1 Kings 10:11
in 1 Kings 10(The fleet of Hiram that brought gold from Ophir also brought from Ophir a great cargo of almug wood and precious stones.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug-trees and precious stones.
KJV
And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees, and precious stones.
⋯
This verse in 1 Kings 10
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The navy of Hiram - i. e., Solomon’s navy in the Red Sea, which was chiefly manned by subjects of Hiram. (see the marginal reference). Almug-trees - Probably the sandal-wood tree (pterocarpus santalinus). The wood is very heavy, hard, and fine grained, and of a beautiful garnet color, which, according to the rabbinical writers, was the color of the algum. One of the names of the red sandal-wood, in its own native country (India) is “valguka,” a word of which “algum” is a natural corruption.
This site's exposition
great plenty of almug trees
on 1 Kings 10:11-13
Hiram's navy, the same one that ferries gold from Ophir, also brings back almug wood, a timber rare enough that the narrator can say there came no such almug trees since. Solomon uses it for pillars in the house of the Lord and his own house, and for harps and psalteries, the same wood serving both worship and music. The chapter closes the queen's visit with Solomon's royal bounty added on top of her own requests, and she returns to her own country, an ending the Gospels never dwell on because their point in citing her is her rising in judgment, not her going home.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
) as extraordinary, because perhaps much admired by the queen of Sheba. Solomon was not behind-hand with her: He gave her whatsoever, she asked, patterns, we may suppose, of those things that were curious, by which she might make the like; or perhaps he gave her his precepts of wisdom and piety in writing, besides that which he gave her of his royal bounty,
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And the navy also of Hiram that brought gold from Ophir,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
almug trees--Parenthetically, along with the valuable presents of the queen of Sheba, is mentioned a foreign wood, which was brought in the Ophir ships. It is thought by some to be the sandalwood; by others, to be the deodar--a species of fragrant fir, much used in India for sacred and important works.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
Great plenty of almug trees - In the parallel place, 2Ch 9:10, 2Ch 9:11, these are called algum trees, the ם mem and the ג gimel being transposed; probably the latter is the more correct orthography. What the algum trees were we do not exactly know. The Vulgate calls it ligna thyina, the thya or lignum vitae wood; and Mr. Parkhurst thinks that the original אלגומים algumim, comes from אל al, not, and גם gem, to fill; because the lignum vitae is of so close a texture that it can imbibe no water, and cannot be affected by wet weather. The Septuagint translate it ξυλα πυκινα, pine timber; the Syriac kaise dakisotho, probably cypress wood, or what the translators render ligna brasilica; the Arabic translates coloured wood, and subjoins a paraphrase, for that wood was by nature painted with various colors. Perhaps the Arabic comes nearest the truth; wood shaded of different colors, such as the rose wood and such like, which are brought to us from various parts of the East Indies. The whole passage as it stands in the Arabic is this: “And the ships of Hiram brought gold from the land of Hind, (India), and they carried also much coloured wood, (but this wood is naturally painted of various colors), and very precious jewels. And Solomon put some of that same painted wood which was brought to him in the house of the Lord, and in his own house; and with it he adorned them.” And for inlaying and veneering nothing can be finer than this wood.
The words behind it
15 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְגַם֙ | vegam | and also | H1571 → | 769 times |
| אֳנִ֣י | ʾoni | [the] ship[s] of | H590 → | 7 times |
| חִירָ֔ם | chiram | Hiram | H2438 → | 22 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| נָשָׂ֥א | nasa' | it carried | H5375 → | 656 times |
| זָהָ֖ב | zahav | gold | H2091 → | 389 times |
| מֵאוֹפִ֑יר | meofir | from Ophir | H211 → | 13 times |
| הֵבִ֨יא | hevi' | it brought | H935 → | 2568 times |
| מֵאֹפִ֜יר | meofir | from Ophir | H211 → | 13 times |
| עֲצֵ֧י | ʾatzei | wood<s> of | H6086 → | 328 times |
| אַלְמֻגִּ֛ים | ʾalmugim | almug<s> | H484 → | 3 times |
| הַרְבֵּ֥ה | harbeh | much | H7235 → | 227 times |
| מְאֹ֖ד | meod | very | H3966 → | 300 times |
| וְאֶ֥בֶן | veeven | and stone[s] | H68 → | 273 times |
| יְקָרָֽה׃ | yekarah | precious | H3368 → | 36 times |
וְגַם֙and also
vegamH1571 →769 times
אֳנִ֣י[the] ship[s] of
ʾoniH590 →7 times
חִירָ֔םHiram
chiramH2438 →22 times
אֲשֶׁר־which
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
נָשָׂ֥אit carried
nasa'H5375 →656 times
זָהָ֖בgold
zahavH2091 →389 times
מֵאוֹפִ֑ירfrom Ophir
meofirH211 →13 times
הֵבִ֨יאit brought
hevi'H935 →2568 times
מֵאֹפִ֜ירfrom Ophir
meofirH211 →13 times
עֲצֵ֧יwood<s> of
ʾatzeiH6086 →328 times
אַלְמֻגִּ֛יםalmug<s>
ʾalmugimH484 →3 times
הַרְבֵּ֥הmuch
harbehH7235 →227 times
מְאֹ֖דvery
meodH3966 →300 times
וְאֶ֥בֶןand stone[s]
veevenH68 →273 times
יְקָרָֽה׃precious
yekarahH3368 →36 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
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
- 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.”
- 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…
- Ephesians 5:26–27
to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,
- 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.
- 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.
- Revelation 21:9
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 9:13
The weight of gold that came to Solomon each year was 666 talents,
- 2 Chronicles 9:10
Through
2 Chronicles 2:8Send me also cedar, cypress, and algum logs from Lebanon, for I know that your servants have skill to cut timber there. And indeed, my servants will work with yours
it leads to
- 1 Kings 5:6
Now therefore, order that cedars of Lebanon be cut down for me. My servants will be with your servants, and I will pay your servants whatever wages you set, for you know that there…
- 1 Kings 5:6
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About 1 Kings
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil, The Books of the Kings and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.