Solomon (), also called Jedidiah, was the fourth monarch of the

Kingdom of Israel and Judah The Kingdom of Israel (Hebrew: מַמְלֶכֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל‎, ''Mamleḵeṯ Yīśrāʾēl'') was an Israelite kingdom that may have existed in the Southern Levant. According to the Deuteronomistic history in the Hebrew Bible, ...

, according to the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' The successor of his father

David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...

, he is described as having been the penultimate ruler of all

Twelve Tribes of Israel The Twelve Tribes of Israel ( , ) are described in the Hebrew Bible as being the descendants of Jacob, a Patriarchs (Bible), Hebrew patriarch who was a son of Isaac and thereby a grandson of Abraham. Jacob, later known as Israel (name), Israel, ...

under an amalgamated Israel and Judah. The hypothesized dates of Solomon's reign are from 970 to 931 BCE. According to the biblical narrative, after Solomon's death, his son and successor

Rehoboam Rehoboam (; , , ; , ; ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first monarch of the Kingdom of Judah after the split of the united Kingdom of Israel. He was a son of and the successor to Solomon and a grandson of David. In the account of I Ki ...

adopted harsh policies towards the northern

Israelites Israelites were a Hebrew language, Hebrew-speaking ethnoreligious group, consisting of tribes that lived in Canaan during the Iron Age. Modern scholarship describes the Israelites as emerging from indigenous Canaanites, Canaanite populations ...

, who then rejected the reign of the

House of David The Davidic line refers to the descendants of David, who established the House of David ( ) in the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah. In Judaism, the lineage is based on texts from the Hebrew Bible, as well as on later Jewish tradit ...

and sought

Jeroboam Jeroboam I (; Hebrew language, Hebrew: ''Yārŏḇʿām''; ), frequently cited Jeroboam son of Nebat, was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first king of the northern Kingdom of Israel (Samaria), Kingdom of Israel following a Jeroboam's Revol ...

as their king. In the aftermath of

Jeroboam's Revolt According to the First Book of Kings and the Second Book of Chronicles of the Hebrew Bible, Jeroboam's Revolt was an armed insurrection against Rehoboam, king of the United Monarchy of Israel, and subsequently the Kingdom of Judah, led by Je ...

, the Israelites were split between the Kingdom of Israel in the north (

Samaria Samaria (), the Hellenized form of the Hebrew name Shomron (), is used as a historical and Hebrew Bible, biblical name for the central region of the Land of Israel. It is bordered by Judea to the south and Galilee to the north. The region is ...

) and the

Kingdom of Judah The Kingdom of Judah was an Israelites, Israelite kingdom of the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. Centered in the highlands to the west of the Dead Sea, the kingdom's capital was Jerusalem. It was ruled by the Davidic line for four centuries ...

in the south (

Judea Judea or Judaea (; ; , ; ) is a mountainous region of the Levant. Traditionally dominated by the city of Jerusalem, it is now part of Palestine and Israel. The name's usage is historic, having been used in antiquity and still into the pres ...

); the Bible depicts Rehoboam and the rest of Solomon's patrilineal descendants ruling over independent Judah alone. A Jewish prophet, Solomon is portrayed as wealthy, wise, powerful, and a dedicated follower of

Yahweh Yahweh was an Ancient Semitic religion, ancient Semitic deity of Weather god, weather and List of war deities, war in the History of the ancient Levant, ancient Levant, the national god of the kingdoms of Kingdom of Judah, Judah and Kingdom ...

(

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

), as attested by the eponymous

Solomon's Temple Solomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple (), was a biblical Temple in Jerusalem believed to have existed between the 10th and 6th centuries Common Era, BCE. Its description is largely based on narratives in the Hebrew Bible, in which it ...

, which was the first

Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. Accord ...

. He is also the subject of many later references and legends, most notably in the

Testament of Solomon The Testament of Solomon is a pseudepigraphical composite text ascribed to King Solomon but not regarded as canonical scripture by Jews or Christian groups. It was written in the Greek language, based on precedents dating back to the early 1st mi ...

, part of

biblical apocrypha The Biblical apocrypha () denotes the collection of ancient books, some of which are believed by some to be of doubtful origin, thought to have been written some time between 200 BC and 100 AD. The Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Ori ...

from the 1st century CE. The historicity of Solomon is the subject of significant debate. Current scholarly consensus allows for a historical Solomon but regards his reign as king over Israel and Judah in the

10th century BCE The 10th century BC comprises the years from 1000 BC to 901 BC. This period followed the Late Bronze Age collapse in the Near East, and the century saw the Early Iron Age take hold there. The Greek Dark Ages which had come about in 1200 BC cont ...

as uncertain and the biblical portrayal of his apparent empire's opulence as most probably an anachronistic exaggeration.Grabbe, Lester. The Dawn of Israel: A History of Canaan in the Second Millennium BCE. 2023. T&T Clark. p. 255-259. "It is essentially a

folktale Oral literature, orature, or folk literature is a genre of literature that is spoken or sung in contrast to that which is written, though much oral literature has been transcribed. There is no standard definition, as anthropologists have used va ...

about an Eastern potentate – it is royal legend or Königsnovelle." "Thus, it looks difficult to discover much in the Solomon story that strikes the critical reader as likely to be historical." " e temple story has been inflated into a legendary extravaganza." " e Solomon story is the most problematic of those relating to the early Israelite kings, providing the thickest cloud of obscurity over the history that lies behind it." Solomon is also revered in

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

and

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

. In the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

, he is portrayed as a teacher of wisdom—suitable for rhetorical comparison to

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

—and as gloriously arrayed—suitable for a rhetorical figure heightening God's generosity. In the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

, he is considered to be a major Islamic prophet. In primarily non-biblical circles, Solomon also came to be known as a magician and an exorcist, with numerous amulets and medallion seals dating from the

Hellenistic period In classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Greek history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC, which was followed by the ascendancy of the R ...

invoking his name.

Biblical account

The life of Solomon is primarily described in 2

Samuel Samuel is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the biblical judges to the United Kingdom of Israel under Saul, and again in the monarchy's transition from Saul to David. He is venera ...

, 1

Kings Kings or King's may refer to: *Kings: The sovereign heads of states and/or nations. *One of several works known as the "Book of Kings": **The Books of Kings part of the Bible, divided into two parts **The ''Shahnameh'', an 11th-century epic Persia ...

and 2 Chronicles. His two names are traditionally taken to mean " peaceful" and " friend of God", both considered "predictive of the character of his reign". A 2023 textbook described three possibilities for the

etymology Etymology ( ) is the study of the origin and evolution of words—including their constituent units of sound and meaning—across time. In the 21st century a subfield within linguistics, etymology has become a more rigorously scientific study. ...

of Solomon’s name: “compensation or a substitute,” “the ruler of peace,” or based on the deified evening star

Shalim Shalim (Šalām, Shalem, ) is a god in Canaanite religion, mentioned in inscriptions found in Ugarit (now Ras Shamra, Syria).Golan, 2003, p. 82. "The name of the Canaanite deity of the setting sun Salim, or Salem, ..The names Shahar_(god).ht ...

Chronology

The conventional dates of Solomon's reign are derived from

biblical chronology The chronology of the Bible is an elaborate system of lifespans, "generations", and other means by which the Masoretic Hebrew Bible (the text of the Bible most commonly in use today) measures the passage of events from the creation to around 164 ...

and are set from about 970 to 931 BCE. Regarding the Davidic dynasty, to which King Solomon belongs, its chronology can be checked against datable Babylonian and Assyrian records at a few points, and these correspondences have allowed

archaeologists Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

to date its kings in a modern framework. According to the most widely used chronology, based on that by the Old Testament professor

Edwin R. Thiele Edwin Richard Thiele (10 September 1895 – 15 April 1986) was an American Seventh-day Adventist missionary in China, editor, archaeologist, writer, and scholar of the Old Testament. He is best known for his chronological studies of the kingdom ...

, the death of Solomon and the division of his kingdom would have occurred in the fall of 931 BCE.

Childhood

Solomon was born in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, the second-born child of David and his wife

Bathsheba Bathsheba (; , ) was an Kings of Israel and Judah, Israelite queen consort. According to the Hebrew Bible, she was the wife of Uriah the Hittite and later of David, with whom she had all of her five children. Her status as the mother of Solomon ...

(widow of

Uriah the Hittite Uriah the Hittite ( ''ʾŪrīyyā haḤīttī'') is a minor figure in the Hebrew Bible, mentioned in the Books of Samuel, an elite soldier in the army of David, king of Israel and Judah, and the husband of Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam. While ...

). The first child (unnamed in that account), a son conceived adulterously during Uriah's lifetime, had died seven days after birth. It is suggested in Scripture that this was a judgment from God. Solomon had three named full brothers born to Bathsheba:

Nathan Nathan or Natan may refer to: People and biblical figures *Nathan (given name), including a list of people and characters with this name * Nathan (surname) *Nathan (prophet), a person in the Hebrew Bible *Nathan (son of David), a biblical figu ...

, Shammua, and Shobab, besides six known older half-brothers born of as many mothers. The biblical narrative shows that Solomon served as a peace offering between God and David, due to David's adulterous relationship with Bathsheba. In an effort to hide this sin, David sent Bathsheba's husband,

, to battle, and specifically to the front line wherein David ordered the commanding officer

Joab Joab (; ), the son of Zeruiah, was the nephew of King David and the commander of his army according to the Hebrew Bible. Name The name Joab is, like many other Hebrew names, theophoric—derived from Yahweh (), the name of the God of Israel, ...

to withdraw support for Uriah in order to have him killed in battle by the enemy. After he died, David was finally able to marry Bathsheba. As punishment, the first child, who was conceived during the adulterous relationship, died. Solomon was born after David was forgiven. It is this reason why his name, which means peace, was chosen. Some historians cited that Nathan the Prophet brought up Solomon as his father was busy governing the realm. This could also be attributed to the notion that the prophet held great influence over David because he knew of his

adultery Adultery is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal consequences, the concept ...

, which was considered a grievous offense under the

Mosaic Law The Law of Moses ( ), also called the Mosaic Law, is the law said to have been revealed to Moses by God. The term primarily refers to the Torah or the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. Terminology The Law of Moses or Torah of Moses (Hebr ...

Succession and administration

Cornelis de Vos - The Anointing of Solomon

According to the

First Book of Kings The Book of Kings (, '' Sēfer Məlāḵīm'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Kings) in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. It concludes the Deuteronomistic history, a history of ancient Israel also including ...

, when David was old, "he could not get warm". "So they sought a beautiful young woman throughout all the territory of Israel, and found

Abishag In the Hebrew Bible, Abishag (; ''Avishag'') was a beautiful young woman of Shunem chosen to be a helper and servant to King David in his old age. Among Abishag's duties was to lie next to David and pass along her body heat and vigor because " ...

the Shunamite, and brought her to the king. The young woman was very beautiful, and she was of service to the king and attended to him, but the king knew her not." While David was in this state, court factions were maneuvering for power.

Adonijah According to 2 Samuel, Adonijah (, ''’Ǎḏōnīyyā''; "my lord is Yah") was the fourth son of King David. His mother was Haggith as recorded in the book of . Adonijah was born at Hebron during the long conflict between David and the House o ...

, David's

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

, acted to have himself declared king, but was outmaneuvered by Bathsheba and the biblical prophet Nathan, who convinced David to proclaim Solomon king according to his earlier promise (not recorded elsewhere in the biblical narrative), despite Solomon's being younger than his brothers. Solomon, as instructed by David, began his reign with an extensive purge, including his father's chief general,

, among others, and further consolidated his position by appointing friends throughout the administration, including in religious positions as well as in civic and military posts. It is said that Solomon ascended to the throne when he was only about fifteen. Solomon greatly expanded his military strength, especially the cavalry and chariot arms. He founded numerous colonies, some of which doubled as trading posts and military outposts. He also increased the bureaucracy. Trade relationships were a focus of his administration. In particular he continued his father's very profitable relationship with the Phoenician king

Hiram I Hiram I ( Phoenician: 𐤇𐤓𐤌 ''Ḥirōm'' "my brother is exalted"; Hebrew: חירם ''Ḥīrām''; also called ''Hirom'' or ''Huram'')Tarshish Tarshish (; ; ) occurs in the Hebrew Bible with several uncertain meanings, most frequently as a place (probably a large city or region) far across the sea from Phoenicia (now Lebanon) and the Land of Israel. Tarshish was said to have exported v ...

and

Ophir Ophir (; ) is a port or region mentioned in the Bible, famous for its wealth. Its existence is attested to by an inscribed pottery shard found at Tell Qasile (in modern-day Tel Aviv) in 1946, dating to the eighth century BC, which reads "''go ...

to engage in the trade of luxury products, importing gold, silver, sandalwood, pearls, ivory, apes, and peacocks. Solomon is considered the most wealthy of the Israelite kings named in the Bible.

Wisdom

Luca Giordano - Dream of Solomon - WGA09004

Solomon was the biblical king most famous for his wisdom. In 1Kings he sacrificed to God, and God later appeared to him in a dream, asking what Solomon wanted from God. Solomon asked for wisdom in order to better rule and guide his people. Pleased, God personally answered Solomon's prayer, promising him great wisdom because he did not ask for self-serving rewards like long life or the death of his enemies. Perhaps the best known story of his wisdom is the

Judgement of Solomon The Judgement of Solomon is a story from the Old Testament in which Solomon ruled between two women who both claimed to be the mother of a child. Solomon ordered the baby be cut in half, with each woman to receive one half. The first woman accept ...

; two women each lay claim to being the mother of the same child. Solomon easily resolved the dispute by commanding the child to be cut in half and shared between the two. One woman promptly renounced her claim, proving that she would rather give the child up than see it killed. Solomon declared the woman who showed compassion to be the true mother, entitled to the whole child. Solomon has traditionally been considered the author of several biblical books, including

Proverbs A proverb (from ) or an adage is a simple, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and are an example of formulaic language. A proverbial phrase or a proverbial ...

Ecclesiastes Ecclesiastes ( ) is one of the Ketuvim ('Writings') of the Hebrew Bible and part of the Wisdom literature of the Christian Old Testament. The title commonly used in English is a Latin transliteration of the Greek translation of the Hebrew word ...

, and

Song of Songs The Song of Songs (), also called the Canticle of Canticles or the Song of Solomon, is a Biblical poetry, biblical poem, one of the five ("scrolls") in the ('writings'), the last section of the Tanakh. Unlike other books in the Hebrew Bible, i ...

. He is traditionally ascribed authorship of the

Wisdom of Solomon The Book of Wisdom, or the Wisdom of Solomon, is a book written in Greek and most likely composed in Alexandria, Egypt. It is not part of the Hebrew Bible but is included in the Septuagint. Generally dated to the mid-first century Anno Domini, ...

which is included in the

Scriptures Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They often feature a compilation or discussion of beliefs, ritual practices, moral commandments and ...

of the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Church, but is considered apocryphal in Protestant traditions.

Wealth

Solomon reciving envoys of the tributary nations

According to the Hebrew Bible, the ancient Kingdom of Israel gained its highest splendour and wealth during Solomon's reign of 40 years. In a single year, according to , Solomon collected

tribute A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of lands which the state con ...

amounting to 666 talents (18,125 kilograms) of gold. Solomon is described as surrounding himself with all the luxuries and the grandeur of an Eastern monarch, and his government prospered. He entered into an alliance with

Hiram I Hiram I ( Phoenician: 𐤇𐤓𐤌 ''Ḥirōm'' "my brother is exalted"; Hebrew: חירם ''Ḥīrām''; also called ''Hirom'' or ''Huram'')Tyre, who in many ways greatly assisted him in his numerous undertakings.

Construction projects

For years before his death, David was engaged in collecting materials for building a temple in Jerusalem as a permanent home for

and the

Ark of the Covenant The Ark of the Covenant, also known as the Ark of the Testimony or the Ark of God, was a religious storage chest and relic held to be the most sacred object by the Israelites. Religious tradition describes it as a wooden storage chest decorat ...

. Solomon is described as undertaking the construction of the

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

, with the help of an architect, also named Hiram, and other materials, sent from King Hiram of Tyre. After the completion of the temple, Solomon is described in the biblical narrative as erecting many other buildings of importance in

. For 13 years, he was engaged in the building of a royal palace on

Ophel ''Ophel'' () is the biblical term given to a certain part of a settlement or city that is elevated from its surroundings, and probably means fortified hill or risen area. In the Hebrew Bible, the term is in reference to two cities: Jerusalem (as ...

(a hilly promontory in central Jerusalem). This complex included buildings referred to as: :The House (or Hall) of the Forest of Lebanon :The Hall or Porch of Pillars :The Hall of the Throne or the Hall of Justice as well as his own residence and a residence for his wife, Pharaoh's daughter. Dura_Europos_Mural_Solomonic_Temple

Solomon's throne is said to have been spectacularly opulent and possessed moving parts, making it one of the earliest mechanical devices in history. It is said that "Nothing like it (the throne) had ever been made for any other kingdom." Solomon also constructed great water works for the city, and the

Millo The Millo () was a structure in Jerusalem referred to in the Hebrew Bible, first mentioned as being part of the city of David in and the corresponding passage in the Books of Kings () and later in the Books of Chronicles (). However it previou ...

(

Septuagint The Septuagint ( ), sometimes referred to as the Greek Old Testament or The Translation of the Seventy (), and abbreviated as LXX, is the earliest extant Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible from the original Biblical Hebrew. The full Greek ...

, ''Acra'') for the defense of the city. However, excavations of Jerusalem have discovered no monumental architecture from the era, and no remains of either the Temple or Solomon's palace have been found. Solomon is also described as rebuilding cities elsewhere in Israel, creating the port of Ezion-Geber, and constructing

Palmyra Palmyra ( ; Palmyrene dialect, Palmyrene: (), romanized: ''Tadmor''; ) is an ancient city in central Syria. It is located in the eastern part of the Levant, and archaeological finds date back to the Neolithic period, and documents first menti ...

in the wilderness as a commercial depot and military outpost. Although the location of the port of Ezion-Geber is known, no remains have ever been found. More archaeological success has been achieved with the major cities Solomon is said to have strengthened or rebuilt, for example, Hazor,

Megiddo Megiddo may refer to: Places and sites in Israel * Tel Megiddo, site of an ancient city in Israel's Jezreel valley * Megiddo Airport, a domestic airport in Israel * Megiddo church (Israel) * Megiddo, Israel, a kibbutz in Israel * Megiddo Juncti ...

and

Gezer Gezer, or Tel Gezer (), in – Tell Jezar or Tell el-Jezari is an archaeological site in the foothills of the Judaean Mountains at the border of the Shfela region roughly midway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. It is now an List of national parks ...

. These all have substantial ancient remains, including impressive six-chambered gates, and

ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...

palaces; however it is no longer the scholarly consensus that these structures date to the time, according to the Bible, when Solomon ruled. According to the Bible, during Solomon's reign, Israel enjoyed great commercial prosperity, with extensive traffic being carried on by land with Tyre,

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

, and

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

, and by sea with

Tarshish Tarshish (; ; ) occurs in the Hebrew Bible with several uncertain meanings, most frequently as a place (probably a large city or region) far across the sea from Phoenicia (now Lebanon) and the Land of Israel. Tarshish was said to have exported v ...

, and

South India South India, also known as Southern India or Peninsular India, is the southern part of the Deccan Peninsula in India encompassing the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana as well as the union territories of ...

Wives and concubines

According to the biblical account, Solomon had 700 wives and 300

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal relationship, interpersonal and Intimate relationship, sexual relationship between two people in which the couple does not want to, or cannot, enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarde ...

s. The wives were described as foreign princesses, including Pharaoh's daughter and women of

Moab Moab () was an ancient Levant, Levantine kingdom whose territory is today located in southern Jordan. The land is mountainous and lies alongside much of the eastern shore of the Dead Sea. The existence of the Kingdom of Moab is attested to by ...

Ammon Ammon (; Ammonite language, Ammonite: 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''ʻAmān''; '; ) was an ancient Semitic languages, Semitic-speaking kingdom occupying the east of the Jordan River, between the torrent valleys of Wadi Mujib, Arnon and Jabbok, in present-d ...

Edom Edom (; Edomite language, Edomite: ; , lit.: "red"; Akkadian language, Akkadian: , ; Egyptian language, Ancient Egyptian: ) was an ancient kingdom that stretched across areas in the south of present-day Jordan and Israel. Edom and the Edomi ...

Sidon Sidon ( ) or better known as Saida ( ; ) is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast in the South Governorate, Lebanon, South Governorate, of which it is the capital. Tyre, Lebanon, Tyre, t ...

and of the

Hittites The Hittites () were an Anatolian peoples, Anatolian Proto-Indo-Europeans, Indo-European people who formed one of the first major civilizations of the Bronze Age in West Asia. Possibly originating from beyond the Black Sea, they settled in mo ...

. His marriage to Pharaoh's daughter appears to have cemented a political alliance with Egypt, whereas he clung to his other wives and concubines "in love". The only wife mentioned by name is Naamah the

Ammonite Ammonoids are extinct, (typically) coiled-shelled cephalopods comprising the subclass Ammonoidea. They are more closely related to living octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish (which comprise the clade Coleoidea) than they are to nautiluses (family N ...

, mother of Solomon's successor,

. The biblical narrative notes with disapproval that Solomon permitted his foreign wives to import their national deities, building temples to Ashtoreth and

Milcom Milcom or Milkom (Ammonite language, Ammonite: 𐤌𐤋𐤊𐤌 *''Mīlkām''; Hebrew language, Hebrew: ) was the name of either the national god, or a popular god, of the Ammonites. He is attested in the Hebrew Bible and in archaeological finds ...

. In the branch of literary analysis that examines the Bible, called

higher criticism Historical criticism (also known as the historical-critical method (HCM) or higher criticism, in contrast to lower criticism or textual criticism) is a branch of criticism that investigates the origins of ancient texts to understand "the world b ...

, the story of Solomon falling into idolatry by the influence of Pharaoh's daughter and his other foreign wives is "customarily seen as the handiwork of the 'deuteronomistic historian(s)'", who are held to have written, compiled, or edited texts to legitimize the reforms of

Hezekiah Hezekiah (; ), or Ezekias (born , sole ruler ), was the son of Ahaz and the thirteenth king of Kingdom of Judah, Judah according to the Hebrew Bible.Stephen L Harris, Harris, Stephen L., ''Understanding the Bible''. Palo Alto: Mayfield. 1985. "G ...

's great-grandson, King

Josiah Josiah () or Yoshiyahu was the 16th king of Judah (–609 BCE). According to the Hebrew Bible, he instituted major religious reforms by removing official worship of gods other than Yahweh. Until the 1990s, the biblical description of Josiah’s ...

who reigned from about 641 to 609 BCE (over 280 years after Solomon's death according to Bible scholars). Retrieved on Jan. 17, 2007 Scholarly consensus in this field holds that "Solomon's wives/women were introduced in the 'Josianic' (customarily Dtr) edition of Kings as a theological construct to blame the

schism A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...

etween Judah and the Northern Kingdom of Israelon his misdeeds".

Relationship with Queen of Sheba

Dura Europos Synagogue Mural Solomon Receives the Queen of Sheba Color

In a brief, unelaborated, and enigmatic passage, the Hebrew Bible describes how the fame of Solomon's wisdom and wealth reached even the far-off

Queen of Sheba The Queen of Sheba, also known as Bilqis in Arabic and as Makeda in Geʽez, is a figure first mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. In the original story, she brings a caravan of valuable gifts for Solomon, the fourth King of Israel and Judah. This a ...

. The queen is described as visiting with gifts including gold, spices and precious stones. When Solomon gave her "all her desire, whatsoever she asked", she left satisfied. Whether the passage is simply to provide a brief foreign witness of Solomon's wealth and wisdom, or whether the visit is meant to have more significance, is unknown; nevertheless the Queen of Sheba has become the subject of numerous stories.

Sheba Sheba, or Saba, was an ancient South Arabian kingdoms in pre-Islamic Arabia, South Arabian kingdom that existed in Yemen (region), Yemen from to . Its inhabitants were the Sabaeans, who, as a people, were indissociable from the kingdom itself f ...

is typically identified as

Saba Saba may refer to: Places * Saba (island), an island of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean Sea * Sabá, a municipality in the department of Colón, Honduras * Șaba or Șaba-Târg, the Romanian name for Shabo, a village in Ukraine * Saba, ...

, a nation once spanning the

Red Sea The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...

on the coasts of what are now

Eritrea Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

and

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

, in

Arabia Felix Arabia Felix (literally: Fertile/Happy Arabia; also Ancient Greek: Εὐδαίμων Ἀραβία, ''Eudaemon Arabia'') was the Latin name previously used by geographers to describe South Arabia, or what is now Yemen. Etymology The Latin term ...

; although other sources place it in the area of what is now northern Ethiopia and Eritrea. In a Rabbinical account (e.g.

Targum Sheni The ''Targum Sheni'', also known as the ''Second Targum of Esther'', is an Aramaic translation (''targum'') and elaboration of the Book of Esther. Notably, the biblical account is embellished with a considerable amount of new apocryphal material ...

, Colloquy of the Queen of Sheba), Solomon was accustomed to ordering animals to dance before him (a power granted by God), and upon summoning the mountain-cock or

hoopoe Hoopoes () are colourful birds found across Africa, Asia, and Europe, notable for their distinctive "Crest (feathers), crown" of feathers which can be raised or lowered at will. Two living and one extinct species are recognized, though for many y ...

(Aramaic name: ''nagar tura''), the bird told him it had discovered a land in the east, rich in gold, silver, and plants, whose capital was called ''Kitor'' and whose ruler was the Queen of Sheba. Solomon then sent the bird to request the queen's visit. An Ethiopian account from the 14th century (''

Kebra Nagast The Kebra Nagast (, ), or The Glory of the Kings, is a 14th-century national epic of Ethiopia, written in Geʽez by the nebure id Ishaq of Aksum. In its existing form, the text is at least 700 years old and purports to trace the origins of the ...

'') maintains that the Queen of Sheba had sexual relations with King Solomon and gave birth beside the Mai Bella stream in the province of

Hamasien Hamasien ( Tigrinya: ሓማሴን) ('' Ge'ez'' ሓማሴን) was a historical province including and surrounding Asmara, part of modern Eritrea. In 1996 the province was divided and distributed largely to the modern Maekel region, with smaller pa ...

. The Ethiopian tradition has a detailed account of the affair. The child was a son who became

Menelik I Menelik I ( Ge'ez: ምኒልክ, ''Mənilək'') was the legendary first Emperor of Ethiopia's Solomonic dynasty. According to '' Kebra Nagast'', a 14th-century national epic, in the 10th century BC he is said to have inaugurated the Solomonic d ...

, King of

Axum Axum, also spelled Aksum (), is a town in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia with a population of 66,900 residents (as of 2015). It is the site of the historic capital of the Aksumite Empire. Axum is located in the Central Zone of the Tigray Re ...

, and founded a

dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a monarchy, monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a "house", "family" or "clan", among others. H ...

that would reign as the Jewish, then Christian, Empire of Ethiopia which lasted 2900 years until

Haile Selassie Haile Selassie I (born Tafari Makonnen or ''Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles#Lij, Lij'' Tafari; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as the Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles, Rege ...

was overthrown in 1974. Menelik was said to be a practicing Jew who was given a replica of the

by King Solomon; and, moreover, that the original Ark was switched and went to

with him and his mother, and is still there, guarded by a single dedicated priest. The claim of such a lineage and of possession of the Ark was an important source of legitimacy and prestige for the Ethiopian monarchy through the centuries, and had important and lasting effects on Ethiopian culture. The Ethiopian government and church deny all requests to view the alleged ark. Some classical-era Rabbis, attacking Solomon's moral character, have claimed instead that the child was an ancestor of

Nebuchadnezzar II Nebuchadnezzar II, also Nebuchadrezzar II, meaning "Nabu, watch over my heir", was the second king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, ruling from the death of his father Nabopolassar in 605 BC to his own death in 562 BC. Often titled Nebuchadnezzar ...

, who destroyed Solomon's temple some 300 years later.

Sins and punishment

Jewish scribes say that Solomon's teacher was

Shimei ben Gera Shimei ben Gera is a Biblical figure from the Book of II Samuel and the Book of I Kings. He was from the tribe of Benjamin and was related to King Saul. II Samuel relates that when King David was fleeing from his son Absalom, Shimei cursed him ...

, and while he lived, he prevented Solomon from marrying foreign wives. The Talmud says at Ber. 8a: "For as long as Shimei the son of Gera was alive Solomon did not marry the daughter of Pharaoh" (see also

Midrash Tehillim Midrash Tehillim (Hebrew: מדרש תהלים), also known as Midrash Psalms or Midrash Shocher Tov, is an aggadic midrash to the Psalms. Midrash Tehillim can be divided into two parts: the first covering Psalms 1–118, the second covering 119� ...

to Ps. 3:1). Solomon's execution of Shimei was his first descent into sin. According to 1 Kings 11:4, Solomon's "wives turned his heart after other gods", their own national deities, to whom Solomon built temples, thus incurring divine anger and retribution in the form of the division of the kingdom after Solomon's death. 1 Kings 11 describes Solomon's descent into idolatry, particularly his turning after Ashtoreth, the goddess of the

Sidonians Sidon ( ) or better known as Saida ( ; ) is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast in the South Governorate, Lebanon, South Governorate, of which it is the capital. Tyre, Lebanon, Tyre, t ...

, and after

, the god of the

ites. In Deuteronomy 17:16-17, a king is commanded not to multiply horses or wives, neither greatly multiply to himself gold or silver. Solomon sinned in all three of these areas. In addition to his wives, he collected 666 talents of gold each year, a huge amount for a small nation like Israel. He gathered multitudes of horses and

chariot A chariot is a type of vehicle similar to a cart, driven by a charioteer, usually using horses to provide rapid Propulsion, motive power. The oldest known chariots have been found in burials of the Sintashta culture in modern-day Chelyabinsk O ...

s from as far as Egypt, and as Deuteronomy warns, took Israel back to Egypt in spirit. De afgoderij van koning Salomo Rijksmuseum SK-A-757

According to 1 Kings 11:30–34 and 1 Kings 11:9-13, it was because of these sins that the Lord punished Solomon by removing most of the tribes of Israel from rule by Solomon's house.

Enemies

Near the end of his life, Solomon was beset by several enemies, including

Hadad Hadad (), Haddad, Adad ( Akkadian: 𒀭𒅎 '' DIM'', pronounced as ''Adād''), or Iškur ( Sumerian) was the storm- and rain-god in the Canaanite and ancient Mesopotamian religions. He was attested in Ebla as "Hadda" in c. 2500 BCE. From ...

, Rezon of

Zobah Zobah or Aram-Zobah () was an early Aramean state and former vassal kingdom of Israel mentioned in the Hebrew Bible that extended northeast of David's realm according to the Hebrew Bible. Alexander Kirkpatrick, in the Cambridge Bible for School ...

, and his own official

of the tribe of Ephraim.

Death, succession of Rehoboam, and kingdom division

King Solomon is a central biblical figure, who, according to the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' Rehoboam Rehoboam (; , , ; , ; ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first monarch of the Kingdom of Judah after the split of the united Kingdom of Israel. He was a son of and the successor to Solomon and a grandson of David. In the account of I Ki ...

, succeeded him, but ten of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, Tribes of Israel refused him as king, splitting the monarchy into the northern Kingdom of Israel under

, while Rehoboam continued to reign over the smaller southern

. Henceforth the two kingdoms were never again united. Solomon is associated with the peak "golden age" of the independent Kingdom of Israel and is a legendary source of judicial and religious wisdom. According to Jewish tradition, King Solomon wrote three books of the Bible: * ''Mishlei'' (Book of Proverbs), a collection of fables and wisdom of life. * ''Kohelet'' (

), a book of contemplation and self-reflection. * ''Shir ha-Shirim'' (

), a collection of erotic verse. The verse has been interpreted both literally (describing a romantic and sexual relationship between a man and a woman) and metaphorically (describing a relationship between God and his people). The Hebrew word appears in the title of two hymns (72 and 127) in the Psalms. This Hebrew word means "to Solomon", but it can also be translated as "by Solomon", thus suggesting to some that Solomon wrote the two psalms.

Apocryphal or deuterocanonical texts

Rabbinical tradition attributes the ''Book of Wisdom'' (included within the

) to Solomon, although this book was probably written in the 2nd century BCE. In this work, Solomon is portrayed as an astronomer. Other books of wisdom poetry such as the ''Odes of Solomon'' and the ''Psalms of Solomon'' also bear his name. The Jewish historian Eupolemus, who wrote about 157 BCE, included copies of apocryphal letters exchanged between Solomon and the kings of

and Tyre. The Gnostic ''Apocalypse of Adam'', which may date to the 1st or 2nd century, refers to a legend in which Solomon sends out an army of demons to seek a virgin who had fled from him, perhaps the earliest surviving mention of the later common tale that Solomon controlled demons and made them his slaves. This tradition of Solomon's control over demons appears fully elaborated in the early pseudoepigraphical work called the ''

'' with its elaborate and grotesque demonology.

Historicity

As with most biblical personages in the middle era of Israelite society, the historicity of Solomon is hotly debated. Current consensus states that regardless of whether or not a man named Solomon truly reigned as king over the Judean hills in the tenth century BCE, the biblical description of his apparent empire's lavishness is almost surely an anachronistic exaggeration. As for Solomon himself, scholars on both the Biblical maximalism, maximalist and Biblical minimalism, minimalist sides of the spectrum of biblical Archaeology, archeology generally agree that he probably existed. However, a historically accurate picture of the Davidic king is difficult to construct. According to some archaeologists, Solomon could have only been the monarch or chieftain of Judah, and that the northern kingdom was a separate development. Such positions have been criticized by other archaeologists and scholars, who argue that a united monarchy did exist in the 10th century BCE, while agreeing that the biblical account contains exaggerations.

Arguments against biblical description

Historical evidence of King Solomon other than the biblical accounts has been so minimal that some scholars have understood the period of his reign as a 'Dark Age' (Muhly 1998). The first-century Roman Jews, Romano-Jewish scholar Josephus in ''Against Apion'', citing Tyre, Lebanon, Tyrian court records and Menander of Ephesus, Menander, gives a specific year during which King Hiram I of Tyre sent materials to Solomon for the construction of the Temple. However, no material evidence indisputably of Solomon's reign has been found. Yigael Yadin's excavations at Hazor,

, Beit Shean and

uncovered structures that he and others have argued date from Solomon's reign, but others, such as Israel Finkelstein and Neil Silberman, argue that they should be dated to the Omrides, Omride period, more than a century after Solomon. According to Finkelstein and Silberman, authors of ''The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts'', at the time of the kingdoms of David and Solomon, Jerusalem was populated by only a few hundred residents or less, which is insufficient for an empire stretching from the Euphrates to Eilath#Biblical references, Eilath. According to ''The Bible Unearthed'', archaeological evidence suggests that the kingdom of Israel at the time of Solomon was little more than a small city state, and so it is implausible that Solomon received tribute as large as 666 talents of gold per year. Although both Finkelstein and Silberman accept that David and Solomon were real inhabitants of Judah about the 10th century BCE, they claim that the earliest independent reference to the Kingdom of Israel is about 890 BCE, and for Judah about 750 BCE. They suggest that because of religious prejudice, the authors of the Bible suppressed the achievements of the Omrides (whom the Hebrew Bible describes as being polytheist), and instead pushed them back to a supposed golden age of Judaism and monotheists, and devotees of

. Some biblical minimalism, Biblical minimalists like Thomas L. Thompson go further, arguing that Jerusalem became a city and capable of being a state capital only in the mid-7th century. Likewise, Finkelstein and others consider the claimed size of Solomon's temple implausible.

Arguments in favour of biblical description

André Lemaire states in ''Ancient Israel: From Abraham to the Roman Destruction of the Temple'' that the principal points of the biblical tradition of Solomon are generally trustworthy, although elsewhere he writes that he could find no substantiating archaeological evidence that supports the Queen of Sheba's visit to king Solomon, saying that the earliest records of trans-Arabian caravan voyages from Tayma and Sheba unto the Middle-Euphrates etc. occurred in the mid-8th century BCE, placing a possible visit from the Queen of Sheba to Jerusalem around this time—some 250 years later than the timeframe traditionally given for king Solomon's reign. Seventeen years later, traces of cinnamon were found in Phoenician clay flasks from three small sites in the Israeli coastal plain dating from the 10th century BCE. The authors suggested that trade routes with South Asia existed much earlier than previously thought. Kenneth Kitchen argues that Solomon ruled over a comparatively wealthy "mini-empire", rather than a small city-state, and considers 666 gold talents a modest amount of money. Kitchen calculates that over 30 years, such a kingdom might have accumulated up to 500 tons of gold, which is small compared to other examples, such as the 1,180 tons of gold that Alexander the Great took from Susa. Similarly, Kitchen and others consider the temple of Solomon a reasonable and typically sized structure for the region at the time. Dever states "that we now have direct Bronze and Iron Age parallels for every feature of the 'Solomonic temple' as described in the Hebrew Bible".

Middle way

Some scholars have charted a middle path between minimalist scholars like Finkelstein, Silberman, and Philip Davies (who believes that "Solomon is a totally invented character") and maximalist scholars like Lemaire and Kitchen. For instance, the archaeologist Avraham Faust has argued that biblical depictions of Solomon date to later periods and do overstate his wealth, buildings, and kingdom, but that Solomon did have an acropolis and ruled over a polity larger than Jerusalem. In particular, his archaeological research in regions near Jerusalem, like Sharon, finds commerce too great not to be supported by a polity and such regions probably were ruled loosely by Jerusalem. Scholars like Lester Grabbe also believe that there must have been a ruler in Jerusalem during this period and that he likely built a temple, although the town was quite small. William G. Dever argues that Solomon only reigned over Israel and did build a temple, but that descriptions of his lavishness and the other conquests are strongly exaggerated.

Archaeology

General observations

The archaeological remains that are considered to date from the time of Solomon are notable for the fact that Canaanite material culture appears to have continued unabated; there is a distinct lack of magnificent empire, or cultural development. Indeed, comparing pottery from areas traditionally assigned to Israel with that of the Philistines points to the latter having been significantly more sophisticated. However, there is a lack of physical evidence of its existence, despite some archaeological work in the area. This is not unexpected because the area was devastated by the Babylonians, then rebuilt and destroyed several times. In 2014, professor of anthropology Jimmy Hardin and his team discovered six official clay Bulla (seal), bullae seals at a site east of Gaza City, Gaza called Khirbet Summeily. He states that these bullae are associated with an Iron Age IIA political entity typified by elite activities dated to the 10th century BCE. The bullae appear to be the only known examples that date to this period. In his view, this lends general support to the historical veracity of

and Solomon as recorded in the Hebrew biblical texts.

Temple Mount in Jerusalem

Little archaeological excavation has been done around the area known as the Temple Mount, in what is thought to be the foundation of Solomon's Temple, because attempts to do so are met with protests by Muslim authorities of the Jerusalem Waqf.

Precious metals from Tarshish

The biblical passages that understand

as a source of King Solomon's great wealth in metals—especially silver, but also gold, tin and iron (Ezekiel 27)—were linked to archaeological evidence from silver-hoards found in Phoenicia in 2013. The metals from Tarshish were reportedly obtained by Solomon in partnership with King Hiram of Phoenician Tyre (Isaiah 23) and the fleets of Tarshish and ships that sailed in their service. The silver hoards provide the first recognized material evidence that agrees with the ancient texts concerning Solomon's kingdom and his wealth (see 'Wealth' above). Possible evidence for the described wealth of Solomon and his kingdom was discovered in ancient silver hoards, which were found in Israel and Phoenicia and recognized for their importance in 2003. The evidence from the hoards shows that the Levant was a center of wealth in precious metals during the reigns of Solomon and Hiram, and matches the texts that say the trade extended from Asia to the Atlantic Ocean.

Cabul

The distribution of fortified cities between Phoenicia and Galilee in Iron Age IIA (10th-9th century BCE) provides context on Solomon's sale of territory to Hiram, which he derided as ''Cabul'' (i.e. "good for nothing"). Kyle H. Keimer argues that they reflected Solomon's apathy to the tribe of Asher, who lived in Phoenicia, or his strategic thinking, where these cities served as defense barriers against foreign invasions. When it came to national defense, Near Eastern states did not rely on walls. Instead, they guarded resources, which they prioritized over the people. In addition, it revealed Solomon's political upper hand over Hiram. These events were subsequently preserved in sources, which a Deuteronomistic history, Deuteronomistic historian relied on when writing 1 Kings 9:11-14.

Biblical criticism: Solomon's religiosity

From a critical point of view, Solomon's building of a temple for Yahweh should not be considered an act of particular devotion to Yahweh because Solomon is also described as building places of worship for a number of other deities. Some scholars and historians argue that the passages, such as his dedication prayer (), that describe Solomon's apparent initial devotion to Yahweh were written much later, after Jerusalem had become the religious centre of the kingdom, replacing locations such as Shiloh (Biblical city), Shiloh and Bethel. Earlier historians maintain that there is evidence that these passages in Kings are derived from official court records at the time of Solomon and from other writings of that time that were incorporated into the canonical books of Kings. More recent scholars believe that passages such as these in the Books of Kings were not written by the same authors who wrote the rest of the text, instead probably by the Deuteronomist.

Religious views

Judaism

King Solomon in Old Age higher-contrast version

King Solomon sinned by acquiring many foreign wives and horses because he thought he knew the reason for the biblical prohibition and thought it did not apply to him. When King Solomon married Pharaoh's daughter, a sandbank formed which eventually formed the "great nation of Rome"—the nation that destroyed Herod's Temple. Solomon gradually lost more and more prestige until he became like a commoner. Some say he regained his status while others say he did not. In the end, however, he is regarded as a righteous king and is especially praised for his diligence in building the Temple. Adin Steinsaltz reads Solomon's wisdom as ''realpolitik''. His geopolitical success possible only by paying lip service to idolatrous practices without actually believing in them. This set a terrible example for his subjects. Solomon assumed incorrectly that ordinary people would be as wise as himself and keep idolatry at arm's length. King Josiah was also said to have had the

, Aaron's rod, vial of manna and the anointing oil placed within a hidden chamber which had been built by Solomon. The ''Seder Olam Rabbah'' holds that Solomon's reign was not in 1000 BCE, but rather in the ninth century BCE, during which time he built the First Temple in 832 BCE. However, ''The Jewish Encyclopedia'' of 1906 gives the more common date of "971 to 931 BCE".

Christianity

Christianity has traditionally accepted the historical existence of Solomon, though some modern Christian scholars have also questioned at least his authorship of those biblical texts ascribed to him. Such disputes tend to divide Christians into traditionalist and modernist camps. Of the two Genealogy of Jesus, genealogies of Jesus given in the Gospels, Gospel of Matthew, Matthew mentions Solomon, but Gospel of Luke, Luke does not. Some commentators see this as an issue that can be reconciled while others disagree. For instance, it has been suggested that Matthew is using Joseph's genealogy and Luke is using Mary's, but Darrell Bock states that this would be unprecedented, "especially when no other single woman appears in the line". Other suggestions include the use by one of the royal and the other of the natural line, one using the legal line and the other the physical line, or that Joseph was adopted. Jesus refers to Solomon, using him for comparison in his admonition against worrying about life. This account is recorded in Matthew 6:29 and the parallel passage in Luke 12:27. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, Solomon is commemorated as a saint, with the title of "Righteous Prophet and King". His feast day is celebrated on the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers (two Sundays before the Great Feast of the Christmas, Nativity of the Lord). The staunchly Catholic King Philip II of Spain sought to model himself after King Solomon. Statues of King David and Solomon stand on either side of the entrance to the basilica of El Escorial, Philip's palace, and Solomon is also depicted in a great fresco at the center of El Escorial's library. Philip identified the warrior-king David with his own father Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, and himself sought to emulate the thoughtful and logical character which he perceived in Solomon. Moreover, the structure of the Escorial was inspired by that of Solomon's Temple.

Islam

, Solomon is also known as Sulaimān ibn Dāwūd, and is considered a prophet and a messenger of God in Islam, God, as well as a divinely appointed monarch. Solomon inherited his position from his father as the prophetic King of the Israelites. Unlike in the Bible, according to Muslim tradition Solomon never participated in idolatry. The Quran ascribes to Solomon a great level of wisdom, knowledge and power. He knew the language of the birds (). Solomon was also known in Islam to have other supernatural abilities bestowed upon him by God, like controlling the wind, ruling over the jinn, enslaving div (mythology), divs, and hearing the communication of ants: The Quran says: Solomon's gifts are often used allegorically in popular literature. The demons taking over Solomon's kingdom mirrors Sufi cosmology, the Sufi concept of the mind giving in to evil urges. The ant is depicted as a wise creature, revealing to Solomon the reason behind his gift to control the wind and his name. During the Islamization of Iran, Solomon became merged with Jamshid, a great king from Persian mythology, about who similar attributes are ascribed to.

Baháʼí Faith

In the Baháʼí Faith, Solomon is regarded as one of the lesser prophets along with David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, along with others. Baháʼís see Solomon as a prophet who was sent by God to address the issues of his time. Baha'ullah wrote about Solomon in the ''Hidden Words''. He also mentions Solomon in the ''Tablet of Wisdom'', where he is depicted as a contemporary of Pythagoras.

Legends

''One Thousand and One Nights''

A well-known story in the collection ''One Thousand and One Nights'' describes a genie who had displeased King Solomon and was punished by being locked in a bottle and thrown into the sea. Since the bottle was sealed with Solomon's seal, the genie was helpless to free himself, until he was freed many centuries later by a fisherman who discovered the bottle. In other stories from the ''One Thousand and One Nights'', protagonists who had to leave their homeland and travel to the unknown places of the world saw signs which proved that Solomon had already been there. Sometimes, protagonists discovered words of Solomon that were intended to help those who were lost and had unluckily reached those forbidden and deserted places.

Angels and magic

According to Rabbinic literature, on account of his modest request for wisdom only, Solomon was rewarded with riches and an unprecedented glorious realm, which extended over the upper world inhabited by the angels and over the whole of the terrestrial globe with all its inhabitants, including all the beasts, fowl, and reptiles, as well as the demons and spirits. His control over the demons, spirits, and animals augmented his splendor, the demons bringing him precious stones, besides water from distant countries to irrigate his exotic plants. The beasts and fowl of their own accord entered the kitchen of Solomon's palace, so that they might be used as food for him, and extravagant meals for him were prepared daily by each of his 700 wives and 300 concubines, with the thought that perhaps the king would feast that day in her house.

Seal of Solomon

The Seal of Solomon is the legendary Seal (emblem), signet ring attributed to Solomon in medieval mystical traditions, from which it developed in parallel within Jewish mysticism, Sufism, Islamic mysticism and Western esotericism, Western occultism. It is the predecessor to the Star of David, the contemporary cultural and religious symbol of the Jews, Jewish people. It was often depicted in the shape of either a pentagram or a hexagram. In religious lore, the ring is described as having given Solomon the power to command the supernatural and also the ability to speak with animals. Due to the proverbial wisdom of Solomon, it came to be seen as an amulet or talisman, or a symbol or character in Medieval European magic, medieval magic and Renaissance magic, occultism, and alchemy.

Solomon and Asmodeus

One legend concerning Asmodeus (see: s:Translation:The Story of King Solomon and Ashmedai, The Story of King Solomon and Ashmedai) goes on to state that Solomon one day asked Asmodeus what could make demons powerful over man, and Asmodeus asked to be freed and given the ring so that he could demonstrate; Solomon agreed but Asmodeus threw the ring into the sea and it was swallowed by a fish. Asmodeus then swallowed the king, stood up fully with one wing touching heaven and the other earth, and spat out Solomon to a distance of 400 miles. The Rabbis claim this was a divine punishment for Solomon's having failed to follow three divine commands, and Solomon was forced to wander from city to city, until he eventually arrived in an

city where he was forced to work in the king's kitchens. Solomon gained a chance to prepare a meal for the Ammonite king, which the king found so impressive that the previous cook was sacked and Solomon put in his place; the king's daughter, Naamah, subsequently fell in love with Solomon, but the family (thinking Solomon a commoner) disapproved, so the king decided to kill them both by sending them into the desert. Solomon and the king's daughter wandered the desert until they reached a coastal city, where they bought a fish to eat, which just happened to be the one which had swallowed the magic ring. Solomon was then able to regain his throne and expel Asmodeus. The element of a ring thrown into the sea and found back in a fish's belly also appeared in Herodotus' account of Polycrates, the tyrant of Samos (c. 538–522 BCE). In another familiar version of the legend of the Seal of Solomon, Asmodeus disguises himself. In some myths, he's disguised as King Solomon himself. The concealed Asmodeus tells travelers who have ventured up to King Solomon's grand lofty palace that the Seal of Solomon was thrown into the sea. He then convinces them to plunge in and attempt to retrieve it, for if they do they would take the throne as king.

Artifacts

Other magical items attributed to Solomon are key of Solomon, his key and his Table. The latter was said to be held in Toledo, Spain, Toledo in Visigothic Spain and was part of the loot taken by Tariq ibn Ziyad during the Muslim conquest of Spain according to ibn Abd al-Hakam's ''History of the Conquest of Spain''. The former appears in the title of ''The Lesser Key of Solomon'', a Christian grimoire whose frame story, framing story is Solomon capturing demons using his ring, and forcing them to explain themselves to him. In ''The Book of Deadly Names'', purportedly translated from Arabic manuscripts found hidden in a building in Spain, the "King of the Jinn" Fiqiṭush brings 72 jinn before King Solomon to confess their corruptions and places of residence. Fiqitush tells King Solomon the recipes for curing such corruptions as each evil jinn confesses.

Angels

Angels also helped Solomon in building the Temple, though not by choice. The edifice was, according to rabbinical legend, miraculously constructed throughout, the large heavy stones rising and settling in their respective places of themselves. The general opinion of the Rabbis is that Solomon hewed the stones by means of a ''Solomon's Shamir, shamir'', a mythical worm whose mere touch cleft rocks. According to

, the shamir was brought from paradise by Solomon's eagle; but most of the rabbis state that Solomon was informed of the worm's haunts by Asmodeus. The shamir had been entrusted by the prince of the sea to the mountain rooster alone, and the rooster had sworn to guard it well, but Solomon's men found the bird's nest, and covered it with glass. When the bird returned, it used the shamir to break the glass, whereupon the men scared the bird, causing it to drop the worm, which the men could then bring to Solomon.

In the Kabbalah

Early adherents of the Kabbalah portray Solomon as having sailed through the air on a throne of light placed on an eagle, which brought him near the heavenly gates as well as to the dark mountains behind which the fallen angels ''Uzza'' and ''Azzazel'' were chained; the eagle would rest on the chains, and Solomon, using the magic ring, would compel the two angels to reveal every mystery he desired to know.

The palace without entrance

According to one legend, while traveling magically, Solomon noticed a magnificent palace to which there appeared to be no entrance. He ordered the demons to climb to the roof and see if they could discover any living being within the building but they found only an eagle, which said that it was 700 years old, but that it had never seen an entrance. An elder brother of the eagle, 900 years old, was then found, but it also did not know the entrance. The eldest brother of these two birds, which was 1,300 years old, then declared it had been informed by its father that the door was on the west side, but that it had become hidden by sand drifted by the wind. Having discovered the entrance, Solomon found an idol inside that had in its mouth a silver tablet saying in Greek (a language not thought by modern scholars to have existed 1000 years before the time of Solomon) that the statue was of ''Shaddad, the son of 'Ad'', and that it had ''reigned over a million cities, rode on a million horses, had under it a million vassals and slew a million warriors'', yet it could not resist the death (personification), angel of death.

Throne

Solomon's throne is described at length in

, which is compiled from three different sources, and in two later Midrash. According to these, there were on the steps of the throne twelve golden lions, each facing a golden eagle. There were six steps to the throne, on which animals, all of gold, were arranged in the following order: on the first step a lion opposite an ox; on the second, a wolf opposite a sheep; on the third, a tiger opposite a camel; on the fourth, an eagle opposite a peacock, on the fifth, a cat opposite a cock; on the sixth, a sparrow-hawk opposite a dove. On the top of the throne was a dove holding a sparrow-hawk in its claws, symbolizing the dominion of Israel over the Gentiles. The first midrash claims that six steps were constructed because Solomon foresaw that six kings would sit on the throne, namely, Solomon,

, Manasseh of Judah, Manasseh, Amon of Judah, Amon, and

. There was also on the top of the throne a golden candelabrum, on the seven branches of the one side of which were engraved the names of the seven patriarchs Adam, Noah, Shem, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Job, and on the seven of the other the names of Levi, Kohath, Amram, Moses, Aaron, Eldad, Medad, and, in addition, Hur (another version has Haggai). Above the candelabrum was a golden jar filled with olive oil and beneath it a golden basin which supplied the jar with oil and on which the names of Nadab, Abihu, and Eli and his two sons were engraved. Over the throne, twenty-four vines were fixed to cast a shadow on the king's head. By a mechanical contrivance the throne followed Solomon wherever he wished to go. Supposedly, due to another mechanical trick, when the king reached the first step, the ox stretched forth its leg, on which Solomon leaned, a similar action taking place in the case of the animals on each of the six steps. From the sixth step the eagles raised the king and placed him in his seat, near which a golden serpent lay coiled. When the king was seated the large eagle placed the crown on his head, the serpent uncoiled itself, and the lions and eagles moved upward to form a shade over him. The dove then descended, took the scroll of the Law from the Ark, and placed it on Solomon's knees. When the king sat, surrounded by the Sanhedrin, to judge the people, the wheels began to turn, and the beasts and fowls began to utter their respective cries, which frightened those who had intended to bear false testimony. Moreover, while Solomon was ascending the throne, the lions scattered various fragrant spices. After Solomon's death, Pharaoh Shishak, when taking away the treasures of the Temple (I Kings xiv. 26), carried off the throne, which remained in Egypt until Sennacherib conquered that country. After Sennacherib's fall Hezekiah gained possession of it, but when Josiah was slain by Pharaoh Necho II, Necho, the latter took it away. However, according to rabbinical accounts, Necho did not know how the mechanism worked and so accidentally struck himself with one of the lions causing him to become lame; Nebuchadnezzar, into whose possession the throne subsequently came, shared a similar fate. The throne then passed to the Persians, whose king Darius I of Persia, Darius was the first to sit successfully on Solomon's throne after his death; subsequently the throne came into the possession of the Greeks and Ahasuerus.

Freemasonry

Masonic ritual and symbolism, Masonic rituals refer to King Solomon and the building of his Temple. Masonic Temples, where a Masonic Lodge meets, are an allegory, allegorical reference to King Solomon's Temple.

Places

The Solomon Islands, a country and archipelago in Melanesia, were named for King Solomon by the Spanish navigator Álvaro de Mendaña, who became the first European to see the islands in 1568.

In literature, art, and music

Literature

* In H. Rider Haggard's ''King Solomon's Mines'' (1885) the protagonists discover multiple settings said to have belonged to or to have been built at the request of King Solomon, such as 'Solomon's Great Road' and the mines themselves. Also, the two mountains which form the entrance to Kukuana Land (where the mines are located in the novel) are referred to as 'Sheba's Breasts' which could be an allusion to the Queen of Sheba, with whom King Solomon had a relationship, or Solomon's mother, who was named Bathsheba. When in the mines, the characters also contemplate what must have occurred to prevent King Solomon from returning to retrieve the massive amounts of diamonds, gold and ivory tusks that were found buried in his great 'Treasure Chamber'. * In the ''Divine Comedy'', the spirit of Solomon appears to Dante Alighieri in the Heaven of the Sun with other exemplars of inspired wisdom. * In Friedrich Dürrenmatt's ''The Physicists'', the physicist Möbius claims that Solomon appears to him and dictates the "theory of all possible inventions" (based on ''unified field theory''). * Solomon appears in Rudyard Kipling's ''Just So Stories''. * O. Henry's short story ''The Gift of the Magi'' (1905) contains the following description to convey the preciousness of character Jim Dillingham Young's pocket watch: "Had King Solomon been the janitor, with all his treasures piled up in the basement, Jim would have pulled out his watch every time he passed, just to see him pluck at his beard from envy." * In Neal Stephenson's three-volume ''The Baroque Cycle'', 17th-century alchemists like Isaac Newton believe that Solomon created a kind of "heavier" gold with mystical properties and that it was cached in the Solomon Islands where it was accidentally discovered by the crew of a wayward Spanish galleon. In the third volume of ''The Baroque Cycle, The System of the World'', a mysterious member of the entourage of tsar Peter the Great, named "Solomon Kohen, Kohan" appears in early 18th-century London. The czar, traveling incognito to purchase English-made ships for Imperial Russian Navy#Russian Navy during the reign of Peter the Great, his navy, explains that he added him to his court after the Azov campaigns (1695–1696)#The second Azov campaign, Sack of Azov, where Kohan had been a guest of the Pasha. Solomon Kohan is later revealed as one of the extremely long-lived "Wise," such as Enoch Root, and compares a courtyard full of inventors' workstations to "an operation I used to have in Jerusalem a long time ago", denominating either facility as "a temple". Stephenson's sequel to ''Reamde'', 2019's ''Fall; or, Dodge in Hell'' was also a surprise sequel to the Baroque Cycle novels and ''Cryptonomicon''. In the mid- to late-21st century span of ''Fall'', Solomon Kohan has joined the faculty of Princeton University, going by ''Solly Pesador,'' and is described by a student as "one of those guys who had ''been around forever'' and played roles in tech companies going at least as far back as Hewlett-Packard" and as an "old-school tech geek turned neuro-hacker". * In ''The Ring of Solomon'', both King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba are featured prominently. * Solomon, King of Urushalim, is a significant character in ''The Shadow Prince'', the first novel of Philip Armstrong's epic historical fantasy, ''The Chronicles of Tupiluliuma''. His Ring is an Atalantaën Relic, by which is he able to command daemons. He uses it to summon a daemon army, thereafter called the Cohort of Free Daemons, to oppose the forces of the Chaos God, Set (deity), Sutekh, thus allowing the young Hittite musician, Lisarwa, to repair the Veil that separates the physical world from the dangerous wild energies of the Netherworld, using another of the relics, the Harp of Daud, once owned by his father (King David). Solomon's son,

also appears in a minor capacity. * In the Japanese manga series ''Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic'', Solomon was a powerful magician who united all of the world under his peaceful rule. However, when this world was destroyed by a calamity, he created the world ''Magi'' is set in and saved mankind by sending them there. A special power originated from him, the "Wisdom of Solomon", allows the main character Aladdin to talk directly with the soul of a person, alive or dead. * In the manga ''Devils and Realist'', Solomon is a friend of Lucifer and is the "Elector"—the one who can choose the interim ruler over Hell as its emperor rests to regain his strength and had powers over demons known as his seventy-two pillars. He's also known as the one who can control Hell or Heaven with the power of his ring. * Chapter 14 of the ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' ends with Huck and Jim debating over how wise Solomon really was. * In Francis Bacon's Essay 'Of Revenge', Solomon is paraphrased: "And Solomon, I am sure, saith, It is the glory of a man, to pass by an offence." * In DC Comics, Solomon is one of the Immortal Elders of the hero Captain Marvel (DC Comics), Captain Marvel. * In a subject called in art the ''Idolatry of Solomon'', the foreign wives are depicted as leading Solomon away from Yahweh toward idolatry because they worshiped gods other than Yahweh (). This forms part of the Power of Women topos in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, showing the dangers women posed to even the most virtuous men. * Naamah, a princess of

(now in Jordan) who arrives in Jerusalem at age fourteen to marry King Solomon and tells of their life together, is the narrator of Aryeh Lev Stollman's novel ''Queen of Jerusalem'', which was published in 2020 by Aryeh Nir/Modan (Tel Aviv) in Hebrew translation under the title ''Divrei Y'mai Naamah'' (').

Film

* ''Solomon and Sheba'' (1959)—Epic film directed by King Vidor, starring Yul Brynner and Gina Lollobrigida * ''Solomon & Sheba (1995 film), Solomon & Sheba'' (1995)—Showtime film directed by Robert M. Young (director), Robert M. Young starring Halle Berry and Jimmy Smits * ''Solomon (film), Solomon'' (1997, TNT (U.S. TV network), TNT)—directed by Roger Young (director), Roger Young, starring Ben Cross * ''Brooklyn Babylon'' (2001)— a modern retelling of the story of Solomon and the

, set during the Crown Heights riot * ''The Kingdom of Solomon (film), The Kingdom of Solomon'' (2009)—Iranian production directed by Shahriar Bahrani * ''The Song (2014 film), The Song'' (2014)—a modern retelling directed by Richard Ramsey, starring Alan Powell, Ali Faulkner, and Caitlin Nicol-Thomas * ''Three Thousand Years of Longing'' (2022)—King Solomon woos the Queen of Sheba in the first tale told by the Djinn

Music

* Popol Vuh (band), Popol Vuh, ''Das Hohelied Salomos'' – 1975 album with Solomon texts set to music. * Giacomo Carissimi, ''The Judgement of Solomon'' for three chorus, two violins and organ * Marc-Antoine Charpentier, ''Judicium Salomnis,'' H 422, Oratorio for soloists, chorus, orchestra, and continuo 1702 * Sébastien de Brossard, ''Solomon's fall,'' cantata * George Frideric Handel, Handel composed an oratorio entitled ''Solomon (Handel), Solomon'' in 1748. The story follows the basic biblical plot. * Ernest Bloch composed a Hebraic Rhapsody for cello and orchestra entitled ''Schelomo'', based on King Solomon. * Kate Bush wrote a song called "Song of Solomon" in 1993 for her album ''The Red Shoes (Album), The Red Shoes''. * Toivo Tulev composed a piece for choir, soloists and chamber orchestra entitled ''Songs'' in 2005. The text is taken directly from the Song of Songs in its English, Spanish and Latin translations. * Derrick Harriott has a rocksteady song titled Solomon (later covered by Junior Murvin), in which he warns a woman that he is wiser than Solomon in the ways of women. * Jamaican dancehall rapper Sean Paul mentions King Solomon in his 2005 hit song "We Be Burnin'". Specifically Sean Paul references the legend that marijuana was found on the grave of King Solomon. * The New Pornographers included a song entitled "One Kind of Solomon" on their 2019 album ''In the Morse Code of Brake Lights''. * Cassandra Wilson performs the self-penned 'Solomon Sang' on her 1995 Blue Note album, ''New Moon Daughter''. * Grateful Dead have a song called "King Solomon's Marbles" on their 1975 album, ''Blues for Allah''. *M. Nasir's "Tanya Sama Itu Hud Hud" revolves around the correspondence of the

(''hudhud'') with the figure especially as told through the poem ''The Conference of the Birds''. * Momus (musician), Momus' debut album Circus Maximus (Momus album), Circus Maximus featured a song called "King Solomon's Song And Mine". * The British Coronation Anthem "Zadok the Priest, Zadok The Priest" mentions the anointing of King Solomon by Zadok and Nathan the Prophet. The lyrics are derived from 1 Kings 1:34-45.

Notes

References

Bibliography

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External links

* . * . * Animated depiction of the life of Solomon * Artistic movie about the rise and the reign of King Solomon * . * . , - {{Authority control Solomon, 10th-century BC monarchs 10th-century BCE Hebrew people Kings of Israel (united monarchy) Books of Kings people Children of David Christian saints from the Old Testament Kings of ancient Israel Kings of ancient Judah Asian people whose existence is disputed Exorcists Wisdom Jewish royalty

Biblical account

Chronology

Childhood

Succession and administration

Wisdom

Wealth

Construction projects

Wives and concubines

Relationship with Queen of Sheba

Sins and punishment

Enemies

Death, succession of Rehoboam, and kingdom division

Apocryphal or deuterocanonical texts

Historicity

Arguments against biblical description

Arguments in favour of biblical description

Middle way

Archaeology

General observations

Temple Mount in Jerusalem

Precious metals from Tarshish

Cabul

Biblical criticism: Solomon's religiosity

Religious views

Judaism

Christianity

Islam

Baháʼí Faith

Legends

''One Thousand and One Nights''

Angels and magic

Seal of Solomon

Solomon and Asmodeus

Artifacts

Angels

In the Kabbalah

The palace without entrance

Throne

Freemasonry

Places

In literature, art, and music

Literature

Film

Music

See also

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links