Limitless Word
King Solomon was king over all Israel.
1 Kings 4:1 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV So king Solomon was king over all Israel.
  • BSB So King Solomon ruled over Israel,
  • NKJV So King Solomon was king over all Israel.
  • NASB Now King Solomon was king over all Israel.
  • NLT King Solomon now ruled over all Israel,

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Solomon reigned as king over all Israel. The verse summarizes the united, settled kingdom under his rule.

Overview

This brief statement marks the consolidation of Solomon's reign over the whole nation, a high point of the united monarchy. It introduces the account of his administration and the order of his kingdom. The undivided realm under one anointed king foreshadows the gathering of God's people under the one true King, the Son of David.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 7

  • 1 Kgs 11:13However I will not tear away all the kingdom; but I will give one tribe to your son, for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.”
  • Eccl 1:12I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
  • 1 Kgs 11:35–36but I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand, and will give it to you, even ten tribes.
  • 1 Chr 12:38All these were men of war, who could order the battle array, and came with a perfect heart to Hebron, to make David king over all Israel; and all the rest also of Israel were of one heart to make David king.
  • 1 Kgs 12:19–20So Israel rebelled against David’s house to this day.
  • 2 Chr 9:30Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.
  • 2 Sam 5:5In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months; and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — 1 Kings videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on 1 Kings 4:1YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on 1 KingsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Solomon's glory, wisdom, and temple where God's presence dwells are a shadow of the greater Son of David — 'one greater than Solomon is here' — and of the true Temple, Christ himself.

How 1 Kings 4:1 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.