The In-Dept Study of the Bible
Chronicles 02
1 Now Solomon decided to build a house
for Yahweh’s name, and a house for his
kingdom.
2 Solomoncountedout seventy thousand
men to bear burdens, eighty thousand
men who were stone cutters in the mountains, and three thousand six hundred to
oversee them.
3 Solomon sent to Huram the king of
Tyre, saying, “As you dealt with David my
father, and sent him cedars to build him a
house in which to dwell, so deal with me.
4 Behold,† I am about to build a house
for the name of Yahweh my God, to dedicate it to him, to burn before him incense
of sweet spices, for the continual show
bread, and for the burnt offeringsmorning
and evening, on the Sabbaths, on the new
moons, and on the setfeasts of Yahweh our
God. This is an ordinance forever to Israel.
5 “The house which I am building will be
great, for our God is greater than all gods.
6 But who is able to build him a house,
since heaven and the heaven of heavens
can’t contain him? Who am I then, that
I should build him a house, except just to
burn incense before him?
7 “Now therefore send me a man skillful
to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, in iron,
and in purple, crimson, and blue, and who
knows how to engrave engravings, to be
with the skillful men who are with me in
Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my
father provided.
8 “Send me also cedar trees, cypress
trees, and algum trees out of Lebanon, for
I know that your servants know how to cut
timber in Lebanon. Behold, my servants
will be with your servants,
9 even to prepare me timber in abundance; for the house which I am about to
build will be great and wonderful.
10 Behold,I will give to your servants, the
cutters who cut timber, twenty thousand
cors‡ of beaten wheat, twenty thousand
baths§ of barley, twenty thousand baths of
wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.”
11 Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to
Solomon, “Because Yahweh loves his
people, he has made you king over them.”
12 Huram continued, “Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who made heaven
and earth, who has given to David the king
a wise son, endowed with discretion and
understanding, who would build a house
for Yahweh and a house for his kingdom.
13 Now I have sent a skillful man, endowed with understanding, Huram-abi,†
14 the son of a woman of the daughters
of Dan; and his father was a man of Tyre.
He is skillful to work in gold, in silver, in
bronze, in iron, in stone, in timber, in purple, in blue, in fine linen, and in crimson,
also to engrave any kind of engraving and
to devise any device, that there may be a
place appointed to him with your skillful
men, and with the skillful men of my lord
David your father.
15 “Now therefore, the wheat, the barley,
the oil, and the wine which my lord has
spoken of, let him send to his servants;
16 and we will cut wood out of Lebanon,
as much as you need. We will bring it to
you in rafts by sea to Joppa; then you shall
carry it up to Jerusalem.”
17 Solomon counted all the foreigners
who were in the land of Israel, after the
census with which David his father had
counted them; and they found one hundred fifty-three thousand six hundred.
18 He set seventy thousand of them to
bear burdens, eighty thousand who were
stone cutters in the mountains, and three
thousand six hundred overseers to assign
the people their work.