn't considered good enough in Solomon's time!
22
The royal fleet of Tarshish-style ships was at sea with Hiram's fleet, returning once every three years with gold, silver, ivory, monkeys, and peacocks.
23
King Solomon far exceeded all the earth's kings in wealth and wisdom,
24
and so the whole earth wanted an audience with Solomon in order to hear his God-given wisdom.
25
Year after year they came with tribute: objects of silver and gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.
26
Solomon acquired more and more chariots and horses until he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses that he kept in chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem.
27
In Jerusalem, the king made silver as common as stones and cedar as plentiful as sycamore trees that grow in the foothills.
28
Solomon's horses were imported from Egypt and Kue, purchased from Kue by the king's agents at the going price.
29
They would import a chariot from Egypt for six hundred pieces of silver and a horse for one hundred fifty, and then export them to all the Hittite and Aramean kings.