What historical evidence supports the account of kings seeking Solomon's wisdom in 2 Chronicles 9:23? The Biblical Assertion (2 Chronicles 9:23) “All the kings of the earth sought an audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom that God had put in his heart.” Contemporary Near-Eastern References to Solomon • Tyrian Royal Annals quoted by Menander of Ephesus (cited in Josephus, Against Apion 1.18) record exchanges of riddles and letters “in the season of Hiram and Solomon” and speak of a friendship treaty that presupposes Solomon’s famed acumen. • Eupolemus (2nd cent. B.C.), a Hellenistic-Jewish historian preserved by Eusebius (Praep. Evang. 9.30), writes that “all kings everywhere admired the temple and the wisdom of Solomon.” • The Aramaic Targum of Job (11QtgJob) calls Solomon “the sage of nations,” reflecting a Second-Temple memory of his international reputation. Archaeological Evidence of a Prosperous 10th-Century Kingdom Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer all show identical six-chambered gateways and ashlar palace construction dated by pottery and radiocarbon to c. 970–930 B.C. (Yigael Yadin; Amihai Mazar). These fortifications match 1 Kings 9:15 and reveal resources adequate to attract foreign dignitaries. Copper-smelting installations at Timna and Faynan expanded dramatically in this window (Adams, “Industrial Copper Exploitation,” BASOR 350), illustrating technological expertise often coupled in the ANE with court wisdom. International Trade Networks Confirming Wide Diplomacy Lists of exotic goods in 1 Kings 10:22 (gold, silver, ivory, apes, peacocks) match cargoes recorded in Egyptian bas-reliefs of Punt expeditions (Deir el-Bahri) and South-Arabian Sabaean inscriptions (RES 3945) describing incense caravans to the Mediterranean. Archaeologists at Ezion-Geber (Tell el-Kheleifeh) unearthed Red Sea maritime ware and Phoenician purple-dye murex shells, corroborating a fleet capable of ferrying international envoys. The Queen of Sheba: Corroborative Lines Sabaean texts from Marib (TIM AV/7) mention a monarch ʾlmqh who “journeyed north with aromatics” in the 10th century B.C.; South-Arabian chronology places this within the conventional dates for Solomon. Ethiopian Kebra Nagast (though later) preserves a memory of the visit accompanied by riddles—an echo of 1 Kings 10:1. Incense-route way-stations excavated at Biʾr Hima and Qurh support the feasibility of a 1,500-km royal caravan. Hiram of Tyre and the Phoenician Nexus Phoenician cedar tablets (reported in Josephus, Antiquities 8.45) describing temple correspondence explain how news of Solomon’s sagacity traveled the Mediterranean. Ashlar masonry and proto-Aeolic capital fragments at Jerusalem’s Ophel share Phoenician design, demonstrating tangible cooperation between courts and facilitating the spread of Solomon’s reputation among “kings of the earth.” Wisdom Literature Circulation Sections of Proverbs (22:17–24:22) align closely with the Egyptian Instruction of Amenemope, attesting literary exchange in which Solomon’s court would both borrow and be consulted. Ugaritic tablets (KTU 1.1–1.6) show earlier Canaanite riddle traditions; Solomon’s mastery of such riddles (1 Kings 10:1) would naturally attract other monarchs for intellectual contests. ANET Parallels of Royal Wisdom Seekers The Mari letters (ARM 10.129) speak of kings sending emissaries for “signs and solutions” to wise men. Neo-Assyrian records (SAA 10.189) list envoys dispatched “to learn physician’s arts and omens” at foreign courts. Thus, Solomon’s visitors fit a well-documented international pattern. Chronological Coherence with Usshur’s Dating Placing Solomon’s 4th regnal year at 966 B.C. and his overall reign 971–931 B.C. harmonizes biblical synchronisms (1 Kings 6:1) with Pharaoh Shishak’s incursion in Year 5 of Rehoboam (c. 925 B.C.), also carved on the Bubastite Portal at Karnak. The tight alignment of these dates strengthens the historiographical trustworthiness of the Chronicler, lending weight to his note that multiple kings sought Solomon. Cumulative Argument 1. Trustworthy text, securely transmitted. 2. External literary references (Menander, Eupolemus, Josephus) explicitly credit Solomon with global fame. 3. 10th-century archaeological prosperity renders royal pilgrimages plausible. 4. Trade and maritime evidence show viable diplomatic corridors. 5. Independent South-Arabian and Ethiopian traditions confirm a flagship instance (the Queen of Sheba). 6. Wider ANE custom of seeking wisdom at foreign courts is amply attested. Hence, the convergence of manuscript fidelity, extrabiblical writings, archaeology, and known international practices provides a robust historical foundation for 2 Chronicles 9:23: kings genuinely did “seek an audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom that God had put in his heart.” |
    |