Chapter 5
Temple Plans. 1 Hiram, the king of Tyre, sent his servants to Solomon for he had heard that he had been anointed as king in his father’s place, for Hiram had always been a friend of David.[a] 2 Solomon sent to Hiram, saying, 3 “You know that David, my father, could not build a temple for the name of the Lord, his God, because he had to fight battles on every side until the Lord placed them under his feet. 4 Now the Lord, my God, has given me rest on every side, so that there are neither adversaries nor disasters. 5 I therefore intend to build a temple for the name of the Lord, my God, as the Lord foretold to David, my father, when he said, ‘Your son whom I will establish to take your place upon your throne will be the one who will build a temple for my name.’ 6 Give orders to cut cedars of Lebanon for me. My servants will work alongside your servants, and I will pay your servants whatever wage you set. You know that we have no one among us who is as skilled as the Sidonians in cutting down trees.”
7 When Hiram heard Solomon’s message, he rejoiced greatly. He said, “Blessed be the Lord today, for he has given David a wise son to rule over this great nation.” 8 Hiram sent word to Solomon, saying, “I have received the message you sent me, and I will do everything that you wish concerning the cedar trees and fir trees. 9 My servants will haul them down from Lebanon to the sea, and I will float them across the water by rafts, bringing them to the place that you establish for me. They will be broken apart for you there, and you can take them away. You, in turn, can fulfill my desire by providing food for my household.”
10 So Hiram gave Solomon all the cedar trees and fir trees that he desired, 11 and Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand cors of wheat as food for his household and twenty cors of pure oil. This is what Solomon gave to Hiram every year. 12 The Lord gave Solomon wisdom, just as he had promised him. There was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and they made a covenant with each other.
13 [b]Then King Solomon raised up a labor force from all of Israel, and the labor force numbered thirty thousand men. 14 He sent ten thousand of them each month to Lebanon in shifts. They were in Lebanon for one month, and then they were home for two months. Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor.
15 Solomon also had sixty thousand who served as porters, and eighty thousand who carved stone in the hill country. 16 In addition, Solomon had three thousand and three hundred supervisors in charge of the work. They directed the people who did the work. 17 The king gave orders, and they prepared huge, costly stones to lay the foundation of the temple with hewn stones. 18 Thus Solomon’s workmen, and Hiram’s workmen, and the men of Gebal prepared the timber and the stone for the construction of the temple.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 5:1 Friend of David: Hiram’s connection to David was more of a political than a social one. Solomon’s continuation of the alliance is woven into the deals made between them for the construction of the temple.
- 1 Kings 5:13 King Solomon’s wisdom was apparent in scheduling the workforce for monthly tours during the building of the temple. In this way, he was assured of a fresh supply of rested and willing workers. Solomon followed his father’s advice concerning his enemies (vv. 5-9).