1 Kings 5

Hiram, the king of the city of Tyre, sent his officials to Solomon, because he had heard that Solomon had been anointed king to take his father's place. Hiram had always been a friend of David.

1And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for Hiram was ever a lover of David.

NoteTyre was a wealthy Phoenician port on the Mediterranean coast north of Israel, in what is now Lebanon. Its kings traded timber, dyed cloth and metalwork by sea across the region. "Anointed" means having olive oil poured over the head, the ceremony by which a man was formally installed as king. The King James phrase "in the room of his father" uses "room" in its older sense of place or stead: in his father's place.

2Solomon sent this message back to Hiram:

2And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,

3"You know that my father David could not build a house for the name of the LORD his God. Wars surrounded him on every side, until the LORD put his enemies under his feet.

3Thou knowest how that David my father could not build an house unto the name of the LORD his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until the LORD put them under the soles of his feet.

Note"A house" here means a temple, a permanent building for worship, as opposed to the portable tent shrine Israel had used until then. "The name of the LORD" is a standard Hebrew way of speaking of the LORD himself as present and known among his people; a house built "for the name" is a house where that name is invoked. "Put them under the soles of his feet" is a picture of total victory, drawn from the practice of a victorious king setting his foot on a defeated enemy's neck.

4But now the LORD my God has given me peace on every side. I have no enemy attacking me and no disaster to deal with.

4But now the LORD my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent.

NoteThe King James "evil occurrent" means an evil occurrence, that is, any misfortune or crisis that might arise. It is not a reference to moral evil.

5So I plan to build a house for the name of the LORD my God. The LORD told my father David, 'Your son, whom I will put on your throne in your place, will build the house for my name.'

5And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name.

NoteSolomon is citing the promise reported in 2 Samuel 7, where the prophet Nathan tells David that his son, not David himself, will build the temple.

6So give the order for cedar trees in Lebanon to be cut down for me. My workers will work with your workers, and I will pay your workers whatever wage you set. You know that no one among us can cut timber as skillfully as the men of Sidon."

6Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy servants: and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt appoint: for thou knowest that there is not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians.

NoteThe cedars of Lebanon were the most prized building timber in the ancient Near East: tall, straight, fragrant, resistant to rot and insects, and used by kings across the region for palaces and temples. Sidon was another Phoenician port city; "Sidonians" is often used broadly for Phoenicians in general, who were famous for logging, carpentry and seafaring. The King James "any that can skill to hew timber" uses "can skill" in its older sense of knows how, is expert.

7When Hiram heard Solomon's message, he was very glad. He said, "Praise the LORD today, who has given David a wise son to rule this great nation."

7And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, Blessed be the LORD this day, which hath given unto David a wise son over this great people.

NoteA king blessing the god of the country he was writing to was ordinary diplomatic courtesy in ancient Near Eastern correspondence, and the letter form here matches surviving royal letters of the period.

8Hiram sent this reply to Solomon: "I have received your message, and I will do everything you want about the cedar logs and the cypress logs.

8And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, I have considered the things which thou sentest to me for: and I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir.

NoteThe tree the King James calls "fir" is uncertain; the Hebrew word probably means cypress or juniper, another durable, aromatic timber from the Lebanon range.

9My workers will bring the logs down from Lebanon to the sea. I will tie them into rafts and float them by sea to the place you name. There I will have them taken apart, and you can carry them away. In return, you will do what I want by supplying food for my household."

9My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon unto the sea: and I will convey them by sea in floats unto the place that thou shalt appoint me, and will cause them to be discharged there, and thou shalt receive them: and thou shalt accomplish my desire, in giving food for my household.

NoteThe sea is the Mediterranean. Logs were dragged from the mountains to the coast, lashed together into rafts, and towed or floated south along the shore to an Israelite-controlled landing point, then broken apart and hauled inland. This avoided moving enormous timbers overland the whole way.

10So Hiram gave Solomon all the cedar and cypress logs he wanted.

10So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire.

11And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand large measures of wheat as food for his household, plus twenty measures of pressed olive oil. Solomon gave him this every year.

11And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year.

NoteThe Hebrew measures are the cor, a dry measure of roughly six or seven bushels (about 220 liters), and the bath, a liquid measure of about six gallons (22 liters). The Hebrew text of Kings reads twenty cors of oil, a surprisingly small amount beside twenty thousand cors of wheat; the ancient Greek translation and the parallel account in 2 Chronicles 2 read twenty thousand baths, which is what the rendering follows. "Pure oil" means olive oil from the first, beaten pressing, the highest grade.

12The LORD gave Solomon wisdom, just as he had promised him. There was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.

12And the LORD gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him: and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together.

NoteThe King James "league" means a treaty or formal alliance between states, sealed by mutual obligations, not a loose friendship.

13King Solomon drafted workers from all Israel, and the labor force numbered thirty thousand men.

13And king Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men.

NoteA "levy" is conscripted labor: men required to work for the crown for a set period without pay, as a form of tax. This was standard practice for large royal building projects, but resentment of it later helped split the kingdom (1 Kings 12).

14He sent them to Lebanon in shifts of ten thousand a month. Each group spent one month in Lebanon and then two months at home. Adoniram was in charge of this drafted labor force.

14And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses: a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home: and Adoniram was over the levy.

Note"By courses" means in rotating shifts. Adoniram, the official over the forced labor, was still in that post a generation later, when the northern tribes stoned him to death during the revolt against Solomon's son (1 Kings 12:18).

15Solomon also had seventy thousand men who carried loads and eighty thousand men who cut stone in the hills.

15And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains;

Note"Bare burdens" means carried loads: porters hauling stone and timber. According to 1 Kings 9:20-22 and 2 Chronicles 2:17-18, this larger workforce was drawn from the non-Israelite peoples remaining in the land, as distinct from the thirty thousand Israelites conscripted in verse 13.

16That number does not count Solomon's chief officers in charge of the work. There were three thousand three hundred of them, and they supervised the workers.

16Beside the chief of Solomon’s officers which were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, which ruled over the people that wrought in the work.

NoteThe parallel account in 2 Chronicles 2:18 gives three thousand six hundred supervisors rather than three thousand three hundred; ancient numbers in these lists often differ between the two books.

17The king gave the order, and they quarried large, costly blocks of stone, cut and shaped, to lay the foundation of the house.

17And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house.

NoteQuarried blocks were cut and squared at the quarry itself, so that the stones arrived ready to set. "Costly" refers to the labor and size involved, not to precious material.

18Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders, together with the men from Gebal, cut the stone. So they got the timber and the stone ready to build the house.

18And Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers: so they prepared timber and stones to build the house.

NoteThe King James "stonesquarers" reflects a misunderstanding of the Hebrew word Giblim, which means men of Gebal, the Phoenician port later known as Byblos, on the coast north of Beirut. Its craftsmen were known for stonework and shipbuilding.