1 Kings 10:26–27 ought to be read in the context of Deuteronomy 17:15–17. God tells Moses in those verses that the human king who will be raised up for Israel has three matters that he is to avoid. All three are spoken of in terms of acquisition. First, he is not to amass horses (which would include the horsemen to drive them and the chariots to be pulled by them). Second, the king is not to acquire many wives (and we only have to read 1 Kings 11:1–43 to see how Solomon transgressed this prohibition). Third, he was not to acquire excessive gold and silver. It is also noteworthy to observe that the source of Solomon’s chariots was Egypt, and Deuteronomy specifically prohibits Israel from going there to purchase horses. Did Solomon go to a different nation to obtain the horses to pull the chariots?
These last verses, therefore, do two somewhat contradictory things. They display the magnificence and grandeur of Solomon at the height of his rule, but they also hint at the flaws in his character that would lead to the division of the kingdom as the chastisement of the Lord.
26 And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, whom he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem.