David’s House and Family(A)

14 Now Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, along with cedar logs,(B) stonemasons and carpenters to build a palace for him.

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14 Now Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and timber of cedars, with masons and carpenters, to build him an house.

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Rebuilding the Temple

Then they gave money to the masons and carpenters,(A) and gave food and drink and olive oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre, so that they would bring cedar logs(B) by sea from Lebanon(C) to Joppa, as authorized by Cyrus(D) king of Persia.

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They gave money also unto the masons, and to the carpenters; and meat, and drink, and oil, unto them of Zidon, and to them of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea of Joppa, according to the grant that they had of Cyrus king of Persia.

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Solomon sent this message to Hiram[a](A) king of Tyre:

“Send me cedar logs(B) as you did for my father David when you sent him cedar to build a palace to live in.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 2:3 Hebrew Huram, a variant of Hiram; also in verses 11 and 12

And Solomon sent to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, As thou didst deal with David my father, and didst send him cedars to build him an house to dwell therein, even so deal with me.

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11 Now Hiram(A) king of Tyre sent envoys to David, along with cedar logs and carpenters and stonemasons, and they built a palace for David. 12 Then David knew that the Lord had established him as king over Israel and had exalted his kingdom(B) for the sake of his people Israel.

13 After he left Hebron, David took more concubines and wives(C) in Jerusalem, and more sons and daughters were born to him. 14 These are the names of the children born to him there:(D) Shammua, Shobab, Nathan,(E) Solomon, 15 Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, 16 Elishama, Eliada and Eliphelet.

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11 And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons: and they built David an house.

12 And David perceived that the Lord had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel's sake.

13 And David took him more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron: and there were yet sons and daughters born to David.

14 And these be the names of those that were born unto him in Jerusalem; Shammuah, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon,

15 Ibhar also, and Elishua, and Nepheg, and Japhia,

16 And Elishama, and Eliada, and Eliphalet.

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13 “Woe(A) to him who builds(B) his palace by unrighteousness,
    his upper rooms by injustice,
making his own people work for nothing,
    not paying(C) them for their labor.
14 He says, ‘I will build myself a great palace(D)
    with spacious upper rooms.’
So he makes large windows in it,
    panels it with cedar(E)
    and decorates it in red.(F)

15 “Does it make you a king
    to have more and more cedar?
Did not your father have food and drink?
    He did what was right and just,(G)
    so all went well(H) with him.

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13 Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;

14 That saith, I will build me a wide house and large chambers, and cutteth him out windows; and it is cieled with cedar, and painted with vermilion.

15 Shalt thou reign, because thou closest thyself in cedar? did not thy father eat and drink, and do judgment and justice, and then it was well with him?

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“Send me also cedar, juniper and algum[a] logs from Lebanon, for I know that your servants are skilled in cutting timber there. My servants will work with yours to provide me with plenty of lumber, because the temple I build must be large and magnificent. 10 I will give your servants, the woodsmen who cut the timber, twenty thousand cors[b] of ground wheat, twenty thousand cors[c] of barley, twenty thousand baths[d] of wine and twenty thousand baths of olive oil.(A)

11 Hiram king of Tyre replied by letter to Solomon:

“Because the Lord loves(B) his people, he has made you their king.”

12 And Hiram added:

“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth!(C) He has given King David a wise son, endowed with intelligence and discernment, who will build a temple for the Lord and a palace for himself.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 2:8 Probably a variant of almug
  2. 2 Chronicles 2:10 That is, probably about 3,600 tons or about 3,200 metric tons of wheat
  3. 2 Chronicles 2:10 That is, probably about 3,000 tons or about 2,700 metric tons of barley
  4. 2 Chronicles 2:10 That is, about 120,000 gallons or about 440,000 liters

Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants,

Even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I am about to build shall be wonderful great.

10 And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and 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 the Lord hath loved his people, he hath made thee king over them.

12 Huram said moreover, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, that made heaven and earth, who hath given to David the king a wise son, endued with prudence and understanding, that might build an house for the Lord, and an house for his kingdom.

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Preparations for the Temple

So David gave orders to assemble the foreigners(A) residing in Israel, and from among them he appointed stonecutters(B) to prepare dressed stone for building the house of God.

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And David commanded to gather together the strangers that were in the land of Israel; and he set masons to hew wrought stones to build the house of God.

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God’s Promise to David(A)

17 After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the Lord is under a tent.(B)

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17 Now it came to pass, as David sat in his house, that David said to Nathan the prophet, Lo, I dwell in an house of cedars, but the ark of the covenant of the Lord remaineth under curtains.

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Solomon Builds His Palace

It took Solomon thirteen years, however, to complete the construction of his palace.(A) He built the Palace(B) of the Forest of Lebanon(C) a hundred cubits long, fifty wide and thirty high,[a] with four rows of cedar columns supporting trimmed cedar beams. It was roofed with cedar above the beams that rested on the columns—forty-five beams, fifteen to a row. Its windows were placed high in sets of three, facing each other. All the doorways had rectangular frames; they were in the front part in sets of three, facing each other.[b]

He made a colonnade fifty cubits long and thirty wide.[c] In front of it was a portico, and in front of that were pillars and an overhanging roof.

He built the throne hall, the Hall of Justice, where he was to judge,(D) and he covered it with cedar from floor to ceiling.[d](E) And the palace in which he was to live, set farther back, was similar in design. Solomon also made a palace like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom he had married.(F)

All these structures, from the outside to the great courtyard and from foundation to eaves, were made of blocks of high-grade stone cut to size and smoothed on their inner and outer faces. 10 The foundations were laid with large stones of good quality, some measuring ten cubits[e] and some eight.[f] 11 Above were high-grade stones, cut to size, and cedar beams. 12 The great courtyard was surrounded by a wall of three courses(G) of dressed stone and one course of trimmed cedar beams, as was the inner courtyard of the temple of the Lord with its portico.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 7:2 That is, about 150 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high or about 45 meters long, 23 meters wide and 14 meters high
  2. 1 Kings 7:5 The meaning of the Hebrew for this verse is uncertain.
  3. 1 Kings 7:6 That is, about 75 feet long and 45 feet wide or about 23 meters long and 14 meters wide
  4. 1 Kings 7:7 Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew floor
  5. 1 Kings 7:10 That is, about 15 feet or about 4.5 meters; also in verse 23
  6. 1 Kings 7:10 That is, about 12 feet or about 3.6 meters

But Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all his house.

He built also the house of the forest of Lebanon; the length thereof was an hundred cubits, and the breadth thereof fifty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits, upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars.

And it was covered with cedar above upon the beams, that lay on forty five pillars, fifteen in a row.

And there were windows in three rows, and light was against light in three ranks.

And all the doors and posts were square, with the windows: and light was against light in three ranks.

And he made a porch of pillars; the length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth thereof thirty cubits: and the porch was before them: and the other pillars and the thick beam were before them.

Then he made a porch for the throne where he might judge, even the porch of judgment: and it was covered with cedar from one side of the floor to the other.

And his house where he dwelt had another court within the porch, which was of the like work. Solomon made also an house for Pharaoh's daughter, whom he had taken to wife, like unto this porch.

All these were of costly stones, according to the measures of hewed stones, sawed with saws, within and without, even from the foundation unto the coping, and so on the outside toward the great court.

10 And the foundation was of costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits.

11 And above were costly stones, after the measures of hewed stones, and cedars.

12 And the great court round about was with three rows of hewed stones, and a row of cedar beams, both for the inner court of the house of the Lord, and for the porch of the house.

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18 The craftsmen of Solomon and Hiram(A) and workers from Byblos(B) cut and prepared the timber and stone for the building of the temple.

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18 And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers: so they prepared timber and stones to build the house.

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So Hiram sent word to Solomon:

“I have received the message you sent me and will do all you want in providing the cedar and juniper logs. My men will haul them down from Lebanon to the Mediterranean Sea(A), and I will float them as rafts by sea to the place you specify. There I will separate them and you can take them away. And you are to grant my wish by providing food(B) for my royal household.”

10 In this way Hiram kept Solomon supplied with all the cedar and juniper logs he wanted, 11 and Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand cors[a] of wheat as food(C) for his household, in addition to twenty thousand baths[b][c] of pressed olive oil. Solomon continued to do this for Hiram year after year. 12 The Lord gave Solomon wisdom,(D) just as he had promised him. There were peaceful relations between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.(E)

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 5:11 That is, probably about 3,600 tons or about 3,250 metric tons
  2. 1 Kings 5:11 Septuagint (see also 2 Chron. 2:10); Hebrew twenty cors
  3. 1 Kings 5:11 That is, about 120,000 gallons or about 440,000 liters

And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, I have considered the things which thou sentest to me for: and I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir.

My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon unto the sea: and I will convey them by sea in floats unto the place that thou shalt appoint me, and will cause them to be discharged there, and thou shalt receive them: and thou shalt accomplish my desire, in giving food for my household.

10 So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire.

11 And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year.

12 And the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him: and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together.

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“So give orders that cedars(A) of Lebanon be cut for me. My men will work with yours, and I will pay you for your men whatever wages you set. You know that we have no one so skilled in felling timber as the Sidonians.”

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Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy servants: and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt appoint: for thou knowest that there is not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians.

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Preparations for Building the Temple(A)

[a]When Hiram(B) king of Tyre heard that Solomon had been anointed king to succeed his father David, he sent his envoys to Solomon, because he had always been on friendly terms with David.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 5:1 In Hebrew texts 5:1-18 is numbered 5:15-32.

And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for Hiram was ever a lover of David.

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