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11 Then ·Hiram [or Huram; v. 3] king of Tyre answered Solomon with this letter: “Solomon, because the Lord loves his people, he ·chose [made] you to be their king.” 12 ·Hiram [or Huram; v. 3] also said: “·Praise [Blessed be] the Lord, the God of Israel, who made ·heaven [the sky] and earth! He has given King David a wise son, ·one [endowed; gifted] with ·wisdom [discernment; intelligence; discretion] and ·understanding [insight], who will build a ·temple [L house] for the Lord and a ·palace [L house] for himself.

13 “I will send you a skilled and ·wise [talented; capable] man named Huram-Abi. 14 His mother was from the people of Dan, and his father was from Tyre. Huram-Abi is ·skilled [trained; knowledgeable] in working with gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, and wood, and with purple, ·blue [violet], and ·red thread [crimson cloth/yarn], and ·expensive [fine] linen. He is skilled in making engravings and can ·make [execute] any design ·you show [given to] him. He will help your ·craftsmen [artisans] and the craftsmen of your father David.

15 “Now my lord send ·my [L to his] servants the wheat, barley, oil, and wine you ·promised [spoke of]. 16 We will cut as much wood from Lebanon as you need and will bring it on rafts by sea to Joppa. Then you may ·carry [haul; transport] it to Jerusalem.”

17 Solomon ·counted [numbered; took a census of] all the foreigners living in Israel. (This was after the time his father David had counted the people [2 Sam. 24; 1 Chr. 21].) There were one hundred fifty-three thousand six hundred foreigners. 18 Solomon ·chose [assigned; conscripted] seventy thousand of them ·to carry loads [as common laborers], eighty thousand of them to ·cut [quarry] stone in the mountains, and thirty-six hundred of them to ·direct [supervise; oversee] the workers and to keep the people working.

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Hiram to Assist

11 Then Hiram, king of Tyre replied in a letter sent to Solomon: “Because the Lord loves His people, He has made you king over them.” 12 Hiram said also, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who has given King David a wise son, endowed with discretion and understanding, who will build a house for the Lord and a royal palace for himself.

13 “Now I am sending a skilled man, endowed with understanding, Huram-abi, 14 the son of a [a]Danite woman and a Tyrian father. He is trained to work in gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, and wood; in purple, blue, and crimson fabrics, and in fine linen. He is able to make any kind of engraving and to carry out any design given him. He will work with your skilled men and those of my lord, David your father. 15 Now then, let my lord send to his servants the wheat, the barley, the oil, and the wine of which he has spoken. 16 We will cut whatever timber you need from Lebanon and bring it to you on rafts by sea to Joppa, so that you may take it up to Jerusalem.”

17 Then Solomon took a count of all the aliens in the land of Israel, like the census that his father David had taken; and they were found to be 153,600. 18 He assigned 70,000 of them to carry loads and 80,000 to quarry stone in the mountain, and 3,600 as overseers to make the people work.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 2:14 1 Kin 7:14 says that this woman was of the tribe of Naphtali. Most likely her mother’s marriage united her with a tribe of which she was not a native.