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1 Kings 5-14
New Living Translation

Preparations for Building the Temple

5 [a]King Hiram of Tyre had always been a loyal friend of David. When Hiram learned that David’s son Solomon was the new king of Israel, he sent ambassadors to congratulate him.

2 Then Solomon sent this message back to Hiram:

3 “You know that my father, David, was not able to build a Temple to honor the name of the Lord his God because of the many wars waged against him by surrounding nations. He could not build until the Lord gave him victory over all his enemies. 4 But now the Lord my God has given me peace on every side; I have no enemies, and all is well. 5 So I am planning to build a Temple to honor the name of the Lord my God, just as he had instructed my father, David. For the Lord told him, ‘Your son, whom I will place on your throne, will build the Temple to honor my name.’

6 “Therefore, please command that cedars from Lebanon be cut for me. Let my men work alongside yours, and I will pay your men whatever wages you ask. As you know, there is no one among us who can cut timber like you Sidonians!”

7 When Hiram received Solomon’s message, he was very pleased and said, “Praise the Lord today for giving David a wise son to be king of the great nation of Israel.” 8 Then he sent this reply to Solomon:

“I have received your message, and I will supply all the cedar and cypress timber you need. 9 My servants will bring the logs from the Lebanon mountains to the Mediterranean Sea[b] and make them into rafts and float them along the coast to whatever place you choose. Then we will break the rafts apart so you can carry the logs away. You can pay me by supplying me with food for my household.”

10 So Hiram supplied as much cedar and cypress timber as Solomon desired. 11 In return, Solomon sent him an annual payment of 100,000 bushels[c] of wheat for his household and 110,000 gallons[d] of pure olive oil. 12 So the Lord gave wisdom to Solomon, just as he had promised. And Hiram and Solomon made a formal alliance of peace.

13 Then King Solomon conscripted a labor force of 30,000 men from all Israel. 14 He sent them to Lebanon in shifts, 10,000 every month, so that each man would be one month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram was in charge of this labor force. 15 Solomon also had 70,000 common laborers, 80,000 quarry workers in the hill country, 16 and 3,600[e] foremen to supervise the work. 17 At the king’s command, they quarried large blocks of high-quality stone and shaped them to make the foundation of the Temple. 18 Men from the city of Gebal helped Solomon’s and Hiram’s builders prepare the timber and stone for the Temple.

Solomon Builds the Temple

6 It was in midspring, in the month of Ziv,[f] during the fourth year of Solomon’s reign, that he began to construct the Temple of the Lord. This was 480 years after the people of Israel were rescued from their slavery in the land of Egypt.

2 The Temple that King Solomon built for the Lord was 90 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 45 feet high.[g] 3 The entry room at the front of the Temple was 30 feet[h] wide, running across the entire width of the Temple. It projected outward 15 feet[i] from the front of the Temple. 4 Solomon also made narrow recessed windows throughout the Temple.

5 He built a complex of rooms against the outer walls of the Temple, all the way around the sides and rear of the building. 6 The complex was three stories high, the bottom floor being 7 1⁄2 feet wide, the second floor 9 feet wide, and the top floor 10 1⁄2 feet wide.[j] The rooms were connected to the walls of the Temple by beams resting on ledges built out from the wall. So the beams were not inserted into the walls themselves.

7 The stones used in the construction of the Temple were finished at the quarry, so there was no sound of hammer, ax, or any other iron tool at the building site.

8 The entrance to the bottom floor[k] was on the south side of the Temple. There were winding stairs going up to the second floor, and another flight of stairs between the second and third floors. 9 After completing the Temple structure, Solomon put in a ceiling made of cedar beams and planks. 10 As already stated, he built a complex of rooms along the sides of the building, attached to the Temple walls by cedar timbers. Each story of the complex was 7 1⁄2 feet[l] high.

11 Then the Lord gave this message to Solomon: 12 “Concerning this Temple you are building, if you keep all my decrees and regulations and obey all my commands, I will fulfill through you the promise I made to your father, David. 13 I will live among the Israelites and will never abandon my people Israel.”

The Temple’s Interior

14 So Solomon finished building the Temple. 15 The entire inside, from floor to ceiling, was paneled with wood. He paneled the walls and ceilings with cedar, and he used planks of cypress for the floors. 16 He partitioned off an inner sanctuary—the Most Holy Place—at the far end of the Temple. It was 30 feet deep and was paneled with cedar from floor to ceiling. 17 The main room of the Temple, outside the Most Holy Place, was 60 feet[m] long. 18 Cedar paneling completely covered the stone walls throughout the Temple, and the paneling was decorated with carvings of gourds and open flowers.

19 He prepared the inner sanctuary at the far end of the Temple, where the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant would be placed. 20 This inner sanctuary was 30 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 30 feet high. He overlaid the inside with solid gold. He also overlaid the altar made of cedar.[n] 21 Then Solomon overlaid the rest of the Temple’s interior with solid gold, and he made gold chains to protect the entrance[o] to the Most Holy Place. 22 So he finished overlaying the entire Temple with gold, including the altar that belonged to the Most Holy Place.

23 He made two cherubim of wild olive[p] wood, each 15 feet[q] tall, and placed them in the inner sanctuary. 24 The wingspan of each of the cherubim was 15 feet, each wing being 7 1⁄2 feet[r] long. 25 The two cherubim were identical in shape and size; 26 each was 15 feet tall. 27 He placed them side by side in the inner sanctuary of the Temple. Their outspread wings reached from wall to wall, while their inner wings touched at the center of the room. 28 He overlaid the two cherubim with gold.

29 He decorated all the walls of the inner sanctuary and the main room with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. 30 He overlaid the floor in both rooms with gold.

31 For the entrance to the inner sanctuary, he made double doors of wild olive wood with five-sided doorposts.[s] 32 These double doors were decorated with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. The doors, including the decorations of cherubim and palm trees, were overlaid with gold.

33 Then he made four-sided doorposts of wild olive wood for the entrance to the Temple. 34 There were two folding doors of cypress wood, and each door was hinged to fold back upon itself. 35 These doors were decorated with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers—all overlaid evenly with gold.

36 The walls of the inner courtyard were built so that there was one layer of cedar beams between every three layers of finished stone.

37 The foundation of the Lord’s Temple was laid in midspring, in the month of Ziv,[t] during the fourth year of Solomon’s reign. 38 The entire building was completed in every detail by midautumn, in the month of Bul,[u] during the eleventh year of his reign. So it took seven years to build the Temple.

Solomon Builds His Palace

7 Solomon also built a palace for himself, and it took him thirteen years to complete the construction.

2 One of Solomon’s buildings was called the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. It was 150 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high.[v] There were four rows of cedar pillars, and great cedar beams rested on the pillars. 3 The hall had a cedar roof. Above the beams on the pillars were forty-five side rooms,[w] arranged in three tiers of fifteen each. 4 On each end of the long hall were three rows of windows facing each other. 5 All the doorways and doorposts[x] had rectangular frames and were arranged in sets of three, facing each other.

6 Solomon also built the Hall of Pillars, which was 75 feet long and 45 feet wide.[y] There was a porch in front, along with a canopy supported by pillars.

7 Solomon also built the throne room, known as the Hall of Justice, where he sat to hear legal matters. It was paneled with cedar from floor to ceiling.[z] 8 Solomon’s living quarters surrounded a courtyard behind this hall, and they were constructed the same way. He also built similar living quarters for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom he had married.

9 From foundation to eaves, all these buildings were built from huge blocks of high-quality stone, cut with saws and trimmed to exact measure on all sides. 10 Some of the huge foundation stones were 15 feet long, and some were 12 feet[aa] long. 11 The blocks of high-quality stone used in the walls were also cut to measure, and cedar beams were also used. 12 The walls of the great courtyard were built so that there was one layer of cedar beams between every three layers of finished stone, just like the walls of the inner courtyard of the Lord’s Temple with its entry room.

Furnishings for the Temple

13 King Solomon then asked for a man named Huram[ab] to come from Tyre. 14 He was half Israelite, since his mother was a widow from the tribe of Naphtali, and his father had been a craftsman in bronze from Tyre. Huram was extremely skillful and talented in any work in bronze, and he came to do all the metal work for King Solomon.

15 Huram cast two bronze pillars, each 27 feet tall and 18 feet in circumference.[ac] 16 For the tops of the pillars he cast bronze capitals, each 7 1⁄2 feet[ad] tall. 17 Each capital was decorated with seven sets of latticework and interwoven chains. 18 He also encircled the latticework with two rows of pomegranates to decorate the capitals over the pillars. 19 The capitals on the columns inside the entry room were shaped like water lilies, and they were six feet[ae] tall. 20 The capitals on the two pillars had 200 pomegranates in two rows around them, beside the rounded surface next to the latticework. 21 Huram set the pillars at the entrance of the Temple, one toward the south and one toward the north. He named the one on the south Jakin, and the one on the north Boaz.[af] 22 The capitals on the pillars were shaped like water lilies. And so the work on the pillars was finished.

23 Then Huram cast a great round basin, 15 feet across from rim to rim, called the Sea. It was 7 1⁄2 feet deep and about 45 feet in circumference.[ag] 24 It was encircled just below its rim by two rows of decorative gourds. There were about six gourds per foot[ah] all the way around, and they were cast as part of the basin.

25 The Sea was placed on a base of twelve bronze oxen,[ai] all facing outward. Three faced north, three faced west, three faced south, and three faced east, and the Sea rested on them. 26 The walls of the Sea were about three inches[aj] thick, and its rim flared out like a cup and resembled a water lily blossom. It could hold about 11,000 gallons[ak] of water.

27 Huram also made ten bronze water carts, each 6 feet long, 6 feet wide, and 4 1⁄2 feet tall.[al] 28 They were constructed with side panels braced with crossbars. 29 Both the panels and the crossbars were decorated with carved lions, oxen, and cherubim. Above and below the lions and oxen were wreath decorations. 30 Each of these carts had four bronze wheels and bronze axles. There were supporting posts for the bronze basins at the corners of the carts; these supports were decorated on each side with carvings of wreaths. 31 The top of each cart had a rounded frame for the basin. It projected 1 1⁄2 feet[am] above the cart’s top like a round pedestal, and its opening was 2 1⁄4 feet[an] across; it was decorated on the outside with carvings of wreaths. The panels of the carts were square, not round. 32 Under the panels were four wheels that were connected to axles that had been cast as one unit with the cart. The wheels were 2 1⁄4 feet in diameter 33 and were similar to chariot wheels. The axles, spokes, rims, and hubs were all cast from molten bronze.

34 There were handles at each of the four corners of the carts, and these, too, were cast as one unit with the cart. 35 Around the top of each cart was a rim nine inches wide.[ao] The corner supports and side panels were cast as one unit with the cart. 36 Carvings of cherubim, lions, and palm trees decorated the panels and corner supports wherever there was room, and there were wreaths all around. 37 All ten water carts were the same size and were made alike, for each was cast from the same mold.

38 Huram also made ten smaller bronze basins, one for each cart. Each basin was six feet across and could hold 220 gallons[ap] of water. 39 He set five water carts on the south side of the Temple and five on the north side. The great bronze basin called the Sea was placed near the southeast corner of the Temple. 40 He also made the necessary washbasins, shovels, and bowls.

So at last Huram completed everything King Solomon had assigned him to make for the Temple of the Lord:

41 the two pillars;
the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars;
the two networks of interwoven chains that decorated the capitals;
42 the 400 pomegranates that hung from the chains on the capitals (two rows of pomegranates for each of the chain networks that decorated the capitals on top of the pillars);
43 the ten water carts holding the ten basins;
44 the Sea and the twelve oxen under it;
45 the ash buckets, the shovels, and the bowls.

Huram made all these things of burnished bronze for the Temple of the Lord, just as King Solomon had directed. 46 The king had them cast in clay molds in the Jordan Valley between Succoth and Zarethan. 47 Solomon did not weigh all these things because there were so many; the weight of the bronze could not be measured.

48 Solomon also made all the furnishings of the Temple of the Lord:

the gold altar;
the gold table for the Bread of the Presence;
49 the lampstands of solid gold, five on the south and five on the north, in front of the Most Holy Place;
the flower decorations, lamps, and tongs—all of gold;
50 the small bowls, lamp snuffers, bowls, ladles, and incense burners—all of solid gold;
the doors for the entrances to the Most Holy Place and the main room of the Temple, with their fronts overlaid with gold.

51 So King Solomon finished all his work on the Temple of the Lord. Then he brought all the gifts his father, David, had dedicated—the silver, the gold, and the various articles—and he stored them in the treasuries of the Lord’s Temple.

The Ark Brought to the Temple

8 Solomon then summoned to Jerusalem the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes—the leaders of the ancestral families of the Israelites. They were to bring the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant to the Temple from its location in the City of David, also known as Zion. 2 So all the men of Israel assembled before King Solomon at the annual Festival of Shelters, which is held in early autumn in the month of Ethanim.[aq]

3 When all the elders of Israel arrived, the priests picked up the Ark. 4 The priests and Levites brought up the Ark of the Lord along with the special tent[ar] and all the sacred items that had been in it. 5 There, before the Ark, King Solomon and the entire community of Israel sacrificed so many sheep, goats, and cattle that no one could keep count!

6 Then the priests carried the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant into the inner sanctuary of the Temple—the Most Holy Place—and placed it beneath the wings of the cherubim. 7 The cherubim spread their wings over the Ark, forming a canopy over the Ark and its carrying poles. 8 These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place, which is in front of the Most Holy Place, but not from the outside. They are still there to this day. 9 Nothing was in the Ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Mount Sinai,[as] where the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel when they left the land of Egypt.

10 When the priests came out of the Holy Place, a thick cloud filled the Temple of the Lord. 11 The priests could not continue their service because of the cloud, for the glorious presence of the Lord filled the Temple of the Lord.

Solomon Praises the Lord

12 Then Solomon prayed, “O Lord, you have said that you would live in a thick cloud of darkness. 13 Now I have built a glorious Temple for you, a place where you can live forever![at]”

14 Then the king turned around to the entire community of Israel standing before him and gave this blessing: 15 “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, who has kept the promise he made to my father, David. For he told my father, 16 ‘From the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I have never chosen a city among any of the tribes of Israel as the place where a Temple should be built to honor my name. But I have chosen David to be king over my people Israel.’”

17 Then Solomon said, “My father, David, wanted to build this Temple to honor the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 18 But the Lord told him, ‘You wanted to build the Temple to honor my name. Your intention is good, 19 but you are not the one to do it. One of your own sons will build the Temple to honor me.’

20 “And now the Lord has fulfilled the promise he made, for I have become king in my father’s place, and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the Lord promised. I have built this Temple to honor the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 21 And I have prepared a place there for the Ark, which contains the covenant that the Lord made with our ancestors when he brought them out of Egypt.”

Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication

22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire community of Israel. He lifted his hands toward heaven, 23 and he prayed,

“O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in all of heaven above or on the earth below. You keep your covenant and show unfailing love to all who walk before you in wholehearted devotion. 24 You have kept your promise to your servant David, my father. You made that promise with your own mouth, and with your own hands you have fulfilled it today.

25 “And now, O Lord, God of Israel, carry out the additional promise you made to your servant David, my father. For you said to him, ‘If your descendants guard their behavior and faithfully follow me as you have done, one of them will always sit on the throne of Israel.’ 26 Now, O God of Israel, fulfill this promise to your servant David, my father.

27 “But will God really live on earth? Why, even the highest heavens cannot contain you. How much less this Temple I have built! 28 Nevertheless, listen to my prayer and my plea, O Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is making to you today. 29 May you watch over this Temple night and day, this place where you have said, ‘My name will be there.’ May you always hear the prayers I make toward this place. 30 May you hear the humble and earnest requests from me and your people Israel when we pray toward this place. Yes, hear us from heaven where you live, and when you hear, forgive.

31 “If someone wrongs another person and is required to take an oath of innocence in front of your altar in this Temple, 32 then hear from heaven and judge between your servants—the accuser and the accused. Punish the guilty as they deserve. Acquit the innocent because of their innocence.

33 “If your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they have sinned against you, and if they turn to you and acknowledge your name and pray to you here in this Temple, 34 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and return them to this land you gave their ancestors.

35 “If the skies are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you, and if they pray toward this Temple and acknowledge your name and turn from their sins because you have punished them, 36 then hear from heaven and forgive the sins of your servants, your people Israel. Teach them to follow the right path, and send rain on your land that you have given to your people as their special possession.

37 “If there is a famine in the land or a plague or crop disease or attacks of locusts or caterpillars, or if your people’s enemies are in the land besieging their towns—whatever disaster or disease there is— 38 and if your people Israel pray about their troubles, raising their hands toward this Temple, 39 then hear from heaven where you live, and forgive. Give your people what their actions deserve, for you alone know each human heart. 40 Then they will fear you as long as they live in the land you gave to our ancestors.

41 “In the future, foreigners who do not belong to your people Israel will hear of you. They will come from distant lands because of your name, 42 for they will hear of your great name and your strong hand and your powerful arm. And when they pray toward this Temple, 43 then hear from heaven where you live, and grant what they ask of you. In this way, all the people of the earth will come to know and fear you, just as your own people Israel do. They, too, will know that this Temple I have built honors your name.

44 “If your people go out where you send them to fight their enemies, and if they pray to the Lord by turning toward this city you have chosen and toward this Temple I have built to honor your name, 45 then hear their prayers from heaven and uphold their cause.

46 “If they sin against you—and who has never sinned?—you might become angry with them and let their enemies conquer them and take them captive to their land far away or near. 47 But in that land of exile, they might turn to you in repentance and pray, ‘We have sinned, done evil, and acted wickedly.’ 48 If they turn to you with their whole heart and soul in the land of their enemies and pray toward the land you gave to their ancestors—toward this city you have chosen, and toward this Temple I have built to honor your name— 49 then hear their prayers and their petition from heaven where you live, and uphold their cause. 50 Forgive your people who have sinned against you. Forgive all the offenses they have committed against you. Make their captors merciful to them, 51 for they are your people—your special possession—whom you brought out of the iron-smelting furnace of Egypt.

52 “May your eyes be open to my requests and to the requests of your people Israel. May you hear and answer them whenever they cry out to you. 53 For when you brought our ancestors out of Egypt, O Sovereign Lord, you told your servant Moses that you had set Israel apart from all the nations of the earth to be your own special possession.”

The Dedication of the Temple

54 When Solomon finished making these prayers and petitions to the Lord, he stood up in front of the altar of the Lord, where he had been kneeling with his hands raised toward heaven. 55 He stood and in a loud voice blessed the entire congregation of Israel:

56 “Praise the Lord who has given rest to his people Israel, just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the wonderful promises he gave through his servant Moses. 57 May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us or abandon us. 58 May he give us the desire to do his will in everything and to obey all the commands, decrees, and regulations that he gave our ancestors. 59 And may these words that I have prayed in the presence of the Lord be before him constantly, day and night, so that the Lord our God may give justice to me and to his people Israel, according to each day’s needs. 60 Then people all over the earth will know that the Lord alone is God and there is no other. 61 And may you be completely faithful to the Lord our God. May you always obey his decrees and commands, just as you are doing today.”

62 Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices to the Lord. 63 Solomon offered to the Lord a peace offering of 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep and goats. And so the king and all the people of Israel dedicated the Temple of the Lord.

64 That same day the king consecrated the central area of the courtyard in front of the Lord’s Temple. He offered burnt offerings, grain offerings, and the fat of peace offerings there, because the bronze altar in the Lord’s presence was too small to hold all the burnt offerings, grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings.

65 Then Solomon and all Israel celebrated the Festival of Shelters[au] in the presence of the Lord our God. A large congregation had gathered from as far away as Lebo-hamath in the north and the Brook of Egypt in the south. The celebration went on for fourteen days in all—seven days for the dedication of the altar and seven days for the Festival of Shelters.[av] 66 After the festival was over,[aw] Solomon sent the people home. They blessed the king and went to their homes joyful and glad because the Lord had been good to his servant David and to his people Israel.

The Lord’s Response to Solomon

9 So Solomon finished building the Temple of the Lord, as well as the royal palace. He completed everything he had planned to do. 2 Then the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time, as he had done before at Gibeon. 3 The Lord said to him,

“I have heard your prayer and your petition. I have set this Temple apart to be holy—this place you have built where my name will be honored forever. I will always watch over it, for it is dear to my heart.

4 “As for you, if you will follow me with integrity and godliness, as David your father did, obeying all my commands, decrees, and regulations, 5 then I will establish the throne of your dynasty over Israel forever. For I made this promise to your father, David: ‘One of your descendants will always sit on the throne of Israel.’

6 “But if you or your descendants abandon me and disobey the commands and decrees I have given you, and if you serve and worship other gods, 7 then I will uproot Israel from this land that I have given them. I will reject this Temple that I have made holy to honor my name. I will make Israel an object of mockery and ridicule among the nations. 8 And though this Temple is impressive now, all who pass by will be appalled and will gasp in horror. They will ask, ‘Why did the Lord do such terrible things to this land and to this Temple?’

9 “And the answer will be, ‘Because his people abandoned the Lord their God, who brought their ancestors out of Egypt, and they worshiped other gods instead and bowed down to them. That is why the Lord has brought all these disasters on them.’”

Solomon’s Agreement with Hiram

10 It took Solomon twenty years to build the Lord’s Temple and his own royal palace. At the end of that time, 11 he gave twenty towns in the land of Galilee to King Hiram of Tyre. (Hiram had previously provided all the cedar and cypress timber and gold that Solomon had requested.) 12 But when Hiram came from Tyre to see the towns Solomon had given him, he was not at all pleased with them. 13 “What kind of towns are these, my brother?” he asked. So Hiram called that area Cabul (which means “worthless”), as it is still known today. 14 Nevertheless, Hiram paid[ax] Solomon 9,000 pounds[ay] of gold.

Solomon’s Many Achievements

15 This is the account of the forced labor that King Solomon conscripted to build the Lord’s Temple, the royal palace, the supporting terraces,[az] the wall of Jerusalem, and the cities of Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer. 16 (Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, had attacked and captured Gezer, killing the Canaanite population and burning it down. He gave the city to his daughter as a wedding gift when she married Solomon. 17 So Solomon rebuilt the city of Gezer.) He also built up the towns of Lower Beth-horon, 18 Baalath, and Tamar[ba] in the wilderness within his land. 19 He built towns as supply centers and constructed towns where his chariots and horses[bb] could be stationed. He built everything he desired in Jerusalem and Lebanon and throughout his entire realm.

20 There were still some people living in the land who were not Israelites, including Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. 21 These were descendants of the nations whom the people of Israel had not completely destroyed.[bc] So Solomon conscripted them as slaves, and they serve as forced laborers to this day. 22 But Solomon did not conscript any of the Israelites for forced labor. Instead, he assigned them to serve as fighting men, government officials, officers and captains in his army, commanders of his chariots, and charioteers. 23 Solomon appointed 550 of them to supervise the people working on his various projects.

24 Solomon moved his wife, Pharaoh’s daughter, from the City of David to the new palace he had built for her. Then he constructed the supporting terraces.

25 Three times each year Solomon presented burnt offerings and peace offerings on the altar he had built for the Lord. He also burned incense to the Lord. And so he finished the work of building the Temple.

26 King Solomon also built a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber, a port near Elath[bd] in the land of Edom, along the shore of the Red Sea.[be] 27 Hiram sent experienced crews of sailors to sail the ships with Solomon’s men. 28 They sailed to Ophir and brought back to Solomon some sixteen tons[bf] of gold.

Visit of the Queen of Sheba

10 When the queen of Sheba heard of Solomon’s fame, which brought honor to the name of the Lord,[bg] she came to test him with hard questions. 2 She arrived in Jerusalem with a large group of attendants and a great caravan of camels loaded with spices, large quantities of gold, and precious jewels. When she met with Solomon, she talked with him about everything she had on her mind. 3 Solomon had answers for all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba realized how very wise Solomon was, and when she saw the palace he had built, 5 she was overwhelmed. She was also amazed at the food on his tables, the organization of his officials and their splendid clothing, the cup-bearers, and the burnt offerings Solomon made at the Temple of the Lord.

6 She exclaimed to the king, “Everything I heard in my country about your achievements[bh] and wisdom is true! 7 I didn’t believe what was said until I arrived here and saw it with my own eyes. In fact, I had not heard the half of it! Your wisdom and prosperity are far beyond what I was told. 8 How happy your people[bi] must be! What a privilege for your officials to stand here day after day, listening to your wisdom! 9 Praise the Lord your God, who delights in you and has placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king so you can rule with justice and righteousness.”

10 Then she gave the king a gift of 9,000 pounds[bj] of gold, great quantities of spices, and precious jewels. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

11 (In addition, Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir, and they also brought rich cargoes of red sandalwood[bk] and precious jewels. 12 The king used the sandalwood to make railings for the Temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and to construct lyres and harps for the musicians. Never before or since has there been such a supply of sandalwood.)

13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba whatever she asked for, besides all the customary gifts he had so generously given. Then she and all her attendants returned to their own land.

Solomon’s Wealth and Splendor

14 Each year Solomon received about 25 tons[bl] of gold. 15 This did not include the additional revenue he received from merchants and traders, all the kings of Arabia, and the governors of the land.

16 King Solomon made 200 large shields of hammered gold, each weighing more than fifteen pounds.[bm] 17 He also made 300 smaller shields of hammered gold, each weighing nearly four pounds.[bn] The king placed these shields in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.

18 Then the king made a huge throne, decorated with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps and a rounded back. There were armrests on both sides of the seat, and the figure of a lion stood on each side of the throne. 20 There were also twelve other lions, one standing on each end of the six steps. No other throne in all the world could be compared with it!

21 All of King Solomon’s drinking cups were solid gold, as were all the utensils in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. They were not made of silver, for silver was considered worthless in Solomon’s day!

22 The king had a fleet of trading ships of Tarshish that sailed with Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years the ships returned, loaded with gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.[bo]

23 So King Solomon became richer and wiser than any other king on earth. 24 People from every nation came to consult him and to hear the wisdom God had given him. 25 Year after year everyone who visited brought him gifts of silver and gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.

26 Solomon built up a huge force of chariots and horses.[bp] He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses. He stationed some of them in the chariot cities and some near him in Jerusalem. 27 The king made silver as plentiful in Jerusalem as stone. And valuable cedar timber was as common as the sycamore-fig trees that grow in the foothills of Judah.[bq] 28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt[br] and from Cilicia[bs]; the king’s traders acquired them from Cilicia at the standard price. 29 At that time chariots from Egypt could be purchased for 600 pieces of silver,[bt] and horses for 150 pieces of silver.[bu] They were then exported to the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.

Solomon’s Many Wives

11 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women. Besides Pharaoh’s daughter, he married women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and from among the Hittites. 2 The Lord had clearly instructed the people of Israel, “You must not marry them, because they will turn your hearts to their gods.” Yet Solomon insisted on loving them anyway. 3 He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the Lord.

4 In Solomon’s old age, they turned his heart to worship other gods instead of being completely faithful to the Lord his God, as his father, David, had been. 5 Solomon worshiped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech,[bv] the detestable god of the Ammonites. 6 In this way, Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s sight; he refused to follow the Lord completely, as his father, David, had done.

7 On the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem,[bw] he even built a pagan shrine for Chemosh, the detestable god of Moab, and another for Molech, the detestable god of the Ammonites. 8 Solomon built such shrines for all his foreign wives to use for burning incense and sacrificing to their gods.

9 The Lord was very angry with Solomon, for his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. 10 He had warned Solomon specifically about worshiping other gods, but Solomon did not listen to the Lord’s command. 11 So now the Lord said to him, “Since you have not kept my covenant and have disobeyed my decrees, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your servants. 12 But for the sake of your father, David, I will not do this while you are still alive. I will take the kingdom away from your son. 13 And even so, I will not take away the entire kingdom; I will let him be king of one tribe, for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, my chosen city.”

Solomon’s Adversaries

14 Then the Lord raised up Hadad the Edomite, a member of Edom’s royal family, to be Solomon’s adversary. 15 Years before, David had defeated Edom. Joab, his army commander, had stayed to bury some of the Israelite soldiers who had died in battle. While there, they killed every male in Edom. 16 Joab and the army of Israel had stayed there for six months, killing them.

17 But Hadad and a few of his father’s royal officials escaped and headed for Egypt. (Hadad was just a boy at the time.) 18 They set out from Midian and went to Paran, where others joined them. Then they traveled to Egypt and went to Pharaoh, who gave them a home, food, and some land. 19 Pharaoh grew very fond of Hadad, and he gave him his wife’s sister in marriage—the sister of Queen Tahpenes. 20 She bore him a son named Genubath. Tahpenes raised him[bx] in Pharaoh’s palace among Pharaoh’s own sons.

21 When the news reached Hadad in Egypt that David and his commander Joab were both dead, he said to Pharaoh, “Let me return to my own country.”

22 “Why?” Pharaoh asked him. “What do you lack here that makes you want to go home?”

“Nothing,” he replied. “But even so, please let me return home.”

23 God also raised up Rezon son of Eliada as Solomon’s adversary. Rezon had fled from his master, King Hadadezer of Zobah, 24 and had become the leader of a gang of rebels. After David conquered Hadadezer, Rezon and his men fled to Damascus, where he became king. 25 Rezon was Israel’s bitter adversary for the rest of Solomon’s reign, and he made trouble, just as Hadad did. Rezon hated Israel intensely and continued to reign in Aram.

Jeroboam Rebels against Solomon

26 Another rebel leader was Jeroboam son of Nebat, one of Solomon’s own officials. He came from the town of Zeredah in Ephraim, and his mother was Zeruah, a widow.

27 This is the story behind his rebellion. Solomon was rebuilding the supporting terraces[by] and repairing the walls of the city of his father, David. 28 Jeroboam was a very capable young man, and when Solomon saw how industrious he was, he put him in charge of the labor force from the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, the descendants of Joseph.

29 One day as Jeroboam was leaving Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh met him along the way. Ahijah was wearing a new cloak. The two of them were alone in a field, 30 and Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces. 31 Then he said to Jeroboam, “Take ten of these pieces, for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon, and I will give ten of the tribes to you! 32 But I will leave him one tribe for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel. 33 For Solomon has[bz] abandoned me and worshiped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians; Chemosh, the god of Moab; and Molech, the god of the Ammonites. He has not followed my ways and done what is pleasing in my sight. He has not obeyed my decrees and regulations as David his father did.

34 “‘But I will not take the entire kingdom from Solomon at this time. For the sake of my servant David, the one whom I chose and who obeyed my commands and decrees, I will keep Solomon as leader for the rest of his life. 35 But I will take the kingdom away from his son and give ten of the tribes to you. 36 His son will have one tribe so that the descendants of David my servant will continue to reign, shining like a lamp in Jerusalem, the city I have chosen to be the place for my name. 37 And I will place you on the throne of Israel, and you will rule over all that your heart desires. 38 If you listen to what I tell you and follow my ways and do whatever I consider to be right, and if you obey my decrees and commands, as my servant David did, then I will always be with you. I will establish an enduring dynasty for you as I did for David, and I will give Israel to you. 39 Because of Solomon’s sin I will punish the descendants of David—though not forever.’”

40 Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but he fled to King Shishak of Egypt and stayed there until Solomon died.

Summary of Solomon’s Reign

41 The rest of the events in Solomon’s reign, including all his deeds and his wisdom, are recorded in The Book of the Acts of Solomon. 42 Solomon ruled in Jerusalem over all Israel for forty years. 43 When he died, he was buried in the City of David, named for his father. Then his son Rehoboam became the next king.

The Northern Tribes Revolt

12 Rehoboam went to Shechem, where all Israel had gathered to make him king. 2 When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard of this, he returned from Egypt,[ca] for he had fled to Egypt to escape from King Solomon. 3 The leaders of Israel summoned him, and Jeroboam and the whole assembly of Israel went to speak with Rehoboam. 4 “Your father was a hard master,” they said. “Lighten the harsh labor demands and heavy taxes that your father imposed on us. Then we will be your loyal subjects.”

5 Rehoboam replied, “Give me three days to think this over. Then come back for my answer.” So the people went away.

6 Then King Rehoboam discussed the matter with the older men who had counseled his father, Solomon. “What is your advice?” he asked. “How should I answer these people?”

7 The older counselors replied, “If you are willing to be a servant to these people today and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your loyal subjects.”

8 But Rehoboam rejected the advice of the older men and instead asked the opinion of the young men who had grown up with him and were now his advisers. 9 “What is your advice?” he asked them. “How should I answer these people who want me to lighten the burdens imposed by my father?”

10 The young men replied, “This is what you should tell those complainers who want a lighter burden: ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist! 11 Yes, my father laid heavy burdens on you, but I’m going to make them even heavier! My father beat you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions!’”

12 Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to hear Rehoboam’s decision, just as the king had ordered. 13 But Rehoboam spoke harshly to the people, for he rejected the advice of the older counselors 14 and followed the counsel of his younger advisers. He told the people, “My father laid heavy burdens on you, but I’m going to make them even heavier! My father beat you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions!”

15 So the king paid no attention to the people. This turn of events was the will of the Lord, for it fulfilled the Lord’s message to Jeroboam son of Nebat through the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh.

16 When all Israel realized that the king had refused to listen to them, they responded,

“Down with the dynasty of David!
    We have no interest in the son of Jesse.
Back to your homes, O Israel!
    Look out for your own house, O David!”

So the people of Israel returned home. 17 But Rehoboam continued to rule over the Israelites who lived in the towns of Judah.

18 King Rehoboam sent Adoniram,[cb] who was in charge of forced labor, to restore order, but the people of Israel stoned him to death. When this news reached King Rehoboam, he quickly jumped into his chariot and fled to Jerusalem. 19 And to this day the northern tribes of Israel have refused to be ruled by a descendant of David.

20 When the people of Israel learned of Jeroboam’s return from Egypt, they called an assembly and made him king over all Israel. So only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the family of David.

Shemaiah’s Prophecy

21 When Rehoboam arrived at Jerusalem, he mobilized the men of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin—180,000 select troops—to fight against the men of Israel and to restore the kingdom to himself.

22 But God said to Shemaiah, the man of God, 23 “Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the people of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, 24 ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not fight against your relatives, the Israelites. Go back home, for what has happened is my doing!’” So they obeyed the message of the Lord and went home, as the Lord had commanded.

Jeroboam Makes Gold Calves

25 Jeroboam then built up the city of Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and it became his capital. Later he went and built up the town of Peniel.[cc]

26 Jeroboam thought to himself, “Unless I am careful, the kingdom will return to the dynasty of David. 27 When these people go to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices at the Temple of the Lord, they will again give their allegiance to King Rehoboam of Judah. They will kill me and make him their king instead.”

28 So on the advice of his counselors, the king made two gold calves. He said to the people,[cd] “It is too much trouble for you to worship in Jerusalem. Look, Israel, these are the gods who brought you out of Egypt!”

29 He placed these calf idols in Bethel and in Dan—at either end of his kingdom. 30 But this became a great sin, for the people worshiped the idols, traveling as far north as Dan to worship the one there.

31 Jeroboam also erected buildings at the pagan shrines and ordained priests from the common people—those who were not from the priestly tribe of Levi. 32 And Jeroboam instituted a religious festival in Bethel, held on the fifteenth day of the eighth month,[ce] in imitation of the annual Festival of Shelters in Judah. There at Bethel he himself offered sacrifices to the calves he had made, and he appointed priests for the pagan shrines he had made. 33 So on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a day that he himself had designated, Jeroboam offered sacrifices on the altar at Bethel. He instituted a religious festival for Israel, and he went up to the altar to burn incense.

A Prophet Denounces Jeroboam

13 At the Lord’s command, a man of God from Judah went to Bethel, arriving there just as Jeroboam was approaching the altar to burn incense. 2 Then at the Lord’s command, he shouted, “O altar, altar! This is what the Lord says: A child named Josiah will be born into the dynasty of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests from the pagan shrines who come here to burn incense, and human bones will be burned on you.” 3 That same day the man of God gave a sign to prove his message. He said, “The Lord has promised to give this sign: This altar will split apart, and its ashes will be poured out on the ground.”

4 When King Jeroboam heard the man of God speaking against the altar at Bethel, he pointed at him and shouted, “Seize that man!” But instantly the king’s hand became paralyzed in that position, and he couldn’t pull it back. 5 At the same time a wide crack appeared in the altar, and the ashes poured out, just as the man of God had predicted in his message from the Lord.

6 The king cried out to the man of God, “Please ask the Lord your God to restore my hand again!” So the man of God prayed to the Lord, and the king’s hand was restored and he could move it again.

7 Then the king said to the man of God, “Come to the palace with me and have something to eat, and I will give you a gift.”

8 But the man of God said to the king, “Even if you gave me half of everything you own, I would not go with you. I would not eat or drink anything in this place. 9 For the Lord gave me this command: ‘You must not eat or drink anything while you are there, and do not return to Judah by the same way you came.’” 10 So he left Bethel and went home another way.

11 As it happened, there was an old prophet living in Bethel, and his sons[cf] came home and told him what the man of God had done in Bethel that day. They also told their father what the man had said to the king. 12 The old prophet asked them, “Which way did he go?” So they showed their father[cg] which road the man of God had taken. 13 “Quick, saddle the donkey,” the old man said. So they saddled the donkey for him, and he mounted it.

14 Then he rode after the man of God and found him sitting under a great tree. The old prophet asked him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?”

“Yes, I am,” he replied.

15 Then he said to the man of God, “Come home with me and eat some food.”

16 “No, I cannot,” he replied. “I am not allowed to eat or drink anything here in this place. 17 For the Lord gave me this command: ‘You must not eat or drink anything while you are there, and do not return to Judah by the same way you came.’”

18 But the old prophet answered, “I am a prophet, too, just as you are. And an angel gave me this command from the Lord: ‘Bring him home with you so he can have something to eat and drink.’” But the old man was lying to him. 19 So they went back together, and the man of God ate and drank at the prophet’s home.

20 Then while they were sitting at the table, a command from the Lord came to the old prophet. 21 He cried out to the man of God from Judah, “This is what the Lord says: You have defied the word of the Lord and have disobeyed the command the Lord your God gave you. 22 You came back to this place and ate and drank where he told you not to eat or drink. Because of this, your body will not be buried in the grave of your ancestors.”

23 After the man of God had finished eating and drinking, the old prophet saddled his own donkey for him, 24 and the man of God started off again. But as he was traveling along, a lion came out and killed him. His body lay there on the road, with the donkey and the lion standing beside it. 25 People who passed by saw the body lying in the road and the lion standing beside it, and they went and reported it in Bethel, where the old prophet lived.

26 When the prophet heard the report, he said, “It is the man of God who disobeyed the Lord’s command. The Lord has fulfilled his word by causing the lion to attack and kill him.”

27 Then the prophet said to his sons, “Saddle a donkey for me.” So they saddled a donkey, 28 and he went out and found the body lying in the road. The donkey and lion were still standing there beside it, for the lion had not eaten the body nor attacked the donkey. 29 So the prophet laid the body of the man of God on the donkey and took it back to the town to mourn over him and bury him. 30 He laid the body in his own grave, crying out in grief, “Oh, my brother!”

31 Afterward the prophet said to his sons, “When I die, bury me in the grave where the man of God is buried. Lay my bones beside his bones. 32 For the message the Lord told him to proclaim against the altar in Bethel and against the pagan shrines in the towns of Samaria will certainly come true.”

33 But even after this, Jeroboam did not turn from his evil ways. He continued to choose priests from the common people. He appointed anyone who wanted to become a priest for the pagan shrines. 34 This became a great sin and resulted in the utter destruction of Jeroboam’s dynasty from the face of the earth.

Ahijah’s Prophecy against Jeroboam

14 At that time Jeroboam’s son Abijah became very sick. 2 So Jeroboam told his wife, “Disguise yourself so that no one will recognize you as my wife. Then go to the prophet Ahijah at Shiloh—the man who told me I would become king. 3 Take him a gift of ten loaves of bread, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and ask him what will happen to the boy.”

4 So Jeroboam’s wife went to Ahijah’s home at Shiloh. He was an old man now and could no longer see. 5 But the Lord had told Ahijah, “Jeroboam’s wife will come here, pretending to be someone else. She will ask you about her son, for he is very sick. Give her the answer I give you.”

6 So when Ahijah heard her footsteps at the door, he called out, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam! Why are you pretending to be someone else?” Then he told her, “I have bad news for you. 7 Give your husband, Jeroboam, this message from the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘I promoted you from the ranks of the common people and made you ruler over my people Israel. 8 I ripped the kingdom away from the family of David and gave it to you. But you have not been like my servant David, who obeyed my commands and followed me with all his heart and always did whatever I wanted. 9 You have done more evil than all who lived before you. You have made other gods for yourself and have made me furious with your gold calves. And since you have turned your back on me, 10 I will bring disaster on your dynasty and will destroy every one of your male descendants, slave and free alike, anywhere in Israel. I will burn up your royal dynasty as one burns up trash until it is all gone. 11 The members of Jeroboam’s family who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and those who die in the field will be eaten by vultures. I, the Lord, have spoken.’”

12 Then Ahijah said to Jeroboam’s wife, “Go on home, and when you enter the city, the child will die. 13 All Israel will mourn for him and bury him. He is the only member of your family who will have a proper burial, for this child is the only good thing that the Lord, the God of Israel, sees in the entire family of Jeroboam.

14 “In addition, the Lord will raise up a king over Israel who will destroy the family of Jeroboam. This will happen today, even now! 15 Then the Lord will shake Israel like a reed whipped about in a stream. He will uproot the people of Israel from this good land that he gave their ancestors and will scatter them beyond the Euphrates River,[ch] for they have angered the Lord with the Asherah poles they have set up for worship. 16 He will abandon Israel because Jeroboam sinned and made Israel sin along with him.”

17 So Jeroboam’s wife returned to Tirzah, and the child died just as she walked through the door of her home. 18 And all Israel buried him and mourned for him, as the Lord had promised through the prophet Ahijah.

19 The rest of the events in Jeroboam’s reign, including all his wars and how he ruled, are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Israel. 20 Jeroboam reigned in Israel twenty-two years. When Jeroboam died, his son Nadab became the next king.

Rehoboam Rules in Judah

21 Meanwhile, Rehoboam son of Solomon was king in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen from among all the tribes of Israel as the place to honor his name. Rehoboam’s mother was Naamah, an Ammonite woman.

22 During Rehoboam’s reign, the people of Judah did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, provoking his anger with their sin, for it was even worse than that of their ancestors. 23 For they also built for themselves pagan shrines and set up sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree. 24 There were even male and female shrine prostitutes throughout the land. The people imitated the detestable practices of the pagan nations the Lord had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites.

25 In the fifth year of King Rehoboam’s reign, King Shishak of Egypt came up and attacked Jerusalem. 26 He ransacked the treasuries of the Lord’s Temple and the royal palace; he stole everything, including all the gold shields Solomon had made. 27 King Rehoboam later replaced them with bronze shields as substitutes, and he entrusted them to the care of the commanders of the guard who protected the entrance to the royal palace. 28 Whenever the king went to the Temple of the Lord, the guards would also take the shields and then return them to the guardroom.

29 The rest of the events in Rehoboam’s reign and everything he did are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Judah. 30 There was constant war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam. 31 When Rehoboam died, he was buried among his ancestors in the City of David. His mother was Naamah, an Ammonite woman. Then his son Abijam[ci] became the next king.

Footnotes

  1. 5:1 Verses 5:1-18 are numbered 5:15-32 in Hebrew text.
  2. 5:9 Hebrew the sea.
  3. 5:11a Hebrew 20,000 cors [4,400 kiloliters].
  4. 5:11b As in Greek version, which reads 20,000 baths [420 kiloliters] (see also 2 Chr 2:10); Hebrew reads 20 cors, about 1,000 gallons or 4.4 kiloliters in volume.
  5. 5:16 As in some Greek manuscripts (see also 2 Chr 2:2, 18); Hebrew reads 3,300.
  6. 6:1 Hebrew It was in the month of Ziv, which is the second month. This month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar usually occurs within the months of April and May.
  7. 6:2 Hebrew 60 cubits [27.6 meters] long, 20 cubits [9.2 meters] wide, and 30 cubits [13.8 meters] high.
  8. 6:3a Hebrew 20 cubits [9.2 meters]; also in 6:16, 20.
  9. 6:3b Hebrew 10 cubits [4.6 meters].
  10. 6:6 Hebrew the bottom floor being 5 cubits [2.3 meters] wide, the second floor 6 cubits [2.8 meters] wide, and the top floor 7 cubits [3.2 meters] wide.
  11. 6:8 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads middle floor.
  12. 6:10 Hebrew 5 cubits [2.3 meters].
  13. 6:17 Hebrew 40 cubits [18.4 meters].
  14. 6:20 Or overlaid the altar with cedar. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  15. 6:21 Or to draw curtains across. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  16. 6:23a Or pine; Hebrew reads oil tree; also in 6:31, 33.
  17. 6:23b Hebrew 10 cubits [4.6 meters]; also in 6:24, 26.
  18. 6:24 Hebrew 5 cubits [2.3 meters].
  19. 6:31 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  20. 6:37 Hebrew was laid in the month of Ziv. This month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar usually occurs within the months of April and May.
  21. 6:38 Hebrew by the month of Bul, which is the eighth month. This month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar usually occurs within the months of October and November.
  22. 7:2 Hebrew 100 cubits [46 meters] long, 50 cubits [23 meters] wide, and 30 cubits [13.8 meters] high.
  23. 7:3 Or 45 rafters, or 45 beams, or 45 pillars. The architectural details in 7:2-6 can be interpreted in many different ways.
  24. 7:5 Greek version reads windows.
  25. 7:6 Hebrew 50 cubits [23 meters] long and 30 cubits [13.8 meters] wide.
  26. 7:7 As in Syriac version and Latin Vulgate; Hebrew reads from floor to floor.
  27. 7:10 Hebrew 10 cubits [4.6 meters] . . . 8 cubits [3.7 meters].
  28. 7:13 Hebrew Hiram (also in 7:40, 45); compare 2 Chr 2:13. This is not the same person mentioned in 5:1.
  29. 7:15 Hebrew 18 cubits [8.3 meters] tall and 12 cubits [5.5 meters] in circumference.
  30. 7:16 Hebrew 5 cubits [2.3 meters].
  31. 7:19 Hebrew 4 cubits [1.8 meters]; also in 7:38.
  32. 7:21 Jakin probably means “he establishes”; Boaz probably means “in him is strength.”
  33. 7:23 Hebrew 10 cubits [4.6 meters] across. . . . 5 cubits [2.3 meters] deep and 30 cubits [13.8 meters] in circumference.
  34. 7:24 Or 20 gourds per meter; Hebrew reads 10 per cubit.
  35. 7:25 Hebrew 12 oxen; compare 2 Kgs 16:17, which specifies bronze oxen.
  36. 7:26a Hebrew a handbreadth [8 centimeters].
  37. 7:26b Hebrew 2,000 baths [42 kiloliters].
  38. 7:27 Hebrew 4 cubits [1.8 meters] long, 4 cubits wide, and 3 cubits [1.4 meters] high.
  39. 7:31a Hebrew a cubit [46 centimeters].
  40. 7:31b Hebrew 1 1⁄2 cubits [69 centimeters]; also in 7:32.
  41. 7:35 Hebrew half a cubit wide [23 centimeters].
  42. 7:38 Hebrew 40 baths [840 liters].
  43. 8:2 Hebrew at the festival in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month. The Festival of Shelters began on the fifteenth day of the seventh month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This day occurred in late September, October, or early November.
  44. 8:4 Hebrew the Tent of Meeting; i.e., the tent mentioned in 2 Sam 6:17 and 1 Chr 16:1.
  45. 8:9 Hebrew at Horeb, another name for Sinai.
  46. 8:13 Some Greek texts add the line Is this not written in the Book of Jashar?
  47. 8:65a Hebrew the festival; see note on 8:2.
  48. 8:65b Hebrew seven days and seven days, fourteen days; compare parallel text at 2 Chr 7:8-10.
  49. 8:66 Hebrew On the eighth day, probably referring to the day following the seven-day Festival of Shelters; compare parallel text at 2 Chr 7:9-10.
  50. 9:14a Or For Hiram had paid.
  51. 9:14b Hebrew 120 talents [4,000 kilograms].
  52. 9:15 Hebrew the millo; also in 9:24. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  53. 9:18 An alternate reading in the Masoretic Text reads Tadmor.
  54. 9:19 Or and charioteers.
  55. 9:21 The Hebrew term used here refers to the complete consecration of things or people to the Lord, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering.
  56. 9:26a As in Greek version (see also 2 Kgs 14:22; 16:6); Hebrew reads Eloth, a variant spelling of Elath.
  57. 9:26b Hebrew sea of reeds.
  58. 9:28 Hebrew 420 talents [14 metric tons].
  59. 10:1 Or which was due to the name of the Lord. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  60. 10:6 Hebrew your words.
  61. 10:8 Greek and Syriac versions and Latin Vulgate read your wives.
  62. 10:10 Hebrew 120 talents [4,000 kilograms].
  63. 10:11 Hebrew almug wood; also in 10:12.
  64. 10:14 Hebrew 666 talents [23 metric tons].
  65. 10:16 Hebrew 600 [shekels] of gold [6.8 kilograms].
  66. 10:17 Hebrew 3 minas [1.8 kilograms].
  67. 10:22 Or and baboons.
  68. 10:26 Or charioteers; also in 10:26b.
  69. 10:27 Hebrew the Shephelah.
  70. 10:28a Possibly Muzur, a district near Cilicia; also in 10:29.
  71. 10:28b Hebrew Kue, probably another name for Cilicia.
  72. 10:29a Hebrew 600 [shekels] of silver, about 15 pounds or 6.8 kilograms in weight.
  73. 10:29b Hebrew 150 [shekels], about 3.8 pounds or 1.7 kilograms in weight.
  74. 11:5 Hebrew Milcom, a variant spelling of Molech; also in 11:33.
  75. 11:7 Hebrew On the mountain east of Jerusalem.
  76. 11:20 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads weaned him.
  77. 11:27 Hebrew the millo. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  78. 11:33 As in Greek, Syriac, and Latin Vulgate; Hebrew reads For they have.
  79. 12:2 As in Greek version and Latin Vulgate (see also 2 Chr 10:2); Hebrew reads he lived in Egypt.
  80. 12:18 As in some Greek manuscripts and Syriac version (see also 4:6; 5:14); Hebrew reads Adoram.
  81. 12:25 Hebrew Penuel, a variant spelling of Peniel.
  82. 12:28 Hebrew to them.
  83. 12:32 This day of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred in late October or early November, exactly one month after the annual Festival of Shelters in Judah (see Lev 23:34).
  84. 13:11 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads son.
  85. 13:12 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads They had seen.
  86. 14:15 Hebrew the river.
  87. 14:31 Also known as Abijah.
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1 Kings 5-11
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Preparations for Building the Temple(A)

5 [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. 2 Solomon sent back this message to Hiram:

3 “You know that because of the wars(C) waged against my father David from all sides, he could not build(D) a temple for the Name of the Lord his God until the Lord put his enemies under his feet.(E) 4 But now the Lord my God has given me rest(F) on every side, and there is no adversary(G) or disaster. 5 I intend, therefore, to build a temple(H) for the Name of the Lord my God, as the Lord told my father David, when he said, ‘Your son whom I will put on the throne in your place will build the temple for my Name.’(I)

6 “So give orders that cedars(J) 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.”

7 When Hiram heard Solomon’s message, he was greatly pleased and said, “Praise be to the Lord(K) today, for he has given David a wise son to rule over this great nation.”

8 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. 9 My men will haul them down from Lebanon to the Mediterranean Sea(L), 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(M) 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[b] of wheat as food(N) for his household, in addition to twenty thousand baths[c][d] of pressed olive oil. Solomon continued to do this for Hiram year after year. 12 The Lord gave Solomon wisdom,(O) just as he had promised him. There were peaceful relations between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.(P)

13 King Solomon conscripted laborers(Q) from all Israel—thirty thousand men. 14 He sent them off to Lebanon in shifts of ten thousand a month, so that they spent one month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram(R) was in charge of the forced labor. 15 Solomon had seventy thousand carriers and eighty thousand stonecutters in the hills, 16 as well as thirty-three hundred[e] foremen(S) who supervised the project and directed the workers. 17 At the king’s command they removed from the quarry(T) large blocks of high-grade stone(U) to provide a foundation of dressed stone for the temple. 18 The craftsmen of Solomon and Hiram(V) and workers from Byblos(W) cut and prepared the timber and stone for the building of the temple.

Solomon Builds the Temple(X)

6 In the four hundred and eightieth[f] year after the Israelites came out of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, the second month,(Y) he began to build the temple of the Lord.(Z)

2 The temple(AA) that King Solomon built for the Lord was sixty cubits long, twenty wide and thirty high.[g] 3 The portico(AB) at the front of the main hall of the temple extended the width of the temple, that is twenty cubits,[h] and projected ten cubits[i] from the front of the temple. 4 He made narrow windows(AC) high up in the temple walls. 5 Against the walls of the main hall and inner sanctuary he built a structure around the building, in which there were side rooms.(AD) 6 The lowest floor was five cubits[j] wide, the middle floor six cubits[k] and the third floor seven.[l] He made offset ledges around the outside of the temple so that nothing would be inserted into the temple walls.

7 In building the temple, only blocks dressed(AE) at the quarry were used, and no hammer, chisel or any other iron tool(AF) was heard at the temple site while it was being built.

8 The entrance to the lowest[m] floor was on the south side of the temple; a stairway led up to the middle level and from there to the third. 9 So he built the temple and completed it, roofing it with beams and cedar(AG) planks. 10 And he built the side rooms all along the temple. The height of each was five cubits, and they were attached to the temple by beams of cedar.

11 The word of the Lord came(AH) to Solomon: 12 “As for this temple you are building, if you follow my decrees, observe my laws and keep all my commands(AI) and obey them, I will fulfill through you the promise(AJ) I gave to David your father. 13 And I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon(AK) my people Israel.”

14 So Solomon(AL) built the temple and completed(AM) it. 15 He lined its interior walls with cedar boards, paneling them from the floor of the temple to the ceiling,(AN) and covered the floor of the temple with planks of juniper.(AO) 16 He partitioned off twenty cubits at the rear of the temple with cedar boards from floor to ceiling to form within the temple an inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place.(AP) 17 The main hall in front of this room was forty cubits[n] long. 18 The inside of the temple was cedar,(AQ) carved with gourds and open flowers. Everything was cedar; no stone was to be seen.

19 He prepared the inner sanctuary(AR) within the temple to set the ark of the covenant(AS) of the Lord there. 20 The inner sanctuary(AT) was twenty cubits long, twenty wide and twenty high. He overlaid the inside with pure gold, and he also overlaid the altar of cedar.(AU) 21 Solomon covered the inside of the temple with pure gold, and he extended gold chains across the front of the inner sanctuary, which was overlaid with gold. 22 So he overlaid the whole interior with gold. He also overlaid with gold the altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary.

23 For the inner sanctuary he made a pair of cherubim(AV) out of olive wood, each ten cubits high. 24 One wing of the first cherub was five cubits long, and the other wing five cubits—ten cubits from wing tip to wing tip. 25 The second cherub also measured ten cubits, for the two cherubim were identical in size and shape. 26 The height of each cherub was ten cubits. 27 He placed the cherubim(AW) inside the innermost room of the temple, with their wings spread out. The wing of one cherub touched one wall, while the wing of the other touched the other wall, and their wings touched each other in the middle of the room. 28 He overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29 On the walls(AX) all around the temple, in both the inner and outer rooms, he carved cherubim,(AY) palm trees and open flowers. 30 He also covered the floors of both the inner and outer rooms of the temple with gold.

31 For the entrance to the inner sanctuary he made doors out of olive wood that were one fifth of the width of the sanctuary. 32 And on the two olive-wood doors(AZ) he carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid the cherubim and palm trees with hammered gold. 33 In the same way, for the entrance to the main hall he made doorframes out of olive wood that were one fourth of the width of the hall. 34 He also made two doors out of juniper wood, each having two leaves that turned in sockets. 35 He carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers on them and overlaid them with gold hammered evenly over the carvings.

36 And he built the inner courtyard(BA) of three courses(BB) of dressed stone and one course of trimmed cedar beams.

37 The foundation of the temple of the Lord was laid in the fourth year, in the month of Ziv. 38 In the eleventh year in the month of Bul, the eighth month, the temple was finished in all its details(BC) according to its specifications.(BD) He had spent seven years building it.

Solomon Builds His Palace

7 It took Solomon thirteen years, however, to complete the construction of his palace.(BE) 2 He built the Palace(BF) of the Forest of Lebanon(BG) a hundred cubits long, fifty wide and thirty high,[o] with four rows of cedar columns supporting trimmed cedar beams. 3 It was roofed with cedar above the beams that rested on the columns—forty-five beams, fifteen to a row. 4 Its windows were placed high in sets of three, facing each other. 5 All the doorways had rectangular frames; they were in the front part in sets of three, facing each other.[p]

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

7 He built the throne hall, the Hall of Justice, where he was to judge,(BH) and he covered it with cedar from floor to ceiling.[r](BI) 8 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.(BJ)

9 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[s] and some eight.[t] 11 Above were high-grade stones, cut to size, and cedar beams. 12 The great courtyard was surrounded by a wall of three courses(BK) of dressed stone and one course of trimmed cedar beams, as was the inner courtyard of the temple of the Lord with its portico.

The Temple’s Furnishings(BL)(BM)

13 King Solomon sent to Tyre and brought Huram,[u](BN) 14 whose mother was a widow from the tribe of Naphtali and whose father was from Tyre and a skilled craftsman in bronze. Huram was filled with wisdom,(BO) with understanding and with knowledge to do all kinds of bronze work. He came to King Solomon and did all(BP) the work assigned to him.

15 He cast two bronze pillars,(BQ) each eighteen cubits high and twelve cubits in circumference.[v] 16 He also made two capitals(BR) of cast bronze to set on the tops of the pillars; each capital was five cubits[w] high. 17 A network of interwoven chains adorned the capitals on top of the pillars, seven for each capital. 18 He made pomegranates in two rows[x] encircling each network to decorate the capitals on top of the pillars.[y] He did the same for each capital. 19 The capitals on top of the pillars in the portico were in the shape of lilies, four cubits[z] high. 20 On the capitals of both pillars, above the bowl-shaped part next to the network, were the two hundred pomegranates(BS) in rows all around. 21 He erected the pillars at the portico of the temple. The pillar to the south he named Jakin[aa] and the one to the north Boaz.[ab](BT) 22 The capitals on top were in the shape of lilies. And so the work on the pillars(BU) was completed.

23 He made the Sea(BV) of cast metal, circular in shape, measuring ten cubits from rim to rim and five cubits high. It took a line(BW) of thirty cubits[ac] to measure around it. 24 Below the rim, gourds encircled it—ten to a cubit. The gourds were cast in two rows in one piece with the Sea.

25 The Sea stood on twelve bulls,(BX) three facing north, three facing west, three facing south and three facing east. The Sea rested on top of them, and their hindquarters were toward the center. 26 It was a handbreadth[ad] in thickness, and its rim was like the rim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held two thousand baths.[ae]

27 He also made ten movable stands(BY) of bronze; each was four cubits long, four wide and three high.[af] 28 This is how the stands were made: They had side panels attached to uprights. 29 On the panels between the uprights were lions, bulls and cherubim—and on the uprights as well. Above and below the lions and bulls were wreaths of hammered work. 30 Each stand(BZ) had four bronze wheels with bronze axles, and each had a basin resting on four supports, cast with wreaths on each side. 31 On the inside of the stand there was an opening that had a circular frame one cubit[ag] deep. This opening was round, and with its basework it measured a cubit and a half.[ah] Around its opening there was engraving. The panels of the stands were square, not round. 32 The four wheels were under the panels, and the axles of the wheels were attached to the stand. The diameter of each wheel was a cubit and a half. 33 The wheels were made like chariot wheels; the axles, rims, spokes and hubs were all of cast metal.

34 Each stand had four handles, one on each corner, projecting from the stand. 35 At the top of the stand there was a circular band half a cubit[ai] deep. The supports and panels were attached to the top of the stand. 36 He engraved cherubim, lions and palm trees on the surfaces of the supports and on the panels, in every available space, with wreaths all around. 37 This is the way he made the ten stands. They were all cast in the same molds and were identical in size and shape.

38 He then made ten bronze basins,(CA) each holding forty baths[aj] and measuring four cubits across, one basin to go on each of the ten stands. 39 He placed five of the stands on the south side of the temple and five on the north. He placed the Sea on the south side, at the southeast corner of the temple. 40 He also made the pots[ak] and shovels and sprinkling bowls.(CB)

So Huram finished all the work he had undertaken for King Solomon in the temple of the Lord:

41 the two pillars;

the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars;

the two sets of network decorating the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars;

42 the four hundred pomegranates for the two sets of network (two rows of pomegranates for each network decorating the bowl-shaped capitals(CC) on top of the pillars);

43 the ten stands with their ten basins;

44 the Sea and the twelve bulls under it;

45 the pots, shovels and sprinkling bowls.(CD)

All these objects that Huram(CE) made for King Solomon for the temple of the Lord were of burnished bronze. 46 The king had them cast in clay molds in the plain(CF) of the Jordan between Sukkoth(CG) and Zarethan.(CH) 47 Solomon left all these things unweighed,(CI) because there were so many;(CJ) the weight of the bronze(CK) was not determined.

48 Solomon also made all(CL) the furnishings that were in the Lord’s temple:

the golden altar;

the golden table(CM) on which was the bread of the Presence;(CN)

49 the lampstands(CO) of pure gold (five on the right and five on the left, in front of the inner sanctuary);

the gold floral work and lamps and tongs;

50 the pure gold basins, wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, dishes(CP) and censers;(CQ)

and the gold sockets for the doors of the innermost room, the Most Holy Place, and also for the doors of the main hall of the temple.

51 When all the work King Solomon had done for the temple of the Lord was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated(CR)—the silver and gold and the furnishings(CS)—and he placed them in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple.

The Ark Brought to the Temple(CT)

8 Then King Solomon summoned into his presence at Jerusalem the elders of Israel, all the heads of the tribes and the chiefs(CU) of the Israelite families, to bring up the ark(CV) of the Lord’s covenant from Zion, the City of David.(CW) 2 All the Israelites came together to King Solomon at the time of the festival(CX) in the month of Ethanim, the seventh month.(CY)

3 When all the elders of Israel had arrived, the priests(CZ) took up the ark, 4 and they brought up the ark of the Lord and the tent of meeting(DA) and all the sacred furnishings in it. The priests and Levites(DB) carried them up, 5 and King Solomon and the entire assembly of Israel that had gathered about him were before the ark, sacrificing(DC) so many sheep and cattle that they could not be recorded or counted.

6 The priests then brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant(DD) to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place,(DE) and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim.(DF) 7 The cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark and overshadowed(DG) the ark and its carrying poles. 8 These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place in front of the inner sanctuary, but not from outside the Holy Place; and they are still there today.(DH) 9 There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets(DI) that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt.

10 When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud(DJ) filled the temple of the Lord. 11 And the priests could not perform their service(DK) because of the cloud, for the glory(DL) of the Lord filled his temple.

12 Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud;(DM) 13 I have indeed built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell(DN) forever.”

14 While the whole assembly of Israel was standing there, the king turned around and blessed(DO) them. 15 Then he said:

“Praise be to the Lord,(DP) the God of Israel, who with his own hand has fulfilled what he promised with his own mouth to my father David. For he said, 16 ‘Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt,(DQ) I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built so that my Name(DR) might be there, but I have chosen(DS) David(DT) to rule my people Israel.’

17 “My father David had it in his heart(DU) to build a temple(DV) for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 18 But the Lord said to my father David, ‘You did well to have it in your heart to build a temple for my Name. 19 Nevertheless, you(DW) are not the one to build the temple, but your son, your own flesh and blood—he is the one who will build the temple for my Name.’(DX)

20 “The Lord has kept the promise he made: I have succeeded(DY) David my father and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the Lord promised, and I have built(DZ) the temple for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 21 I have provided a place there for the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with our ancestors when he brought them out of Egypt.”

Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication(EA)

22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands(EB) toward heaven 23 and said:

“Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like(EC) you in heaven above or on earth below—you who keep your covenant of love(ED) with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way. 24 You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it—as it is today.

25 “Now Lord, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises(EE) you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants are careful in all they do to walk before me faithfully as you have done.’ 26 And now, God of Israel, let your word that you promised(EF) your servant David my father come true.

27 “But will God really dwell(EG) on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven,(EH) cannot contain(EI) you. How much less this temple I have built! 28 Yet give attention to your servant’s prayer and his plea for mercy, Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence this day. 29 May your eyes be open(EJ) toward(EK) this temple night and day, this place of which you said, ‘My Name(EL) shall be there,’ so that you will hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place. 30 Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray(EM) toward this place. Hear(EN) from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.(EO)

31 “When anyone wrongs their neighbor and is required to take an oath and they come and swear the oath(EP) before your altar in this temple, 32 then hear from heaven and act. Judge between your servants, condemning the guilty by bringing down on their heads what they have done, and vindicating the innocent by treating them in accordance with their innocence.(EQ)

33 “When your people Israel have been defeated(ER) by an enemy because they have sinned(ES) against you, and when they turn back to you and give praise to your name, praying and making supplication to you in this temple,(ET) 34 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land you gave to their ancestors.

35 “When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain(EU) because your people have sinned(EV) against you, and when they pray toward this place and give praise to your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them, 36 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Teach(EW) them the right way(EX) to live, and send rain(EY) on the land you gave your people for an inheritance.

37 “When famine(EZ) or plague(FA) comes to the land, or blight(FB) or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers,(FC) or when an enemy besieges them in any of their cities, whatever disaster or disease may come, 38 and when a prayer or plea is made by anyone among your people Israel—being aware of the afflictions of their own hearts, and spreading out their hands(FD) toward this temple— 39 then hear(FE) from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive(FF) and act; deal with everyone according to all they do, since you know(FG) their hearts (for you alone know every human heart), 40 so that they will fear(FH) you all the time they live in the land(FI) you gave our ancestors.

41 “As for the foreigner(FJ) who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your name— 42 for they will hear(FK) of your great name and your mighty hand(FL) and your outstretched arm—when they come and pray toward this temple, 43 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know(FM) your name and fear(FN) you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.(FO)

44 “When your people go to war against their enemies, wherever you send them, and when they pray(FP) to the Lord toward the city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name, 45 then hear from heaven their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.(FQ)

46 “When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin(FR)—and you become angry with them and give them over to their enemies, who take them captive(FS) to their own lands, far away or near; 47 and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead(FT) with you in the land of their captors and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly’;(FU) 48 and if they turn back(FV) to you with all their heart(FW) and soul in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and pray(FX) to you toward the land you gave their ancestors, toward the city you have chosen and the temple(FY) I have built for your Name;(FZ) 49 then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause. 50 And forgive your people, who have sinned against you; forgive all the offenses they have committed against you, and cause their captors to show them mercy;(GA) 51 for they are your people and your inheritance,(GB) whom you brought out of Egypt, out of that iron-smelting furnace.(GC)

52 “May your eyes be open(GD) to your servant’s plea and to the plea of your people Israel, and may you listen to them whenever they cry out to you.(GE) 53 For you singled them out from all the nations of the world to be your own inheritance,(GF) just as you declared through your servant Moses when you, Sovereign Lord, brought our ancestors out of Egypt.”

54 When Solomon had finished all these prayers and supplications to the Lord, he rose from before the altar of the Lord, where he had been kneeling with his hands spread out toward heaven. 55 He stood and blessed(GG) the whole assembly of Israel in a loud voice, saying:

56 “Praise be to the Lord, who has given rest(GH) to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises(GI) he gave through his servant Moses. 57 May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us nor forsake(GJ) us. 58 May he turn our hearts(GK) to him, to walk in obedience to him and keep the commands, decrees and laws he gave our ancestors. 59 And may these words of mine, which I have prayed before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, that he may uphold the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel according to each day’s need, 60 so that all the peoples(GL) of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other.(GM) 61 And may your hearts(GN) be fully committed(GO) to the Lord our God, to live by his decrees and obey his commands, as at this time.”

The Dedication of the Temple(GP)

62 Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices(GQ) before the Lord. 63 Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to the Lord: twenty-two thousand cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats. So the king and all the Israelites dedicated(GR) the temple of the Lord.

64 On that same day the king consecrated the middle part of the courtyard in front of the temple of the Lord, and there he offered burnt offerings, grain offerings and the fat(GS) of the fellowship offerings, because the bronze altar(GT) that stood before the Lord was too small to hold the burnt offerings, the grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings.(GU)

65 So Solomon observed the festival(GV) at that time, and all Israel with him—a vast assembly, people from Lebo Hamath(GW) to the Wadi of Egypt.(GX) They celebrated it before the Lord our God for seven days and seven days more, fourteen days in all. 66 On the following day he sent the people away. They blessed the king and then went home, joyful and glad in heart for all the good(GY) things the Lord had done for his servant David and his people Israel.

The Lord Appears to Solomon(GZ)

9 When Solomon had finished(HA) building the temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and had achieved all he had desired to do, 2 the Lord appeared(HB) to him a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3 The Lord said to him:

“I have heard(HC) the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name(HD) there forever. My eyes(HE) and my heart will always be there.

4 “As for you, if you walk before me faithfully with integrity of heart(HF) and uprightness, as David(HG) your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws,(HH) 5 I will establish(HI) your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised David your father when I said, ‘You shall never fail(HJ) to have a successor on the throne of Israel.’

6 “But if you[al] or your descendants turn away(HK) from me and do not observe the commands and decrees I have given you[am] and go off to serve other gods(HL) and worship them, 7 then I will cut off Israel from the land(HM) I have given them and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name.(HN) Israel will then become a byword(HO) and an object of ridicule(HP) among all peoples. 8 This temple will become a heap of rubble. All[an] who pass by will be appalled(HQ) and will scoff and say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’(HR) 9 People will answer,(HS) ‘Because they have forsaken(HT) the Lord their God, who brought their ancestors out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—that is why the Lord brought all this disaster(HU) on them.’”

Solomon’s Other Activities(HV)

10 At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon built these two buildings—the temple of the Lord and the royal palace— 11 King Solomon gave twenty towns in Galilee to Hiram king of Tyre, because Hiram had supplied him with all the cedar and juniper and gold(HW) he wanted. 12 But when Hiram went from Tyre to see the towns that Solomon had given him, he was not pleased with them. 13 “What kind of towns are these you have given me, my brother?” he asked. And he called them the Land of Kabul,[ao](HX) a name they have to this day. 14 Now Hiram had sent to the king 120 talents[ap] of gold.(HY)

15 Here is the account of the forced labor King Solomon conscripted(HZ) to build the Lord’s temple, his own palace, the terraces,[aq](IA) the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor,(IB) Megiddo and Gezer.(IC) 16 (Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He had set it on fire. He killed its Canaanite inhabitants and then gave it as a wedding gift to his daughter,(ID) Solomon’s wife. 17 And Solomon rebuilt Gezer.) He built up Lower Beth Horon,(IE) 18 Baalath,(IF) and Tadmor[ar] in the desert, within his land, 19 as well as all his store cities(IG) and the towns for his chariots(IH) and for his horses[as]—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled.

20 There were still people left from the Amorites, Hittites,(II) Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites(IJ) (these peoples were not Israelites). 21 Solomon conscripted the descendants(IK) of all these peoples remaining in the land—whom the Israelites could not exterminate[at](IL)—to serve as slave labor,(IM) as it is to this day. 22 But Solomon did not make slaves(IN) of any of the Israelites; they were his fighting men, his government officials, his officers, his captains, and the commanders of his chariots and charioteers. 23 They were also the chief officials(IO) in charge of Solomon’s projects—550 officials supervising those who did the work.

24 After Pharaoh’s daughter(IP) had come up from the City of David to the palace Solomon had built for her, he constructed the terraces.(IQ)

25 Three(IR) times a year Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar he had built for the Lord, burning incense before the Lord along with them, and so fulfilled the temple obligations.

26 King Solomon also built ships(IS) at Ezion Geber,(IT) which is near Elath(IU) in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea.[au] 27 And Hiram sent his men—sailors(IV) who knew the sea—to serve in the fleet with Solomon’s men. 28 They sailed to Ophir(IW) and brought back 420 talents[av] of gold,(IX) which they delivered to King Solomon.

The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon(IY)

10 When the queen of Sheba(IZ) heard about the fame(JA) of Solomon and his relationship to the Lord, she came to test Solomon with hard questions.(JB) 2 Arriving at Jerusalem with a very great caravan(JC)—with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones—she came to Solomon and talked with him about all that she had on her mind. 3 Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the palace he had built, 5 the food on his table,(JD) the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he made at[aw] the temple of the Lord, she was overwhelmed.

6 She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. 7 But I did not believe(JE) these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth(JF) you have far exceeded the report I heard. 8 How happy your people must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear(JG) your wisdom! 9 Praise(JH) be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord’s eternal love(JI) for Israel, he has made you king to maintain justice(JJ) and righteousness.”

10 And she gave the king 120 talents[ax] of gold,(JK) large quantities of spices, and precious stones. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

11 (Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir;(JL) and from there they brought great cargoes of almugwood[ay] and precious stones. 12 The king used the almugwood to make supports[az] for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. So much almugwood has never been imported or seen since that day.)

13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for, besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country.

Solomon’s Splendor(JM)

14 The weight of the gold(JN) that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents,[ba] 15 not including the revenues from merchants and traders and from all the Arabian kings and the governors of the territories.

16 King Solomon made two hundred large shields(JO) of hammered gold; six hundred shekels[bb] of gold went into each shield. 17 He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three minas[bc] of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.(JP)

18 Then the king made a great throne covered with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and its back had a rounded top. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them. 20 Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom. 21 All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold.(JQ) Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s days. 22 The king had a fleet of trading ships[bd](JR) at sea along with the ships(JS) of Hiram. Once every three years it returned, carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons.

23 King Solomon was greater in riches(JT) and wisdom(JU) than all the other kings of the earth. 24 The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom(JV) God had put in his heart. 25 Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift(JW)—articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules.

26 Solomon accumulated chariots and horses;(JX) he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses,[be] which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. 27 The king made silver as common(JY) in Jerusalem as stones,(JZ) and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig(KA) trees in the foothills. 28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue[bf]—the royal merchants purchased them from Kue at the current price. 29 They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty.[bg] They also exported them to all the kings of the Hittites(KB) and of the Arameans.

Solomon’s Wives

11 King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women(KC) besides Pharaoh’s daughter—Moabites, Ammonites,(KD) Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. 2 They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry(KE) with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. 3 He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines,(KF) and his wives led him astray.(KG) 4 As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods,(KH) and his heart was not fully devoted(KI) to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. 5 He followed Ashtoreth(KJ) the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek(KK) the detestable god of the Ammonites. 6 So Solomon did evil(KL) in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.

7 On a hill east(KM) of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh(KN) the detestable god of Moab, and for Molek(KO) the detestable god of the Ammonites. 8 He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.

9 The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared(KP) to him twice. 10 Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods,(KQ) Solomon did not keep the Lord’s command.(KR) 11 So the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees,(KS) which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear(KT) the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. 12 Nevertheless, for the sake of David(KU) your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13 Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe(KV) for the sake(KW) of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”(KX)

Solomon’s Adversaries

14 Then the Lord raised up against Solomon an adversary,(KY) Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom. 15 Earlier when David was fighting with Edom, Joab the commander of the army, who had gone up to bury the dead, had struck down all the men in Edom.(KZ) 16 Joab and all the Israelites stayed there for six months, until they had destroyed all the men in Edom. 17 But Hadad, still only a boy, fled to Egypt with some Edomite officials who had served his father. 18 They set out from Midian and went to Paran.(LA) Then taking people from Paran with them, they went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house and land and provided him with food.

19 Pharaoh was so pleased with Hadad that he gave him a sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes, in marriage. 20 The sister of Tahpenes bore him a son named Genubath, whom Tahpenes brought up in the royal palace. There Genubath lived with Pharaoh’s own children.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 5:1 In Hebrew texts 5:1-18 is numbered 5:15-32.
  2. 1 Kings 5:11 That is, probably about 3,600 tons or about 3,250 metric tons
  3. 1 Kings 5:11 Septuagint (see also 2 Chron. 2:10); Hebrew twenty cors
  4. 1 Kings 5:11 That is, about 120,000 gallons or about 440,000 liters
  5. 1 Kings 5:16 Hebrew; some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 2 Chron. 2:2,18) thirty-six hundred
  6. 1 Kings 6:1 Hebrew; Septuagint four hundred and fortieth
  7. 1 Kings 6:2 That is, about 90 feet long, 30 feet wide and 45 feet high or about 27 meters long, 9 meters wide and 14 meters high
  8. 1 Kings 6:3 That is, about 30 feet or about 9 meters; also in verses 16 and 20
  9. 1 Kings 6:3 That is, about 15 feet or about 4.5 meters; also in verses 23-26
  10. 1 Kings 6:6 That is, about 7 1/2 feet or about 2.3 meters; also in verses 10 and 24
  11. 1 Kings 6:6 That is, about 9 feet or about 2.7 meters
  12. 1 Kings 6:6 That is, about 11 feet or about 3.2 meters
  13. 1 Kings 6:8 Septuagint; Hebrew middle
  14. 1 Kings 6:17 That is, about 60 feet or about 18 meters
  15. 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
  16. 1 Kings 7:5 The meaning of the Hebrew for this verse is uncertain.
  17. 1 Kings 7:6 That is, about 75 feet long and 45 feet wide or about 23 meters long and 14 meters wide
  18. 1 Kings 7:7 Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew floor
  19. 1 Kings 7:10 That is, about 15 feet or about 4.5 meters; also in verse 23
  20. 1 Kings 7:10 That is, about 12 feet or about 3.6 meters
  21. 1 Kings 7:13 Hebrew Hiram, a variant of Huram; also in verses 40 and 45
  22. 1 Kings 7:15 That is, about 27 feet high and 18 feet in circumference or about 8.1 meters high and 5.4 meters in circumference
  23. 1 Kings 7:16 That is, about 7 1/2 feet or about 2.3 meters; also in verse 23
  24. 1 Kings 7:18 Two Hebrew manuscripts and Septuagint; most Hebrew manuscripts made the pillars, and there were two rows
  25. 1 Kings 7:18 Many Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts pomegranates
  26. 1 Kings 7:19 That is, about 6 feet or about 1.8 meters; also in verse 38
  27. 1 Kings 7:21 Jakin probably means he establishes.
  28. 1 Kings 7:21 Boaz probably means in him is strength.
  29. 1 Kings 7:23 That is, about 45 feet or about 14 meters
  30. 1 Kings 7:26 That is, about 3 inches or about 7.5 centimeters
  31. 1 Kings 7:26 That is, about 12,000 gallons or about 44,000 liters; the Septuagint does not have this sentence.
  32. 1 Kings 7:27 That is, about 6 feet long and wide and about 4 1/2 feet high or about 1.8 meters long and wide and 1.4 meters high
  33. 1 Kings 7:31 That is, about 18 inches or about 45 centimeters
  34. 1 Kings 7:31 That is, about 2 1/4 feet or about 68 centimeters; also in verse 32
  35. 1 Kings 7:35 That is, about 9 inches or about 23 centimeters
  36. 1 Kings 7:38 That is, about 240 gallons or about 880 liters
  37. 1 Kings 7:40 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Syriac and Vulgate (see also verse 45 and 2 Chron. 4:11); many other Hebrew manuscripts basins
  38. 1 Kings 9:6 The Hebrew is plural.
  39. 1 Kings 9:6 The Hebrew is plural.
  40. 1 Kings 9:8 See some Septuagint manuscripts, Old Latin, Syriac, Arabic and Targum; Hebrew And though this temple is now imposing, all
  41. 1 Kings 9:13 Kabul sounds like the Hebrew for good-for-nothing.
  42. 1 Kings 9:14 That is, about 4 1/2 tons or about 4 metric tons
  43. 1 Kings 9:15 Or the Millo; also in verse 24
  44. 1 Kings 9:18 The Hebrew may also be read Tamar.
  45. 1 Kings 9:19 Or charioteers
  46. 1 Kings 9:21 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.
  47. 1 Kings 9:26 Or the Sea of Reeds
  48. 1 Kings 9:28 That is, about 16 tons or about 14 metric tons
  49. 1 Kings 10:5 Or the ascent by which he went up to
  50. 1 Kings 10:10 That is, about 4 1/2 tons or about 4 metric tons
  51. 1 Kings 10:11 Probably a variant of algumwood; also in verse 12
  52. 1 Kings 10:12 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  53. 1 Kings 10:14 That is, about 25 tons or about 23 metric tons
  54. 1 Kings 10:16 That is, about 15 pounds or about 6.9 kilograms; also in verse 29
  55. 1 Kings 10:17 That is, about 3 3/4 pounds or about 1.7 kilograms; or perhaps reference is to double minas, that is, about 7 1/2 pounds or about 3.5 kilograms.
  56. 1 Kings 10:22 Hebrew of ships of Tarshish
  57. 1 Kings 10:26 Or charioteers
  58. 1 Kings 10:28 Probably Cilicia
  59. 1 Kings 10:29 That is, about 3 3/4 pounds or about 1.7 kilograms
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1 Kings 4
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