^2:3Solomon sent a message to King Huram⁷ of Tyre:⁸ “Help me⁹ as you did my father David, when you sent him cedar logs¹⁰ for the construction of his palace.¹¹^2:4Look, I am ready to build a temple to honor¹² the Lord my God and to dedicate it to him in order to burn fragrant incense before him, to set out the bread that is regularly displayed,¹³ and to offer burnt sacrifices each morning and evening, and on Sabbaths, new moon festivals, and at other times appointed by the Lord our God. This is something Israel must do on a permanent basis.¹⁴^2:5I will build a great temple, for our God is greater than all gods. ^2:6Of course, who can really build a temple for him, since the sky¹⁵ and the highest heavens cannot contain him? Who am I that I should build him a temple! It will really be only a place to offer sacrifices before him.¹⁶

^2:7“Now send me a man who is skilled in working with gold, silver, bronze, and iron, as well as purple, crimson, and violet colored fabrics, and who knows how to engrave. He will work with my skilled craftsmen here in Jerusalem¹⁷ and Judah, whom my father David provided. ^2:8Send me cedars, evergreens, and algum¹⁸ trees from Lebanon, for I know your servants are adept¹⁹ at cutting down trees in Lebanon. My servants will work with your servants ^2:9to supply me with large quantities of timber, for I am building a great, magnificent temple. ^2:10Look, I will pay your servants who cut the timber 20,000 kors²⁰ of ground wheat, 20,000 kors of barley, 120,000 gallons²¹ of wine, and 120,000 gallons of olive oil.”

^2:11King Huram²² of Tyre sent this letter to Solomon: “Because the Lord loves his people, he has made you their king.” ^2:12Huram also said, “Worthy of praise is the Lord God of Israel, who made the sky and the earth! He has given David a wise son who has discernment and insight and will build a temple for the Lord, as well as a royal palace for himself.²³^2:13Now I am sending you Huram Abi,²⁴ a skilled and capable man, ^2:14whose mother is a Danite and whose father is a Tyrian.²⁵ He knows how to work with gold, silver, bronze, iron, stones, and wood, as well as purple, violet, white, and crimson fabrics. He knows how to do all kinds of engraving and understands any design given to him. He will work with your skilled craftsmen and the skilled craftsmen of my lord David your father. ^2:15Now let my lord send to his servants the wheat, barley, olive oil, and wine he has promised; ^2:16we will get all the timber you need from Lebanon²⁶ and bring it²⁷ in raft-like bundles²⁸ by sea to Joppa. You can then haul it on up to Jerusalem.”

Read in Logos

Footnotes

7 Heb “Huram.” Some medieval Hebrew , along with the , , and spell the name “Hiram,” agreeing with 1 Chr 14:1. “Huram” is a variant spelling referring to the same individual.
8 For location see ; ; ; ; .
9 The words “help me” are supplied in the translation for clarification and stylistic reasons.
10 Heb “cedars.” The word “logs” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
11 Heb “to build for him a house to live in it.”
12 Heb “for the name of.”
13 Heb “and the regular display.”
14 Heb “permanently [is] this upon Israel.”
15 Or “heavens” (also in v. 12). The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.
16 Heb “Who retains strength to build for him a house, for the heavens and the heavens of heavens do not contain him? And who am I that I should build for him a house, except to sacrifice before him?”
17 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
18 This is probably a variant name for almug trees; see 9:10–11 and the parallel passage in 1 Kgs 10:11–12; cf. . One or the other probably arose through metathesis of letters.
19 Heb “know.”
20 As a unit of dry measure a kor was roughly equivalent to six bushels (about 220 liters).
21 Heb “20,000 baths” (also a second time later in this verse). A bath was a liquid measure roughly equivalent to six gallons (about 22 liters), so this was a quantity of about 120,000 gallons (440,000 liters).
22 Heb “Huram” (also in v. 12). Some medieval Hebrew , along with the , , and spell the name “Hiram,” agreeing with 1 Chr 14:1. “Huram” is a variant spelling referring to the same individual.
23 Heb “who has given to David a wise son [who] knows discernment and insight, who will build a house for the Lord and house for his kingship.”
24 The name Huram Abi means “Huram [is] my father.”
25 Heb “a son of a woman from the daughters of Dan, and his father a man of Tyre.”
26 Heb “and we will cut down trees from Lebanon according to all your need.”
27 Heb “to you,” but this phrase has not been translated for stylistic reasons—it is somewhat redundant.
28 Or “on rafts.” See the note at .