Preparations and Materials for the Temple

5 ^[a]Now King Hiram of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, for Hiram had always been a friend to David.^{(A) 2} Solomon sent word to Hiram, saying, ³ “You know that my father David could not build a house for the name of the Lord his God because of the warfare with which his enemies surrounded him, until he^[b] put them under the soles of his feet.^{[c](B) 4} But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side; there is neither adversary nor misfortune.^{(C) 5} So I intend to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord said to my father David, ‘Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, shall build the house for my name.’^{(D) 6} Therefore command that cedars from the Lebanon be cut for me. My servants will join your servants, and I will give you whatever wages you set for your servants, for you know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians.”

⁷ When Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly and said, “Blessed be the Lord today, who has given to David a wise son to be over this great people.” ⁸ Hiram sent word to Solomon, “I have heard the message that you have sent to me; I will fulfill all your needs in the matter of cedar and cypress timber. ⁹ My servants shall bring it down to the sea from the Lebanon; I will make it into rafts to go by sea to the place you indicate. I will have them broken up there for you to take away. And you shall meet my needs by providing food for my household.”^{(E) 10} So Hiram supplied Solomon’s every need for timber of cedar and cypress. ¹¹ Solomon, in turn, gave Hiram twenty thousand cors of wheat as food for his household and twenty cors of fine oil. Solomon gave this to Hiram year by year.^{(F) 12} So the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he had promised him. There was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.^(G)

¹³ King Solomon conscripted forced labor out of all Israel; the levy numbered thirty thousand men. ¹⁴ He sent them to the Lebanon, ten thousand a month in shifts; they would be a month in the Lebanon and two months at home;^[d] Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor.^{(H) 15} Solomon also had seventy thousand laborers and eighty thousand stonecutters in the hill country,^{(I) 16} besides Solomon’s three thousand three hundred supervisors who were over the work, having charge of the people who did the work. ¹⁷ At the king’s command, they quarried out great, costly stones in order to lay the foundation of the house with dressed stones.^{(J) 18} So Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the Gebalites did the stonecutting and prepared the timber and the stone to build the house.

Solomon Builds the Temple

6 In the four hundred eightieth year after the Israelites came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, he began to build the house of the Lord.^(K)

⁷ The house was built with stone finished at the quarry so that neither hammer nor ax nor any tool of iron was heard in the temple while it was being built.^(A)

Paul on the Island of Malta

28 After we had reached safety, we then learned that the island was called Malta.^{(A) 2} The local people showed us unusual kindness. Since it had begun to rain and was cold, they kindled a fire and welcomed all of us around it.^{(B) 3} Paul had gathered a bundle of brushwood and was putting it on the fire when a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand. ⁴ When the local people saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “This man must be a murderer; though he has escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live.”^{(C) 5} He, however, shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm.^{(D) 6} They were expecting him to swell up or drop dead, but after they had waited a long time and saw that nothing unusual had happened to him, they changed their minds and began to say that he was a god.^(E)

⁷ Now in the vicinity of that place were lands belonging to the leading man of the island, named Publius, who received us and entertained us hospitably for three days. ⁸ It so happened that the father of Publius lay sick in bed with fever and dysentery. Paul visited him and cured him by praying and putting his hands on him.^{(F) 9} After this happened, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases also came and were cured. ¹⁰ They bestowed many honors on us, and when we were about to sail, they put on board all the provisions we needed.

Paul Arrives at Rome

¹¹ Three months later we set sail on a ship that had wintered at the island, an Alexandrian ship with the Twin Brothers as its figurehead.^{(G) 12} We put in at Syracuse and stayed there for three days; ¹³ then we weighed anchor and came to Rhegium. After one day there a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli. ¹⁴ There we found brothers and sisters and were invited to stay with them for seven days. And so we came to Rome.^{(H) 15} The brothers and sisters from there, when they heard of us, came as far as the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage.

¹⁶ When we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with the soldier who was guarding him.^(I)

²⁷ And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away,^[a] for it is written,

²⁸ “But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.”^{(B) 29} Peter said to him, “Even though all fall away,^[b] I will not.”^{(C) 30} Jesus said to him, “Truly I tell you, this day, this very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times.”^{(D) 31} But he said vehemently, “Even though I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And all of them said the same.

Jesus Prays in Gethsemane

³² They went to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” ³³ He took with him Peter and James and John and began to be distressed and agitated. ³⁴ And he said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, even to death; remain here, and keep awake.”^{(E) 35} And going a little farther, he threw himself on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.^{(F) 36} He said, “Abba,^[c] Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me, yet not what I want but what you want.”^{(G) 37} He came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep awake one hour? ³⁸ Keep awake and pray that you may not come into the time of trial;^[d] the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”^{(H) 39} And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. ⁴⁰ And once more he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to say to him. ⁴¹ He came a third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? Enough! The hour has come; the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.^{(I) 42} Get up, let us be going. Look, my betrayer is at hand.”