Solomon's Officials

4 King Solomon was king over all Israel, ² and these were his high officials: Azariah the son of Zadok was ^(A)the priest; ³ Elihoreph and Ahijah the sons of Shisha were secretaries; ^(B)Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder; ^4 (C)Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was in command of the army; ^(D)Zadok and Abiathar were priests; ⁵ Azariah the son of Nathan was over ^(E)the officers; Zabud the son of Nathan was priest and ^(F)king's friend; ⁶ Ahishar was in charge of the palace; and ^(G)Adoniram the son of Abda was in charge of ^(H)the forced labor.

⁷ Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his household. Each man had to make provision for one month in the year. ⁸ These were their names: Ben-hur, in ^(I)the hill country of Ephraim; ⁹ Ben-deker, in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-shemesh, and Elonbeth-hanan; ¹⁰ Ben-hesed, in Arubboth (to him belonged Socoh and all the land of Hepher); ¹¹ Ben-abinadab, in all ^(J)Naphath-dor (he had Taphath the daughter of Solomon as his wife); ¹² Baana the son of Ahilud, in ^(K)Taanach, Megiddo, and all ^(L)Beth-shean that is beside Zarethan below Jezreel, and from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, as far as the other side of Jokmeam; ¹³ Ben-geber, ^(M)in Ramoth-gilead (he had ^(N)the villages of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead, and he had ^(O)the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty great cities with walls and bronze bars); ¹⁴ Ahinadab the son of Iddo, in Mahanaim; ¹⁵ Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he had taken Basemath the daughter of Solomon as his wife); ¹⁶ Baana the son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth; ¹⁷ Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar; ^18 (P)Shimei the son of Ela, in Benjamin; ¹⁹ Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, ^(Q)the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan. And there was one governor who was over the land.

Solomon's Wealth and Wisdom

²⁰ Judah and Israel were as many ^(R)as the sand by the sea. They ate and drank and were happy. ^{21 [a] (S)}Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the ^(T)Euphrates^[b] to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt. ^(U)They brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life.

²² Solomon's provision for one day was thirty cors^[c] of fine flour and sixty cors of meal, ²³ ten fat oxen, and twenty pasture-fed cattle, a hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fattened fowl. ²⁴ For he had dominion over all the region west of the Euphrates^[d] from Tiphsah to ^(V)Gaza, over all the kings west of the Euphrates. ^(W)And he had peace on all sides around him. ²⁵ And Judah and Israel ^(X)lived in safety, ^(Y)from Dan even to Beersheba, ^(Z)every man under his vine and under his fig tree, all the days of Solomon. ^26 (AA)Solomon also had 40,000^[e] stalls of horses for his chariots, and 12,000 horsemen. ²⁷ And those officers supplied provisions for King Solomon, and for all who came to King Solomon's table, each one in his month. They let nothing be lacking. ²⁸ Barley also and straw for the horses and ^(AB)swift steeds they brought to the place where it was required, each according to his duty.

^29 (AC)And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breadth of mind ^(AD)like the sand on the seashore, ³⁰ so that Solomon's wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all ^(AE)the people of the east ^(AF)and all the wisdom of Egypt. ³¹ For he was ^(AG)wiser than all other men, wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol, and his fame was in all the surrounding nations. ^32 (AH)He also spoke 3,000 proverbs, ^(AI)and his songs were 1,005. ³³ He spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall. He spoke also of beasts, and of birds, and of reptiles, and of fish. ³⁴ And people of all nations came to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and from ^(AJ)all the kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom.

Preparations for Building the Temple

5 ^[f] Now ^(AK)Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, ^(AL)for Hiram always loved David. ² And Solomon sent word to Hiram, ^3 (AM)“You know that David my father could not build a house for the name of the Lord his God ^(AN)because of the warfare with which his enemies surrounded him, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet. ^4 (AO)But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side. There is neither adversary nor misfortune. ⁵ And so I intend to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, ^(AP)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.’ ⁶ Now therefore command that cedars of Lebanon be cut for me. And 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.”

⁷ As soon as Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly and said, “Blessed be the Lord this day, who has given to David a wise son to be over this great people.” ⁸ And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, “I have heard the message that you have sent to me. I am ready to do all you desire in the matter of cedar and cypress timber. ⁹ My servants shall bring it down to the sea from Lebanon, and I will make it into rafts to go by sea to the place you direct. And I will have them broken up there, and you shall receive it. And you shall meet my wishes ^(AQ)by providing food for my household.” ¹⁰ So Hiram supplied Solomon with all the timber of cedar and cypress that he desired, ¹¹ while Solomon gave Hiram 20,000 cors^[g] of wheat as food for his household, and 20,000^[h] cors of beaten oil. Solomon gave this to Hiram year by year. ¹² And the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, ^(AR)as he promised him. And there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.

¹³ King Solomon drafted ^(AS)forced labor out of all Israel, and the draft numbered 30,000 men. ¹⁴ And he sent them to Lebanon, 10,000 a month in shifts. They would be a month in Lebanon and two months at home. ^(AT)Adoniram was in charge of the draft. ¹⁵ Solomon also ^(AU)had 70,000 burden-bearers and 80,000 stonecutters in the hill country, ¹⁶ besides Solomon's 3,300 ^(AV)chief officers who were over the work, ^(AW)who had charge of the people who carried on the work. ¹⁷ At the king's command ^(AX)they quarried out great, costly stones in order to lay the foundation of the house with dressed stones. ¹⁸ So Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders and ^(AY)the men of Gebal did the cutting and prepared the timber and the stone to build the house.

Preparing to Build the Temple

2 ^{[a] (A)}Now Solomon purposed to build a temple for the name of the Lord, and a royal palace for himself. ^{2 [b] (B)}And Solomon assigned 70,000 men to bear burdens and 80,000 to quarry in the hill country, and ^(C)3,600 to oversee them. ^3 (D)And Solomon sent word to Hiram the king of Tyre: ^(E)“As you dealt with David my father and sent him cedar to build himself a house to dwell in, so deal with me. ⁴ Behold, I am about to build a house for the name of the Lord my God and dedicate it to him for the burning of ^(F)incense of sweet spices before him, and for ^(G)the regular arrangement of the showbread, and for ^(H)burnt offerings morning and evening, ^(I)on the Sabbaths and the new moons and the appointed feasts of the Lord our God, as ordained forever for Israel. ⁵ The house that I am to build will be great, ^(J)for our God is greater than all gods. ^6 (K)But who is able to build him a house, since ^(L)heaven, even highest heaven, cannot contain him? Who am I to build a house for him, except as a place to make offerings before him? ⁷ So now ^(M)send me a man skilled to work in gold, silver, bronze, and iron, and in purple, crimson, and blue fabrics, trained also in engraving, to be with the skilled workers who are with me in Judah and Jerusalem, ^(N)whom David my father provided. ⁸ Send me also cedar, cypress, and algum timber from Lebanon, for I know that ^(O)your servants know how to cut timber in Lebanon. And my servants will be with your servants, ⁹ to prepare timber for me in abundance, for the house I am to build will be great and wonderful. ^10 (P)I will give for your servants, the woodsmen who cut timber, 20,000 cors^[c] of crushed wheat, 20,000 cors of barley, 20,000 baths^[d] of wine, and 20,000 baths of oil.”

¹¹ Then Hiram the king of Tyre answered in a letter that he sent to Solomon, ^(Q)“Because the Lord loves his people, he has made you king over them.” ¹² Hiram also said, “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, ^(R)who made heaven and earth, who has given King David a wise son, who has discretion and understanding, ^(S)who will build a temple for the Lord and a royal palace for himself.

¹³ “Now I have sent a skilled man, who has understanding, Huram-abi, ^14 (T)the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre. He is ^(U)trained to work in gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, and wood, and in purple, blue, and crimson fabrics and fine linen, and to do all sorts of engraving and execute any design that may be assigned him, with your craftsmen, the craftsmen of my lord, David your father. ¹⁵ Now therefore the wheat and barley, oil and wine, ^(V)of which my lord has spoken, let him send to his servants. ^16 (W)And we will cut whatever timber you need from Lebanon and bring it to you in rafts by sea to ^(X)Joppa, so that you may take it up to Jerusalem.”

¹⁷ Then Solomon counted all the resident aliens who were in the land of Israel, ^(Y)after the census of them that David his father had taken, and there were found 153,600. ^18 (Z)Seventy thousand of them he assigned to bear burdens, 80,000 to quarry in the hill country, and 3,600 as overseers to make the people work.

I Will Walk with Integrity

A Psalm of David.

Pray for Us

3 Finally, brothers,^{[a] (A)}pray for us, that ^(B)the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored,^[b] as happened among you, ² and ^(C)that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men. For ^(D)not all have faith. ³ But ^(E)the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and ^(F)guard you against ^(G)the evil one.^{[c] 4} And ^(H)we have confidence in the Lord about you, that you are doing and will do the things that we command. ⁵ May the Lord ^(I)direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.

Warning Against Idleness

⁶ Now we command you, brothers, ^(J)in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, ^(K)that you keep away from any ^(L)brother ^(M)who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. ⁷ For you yourselves know ^(N)how you ought to imitate us, because ^(O)we were not idle when we were with you, ⁸ nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, but ^(P)with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. ⁹ It was ^(Q)not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves ^(R)an example to imitate. ¹⁰ For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: ^(S)If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. ¹¹ For we hear that some among you ^(T)walk in idleness, not busy at work, but ^(U)busybodies. ¹² Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.^[d]

¹³ As for you, brothers, ^(V)do not grow weary in doing good. ¹⁴ If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and ^(W)have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. ^15 (X)Do not regard him as an enemy, but ^(Y)warn him as a brother.

Benediction

¹⁶ Now may ^(Z)the Lord of peace himself ^(AA)give you peace at all times in every way. ^(AB)The Lord be with you all.

¹⁷ I, Paul, write ^(AC)this greeting with my own hand. This is the sign of genuineness in every letter of mine; it is the way I write. ^18 (AD)The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.