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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
Christian Standard Bible
2 Chronicles 8
Christian Standard Bible
Solomon’s Later Building Projects
8 At the end of twenty years(A) during which Solomon had built the Lord’s temple and his own palace— 2 Solomon had rebuilt the cities Hiram[a] gave him and settled Israelites there— 3 Solomon went to Hamath-zobah and seized it. 4 He built Tadmor in the wilderness along with all the storage cities that he built in Hamath. 5 He built Upper Beth-horon and Lower Beth-horon(B)—fortified cities with walls, gates, and bars(C)— 6 Baalath, all the storage cities that belonged to Solomon, all the chariot cities, the cavalry cities, and everything Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, Lebanon, or anywhere else in the land of his dominion.
7 As for all the peoples who remained of the Hethites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who were not from Israel(D)— 8 their descendants who remained in the land after them, those the Israelites had not completely destroyed—Solomon imposed forced labor on them; it is this way today.(E) 9 But Solomon did not consign the Israelites to be slaves for his work; they were soldiers, commanders of his captains, and commanders of his chariots and his cavalry. 10 These were King Solomon’s deputies: 250 who supervised the people.
11 Solomon brought the daughter of Pharaoh from the city of David to the house he had built for her,(F) for he said, “My wife must not live in the house[b] of King David of Israel because the places the ark of the Lord has come into are holy.”
Public Worship Established at the Temple
12 At that time(G) Solomon offered burnt offerings to the Lord on the Lord’s altar he had made in front of the portico.(H) 13 He followed the daily requirement(I) for offerings according to the commandment of Moses(J) for Sabbaths, New Moons, and the three annual appointed festivals: the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks, and the Festival of Shelters.(K) 14 According to the ordinances of his father David, he appointed the divisions of the priests over their service,(L) of the Levites over their responsibilities to offer praise and to minister before the priests following the daily requirement,(M) and of the gatekeepers by their divisions with respect to each temple gate,(N) for this had been the command of David, the man of God.(O) 15 They did not turn aside from the king’s command regarding the priests and the Levites concerning any matter or concerning the treasuries.(P) 16 All of Solomon’s work was carried out from the day the foundation was laid for the Lord’s temple until it was finished. So the Lord’s temple was completed.
Solomon’s Fleet
17 At that time(Q) Solomon went to Ezion-geber and to Eloth(R) on the seashore in the land of Edom. 18 So Hiram[c] sent ships to him by his servants along with crews of experienced seamen. They went with Solomon’s servants to Ophir, took from there seventeen tons[d] of gold, and delivered it to King Solomon.(S)
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
The Message
2 Chronicles 8
The Message
More on Solomon
8 1-6 At the end of twenty years, Solomon had quite a list of accomplishments. He had:
built The Temple of God and his own palace;
rebuilt the cities that Hiram had given him and colonized them with Israelites;
marched on Hamath Zobah and took it;
fortified Tadmor in the desert and all the store-cities he had founded in Hamath;
built the fortress cities Upper Beth Horon and Lower Beth Horon, complete with walls, gates, and bars;
built Baalath and store-cities;
built chariot-cities for his horses.
Solomon built impulsively and extravagantly—whenever a whim took him. And in Jerusalem, in Lebanon—wherever he fancied.
7-10 The remnants from the original inhabitants of the land (Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites—all non-Israelites), survivors of the holy wars, were rounded up by Solomon for his gangs of slave labor. The policy is in effect today. But true Israelites were not treated this way; they were used in his army and administration—government leaders and commanders of his chariots and charioteers. They were also the project managers responsible for Solomon’s building operations—250 in all in charge of the workforce.
11 Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter from the City of David to a house built especially for her, “Because,” he said, “my wife cannot live in the house of David king of Israel, for the areas in which the Chest of God has entered are sacred.”
12-13 Then Solomon offered Whole-Burnt-Offerings to God on the Altar of God that he had built in front of The Temple porch. He kept to the regular schedule of worship set down by Moses: Sabbaths, New Moons, and the three annual feasts of Unraised Bread (Passover), Weeks (Pentecost), and Booths.
14-15 He followed the practice of his father David in setting up groups of priests carrying out the work of worship, with the Levites assigned to lead the sacred music for praising God and to assist the priests in the daily worship; he assigned security guards to be on duty at each gate—that’s what David the man of God had ordered. The king’s directions to the priests and Levites and financial stewards were kept right down to the fine print—no innovations—including the treasuries.
16 All that Solomon set out to do, from the groundbreaking of The Temple of God to its finish, was now complete.
17-18 Then Solomon went to Ezion Geber and Elath on the coast of Edom. Hiram sent him ships and with them veteran sailors. Joined by Solomon’s men they sailed to Ophir (in east Africa), loaded on fifteen tons of gold, and brought it back to King Solomon.
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New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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 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.
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson