1 Kings 5
Amplified Bible
Alliance with King Hiram
5 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 had always been a friend of David. 2 Then Solomon sent word to Hiram, saying, 3 “You know that David my father could not build a house (temple) for the Name (Presence) of the Lord his God because of the wars which surrounded him, until the Lord put his enemies under his feet.(A) 4 But now that the Lord my God has given me rest [from war] on every side, there is neither adversary nor misfortune [confronting me]. 5 Behold, I intend to build a house (temple) to the Name of the Lord my God, just as the Lord said to my father David: ‘Your son whom I will put on your throne in your place shall build the house for My Name and Presence.’ 6 So now, command that they cut cedar trees from Lebanon for me, and my servants will join your servants, and I will give you whatever wages you set for your servants. For you know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut timber like the men of Sidon.”
7 When Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly and said, “Blessed be the Lord this day, who has given David a wise son [to be king] over this great people.” 8 So Hiram sent word to Solomon, saying, “I have heard the message which you sent to me; I will do everything you wish concerning the cedar and cypress timber. 9 My servants will bring the logs down from Lebanon to the [Mediterranean] sea, and I will have them made into rafts to go by sea to the place (port) that you direct me; then I will have them broken up there, and you shall carry them away. Then you shall [a]return the favor by providing food for my household.” 10 So Hiram gave Solomon all the cedar and cypress timber he desired, 11 and Solomon gave Hiram 20,000 [b]kors of wheat as food for his household, and 20 kors of pure [olive] oil. Solomon gave all these to Hiram each year. 12 The Lord gave Solomon wisdom, just as He promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.
Conscription of Laborers
13 King Solomon levied forced laborers from all Israel; and the forced laborers numbered 30,000 men. 14 He sent them to Lebanon, 10,000 a month in shifts; one month they were in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram was in charge of the forced laborers. 15 Solomon had 70,000 burden bearers (transporters) and 80,000 stonemasons in the hill country [of Judah], 16 besides Solomon’s 3,300 chief deputies who were in charge of the project and who were in charge of the people doing the work. 17 The king gave orders, and they quarried great [c]stones, valuable stones, to lay the foundation of the house (temple) with cut stones. 18 So Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the men of [d]Gebal cut and chiseled the stones, and prepared the timber and the stones to build the house (temple).
Notas al pie
- 1 Kings 5:9 Lit fulfill my desire.
- 1 Kings 5:11 See note 4:22.
- 1 Kings 5:17 These great foundation stones still exist. One of them is almost thirty-nine feet long; it is the chief cornerstone of the Dome of the Rock’s massive wall, placed in its present position 3,000 years ago. Markings on the stones represent the culture of Phoenicia, the region around Tyre from which Solomon received building materials for the temple.
- 1 Kings 5:18 A city in Lebanon, ancient Byblos.
1 Kings 5
The Message
International Fame
5 1-4 Hiram king of Tyre sent ambassadors to Solomon when he heard that he had been crowned king in David’s place. Hiram had loved David his whole life. Solomon responded, saying, “You know that David my father was not able to build a temple in honor of God because of the wars he had to fight on all sides, until God finally put them down. But now God has provided peace all around—no one against us, nothing at odds with us.
5-6 “Now here is what I want to do: Build a temple in honor of God, my God, following the promise that God gave to David my father, namely, ‘Your son whom I will provide to succeed you as king, he will build a house in my honor.’ And here is how you can help: Give orders for cedars to be cut from the Lebanon forest; my loggers will work alongside yours and I’ll pay your men whatever wage you set. We both know that there is no one like you Sidonians for cutting timber.”
7 When Hiram got Solomon’s message, he was delighted, exclaiming, “Blessed be God for giving David such a wise son to rule this flourishing people!”
8-9 Then he sent this message to Solomon: “I received your request for the cedars and cypresses. It’s as good as done—your wish is my command. My lumberjacks will haul the timbers from the Lebanon forest to the sea, assemble them into log rafts, float them to the place you set, then have them disassembled for you to haul away. All I want from you is that you feed my crew.”
10-12 In this way Hiram supplied all the cedar and cypress timber that Solomon wanted. In his turn, Solomon gave Hiram 125,000 bushels of wheat and 115,000 gallons of virgin olive oil. He did this every year. And God, for his part, gave Solomon wisdom, just as he had promised. The healthy peace between Hiram and Solomon was formalized by a treaty.
The Temple Work Begins
13-18 King Solomon raised a workforce of thirty thousand men from all over Israel. He sent them in shifts of ten thousand each month to the Lebanon forest; they would work a month in Lebanon and then be at home two months. Adoniram was in charge of the work crew. Solomon also had seventy thousand unskilled workers and another eighty thousand stonecutters up in the hills—plus thirty-three hundred foremen managing the project and supervising the work crews. Following the king’s orders, they quarried huge blocks of the best stone—dressed stone for the foundation of The Temple. Solomon and Hiram’s construction workers, assisted by the men of Gebal, cut and prepared the timber and stone for building The Temple.
1 Kings 5
New American Standard Bible
Alliance with King Hiram
5 [a](A)Now Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, for (B)Hiram had [b]always been a friend of David. 2 Then (C)Solomon sent word to Hiram, saying, 3 “You know that (D)David my father was unable to build a house for the name of the Lord his God because of the wars which surrounded him, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet. 4 But now (E)the Lord my God has secured me rest on every side; there is neither adversary nor [c]misfortune. 5 So behold, (F)I [d]intend to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, just as the Lord spoke to David my father, saying, ‘Your son, whom I will put on your throne in your place, he will build the house for My name.’ 6 Now then, issue orders that they cut (G)cedars from Lebanon for me, and my servants will be with your servants; and I will give you wages for your servants in accordance with all that you say, for you yourself know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians.”
7 When Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he greatly rejoiced; and he said, “Blessed be the Lord today, who has given to David a wise son over this great people.” 8 So Hiram sent word to Solomon, saying, “I have heard the message which you sent me; I will do everything you wish concerning the cedar and juniper timber. 9 My servants will bring the timbers down from Lebanon to the sea; and I will have them made into rafts to go by sea (H)to the place where you [e]direct me, and I will have them broken up there, and you will carry them away. Then (I)you shall do what I wish, by giving food to my household.” 10 So [f]Hiram [g]gave Solomon all that he wished of the cedar and juniper timber. 11 (J)Solomon then gave [h]Hiram [i]twenty thousand kors of wheat as food for his household, and [j]twenty kors of pure oil; this is what Solomon would give Hiram year by year. 12 And (K)the Lord gave wisdom to Solomon, just as He [k]promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a covenant.
Conscription of Laborers
13 Now (L)King Solomon [l]conscripted forced laborers from all Israel; and the forced laborers numbered thirty thousand men. 14 Then he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month in shifts; they were in Lebanon for a month, and two months at home. And (M)Adoniram was in charge of the forced laborers. 15 Now (N)Solomon had seventy thousand porters, and eighty thousand stonemasons in the mountains, 16 (O)besides Solomon’s 3,300 chief deputies who were in charge of the [m]project and ruled over the people who were doing the work. 17 Then (P)the king issued orders, and they quarried large stones, valuable stones, to lay the foundation of the house with cut stones. 18 So Solomon’s builders and [n]Hiram’s builders and (Q)the Gebalites [o]cut the stones, and they prepared the timbers and the stones to build the house.
Notas al pie
- 1 Kings 5:1 Ch 5:15 in Heb
- 1 Kings 5:1 Lit all the days
- 1 Kings 5:4 Lit evil occurrence
- 1 Kings 5:5 Lit say
- 1 Kings 5:9 Lit send to me
- 1 Kings 5:10 Heb Hirom
- 1 Kings 5:10 Lit was giving
- 1 Kings 5:11 In 2 Chr 2:3, Huram
- 1 Kings 5:11 About 154,000 cubic feet or 4,360 cubic meters
- 1 Kings 5:11 About 154 cubic feet or 4.4 cubic meters
- 1 Kings 5:12 Lit spoke to
- 1 Kings 5:13 Lit raised up
- 1 Kings 5:16 Lit work
- 1 Kings 5:18 Heb Hirom’s
- 1 Kings 5:18 Or chiseled
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