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2 Chronicles 8
New International Version
2 Chronicles 8
New International Version
Solomon’s Other Activities(A)
8 At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon built the temple of the Lord and his own palace,(B) 2 Solomon rebuilt the villages that Hiram[a] had given him, and settled Israelites in them. 3 Solomon then went to Hamath Zobah and captured it. 4 He also built up Tadmor in the desert and all the store cities he had built in Hamath.(C) 5 He rebuilt Upper Beth Horon(D) and Lower Beth Horon as fortified cities, with walls and with gates and bars, 6 as well as Baalath(E) and all his store cities, and all the cities for his chariots and for his horses[b]—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled.
7 There were still people left from the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites(F) (these people were not Israelites). 8 Solomon conscripted(G) the descendants of all these people remaining in the land—whom the Israelites had not destroyed—to serve as slave labor, as it is to this day. 9 But Solomon did not make slaves of the Israelites for his work; they were his fighting men, commanders of his captains, and commanders of his chariots and charioteers. 10 They were also King Solomon’s chief officials—two hundred and fifty officials supervising the men.
11 Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter(H) up from the City of David to the palace he had built for her, for he said, “My wife must not live in the palace of David king of Israel, because the places the ark of the Lord has entered are holy.”
12 On the altar(I) of the Lord that he had built in front of the portico, Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings to the Lord, 13 according to the daily requirement(J) for offerings commanded by Moses for the Sabbaths,(K) the New Moons(L) and the three(M) annual festivals—the Festival of Unleavened Bread,(N) the Festival of Weeks(O) and the Festival of Tabernacles.(P) 14 In keeping with the ordinance of his father David, he appointed the divisions(Q) of the priests for their duties, and the Levites(R) to lead the praise and to assist the priests according to each day’s requirement. He also appointed the gatekeepers(S) by divisions for the various gates, because this was what David the man of God(T) had ordered.(U) 15 They did not deviate from the king’s commands to the priests or to the Levites in any matter, including that of the treasuries.
16 All Solomon’s work was carried out, from the day the foundation of the temple of the Lord was laid until its completion. So the temple of the Lord was finished.
17 Then Solomon went to Ezion Geber and Elath on the coast of Edom. 18 And Hiram sent him ships commanded by his own men, sailors who knew the sea. These, with Solomon’s men, sailed to Ophir and brought back four hundred and fifty talents[c] of gold,(V) which they delivered to King Solomon.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 8:2 Hebrew Huram, a variant of Hiram; also in verse 18
- 2 Chronicles 8:6 Or charioteers
- 2 Chronicles 8:18 That is, about 17 tons or about 15 metric tons
2 Chronicles 8
New King James Version
2 Chronicles 8
New King James Version
Solomon’s Additional Achievements(A)
8 It (B)came to pass at the end of (C)twenty years, when Solomon had built the house of the Lord and his own house, 2 that the cities which [a]Hiram had given to Solomon, Solomon built them; and he settled the children of Israel there. 3 And Solomon went to Hamath Zobah and seized it. 4 (D)He also built Tadmor in the wilderness, and all the storage cities which he built in (E)Hamath. 5 He built Upper Beth Horon and (F)Lower Beth Horon, fortified cities with walls, gates, and bars, 6 also Baalath and all the storage cities that Solomon had, and all the chariot cities and the cities of the cavalry, and all that Solomon (G)desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.
7 (H)All the people who were left of the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who were not of Israel— 8 that is, their descendants who were left in the land after them, whom the children of Israel did not destroy—from these Solomon raised forced labor, as it is to this day. 9 But Solomon did not make the children of Israel [b]servants for his work. Some were men of war, captains of his officers, captains of his chariots, and his cavalry. 10 And others were chiefs of the officials of King Solomon: (I)two hundred and fifty, who ruled over the people.
11 Now Solomon (J)brought the daughter of Pharaoh up from the City of David to the house he had built for her, for he said, “My wife shall not dwell in the house of David king of Israel, because the places to which the ark of the Lord has come are holy.”
12 Then Solomon offered burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of the Lord which he had built before the vestibule, 13 according to the (K)daily rate, offering according to the commandment of Moses, for the Sabbaths, the New Moons, and the (L)three appointed yearly (M)feasts—the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles. 14 And, according to the [c]order of David his father, he appointed the (N)divisions of the priests for their service, (O)the Levites for their duties (to praise and serve before the priests) as the duty of each day required, and the (P)gatekeepers by their divisions at each gate; for so David the man of God had commanded. 15 They did not depart from the command of the king to the priests and Levites concerning any matter or concerning the (Q)treasuries.
16 Now all the work of Solomon was well-ordered [d]from the day of the foundation of the house of the Lord until it was finished. So the house of the Lord was completed.
17 Then Solomon went to (R)Ezion Geber and [e]Elath on the seacoast, in the land of Edom. 18 (S)And Hiram sent him ships by the hand of his servants, and servants who knew the sea. They went with the servants of Solomon to (T)Ophir, and acquired four hundred and fifty talents of gold from there, and brought it to King Solomon.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 8:2 Heb. Huram, 2 Chr. 2:3
- 2 Chronicles 8:9 slaves
- 2 Chronicles 8:14 ordinance
- 2 Chronicles 8:16 So with LXX, Syr., Vg.; MT as far as
- 2 Chronicles 8:17 Heb. Eloth, 2 Kin. 14:22
2 Chronicles 8
New Living Translation
2 Chronicles 8
New Living Translation
Solomon’s Many Achievements
8 It took Solomon twenty years to build the Lord’s Temple and his own royal palace. At the end of that time, 2 Solomon turned his attention to rebuilding the towns that King Hiram[a] had given him, and he settled Israelites in them.
3 Solomon also fought against the town of Hamath-zobah and conquered it. 4 He rebuilt Tadmor in the wilderness and built towns in the region of Hamath as supply centers. 5 He fortified the towns of Upper Beth-horon and Lower Beth-horon, rebuilding their walls and installing barred gates. 6 He also rebuilt Baalath and other supply centers and constructed towns where his chariots and horses[b] could be stationed. He built everything he desired in Jerusalem and Lebanon and throughout his entire realm.
7 There were still some people living in the land who were not Israelites, including the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. 8 These were descendants of the nations whom the people of Israel had not destroyed. So Solomon conscripted them for his labor force, and they serve as forced laborers to this day. 9 But Solomon did not conscript any of the Israelites for his labor force. Instead, he assigned them to serve as fighting men, officers in his army, commanders of his chariots, and charioteers. 10 King Solomon appointed 250 of them to supervise the people.
11 Solomon moved his wife, Pharaoh’s daughter, from the City of David to the new palace he had built for her. He said, “My wife must not live in King David’s palace, for the Ark of the Lord has been there, and it is holy ground.”
12 Then Solomon presented burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar he had built for him in front of the entry room of the Temple. 13 He offered the sacrifices for the Sabbaths, the new moon festivals, and the three annual festivals—the Passover celebration, the Festival of Harvest,[c] and the Festival of Shelters—as Moses had commanded.
14 In assigning the priests to their duties, Solomon followed the regulations of his father, David. He also assigned the Levites to lead the people in praise and to assist the priests in their daily duties. And he assigned the gatekeepers to their gates by their divisions, following the commands of David, the man of God. 15 Solomon did not deviate in any way from David’s commands concerning the priests and Levites and the treasuries.
16 So Solomon made sure that all the work related to building the Temple of the Lord was carried out, from the day its foundation was laid to the day of its completion.
17 Later Solomon went to Ezion-geber and Elath,[d] ports along the shore of the Red Sea[e] in the land of Edom. 18 Hiram sent him ships commanded by his own officers and manned by experienced crews of sailors. These ships sailed to Ophir with Solomon’s men and brought back to Solomon almost seventeen tons[f] of gold.
Footnotes
- 8:2 Hebrew Huram, a variant spelling of Hiram; also in 8:18.
- 8:6 Or and charioteers.
- 8:13 Or Festival of Weeks.
- 8:17a As in Greek version (see also 2 Kgs 14:22; 16:6); Hebrew reads Eloth, a variant spelling of Elath.
- 8:17b As in parallel text at 1 Kgs 9:26; Hebrew reads the sea.
- 8:18 Hebrew 450 talents [15.3 metric tons].
2 Chronicles 8
Good News Translation
2 Chronicles 8
Good News Translation
Solomon's Achievements(A)
8 It took Solomon twenty years to build the Temple and his palace. 2 He also rebuilt the cities that King Hiram had given him, and sent Israelites to settle in them. 3 He captured the territory of Hamath and Zobah 4 and fortified the city of Palmyra in the desert. He rebuilt all the cities in Hamath that were centers for storing supplies. 5 Solomon also rebuilt the following cities: Upper Beth Horon and Lower Beth Horon (fortified cities with gates that could be barred), 6 the city of Baalath, all the cities where he stored supplies, and the cities where his horses and chariots were stationed. He carried out all his plans for building in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and throughout the territory that he ruled over. 7-8 Solomon employed at forced labor all the descendants of the people of Canaan whom the Israelites had not killed when they took possession of the land. These included Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, whose descendants continue to be slaves down to the present time. 9 Israelites were not used at forced labor, but served as soldiers, officers, chariot commanders, and cavalry troops. 10 There were 250 officials in charge of the forced labor working on the various building projects.
11 Solomon moved his wife, the daughter of the king of Egypt, from David's City to a house he built for her. He said, “She must not live in the palace of King David of Israel, because any place where the Covenant Box has been is holy.”
12 Solomon offered sacrifices to the Lord on the altar which he had built in front of the Temple. 13 (B)He offered burnt offerings according to the requirements of the Law of Moses for each holy day: Sabbaths, New Moon Festivals, and the three annual festivals—the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Harvest Festival, and the Festival of Shelters. 14 Following the rules laid down by his father David, he organized the daily work of the priests and of the Levites who assisted the priests in singing hymns and in doing their work. He also organized the Temple guards in sections for performing their daily duties at each gate, in accordance with the commands of David, the man of God. 15 The instructions which David had given the priests and the Levites concerning the storehouses and other matters were carried out in detail.
16 By this time all of Solomon's projects had been completed. From the laying of the foundation of the Lord's Temple to its completion, all the work had been successful.
17 Then Solomon went to Eziongeber and Elath, ports on the shore of the Gulf of Aqaba, in the land of Edom. 18 King Hiram sent him ships under the command of his own officers and with experienced sailors. They sailed with Solomon's officers to the land of Ophir and brought back to Solomon about sixteen tons of gold.
2 Chronicles 8
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
2 Chronicles 8
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Various Activities of Solomon
8 At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon had built the house of the Lord and his own house,(A) 2 Solomon rebuilt the cities that Huram had given to him and settled the people of Israel in them.
3 Solomon went to Hamath-zobah and captured it. 4 He built Tadmor in the wilderness and all the storage towns that he built in Hamath. 5 He also built Upper Beth-horon and Lower Beth-horon, fortified cities, with walls, gates, and bars,(B) 6 and Baalath, as well as all Solomon’s storage towns, and all the towns for his chariots, the towns for his cavalry, and whatever Solomon desired to build, in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion. 7 All the people who were left of the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not of Israel, 8 from their descendants who were still left in the land, whom the people of Israel had not destroyed—these Solomon conscripted for forced labor, as is still the case today.(C) 9 But of the people of Israel Solomon made no slaves for his work; they were soldiers and his officers, the commanders of his chariotry and cavalry. 10 These were the chief officers of King Solomon, two hundred fifty of them, who exercised authority over the people.
11 Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter from the city of David to the house that he had built for her, for he said, “My wife shall not live in the house of King David of Israel, for the places to which the ark of the Lord has come are holy.”(D)
12 Then Solomon offered up burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of the Lord that he had built in front of the vestibule,(E) 13 as the duty of each day required, offering according to the commandment of Moses for the Sabbaths, the new moons, and the three annual festivals: the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks, and the Festival of Booths.(F) 14 According to the ordinance of his father David, he appointed the divisions of the priests for their service, and the Levites for their offices of praise and ministry alongside the priests as the duty of each day required, and the gatekeepers in their divisions for the several gates, for so David the man of God had commanded.(G) 15 They did not turn away from what the king had commanded the priests and Levites regarding anything at all or regarding the treasuries.
16 Thus all the work of Solomon was accomplished, from[a] the day the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid until the house of the Lord was finished completely.
17 Then Solomon went to Ezion-geber and Eloth on the shore of the sea, in the land of Edom.(H) 18 Huram sent him, in the care of his servants, ships and servants familiar with the sea. They went to Ophir together with the servants of Solomon and imported from there four hundred fifty talents of gold and brought it to King Solomon.(I)
Footnotes
- 8.16 Gk Syr Vg: Heb to
New International Version (NIV) 
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New King James Version (NKJV) 
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