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1 Kings 5
New Century Version
1 Kings 5
New Century Version
Preparing to Build the Temple
5 Hiram, the king of Tyre, had always been David’s friend. When Hiram heard that Solomon had been made king in David’s place, he sent his messengers to Solomon. 2 Solomon sent this message back to King Hiram: 3 “You remember my father David had to fight many wars with the countries around him, so he was never able to build a temple for worshiping the Lord his God. David was waiting until the Lord allowed him to defeat all his enemies. 4 But now the Lord my God has given me peace on all sides of my country. I have no enemies now, and no danger threatens my people.
5 “The Lord promised my father David, ‘I will make your son king after you, and he will build a temple for worshiping me.’ Now, I plan to build that temple for worshiping the Lord my God. 6 So send your men to cut down cedar trees for me from Lebanon. My servants will work with yours, and I will pay them whatever wages you decide. We don’t have anyone who can cut down trees as well as the people of Sidon.”
7 When Hiram heard what Solomon asked, he was very happy. He said, “Praise the Lord today! He has given David a wise son to rule over this great nation!” 8 Then Hiram sent back this message to Solomon: “I received the message you sent, and I will give you all the cedar and pine trees you want. 9 My servants will bring them down from Lebanon to the sea. There I will tie them together and float them along the shore to the place you choose. Then I will separate the logs there, and you can take them away. In return it is my wish that you give food to all those who live with me.” 10 So Hiram gave Solomon as much cedar and pine as he wanted. 11 And Solomon gave Hiram about one hundred twenty-five thousand bushels of wheat each year to feed the people who lived with him. Solomon also gave him about one hundred fifteen thousand gallons of pure olive oil every year.
12 The Lord gave Solomon wisdom as he had promised. And there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; these two kings made a treaty between themselves.
13 King Solomon forced thirty thousand men of Israel to help in this work. 14 He sent a group of ten thousand men each month to Lebanon. Each group worked in Lebanon one month, then went home for two months. A man named Adoniram was in charge. 15 Solomon forced eighty thousand men to work in the hill country, cutting stone, and he had seventy thousand men to carry the stones. 16 There were also thirty-three hundred men who directed the workers. 17 King Solomon commanded them to cut large blocks of fine stone to be used for the foundation of the Temple. 18 Solomon’s and Hiram’s builders and the men from Byblos carved the stones and prepared the stones and the logs for building the Temple.
1 Kings 5
New International Version
1 Kings 5
New International Version
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.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 5:1 In Hebrew texts 5:1-18 is numbered 5:15-32.
- 1 Kings 5:11 That is, probably about 3,600 tons or about 3,250 metric tons
- 1 Kings 5:11 Septuagint (see also 2 Chron. 2:10); Hebrew twenty cors
- 1 Kings 5:11 That is, about 120,000 gallons or about 440,000 liters
- 1 Kings 5:16 Hebrew; some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 2 Chron. 2:2,18) thirty-six hundred
1 Kings 5
Christian Standard Bible
1 Kings 5
Christian Standard Bible
Hiram’s Building Materials
5 King Hiram of Tyre(A) sent his emissaries to Solomon when he heard that he had been anointed king in his father’s place,(B) for Hiram had always been friends with David.(C)
2 Solomon sent this message to Hiram: 3 “You know my father David was not able to build a temple for the name of the Lord his God. This was because of the warfare all around him until the Lord put his enemies under his feet.(D) 4 The Lord my God has now given me rest on every side; there is no enemy or misfortune.(E) 5 So I plan to build a temple for the name of the Lord my God,(F) according to what the Lord promised my father David: ‘I will put your son on your throne in your place, and he will build the temple for my name.’(G)
6 “Therefore, command that cedars from Lebanon be cut down for me. My servants will be with your servants, and I will pay your servants’ wages according to whatever you say, for you know that not a man among us knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians.”(H)
7 When Hiram heard Solomon’s words, he rejoiced greatly and said, “Blessed be the Lord today!(I) He has given David a wise son to be over this great people!” 8 Then Hiram sent a reply to Solomon, saying, “I have heard your message; I will do everything you want regarding the cedar and cypress timber. 9 My servants will bring the logs down from Lebanon to the sea, and I will make them into rafts to go by sea to the place you indicate. I will break them apart there, and you can take them away. You then can meet my needs by providing my household with food.”(J)
10 So Hiram provided Solomon with all the cedar and cypress timber he wanted, 11 and Solomon provided Hiram with one hundred twenty thousand bushels[a] of wheat as food for his household and one hundred twenty thousand gallons[b] of oil from crushed olives.(K) Solomon did this for Hiram year after year.
12 The Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he had promised him.(L) There was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.(M)
Solomon’s Workforce
13 Then King Solomon drafted forced laborers from all Israel;(N) the labor force numbered thirty thousand men. 14 He sent ten thousand to Lebanon each month in shifts; one month they were in Lebanon, two months they were at home. Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor. 15 Solomon had seventy thousand porters and eighty thousand stonecutters in the mountains,(O) 16 not including his thirty-three hundred[c] deputies(P) in charge of the work. They supervised the people doing the work. 17 The king commanded them to quarry large, costly stones to lay the foundation of the temple with dressed stones.(Q) 18 So Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders,(R) along with the Gebalites,(S) quarried the stone and prepared the timber and stone for the temple’s construction.
1 Kings 5
New King James Version
1 Kings 5
New King James Version
Solomon Prepares to Build the Temple(A)
5 Now (B)Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon, because he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, (C)for Hiram had always loved David. 2 Then (D)Solomon sent to Hiram, saying:
3 (E)You know how my father David could not build a house for the name of the Lord his God (F)because of the wars which were fought against him on every side, until the Lord put [a]his foes under the soles of his feet.
4 But now the Lord my God has given me (G)rest[b] on every side; there is neither adversary nor [c]evil occurrence.
5 (H)And behold, [d]I propose to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, (I)as the Lord spoke to my father David, saying, “Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, he shall build the house for My name.”
6 Now therefore, command that they cut down (J)cedars for me from Lebanon; and my servants will be with your servants, and I will pay you wages for your servants according to whatever you say. For you know there is none among us who has skill to cut timber like the Sidonians.
7 So it was, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly and said,
Blessed be the Lord this day, for He has given David a wise son over this great people!
8 Then Hiram sent to Solomon, saying:
I have considered the message which you sent me, and I will do all you desire concerning the cedar and cypress logs.
9 My servants shall bring them down (K)from Lebanon to the sea; I will float them in rafts by sea to the place you indicate to me, and will have them broken apart there; then you can take them away. And you shall fulfill my desire (L)by giving food for my household.
10 Then Hiram gave Solomon cedar and cypress logs according to all his desire. 11 (M)And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand [e]kors of wheat as food for his household, and [f]twenty kors of pressed oil. Thus Solomon gave to Hiram year by year.
12 So the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, (N)as He had promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty together.
13 Then King Solomon raised up a labor force out of all Israel; and the labor force was thirty thousand men. 14 And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month in shifts: they were one month in Lebanon and two months at home; (O)Adoniram was in charge of the labor force. 15 (P)Solomon had seventy thousand who carried burdens, and eighty thousand who quarried stone in the mountains, 16 besides three thousand [g]three hundred from the (Q)chiefs of Solomon’s deputies, who supervised the people who labored in the work. 17 And the king commanded them to quarry large stones, costly stones, and (R)hewn stones, to lay the foundation of the [h]temple. 18 So Solomon’s builders, Hiram’s builders, and the Gebalites quarried them; and they prepared timber and stones to build the [i]temple.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 5:3 Lit. them
- 1 Kings 5:4 peace
- 1 Kings 5:4 misfortune
- 1 Kings 5:5 Lit. I am saying
- 1 Kings 5:11 Each about 5 bushels
- 1 Kings 5:11 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX, Syr. twenty thousand kors
- 1 Kings 5:16 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX six hundred
- 1 Kings 5:17 Lit. house
- 1 Kings 5:18 Lit. house
New Century Version (NCV) 
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
New King James Version (NKJV)
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.