1And Solomon decided to build a house for the name of the LORD, and a royal palace for himself.
2And Solomon assigned (conscripted) seventy thousand men to carry burdens, eighty thousand to quarry stone in the mountains, and three thousand, six hundred to oversee them.
3And Solomon sent this message to Huram (Hiram), the king of Tyre, “As you dealt with David, my father, and sent him cedars to build a house to live in, even so deal with me.
4I am about to build a house to the name of the LORD my God, to dedicate it to Him, and to burn before Him sweet incense, and for setting out consecrated showbread before Him, and for the burnt offerings, morning and evening, on the Sabbaths, the new moons, and on the solemn feasts of the LORD our God. This is a lasting ordinance for Israel.
5And the temple that I will build will be great; for our God is greater above all gods.
6But who can really build Him a worthy house, since the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain Him? Who, then, am I, that I should build Him a house, except as a place to burn sacrifices before Him?
7Send me now, therefore, a man skillful to work in gold, silver, bronze, iron, purple, crimson, and blue, and who are trained to engrave with my skillful men who here with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David, my father, provided.
8Send me also cedar, fir, and algum trees, out of Lebanon; for I know that your servants are skilled in cutting timber in Lebanon. And my servants shall work with your servants,
9To prepare plenty of timber; for the house which I am about to build shall be large and magnificent.
10And I will give to your servants, the woodcutters, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, twenty thousand measures of barley, twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.”
11Then Huram, king of Tyre, answered in a written letter that he sent to Solomon, “Because the LORD has loved His people, He has made you king over them”.
12Huram said, moreover, “Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, Who made heaven and earth, Who has given to David, the king, a wise son, endued with prudence and understanding, who will build a house for the LORD, and a palace for his kingdom.
13And now I am sending a man named Huram-abi, an extremely skillful and talented man, endued with understanding,
14His mother is from the tribe of Dan in Israel; but his father is from Tyre. He is skilled in making things of gold, silver, bronze, and iron, as well as working with wood and stone. He can also work with purple, blue, and scarlet cloth and fine linen. He is also an engraver and can execute any design you give him. He will work with your craftsmen and those appointed by David, your father.
15Now, therefore, the wheat, and the barley, the oil, and the wine, which my lord has spoken of, let him send to his servants;
16And we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as you shall need; and we will bring it to you in flotillas by sea to Joppa, and you shall transport it from Joppa up to Jerusalem”.
17And Solomon numbered all the sojourners (foreigners) who were in the land of Israel, after the census that David, his father, had counted them; and they were found to be a hundred fifty-three thousand, six hundred.
18And he assigned seventy thousand of them to be load carriers, and eighty thousand to be stonecutters at the quarries in the mountains, and three thousand, six hundred overseers to act as foremen. Easy Reader Bible: Purple Letter Edition © 2023 by Jim Musser. Used by Permission. All rights Reserved. Bible Hub |
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