所罗门 Solomon

　　活动时期西元前10世纪中叶

　　大卫的儿子和继承者。几乎所有关于他的记载都来自《圣经》（〈列王纪〉第1～11章和〈历代志〉第1～9章）。通过其母亲拔示巴（Bathsheba）和先知拿单（Nathan）的努力，所罗门在大卫在世时被施以涂油礼。登基后，他无情的消灭敌人，将亲友安排到重要职位上。他在王国边界之外建立的以色列殖民地，和席巴女王等友好的统治者合作，以期促进商业。其庞大王国的防御工事需要大的建筑计画，其中最壮观的就是耶路撒冷圣殿。他重新划分整个国家，分成十二个部落，分别处于十二个行政区。据说他有七百个妻子和三百多个妾。其子罗霍博姆（Rehoboam）继位后，北部部落分离出去，形成以色列王国，结束了所罗门帝国的辉煌。其传奇式的智慧都被记录在《旧约》的〈箴言〉中，据说他是圣经所罗门之歌的作者。他被认为是以色列最伟大的国王。

　　Son and successor of David. Nearly all that is known about him comes from the Bible (1 Kings 1-11 and 2 Chronicles 1-9). Through the efforts of his mother, Bathsheba, and the prophet Nathan, Solomon was anointed king while David was still alive. On accession to the throne, he liquidated his opponents ruthlessly and installed friends in key posts. He established Israelite colonies outside his kingdom's borders, cooperating with such friendly rulers as the Queen of Sheba to increase commerce. Fortification of his far-flung empire necessitated a vast building program, the crowning achievement of which was the Temple of Jerusalem. He reorganized the nation into 12 tribes with 12 administrative districts. He is said to have had a harem of 700 wives and 300 concubines. After the ascension to the throne of his son Rehoboam, the northern tribes seceded and formed their own kingdom of Israel, bringing an end to Solomon's empire. His legendary wisdom is recorded in the Book of Proverbs, and he is traditionally named as the author of the biblical Song of Solomon. He was regarded as the greatest king of Israel.