did king solomon visit ethiopia

The Legendary Queen of Sheba and Her Iconic Visit with King Solomon

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Originating in the Bible, the Queen of Sheba is a figure featured in the stories of many cultures and religious groups. Although her exact homeland has not been agreed upon, she is known as a queen from the Red Sea region, and plays a role in legendary tales that have been retold numerous times through literature, film, television, and music. Most tales revolve around her meeting with the biblical King of Israel, Solomon, with variations on what occurred during that visit. In some tales she is tricked into sleeping with him, ultimately leading her to bear him a son. In other versions, she is tricked into revealing her hairy legs, which repulses Solomon. In other variations, she simply delivers spices to Solomon, uses riddles to test his wisdom, and then returns home.

The Queen of Sheba is well-known as a Biblical figure. Relatively little is written within the Bible about her origins. Her story focuses on her travels to Jerusalem. She is said to have arrived in Jerusalem with a camel bearing spices to give to Solomon. She arrived "with a very great retinue, with camels bearing spices, and very much gold, and precious stones" (I Kings 10:2). "Never again came such an abundance of spices" (10:10; II Chron. 9:1–9). She presented several riddles to Solomon, which he answered to her satisfaction. In the tale, Solomon taught Sheba about his god, Yahweh, and then they exchanged gifts. After that, the Queen returned to her home land. Some Ethiopians believe that this is how Christianity was originally brought to their area.

There is agreement among scholars that Sheba refers to the South Arabian kingdom of Saba, which is located in present-day Yemen. The Queen’s visit to Jerusalem may have been a trade visit, as it was common to trade spices by camel around the 9 th and 10 th centuries B.C.

In Jewish legend, the Queen of Sheba was the Queen of Egypt and Ethiopia. She was credited with bringing the first balsam tree to Israel. In one Jewish account, King Solomon was informed that Sheba was the only Kingdom that was not subject to him. This did not make him happy. He sent a letter to Sheba commanding that the Queen of Sheba come to him as one of his subjects. The Queen of Sheba agreed to visit Jerusalem, and sent many ships filled with gifts prior to her arrival. She also agreed to arrive within three years, although the trip typically took seven years. When she did arrive, she mistook Solomon’s glass floor for water, and lifted her dress, revealing her hairy legs, for which King Solomon reprimanded her. She asked him three questions to test his wisdom, and returned home.

The Queen of Sheba meeting with Solomon (note: this is unlikely to be an accurate depiction of how she really looked, from a racial perspective). Public Domain

Muslims do not refer to the Queen of Sheba, but to the “queen of the south.” The story in the Quran is essentially the same as that followed by Christians and Jews, with some supplementations derived from the Jewish Midrash. The queen is named Bilkis. The tale says the demons of Solomon’s court were worried that Solomon might marry Bilkis. To prevent this, they started a rumor that Bilkis had hairy legs, leading Solomon to construct the glass floor for the sole purpose of tricking her into revealing her legs. However, in this version the Queen and Solomon did not have relations, as they did in the other versions.

The Queen of Sheba, also known as Bilkis. Public Domain

In the Ethiopian Kebra Nagast (Glory of the Kings), the Queen is referred to as Makeda . While this version of her story included the trip to visit Solomon , and the son who they conceived together and she raised, it omitted the stories of the glass floor and her hairy legs. In this version of the legend, the Queen warned Solomon that he was not to touch her, because she was an unmarried woman. He agreed, so long as she agreed not to take anything of his while she stayed as his guest. She agreed. However, Solomon tricked her by ordering an extremely spicy meal to be served for dinner, and that a glass of water be placed near her bed as she slept. In the middle of the night she took the glass of water, and Solomon declared that she had broken her end of the agreement, and as such, he could break his end as well. They slept together, and after returning to her homeland, the Queen discovered she was pregnant. She gave birth to Solomon’s son, and named him Menelik. As he aged, Menelik expressed that he wished to see his father. He traveled to Israel to visit King Solomon, supposedly returning with the Ark of the Covenant, and the sacred container that contained the Ten Commandments.

A figure rides upon horseback, thought to be the Queen of Sheba. Originally a wall painting in a church in Lalibela, Ethiopia, now in National Museum. Wikimedia , CC

With its many variations, the tales of the Queen of Sheba are frequently told to this day. In Ethiopia, it is believed that the son of the Queen of Sheba and Solomon, is from whom Ethiopian dynasty claims descent to this day. The tales are often used in modern-day literature, theater, film, and music. In these stories, she takes on many appearances, representing the different ways she is viewed by different societies. While many legends have the same basis, and there are many components of the Queen of Sheba’s story that are agreed-upon, there has been no physical evidence of her identity uncovered to date. Both Ethiopia and Yemen claim to be the homeland of the Queen of Sheba, but there is no archaeological evidence to support either stance. For now, she remains a legendary figure in the Bible, Quran, Jewish Aggadah, and Kebra Nagast. Regardless of the different versions of the stories that are told, the Queen of Sheba remains a figure that captivates people of different backgrounds, and from all different religions. As long as her story remains intriguing it will be retold, with newly arising variations on the legendary themes, and will serve as both inspiration and entertainment for many years to come.

Actress Betty Blythe as the queen in The Queen of Sheba (1921) Public Domain

Featured image: Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, painting by Giovanni Demin (1789-1859). Public Domain

The Queen of Sheba – CBS. Available from: http://www.pbs.org/mythsandheroes/myths_four_sheba.html

Queen of Sheba – Wikipedia. Available from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_of_Sheba

The Queen of Sheba – BBC. Available from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/cultures/sheba_01.shtml

Who was the Queen of Sheba? – About Education. Available from: http://womenshistory.about.com/od/bible/a/Queen-Of-Sheba.htm

By M R Reese

its amazing how in you tube comments white americans and others are always talking about african americans want to steal other peoples history when every one is white in history lf you let whites tell the story. these greco roman pictures and pictures of east european jews (as solomon) are completely false- europeans converted centuries latter via the khazars see book the 13th tribe by arthur koestler who obviously is not black.) original jes afro-asians) the above link has a good article which is much more accurate. smh

She(Queen Of Sheba) came from the uttermost parts of the earth: The Queen of Sheba Neither came from Ethiopia nor from any part of Africa. Refer what Jesus Christ has said about Queen of Sheba: "The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.(Mathew 12:42).......... Next step : refer what Jesus Christ has instructed His disciples to preach the Gospel. "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."(Acts 1:8)........ Now check in both the Bible verses quoted above "the uttermost part of the earth" have come common........... Now how to find out "the uttermost part of the earth"?...... Now find out the disciple of Jesus who has gone far the most from Jerusalem. .... St. Thomas is the disciple who has traveled the most ("the uttermost part of the earth") to preach the Gospel. Do you know where he came to preach the Gospel....... INDIA.....KERALA -Muziris. (now known as "God's Own Country")......... Do you know where the Three Oceans/Seas join together: Arabian Sea-Indian Ocean-Bay of Bengal. That place is the "the uttermost part of the earth".. ..... St. Thomas came to Kerala, to preach Gospel to the Lost Tribes of Israel who have settled in Kerala from 950 B.C, migration started mainly from the time of King Solomon, with the merchants from Israel/middle east who had trade in spices,sandals,gold etc with Kerala through sea..... :Please note that coins from the time of Solomon have been found during the recent excavation made in Kerala). King Solomon started trade with Kerala during his reign......."One of the earliest references to maritime trade with India is from the Bible:-(I Kings 9:28) which states that King Solomon collaborated with King Hiram of Tyre/Sidon, and built a fleet at Elath and Eziongeher (or Ezion-geber). Manned by Phoenician sailors, it sailed to Ophir. In 950 BC Jewish people arrive in India in King Solomon’s merchant fleet. Later Jewish colonies find India a tolerant home"...... It is through the Israeli traders that Queen heard about the wisdom of King Solomon. So she decided to travel to Jerusalem to meet Solomon(1 Kings 10:1), with plenty of Gold and spices(1 Kings 10:10) , with the Israeli merchants on their return journey . She must have bought the Frankincense from some port/market places (eg: can be present day Djibouti, nearby Ethiopia) where they landed on her way to Jerusalem {From Kerala (Muziris - they crossed Arabian Sea - Gulf of Aden - Red Sea - Gulf of Aqaba- Jerusalem}.

La alusion a la pilosidad no es casual. Tambien se decia que la reina tenia una deformidad en el pie y lo cubria para no ser visto. En el Sur de Francia hay un paralelismo cataro: la reina Pedauque, que tenia un pie palmeado, como los patos...Todas las representaciones de la muje ``sabia´´, ``iniciada´´ en el Saber, era representada con una sola pierna descubierta.

This could explain why Israelites claim an Egyptian descent and continued to have contact with it throughout the Bible (their own text which explicitly says they are not to return to it) why after all would it be that Babylon, which conquered them, became synonymous with an oppressive empire even into the new Testament but Egypt tends to be viewed more neutrally (both as good and bad) According the new Testament Jesus was even born in Egypt, meaning there was likely a community of Jewish people there

Although documented as the son of a fervent Zionist, Velikovsky does reveal a bit of truth in his intentional distortions of our past history. He distorts it to hide the real past and keep the "Israel/Hebrew" fable afloat.

What am I talking about? I am pointing to his very telling comment that "Sheba was NOT A PLACE." It was a PERSON. In actual fact, he is almost correct: it was a statue of a goddess. "Shauska", the Mittani/Medes/Assyrian name for Istar. It is documented in an Armana tablet that "Tushratta", king of Mittani, sent a statue to "his brother king": Amenhotep III, to "cure what ails him." Istar was the "Queen of heaven" and married to the Mittani/Medes/Assyrian Storm God: Tae ("king) Sub. Wikipedia USED to have an alternative spelling of this name (it is pronounced "Shub/Shuba") of SHEBA. Until I pointed out the REAL, DOCUMENTED Armana tablet revealing the TRUTH of the ORIGIN of this myth.

Full circle: it is DOCUMENTED that Amenhotep III (his cartouche was found in Urusalim/"Jerusalem" in the ONLY temple EVER found there, the "Queen of Heaven, Ashtoreth) used to SIT ON HIS URUSALIM THRONE and accept "Shalmani gifts" from his SUBJECTS, as he portrayed himself as "god of the city": Shalmanu. This name exists down to this day as the "Jewish" name : Shulman.

The REAL "Solomon" and also the reason that "God became angry at Solomon for worshiping foreign gods"....you see..."God" was Yuya, initials YHW...that Amenhotep III had carved in stone in a temple he built to Yuya, 1400 BC. The OLDEST EXISTING EVIDENCE of "YHW" anywhere.

Yuya was "YHW of the Shasu" the wandering, military nomads of the Levant.

Istar Devi, the REAL "Queen of Sub/Sheba".....SHIVA. She played a Harp. A DEVI. Her symbol? Venus, in the shape of a "Star of David".....the REAL (i)Star of Devi(d).

You are very welcome.

M R Reese is a writer and researcher with a passion for unlocking the mysteries of ancient civilizations. She believes that only by understanding where we come from, can we truly understand our life path and purpose. She has earned... Read More

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Christianity in Ethiopia: The Seduction of Queen Sheba and King Solomon

Most people who believe in the Christian God would go on pilgrimages to Jerusalem, the Vatican and perhaps some European cities. Who would think of Ethiopia when the word ‘Christianity’ comes up? In fact, the Kingdom of Aksum (the modern day northern Ethiopia) converted to Christianity in 341 AD and was one of the first few countries to make Christianity its official religion. Behind the historical facts of how the religion spread to Ethiopia lies the romantic legend of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon. In this article, we are going to visit the ruins of Aksum to trace the tales of the lush and exotic Queen as well as the history of how Christianity came to the country.

Medhane Alem Adi Kasho rock-hewn church in Aksum

The Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion in Aksum

The Queen of Sheba (circa 1001 - 955 BC) is present in many cultures, including the Ethiopian, Jewish, Christian and even Islamic traditions. Her potent yet conflicting images are depicted in many modern fantasies. She is often imagined as a woman with great opulence and eroticism, yet she also carries the image of a noble African queen who uniquely represents black beauty in the Hebrew Bible.

Gina Lollobrigida potraying The Queen of Sheba in Solomon and Sheba  (1959)

An artwork depicting the Queen of Sheba as an African queen

The fullest version of the legend of the Queen of Sheba appears in the Kebra Nagast (Glory of the Kings) , the Ethiopian national saga, dated between the 6th and 14th centuries and was translated from Arabic in 1322. The story between Sheba and King Solomon (970 - 931 BC) began when Solomon was seeking merchants from all over the world to buy materials to build his temple. Having heard of Solomon’s great wisdom, Sheba sent a merchant called Tamrin to visit the King. Tamrin returned to his Queen and told her about Solomon’s elaborate worships to God and his great skills in building temples. Thus, Sheba paid a visit to Solomon in Jerusalem and ‘test(ed) him with hard questions’, as quoted from Kings 1:10 of the Hebrew Bible.

Edward Poynter's  The Visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon.  1890. Collection of Art Gallery of New South Wales

A 1959 film adaption of the story of Solomon and Sheba

Queen Sheba prepared some challenging riddles for King Solomon to test his intelligence. King Solomon was able to answer all her questions, which left her breathless. As a Queen of great wealth, she was even more blown away by King Solomon’s palace, including ‘the food of his table, the seating of his officials, the attendance of his servants (and) his burnt offerings which he offered at the House of the Lord’. (from Kings 1:10 of the Hebrew Bible).

Solomon and the Queen of Sheba by Giovanni Demin (1789 - 1859)

During her visit, King Solomon made Queen Sheba promise not to take anything from his house and he would not to harm her. One night, before King Solomon went to bed, he placed a bowl of water near Queen Sheba's chamber. Queen Sheba woke up at the middle of the night feeling thirsty as her meal was spicy. She found the water and drank it. Solomon heard noises, woke up and accused her of having broken her oath. The Queen said to Solomon, ‘Ignore your oath, just let me drink water.’ The relationship between King Solomon and Queen Sheba was consummated that night. Before that, she had remained a virgin by choice. Medieval Jewish legends say that as she made the choice to not have sexual intercourse, her legs were hairy.

Queen Of Sheba by Edward Slocombe (1850 - 1915)

On her way home, Queen Sheba gave birth to a son named Ibn-al-Malik (known as Menelik). Before Sheba returned to her Kingdom of Aksum (northern Ethiopia), Solomon had given her a ring as a token of faith. When Menelik grew up, he asked about his father and Sheba gave him the ring from Solomon. Having heard of his father’s wisdom, at the age of 22, Menelik decided to visit Jerusalem and meet King Solomon.

The scene of Queen Sheba visiting King Solomon depicted in Ethiopian art

Menelik finally met his father and stayed in his palace for three years. Before returning to Aksum, Menelik stole Solomon’s Art of Covenant without the permission of Solomon. Inside the Art of Covenant, it contained the two stone tablets of the Ten Commandments. The King chased after Menelik but failed to retrieve the Covenant. It is believed that the Covenant is still kept in Aksum, hidden in the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion. Menelik established the ‘Solomonic Dynasty’ in Ethiopia and adopted the Laws of Moses. That is the story of how Ethiopia first came in contact with Christianity.

A modern depiction of the Ark of Covenant

However, the story is only an old tale rather than the true origin of Christianity in Ethiopia. According to official records, Christianity only became Ethiopia’s official religion in 341AD when King Ezana, who ruled Aksum, converted to Christianity himself. Two Syrian Christians called Frumentius and Aedissius went to Aksum and told people about Jesus Christ and the Christian faith. King Ezana, therefore, also started to believe in God and decreed Christianity as the main faith of his kingdom. Frumentius later became the first bishop of Ethiopia and founded the Ethiopian Church.

The Nine Saints

Abuna Yemata Guh church

During the late 5th century, a group of missionaries contributed tremendously to the initial growth of Christianity all over what is now Ethiopia. They were later named the Nine Saints. Their names were Abba Aftse, Abba Alef, Abba Aragawi, Abba Garima (Isaac, or Yeshaq), Abba Guba, Abba Liqanos, Abba Pantelewon, Abba Sehma, and Abba Yemata. They built monasteries and churches all over the kingdom, and Abuna Yemata Guh (image above), the church featured in the previous article of this series , was dedicated to Saint Abba Yemata.

King Ezana of Aksum

The Obelisk of Aksum - burial stelae erected by King Ezana

The Obelisk of Aksum

Regardless of the authenticity of Queen Sheba and King Solomon’s story, locals claim that there are traces of the Queen all over Aksum that have become popular sites for both tourists and locals. For instance, archeologists excavated ruins of Dungur in the western part of Aksum. The mansion from the 4th - 6th centuries is popularly known as the Palace of the Queen of Sheba.

Excavations of the Palace of the Queen of Sheba

Excavations of the Palace of the Queen of Sheba - border of the palace

Another place that every tourist would visit is the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion where the Ark of Covenant is said to be hidden in. The Church is the main place of worship where everyone can enter. Yet, as the Ark is beyond holy, it is not in the main church but hidden in a Chapel nearby. Only one selected priest has the right to see it and bears the responsibility of protecting it. Nobody else can enter the Chapel, not even the Pope. Whether the Ark is really there or not, the vibrant paintings in the main church would make the trip worthwhile. Let’s take a closer look into the church.

The Ark is said to be hidden in the Chapel

The Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion

A 500-year-old Ethiopian Bible that is kept in the church

Paintings in the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion

In 2018, around 62.8% of Ethiopia’s population are Christians, which makes over 67 million people. If you are interested in the history of Christianity, consider paying a visit to Ethiopia, one of the oldest Christian countries of the world. In our next article, we will bring you on an exclusive tour to the most famous rock hewn churches in Lalibela, Ethiopia.

Bete Giyorgis (Church of St. George) in Lalibela

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Menelik II: Solomon’s Regal Heir and King of Ethiopia

Born on August 19, 1844, Menelik II was born Sahle Mariam in Ankober, a capital in the autonomous Ethiopian province of Shoa. His paternal grandfather, Sahle Sellaisie, was the first Shoan leader to become a negus (king); it was he who gave his grandson the name Menelik. It is said that Sahle Sellasie predicted that his grandson would grow to be a great man, a king who would restore Ethiopia’s empire.

According to Ethiopian tradition, Menelik I–the son of Solomon and the queen of Sheba–was the first ruler of Ethiopia, and the one to whom the family traced its ancestry. Menelik I (originally named Ebna la-Hakim, “Son of the Wise”) was the first Jewish emperor of Ethiopia and ruled around 950 BC.

Menelik I was head of dynastic family that led Ethiopia for over 2,900 years

According to an Ethiopian account called the Kebra Nagast, the Queen of Sheba had sexual relations with King Solomon and gave birth by the Mai Bella stream in the province of Hamasien, Eritrea. The child was a son who went on to become Menelik I, King of Axum, and founded a dynasty that would reign in the eventual Christian Empire of Ethiopia for over 2,900 years–less one usurpation episode and interval of about 133 years until a “legitimate” male heir regained the crown–until Haile Selassie was deposed in 1974.

The Ark of the Covenant is in a church in Ethiopia

Menelik, a practicing Jew, had been given a replica of the Ark of the Covenant by King Solomon; however, it was switched–thus it was the original Ark that traveled to Axum with him and his mother. It is still there, guarded by a single priest whose responsibility is caring for the Ark as his life’s work.

The claim of such a lineage and of possession of the Ark of the Covenant has been an important source of legitimacy and prestige for the Ethiopian monarchy throughout the centuries of its existence, and had important and lasting effects on Ethiopian culture as a whole. The Ethiopian government and church deny all requests to view the alleged ark.

Young Menelik II sent into exile at court of Tewodros II

During the reign of Menelik’s father, Haile Malakot (1847-55), Shoan independence saw its end at the hands of Ethiopian emperor Tewodros II, whose army defeated the Shoan forces. Menelik’s father died during the fighting, and Menelik, his mother, and leading Shoan nobles were all exiled at Tewodros’s court. Shoa was incorporated into the Ethiopian empire.

The young Menelik received both a clerical and martial education–and also learned much about the art of politics while living in court. Tewodros treated him well and took a personal interest in Menelik’s schooling. Given the title of dejazmach (earl), Menelik married Altash, the daughter of the emperor.

Menelik II takes Shoan throne in 1865

In 1865, Shoa had split with Tewodros’s empire and a usurper had claimed its thrown. Menelik II then fled the Imperial court to claim the throne that his father once held. Proclaiming himself negus, Menelik developed a power base comprised of the Shoan military and conservative nobles. The 21-year-old was an enlightened monarch–he extended toleration to the Muslims and animists in his Christian kingdom. Shoa was isolated from the civil wars that tore apart northern Ethiopia during the last gasps of Tewodros II’s reign. Thus Menelik II was able to remain neutral and solidify his power.

His former mentor, Tewodros, became involved in a diplomatic fiasco with Great Britain over the taking of British hostages. Menelik decided to remain neutral, which resulted in a major setback for his Imperial aspirations. His failure to side with the Europeans against Tewodros–the British defeated him at Magdala in 1868–gave rise to a rival named Kasa. Siding with the British, Kasa assumed the Imperial throne as Yohannes IV and ruled from 1872-89.

Menelik saw need for European power, technology, diplomatic ties

Menelik learned that if he were to rise to emperor, he would need to have European power and technology behind him. Thus he approached the Italians and French for weaponry and other European states for their technology. Menelik also saw that the establishment of diplomatic ties with foreign powers was an important step in reaching his goals.

Despite the fact that he was forced to relinquish his claim to the Imperial throne, he continued to act as an independent sovereign. When Egypt attempted imperialistic expansion into the Horn of Africa, Menelik developed a relationship with their government. Going behind Yohannes’s back, he negotiated with fundamentalist Muslims who took power in Sudan. Menelik also cultivated friendship with Great Britain and signed treaties with Italy.

Menelik II crowned negus negast–emperor of Ethiopia

Upon hearing of the death of Yohannes in battle, Menelik was crowned negus negast (king of kings), or emperor, on November 3, 1889. Within the year he concluded the Treaty of Wichale with Italy. The treaty provided that Italy would not recognize any other claim to Menelik’s imperial title, and the Italians had a powerful African ally.

Relations between the two countries soured from that point onward. Italy claimed that Ethiopia was an Italian protectorate, and sent a force of 20,000 into its former African ally. Menelik mobilized a force of 120,000, and at Adwa on March 1, 1896 defeated the Italians handily. Seventy percent of the Italian forces were either killed, wounded or taken prisoner. Demonstrating that an African nation could defeat a European army, diplomats flocked to his new capital of Addis Ababa.

After the defeat of the Italians, Menelik spent his time on modernization of Ethiopia and strengthening his centralized power. He built roads and bridges, a railroad system–created an infrastructure to promote modernization. He established a postal system, telegraph lines were erected. He introduced a national currency and Mint, as well as establishing the Bank of Abyssinia. Menelik was fascinated with Western machinery and technology and enjoyed studying photography, medicine and mechanical devices.

A few years before his death in 1913–in 1909–he was paralyzed and incapacitated. All of the work that he did to strengthen and modernize Ethiopia came undone. It would not be until the rule of Haile Selassie that the modernization of the country would continue.

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Great dynasties of the world: The Ethiopian royal family

T he Ethiopian royal family base their right to rule on a dynastic line stretching back to King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, though Bahru Zewde in A History of Modern Ethiopia: 1855-1974, says the association between Solomon – king of Israel, son of David, builder of the First Temple in Jerusalem, and husband of 700 wives and 300 concubines – and the Queen of Sheba, fabled monarch of the ancient kingdom of what is now Yemen, has "scarcely any scientific basis".

Scientific basis or not, the story of Solomon and Sheba has given us the great legend of the Solomonic dynasty.

It begins around the 10th century BC. In the Bible, she arrives at the court of King Solomon to test his renowned wisdom with "hard questions". So impressed is she with Solomon's good judgment and justice that she gives him fine spices and gold, and in return, "King Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty."

In the 14th century Ethiopian compilation of legends, the Kebra Nagast ("The Glory of Kings"), Solomon's granting of royal bounty to Sheba is interpreted to mean sexual relations. According to the Kebra Nagast, Sheba subsequently gave birth to a son who became Menelik, King of Axum. And if legend is to be believed, Menelik became the founder of the ruling Ethiopian dynasty.

Haile Selassie – born Tafari Mekonnen – became emperor in 1930. In Ethiopian tradition, succession to the throne could be claimed by any male blood relative of the emperor. Selassie claimed distant descent through his father. He believed he was called to be king. In his autobiography, My Life and Ethiopia's Progress 1892-1937, written in Amharic, the official language of Ethiopia, Selassie set out his claim to nobility. "Thus We Ourselves, by virtue of Our descent from the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon, ever since We accepted in trust ... first the regency of the Ethiopian realm and later the Imperial dignity, right up to the present, We have set out to the best of Our ability to improve, gradually, internal administration by introducing into the country western modes of civilisation through which Our people may attain a higher level; hence Our conscience does not rebuke Us." He wrote the book while living in England, in Bath, in exile – Mussolini had invaded Ethiopia in 1935.

Haile Selassie's reign is extraordinary for many reasons, not least because it was claimed during his lifetime that he was an incarnation of Jesus. He is worshipped to this day by Rastafarians, who take their name from "Ras", meaning "head" or "duke", and "Tafari", being Selassie's original family name.

Selassie's reign is bookended by two great works exploring the meaning of royalty. In 1931, Evelyn Waugh published Remote People , an account of Selassie's coronation. And in 1978 the Polish journalist Ryszard Kapuscinski published The Emperor: Downfall of an Autocrat , detailing the last days of his reign as "the whole court – though slowly and with dignity – was sliding toward the edge of the cliff". Selassie was deposed in 1974. He died in prison, in mysterious circumstances, in 1975.

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Solomon’s Temple attracted many visitors, including the Queen of Sheba, as depicted in Claude Vignon’s 17th century painting.

• PEOPLE IN THE BIBLE

The wealthy, wise reign of King Solomon made Israel prosper

Son of David and Bathsheba, Solomon lived a colorful life, whose crowning achievement was building the Temple.

No king in the stories of the Bible so speaks to our imagination as King Solomon, who ruled Israel after King David. The Bible depicts Solomon's reign as an era of unprecedented prosperity due to his wisdom, a quality bestowed upon him by God. In a dream, God had asked him what he wanted most, and Solomon replied, “an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil” (I Kings 3:9).

Solomon reorganized his realm into 12 districts that cut across tribal boundaries so as to central­ize power in Jerusalem. To pacify tribal sensibili­ties, he continued his father’s policy of marrying wives from many tribes, as well as from those nations with whom he struck an alliance. Follow the quest for the Queen of Sheba and Ethiopia's ancient Christian churches.

Solomon also found time to adjudicate civil cases, such as the one where two women were fight­ing over a baby, each claiming the child was hers. Solomon said, “Bring me a sword,” and ordered the child cut in two, with each woman receiving half of the body. Shocked, one of the mothers said, “Please, my lord, give her the living boy!” (I Kings 3:26). Solomon knew that the true mother had spoken, for no woman could see her own child killed. The king also composed “three thousand proverbs” and “over a thousand songs,” and could speak about a vast range of subjects, from cedar wood to different species of animals (I Kings 4:32-33). Discover Babylon, home of the first legal code.

The Bible says that Israel grew prosperous under Solomon, and indeed there is evidence that the Levant was experiencing strong eco­nomic growth as regional trade increased in the region. Wealth poured into his treasury, allowing Solomon to fulfil God’s promise to David: to build a temple to house the Ark of the Covenant. To do so, he launched a “donation drive” that netted 5,000 gold and 10,000 silver talents (roughly $100 million in today’s currency).

When the project was finished, a citadel of white and gold had risen over Jerusalem. The Temple built by Solomon would become the spiritual center of Jerusalem. At the same time, the king built a ring of strongholds to protect his kingdom, with fortresses in Megiddo, Hazor, and Gezer. Meet Five Men Who All Think They’re the Messiah

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Where did the Queen of Sheba rule—Arabia or Africa?

There is little debate about the location of king solomon's jerusalem, but scholars are still searching for the land of gold and spices that the queen of sheba called home..

King Solomon meets the Queen of Sheba in this 16th-century painting by Lambert Sustris. National Gallery, London. 

The story of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba appears in the biblical books of Kings and Chronicles: An unnamed queen from Sheba travels to Jerusalem bearing gold, jewels, and spices. A seeker of knowledge, the queen has a special interest in the reputedly wise Solomon and tests him with some “hard questions.” Solomon meets the challenge and lavishes hospitality on the queen, who reciprocates with gifts.

“Never again were so many spices brought in as those the Queen of Sheba gave to Solomon.” Later, she tells him: “In wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard”(1 Kings 10:7). 

This biblical encounter has had an enormous impact on the popular imagination, projecting themes of beauty, wealth, power, exoticism, intrigue, magic, and love. The queen has inspired Turkish and Persian miniatures, European painting and music, and the 1959 Hollywood epic Solomon and Sheba,  with Yul Brynner as the wise king and Gina Lollobrigida as his match. 

These works had plenty of material to work with since a rich literary tradition grew out of the original biblical story. An account of the encounter is tantalisingly referenced by the Roman Jewish author Flavius Josephus in the first century A.D. Composed in the seventh century, the Quran features a more elaborate version of the story, as does Jewish rabbinic literature. The Kebra Nagast,  a 14th-century Ethiopian Christian epic, connects the Queen of Sheba with the founding of Ethiopia itself. According to this text, ancient Sheba is in Ethiopia. The queen and Solomon have a son who founds a dynasty that would rule Ethiopia until its last descendant, Haile Selassie, died in 1975. ( Here's what archaeology is telling us about King Solomon's mines. )

To date no archaeological evidence has been found to indicate definitively who the queen was and from where she came. She could be a composite of historical figures or entirely legendary. Even the location of Sheba itself is hotly debated among scholars. Some place it in Ethiopia, while others place it in the ancient kingdom of Saba in present-day Yemen. 

Riches and riddles

In the Bible, the Queen of Sheba is depicted as smart, independent, challenging, and respectful. Flavius Josephus, author of the first-century A.D. history The Antiquities of the Jews , described Sheba as “inquisitive into philosophy and on that and on other accounts also was to be admired.” 

By the time the story was retold in the Targum Sheni, a seventh-to eighth-century A.D. Jewish text, the story had amassed more details. The details of the meeting are similar, but the story begins with a talking hoopoe, a crested bird native to the region. The bird informs Solomon that the land of Sheba is the only one on Earth not subject to his power. 

Solomon sends the hoopoe to Sheba with a letter urging the queen to submit to him. She responds by sending back a fleet “with all the ships of the sea” loaded with precious gifts, including 6,000 young men—all the same height, all dressed in purple, and all born at the same time on the same day. They deliver a message from the queen announcing that she will travel to Jerusalem. 

On arrival, the queen presents Solomon with three riddles, which he promptly solves. This exchange reveals her knowledge and diplomatic skill as the riddles are more than a game to her. They are a way for her to size up Solomon. ( Selflessness inspired love in the Book of Ruth. )

Some scholars argue the Quran’s version of the story borrows from the Targum Sheni. However, there is historical uncertainty as to exactly when the Targum Sheni was written. It may, in fact, postdate the seventh-century composition of the Quran, in which case the Islamic text could have influenced the Jewish text, and not the other way around. 

In the Quran, the queen is unnamed, but contemporary Arabic sources call her Bilqis. In the Islamic version, Suleiman (Solomon) believes in Allah, is known for his wisdom, and can understand the language of the trees and animals. Suleiman also controls an army of “jinn (magical spirits) and men and birds.” Like the Jewish text, the story begins with a bird, which brings news to Suleiman from the far off land of Sheba, where the powerful Bilqis rules and people worship the sun. The bird says: “I found her and her people prostrating to the sun instead of Allah,” prompting Suleiman to send a letter in which he urges the queen to convert to Islam. 

In this version of the story, Suleiman rejects the queen’s emissaries and rich gifts. In contrast to the Bible and the Targum Sheni, it is Suleiman who tests the queen’s intellect. While she is traveling to visit him, the king sends a jinn to steal her throne and bring it to Jerusalem. There he disguises the throne in order to see if the queen will realize it is hers. She does, so Suleiman welcomes her to his impressive palace. 

Suleiman shows the queen a floor made of glass. When she sees it, she thinks it is a pool of water, so she lifts her skirts to avoid getting them wet. Her legs are revealed, and she does not shave them. Modern feminist commentators have interpreted this attribute as a sign that power has made her unfeminine. This episode also appears in the Targum Sheni: “Your beauty is the beauty of women, but your hair is the hair of men,” Solomon tells her. 

In Jewish literature, the Queen of Sheba is also identified with Lilith, an ancient demonic figure. Likewise, in the Quranic text, a jinn warns Suleiman about the queen’s demonic side, fearing the king might be tempted by her beauty. Instead, the queen submits to Solomon and commits herself to “Allah, the Lord of all worlds.” 

Mother of a nation

In the 14th century, in the northern highlands of the Horn of Africa—present-day Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, and Djibouti—the story of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba took on a new meaning. In this version of the tale, the queen has a name: Makeda. This new version melded a wealth of literary and Christian, Jewish, and Muslim traditions to create something new. 

Christianity became the religion of the kingdom of Aksum (located in modern Ethiopia) in the mid-500s A.D. It arrived, along with Jewish influences, by way of migration and trade with northern people, including the Coptic Christians of Egypt . The story of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba emerged in writing in 1321 in the Kebra Nagast,  or Glory of the Kings,  of Ethiopia. Attributed to Is'haq Neburä -Id, the work is divided into 117 chapters, described by Ethiopian scholar Edward Ullendorff as “a gigantic conflation of legendary cycles.” It would be the text that unified Ethiopian culture for centuries. 

The Kebra Nagast  cites references to the Queen of Sheba in the New Testament, notably the Gospel of Matthew: “The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, and now something greater than Solomon is here” (Matthew 12:42). 

The epic goes on to relate how a wealthy merchant called Tamrin returns to Ethiopia having met King Solomon in Jerusalem. Tamrin tells Queen Makeda in great detail of Solomon’s prodigious wisdom and wealth. Intrigued by the merchant’s tale, Makeda travels to Jerusalem to meet the king herself. There, she discovers “how perfect he was in composure, and wise in understanding, and pleasant in graciousness, and commanding in stature.” 

In turn, Solomon is captivated by Makeda’s beauty and tries to make her stay. He serves her a sumptuous banquet and swears not to make advances on her as long as she takes nothing from his house. When a thirsty Makeda wakes in the night and drinks some water, Solomon declares the oath broken and seduces her. 

Makeda returns to Ethiopia pregnant with Solomon’s child, a boy she names Menelik, meaning “son of the wise.” At age 20, he travels to Jerusalem to meet his father, who anoints him king of Ethiopia. This origin story became the foundation for the ruling Solomonic dynasty in Ethiopia, which was founded around 1270 and ruled for more than seven centuries. ( Discover the Bible's original love triangle between Jacob, Leah, and Rachel. )

The author of the Kebra Nagast , according to Ullendorff, was the “redactor and interpreter of material which had long been known, but had not until then found a coordinating hand, an expository mind, and a great national need.” The result, he added, is “one of the most powerful and influential national sagas anywhere in the world.” 

The Kebra Nagast  offers a more positive portrayal of the queen than in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim texts. No mention is made of her demonic nature or hairy legs. The epic also claims that Menelik returned to Ethiopia with the Ark of the Covenant , which Ethiopian tradition claims is stored in the Church of St. Mary of Zion in Aksum. 

Searching for Sheba 

The realm of Sheba remains lost to history. The two leading locations are the kingdom of Saba in modern Yemen and the ancient kingdom of Aksum in Ethiopia. After more than a century of excavations by a host of archaeologists to find physical evidence of the existence of the queen, none yet has been found. One of the complicating factors is that the chronology attributed to Solomon, which most place around the 10th century B.C., does not line up with the prime of either Saba or Aksum. ( Here are nine ancient kingdoms you've probably never heard of. )

Most Jewish sources and the Quran mention sites that clearly associate Sheba with Saba. The ancient city’s existence is amply supported by evidence. Assyrian texts speak about Arabian queens from the period of Saba’s greatness. The Sabaeans also sent ambassadors and gifts to the Assyrian court on diplomatic and commercial missions. 

The kingdom grew rich off successful water management and trade in frankincense and myrrh, but it emerged as an international power only in the eighth century B.C., long after Solomon’s reign. Although the Book of Kings was written in the sixth century B.C., after the decline of Assyria, the Solomon story may represent an older story that reflects the geopolitical realities of the centuries before. 

With this in mind, the biblical archaeologist Israel Finkelstein, of Tel Aviv University, interprets the Solomon and Queen of Sheba story as support for Judah’s participation in Assyrian trade, against those who viewed it as a rash undertaking that would lead to idolatry. By inflating Solomon’s status as a great merchant blessed by God who is sought out by a powerful Arabian queen in the 10th century, the story’s authors wanted to legitimise “the participation of Judah as a vassal in the Assyrian economy.” 

The Ethiopian theory has strong support in the form of first-century A.D. historian Flavius Josephus. He described Solomon’s guest as the “Queen of Egypt and Ethiopia,”which suggests an African origin. Historical links have been established between Ethiopia and Saba—the two kingdoms are just across the Red Sea from each other. 

In ancient times, southern Arabian traders, including those from Saba, made the short trip across the Red Sea to set up small settlements in the Ethiopian highlands. Intriguing though this association is, it does not resolve the chronology problem. Aksum was a flourishing Ethiopian kingdom from 100 B.C. to A.D. 700, many years after Solomon’s reign. 

New scholarship about the queen and her origins are still emerging. Wendy Laura Belcher, professor of African literature at Princeton University, proposed that the queen might be from another culture entirely: the pre-Aksumite Ethiopian culture of Punt. Mentioned in Egyptian sources as early as the 15th century B.C., Punt provided Egypt with incense, spices, and gold—all commodities associated with the queen and her visit with Solomon. ( Follow a quest through Ethiopia's sacred sites in search of the real Queen of Sheba. )

Historians are divided as to the exact location of Punt but generally place it southeast of Egypt and north of the Horn of Africa. Finds of Egyptian goods in northern Ethiopia confirm the long-standing trade relationship between them, which would have provided Punt with considerable wealth—enough to attract the attention of a king like Solomon. As Belcher wrote,“if any queen was going to travel north to Israel in the tenth century, it would have been an African queen.” 

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BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

Who is the queen of sheba in the bible.

Investigating the Queen of Sheba and her kingdom

Who is the Queen of Sheba in the Bible? Here is one artist’s depiction of the Queen of Sheba. It comes from the Medieval manuscript Bellifortis by Conrad Kyeser and dates to c. 1405.

Who is the Queen of Sheba? In the Bible we are introduced to an unnamed queen from the land of Sheba who travels to Jerusalem to meet King Solomon (see 1 Kings 10; 2 Chronicles 9). Accompanied by many attendants and camels, the Queen of Sheba brings a large quantity of spices, gold and precious stones with her. She is drawn to Jerusalem because of Solomon’s fame, and she tests the king with hard questions. Solomon is able to answer them all.

Impressed by Solomon’s wisdom —and by the riches of his kingdom—she proclaims, “Your wisdom and prosperity far surpass the report that I had heard” (1 Kings 10:7). The queen gives King Solomon 120 talents of gold, precious stones and the largest quantity of spices ever brought to Jerusalem (1 Kings 10:10). In return King Solomon gives her gifts and “every desire that she expressed” (1 Kings 10:13). After receiving these gifts, the queen returns to the land of Sheba with her retinue.

Investigating the Location of the Land of Sheba

The Biblical account of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon ends there, but later Jewish, Christian and Islamic sources have elaborated the story—adding details to the famous queen’s visit. In his article “Where Is the Land of Sheba—Arabia or Africa?” published in the September/October 2016 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review , Bar Kribus investigates the location of the land of Sheba and looks at the figure of the Queen of Sheba—both in the Bible and in a text called the Kebra Nagast .

FREE ebook: The Holy Bible: A Buyer's Guide 42 different Bible versions, addressing content, text, style and religious orientation.

Queen Makeda

Dated between the 6th–14th centuries C.E., the Kebra Nagast ( The Glory of Kings ) is an important text to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. It names the Queen of Sheba as the beautiful queen Makeda and identifies the land of Sheba as ancient Ethiopia . Kribus thoroughly examines the latter claim in his article “Where Is the Land of Sheba—Arabia or Africa?”

According to the Kebra Nagast , Queen Makeda travels to Jerusalem and has a love affair with King Solomon . Makeda then returns to the land of Sheba—giving birth to a son, Menelik, along the way. Menelik is raised in Ethiopia, but when he turns 22, he travels to Jerusalem to meet his father. King Solomon is delighted with his firstborn son and tries in vain to convince Menelik to remain in Israel and succeed him as king. However, Menelik chooses to return to the land of Sheba. Solomon sends the firstborn sons of Israel’s elders with his son from Israel to Ethiopia, and the Ark of the Covenant travels with them. To this day, many Ethiopians believe that the Ark of the Covenant resides within the Chapel of the Tablet next to the Church of Maryam Tsion in Aksum, Ethiopia.

Is this the final resting place of the Ark of the Covenant? Many Ethiopians believe that the Ark of the Covenant resides within the Chapel of the Tablet next to the Church of Maryam Tsion in Aksum, Ethiopia. They believe that the Ark traveled with Solomon’s firstborn son, Menelik, from Jerusalem to the land of Sheba. Where is the land of Sheba? According to the Kebra Nagast , it is ancient Ethiopia. Photo: “Maryam Sion in Axum Nebenbau Mit Der Bundeslade 2010” by Jensis65 is licensed under CC-by-SA-3.0

Ethiopians claim the Queen of Sheba as part of their heritage, and through her union with King Solomon, Ethiopians also claimed a connection between their kings and the Davidic monarchy of Israel. Bar Kribus explains: “Their [Ethiopian] kings were seen as direct descendants of the House of David, rulers by divine right.”

But is the land of Sheba truly ancient Ethiopia, as purported by the Kebra Nagast ? Archaeological and historical sources document a Kingdom of Saba (Sheba) during Biblical times in modern-day Yemen. Those in ancient Ethiopia were fully aware of the Kingdom of Saba in southern Arabia—and sometimes even appropriated aspects of their culture.

The Queen of Sheba and King Solomon: Another depiction of the Queen of Sheba is seen in Giovanni Demin’s 19th-century painting Solomon and the Queen of Sheba , which shows the meeting of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon.

Where is the land of Sheba? Is it in Africa or Arabia? Bar Kribus wades through history, archaeology, tradition and legend as he pieces together the story of the Queen of Sheba and investigates the land of Sheba. Who has the rightful claim to the Queen of Sheba? Read Kribus’s surprising conclusion in “Where Is the Land of Sheba—Arabia or Africa?” in the September/October 2016 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review .

—————— BAS Library Members: Read the full article “Where Is the Land of Sheba—Arabia or Africa?” by Bar Kribus in the September/October 2016 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review .

Related reading in Bible History Daily :

The Rock-Hewn Churches of Lalibela

Expedition Claims Evidence of Queen of Sheba Found in Ethiopia

Ancient Jerusalem: The Village, the Town, the City

This Bible History Daily feature was originally published on August 31, 2016.

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38 responses.

[…] Who Is the Queen of Sheba in the Bible? – Biblical … […]

[…] Who Is the Queen of Sheba in the Bible? […]

She is Queen of Cebu from the Phlippine

Menelik I (originally named Ebna la-Hakim, “Son of the Wise”), first Jewish Emperor of Ethiopia, is traditionally believed to be the son of King Solomon of ancient Israel and Makeda, Queen of Sheba and ruled around 950 BC, according to traditional sources. Tradition credits him with bringing the Ark of the Covenant to Ethiopia, following a visit to Jerusalem to meet his father upon reaching adulthood.

According to the Kebra Nagast, King Solomon had intended on sending one son of each of his nobles and one son each of each temple priest with Menelik upon his return to his mother’s kingdom. He is supposed to have had a replica made of the Ark for them to take with them, but the son of Zadok the High Priest secretly switched the replica with the real Ark, and brought it into Ethiopia where it is said to remain to this day in the ancient town of Axum.

Upon the death of Queen Makeda, Menelik assumed the throne with the new title of Emperor and King of Kings of Ethiopia. According to legend, he founded the Solomonic dynasty of Ethiopia that ruled Ethiopia with few interruptions for close to three thousand years and 225 generations later ended with the fall of Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974

This is very simple. Queen of Sheba CANNOT BE WHITE!!!! NO white people (Gentiles) in biblical times occupied or lived in Africa or the Middle East…Even to this day. Here is Wisdom…Hypothetical, if she was from Arabia, this would make her a “Shemite”. Remember the story of ESAU(Edom)…Jacob twin brother? Esau is the progenitor of the EDOMITES who are ARABS, Who speak ARABIC, and live in ARABIA. Esau was born of Isaac who is a Shemite Hebrew. That makes Esau a Shemite Edomite. The bible says “They were separated” !!! If I hear one more IGNORANT Black person that says the “Edomites” is the white man, I will scream. My point is…Queen Sheba was Black regardless of whether she from Arabia or Africa. Let me make this clear. Queen Sheba was a “HAMITE” which makes her a African. She is a descendant of ” Cush” who are the Ethiopians.

also, the problem with modern day theologians and historians, they forget that people in biblical times were always described with either black skin or, olive skin. olive skin color is only slightly lighter than black and, even to this day, people with olive skin color are referred to as light black people. the biggest mis-interpettation of skin color is seen in the pictures of Jesus as a white man but, the bible is very clear his skin color was olive skin or, would be considered black, by today’s standards.

I also believe it is not fair to say the queen of Shebia was white. She was from AFRICA!!! So get the facts right.

Didn’t you know by now? EVERYBODY in the Bible is WHITE! And if you dare say otherwise…

no I think she was from Cebu in the Philippines

why do “historians” try so hard to conceal African wealth and heritage? Abyssinia( Ethiopia) is not and was never a part of the Yemen territory. She took to Solomon 4.5 tons of Gold. Queen Makeda is BLACK from Eastern Africa not white as depicted in the photoraph above. Sheba is in Africa not Arabia….. Sheba is old swahili which means copper… ‘ The land of Copper’….

A pity records were always kept by these Kings and Queens by their scribes , then how is it possible that to this day no accurate truth to this stories of any earlier history.

Sheba is a kingdom in Yemen. Balqees is a queen born in Yemen. I wonder why some people tell and write lies! Grow up!

Raplh.. very interesting where did you read that.. would like to read more about this

The Queen of Sheba?

She was Bathsheba. They don’t want to say, but King David’s historical name was Pa-Seba (another story). And the mother of Bathsheba was the Pharaoh’s daughter who married King David. Bath Sheba means Daughter of Sheba, the daughter of King David. But King David eventually took Bath Sheba as his wife, so Bath Sheba became Malkah Sheba, or the Daughter of Sheba became the Queen of Sheba (the Queen of King David). And they had a son – Solomon.

Malkah Sheba then moved to the south of Egypt. When she eventually came back to the royal court to meet her now famous son, she did so with great pomp and ceremony befitting a princess of Egypt. This was the story of the Queen of Sheba that we are familiar with, but it was actually mother meeting son. Perhaps you can see what they wanted to keep all of this quiet…

See Solomon Pharaoh of Egypt. (When is says she was the Queen of the South, it meant Queen of Upper Egypt…)

This was a great read,,,,but I’m still scratching my head. LOL for you see, I came hear to hopefully understand why as a young child I gave my oldest sister this nickname?! in my young eyes I saw her as a mean and extremely bossy “Queen a Sheba!!!” lol. kids,,,,go figure!!! so now my sister is about to turn 60 years old, still as bossy as ever!! LOL I love her so much!!! (I am surprised to hear that about the Queen and King Solomon!!! I will dig deeper into that whole thing, THANK YOU!!! Sincerely, Darlene 9/20/18

I remembered similar as a kid. Couldn’t remember the WHY, though. Found this & it came rushing back! proz.com/kudoz/english/idioms-maxims-sayings/464259-the-queen-of-sheba.html#1198751 “Who does she think she is? The Queen of Sheba?

Explanation: Example of usage in current language.

This is an expression used to describe someone who thinks very highly of themselves / thinks they are better than anyone else.

(We used to use it when we were kids, might not be used so much now)..

Similar to ‘being the bees knees’! ”

Sounds like the context you used for your sister back then!!

Thank you for for rich understanding! Today i’am Reading Matt, and see where the Queen of Sheba was mentioned by Jesus! Beautiful workThank you! Mike Hendon Sparks Nevada 8/14/18

1.The Queen of Sheba is not from Ethiopia she is from Ophir (I Kings 10:1-13),Sheba was the brother of Ophir (Genesis 10:27-29). Sheba is from Islands in the Eastern border known in Hebrew word as QDM (Psalms 72;10) same is true with Ophir, In Matthew 12:42 it is known as the utmost part of the world meaning Eastern borther or South East Asia. Ophir is the modern day Philippines and Sheba is the Old name of Cebu Philippines the land of Gold. Read Rizal Code La Pluma de Sangre by Dr. RV Narag.

2.The Queen of Sheba was born in 1020 BCE in Ophir, and educated in Ethiopia. Her mother was Queen Ismenie. Sheba was known to be beautiful, intelligent, understanding, resourceful, and adventurous. Vancouver Grand Masonic Day, October 16, 1999 by VW Bro. Art Scott, Victoria Columbia Lodge No. 1

3. https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=paA5AQAAMAAJ Augustus Henry Keane – 1969 – ‎Snippet view – ‎More editions Thus also ‘the gold of Sheba’ becomes ‘the gold of Ophir,’ that is, of the Sabaean emporium, the frankincense land, and importer of this gold from abroad.

Isa This is false story of quran If u need my advise donot believe the quran because the quran and Alah was came now may be their age is 1440 only But queen Sheba or our Ethiopian Queen has more than 3000 years age

First, the ark of covenant is not in the Ethiopian, ready the Bible the book of revelation 11:19.

Second, I don’t believe any other book accept bible, bible is the world and the real word of God , all the things says in the bible is happening, read through new testament, so what Bible says about Queen sheba is true.

Second, I don’t believe any other book accept bible is the world, all the things says in bible in happening, read through new testament, so what Bible says about Queen of sheba is true.

As a muslim, I do not believe in the Yemeni story, or that the “Queen was half a goat”, as this is quite offensive and non-sense, it’s clearly an invented tale; and in the Quran the name of the Queen of Sheba is not mentioned, so I do not believe it was “Bilqis”. The Queen of Sheba is mentioned as a queen that used to worship the Sun, and that Prophet Solomon was sent to her to make her know The One God. After that, she and her people Submitted to God. Then later on, her people went astray again by being ingrateful to God, and He caused them to be scattered to different communities.

Solomon is not a prophet, he is a Prince who later became the wisest king (correction mate)

I REALLY appreciate the information provided about Ethiopian and Qur’an-based beliefs on the topic of Sheba. It’s such a gift to be able to know of this information without learning to read other languages. Thank you so much!

My NIV speaks of “Sheba” in Luke 10 as the ‘Queen of the south,’ while also noting Jonah’s impact on Nineveh in relation to the arrival of ‘one greater that Jonah’ being Jesus, and discusses her visit with King Solomon in 1 Kings verse 10. In 1 Kings 10, the Queen visits King Solomon because she has heard of how wise he was. King Solomon had previously prayed for the gift of wisdom, which God granted him (in short) because of his humility. The Queen was completely impressed by how lavish and happy his kingdom was from the gift his God had given him. As a result, she gifted him and he gifted her aka they traded demographic goods.

An important component of Yemen’s claim on the Queen of Sheba is the name. We know that a great kingdom called Saba existed in Yemen during this period, and historians suggest that Saba is Sheba. Islamic folklore holds that the Sabean queen’s name was Bilqis. According to Sura 27 of the Qu’ran, Bilqis and the people of Saba worshipped the sun as a god rather than adhering to Abrahamic monotheist beliefs. In this account, King Solomon sent her a letter inviting her to worship his God. Bilqis perceived this as a threat and, fearing that the Jewish king would invade her country, was unsure how to respond. She decided to visit Solomon in person to find out more about him and his faith. In the Qu’ran’s version of the story, Solomon enlisted the help of a djinn or genie that transported Bilqis’s throne from her castle to Solomon’s in the blink of an eye. The Queen of Sheba was so impressed with this feat, as well as Solomon’s wisdom, that she decided to convert to his religion. Unlike the Ethiopian tale, in the Islamic version, there is no suggestion that Solomon and Sheba had an intimate relationship. One interesting facet of the Yemeni story is that Bilqis supposedly had goat hooves rather than human feet, either because her mother had eaten a goat while pregnant with her, or because she was herself a djinn.

People don’t get confused, queen of Sheba is simply Ethiopian. Go and see, u gonna believe it.

the truth will set you free Question: “What does it mean that ‘the truth will set you free’ (John 8:32)?”

Answer: “The truth will set you free” is a common saying in academic circles that want to promote academic freedom and the power of learning. Many universities have this statement emblazoned on a sign near the entrance of a building. But “the truth will set you free” did not originate in academia; Jesus said it in John 8:32. In context, Jesus’ statement has nothing to do with classroom learning. In fact, John 8:32 speaks of a higher form of knowledge than is capable of being learned in a classroom.

Jesus had just finished a speech at the temple where He delineated differences between Himself and His listeners. “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am he, you will indeed die in your sins” (John 8:23–24). The result of Jesus’ message was that “even as he spoke, many believed in him” (verse 30). Then, in verse 31, Jesus begins to speak just to those who had believed.

“Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples’” (John 8:31). True discipleship is more than intellectual assent; those who are “really” followers of Christ will “hold to” His Word. That means they will not only accept His teachings as truth, but they will also obey His teachings. Action is proof of faith (cf. James 2:17).

True disciples of Jesus believe that He speaks the truth about God and the Scriptures. They also know that He is who He claims to be. Back in verse 25, the people asked Jesus who He was, and He responded, “Just what I have been telling you from the beginning.” There may be a tinge of exasperation in His response; He had repeatedly made known that He was the Messiah, the one they had anticipated for many years.

Verse 32 begins with, “Then you will know the truth.” “You” refers to those who are true disciples of Jesus. True disciples will know the truth. More than that, their eyes are opened to a greater understanding of the truth (cf. 1 John 5:20).

The truth Jesus’ disciples receive brings with it freedom. Jesus continues, “And the truth will set you free” (verse 32). At that point in history, the Jews were under the rule of the Roman government. Even though Rome gave them an exceptional amount of autonomy, they were keenly aware of the Roman presence around them in the form of soldiers, governors, and empirically appointed kings. When Jesus said the truth would set them free, however, He was not talking about political freedom (though the following verses indicate that’s how the Jews took it). Jesus provides the best commentary for His own statement in verse 34. Jesus explains, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” Being a slave to sin is the ultimate bondage.

The freedom Jesus offers is a spiritual freedom from the bondage of sin—that is, release from the lifestyle of habitual lawlessness. He continues with an analogy: “Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever” (verse 35). The people would have understood Jesus to mean that they were not members of God’s family, despite their biological relationship to Abraham (verse 37), because they were slaves to sin. If they were to become disciples of Jesus, they would know the truth of their condition and the truth about Christ, and Jesus would set them free. Believers would be freed from their bondage and brought into the family of God.

Jesus is the Truth (John 14:6). Knowing the Truth will set one at liberty—free from sin, free from condemnation, and free from death (Romans 6:22; 8:1–2). Jesus came to proclaim liberty to the captives (Luke 4:18). “Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God” (1 Peter 2:16, ESV).

Recommended Resource: True Truth: Defending Absolute Truth in a Relativistic World by Art Lindsley

1 John 5New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Overcoming the World 5 Whoever believes that Jesus is the [a]Christ is [b]born of God, and whoever loves the [c]Father loves the child [d]born of Him. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and [e]observe His commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome. 4 For whatever is [f]born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.

5 Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? 6 This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ; not [g]with the water only, but [h]with the water and [i]with the blood. It is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7 For there are three that testify: 8 [j]the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are [k]in agreement. 9 If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater; for the testimony of God is this, that He has testified concerning His Son. 10 The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son. 11 And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.

This Is Written That You May Know 13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 This is the confidence which we have [l]before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.

16 If anyone sees his brother [m]committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and [n]God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that he should make request for this. 17 All unrighteousness is sin, and there is a sin not leading to death.

18 We know that no one who is [o]born of God sins; but He who was [p]born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him. 19 We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. 20 And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.

21 Little children, guard yourselves from idols.

1 John 5:1 I.e. Messiah 1 John 5:1 Or begotten 1 John 5:1 Lit one who begets 1 John 5:1 Or begotten 1 John 5:2 Lit do 1 John 5:4 Or begotten 1 John 5:6 Lit in 1 John 5:6 Lit in 1 John 5:6 Lit in 1 John 5:8 A few late mss add …in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one. And there are three that testify on earth, the Spirit 1 John 5:8 Lit for the one thing 1 John 5:14 Lit toward 1 John 5:16 Lit sinning 1 John 5:16 Or God will give him life, that is, to those who… 1 John 5:18 Or begotten 1 John 5:18 Or begotten

Genesis 1New King James Version (NKJV)

The History of Creation 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was[a] on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. this is God said in the old testament. all happened in old testament revealed in new testament The Eternal Word 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend[a] it.

New International Version The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. Hebrew 1:3

and He said:

John 14:6 New International Version (NIV) 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

If you say there is no God then who created you?who created the earth on which you are walking on?Who created the sky that covers us.Who created the sun and the moon?Tell me was it by magic that those things came into existence.Since cars were created by human beings so as human beings were created by THE SUPREME CREATOR

there are so many religions, which one is right – probably none of them. Wake up people. God could have written the message in the stars if they were all powerful. There wouldn’t be diseases, natural disasters, poisonous chemicals, mental illness etc. if they were all loving. There wouldn’t be contradictions in the bible and other religious text, infact there would ATLEAST only be one religious text and no confusion about which god to follow, because if there was a god they would make sure that everyone knows there is ONE god. and they wouldn’t put it in some stupid book, and likeI said, they could write it in the stars with their god powers, I’m sure they would have some imagination being god and all. Logically this boils down to two conclusions – God doesn’t give a shit about us or what we think of him/her/it? OR more likely, there is no god. Don’t worry, its probably best this way, we don’t need a god we just need each other, we need to look out for our fellow man and woman and support each other, we don’t need no magical being because we are strong and we have each other. The end.

This informational website gives a well elaborated & detailed episodes of King Solomon n Queen of Shebas meeting n their life ,which remains little in complete in Bible,well researched,it even gives the most likely location of the ark of the covenant, loved this site,keep it up

Imanuel Velikofsky in his book “Ages in chaos” shows historically that the “Queen of Sheba” was none other than the queen pharaoh “Hatshuput” He substantiates this with many historical evidences. When she returned to Egypt from her visit with King Solomon she had erected a temple as never before seen . The architecture was like none other in Egypt before or after. The design was a facsimile of King Solomons temple in Jerusalem..stepped design.. terraced gardens surrounding etc..His discussion of this topic includes an examination of a carved stone bas relief cataloging the booty looted from the temple by one of her successors ..I believe Tutmose III if my memory serves correctly. If you take a look at what Velikofsky found…In his book “Ages In Chaos” I hope you will find it interesting as I have. .I am a craftsman a shipwright in Ballard. Some how I find ancient history fascinating. .enjoy…M

Well Mel! here is the truth…The English word for “God” has become a source of confusion for Christians since at least the Anglo-Saxon era. Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary says that the origin of the word ‘god’ comes from a Germanic word ‘gad,’ pronounced as “gohdt.”

The following information on the origin of the word ‘god’ will help to understand why we use it in our vernacular.

GOD – The English word God is identical with the Anglo-Saxon word for “good,” and therefore it is believed that the name God refers to the divine goodness. (See Oehler’s Theol. of Old Test.; Strong’s and Young’s concordances.) (From New Unger’s Bible Dictionary) Further information on the source of our word for ‘God’ is listed below:

Word origin: God – Our word god goes back via Germanic to Indo-European, in which a corresponding ancestor form meant “invoked one.” The word’s only surviving non-Germanic relative is Sanskrit hu, invoke the gods, a form which appears in the Rig Veda, most ancient of Hindu scriptures: puru-hutas, “much invoked,” epithet of the rain-and-thunder god Indra.

Now if the sources noted above are accurate, then the word that we use for the Supreme Being, God, comes from a very pagan origin. Thus the word god is used generically by many different religions to refer to their deity or “invoked one.”

well here’s a shock for you Mel ,which god are you talking about as you quite rightly say the Qua-ran is of the devil, well so is the word of god you are talking about, as Yahuwah (Yahweh) is not god and his word is only the 5 books of Moses and the book of revelation. those are the only word that came from Yahuwah our father in heaven. it was man that created the the word of god for our father said my name is above all names. not I am the god above all gods. god, lord, are but titles and any thing else we want to call him is a title .FOR HIS NAME IS YAHUWAH. AND THE SONS NAME IS YAHUSHUA. NOT JESUS AS JESUS ONLY CAME INTO THE BIBLE AROUND 1611 HE WAS AN ARAMAIC HEBREW NOT ENGLISH OR ANY OTHER NAME IN ANY OTHER LANGUAGE. So now we do have a problem and that is his word. his word has changed first by the Hebrew nation to Elohim , then by the Catholics which actually created the bible (72 books) in 395 ad and then by Martin Luther in 1611 66 books which all the bibles follow today in his format. SO NOW WHICH WORD ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT.

Anything written in the qaran cannot be trusted as it is satanic in nature..only that written in the Holy Bible as word of God can be trusted..there is NO allah, another name for satan,the liar

The story of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba as told in the Koran Prophet-King David’s son, Solomon, was destined for great things than his father. He succeeded his father as a king and a prophet, and was given, like his father, sound judgment and lore. Solomon was taught the languages of animals, and Allah subjected for Solomon the wind, blowing by his order towards the land upon which Allah have blessed –– Jerusalem. From among all humankind, King Solomon was the only king who ruled both human beings and jinn with a strong sway, and his kingdom’s army comprised soldiers of the human, the jinn, and the birds. Under the control of King Solomon worked every builder and diver of the Satan, who constructed to him whatever he wished of chapels, statues, and cooking pots, removable ones and immobile huge others. While he was one day marching in the vanguard of his amazing army, they approached a valley filled with ants. “O ants,” said an ant to its fellow ants, “enter your houses, lest Solomon and his soldiers crush you unconsciously!” The magnificent king smiled at her saying, and said in prayer, “My Lord! Inspire me to give thanks for the boon You have bestowed upon me and upon my parents; and inspire me to do a good deed that make You content of me; and regard me, by Your Bless, as one of Your benevolent slaves.” Once, on inspecting the condition of his army, King Solomon noticed that the hoopoe was absent, and the matter stirred his anger. “What about the hoopoe? Why I do not see it? Is it absent? I will put it to torture, or will slaughter it, except it could introduce an accepted reason of his absence.” Before long, the hoopoe came and reasoned its absence. “I have come acquainted with what you knew not; and brought forth to you from Sheba true news. I have found that their kingdom is ruled by a woman, who has been given of every kind of regalia; and found them worshiping the sun instead of Allah.” “We will find out whether you are truthful or being of the liars,” retorted the just monarch, who ordered that a message should be written to that queen, calling her to submit peacefully to him. “Go with this writing of mine and cast it to them;” dictated the king to his messenger, the hoopoe, “then turn away and watch what they will decide!” The hoopoe duly acted on the orders. It travelled back to Sheba, cast the message onto the throne, and lurked to hear the decision. When the queen entered the hall and found Solomon’s message, she read it and at once called out to their chancellors. She was indeed a democratic one, and so she did not issue any orders before listening to their opinions. “We are of great power, and of a great experience of warfare,” said the majority of her chancellors, “and the procedures are to you; see what your decision is.” “When kings enter a town, they turn the nobles of it into humiliated citizens,” replied the astute queen, after a short while of thinking. “I shall send to them a gift, and shall wait for their reply to our legate.” The hoopoe carried this to King Solomon, and when the queen’s messengers arrived they were reproached for such a bribe, and were also informed that, if they would not submit, the king would certainly march against them with soldiers that they could not match with. The legate returned with this decision, and the queen could do nothing but comply. When the arrangements for the delegation of Sheba were made, a magnificent procession, headed by the queen herself, started off to Jerusalem. King Solomon was informed of the news, and ordered that the Queen of Sheba’s throne should be brought from her land before her arrival. He investigated who among his courtiers could accomplish this mission as soon as possible. “I can bring it to you before you break up this meeting,” said a demon of the jinn, but another one, who had had lore of the Book, said that he could brought it in a trice. The King consented, and the demon dully accomplished his promise. When Solomon found the throne settles before him, he prayed: “That is of my Lord God’s Favor to test me whether I shall thank or deny.” The throne was disguised to see whether the queen would be guided or would she be of those who never be guided, and on her arrival it was shown to her. “Is your throne like this?” she was asked. “it was almost like it,” she replied. King Solomon smiled and then invited her to enter the edifice, whose ground was made up of mirrors. The queen thought that she was going to ford through a water pool, and so she tucked up her dress. When the king revealed to her the fact of the edifice’s ground, she announced: “My Lord God! I had wronged myself; and now I am submitted with Solomon to Allah, the Lord of existence.”

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Queen of Sheba: African queen who visited King Solomon to verify his wisdom

• The African History
• February 14, 2021
• Empire , Personality Profile

Many religious texts, including the Bible, Quran, Targum Sheni, and Ethiopian work, Kebra Negas, reference Makeda, the Queen of Sheba in present-day Ethiopia.

She is referenced to have been a wise, wealthy and very influential ruler who had to meet King Solomon to verify reports of his intelligence and after a series of examinations, she showered him with valuable gifts.

Queen of Sheba, Arabic Bilqīs, Ethiopian Makeda, (thrived 10th century BCE), as per Jewish and Islamic traditions, queen of the Saba (or Sheba) Kingdom in Southwest Arabia. In the biblical account of King Salomon’s reign, Queen of Sheba attended King Solomon his court at the head of a camel caravan carrying gold, gems, and spices.

The history is proof of the existence of significant trade ties between ancient Israel and Arabia. The object of her visit, according to the Bible, was to test the wisdom of Solomon by asking him to solve a series of riddles.

The story of Bilqīs, as the Queen of Sheba is known in Islamic tradition, appears in the Qurān, although not specifically by name, and Muslim writers have embellished her story.

The Arabs also gave Bilqīs a genealogy from southern Arabia, and she is the subject of a widespread series of legends. Solomon, having heard from a hoopoe, one of his birds, that Bilqīs and her kingdom were worshipping the Sun, sent a letter asking her to worship God, according to one account.

She responded by sending gifts, but when Solomon proved unwelcome to them, she came herself to his court. While the king’s jinn, thinking the king would be tempted to marry Bilqīs, whispered to him that she had hairy legs andthe hooves of an ass

Solomon, wondering about such a strange phenomenon, had a glass floor installed in front of his throne, so that Bilqīs, tricked into believing it was water, lifted her skirts to cross it and discovered that her legs were very hairy.

Then Solomon ordered the jinn to make a queen depilatory. Tradition does not accept whether Solomon married Bilqīs himself or gave her in marriage to a Hamdānī tribesman. She did yet became a believer. ⠀

The Queen of Sheba appears as a leading character in the story of the Kebra Nagast (“King’s Glory”), the Ethiopian national epic and creation. According to this story, after learning about his wisdom the Queen of Sheba (called Makeda) visited the court of Solomon.

Queen Sheba stayed there for six months learning from Solomon.She was tricked by the king into his room on the last night of her stay and she got pregnant.

She went back to her kingdom where she gave birth to Menilek, a son of Solomon. Menilek I was made a king and thereby established Ethiopia’s ruling Solomonic dynasty, which existed until the downfall of Haile Selassie I in 1974.

The Queen of Sheba myth also features among the Persians (probably originating from Jewish tradition), where she is regarded a Chinese king’s daughter and a peri.

Source: https://www.britannica.com

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• The Queen of Sheba visits King Solomon

1 Kings 10:1-13 . The Queen of Sheba visited King Solomon and she was impressed with his wisdom and wealth.

The Queen of Sheba asked King Solomon a lot of questions to see if what she had heard about him was true.

The Queen of Sheba said “How happy your men must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! Praise be to the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the LORD’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king, to maintain justice and righteousness.”

Some scholars say the Queen of Sheba was also known as Queen Makeda who lived at the same time as King Solomon.

Background Reading:

The queen of sheba visits solomon.

10:1 When the queen of Sheba heard about Solomon’s reputation with the LORD, she came to test him with difficult questions. 2 She brought along a large retinue, camels laden with spices, and lots of gold and precious stones. Upon her arrival, she spoke with Solomon about everything that was on her mind. 3 Solomon answered all of her questions. Nothing was hidden from Solomon that he did not explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba had seen all of Solomon’s wisdom for herself, the palace that he had built, 5 the food set at his table, his servants who sat with him, his ministers in attendance and how they were dressed, his personal staff and how they were dressed, and even his personal stairway by which he went up to the LORD’s Temple, she was breathless!

6 “Everything I heard about your wisdom and what you have to say is true!” she gasped, 7 “but I didn’t believe it at first! But then I came here and I’ve seen it for myself! It’s amazing! I wasn’t told half of what’s really great about your wisdom. You’re far better in person than what the reports have said about you! 8 How blessed are your staff! And how blessed are your employees, who serve you continuously and get to listen to your wisdom! 9 And blessed be the LORD your God, who is delighted with you! He set you in place on the throne of Israel because the LORD loved Israel forever. That’s why he made you to be king, so you could carry out justice and implement righteousness.”

10 Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, a vast quantity of spices, and precious stones. No spices ever came again that were comparable to those that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon. 11 Hiram’s ships that brought gold from Ophir, also brought from Ophir lots of algum wood and precious stones. 12 The king used the algum wood to have supports made for the LORD’s Temple and for the royal palace, as well as lyres and harps for the choir, and nothing like that wood has ever come again or even been seen since right to this day. 13 In return, King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she wanted and had requested in addition to what he had given her consistent with his generosity. Afterward, she returned to her own land with her servants. 1 Kings 10:1-13 Also read: 2nd Chronicles 9:1-12.

More Information:

Sheba could have been a kingdom that straddled the Straits of Bab el-Mandeb in what is now called Yemen and Ethiopia. The Queen of Sheba could have traveled by dhow (a trading sailing vessel) or camel train on one of the many spice routes, or a combination of both. She took many presents of spices and wood to King Solomon.

Other slides in this module:

• Samuel the fifteenth Judge of Israel anoints Saul
• King Saul starts his reign of about thirty-two years
• King Saul reigned for 40 years. He was the 1st of 3 kings
• Samuel the fifteenth Judge of Israel anoints David as king
• David plays for his King
• David uses his slingshot
• The giant Goliath is killed by David
• King Saul tries to kill David with a spear
• Jonathan, David’s faithful friend
• Soldiers of David’s army
• Abigail acted quickly
• 40-year reign of King Saul ends
• King Ishbosheth
• Start of 40 Year reign of King David
• David becomes king in God’s time
• David conquers Jerusalem
• The Ark brought to Jerusalem
• Bathsheba and King David
• Amnon and Tamar
• The end of King David’s 40 year Reign
• The start of the 40-year reign of King Solomon
• King Solomon’s reign established
• A sword gets the truth, Solomon’s Wise Ruling
• Solomon’s Temple
• The end of 40-year reign of King Solomon
• Questions and Answers 1-13
• Questions and Answers 14-26
• Timeline for the Three Kings
• Background Information: Three Kings
• Resources – Three Kings – Saul, David, and Solomon
• Next Module – Prophets and Kings part one » »

A Pictorial explanation of the Bible

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Excerpt: 'In Search of King Solomon's Mines'

From the mausoleum we drove on through rain-soaked streets to the National Museum. Tourists are few and far between in Ethiopia these days. Rastafarians may visit the coffin of their deity, but they rarely bother with the dilapidated state museum. Some of the former Emperor's ceremonial robes were on show, along with tribal crafts and a jumble of bones labelled 'Lucy, the oldest Humanoid in the world'. Samson said they'd been found in the Danakil region in 1974 and had been named after the Beatles' song 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds'.

'Lucy has made us famous. There's even a ballet about her in America. It's all about her life.' He glanced down through the cracked glass case at the assortment of bones. 'Lucy's made us famous, but she hasn't made us rich.'

Unable to resist, I asked him about Ethiopia's gold.

'The Bible speaks of Ophir,' he said, 'a great golden treasure, hidden, but waiting to be dug up. A little hard work, a little sweat, and we'd all be rich like they are in America. Gold is the future of Ethiopia.'

Samson told me that he was from Kebra Mengist, a small town far to the south of Addis Ababa. His father, a schoolteacher, had instilled in him a love of the Bible and a thirst for knowledge. But at an early age he had strayed.

'My parents told me that history was a good thing,' he said. 'After all, the Bible is a kind of history and that is the best thing of all. They told me to study, but my friends tempted me with riches.'

'Were they thieves, stealing from the wealthy?'

'No, no, they were prospectors,' he replied, 'digging gold from the giant open mines.'

I felt my pulse begin to race. A possible source of Solomon's gold suddenly seemed within reach. Anxious not to appear too enthusiastic, lest he take advantage of me, I asked Samson why he had abandoned mining and become a badly paid taxi-driver instead.

'For three years I dug gold from the ground,' he replied. 'Stripped bare to my waist, I worked like a rat in tunnels below the surface. It was infernal down there: hot, stinking, dangerous beyond words. The men who laboured there used to say that they had died and gone to Hell. The Devil was our employer. There was no escape. Yes, I earned good money but, like all the others, I spent it on liquor and bad women. If there was any cash left we gambled it away. The more money we earned through mining, the more we drank, and the more desperate we became.'

We moved on through the museum, past cases filled with imperial crowns, carved gourds, baskets in every colour of the rainbow, and manuscripts written in Ge'ez, the ancient language of Ethiopia. As we walked, Samson continued his story.

'There were dangers everywhere. Sometimes a tunnel would collapse and the miners would be buried alive. I lost many friends that way. Others were killed for their pouches of gold dust, their throats slit with a razor-blade during the night.

'My parents begged me to return home. They said Beelzebub was inside me. But I laughed at them and made fun of their poverty. Then one morning as I was shaving, I saw my face in the scrap of mirror. My eyes were bloodshot from drink and filled with anger. They were not my eyes – they belonged to the Lucifer.'

Back at the taxi, Samson showed me his prize possession – an extremely large leather-bound Bible which he kept under the passenger seat. It had been printed near St Paul's in London in 1673.

The good book, Samson said, reminded him of the true path. But it also taught him that gold could be beneficial if given respect, if used for the good of all men. He had read the Books of Kings and Chronicles and knew all about King Solomon and the land of Ophir. Unable to believe my good fortune at meeting a man who was familiar with biblical history and who had worked as a gold miner, I took out my map and told Samson about my quest to find Solomon's mines.

'Travelling in Ethiopia is hard,' he said. 'It's not like America where the roads are as smooth as silk. Here the buses break down and the police want bribes. A foreigner searching for gold would surely be locked in a cell and beaten with a thorny stick.'

I boasted that I had experience, that I'd only recently travelled to see the Shuar tribe who live deep in the jungles of the Peruvian Amazon. I told him how they shrink the heads of their enemies to the size of a grapefruit, and how they make manioc beer with the saliva of their ugliest crones. I omitted to say that the once feared Shuar warriors are now all fanatical Evangelists, desperate only for tambourines.

'It sounds as if you are a man with no fear,' Samson replied, blowing into his hands. 'But how will you find your way to the gold mines? You are a stranger in a foreign land.'

'I need an assistant,' I replied meekly, 'someone with a knowledge of history and gold. And if I'm to find King Solomon's mines, I'll need someone with a gigantic Bible to keep the Devil away.'

Excerpted from In Search of King Solomon's Mines Copyright © 2002 by Tahir Shah, courtesy of Arcade Publishing.

In Search of King Solomon's Mines

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1 Kings 10 New International Version

The queen of sheba visits solomon ( a ).

10  When the queen of Sheba ( B ) heard about the fame ( C ) of Solomon and his relationship to the Lord , she came to test Solomon with hard questions. ( D ) 2  Arriving at Jerusalem with a very great caravan ( E ) —with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones—she came to Solomon and talked with him about all that she had on her mind. 3  Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her. 4  When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the palace he had built, 5  the food on his table, ( F ) the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he made at [ a ] the temple of the Lord , she was overwhelmed.

6  She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. 7  But I did not believe ( G ) these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth ( H ) you have far exceeded the report I heard. 8  How happy your people must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear ( I ) your wisdom! 9  Praise ( J ) be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord ’s eternal love ( K ) for Israel, he has made you king to maintain justice ( L ) and righteousness.”

10  And she gave the king 120 talents [ b ] of gold, ( M ) large quantities of spices, and precious stones. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

11  (Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir; ( N ) and from there they brought great cargoes of almugwood [ c ] and precious stones. 12  The king used the almugwood to make supports [ d ] for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. So much almugwood has never been imported or seen since that day.)

13  King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for, besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country.

Solomon’s Splendor ( O )

14  The weight of the gold ( P ) that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents, [ e ] 15  not including the revenues from merchants and traders and from all the Arabian kings and the governors of the territories.

16  King Solomon made two hundred large shields ( Q ) of hammered gold; six hundred shekels [ f ] of gold went into each shield. 17  He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three minas [ g ] of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. ( R )

18  Then the king made a great throne covered with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19  The throne had six steps, and its back had a rounded top. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them. 20  Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom. 21  All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. ( S ) Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s days. 22  The king had a fleet of trading ships [ h ] ( T ) at sea along with the ships ( U ) of Hiram. Once every three years it returned, carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons.

23  King Solomon was greater in riches ( V ) and wisdom ( W ) than all the other kings of the earth. 24  The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom ( X ) God had put in his heart. 25  Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift ( Y ) —articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules.

26  Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; ( Z ) he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses, [ i ] which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. 27  The king made silver as common ( AA ) in Jerusalem as stones, ( AB ) and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig ( AC ) trees in the foothills. 28  Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue [ j ] —the royal merchants purchased them from Kue at the current price. 29  They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. [ k ] They also exported them to all the kings of the Hittites ( AD ) and of the Arameans.

• 1 Kings 10:5 Or the ascent by which he went up to
• 1 Kings 10:10 That is, about 4 1/2 tons or about 4 metric tons
• 1 Kings 10:11 Probably a variant of algumwood ; also in verse 12
• 1 Kings 10:12 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
• 1 Kings 10:14 That is, about 25 tons or about 23 metric tons
• 1 Kings 10:16 That is, about 15 pounds or about 6.9 kilograms; also in verse 29
• 1 Kings 10:17 That is, about 3 3/4 pounds or about 1.7 kilograms; or perhaps reference is to double minas, that is, about 7 1/2 pounds or about 3.5 kilograms.
• 1 Kings 10:22 Hebrew of ships of Tarshish
• 1 Kings 10:26 Or charioteers
• 1 Kings 10:28 Probably Cilicia
• 1 Kings 10:29 That is, about 3 3/4 pounds or about 1.7 kilograms

Cross references

• 1 Kings 10:1 : 10:1-13pp — 2Ch 9:1-12
• 1 Kings 10:1 : S Ge 10:7, 28; S 25:3; Mt 12:42; Lk 11:31
• 1 Kings 10:1 : Eze 16:14
• 1 Kings 10:1 : S Nu 12:8; S Jdg 14:12
• 1 Kings 10:2 : S Ge 24:10
• 1 Kings 10:5 : 1Ki 4:22
• 1 Kings 10:7 : S Ge 45:26
• 1 Kings 10:7 : 1Ch 29:25
• 1 Kings 10:8 : Pr 8:34
• 1 Kings 10:9 : S 1Ki 5:7; S Isa 42:10
• 1 Kings 10:9 : S Dt 7:8
• 1 Kings 10:9 : Ps 11:7; 33:5; 72:2; 99:4; 103:6
• 1 Kings 10:10 : S 1Ki 9:28; Isa 60:6
• 1 Kings 10:11 : S Ge 10:29
• 1 Kings 10:14 : 10:14-29pp — 2Ch 1:14-17; 9:13-28
• 1 Kings 10:14 : S 1Ki 9:28
• 1 Kings 10:16 : S 2Sa 8:7
• 1 Kings 10:17 : S 1Ki 7:2
• 1 Kings 10:21 : Isa 60:17
• 1 Kings 10:22 : S 1Ki 9:26
• 1 Kings 10:22 : 1Ki 9:27; Ps 48:7; Isa 2:16; 23:1, 14; 60:6, 9
• 1 Kings 10:23 : 1Ki 3:13; Mt 6:29
• 1 Kings 10:23 : S 1Ki 3:12; Mt 12:42
• 1 Kings 10:24 : S 2Sa 14:20
• 1 Kings 10:25 : S 1Sa 10:27
• 1 Kings 10:26 : S Dt 17:16
• 1 Kings 10:27 : Dt 17:17
• 1 Kings 10:27 : Job 27:16; Isa 60:17
• 1 Kings 10:27 : 1Ch 27:28; Am 7:14
• 1 Kings 10:29 : S Nu 13:29

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