The chapter, as we have observed in connection with 1 Kings 4:31, reveals the result of Solomon’s international fame. The writer informs us that people came from many nations to hear his wisdom. The text uses the word all
nations and all
kings. This may be an exercise of hyperbole, a literary device that uses overstatement to make a point. In these cases the reader is not supposed to take the statement as absolutely literal. It is a way of speaking so that we understand that many of the surrounding nations (and perhaps all of them, since many were under the control of Israel) travelled to hear Solomon’s wisdom first-hand. A later chapter gives us one example as the writer records the visit of the Queen of Sheba.
34 Il venait des gens de tous les peuples pour entendre la sagesse de Salomon, de la part de tous les rois de la terre qui avaient entendu parler de sa sagesse.