1 Kings 4:1-19

Solomon's Officials

1 Now King Solomon was king over all Israel.

2 These were his officials: Azariah the son of Zadok was ¹the priest;

3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha were secretaries; ²Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was the recorder;

4 and ³Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the army; and Zadok and ⁴Abiathar were priests;

5 and Azariah the son of Nathan was over ⁵the deputies; and Zabud the son of Nathan, a priest, was the king's friend;

6 and Ahishar was over the household; and Adoniram the son of Abda was over the men subject to forced labor.

7 Solomon had twelve * deputies over all Israel, who provided for the king and his household; each man had to provide for a month in the year.

8 These are their names: Ben-hur, in the ⁶hill country of Ephraim;

9 Ben-deker in Makaz and ⁷Shaalbim and ⁸Beth-shemesh and Elonbeth-hanan;

10 Ben-hesed, in Arubboth (⁹Socoh was his and all the land of ¹⁰Hepher );

11 Ben-abinadab, in all the ¹¹height of Dor (Taphath the daughter of Solomon was his wife );

12 Baana the son of Ahilud, in ¹²Taanach and Megiddo, and all ¹³Beth-shean which is beside ¹⁴Zarethan below * Jezreel, from Beth-shean to ¹⁵Abel-meholah as far as the other side of ¹⁶Jokmeam;

13 Ben-geber, in ¹⁷Ramoth-gilead (¹⁸the towns of Jair, the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead were his: ¹⁹the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty great cities with walls and bronze bars were his);

14 Ahinadab the son of Iddo, in ²⁰Mahanaim;

15 ²¹Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he also married Basemath the daughter of Solomon );

16 Baana the son of ²²Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth;

17 Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar;

18 ²³Shimei the son of Ela, in Benjamin;

19 Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, ²⁴the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan; and he was the only deputy who was in the land.

Read Chapter Compare

1 Kings 4:1-19 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST KINGS 4

As in the preceding chapter we have a proof of the wisdom and understanding which the Lord gave to Solomon, as promised, so in this an account is given of the riches and honour he was possessed of; of him, as king over all Israel, and of his princes, 1Ki 4:1-6; of the providers of food for his household in the several parts of the land, 1Ki 4:7-19; of the largeness and extent of his dominions, and of the peace and prosperity thereof, 1Ki 4:20,21,24,25; of his daily provisions for his household and for his cattle, 1Ki 4:22,23,26-28; and of his superior wisdom and knowledge to all others in all nations, which brought some out of all to hear it, 1Ki 4:29-34.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 24

1. 1 Chronicles 6:10
2. 2 Samuel 8:16
3. 1 Kings 2:35
4. 1 Kings 2:27
5. 1 Kings 4:7
6. Joshua 24:33
7. Judges 1:35
8. Joshua 21:16
9. Joshua 15:35
10. Joshua 12:17
11. Joshua 11:1, 2
12. Judges 5:19
13. Joshua 17:11
14. Joshua 3:16
15. 1 Kings 19:16
16. 1 Chronicles 6:68
17. 1 Kings 22:3-15
18. Numbers 32:41
19. Deuteronomy 3:4
20. Joshua 13:26
21. 2 Samuel 15:27
22. 2 Samuel 15:32
23. 1 Kings 1:8
24. Deuteronomy 3:8-10

Footnotes 4

[a]. Lit "nourished"
[b]. Lit "nourish"
[c]. Or "Naphoth-dor"
[d]. Or "in Aloth"