Historical

Solomon Asks for Wisdom at Gibeon

1 Now Solomon the son of David firmly established himself over his kingdom. For Adonai his God was with him and made him exceedingly great.

² Solomon spoke to all Israel—t0 the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, to the judges and to every leader in all Israel, the leading patriarchs— ³ and Solomon and the whole assembly with him went to the high place that was at Gibeon, for the Tent of Meeting of God was there, which Moses the servant of Adonai had made in the wilderness. ⁴ Now David had brought up the Ark of God from Kiriath-jearim to the place that David had prepared for it because he had pitched a tent for it in Jerusalem. ⁵ But the bronze altar that Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur had made was there in front of the Tabernacle of Adonai, and Solomon and the assembly inquired of Him there. ⁶ So Solomon went up before Adonai to the bronze altar that was at the Tent of Meeting and offered 1,000 burnt offerings on it.

⁷ That night God appeared to Solomon and said to him, “Ask! What should I give you?”

⁸ Solomon answered God, “You have shown great lovingkindness to my father David and now You have made me king in his place. ⁹ Now, Adonai Elohim, let Your word to my father David be fulfilled for You have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth. ¹⁰ Now give me wisdom and knowledge that I may go out and come in before this people. For who can govern this great people of Yours?”

¹¹ Then God said to Solomon, “Since this was in your heart and you have not asked for riches, possessions or honor, nor for the life of those who hate you and have not even asked for long life but have asked for wisdom and knowledge for yourself—so you can govern My people over whom I have made you king— ¹² wisdom and knowledge will be given to you. Moreover, I will give you riches, possessions and honor, such as none of the kings who were before you ever had and none after you will have.”

¹³ Then Solomon went to Jerusalem from the high place that was at Gibeon, from in front of the Tent of Meeting. So he reigned over Israel.

Horses and Chariots from Egypt

¹⁴ Solomon accumulated chariots and horsemen. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, which he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. ¹⁵ The king made silver and gold as plentiful in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars as plentiful as sycamores in the foothills. ¹⁶ Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Keve—the king’s merchants purchased them from Keve at a price. ¹⁷ They imported a chariot from Egypt for 600 talents of silver and a horse for 150. So by the same means they were exported to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.

Solomon Prepares to Build

¹⁸ Then Solomon vowed to build a House for the Name of Adonai, as well as a royal palace for himself.

2 Solomon recruited 70,000 men as carriers, 80,000 as stonecutters in the mountains and 3,600 supervisors over them.

² Then Solomon sent word to Huram the king of Tyre saying, “Deal with me as you did with my father David when you sent him cedars to build a house to dwell in. ³ Behold, I am about to build a House for the Name of Adonai my God and to dedicate it to Him for burning fragrant incense before Him, for regular arrangement of the Bread of the Presence and for burnt offerings every morning and evening as well as on Shabbatot, New Moons and moadim of Adonai Eloheinu. Upon Israel this is forever.

⁴ “The House that I am about to build will be great, because our God is greater than all the gods. ⁵ But who is able to build Him a House, since the heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain Him? Who then am I that I should build Him a House—except to burn incense before Him?

⁶ “So now, send me a man skilled to work in gold and silver, bronze and iron, and in purple, crimson and blue yarn, and experienced in engraving, to work in Judah and Jerusalem with the skilled men who are with me, whom my father David provided. ⁷ Send me also cedar, evergreen and algum logs from Lebanon, for I know that your servants are skilled in cutting timber in Lebanon. Indeed my servants will work with yours ⁸ to prepare an abundance of timber for me, because the House that I am about to build will be large and magnificent. ⁹ Now, behold, I will give to your servants, the woodsmen who cut the timber, 20,000 measures^[a] of ground wheat, 20,000 measures of barley, 20,000 vats of wine and 20,000 vats^[b] of oil.”

¹⁰ Then King Huram of Tyre, replied in a letter that he sent to Solomon, “Because Adonai loves His people, He has made you king over them.” ¹¹ Then Huram continued, “Blessed be Adonai, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth. He gave King David a wise son, endowed with insight and understanding, who will build a House for Adonai and a royal house for himself. ¹² So now I am sending Huram-abi—a skilled man endowed with understanding ¹³ who is the son of a woman from the daughters of Dan and whose father was a man from Tyre—a man skilled to work in gold and silver, bronze and iron, stone and wood, in purple and blue, fine linen and crimson, and to engrave all kinds of engraving, and who can execute any design given to him. He will work with your skilled men and with the skilled men of my lord David your father. ¹⁴ Now let my lord send to his servants the wheat and barley, the oil and wine he has promised ¹⁵ and we will cut as many logs from Lebanon as much as you need, and float them in rafts by sea to Jaffa. You can then take them up to Jerusalem.”

¹⁶ Solomon counted all the foreign men in the land of Israel, like the census that his father David had taken, and 153,600 were found. ¹⁷ He appointed 70,000 of them to carry loads, 80,000 to quarry stones in the mountains, and 3,600 overseers to supervise the people working.

Solomon Builds the Temple in Jerusalem

3 Then Solomon began to build the House of Adonai in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah—where Adonai appeared to his father David—at the place that David prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. ² He began to build on the second day of the second month in the fourth year of his reign. ³ Now the foundation Solomon laid for the building of the House of God was 60 cubits long and 20 cubits wide, according to the old standard. ⁴ The porch in front of the House along its width was 20 cubits and its height was 120 cubits, and the inside was overlaid with pure gold. ⁵ He paneled the main hall with cypress wood, which he overlaid with fine gold and embossed on it palm trees and chains. ⁶ He adorned the House with precious stones and the gold he used was gold from Parvaim. ⁷ Furthermore He overlaid the beams, thresholds, walls and doors of the House with gold and carved cheruvim on the walls.

⁸ He made the Holy of Holies, its length corresponding to the width of the House—20 cubits long and 20 cubits wide. He overlaid it with 600 talents of fine gold. ⁹ The weight of the nails was fifty shekels of gold. He also overlaid the upper rooms with gold. ¹⁰ Next he made two sculptured cheruvim in the Holy of Holies and overlaid them with gold. ¹¹ The wingspan of the cheruvim was 20 cubits. One wing of the first cheruv was five cubits long and touched the wall of the House, while the other wing, also five cubits long, touched the wing of the other cheruv. ¹² Similarly, one wing of the second cheruv was five cubits long and touched the wall of the House, while the other wing, also five cubits long, touched the wing of the other cheruv. ¹³ Thus the wingspan of these cheruvim was 20 cubits. They stood on their feet facing the main hall. ¹⁴ Furthermore, he made the veil of blue, purple, crimson yarn and fine linen with cheruvim worked into it.

¹⁵ In the front of the House he made two pillars 35 cubits high, each with a capital on the top measuring five cubits. ¹⁶ He made interwoven chains for the inner Sanctuary and put them on top of the pillars. He also made 100 pomegranates and attached them to the chains. ¹⁷ He erected the pillars in front of the Temple, one to the south and the other to the north. The one to the south he named Jachin and the one to the north Boaz.

The Temple Furnishings

4 Moreover, he made a bronze altar 20 cubits long, 20 cubits wide and ten cubits high. ² He also made the Sea of cast metal ten cubits across from brim to brim, perfectly round. It was five cubits high and its circumference was 30 cubits.

³ Beneath it, figures like bulls were set all around it, ten cubits encircling the Sea. The bulls were in two rows, cast in one piece with it. ⁴ The Sea stood on 12 bulls, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The Sea rested upon them and their hindquarters were all turned inward. ⁵ It was a handbreadth thick, and the brim was like the brim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held 3,000 vats. ⁶ He also made ten basins for washing and placed five on the right side and five on the left. In them the items used for the burnt offering were rinsed, but the kohanim washed in “the Sea”.

⁷ Next he made the ten menorot^[c] of gold in the manner prescribed for them and set them in the Temple, five on the right hand and five on the left. ⁸ He also made ten tables and placed them in the Temple, five on the right side and five on the left. He also made 100 gold bowls.

⁹ Then he made the courtyard of the kohanim and the great courtyard and doors for the courtyard. He overlaid the doors with bronze. ¹⁰ He set the Sea on the south side at the southeast corner.

¹¹ Huram also made the pots, the shovels and the bowls. So Huram-abi finished the work that he had undertaken for King Solomon in the House of God: ¹² the two pillars, the bowls and the two capitals on the top of the pillars, and the two lattice-works to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars, ¹³ and the 400 pomegranates for the two lattice-works (two rows of pomegranates for each lattice-work to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars). ¹⁴ He also made the stands, the basins upon the stands, ¹⁵ and the one Sea with the 12 bulls under it, ¹⁶ as well as the pots, the shovels and the meat hooks. All the utensils Huram-abi made for King Solomon for the House of Adonai were of polished bronze. ¹⁷ The king had them cast with clay earth from the Jordan Valley between Succoth and Zeredah. ¹⁸ Solomon made all these utensils in such great quantities that the weight of the bronze could not be determined.

¹⁹ Solomon also made all the furnishings that were in the House of God, including the golden altar, the tables on which was the Bread of Presence, ²⁰ the menorot with their lamps of pure gold to burn in front of the inner sanctuary as prescribed ²¹ with the flowers and the lamps and the tongs of gold, the purest gold, ²² and the snuffers, the bowls, the spoons and the fire-pans of pure gold, and the doors of the House—the inner doors for the Holy of Holies and the doors of the House, that is, the Temple—were of gold.