Ben-Deker

Ben-Deker, the son of Dekar, was one of Solomon’s twelve officers who supplied food for the king and his household. His district is listed in 1 Kings 4:9. He was the officer himself, not the father of an officer named Geber.

His responsibility

According to 1 Kings 4:7, each officer supplied provisions for one month of the year. Verse 9 assigns Ben-Deker a district including Makaz, Shaalbim, Bethshemesh and Elonbethhanan. The text records his administrative responsibility, without giving a personal biography.

Different officers

Ben-Geber appears separately in 1 Kings 4:13, and Geber, son of Uri, in 1 Kings 4:19. These are different entries in the list. Nothing in the passage makes Ben-Deker the father of either man. The organization of these provisions forms part of the account of Solomon’s kingdom.

Biblical reference

The son of Dekar, in Makaz, and in Shaalbim, and Bethshemesh, and Elonbethhanan: (1 Kings 4:9, KJV).