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/Chapter 5

5 / 22

1 Kings

ESV

Chapter 5

¹Now Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, for Hiram always loved David. ²And Solomon sent word to Hiram, saying, ³“You know that David my father could not build a house for the name of the LORD his God because of the warfare with which his enemies surrounded him, until the LORD put them under the soles of his feet. ⁴But now the LORD my God has given me rest on every side; there is neither adversary nor misfortune. ⁵And so I intend to build a house for the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD said to David my father, ‘Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, shall build the house for my name.’ ⁶Now therefore command that cedars of Lebanon be cut for me. My servants will join your servants, and I will pay you for your servants such wages as you set, for you know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians.” ⁷When Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly and said, “Blessed be the LORD today, who has given to David a wise son to be over this great people.” ⁸And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, “I have heard the message that you have sent to me. I will do all you desire in the matter of cedar and cypress timber. ⁹My servants will bring it down from Lebanon to the sea, and I will make it into rafts to go by sea to the place you direct. There I will break it up, and you may take it away. And you shall accomplish my desire by giving food for my household.” ¹⁰So Hiram supplied Solomon with all the timber of cedar and cypress that he desired, ¹¹while Solomon gave Hiram 20,000 cors of wheat as food for his household, and 20 cors of pure oil. Solomon gave this to Hiram year by year. ¹²And the LORD gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him. There was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty. ¹³King Solomon drafted forced labor out of all Israel, and the draft numbered 30,000 men. ¹⁴He sent them to Lebanon, 10,000 a month in shifts; they would be a month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram was in charge of the draft. ¹⁵Solomon also had 70,000 burden-bearers and 80,000 stonecutters in the hill country, ¹⁶besides Solomon's 3,300 chief officers who were over the work, who had charge of the people who carried on the work. ¹⁷At the king's command, they quarried out great, costly stones in order to lay the foundation of the house with dressed stones. ¹⁸So Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders and the Gebalites cut them and prepared the timber and the stones to build the house.