41 King Solomon was king over all Israel, 2 and these were his high officials: Azari'ah the son of Zadok was the priest; 3 Elihor'eph and Ahi'jah the sons of Shisha were secretaries; Jehosh'aphat the son of Ahi'lud was recorder; 4 Benai'ah the son of Jehoi'ada was in command of the army; Zadok and Abi'athar were priests; 5 Azari'ah the son of Nathan was over the officers; Zabud the son of Nathan was priest and king's friend; 6 Ahi'shar was in charge of the palace; and Adoni'ram the son of Abda was in charge of the forced labor. 7 Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his household; each man had to make provision for one month in the year. 8 These were their names: Ben-hur, in the hill country of E'phraim; 9 Ben-deker, in Makaz, Sha-al'bim, Beth-she'mesh, and E'lonbeth-ha'nan; 10 Ben-hesed, in Arub'both (to him belonged Socoh and all the land of Hepher); 11 Ben-abin'adab, in all Naphath-dor (he had Taphath the daughter of Solomon as his wife); 12 Ba'ana the son of Ahi'lud, in Ta'anach, Megid'do, and all Beth-she'an which is beside Zarethan below Jezreel, and from Beth-she'an to A'bel-meho'lah, as far as the other side of Jok'meam; 13 Ben-geber, in Ra'moth-gil'ead (he had the villages of Ja'ir the son of Manas'seh, which are in Gilead, and he had the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty great cities with walls and bronze bars); 14 Ahin'adab the son of Iddo, in Mahana'im; 15 Ahi'ma-az, in Naph'tali (he had taken Bas'emath the daughter of Solomon as his wife); 16 Ba'ana the son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth; 17 Jehosh'aphat the son of Paru'ah, in Is'sachar; 18 Shim'e-i the son of Ela, in Benjamin; 19 Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan. And there was one officer in the land of Judah.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on 1 Kings 4:1-19
Commentary on 1 Kings 4:1-19
(Read 1 Kings 4:1-19)
In the choice of the great officers of Solomon's court, no doubt, his wisdom appeared. Several are the same that were in his father's time. A plan was settled by which no part of the country was exhausted to supply his court, though each sent its portion.