Historical

Solomon Asks for Wisdom

1 Solomon was David’s son, and he became a powerful king. This was because the Lord his God was with him. The Lord made Solomon very great.

² Solomon spoke to all the people of Israel. He spoke to the commanders of 100 men and of 1,000 men. He spoke to the judges, to every leader in all Israel and to the leaders of the families. ³ Then Solomon and all the people gathered with him went to the place of worship. This was at the town of Gibeon. God’s Meeting Tent was there. Moses, the Lord’s servant, had made that Tent in the desert. ⁴ David had brought the Ark of the Covenant with God from Kiriath Jearim to Jerusalem. David had made a place for it there. He had set up a tent for it in Jerusalem. ⁵ Bezalel was Uri’s son, and Uri was Hur’s son. Bezalel had made a bronze altar. It was in Gibeon in front of the Holy Tent. So Solomon and the people worshiped the Lord there. ⁶ Solomon went up to the bronze altar before the Lord at the Meeting Tent. He offered 1,000 burnt offerings on the altar.

⁷ That night God appeared to Solomon. God said, “Solomon, ask for whatever you want me to give you.”

⁸ Solomon answered, “You have been very kind to my father David. You have chosen me to be the king in his place. ⁹ Now, Lord God, may your promise to my father David come true. You have made me king of a very large nation. There are so many of them they are like the dust of the earth. ¹⁰ Now give me wisdom and knowledge so I can lead these people in the right way. No one can rule them without your help.”

¹¹ God said to Solomon, “What you want is good. I have chosen you to be king of these people. You have not asked for wealth or riches or honor. You have not asked for your enemies to be killed. You have not asked for a long life. But you have asked for wisdom and knowledge to lead my people. ¹² So I will give you wisdom and knowledge. I will also give you more wealth, riches and honor than any king who has lived before you. And the kings who will live after you will not have as much.”

¹³ Then Solomon left the place of worship at Gibeon. He left the Meeting Tent and went back to Jerusalem. There King Solomon ruled over Israel.

Solomon’s Wealth

¹⁴ Solomon gathered horses and chariots. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses. He put some horses and chariots in the cities where the chariots were kept. And he kept some with him in Jerusalem. ¹⁵ In Jerusalem, Solomon gathered much silver and gold. He got so much it was as common as rocks. He also gathered much cedar wood. It became as plentiful as the sycamore trees on the western mountain slopes. ¹⁶ Solomon imported horses from Egypt and Kue. The king’s traders bought the horses in Kue. ¹⁷ They imported a chariot from Egypt for about 15 pounds of silver. And they imported a horse for nearly 4 pounds of silver. Then they sold the horses and chariots to all the kings of the Hittites and the Arameans.

Solomon Prepares for the Temple

2 Solomon decided to build a temple as a place to worship the Lord. He also decided to build a palace for himself. ² He chose 70,000 men to carry things. He chose 80,000 men to cut stone in the mountains. And he chose 3,600 men to direct the workers.

³ Then Solomon sent a message to Hiram king of the city of Tyre. Solomon said:

¹¹ Then Hiram king of Tyre answered Solomon with this letter:

¹² Hiram also said:

¹⁷ Solomon counted all the foreigners living in Israel. This was after the time his father David had counted the people. There were 153,600 foreigners in the country. ¹⁸ Solomon chose 70,000 of them to carry things. He chose 80,000 of them to cut stone in the mountains. And he chose 3,600 of them to direct the workers. They were to keep the people working.

Solomon Builds the Temple

3 Solomon began to build the Temple of the Lord. He built it in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah. This was where the Lord had appeared to David, Solomon’s father. Solomon built the Temple on the place David had prepared. This place was the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. ² Solomon began building in the second month of the fourth year he ruled Israel.

³ Solomon used these measurements for building the Temple of God. It was 90 feet long and 30 feet wide. (Solomon used the old measurement.) ⁴ The porch in front of the Temple was 30 feet long and 30 feet high.

Solomon covered the inside of the porch with pure gold. ⁵ He put panels of pine on the walls of the main room. Then he covered them with pure gold. And he put designs of palm trees and chains in the gold. ⁶ He put gems in the Temple for beauty. And he used gold from Parvaim.^{[a] 7} Solomon put gold on the Temple’s ceiling beams, doorposts, walls and doors. And he carved creatures with wings on the walls.

⁸ Then Solomon made the Most Holy Place. It was 30 feet long and 30 feet wide. It was as wide as the Temple. He covered its walls with about 46,000 pounds of pure gold. ⁹ The gold nails weighed over a pound. Solomon also covered the upper rooms with gold.

¹⁰ He made two creatures with wings for the Most Holy Place. He made them out of hot liquid gold. ¹¹ The wings of the gold creatures were spread out. Together, they were 30 feet across. One wing of one creature touched the Temple wall. The wing was 7½ feet long. The creature’s other wing touched a wing of the second creature. This wing was also 7½ feet long. ¹² One wing of the second creature touched the other side of the room. It was also 7½ feet long. The second creature’s other wing touched the first creature’s wing. This wing was also 7½ feet long. ¹³ Together, the creatures’ wings were 30 feet across. The creatures stood on their feet. They looked inside toward the main room.

¹⁴ Solomon made the curtain of blue, purple and red thread and expensive linen. And he put designs of creatures with wings in it.

¹⁵ Solomon made two pillars to stand in front of the Temple. They were about 52 feet tall. The capital of each pillar was over 7 feet tall. ¹⁶ Solomon made a net of chains. He put them on the tops of the pillars. He made 100 pomegranates and put them on the chains. ¹⁷ Then Solomon put the pillars up in front of the Temple. One pillar stood on the south side. The other stood on the north. He named the south pillar He Establishes. And he named the north pillar In Him Is Strength.

Things for the Temple

4 Solomon made a bronze altar. It was 30 feet long, 30 feet wide and 15 feet tall. ² Then Solomon used melted bronze to make a large bowl, which was called the Sea. It was round and measured 15 feet across from edge to edge. It was over 7 feet tall, and it measured 45 feet around. ³ There were carvings of bulls under the rim of the bowl. There were 10 bulls in every 1½ feet. They were put in two rows around the bowl when it was made.

⁴ The bowl rested on 12 statues of bulls. Three bulls faced north, 3 faced west, 3 faced south and 3 faced east. The bowl was on top of them. They faced outward from the center of the bowl. ⁵ The bowl was 3 inches thick. Its rim was like the rim of a cup. It looked like a lily blossom. It could hold about 17,500 gallons.

⁶ Solomon made 10 smaller bowls. He put 5 of them on the south side. And he put 5 of them on the north. They were to be used to wash the animals for the burnt offerings. But the large bowl was to be used by the priests for washing.

⁷ Solomon made 10 lampstands of gold, following the plans for them. He put them in the Temple. He put 5 on the south side and 5 on the north.

⁸ Solomon made 10 tables and put them in the Temple. He put 5 on the south side and 5 on the north. And he used gold to make 100 other bowls.

⁹ Solomon also made the priests’ courtyard and the large courtyard. He made the doors that opened to the courtyard and covered them with bronze. ¹⁰ Then he put the large bowl on the south side. He put it in the Temple’s southeast corner.

¹¹ He made the pots, shovels and bowls. So Huram finished his work for King Solomon on the Temple of God. He had made these things:

All the things Huram-Abi made King Solomon for the Temple of the Lord were made of polished bronze. ¹⁷ King Solomon first had these things poured into clay molds. The molds were made in the plain of the Jordan between Succoth and Zarethan. ¹⁸ Solomon had so many things made no one even tried to weigh all the bronze used.

¹⁹ Solomon also made all the things for God’s Temple. He made the gold altar. He made tables to hold the bread that shows we are in God’s presence. ²⁰ He made the lampstands and their lamps of pure gold. They were to burn in front of the Most Holy Place as planned. ²¹ Solomon used pure gold to make the flowers, lamps and tongs. ²² He used pure gold to make the wick trimmers. He used pure gold for the bowls, pans and dishes used to carry coals. He used pure gold to make the doors for the Temple. And he used pure gold for the inside doors for the Most Holy Place and the doors for the main room.