1 Kings 9:28
in 1 Kings 9They sailed to Ophir and imported gold from there—420 talents—and delivered it to Solomon.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.
KJV
And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.
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This verse in 1 Kings 9
Commentary
8 notes on this verseAnd they came to Ophir - No man knows certainly, to this day, where this Ophir was situated. There were two places of this name; one somewhere in India, beyond the Ganges, and another in Arabia, near the country of the Sabaeans, mentioned by Job, Job 22:24: Then shalt thou lay up gold as dust; and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the brooks. And Job 28:16: It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire. Calmet places this country at the sources of the Euphrates and Tigris.
This site's exposition
on the shore of the Red Sea
on 1 Kings 9:26-28
A port at Ezion-geber, “near Eloth in Edom”, gives Solomon a southern outlet that his father’s conquest of Edom opened. Hiram supplies “men who knew the sea”, a skill Israel’s inland tribes lacked. From Ophir they bring “420 talents” of gold, and the commentators place Ophir in Arabia or India.
This site's exposition
They sailed to Ophir
2 Chronicles 8:18 puts the gold at 450 talents. John Wesley places Ophir in Ceylon, reached by ships that kept close to the coast. Matthew Henry notes that the land of Israel had no gold, and he counts the fruit of the land as the better wealth.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices
It is agreed, that it was a part of the East-Indies, probably Ceylon, which though very remote from us, yet was far nearer the Red-sea, from whence they might easily sail to it in those ancient times, because they might (according to the manner of those first ages) sail all along near the coast, though the voyage was thereby more tedious, which was the reason why three years were spent in it.
Canaan, the holy land, the glory of all lands, had no gold in it, which teaches us that that part of the wealth of this world which is for hoarding and trading is not the best part of it, but that which is more immediately for the present support and comfort of life, our own and others'; such were the productions of Canaan.
4 And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments: 5 Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
And they came to Ophir,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
On Ophir, see the marginal reference note. Among the various opinions three predominate; all moderns, except a very few, being in favor of Arabia, India, or Eastern Africa. Arabia’s claims are supported by the greatest number.
The words behind it
13 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיָּבֹ֣אוּ | vaiyavou | and they went | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אוֹפִ֔ירָה | ʾofirah | Ophir towards | H211 → | 13 times |
| וַיִּקְח֤וּ | vaiyikchu | and they took | H3947 → | 966 times |
| מִשָּׁם֙ | misham | from there | H8033 → | 834 times |
| זָהָ֔ב | zahav | gold | H2091 → | 389 times |
| אַרְבַּע־ | ʾarba'- | four | H702 → | 318 times |
| מֵא֥וֹת | meot | hundred<s> | H3967 → | 581 times |
| וְעֶשְׂרִ֖ים | veesrim | and twenty | H6242 → | 315 times |
| כִּכָּ֑ר | kikar | talent[s] | H3603 → | 68 times |
| וַיָּבִ֖אוּ | vaiyaviu | and they brought [it] | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| הַמֶּ֥לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| שְׁלֹמֹֽה׃ פ | shelomoh | Solomon | H8010 → | 291 times |
וַיָּבֹ֣אוּand they went
vaiyavouH935 →2568 times
אוֹפִ֔ירָהOphir towards
ʾofirahH211 →13 times
וַיִּקְח֤וּand they took
vaiyikchuH3947 →966 times
מִשָּׁם֙from there
mishamH8033 →834 times
זָהָ֔בgold
zahavH2091 →389 times
אַרְבַּע־four
ʾarba'-H702 →318 times
מֵא֥וֹתhundred<s>
meotH3967 →581 times
וְעֶשְׂרִ֖יםand twenty
veesrimH6242 →315 times
כִּכָּ֑רtalent[s]
kikarH3603 →68 times
וַיָּבִ֖אוּand they brought [it]
vaiyaviuH935 →2568 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
הַמֶּ֥לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
שְׁלֹמֹֽה׃ פSolomon
shelomohH8010 →291 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Kings 10:11(The fleet of Hiram that brought gold from Ophir also brought from Ophir a great cargo of almug wood and precious stones.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 9:27–28
And Hiram sent his servants, men who knew the sea, to serve in the fleet with Solomon’s servants.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Kings 9:27–28
Through
Psalms 45:9The daughters of kings are among your honored women; the queen stands at your right hand, adorned with the gold of Ophir.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 2:19
So Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah. The king stood up to greet her, bowed to her, and sat down on his throne. Then the king had a throne…
- Revelation 21:9
Then one of the seven angels with the seven bowls full of the seven final plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”
- Revelation 19:7
Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him the glory. For the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His bride has made herself ready.
- Ephesians 5:26–27
to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,
- Revelation 21:2
I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
- 1 Kings 2:19
Through
Job 28:16It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire.
it leads to
- Psalms 45:9
The daughters of kings are among your honored women; the queen stands at your right hand, adorned with the gold of Ophir.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 45:9
Through
2 Chronicles 8:18So Hiram sent him ships captained by his servants, along with crews of experienced sailors. They went with Solomon’s servants to Ophir and acquired from there 450 talents of gold, which they delivered to…
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 9:10
(The servants of Hiram and of Solomon who brought gold from Ophir also brought algum wood and precious stones.
- 2 Chronicles 9:10
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About 1 Kings
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.