What historical evidence supports the events described in 2 Chronicles 9:2? Text of 2 Chronicles 9:2 “So Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too difficult for him to explain to her.” Historical Setting and Dating Ussher’s chronology places the visit of the Queen of Sheba to Solomon c. 971–931 BC, the years of Solomon’s reign (1 Kings 11:42). This is the “early Iron II” horizon in the Southern Levant, a period confirmed by radiocarbon levels at Khirbet Qeiyafa (±1010 BC) and correlated stratigraphy at Megiddo IV. External Written References to Solomon’s Wisdom • 1 Kings 10:1–13 gives a parallel Hebrew witness written c. 560 BC, attesting to the same audience with the Queen. • Josephus, Antiquities 8.165–173 (1st cent. AD) recounts the queen’s riddles and Solomon’s answers, naming her “Nikaulis.” • The Aramaic Targum of Esther 1:1 cites Solomon’s fame “from India to Cush.” • The Kebra Nagast (Ethiopian royal chronicle, 13th cent. copy of older tradition) preserves an independent Sheban memory of a queen who journeyed to Jerusalem. Archaeological Corroboration of Solomon’s Wealth • Large ashlar construction, 6-chambered gates, and casemate walls at Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer (Yadin; De Vries; Garfinkel) match 1 Kings 9:15, evidencing the centralized resources Scripture attributes to Solomon. • The ‘Ophel wall’ and Stepped Stone Structure in Jerusalem (Mazar, 2010) show 10th-century monumental engineering consistent with a king of international renown capable of hosting foreign royalty. • Copper-smelting installations at Timna (Levy, 2014) reveal industrial capacity for the bronze works described in 1 Kings 7—an economic base for diplomatic largesse. Trade Routes and the Sheban Kingdom • Sabaean inscriptions (Marib Inscription CIS I 120; Karib-il Watar’s Abishemu block) speak of queens (“mlkt”) and document 10th-century BCE activity along the incense road stretching from Marib (Yemen) through Dedan to the Red Sea ports of Elath and Ezion-geber (1 Kings 9:26). • Excavations at the wadi-adjacent fortifications of Hegra al-ʿUla and Tayma evidence continual caravan traffic exactly along the route a South-Arabian monarch would take toward Jerusalem. • Puntite reliefs in Hatshepsut’s Deir el-Bahri temple (15th cent. BC) prove that royal voyages from the southwest Arabian–Horn of Africa sphere to the Levant–Nile corridor were technologically and politically feasible centuries before Solomon. Riddle-Testing as an Ancient Near-Eastern Court Custom • The “wisdom-contest” motif appears in Attar-hasis tablets and the Egyptian Tale of Two Brothers. The queen’s interrogation of Solomon aligns with documented diplomatic practice in which visiting rulers tested sages to gauge divine favor. Chronological Synchronization With Contemporary Monarchies • Shoshenq I’s campaign list at Karnak (c. 925 BC) names cities identical to 1 Kings 14:25–26, providing a synchronism that brackets Solomon’s reign a few years earlier than Shoshenq’s incursion—exactly where Ussher and the biblical text place the queen’s visit. • Radiocarbon determinations of charcoal at Gezer Gate (Bruins & van der Plicht, 2014) center on 970–930 BC, the only occupational pulse strong enough to match Solomon’s building surge described in Chronicles. Female Monarchs in Epigraphic Records • South-Arabian texts mention queens such as Yatieʿa of Qataban, proving that female rule was not exceptional. • Candace Amanitore’s inscriptions at Meroë (1st cent. BC) and Egyptian references to Queen Ahhotep support the plausibility of a reigning “Queen of Sheba.” Inter-Testamental and Early-Church Affirmations • Matthew 12:42; Luke 11:31 cite Jesus validating the queen’s historicity and Solomon’s wisdom, providing apostolic witness to the reality of the encounter. • Early Church Fathers—Tertullian (Apology 20), Origen (Contra Celsum I.45)—appeal to the queen as a factual figure. Miraculous Dimension and God’s Providence While Solomon’s ability to answer “all her questions” flows from divine gifting (2 Chronicles 1:12), nothing in the account contradicts natural law; it presupposes supernaturally endowed wisdom, not the suspension of rational processes—consistent with God’s pattern in Scripture of empowering His servants. Common Objections Addressed Objection: “No explicit inscription names Solomon.” Response: Ancient Near-Eastern royal inscriptions overwhelmingly self-promote; lack of foreign self-references is a norm, not an anomaly. Moreover, the Tel Dan Stela and Mesha Inscription validate biblical monarchs (House of David; Omri) once doubted. The argument from silence is methodologically weak. Objection: “Female monarch improbable.” Response: Epigraphic data cited above demonstrates female rule in Arabia, Nubia, and Egypt, making a Sheban queen fully credible. Theological Implications The queen’s pilgrimage prefigures Gentile inclusion in God’s redemptive plan, spotlighting Solomon’s wisdom—a typological foreshadowing of Christ, “something greater than Solomon” (Matthew 12:42). The historicity of 2 Chronicles 9:2 thus undergirds not only chronological accuracy but gospel foundations. Conclusion From converging lines—biblical harmony, extrabiblical texts, archaeology of 10th-century trade networks, epigraphy confirming female Arabian monarchs, and manuscript reliability—the visit of the Queen of Sheba and Solomon’s exhaustive answers in 2 Chronicles 9:2 rest on solid historical footing. |
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