^4:7Solomon had twelve district governors appointed throughout Israel who acquired supplies for the king and his palace. Each was responsible for one month in the year. ^4:8These were their names:

Ben-Hur was in charge of the hill country of Ephraim.

^4:9Ben-Deker was in charge of Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh, and Elon Beth Hanan.

^4:10Ben-Hesed was in charge of Arubboth; he controlled Socoh and all the territory of Hepher.

^4:11Ben-Abinadab was in charge of Naphath Dor. (He was married to Solomon’s daughter Taphath.)

^4:12Baana son of Ahilud was in charge of Taanach and Megiddo,⁸ as well as all of Beth Shan next to Zarethan below Jezreel, from Beth Shan to Abel Meholah and on past Jokmeam.

^4:13Ben-Geber was in charge of Ramoth Gilead; he controlled the tent villages of Jair son of Manasseh in Gilead, as well as the region of Argob in Bashan, including sixty large walled cities with bronze bars locking their gates.

^4:14Ahinadab son of Iddo was in charge of Mahanaim.

^4:15Ahimaaz was in charge of Naphtali. (He married Solomon’s daughter Basemath.)

^4:16Baana son of Hushai was in charge of Asher and Aloth.

^4:17Jehoshaphat son of Paruah was in charge of Issachar.

^4:18Shimei son of Ela was in charge of Benjamin.

^4:19Geber son of Uri was in charge of the land of Gilead (the territory which had once belonged to King Sihon of the Amorites and to King Og of Bashan). He was sole governor of the area.

Solomon’s Wealth and Fame

^4:20The people of Judah and Israel were as innumerable as the sand on the seashore; they had plenty to eat and drink and were happy. ^{4:21 (5:1)}⁹ Solomon ruled all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River¹⁰ to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These kingdoms paid tribute as Solomon’s subjects throughout his lifetime.¹¹^4:22Each day Solomon’s royal court consumed¹² thirty cors¹³ of finely milled flour, sixty cors of cereal, ^4:23ten calves fattened in the stall,¹⁴ twenty calves from the pasture, and a hundred sheep, not to mention rams, gazelles, deer, and well-fed birds. ^4:24His royal court was so large because¹⁵ he ruled over all the kingdoms west of the Euphrates River from Tiphsah¹⁶ to Gaza; he was at peace with all his neighbors.¹⁷^4:25All the people of Judah and Israel had security; everyone from Dan to Beer Sheba enjoyed the produce of their vines and fig trees throughout Solomon’s lifetime.¹⁸^4:26Solomon had 4,000¹⁹ stalls for his chariot horses and 12,000 horses. ^4:27The district governors acquired supplies for King Solomon and all who ate in his royal palace.²⁰ Each was responsible for one month in the year; they made sure nothing was lacking. ^4:28Each one also brought to the assigned location his quota of barley and straw for the various horses.²¹

^4:29God gave Solomon wisdom and very great discernment; the breadth of his understanding²² was as infinite as the sand on the seashore. ^4:30Solomon was wiser than all the men of the east and all the sages of Egypt.²³^4:31He was wiser than any man, including Ethan the Ezrahite or Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol. He was famous in all the neighboring nations.²⁴^4:32He composed²⁵ 3,000 proverbs and 1,005 songs. ^4:33He produced manuals on botany, describing every kind of plant,²⁶ from the cedars of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows on walls. He also produced manuals on biology, describing²⁷ animals, birds, insects, and fish. ^4:34People from all nations came to hear Solomon’s display of wisdom;²⁸ they came from all the kings of the earth who heard about his wisdom.

Solomon Gathers Building Materials for the Temple

^{5:1 (5:15)}¹ King Hiram of Tyre² sent messengers³ to Solomon when he heard that he had been anointed king in his father’s place. (Hiram had always been an ally of David.) ^5:2Solomon then sent this message to Hiram: ^5:3“You know that my father David was unable to build a temple to honor the Lord⁴ his God, for he was busy fighting battles on all fronts while the Lord subdued his enemies.⁵^5:4But now the Lord my God has made me secure on all fronts; there is no adversary or dangerous threat. ^5:5So I have decided⁶ to build a temple to honor the Lord⁷ my God, as the Lord instructed my father David, ‘Your son, whom I will put on your throne in your place, is the one who will build a temple to honor me.’⁸^5:6So now order some cedars of Lebanon to be cut for me. My servants will work with your servants. I will pay your servants whatever you say is appropriate, for you know that we have no one among us who knows how to cut down trees like the Sidonians.”

^5:7When Hiram heard Solomon’s message, he was very happy. He said, “The Lord is worthy of praise today because he⁹ has given David a wise son to rule over this great nation.” ^5:8Hiram then sent this message to Solomon: “I received¹⁰ the message you sent to me. I will give you all the cedars and evergreens you need.¹¹^5:9My servants will bring the timber down from Lebanon to the sea. I will send it by sea in raft-like bundles to the place you designate.¹² There I will separate the logs¹³ and you can carry them away. In exchange you will supply the food I need for my royal court.”¹⁴

^5:10So Hiram supplied the cedars and evergreens Solomon needed,¹⁵^5:11and Solomon supplied Hiram annually with 20,000 cors¹⁶ of wheat as provision for his royal court,¹⁷ as well as 20,000 baths¹⁸ of pure¹⁹ olive oil.²⁰^5:12So the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he had promised him. And Hiram and Solomon were at peace and made a treaty.²¹

^5:13King Solomon conscripted²² work crews²³ from throughout Israel, 30,000 men in all. ^5:14He sent them to Lebanon in shifts of 10,000 men per month. They worked in Lebanon for one month, and then spent two months at home. Adoniram was supervisor of²⁴ the work crews. ^5:15Solomon also had 70,000 common laborers²⁵ and 80,000 stonecutters²⁶ in the hills, ^5:16besides 3,300²⁷ officials who supervised the workers.²⁸^5:17By royal order²⁹ they supplied large valuable stones in order to build the temple’s foundation with chiseled stone. ^5:18Solomon’s and Hiram’s construction workers,³⁰ along with men from Byblos,³¹ did the chiseling and prepared the wood and stones for the building of the temple.³²

Read in Logos

Footnotes

1 Heb “were scribes”; , , “secretaries”; , “court secretaries.”
2 Heb “was over.”
3 Heb “was over.”
4 Heb “close associate of”; , , “the king’s friend” (a title for an adviser, not just an acquaintance).
5 Heb “over the house.”
6 Heb “was over.”
7 The work crews. This Hebrew word (מַס, mas) refers to a group of laborers conscripted for royal or public service.
8 For location see ; ; ; ; .
9 Beginning with 4:21, the verse numbers through 5:18 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (), with 4:21 = 5:1 , 4:22 = 5:2 , etc., through 5:18 = 5:32 . Beginning with 6:1 the numbering of verses in the English Bible and the Hebrew text is again the same.
10 Heb “the River” (also in v. 24). This is the standard designation for the Euphrates River in biblical Hebrew.
11 Heb “[They] were bringing tribute and were serving Solomon all the days of his life.”
12 Heb “the food of Solomon for each day was.”
13 As a unit of dry measure a cor was roughly equivalent to six bushels.
14 The words “in the stall” are added for clarification; note the immediately following reference to cattle from the pasture.
15 Heb “because.” The words “his royal court was so large” are added to facilitate the logical connection with the preceding verse.
16 Tiphsah. This was located on the Euphrates River.
17 Heb “for he was ruling over all [the region] beyond the River, from Tiphsah to Gaza, over all the kingdoms beyond the River, and he had peace on every side all around.”
18 Heb “Judah and Israel lived securely, each one under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan to Beer Sheba, all the days of Solomon.”
19 The Hebrew text has “40,000,” but this is probably an inflated number (nevertheless it is followed by , , , , , ). Some Greek of the OT and the parallel in 2 Chr 9:25 read “4,000” (cf. , , , ).
20 Heb “everyone who drew near to the table of King Solomon.”
21 Heb “barley and straw for the horses and the steeds they brought to the place which was there, each according to his measure.”
22 Heb “heart,” i.e., mind. (The Hebrew term translated “heart” often refers to the mental faculties.)
23 Heb “the wisdom of Solomon was greater than the wisdom of all the sons of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.”
24 Heb “his name was in all the surrounding nations.”
25 Heb “spoke.”
26 Heb “he spoke about plants.”
27 Heb “he spoke about.”
28 Heb “the wisdom of Solomon.”
1 The verse numbers in the English Bible differ from those in the Hebrew text () here; 5:1–18 in the English Bible corresponds to 5:15–32 in the Hebrew text. See the note at .
2 For location see ; ; ; ; .
3 Heb “his servants.”
4 Heb “a house for the name of the Lord.” The word “name” sometimes refers to one’s reputation or honor. The “name” of the Lord sometimes designates the Lord himself, being indistinguishable from the proper name.
5 Heb “because of the battles which surrounded him until the Lord placed them under the soles of his feet.”
6 Heb “Look, I am saying.”
7 Heb “a house for the name of the Lord.” The word “name” sometimes refers to one’s reputation or honor. The “name” of the Lord sometimes designates the Lord himself, being indistinguishable from the proper name.
8 Heb “a house for my name.” The word “name” sometimes refers to one’s reputation or honor. The “name” of the Lord sometimes designates the Lord himself, being indistinguishable from the proper name.
9 Or “Blessed be the Lord today, who.…”
10 Heb “heard.”
11 Heb “I will satisfy all your desire with respect to cedar wood and with respect to the wood of evergreens.”
12 Heb “I will place them [on? as?] rafts in the sea to the place where you designate to me.” This may mean he would send them by raft, or that he would tie them in raft-like bundles, and have ships tow them down to an Israelite port.
13 Heb “smash them,” i.e., untie the bundles.
14 Heb “as for you, you will satisfy my desire by giving food for my house.”
15 Heb “and Hiram gave to Solomon cedar wood and the wood of evergreens, all his desire.”
16 As a unit of dry measure a cor was roughly equivalent to six bushels.
17 Heb “his house.”
18 The Hebrew text has “twenty cors,” but the ancient Greek version and the parallel text in 2 Chr 2:10 read “twenty thousand baths.” A bath was a liquid measure equivalent to almost six gallons.
19 Or “pressed.”
20 Heb “and Solomon supplied Hiram with twenty thousand cors of wheat … pure olive oil. So Solomon would give to Hiram year by year.”
21 Heb “a covenant,” referring to a formal peace treaty or alliance.
22 Heb “raised up.”
23 Work crews. This Hebrew word (מַס, mas) refers to a group of laborers conscripted for royal or public service.
24 Heb “was over.”
25 Heb “carriers of loads.”
26 Heb “cutters” (probably of stones).
27 Some Greek of the OT read “3,600”; cf. 2 Chr 2:2, 18 and .
28 Heb “besides thirty-three hundred from the officials of Solomon’s governors who were over the work, the ones ruling over the people, the ones doing the work.”
29 Heb “and the king commanded.”
30 Heb “builders.”
31 Heb “the Gebalites.” The reading is problematic and some emend to a verb form meaning, “set the borders.”
32 The includes the words “for three years.”