1 Kings 9
Christian Standard Bible
The Lord’s Response
9 When Solomon finished building the temple of the Lord,(A) the royal palace, and all that Solomon desired to do,(B) 2 the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time just as he had appeared to him at Gibeon.(C) 3 The Lord said to him:
I have heard your prayer and petition you have made before me. I have consecrated this temple you have built, to put[a] my name there forever;(D) my eyes and my heart will be there at all times.(E)
4 As for you, if you walk before me as your father David walked, with a heart of integrity and in what is right, doing everything I have commanded you, and if you keep my statutes and ordinances,(F) 5 I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised your father David: You will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.(G)
6 If you or your sons turn away from following me and do not keep my commands—my statutes that I have set before you—and if you go and serve other gods and bow in worship to them,(H) 7 I will cut off Israel from the land I gave them,(I) and I will reject[b] the temple I have sanctified for my name.(J) Israel will become an object of scorn and ridicule among all the peoples.(K) 8 Though this temple is now exalted,[c] everyone who passes by will be appalled and will scoff.[d] They will say, “Why did the Lord do this to this land and this temple?”(L) 9 Then they will say, “Because they abandoned the Lord their God who brought their ancestors out of the land of Egypt. They held on to other gods and bowed in worship to them and served them. Because of this, the Lord brought all this ruin on them.”(M)
King Hiram’s Twenty Towns
10 At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon had built the two houses, the Lord’s temple and the royal palace(N)— 11 King Hiram of Tyre(O) having supplied him with cedar and cypress logs and gold(P) for his every wish(Q)—King Solomon gave Hiram twenty towns in the land of Galilee. 12 So Hiram went out from Tyre to look over the towns that Solomon had given him, but he was not pleased with them. 13 So he said, “What are these towns you’ve given me, my brother?” So he called them the Land of Cabul,[e] as they are still called today.(R) 14 Now Hiram had sent the king nine thousand pounds[f] of gold.(S)
Solomon’s Forced Labor
15 This is the account of the forced labor(T) that King Solomon had imposed to build the Lord’s temple, his own palace, the supporting terraces,(U) the wall of Jerusalem,(V) and Hazor,(W) Megiddo,(X) and Gezer.(Y) 16 Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He then burned it, killed the Canaanites who lived in the city, and gave it as a dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife.(Z) 17 Then Solomon rebuilt Gezer, Lower Beth-horon,(AA) 18 Baalath,(AB) Tamar[g][h] in the Wilderness of Judah, 19 all the storage cities that belonged to Solomon, the chariot cities,(AC) the cavalry cities,(AD) and whatever Solomon desired to build(AE) in Jerusalem, Lebanon, or anywhere else in the land of his dominion.
20 As for all the peoples who remained of the Amorites, Hethites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who were not Israelites— 21 their descendants who remained in the land after them, those whom the Israelites were unable to destroy completely(AF)—Solomon imposed forced labor on them; it is still this way today.(AG) 22 But Solomon did not consign the Israelites to slavery;(AH) they were soldiers, his servants, his commanders, his captains, and commanders of his chariots and his cavalry. 23 These were the deputies(AI) who were over Solomon’s work: 550 who supervised the people doing the work.(AJ)
Solomon’s Other Activities
24 Pharaoh’s daughter moved from the city of David(AK) to the house that Solomon had built for her;(AL) he then built the terraces.(AM)
25 Three times a year Solomon offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar he had built for the Lord, and he burned incense with them in the Lord’s presence.(AN) So he completed the temple.(AO)
26 King Solomon put together a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber,(AP) which is near Eloth on the shore of the Red Sea in the land of Edom. 27 With the fleet, Hiram sent his servants, experienced seamen, along with Solomon’s servants. 28 They went to Ophir(AQ) and acquired gold there—sixteen tons[i]—and delivered it to Solomon.(AR)
Footnotes
- 9:3 Or by putting
- 9:7 Lit send from my presence
- 9:8 Some ancient versions read temple will become a ruin
- 9:8 Lit hiss
- 9:13 = Like Nothing
- 9:14 Lit 120 talents
- 9:18 Alt Hb traditions, LXX, Syr, Tg, Vg read Tadmor; 2Ch 8:4
- 9:18 Tamar was a city in southern Judah; Ezk 47:19; 48:28.
- 9:28 Lit 420 talents
1 Kings 9
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
God Appears Again to Solomon
9 When Solomon had finished building the house of the Lord and the king’s house and all that Solomon desired to build,(A) 2 the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon.(B) 3 The Lord said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your plea that you made before me; I have consecrated this house that you have built and put my name there forever; my eyes and my heart will be there for all time.(C) 4 As for you, if you will walk before me as David your father walked, with integrity of heart and uprightness, doing according to all that I have commanded you and keeping my statutes and my ordinances,(D) 5 then I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised your father David, saying, ‘You shall never lack a successor on the throne of Israel.’(E)
6 “If you turn aside from following me, you or your children, and do not keep my commandments and my statutes that I have set before you but go and serve other gods and worship them,(F) 7 then I will cut Israel off from the land that I have given them, and the house that I have consecrated for my name I will cast out of my sight, and Israel will become a proverb and a taunt among all peoples.(G) 8 This house will become a heap of ruins;[a] everyone passing by it will be astonished and will hiss, and they will say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this house?’(H) 9 Then they will say, ‘Because they abandoned the Lord their God, who brought their ancestors out of the land of Egypt, and embraced other gods, worshiping them and serving them; therefore the Lord brought this disaster upon them.’ ”
10 At the end of twenty years, in which Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the Lord and the king’s house,(I) 11 King Hiram of Tyre having supplied Solomon with cedar and cypress timber and gold, as much as he desired, King Solomon gave to Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.(J) 12 But when Hiram came from Tyre to see the cities that Solomon had given him, they did not please him. 13 Therefore he said, “What kind of cities are these that you have given me, my brother?” So they are called the land of Cabul[b] to this day.(K) 14 But Hiram had sent to the king one hundred twenty talents of gold.
Other Acts of Solomon
15 This is the account of the forced labor that King Solomon conscripted to build the house of the Lord and his own house, the Millo and the wall of Jerusalem, Hazor, Megiddo, Gezer(L) 16 (Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up and captured Gezer and burned it down, had killed the Canaanites who lived in the city, and had given it as dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife;(M) 17 so Solomon rebuilt Gezer), Lower Beth-horon,(N) 18 Baalath, Tadmor in the wilderness, within the land, 19 as well as all of Solomon’s storage cities, the cities for his chariots, the cities for his cavalry, and whatever Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.(O) 20 All the people who were left of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not of the people of Israel(P)— 21 their descendants who were still left in the land, whom the Israelites were unable to destroy completely—these Solomon conscripted for slave labor, and so they are to this day.(Q) 22 But of the Israelites Solomon made no slaves; they were the soldiers; they were his officials, his commanders, his captains, and the commanders of his chariotry and cavalry.(R)
23 These were the chief officers who were over Solomon’s work: five hundred fifty who had charge of the people who carried on the work.(S)
24 But Pharaoh’s daughter went up from the city of David to her own house that Solomon had built for her; then he built the Millo.(T)
25 Three times a year Solomon used to offer up burnt offerings and sacrifices of well-being on the altar that he built for the Lord, offering incense[c] before the Lord. So he completed the house.(U)
Solomon’s Commercial Activity
26 King Solomon built a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber, which is near Eloth on the shore of the Red Sea,[d] in the land of Edom.(V) 27 Hiram sent his servants with the fleet, sailors who were familiar with the sea, together with the servants of Solomon.(W) 28 They went to Ophir and imported from there four hundred twenty talents of gold that they delivered to King Solomon.(X)
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New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.