2 Chronicles 2:2–18

²And ^bSolomon told out threescore and ten thousand men ^cto bear burdens, and fourscore thousand to hew in the mountain, and three thousand and six hundred ^cto oversee them.

^3dAnd Solomon sent to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, ^eAs thou didst deal with David my father, and didst send him cedars to build him a house to dwell therein, ^feven so deal with me. ⁴Behold, I 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 ^gthe continual shewbread, and for ^hthe burnt offerings morning and evening, ^hon the sabbaths, and ^hon the new moons, and on ^hthe solemn feasts of the Lord our God. This is an ordinance for ever to Israel. ⁵And the house which I build is great: for ⁱgreat is our God above all gods. ⁶But who is able to build him a house, seeing ^jthe heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who am I then, that I should build him a house, save only to burn sacrifice before him? ⁷Send me now therefore a man cunning to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in ^kpurple, and ^lcrimson, and blue, and that can skill to grave with the cunning men that are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, ^mwhom David my father did provide. ⁸Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and behold, my servants shall be with thy servants, ⁹even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I am about to build shall be wonderful great. ¹⁰And behold, ⁿI will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, ^otwenty thousand ^pmeasures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand ^qbaths of wine, and ^otwenty thousand ^qbaths of oil.

¹¹Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon, ^rBecause the Lord hath loved his people, he hath made thee king over them. ¹²Huram said moreover, ^sBlessed be the Lord God of Israel, ^tthat made heaven and earth, who hath given to David the king a wise son, endued with prudence and understanding, that ^umight build a house for the Lord, and a house for his kingdom. ¹³And now I have sent a cunning man, endued with understanding, of Huram my father’s, ^14xthe son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre, skilful ^yto work in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber, in purple, in blue, and in ^zfine linen, and in crimson; also to grave any manner of graving, and to find out every device which shall be put to him, with thy cunning men, and with the cunning men of my lord David thy father. ¹⁵Now therefore the wheat, and the barley, the oil, and the wine, which ^amy lord hath spoken of, let him send unto his servants: ¹⁶and we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as thou shalt need: and we will bring it to thee in flotes by sea to Joppa; and thou shalt carry it up to Jerusalem.

^17bAnd Solomon numbered all the strangers that were in the land of Israel, after the numbering wherewith ^cDavid his father had numbered them; and they were found an hundred and fifty thousand and three thousand and six hundred. ¹⁸And he set ^dthreescore and ten thousand of them to be bearers of burdens, and fourscore thousand to be hewers in the mountain, and three thousand and six hundred overseers to set the people a work.

III.