9:1 When the queen of Sheba heard about Solomon, 1 she came to challenge 2 him 3 with difficult questions. 4 She arrived in Jerusalem 5 with a great display of pomp, 6 bringing with her camels carrying spices, 7 a very large quantity of gold, and precious gems. She visited Solomon and discussed with him everything that was on her mind.
1 tn Heb “the report about Solomon.”
2 tn Or “test.”
3 tn Heb “Solomon.” The recurrence of the proper name here is redundant in terms of contemporary English style, so the pronoun has been used in the translation instead.
4 tn Or “riddles.”
5 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
6 tn Heb “with very great strength.” The Hebrew word חַיִל (khayil, “strength”) may refer here to the size of her retinue or to the great wealth she brought with her.
7 tn Or “balsam oil.”
8 sn The thorn bush in the allegory is Judah. Amaziah’s success had deceived him into thinking he was on the same level as the major powers in the area (symbolized by the cedar). In reality he was not capable of withstanding an attack by a real military power such as Israel (symbolized by the wild animal).