Solomon (Hebrew שְׁלֹמֹה, Shlomoh), also called Jedidiah (Hebrew: יְדִידְיָהּ Yedidyah), was a follower of the Tanakh after his Old Testament Kingdom of Israel, a Christian sage. David. His life and work are described in First Kings and Second Chronicles. According to the Scriptures, he was the third and last ruler of Great Britain (that is, before the division of the territory of Israel into the kingdoms of Judah and Israel). His reign lasted four decades, traditionally between 965 and 928.
In the cited texts it is said that King Solomon inherited the considerable kingdom conquered by his father, King David, which stretched from the border of Egypt to the Euphrates River in Mesopotamia. This kingdom was incorporated into the territory of Israel and was administered by a system of twelve districts and many vassals or secondary kingdoms.
He favored trade relations with the Phoenicians, to one of whose rulers, Hiram of Tyre, he ceded twenty Galilean cities. With sailors of this origin he organized a trading expedition that set out from Eilat on the Red Sea to the land of Ophir (identified as Ethiopia or Indiana). He also had contact with the ruler of the kingdom of Sheba (in Yemen).
He is described as wise and extremely wealthy, with a large harem that included “Pharaoh’s daughter”, and it is added that he devoted his reign to major building projects, especially the temple in Jerusalem. He is depicted as a fervent worshiper of Yahweh who became a polytheist in his old age.
In addition, he happens to be the author of several biblical books, namely: Ecclesiastes, Proverbs and Canticles, some Psalms and later wisdom and the Odes of Solomon, both pseudepigraphical.
In the Qur’an, Solomon is considered one of the most important prophets. Muslims often call it the Arabic variant of Sulayman. The Kebra Nagast (Book of Honor of the Kings of Ethiopia), said to be a historical chronicle of the kings of Ethiopia, describes Solomon’s descent from his son Menelik I (Solomon’s son from the Queen of Sheba ).
In the hermetic tradition he is associated with magic and the knowledge of hidden wisdom.
Who was the mother of Solomon? “Yes.” He answered; I have something to tell you. “Talk,” he replied.