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Solomon ("Solomon the Wise")

King of Israel

Doré, Gustave (XIX century), Judgment of

Solomon (engraving) .

Reign c. 970–31 BC

Birthplace Jerusalem

Place of

death

Jerusalem

Predecessor David

Successor Rehoboam

Consort Naamah, Pharaoh's Daughter, around

700 other wives and 300

concubines[1]

Issue Rehoboam

Royal

House

House of David

Father David

Mother Bathsheba

SolomonFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Solomon (/ˈsɒləmən/; Hebrew: ְׁש�מֹה, Modern Shlomo

Tiberian Šəlōmō ISO 259-3 Šlomo; Syriac: ܢ�����

Shlemun; Arabic: سلیمان Sulaymān, also colloquially:Silimān; Greek: Σολομών Solomōn), also calledJedidiah (Hebrew ְיִדיְדָיּה), was, according to the Book

of Kings, the Book of Chronicles, Hidden Words and the

Qur'an[2] a king of Israel and the son of David.[3] Theconventional dates of Solomon's reign are circa 970 to931 BC. He is described as the third king of the UnitedMonarchy, and the final king before the northernKingdom of Israel and the southern Kingdom of Judahsplit. Following the split, his patrilineal descendants ruledover Judah alone.

According to the Talmud, Solomon is one of the 48

prophets.[4] In the Qur'an, he is considered a majorprophet, and Muslims generally refer to him by the Arabicvariant Sulayman, son of David.

The Hebrew Bible credits Solomon as the builder of the

First Temple in Jerusalem[3] and portrays him as great inwisdom, wealth, and power, but ultimately as a kingwhose sin, including idolatry and turning away fromYahweh, leads to the kingdom's being torn in two during

the reign of his son Rehoboam.[5] Solomon is the subjectof many other later references and legends, most notablyin the 1st-century apocryphal work known as theTestament of Solomon. In later years, Solomon also cameto be known as a magician and an exorcist, withnumerous amulets and medallion seals dating from the

Hellenistic period invoking his name.[6]

Contents

1 Biblical account

1.1 Succession

1.2 Wisdom1.3 Wives

1.4 Relationship with Queen of Sheba

1.5 Sins and punishment

1.6 Enemies

1.7 Death, succession of Rehoboam, and

kingdom division

2 Building and other works

3 Apocryphal texts

4 Chronology

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Cornelis de Vos, The Anointing of

Solomon. According to 1 Kings 1:39,

Solomon was anointed by Zadok.

4 Chronology

5 Historicity of Solomon

6 Jewish scriptures7 Religions and Solomon

7.1 Judaism

7.2 Christianity

7.3 Islam

7.4 Baha'i

8 Legends

8.1 One Thousand and One Nights

8.2 Angels and magic

8.2.1 Seal of Solomon

8.2.2 Solomon and Asmodeus8.2.3 Artifacts

8.2.4 Angels

8.2.5 In the Kabbalah8.2.6 The palace without entrance

8.3 Throne9 Contemporary fiction

9.1 Literature

9.2 Film9.3 Music

10 See also11 Notes

12 References13 Bibliography

14 External links

Biblical account

Succession

According to the biblical First Book of Kings, when David was old,

"he could not get warm."[7] "So they sought for a beautiful youngwoman throughout all the territory of Israel, and found Abishag theShunammite, and brought her to the king. The young woman was verybeautiful, and she was of service to the king and attended to him, but

the king knew her not."[7]

While David was in this state, his fourth son Adonijah, heir apparentto the throne after the death of his elder brothers Amnon andAbsalom, acted to have himself declared king, but Bathsheba, a wifeof David and Solomon's mother, along with the prophet Nathan,convinced David to proclaim Solomon king. Adonijah fled and tookrefuge at the altar, and received pardon for his conduct from Solomonon the condition that he show himself "a worthy man." (1 Kings 1:5–53) (http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt09a01.htm)

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Artist's depiction of Solomon's court

(Ingobertus, c. 880.)

Adonijah asked to marry Abishag the Shunammite, but Solomon disallowed that, although Bathsheba nowpleaded on Adonijah's behalf. He was then seized and put to death (1 Kings 2:13-25). As made clear in theearlier story of Absalom's rebellion, to possess the royal harem was in this society tantamount to claiming the

throne;[8] this applied even to a woman who had shared the bed of a king advanced in age, though she had nointimate relations with King David.

David's general Joab was killed, in accord with David's deathbed request to Solomon, because he had killedgenerals Abner and Amasa during a peace (2 Samuel 20:8–13; 1 Kings 2:5). David's priest Abiathar was exiledby Solomon because he had sided with Adonijah. Abiathar is a descendent of Eli, which has important

prophetic significance. (1 Kings 2:27)[9] Shimei was confined to Jerusalem and killed three years later, when hewent to Gath to retrieve some runaway servants, in part because he had cursed David when David's son

Absalom rebelled against David. (1 Kings 2:1–46)[10]

Wisdom

One of the qualities most ascribed to Solomon is his wisdom. Thebook of 1 Kings recounts how Solomon prays for wisdom:

And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was thegreat high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offerupon that altar. In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in adream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee. AndSolomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David myfather great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth,and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; andthou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast givenhim a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. And now, OLord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead ofDavid my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how togo out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy peoplewhich thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot benumbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore thy servantan understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discernbetween good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so

great a people?" (1 Kings 3:4–9)[11]

"So God said to him, 'Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have askedfor the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked...'" (1

Kings 3:11–12)[11] The Hebrew Bible also states that "The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear

the wisdom God had put in his heart." (1 Kings 10:24)[12]

In one account, known as the Judgment of Solomon, two women came before Solomon to resolve a quarrelover which was the true mother of a baby. When Solomon suggested they should divide the living child in twowith a sword, one woman said she would rather give up the child than see it killed. Solomon then declared thewoman who showed compassion to be the true mother, and gave the baby to her.

Solomon is also noted as one of many authors of Wisdom literature. The apocryphal/deuterocanonical Wisdomof Solomon, along with the Book of Sirach, "are the familiar personalities and the events of Israel's history

combined with the wisdom tradition. Much of this literature, however, is attributed to Solomon."[13] Solomon

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Renaissance relief of the Queen of

Sheba meeting Solomon – gate of

Florence Baptistry

della Francesca, Piero, King

Solomon and the Queen of Sheba

(painting)

became a favorite author and contributor of different kinds of wisdom literature, "including not only thecollections of Proverbs, but also of Ecclesiastes and the Song of Solomon and the later apocryphal book the

Wisdom of Solomon."[13]

Wives

According to the Bible, Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines. The wives are described as foreignprincesses, including Pharaoh's daughter and women of Moab, Ammon, Sidon and of the Hittites. These wives

are depicted as leading Solomon away from Yahweh toward idolatry.[14] The only wife mentioned by name is

Naamah, who is described as the Ammonite.[15] She was the mother of Solomon's successor, Rehoboam.

Relationship with Queen of Sheba

Main article: Queen of Sheba

In a brief, unelaborated, and enigmatic passage, the Hebrew Bibledescribes how the fame of Solomon's wisdom and wealth spread far andwide, so much so that the queen of Sheba decided that she should meethim. The queen is described as visiting with a number of gifts includinggold, spices and precious stones. When Solomon gave her "all her desire,whatsoever she asked," she left satisfied (1 Kings 10:10(http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Kings+10%3A10&version=NIV)).

Whether the passage is simply to provide a brief token, foreign witness ofSolomon's wealth and wisdom, or whether there is meant to besomething more significant to the queen's visit is unknown; neverthelessthe visit of the Queen of Sheba has become the subject of numerousstories.

Sheba is typically identified as Saba, a nation once spanning the Red Seaon the coasts of what are now Eritrea, Somalia, Ethiopia and Yemen, inArabia Felix. In a Rabbinical account (e.g. Targum Sheni), Solomon wasaccustomed to ordering the living creatures of the world to dance beforehim (Rabbinical accounts say that Solomon had been given control overall living things by Yahweh), but one day upon discovering that themountain-cock or hoopoe (Hebrew name: shade) was absent, hesummoned it to him, and the bird told him that it had been searching forsomewhere new.

The bird had discovered a land in the east, exceedingly rich in gold,silver, and plants, whose capital was called Kitor and whose ruler wasthe Queen of Sheba, and the bird, on its own advice, was sent bySolomon to request the queen's immediate attendance at Solomon'scourt.

An Ethiopian account (Kebra Nagast) maintains that the Queen ofSheba had sexual relations with King Solomon (of which the Biblical andQuranic accounts give no hint) and gave birth by the Mai Bella stream inthe province of Hamasien, Eritrea. The Ethiopian tradition has a detailedaccount of the affair. (See Queen of Sheba.)

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The child was a son who went on to become Menelik I, King of Axum, and founded a dynasty that would reignas the first Jewish, then Christian Empire of Ethiopia for 2900+ years (less one usurpation episode, an interval ofca. 133 years until a legitimate male heir regained the crown) until Haile Selassie was overthrown in 1974.Menelik was said to be a practising Jew who was given a replica of the Ark of the Covenant by King Solomon;and, moreover, that the original was switched and went to Axum with him and his mother, and is still there,guarded by a single priest charged with caring for the artifact as his life's task.

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

alleged ark.[a]

Some classical-era Rabbis, attacking Solomon's moral character, have claimed instead that the child was an

ancestor of Nebuchadnezzar II, who destroyed Solomon's temple some 300 years later.[16]

Sins and punishment

According to 1 Kings 11: (http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=11:&src=HE)Solomon's "wives turned his heart after other gods", their own national deities, to whom Solomon built temples,thus incurring divine anger and retribution in the form of the division of the kingdom after Solomon's death.(1 Kings 11:9–13 (http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=11:9–13&src=HE))

1 Kings 11 (http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=11&src=HE) describesSolomon's descent into idolatry, particularly his turning after Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and afterMilcom, the abomination of the Ammonites. In Deuteronomy 17:16–17(http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=Deuteronomy&verse=17:16–17&src=HE), a king iscommanded not to multiply horses or wives, neither greatly multiply to himself gold or silver. Solomon sins in allthree of these areas. Solomon collects 666 talents of gold each year, (1 Kings 10:14(http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=10:14&src=HE)) a huge amount ofmoney for a small nation like Israel. Solomon gathers a large number of horses and chariots and even brings inhorses from Egypt. Just as Deuteronomy 17 (http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=Deuteronomy&verse=17&src=HE) warns, collecting horses and chariots takes Israel back to Egypt.Finally, Solomon marries foreign women, and these women turn Solomon to other gods.

According to 1 Kings 11:30-34 (http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=11:30-34&src=HE), it was because of these sins that "the Lord punishes Solomon by removing 10 of the 12 Tribes of

Israel from the Israelites.[17]

And the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the Lord, theGod of Israel, who had appeared to him twice and had commanded him concerning this thing, thathe should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what the Lord commanded. Therefore theLord said to Solomon, "Since this has been your practice and you have not kept my covenant andmy statutes that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it toyour servant. Yet for the sake of David your father I will not do it in your days, but I will tear it outof the hand of your son. However, I will not tear away all the kingdom, but I will give one tribe toyour son, for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem that I have chosen.

Enemies

Near the end of his life, Solomon was forced to contend with several enemies, including Hadad of Edom, Rezon

of Zobah, and one of his officials named Jeroboam who was from the tribe of Ephraim.[5]

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The United Monarchy breaks up, with

Jeroboam ruling over the northern

Kingdom of Israel (blue on the map) and

Rehoboam ruling the Kingdom of Judah to

the south.

Solomon and the plan for the

First Temple, illustration

from a Bible card published

by the Providence

Lithograph Co.

A sketch of Solomon's Temple, based

on descriptions in the Scriptures.

Death, succession of Rehoboam, and kingdom division

According to the Hebrew Bible, Solomon died of natural

causes[18] at around 80 years of age. Upon Solomon's death, hisson, Rehoboam, succeeded him as king. However, ten of theTribes of Israel refused to accept him as king, causing the UnitedMonarchy to split and form the northern Kingdom of Israel ruledby Jeroboam, while Rehoboam continued to reign in the southernKingdom of Judah.

Building and other works

During Solomon's long reign of40 years, the Israelitemonarchy, according to theBible, gained its highestsplendour and wealth. In asingle year, according to1 Kings 10:14

(http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=10:14&src=HE), Solomon collected tributeamounting to 666 talents of gold (39,960 pounds).

Solomon is described as surrounding himself with all the luxuries and theexternal grandeur of an Eastern monarch, and his government prospered. He

entered into an alliance with Hiram I, king of Tyre, who in many waysgreatly assisted him in his numerous undertakings. For some yearsbefore his death, David was engaged in collecting materials forbuilding a temple in Jerusalem as a permanent abode for the Ark ofthe Covenant. Solomon is described as completing its construction,with the help of an architect, also named Hiram, and other materials,sent from King Hiram of Tyre.

After the completion of the temple, Solomon is described as erectingmany other buildings of importance in Jerusalem; for the long periodof 13 years, he was engaged in the building of a royal palace onOphel (a hilly promontory in central Jerusalem); Solomon alsoconstructed great works for the purpose of securing a plentiful supplyof water for the city, and the Millo (Septuagint, Acra) for the defenseof the city. However, excavations of Jerusalem have shown a distinct

lack of monumental architecture from the era, and remains of neither the Temple nor Solomon's palace havebeen found. However, a number of significant but politically sensitive areas have not been extensively excavated,including Temple mount, the site where the Temple is traditionally said to have been located.

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Solomon is also described as rebuilding cities elsewhere in Israel, creating the port of Ezion-Geber, andconstructing Tadmor in the wilderness as a commercial depot and military outpost. Solomon is additionallydescribed as having amassed 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen. Though the location of Solomon's port ofEzion-Geber is known, no remains have ever been found. More archaeological success has been achieved withthe major cities Solomon is said to have strengthened or rebuilt (for example, Hazor, Megiddo and Gezer —1 Kings 9:15 (http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=9:15&src=HE)); these allhave substantial ancient remains, including impressive six-chambered gates, and ashlar palaces, as well astrough-like structures outside buildings that early archaeologists have identified as the stables for Solomon'shorses.

According to the Bible, during Solomon's reign, Israel enjoyed great commercial prosperity, with extensivetraffic being carried on by land with Tyre, Egypt, and Arabia, and by sea with Tarshish, Ophir, and South India.

Apocryphal texts

Rabbinical tradition attributes the Wisdom of Solomon to Solomon, although this book was probably written inthe 2nd century BC. In this work, Solomon is portrayed as an astronomer. Other books of wisdom poetry suchas the Odes of Solomon and the Psalms of Solomon also bear his name. The Jewish historian Eupolemus, whowrote about 157 BC, included copies of apocryphal letters exchanged between Solomon and the kings of Egyptand Tyre.

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

Testament of Solomon with its elaborate and grotesque demonology.[19]

Chronology

The conventional dates of Solomon's reign are from circa 970 to 931 BC. They derive from biblical chronology,mostly from the ancient genealogies in the books, Genesis to Second Kings, spanning the creation of theuniverse as the ancients understood it to the fall of Jerusalem with the destruction of its Temple in year 586 BC.Regarding the Davidic Dynasty to which King Solomon belongs, its chronology can be checked against datableBabylonian and Assyrian records at a few points, and these correspondences have allowed archeologists todate its kings in a modern framework. According to the most widely used chronology, based on that by Edwin

R. Thiele, the death of Solomon and the division of his kingdom occurred in the spring of 931 BC.[20] Thieledoes not explicitly date the beginning of Solomon's reign, but according to the First Book of Kings, he ruled for40 years, thus corresponding to 970 BC according to the Thiele system.

Historicity of Solomon

See also: David: Historicity

Historical evidence of King Solomon other than the biblical accounts is minimal. Josephus, citing Tyrian courtrecords and Menander in Against Apion, gives a specific year during which King Hiram I of Tyre sent materials

to Solomon for the construction of the temple.[21] However, no material evidence indisputably of Solomon'sreign has been found. Yigael Yadin's excavations at Hazor, Megiddo, Beit Shean and Gezer uncovered

structures that he and others have argued date from his reign,[22] but others, such as Israel Finkelstein and Neil

Silberman, argue that they should be dated to the Omride period, more than a century after Solomon.[23]

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Solomon's Wealth and

Wisdom, as in 1 Kings

3:12–13, illustration from

a Bible card published

1896 by the Providence

Lithograph Company.

According to Israel Finkelstein and Neil Silberman, authors of The BibleUnearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its

Sacred Texts,[24] at the time of the kingdoms of David and Solomon, Jerusalemwas populated by only a few hundred residents or less, which is insufficient for anempire stretching from the Euphrates to Eilath. According to The BibleUnearthed, archaeological evidence suggests that the kingdom of Israel at thetime of Solomon was little more than a small city state, and so it is implausible thatSolomon received tribute as large as 666 talents of gold per year. Although bothFinkelstein and Silberman accept that David and Solomon were real kings of

Judah about the 10th century BC,[25] they claim that the earliest independentreference to the Kingdom of Israel is about 890 BC, and for Judah about 750BC. They suggest that due to religious prejudice, the authors of the Biblesuppressed the achievements of the Omrides (whom the Hebrew Bible describesas being polytheist), and instead pushed them back to a supposed golden age ofJudaism and monotheists, and devotees of Yahweh. Some Biblical minimalistslike Thomas L. Thompson go further, arguing that Jerusalem became a city and

capable of being a state capital only in the mid-seventh century.[26] Likewise,Finkelstein and others consider the claimed size of Solomon's temple implausible.

These views are criticized by William G. Dever,[27] Helga Weippert,[citation needed] André Lemaire[28] and

Amnon Ben-Tor[citation needed]. Lemaire states in Ancient Israel: From Abraham to the Roman Destruction

of the Temple[28] that the principal points of the biblical tradition of Solomon are generally trustworthy. So doesKenneth Kitchen, who argues that Solomon ruled over a comparatively wealthy "mini-empire", rather than asmall city-state, and considers 666 gold talents a modest amount of money. Kitchen calculates that over 30years, such a kingdom might have accumulated up to 500 tons of gold, which is small compared to other

examples, such as the 1,180 tons of gold that Alexander the Great took from Susa.[29] Similarly Kitchen,[30]

and others consider the temple of Solomon a reasonable and typically sized structure for the region at the time.William G. Dever states "that we now have direct Bronze and Iron Age parallels for every feature of the

'Solomonic temple' as described in the Hebrew Bible".[31]

The archaeological remains that are considered to date from the time of Solomon are notable for the fact thatCanaanite material culture appears to have continued unabated; there is a distinct lack of magnificent empire, orcultural development – indeed comparing pottery from areas traditionally assigned to Israel with that of thePhilistines points to the Philistines having been significantly more sophisticated. However there is a lack of

physical evidence of its existence, despite some archaeological work in the area.[23] This is not unexpected

because the area was devastated by the Babylonians, then rebuilt and destroyed several times.[30] Littlearchaeological excavation has been done around the area known as the Temple Mount, in what is thought to be

the foundation of Solomon's Temple, because attempts to do so are met with protest by Muslims.[32]

From a critical point of view, Solomon's building of a temple for Yahweh should not be considered an act ofparticular devotion to Yahweh because Solomon is also described as building places of worship for a number of

other deities[16] (1 Kings 11:4 (http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=11:4&src=HE)). Some scholars and historians argue that Solomon's apparent initialdevotion to Yahweh, described in passages such as his dedication prayer (1 Kings 8:14-66(http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=8:14-66&src=HE)), were written muchlater, after Jerusalem had become the religious centre of the kingdom, replacing locations such as Shiloh andBethel. Some scholars believe that passages such as these in the Books of Kings were not written by the same

authors who wrote the rest of the text, instead probably by the Deuteronomist.[31] Such views have been

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challenged by other historians who maintain that there is evidence that these passages in Kings are derived fromofficial court records at the time of Solomon and from other writings of that time that were incorporated into the

canonical books of Kings.[33][34][35]

Jewish scriptures

King Solomon is one of the central Biblical figures in Jewish heritage that have lasting religious, national andpolitical aspects. As the builder of the First Temple in Jerusalem and last ruler of the united Kingdom of Israelbefore its division into the northern Kingdom of Israel and the southern Kingdom of Judah, Solomon isassociated with the peak "golden age" of the independent Kingdom of Israel as well as a source of judicial andreligious wisdom. According to Jewish tradition, King Solomon wrote three books of the Bible:

Mishlei (Book of Proverbs), a collection of fables and wisdom of life

Kohelet (Ecclesiastes), a book of contemplation and his self-reflection.Shir ha-Shirim (Song of Songs), an unusual collection of poetry interspersed with verse, whose

interpretation is either literal (i.e. a romantic and sexual relationship between a man and a woman) or

metaphorical (a relationship between God and his people).

The Hebrew word "To Solomon" (which can also be translated as "by Solomon") appears in the title of twohymns in the book of Psalms (Tehillim), suggesting to some that Solomon wrote them.

Religions and Solomon

Judaism

King Solomon sinned by acquiring many foreign wives and horses because he thought he knew the reason forthe Biblical prohibition and thought it did not apply to him. When King Solomon married the daughter of theEgyptian Pharaoh, a sandbank formed which eventually formed the "great nation of Rome" – the nation thatdestroyed the Second Temple (Herod's Temple). Solomon gradually lost more and more prestige until hebecame like a commoner. Some say he regained his status while others say he did not. In the end however, he is

regarded as a righteous king and is especially praised for his diligence in building the Temple.[36]

Christianity

Christianity has traditionally accepted the historical existence of Solomon, though some modern Christianscholars have also questioned at least his authorship of those biblical texts ascribed to him. Such disputes tend todivide Christians into traditionalist and modernist camps.

Of the two genealogies of Jesus given in the Gospels, Matthew mentions Solomon, but Luke does not. Somecommentators see this as an issue that can be reconciled while others disagree. For instance, it has beensuggested that Luke is using Mary's genealogy and Matthew is using Joseph's, but Darrell Bock states that thiswould be unprecedented, "especially when no other single woman appears in the line". Other suggestions includethe use by one of the royal and the other of the natural line, one using the legal line and the other the physical

line, or that Joseph was adopted.[37]

Jesus makes reference to Solomon, using him for comparison purposes in his admonition against worrying aboutyour life. This account is recorded in Matthew 6:29 and the parallel passage in Luke 12:27

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Russian icon of King Solomon. He is

depicted holding a model of the

Temple (18th century, iconostasis of

Kizhi monastery, Russia).

Mausoleum of Solomon, Aqsa Mosque

compound, Jerusalam

In the Eastern Orthodox Church, Solomon is commemorated as asaint, with the title of "Righteous Prophet and King". His feast day iscelebrated on the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers (two Sundaysbefore the Great Feast of the Nativity of the Lord).

The staunchly Catholic King Philip II of Spain sought to model himselfafter King Solomon. Statues of King David and Solomon stand oneither side of the entrance to the basilica of El Escorial, Philip'spalace, and Solomon is also depicted in a great fresco at the center ofEl Escorial's library. Philip identified the warrior-king David with hisown father Charles V, and himself sought to emulate the thoughtfuland logical character which he perceived in Solomon. Moreover,

Escorial's structure was inspired by that of Solomon's Temple.[38][39]

Islam

Main article: Solomon in Islam

In Islamic tradition, Solomon is venerated as a prophet and amessenger of God, as well as a divinely appointed monarch, whoruled over the Kingdom of Israel. As in Judaism, Islam recognizesSolomon as the son of King David, who is also considered aprophet and a king in Islam. Islam attributes to Solomon thesaying: "The beginning of wisdom is the fear of God" (ra's al-hikmah makhafat Allah). Islam tradition ascribes to Solomon agreat level of wisdom and knowledge of the unseen, as well as thetraditional sciences of cosmology. According to tradition, he knewthe "language of the birds" (kalam al-tayr). Solomon was alsoKnown in the Islam to have other supernatural abilities (bestowedupon him by God) such as controlling the wind, ruling over the Jinnand talking to Ants: And to Solomon (We made) the Wind(obedient): its early morning (stride) was a month's (journey),and its evening (stride) was a month's (journey); and We made a Font of molten brass to flow for him;and there were Jinns that worked in front of him, by the leave of his Lord,and if any of them turnedaside from Our command, We made him taste of the Penalty of the Blazing Fire. (34:12) and At length,when they came to a (lowly) valley of ants, one of the ants said: "O ye ants, get into your habitations,lest Solomon and his hosts crush you (under foot) without knowing it." – So he smiled, amused at herspeech; and he said: "O my Lord! so order me that I may be grateful for Thy favors, which Thou hastbestowed on me and on my parents,and that I may work the righteousness that will please Thee: andadmit me, by Thy Grace, to the ranks of Thy righteous Servants." (18–19:27). The Qur'an mentionsSolomon 17 times.

Baha'i

In the Baha'i Faith, Solomon is regarded as one of the lesser prophets along with David, Isaiah, Jeremiah,

Ezekiel, along with others.[40] Baha'is see Solomon as a prophet who was sent by God to address the issues of

his time.[41] Baha'ullah wrote about Solomon in the Hidden Words.[42] He also mentions Solomon in the Tablet

of Wisdom, where he is depicted as a contemporary of Pythagoras.[43]

Legends

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The judgment of Solomon (painting

on ceramic), Castelli, IT: Lille

Museum of Fine Arts, 18th century .

One Thousand and One Nights

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

Angels and magic

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

Seal of Solomon

A magic ring called the "Seal of Solomon" was supposedly given to Solomon and gave him power over demons.The magical symbol said to have been on the Seal of Solomon which made it work is now better known as theStar of David. Asmodeus, king of demons, was one day, according to the classical Rabbis, captured byBenaiah using the ring, and was forced to remain in Solomon's service. In one tale, Asmodeus brought a manwith two heads from under the earth to show Solomon; the man, unable to return, married a woman fromJerusalem and had seven sons, six of whom resembled the mother, while one resembled the father in having twoheads. After their father's death, the son with two heads claimed two shares of the inheritance, arguing that hewas two men; Solomon decided that the son with two heads was only one man. The Seal of Solomon, in somelegends known as the Ring of Aandaleeb, was a highly sought after symbol of power. In several legends,different groups or individuals attempted to steal it or attain it in some manner.

Solomon and Asmodeus

One legend concerning Asmodeus goes on to state that Solomon oneday asked Asmodeus what could make demons powerful over man,and Asmodeus asked to be freed and given the ring so that he coulddemonstrate; Solomon agreed but Asmodeus threw the ring into thesea and it was swallowed by a fish. Asmodeus then swallowed theking, stood up fully with one wing touching heaven and the otherearth, and spat out Solomon to a distance of 400 miles. The Rabbisclaim this was a divine punishment for Solomon's having failed tofollow three divine commands, and Solomon was forced to wanderfrom city to city, until he eventually arrived in an Ammonite city wherehe was forced to work in the king's kitchens. Solomon gained achance to prepare a meal for the Ammonite king, which the kingfound so impressive that the previous cook was sacked and Solomon put in his place; the king's daughter,Naamah, subsequently fell in love with Solomon, but the family (thinking Solomon a commoner) disapproved, so

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the king decided to kill them both by sending them into the desert. Solomon and the king’s daughter wanderedthe desert until they reached a coastal city, where they bought a fish to eat, which just happened to be the onewhich had swallowed the magic ring. Solomon was then able to regainhis throne and expel Asmodeus. The element of a ring thrown into thesea and found back in a fish's belly also appeared in Herodotus'account of Polycrates, the tyrant of Samos from c. 538 BC to 522BC.

In another familiar version of the legend of the Seal of Solomon,Asmodeus disguises himself. In some myths, he's disguised as KingSolomon himself, while in more frequently heard versions he'sdisguised as a falcon, calling himself Gavyn (Gavinn or Gavin), one ofKing Solomon’s trusted friends. The concealed Asmodeus tellstravelers who have ventured up to King Solomon's grand lofty palacethat the Seal of Solomon was thrown into the sea. He then convincesthem to plunge in and attempt to retrieve it, for if they do they wouldtake the throne as king.

Artifacts

Other magical items attributed to Solomon are his key and his Table. The latter was said to be held in Toledo,Spain during Visigoth rule and was part of the loot taken by Tarik ibn Ziyad during the Umayyad Conquest ofIberia, according to Ibn Abd-el-Hakem's History of the Conquest of Spain. The former appears in the title ofthe Lesser Key of Solomon, a grimoire whose framing story is Solomon capturing demons using his ring, andforcing them to explain themselves to him.

Angels

Angels also helped Solomon in building the Temple; though not by choice. The edifice was, according torabbinical legend, miraculously constructed throughout, the large heavy stones rising and settling in theirrespective places of themselves. The general opinion of the Rabbis is that Solomon hewed the stones by meansof a shamir, a mythical worm whose mere touch cleft rocks. According to Midrash Tehillim, the shamir wasbrought from paradise by Solomon's eagle; but most of the rabbis state that Solomon was informed of theworm's haunts by Asmodeus. The shamir had been entrusted by the prince of the sea to the mountain roosteralone, and the rooster had sworn to guard it well, but Solomon's men found the bird's nest, and covered it withglass. When the bird returned, it used the shamir to break the glass, whereupon the men scared the bird, causingit to drop the worm, which the men could then bring to Solomon.

In the Kabbalah

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

The palace without entrance

According to one legend, while traveling magically, Solomon noticed a magnificent palace to which thereappeared to be no entrance. He ordered the demons to climb to the roof and see if they could discover anyliving being within the building but the demons only found an eagle, which said that it was 700 years old, but that

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Solomon at his throne, painting by

Andreas Brugger, 1777

it had never seen an entrance. An elder brother of the eagle, 900 years old, was then found, but it also did notknow the entrance. The eldest brother of these two birds, which was 1,300 years old, then declared it had beeninformed by its father that the door was on the west side, but that it had become hidden by sand drifted by thewind. Having discovered the entrance, Solomon found an idol inside that had in its mouth a silver tablet saying inGreek (a language not thought by modern scholars to have existed 1000 years before the time of Solomon) thatthe statue was of Shaddad, the son of 'Ad, and that it had reigned over a million cities, rode on a millionhorses, had under it a million vassals and slew a million warriors, yet it could not resist the angel of death.

Throne

Solomon's throne is described at length in Targum Sheni, which iscompiled from three different sources, and in two later Midrash.According to these, there were on the steps of the throne twelvegolden lions, each facing a golden eagle. There were six steps to thethrone, on which animals, all of gold, were arranged in the followingorder: on the first step a lion opposite an ox; on the second, a wolfopposite a sheep; on the third, a tiger opposite a camel; on the fourth,an eagle opposite a peacock, on the fifth, a cat opposite a cock; onthe sixth, a sparrow-hawk opposite a dove. On the top of the thronewas a dove holding a sparrow-hawk in its claws, symbolizing thedominion of Israel over the Gentiles. The first midrash claims that sixsteps were constructed because Solomon foresaw that six kingswould sit on the throne, namely, Solomon, Rehoboam, Hezekiah,Manasseh, Amon, and Josiah. There was also on the top of thethrone a golden candelabrum, on the seven branches of the one sideof which were engraved the names of the seven patriarchs Adam, Noah, Shem, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, andJob, and on the seven of the other the names of Levi, Kohath, Amram, Moses, Aaron, Eldad, Medad, and, inaddition, Hur (another version has Haggai). Above the candelabrum was a golden jar filled with olive-oil andbeneath it a golden basin which supplied the jar with oil and on which the names of Nadab, Abihu, and Eli andhis two sons were engraved. Over the throne, twenty-four vines were fixed to cast a shadow on the king's head.

By a mechanical contrivance the throne followed Solomon wherever he wished to go. Supposedly, due toanother mechanical trick, when the king reached the first step, the ox stretched forth its leg, on which Solomonleaned, a similar action taking place in the case of the animals on each of the six steps. From the sixth step theeagles raised the king and placed him in his seat, near which a golden serpent lay coiled. When the king wasseated the large eagle placed the crown on his head, the serpent uncoiled itself, and the lions and eagles movedupward to form a shade over him. The dove then descended, took the scroll of the Law from the Ark, andplaced it on Solomon's knees. When the king sat, surrounded by the Sanhedrin, to judge the people, the wheelsbegan to turn, and the beasts and fowls began to utter their respective cries, which frightened those who hadintended to bear false testimony. Moreover, while Solomon was ascending the throne, the lions scattered allkinds of fragrant spices. After Solomon's death, Pharaoh Shishak, when taking away the treasures of theTemple (I Kings xiv. 26), carried off the throne, which remained in Egypt until Sennacherib conquered thatcountry. After Sennacherib's fall Hezekiah gained possession of it, but when Josiah was slain by PharaohNecho, the latter took it away. However, according to rabbinical accounts, Necho did not know how themechanism worked and so accidentally struck himself with one of the lions causing him to become lame;Nebuchadnezzar, into whose possession the throne subsequently came, shared a similar fate. The throne thenpassed to the Persians, whose king Darius was the first to sit successfully on Solomon's throne after his death;subsequently the throne came into the possession of the Greeks and Ahasuerus.

Contemporary fiction

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Literature

In H. Rider Haggard's King Solomon's Mines the protagonists discover multiple settings said to belongto, or having been built at the request of King Solomon, such as 'Solomon's Great Road' and the mines

themselves. Also, the two mountains which form the entrance to Kukuana Land (where the mines arelocated in the novel) are referred to as 'Sheba's Breasts' which could well be an allusion to the Queen of

Sheba, with whom King Solomon had a relationship; or alternatively Solomon's mother, who was namedBathsheba. When in the mines the characters also contemplate what must have occurred to prevent KingSolomon from ever returning to retrieve the massive amounts of diamonds, gold and ivory tusks that were

found buried in his great 'Treasure Chamber'.In The Divine Comedy the spirit of Solomon appears to Dante Alighieri in the Heaven of the Sun with

other exemplars of inspired wisdom.In Friedrich Dürrenmatt's Die Physiker, the physicist Möbius claims that Solomon appears to him and

dictates the "theory of all possible inventions" (based on Unified Field Theory).Solomon appears in Kipling's Just So Stories.In Neal Stephenson's three-volume The Baroque Cycle, 17th century alchemists like Isaac Newton

believe that Solomon created a kind of "heavier" gold with mystical properties and that it was cached inthe Solomon Islands where it was accidentally discovered by the crew of a wayward Spanish galleon. In

the third volume of The Baroque Cycle, The System of the World, a mysterious member of theentourage of Czar Peter I of Russia, named "Solomon Kohan" appears in early 18th century London. The

czar, traveling incognito to purchase English-made ships for his navy, explains that he added him to hiscourt after the Sack of Azov, where Kohan had been a guest of the Pasha. Solomon Kohan is later

revealed as one of the extremely long-lived "Wise" Enoch Root, and compares a courtyard full ofinventors' workstations to "an operation I used to have in Jerusalem a long time ago," denominating eitherfacility as "a temple."

In Bartimaeus: The Ring of Solomon, both King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba are featuredprominently.

In Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, Solomon was the first king chosen by the Magi, a powerful magicianthat created the world Magi is set in, and the first to receive the Wisdom of Solomon.

In Makai Ouji: Devils and Realist, Solomon is a friend of Lucifer and is the "Elector" - the one who canchoose the interim ruler over Hell as its emperor rests to regain his strength and had powers over demonsknown as his seventy-two pillars. He's also known who can control Hell or Heaven with the power of his

ring.

Film

The Kingdom of Solomon (2009) - Iranian production directed by Shahriar BahraniSolomon (1997, TNT) - directed by Roger Young, starring Ben CrossSolomon and Sheba (1959) - Epic film directed by King Vidor, starring Yul Brynner and Gina

LollobrigidaSolomon & Sheba (1995 film) - Showtime film directed by Robert M. Young starring Halle Berry and

Jimmy Smits

Music

Handel composed an oratorio entitled Solomon in 1748. The story follows the basic Biblical plot.Ernest Bloch composed a Hebraic Rhapsody for cello and orchestra entitled Schelomo, based on KingSolomon.

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Toivo Tulev composed a piece for choir, soloists and chamber orchestra entitled "Songs" in 2005. Thetext is taken directly from the Song of Songs in its English, Spanish and Latin translations.

Marc-Antoine Charpentier, a French composer of the Baroque Era, composed an oratorio entitled"Solomon's Judgement".

See also

GoetiaHeichal Shlomo

Solomon and MarcolfSolomon's Pools

Solomonic columnThe Judgement of Salomon (Giorgione)This too shall pass

Notes

a. ^ Recent History Channel promotional production about Indiana Jones’s[citation needed] positive impact onarchaeology (released Mid-May 2008, the week before the 22 May 2008 USA release of Indiana Jones and theKingdom of the Crystal Skull); History Channel producers were shown interviewing the guardian priest, andexpert discussions about the Ark were part of the fare.

References

1. ^ "In Our Time With Melvyn Bragg: King Solomon" (http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/iot). Radio 4. UK:BBC. 7 June 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2012.

2. ^ Williamson, H. G. M. (1976). "The Accession of Solomon in the Books of Chronicles". Vetus Testamentum

26 (3): 351–361. doi:10.1163/156853376X00510 (http://dx.doi.org/10.1163%2F156853376X00510).JSTOR 10.2307/1517303 (//www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307%2F1517303).

3. ̂a b Barton, George A. (1967). "Temple of Solomon" (http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?

artid=129&letter=T). Jewish Encyclopedia 215 (5105). New York, NY: Funk & Wagnalls. pp. 98–101.doi:10.1038/2151043a0 (http://dx.doi.org/10.1038%2F2151043a0). Retrieved 2007-05-15.

4. ^ Rashi, to Megillah, 14a.

5. ̂a b Leithart, Peter J (2000), A House for My Name, Canon, p. 157, ISBN 978-1-885767-69-1.

6. ^ "Archaeology, Culture, and other Religions" (http://www.fmc-terrasanta.org/en/archaeology-culture-and-other-religions.html?vid=3586). FMC terra santa. Retrieved 2013-06-21.

7. ̂a b "1 Kings 1 (ESV)" (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20kings%201;&version=47;).Bible gateway. Retrieved 2010-03-03.

8. ^ Hoerber, Robert G., ed. (1984) "Concordia Self-Study Bible" (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House) p. 473

9. ^ Peter J. Leithart, A House for My Name, 164, Canon Press, 2000. ISBN 978-1-885767-69-1

10. ^ "Jewish Encyclopedia" (http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=631&letter=S&search=Shimei).Retrieved 2010-03-03.

11. ̂a b "I Kings" (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Kings+3&version=KJV), KJV, The Bible,3:4–9.

12. ^ "1 Kings" (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=11&chapter=10&version=31). NewInternational Version (Passage Lookup). Bible Gateway. 10. Retrieved 2010-03-03.

13. ̂a b Coogan 2009, p. 375.

14. ^ 1 Kings 11:1–3 (http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=11:1–3&src=HE)

15. ^ 1 Kings 14:21 (http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=1%20Kings&verse=14:21&src=NIV) and2 Chronicles 12:13 (http://tools.wmflabs.org/bibleversefinder/?book=2%20Chronicles&verse=12:13&src=NIV)

16. ̂a b This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Jewish Encyclopedia. 1901–1906.

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1906.

17. ^ "1 Kings" (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20kings%2011&version=NIV). NIV. BibleGateway. 11 – Solomon’s Wives – King Solomon. Retrieved 2013-06-21.

18. ^ "The Kingdom of Israel" (http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Kings.html). Jewish VirtualLibrary. Retrieved 2010-03-03.

19. ^ "Solomon, Testament of" (http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=897&letter=S). JewishEncyclopedia. Retrieved 2010-03-03.

20. ^ Thiele 1983, p. 78.

21. ^ Against Apion i:17,18.

22. ^ Dever 2001.

23. ̂a b Finkelstein & Silberman 2001.

24. ^ Finkelstein & Silberman 2001.

25. ^ Finkelstein & Silberman 2006, p. 20.

26. ^ Thompson, Thomas L., 1999, The Bible in History: How Writers Create a Past, Jonathan Cape, London,ISBN 978-0-224-03977-2 p. 207

27. ^ Dever 2001, p. 160.

28. ̂a b Shanks, Hershel, Ancient Israel: From Abraham to the Roman Destruction of the Temple, p. 113.

29. ^ Kitchen 2003, p. 135.

30. ̂a b Kitchen 2003, p. 123

31. ̂a b Dever 2001, p. 145

32. ^ "Temple Mount: Excavation Controversy" (http://www.sacred-destinations.com/israel/temple-mount-excavation.htm). Sacred destinations. Retrieved 2010-03-03.

33. ^ Harrison, RK (1969), Introduction to the Old Testament, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, pp. 722–24.

34. ^ Archer, GL (1964), A Survey of Old Testament Introduction, Chicago: Moody Press, pp. 276–77.

35. ^ Thiele 1983, p. 193–204.

36. ^ "tractate Sanhendrin", Talmud Bavli, p. 21b.

37. ^ Bock, Darell (1996). Luke. The NIV Application Commentary. Zondervan. p. 124. ISBN 978-0-310-49330-3.

38. ^ Taylor, René, Arquitectura y Magia. Consideraciones sobre la Idea de El Escorial [Architecture and magic.Considerations on the idea of the Escorial] (in Castilian), Madrid: Siruela, enhanced from monograph inRudolph Wittkower's 1968 festschrift.

39. ^ Wittkower, Rudolf; Jaffe, Irma, "Hermetism and the Mystical Architecture of the Society of Jesus", BaroqueArt: The Jesuit Contribution.

40. ^ Smith, Peter (2008), An Introduction to the Baha'i Faith, p. 108.

41. ^ Steier, E Joseph, III; Timmering, Dianne H (2008), My God! Our God?, p. 176.

42. ^ Ryba, Thomas; Bond, George D; Tull, Herman (2004), The Comity and Grace of Method: Essays in Honorof Edmund F. Perry, p. 399.

43. ^ Garlington, William (2005), The Baha'i Faith in America, p. 160.

Bibliography

Coogan, Michael D (2009), A Brief Introduction to the Old Testament, Oxford University Press

Dever, William G. (2001). What Did the Biblical Writers Know and When Did They Know It?: WhatArchaeology Can Tell Us about the Reality of Ancient Israel. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Pub.

ISBN 978-0-8028-4794-2. OCLC 45487499 (//www.worldcat.org/oclc/45487499).——— (2003). Who Were the Early Israelites and Where Did They Come From?. William B

Eermans. ISBN 0-8028-0975-8.Finkelstein, Israel; Silberman, Neil Asher (2001), The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision ofAncient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts (http://books.google.com/?id=lu6ywyJr0CMC),

Simon & Schuster, ISBN 0-7432-2338-1———; Silberman, Neil Asher (2002) [2001]. The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision.

Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0-684-86913-1.———; Silberman, Neil Asher (2006). David and Solomon: In Search of the Bible's Sacred Kings

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and the Roots of the Western Tradition. Free Press. ISBN 0-7432-4362-5.

Higham, Levy; Higham, Thomas, eds. (2005). The Bible and Radiocarbon Dating: Archaeology, Textand Science. London; Oakville, CT: Equinox. ISBN 978-1-84553-056-3. OCLC 60453952

(//www.worldcat.org/oclc/60453952).Kitchen, Kenneth A. (2003). On the reliability of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.ISBN 0-8028-4960-1.

Thiele, ER (1983), The Mysterious Numbers of the Hebrew Kings (3rd ed.), Grand Rapids:Zondervan/Kregel

External links

A collection of King Solomon links on the Web(http://web.archive.org/web/20080115144348rn_1/www.vdu.lt/~ktv/solomon/), LT: VDU, archived

from the original (http://www.vdu.lt/~ktv/solomon/) on Jan 15, 2008.Oussani, Gabriel (1913), "Solomon" (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14135b.htm), Catholic

Encyclopedia (entry).Solomon (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0167409/) at the Internet Movie Database Animated depiction ofthe life of Solomon

Solomon (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0143889/) at the Internet Movie Database Artistic movie aboutthe rise and the reign of King Solomon

"The Wars of King Solomon: Summaries and Studies" (http://www.warsofisrael.com/solommon.html),Wars of Israel.

Salomon engravings(http://www.colecciondeverda.com/search/label/Personajes%20Antiguo%20Testamento%20(Salom%C3%B3n)), The De Verda collection.

Solomon

House of David

Regnal titles

Preceded by

David

King of the United Kingdom

of Israel and Judah971–931 BC

Succeeded by

Rehoboam

in Judah

Succeeded by

Jeroboam I

in Israel

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Solomon&oldid=592538711"

Categories: Kings of ancient Israel Kings of ancient Judah Monarchs of the Hebrew Bible Solomon

10th-century BC biblical rulers Books of Kings Christian saints from the Old Testament

Hebrew Bible people People of the Quran

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