Charles Ellicott Commentary 2 Chronicles 1:16

"And the horses which Solomon had were brought out of Egypt; the king`s merchants received them in droves, each drove at a price." — 2 Chronicles 1:16 (ASV)

And Solomon had horses brought out ... —Rather, And the outcome (export) of horses for Solomon was from Egypt, and the company of the king’s merchants — a company (of horses) they would fetch at a price.

The same is read in Kings, only that the word company (miqwç) is there spelt in the ancient fashion (miqwçh), and two words are transposed (“they would fetch a company”). Miqweh means gathering, collection (Genesis 1:10). The repetition of this term constitutes a kind of artless play on words, such as is common in the Old Testament (Judges 15:16).

Both here and in Kings the Vulgate renders the word as a proper name, “from Coa.” So also the Septuagint in Kings, “from Thekkoue” (Tekoa); and the Syriac of Chronicles, “from the city of the Aphelâvç.” These variations only prove that the text was felt to be obscure.

The “linen yarn” of the Authorized Version is a guess based upon the likeness of the word miqweh to qaw, “rope,” and tiqwâh, “line” (Joshua 2:18), and upon the fact that much linen was made in Egypt.