Title: Kebra Nagast (The Glory of Kings) Author: Traditional (compiled from earlier sources, attributed to Nebura'id Yeshaq of Aksum) Creation Date: c. 14th century (compiled from older Ge'ez, Coptic, and Arabic sources dating to 6th century or earlier) Location: Ethiopia (Aksumite Highlands)
Summary
The Kebra Nagast (Glory of Kings) is Ethiopia's national epic and sacred text, a sweeping narrative that establishes Ethiopia as the divinely chosen successor to Israel. The central story tells how Makeda, the Queen of Sheba, travels to Jerusalem to meet King Solomon, and how their union produces a son, Menelik I. When Menelik visits his father in Jerusalem as a young man, he secretly brings the Ark of the Covenant back to Ethiopia, transferring God's covenant from Israel to the Ethiopian kingdom of Aksum. The text weaves together biblical narratives, Ethiopian royal genealogy, Christological theology, and cosmic history to argue that Ethiopia is the true Zion — the inheritor of God's promise.
The work is far more than a dynastic origin story. It is a comprehensive theology of history, reinterpreting the entire biblical narrative from an Ethiopian perspective and asserting Africa's centrality to the sacred drama of human salvation.
Why This Book Matters
The Kebra Nagast is the foundational document of one of Africa's oldest continuous civilisations and the defining text of Ethiopian identity. It provided the ideological foundation for the Solomonic dynasty, which ruled Ethiopia from 1270 until the overthrow of Haile Selassie in 1974 — over seven centuries of political legitimacy anchored in a single literary work. No text in African history has played a more sustained role in state formation and political theology.
Beyond Ethiopia, the Kebra Nagast profoundly influenced the Rastafari movement in the Caribbean and the broader African diaspora, providing a vision of African sacred history independent of European Christianity. It demonstrates that Africa possessed sophisticated literate civilisations with complex theological and philosophical traditions centuries before European colonialism, and it challenges the colonial narrative that Christianity was brought to Africa by Europeans — Ethiopian Christianity predates the Christianisation of most of Europe.
Historical Context
The Kebra Nagast was compiled in its current form in the fourteenth century, during the early period of the restored Solomonic dynasty under Amda Seyon I, drawing on much older Ge'ez, Coptic, and Arabic sources. Ethiopia's Christian tradition dates to the fourth century, making it one of the oldest Christian civilisations on earth. The Aksumite Empire, which preceded the Solomonic dynasty, was a major power in late antiquity, trading with Rome, Persia, and India. The Kebra Nagast synthesises this deep historical legacy into a single narrative framework, giving the Solomonic dynasty a claim to legitimacy rooted in biblical antiquity.
Literary Significance
The Kebra Nagast is a masterwork of intertextual composition, weaving together biblical narrative, apocryphal tradition, royal chronicle, and theological argument into a unified literary architecture. Its treatment of the Queen of Sheba is the most fully developed version of her story in any literary tradition, giving her agency, intelligence, and political authority. The narrative technique of reinterpreting well-known biblical stories from an Ethiopian perspective is a sophisticated act of literary appropriation that asserts African ownership of sacred history. The text's influence extends from medieval Ethiopian manuscript culture through modern Rastafari literature to contemporary Ethiopian writers.
Research Notes
The Budge translation (1922) remains the most accessible English version, though scholars note its limitations and occasional inaccuracies. More recent scholarly work by Ethiopian and Ethiopianist scholars has deepened understanding of the text's sources and composition. The Kebra Nagast exists in numerous Ge'ez manuscripts, and critical editions continue to be produced. For a world literature collection, it is essential as one of the very few pre-colonial African texts with a continuous written manuscript tradition spanning centuries.
The Reading
The Prologue: A Dispute Among Bishops
Hear now the matter of the glory of kings, and how the throne of God descended out of Jerusalem and was set up among the highlands of Ethiopia, and abideth there unto this day.
In the three hundred and twenty-fifth year of the Word made flesh, in the city of Nicaea, three hundred and eighteen orthodox fathers were gathered by command of the emperor Constantine, that they might confess one faith and confound the heresy of Arius. And when by the grace of the Spirit they had finished the labour of right doctrine and set down the creed which standeth to this hour, certain among them began to dispute: Which kingdom upon the earth is most exalted in glory before the Lord? The fathers of Rome answered, Rome is exalted, for the chair of Peter is therein; and the fathers of Constantinople answered, Constantinople is exalted, for the emperor sitteth therein. But Gregory, the Illuminator of Armenia, rose up and rebuked them, saying: Ye know not whereof ye speak. The greatest glory belongeth unto Ethiopia, for in Ethiopia is the Tabernacle of the Law of God, which is the Ark of the Covenant, the throne of His holiness upon the earth.
And the bishops marvelled. And one among them, Domitius the archbishop, brought forth from the libraries of the Romans an ancient book, and read out the matter from the beginning. And this is that which was read.
The Wisdom of Solomon
In the days of old, the Lord gave unto Solomon the son of David such wisdom as no man had received before him, neither shall any receive after him. The Spirit of Wisdom went in and out of his mouth as the breath of his nostrils, and there was nothing hidden from him, neither in the heaven above nor in the deep below. He builded a house unto the Name of the Lord upon Mount Zion in Jerusalem, of cedar and of stone and of gold, and it was the wonder of all the nations. And in the inner sanctuary, in the Holy of Holies, was set the Tabernacle of the Law, which Moses received upon Sinai — the Ark of the Covenant, wherein were laid the two tables of stone written by the finger of God; and the cherubim spread their wings above it, and the glory of the Lord rested between them.
And the kings of the earth heard of Solomon and came up unto Jerusalem with gifts, for the report of his wisdom was carried from sea to sea. Thus did Solomon sit upon his throne both as king and as priest, judging in righteousness, and ordering his kingdom according to the will of Him who had set him there. He was the type and figure of that sacred kingship which it pleased God in the after times to plant in another soil.
Makeda, Queen of the South
Now in the regions of the south there was a kingdom of great wealth and ancient name, and in former generations the people thereof had been afflicted by a fearful evil. For a serpent, a dragon of vast bulk, had ruled over them, and the people paid him tribute year by year, even of their own daughters, that he might not devour the land. But there arose a wise man whose name was Angabo, and he laid a snare and slew the dragon, and the people made him king. And the kingdom passed from Angabo unto his daughter, for he begot no son; and her name was Makeda. So Makeda became queen of the south, and she ruled in glory and in justice, and her people prospered.
Now there was a merchant in her household called Tamrin, the chief of her caravans, and he went up unto Jerusalem with five hundred and three score and ten camels, bearing the goods of his queen, even gold and red gold and choice woods and precious stones. And when he came into the presence of Solomon and beheld the order of his court, and heard the judgements which he gave to the great and to the small without partiality, his soul was moved within him. And when he returned, Tamrin spake unto Makeda night after night, recounting the marvels he had seen: how the king fed the strangers at his table; how his servants moved as in a single order; how the very birds were content in his courts. And Makeda's heart was kindled — not as a woman is kindled by a man, but as the soul is kindled by the report of wisdom — and she said: I will arise, and I will go up unto Jerusalem, and I will hear this wisdom from his own mouth.
Then Makeda arrayed her caravan, and she went up out of the south by a long road and a perilous, with spices and gold and stones of great price, and with a company befitting a queen. And when she came to Jerusalem, Solomon received her with honour, and seated her at his right hand. And day after day they spake together, asking and answering, riddle and parable, until she was filled with astonishment, and could not contain herself. And she lifted up her voice, and she said: From this hour I will not worship the sun, which my people have worshipped from of old; I will worship the God of Israel, who created the sun and the moon and all things, and who hath given thee wisdom such as no mortal hath received. Blessed be the Lord, who hath delighted in Solomon, and hath set him upon the throne of Israel.
And thus, even before any apostle preached, even before any missionary came, did the south turn of her own will unto the God of Abraham; for she had heard wisdom, and her reason had bowed itself before the truth.
The Conception of Menelik
Now after these things Solomon looked upon Makeda, and she was fair in his eyes, and he desired her. And he sought a means whereby she might be given unto him, not by force, neither by entreaty, but by her own word. He commanded therefore that a feast be made ready, and the meats thereof were of every kind that is salted and spiced, that pepper and cumin and the strong herbs of the table might burn upon the tongue. And when they had eaten, Solomon caused her chamber to be prepared near unto his own, with a vessel of water set between the beds. And he said unto Makeda: Swear unto me that thou wilt take nothing of mine by violence, neither shalt thou desire that which is mine; and I will swear unto thee that I will use no force against thee. And Makeda smiled, being confident in her own integrity, and sware the oath; for what, said she in her heart, hath this great king that I should covet? And so they lay down, each upon his own bed.
In the deep of the night, the spiced meats burning within her, Makeda awoke in great thirst, and seeing the vessel she rose and drank. And Solomon, who watched, seized her by the hand, saying: Thou hast broken thy oath, for water in this land is the most precious of things, and thou hast taken of mine. And Makeda, caught in the snare of her own word, answered, Let it be unto me as it pleaseth my lord. And he knew her that night. And in his sleep he dreamed, and behold, a sun of exceeding brightness departed out of Israel, and travelled toward the south, and shone upon Ethiopia with a great and abiding light.
And before Makeda departed, Solomon took a ring from his finger and gave it unto her, saying: If a son be born of this union, send him unto me when he is grown, that he may know me by this token. And Makeda returned unto her kingdom, and in due season she bore a son, and she called his name Bayna Lehkem, which is, being interpreted, Son of the Wise Man. And he is the same who is called Menelik, the first of the Solomonic kings of Ethiopia.
Menelik's Journey to Jerusalem
And the child grew, and waxed strong, and was beautiful exceedingly; and the lineaments of his face were as the face of his father. And when he was come to the age of a man, he said unto his mother, Send me up unto my father, that I may behold him. And Makeda gave him the ring, and she set him forth with a great retinue.
When Menelik came into Jerusalem, the men of Israel beheld him in the streets and were amazed, and they said one to another, Verily, this is Solomon in his youth come again amongst us. And Solomon, when he saw him, embraced him and wept upon his neck, and he led him into the Temple, and showed him the courts and the chambers thereof, and taught him the Law of Moses with his own mouth, and anointed him with oil and proclaimed him king of Ethiopia. And he gave unto him as his companions the firstborn sons of the priests and the firstborn sons of the nobles of Israel, that they might go down with him into his kingdom and establish there a new Zion.
And Solomon was loath to let his son depart, and he entreated him, saying: Remain with me, and I will set thee upon the throne of Israel after me. But Menelik answered, My mother hath sent me, and my people await me, and I must return unto them. And Solomon, when he saw that the will of his son was firm, consented; but his eyes were filled with tears as the caravan made ready to depart.
The Theft of the Ark
Now in the heart of Azariah, son of Zadok the high priest, who was numbered among the firstborn appointed unto Menelik, a great grief arose, and he could not bear that he should leave Jerusalem and the Tabernacle of the Law wherein his fathers had ministered. And it came to pass in the night that an angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a vision, and said: Be not troubled. The Ark of the Covenant shall go with thee, for thus hath it pleased the Lord; for Solomon hath turned aside in his old age unto strange women, and hath suffered the high places of foreign gods to be builded upon the hills of Jerusalem, and the glory shall not abide where idolatry hath entered. Arise therefore, and take the Tabernacle, and set in the place thereof a likeness fashioned by the craftsmen, that no man may know.
And Azariah arose, and called unto him certain of the firstborn, and they went into the Holy of Holies in the silence of the watches, and they took up the true Ark of the Covenant, and they set in its place a thing of wood overlaid with gold, fashioned after the likeness thereof. And they bore the true Ark out of the Temple, and out of the gates of Jerusalem, and laid it among the baggage of Menelik. And the caravan went forth at the dawn.
Hear now, and let no man stumble at this saying: it is not theft, neither is it robbery; it is the counsel of the Most High. For as the favour of God passed of old from Abraham unto Moses, and from Moses unto the Judges, and from the Judges unto the kings, even so doth it pass now from Israel unto Ethiopia; for the husbandman removeth his vine when the soil hath wearied of it, and planteth it in new ground. Israel had broken the covenant; and the Lord, in His mercy, did not extinguish His glory, but transferred it.
And as the caravan went forth, behold, a wonder. The wagons whereon the Ark was borne rose above the ground, and went forward as upon the air, neither did their wheels touch the dust. The journey of many months was made in a single day. The rivers parted before them; the beasts of the wilderness fell upon their bellies; and the peoples by the way fell down with their faces unto the earth, knowing not what they beheld, yet knowing that the Lord of Hosts was passing by.
And when Solomon arose in the morning and went up into the Temple to pray, he beheld the place of the Ark, and his heart smote him; for though the likeness was there, the glory was departed, and he knew it. He gathered his horsemen and pursued, but could not overtake them; and he returned to Jerusalem with rent garments, and sat in the dust, weeping; for he knew that the glory of his house had gone down into the south, and would return no more.
The Establishment of the Ethiopian Covenant
And Menelik came in unto Ethiopia bearing the Ark, and set it up in Aksum, the city of his mother, in the highlands of the southern kingdom; and there was great rejoicing in that day, and the elders of the land came down and worshipped. And around the Ark a new order was builded: a kingship after the manner of the house of David, with anointing and with sceptre; a priesthood after the manner of Levi, of the seed of the firstborn who had come down with Azariah; a law after the commandments which Moses received upon the mount; and in the fullness of time a Christianity older and purer than that of many nations, for it sprang from a soil already prepared by the Ark itself.
And the scriptures were opened unto the wise men of Ethiopia, and they perceived that which had been hidden from other nations: that the promises which the Lord made unto Israel were now fulfilled in Ethiopia. For the land flowing with milk and honey is the highlands of Ethiopia; and the people of the Lord's choosing, of whom the prophets prophesied, are the Ethiopians; and even the bride of the Canticle, who saith I am black, but comely, is Ethiopia herself, speaking unto her Beloved.
And when the times were accomplished, the Word descended and took flesh of the Virgin, and was crucified, and rose again on the third day; and this also was a fulfilment unto Ethiopia, for she had been made ready by the Ark. And in the days of the apostles, when Philip stood beside the chariot of the eunuch of Queen Candace and baptised him in the wayside water, the faith was received in Ethiopia before it was received in many of the nations that now boast of it. Thus is Ethiopia twice chosen: by the Ark, which carried her into the covenant of Moses; and by the cross, which carried her into the covenant of Christ.
The Glory of Zion
Hear now the close of the matter. Of all kingdoms of the earth — of Rome, which boasteth of her stones; of Persia, which boasteth of her fire; of Byzantium, which boasteth of her learning — none is equal unto Ethiopia, for none holdeth the Ark. Their armies wax and wane; their crowns pass from head to head; their walls shall be heaps of stone where the jackal cryeth at noonday; but the Ark abideth, and the kingdom that keepeth the Ark abideth with it.
And let the kings of Ethiopia hearken: rule ye in righteousness, and uphold the faith, and guard the Tabernacle of the Law, and the Lord shall make your throne firm in the highlands forever. But if any king depart from the way, the Lord shall send chastisement upon him and upon his house — yet the covenant He shall not revoke, for He hath chosen Ethiopia as He once chose Israel, and His choosing returneth not unto Him empty.
And the Ark resteth among us unto this very day. In the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion, in the city of Axum, there is set apart a single monk who keepeth it as guardian; he is chosen for his lifetime, and he goeth not forth from the precinct, neither doth he behold the face of his kindred again, but his days are passed in the courts of the Tabernacle, and at his death another is appointed in his stead. So hath it been for ages; so is it now. Seven centuries have come and gone since these things were written down in the Ge'ez tongue, and longer still since the matter itself befell; and the Tabernacle is yet there, and the lamp is yet kindled, and the guardian standeth at his post.
Therefore did the throne of Ethiopia endure from the days of Menelik unto our own age; and when the last of that line, His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I, was crowned in Addis Ababa in the year of our Lord 1930, the titles which he bore were the titles of this book, even Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Elect of God, King of Kings of Ethiopia; for the line is one line, and the covenant is one covenant, and the Ark is one Ark. And when the brethren in the islands of the western sea, in the land called Jamaica, looked up and beheld him and named him a man of God, it was unto this book that they turned for the scriptural witness whereby they might know him.
The glory of kings is the glory of God; and the glory of God is the Ark of the Covenant; and the Ark was borne up out of Jerusalem in the days of Solomon and Menelik, and set down in the highlands of Aksum, and burneth there still. Praise be unto Him who is, and who was, and who is to come. Amen.
This post is part of Civilisations, a 149-book chronological journey through world literature. See the full collection →
The standard English translation remains E.A. Wallis Budge's 1922 version, available in several modern reprints. The Cosimo Classics reprint is the most widely available. While scholars note limitations in Budge's translation, no authoritative modern scholarly translation has yet superseded it for general readers. The Research Associates School Times Publications edition includes additional contextual materials on the Rastafari reception of the text.
Trans. E.A. Wallis Budge. The standard accessible reprint of the 1922 translation.
Trans. E.A. Wallis Budge. The Research Associates edition, with additional Rastafari context.
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