God's Covenant with Solomon
(2 Chronicles 7:11-22)
1And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and the king's house, and all Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do, 2That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon. 3And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually. 4And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments: 5Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
6But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: 7Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people: 8And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house? 9And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD brought upon them all this evil.
Cities Given to Hiram
10And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, when Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the LORD, and the king's house, 11(Now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees, and with gold, according to all his desire,) that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. 12And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him; and they pleased him not. 13And he said, What cities are these which thou hast given me, my brother? And he called them the land of Cabul unto this day. 14And Hiram sent to the king sixscore talents of gold.
Solomon's Numerous Achievements
(2 Chronicles 8:1-18)
15And this is the reason of the levy which king Solomon raised; for to build the house of the LORD, and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer. 16For Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and given it for a present unto his daughter, Solomon's wife. 17And Solomon built Gezer, and Bethhoron the nether, 18And Baalath, and Tadmor in the wilderness, in the land, 19And all the cities of store that Solomon had, and cities for his chariots, and cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion. 20And all the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which were not of the children of Israel, 21Their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel also were not able utterly to destroy, upon those did Solomon levy a tribute of bondservice unto this day. 22But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bondmen: but they were men of war, and his servants, and his princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots, and his horsemen.
23These were the chief of the officers that were over Solomon's work, five hundred and fifty, which bare rule over the people that wrought in the work.
24But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of David unto her house which Solomon had built for her: then did he build Millo.
25And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt offerings and peace offerings upon the altar which he built unto the LORD, and he burnt incense upon the altar that was before the LORD. So he finished the house.
26And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Eziongeber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red sea, in the land of Edom. 27And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon. 28And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.
King James Bible
Text courtesy of BibleProtector.com.
The LORD’s Response to Solomon
(2 Chronicles 7:11–22)
1 It happened, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of Yahweh, and the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he was pleased to do, 2 that Yahweh appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3 Yahweh said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your supplication, that you have made before me. I have made this house holy, which you have built, to put my name there forever; and my eyes and my heart shall be there perpetually. 4 As for you, if you will walk before me, as David your father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, and will keep my statutes and my ordinances; 5 then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, according as I promised to David your father, saying, ‘There shall not fail you a man on the throne of Israel.’
6 But if you turn away from following me, you or your children, and not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but shall go and serve other gods, and worship them; 7 then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have made holy for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all peoples. 8 Though this house is so high, yet shall everyone who passes by it be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, ‘Why has Yahweh done thus to this land, and to this house?’ 9 and they shall answer, ‘Because they forsook Yahweh their God, who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold of other gods, and worshiped them, and served them. Therefore Yahweh has brought all this evil on them.’”
Solomon’s Additional Achievements
(2 Chronicles 8:1–18)
10 It happened at the end of twenty years, in which Solomon had built the two houses, the house of Yahweh and the king’s house 11 (now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees, and with gold, according to all his desire), that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. 12 Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him; and they didn’t please him. 13 He said, “What cities are these which you have given me, my brother?” He called them the land of Cabul to this day. 14 Hiram sent to the king one hundred twenty talents of gold.
15 This is the reason of the levy which king Solomon raised, to build the house of Yahweh, and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer. 16 Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites who lived in the city, and given it for a portion to his daughter, Solomon’s wife. 17 Solomon built Gezer, and Beth Horon the lower, 18 and Baalath, and Tamar in the wilderness, in the land, 19 and all the storage cities that Solomon had, and the cities for his chariots, and the cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build for his pleasure in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion. 20 As for all the people who were left of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not of the children of Israel; 21 their children who were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel were not able utterly to destroy, of them Solomon raised a levy of bondservants to this day. 22 But of the children of Israel Solomon made no bondservants; but they were the men of war, and his servants, and his princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots and of his horsemen.
23 These were the chief officers who were over Solomon’s work, five hundred fifty, who bore rule over the people who labored in the work.
24 But Pharaoh’s daughter came up out of the city of David to her house which Solomon had built for her: then he built Millo.
25 Solomon offered burnt offerings and peace offerings on the altar which he built to Yahweh three times a year, burning incense with them, on the altar that was before Yahweh. So he finished the house.
26 King Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion Geber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. 27 Hiram sent in the navy his servants, sailors who had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon. 28 They came to Ophir, and fetched from there gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.
The LORD’s Response to Solomon
(2 Chronicles 7:11–22)
1 Now when Solomon had finished building the house of the LORD and the royal palace, and had achieved all that he had desired to do, 2 the LORD appeared to him a second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3 And the LORD said to him:
“I have heard your prayer and petition before Me. I have consecrated this temple you have built by putting My Name there forever; My eyes and My heart will be there for all time.
4 And as for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, with a heart of integrity and uprightness, doing all I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and ordinances, 5 then I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised your father David when I said, ‘You will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.’
6 But if indeed you or your sons turn away from following Me and do not keep the commandments and statutes I have set before you, and if you go off to serve and worship other gods, 7 then I will cut off Israel from the land that I have given them, and I will banish from My presence this temple I have sanctified for My Name. Then Israel will become an object of scorn and ridicule among all peoples.
8 And when this temple has become a heap of rubble, a all who pass by it will be appalled and will hiss and say, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ 9 And others will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the LORD their God who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—because of this, the LORD has brought all this disaster upon them.’ ”
Solomon’s Additional Achievements
(2 Chronicles 8:1–18)
10 Now at the end of the twenty years during which Solomon built these two houses, the house of the LORD and the royal palace, 11 King Solomon gave twenty towns in the land of Galilee to Hiram king of Tyre, who had supplied him with cedar and cypress b logs and gold for his every desire. 12 So Hiram went out from Tyre to inspect the towns that Solomon had given him, but he was not pleased with them.
13 “What are these towns you have given me, my brother?” asked Hiram, and he called them the Land of Cabul, c as they are called to this day.
14 And Hiram had sent the king 120 talents of gold. d
15 This is the account of the forced labor that King Solomon imposed to build the house of the LORD, his own palace, the supporting terraces, e and the wall of Jerusalem, as well as Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer.
16 Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He had set it on fire, killed the Canaanites who lived in the city, and given it as a dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife. 17 So Solomon rebuilt Gezer, Lower Beth-horon, 18 Baalath, and Tamar f in the Wilderness of Judah, g 19 as well as all the store cities that Solomon had for his chariots and horses h —whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, Lebanon, and throughout the land of his dominion.
20 As for all the people who remained of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites (the people who were not Israelites)— 21 their descendants who remained in the land, those whom the Israelites were unable to devote to destruction i—Solomon conscripted these people to be forced laborers, as they are to this day.
22 But Solomon did not consign any of the Israelites to slavery, because they were his men of war, his servants, his officers, his captains, and the commanders of his chariots and cavalry. 23 They were also the chief officers over Solomon’s projects: 550 supervisors over the people who did the work.
24 As soon as Pharaoh’s daughter had come up from the City of David to the palace that Solomon had built for her, he built the supporting terraces.
25 Three times a year Solomon offered burnt offerings and peace offerings on the altar he had built for the LORD, burning incense with them before the LORD. So he completed the temple.
26 King Solomon also assembled a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber, which is near Eloth j in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea. k 27 And Hiram sent his servants, men who knew the sea, to serve in the fleet with Solomon’s servants. 28 They sailed to Ophir and imported gold from there—420 talents l—and delivered it to Solomon.
Footnotes:
8 a Some LXX manuscripts, Syriac, and Arabic; Hebrew And though this temple is now exalted ; see also 2 Chronicles 7:21.
11 b Or pine or juniper or fir
13 c Cabul sounds like the Hebrew for good-for-nothing .
14 d 120 talents is approximately 4.52 tons or 4.1 metric tons of gold.
15 e Hebrew the Millo ; also in verse 24
18 f Alternate MT reading; the other alternate reads Tadmor
18 g Hebrew in the wilderness in the land
19 h Or horsemen or charioteers
21 i Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering.
26 j Eloth is a variant of Elath ; see LXX, 2 Kings 14:22, and 2 Kings 16:6.
26 k Or the Sea of Reeds
28 l 420 talents is approximately 15.8 tons or 14.4 metric tons of gold.
God's Covenant with Solomon
(2 Chronicles 7:11-22)
1And it cometh to pass, at Solomon's finishing to build the house of Jehovah, and the house of the king, and all the desire of Solomon that he delighted to do, 2that Jehovah appeareth unto Solomon a second time, as He appeared unto him in Gibeon, 3and Jehovah saith unto him, 'I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication with which thou hast made supplication before Me; I have hallowed this house that thou hast built to put My name there -- unto the age, and Mine eyes and My heart have been there all the days. 4'And thou -- if thou dost walk before Me as David thy father walked, in simplicity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee -- My statutes and My judgments thou dost keep -- 5then I have established the throne of thy kingdom over Israel -- to the age, as I spake unto David thy father, saying, There is not cut off to thee a man from being on the throne of Israel.
6'If ye at all turn back -- you and your sons -- from after Me, and keep not My commands -- My statutes, that I have set before you, and ye have gone and served other gods, and bowed yourselves to them, 7then I have cut off Israel from the face of the ground that I have given to them, and the house that I have hallowed for My name I send away from My presence, and Israel hath been for a simile and for a byword among all the peoples; 8as to this house, that is high, every one passing by it is astonished, and hath hissed, and they have said, Wherefore hath Jehovah done thus to this land and to this house? 9and they have said, Because that they have forsaken Jehovah their God, who brought out their fathers from the land of Egypt, and they lay hold on other gods, and bow themselves to them, and serve them; therefore hath Jehovah brought in upon them all this evil.'
Cities Given to Hiram
10And it cometh to pass, at the end of twenty years, that Solomon hath built the two houses, the house of Jehovah, and the house of the king. 11Hiram king of Tyre hath assisted Solomon with cedar-trees, and with fir-trees, and with gold, according to all his desire; then doth king Solomon give to Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. 12And Hiram cometh out from Tyre to see the cities that Solomon hath given to him, and they have not been right in his eyes, 13and he saith, 'What are these cities that thou hast given to me, my brother?' and one calleth them the land of Cabul unto this day. 14And Hiram sendeth to the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold.
Solomon's Numerous Achievements
(2 Chronicles 8:1-18)
15And this is the matter of the tribute that king Solomon hath lifted up, to build the house of Jehovah, and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer, 16(Pharaoh king of Egypt hath gone up and doth capture Gezer, and doth burn it with fire, and the Canaanite who is dwelling in the city he hath slain, and giveth it with presents to his daughter, wife of Solomon.) 17And Solomon buildeth Gezer, and Beth-Horon the lower, 18and Baalath, and Tadmor in the wilderness, in the land; 19and all the cities of stores that king Solomon hath, and the cities of the chariots, and the cities of the horsemen, and the desire of Solomon that he desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion. 20The whole of the people that is left of the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, who are not of the sons of Israel -- 21their sons who are left behind them in the land, whom the sons of Israel have not been able to devote -- he hath even lifted up on them a tribute of service unto this day. 22And out of the sons of Israel Solomon hath not appointed a servant, for they are the men of war, and his servants, and his heads, and his captains, and the heads of his chariots, and his horsemen.
23These are the heads of the officers who are over the work of Solomon, fifty and five hundred, those ruling among the people who are labouring in the work.
24Only, the daughter of Pharaoh went up out of the city of David unto her house that Solomon built for her; then he built Millo.
25And Solomon caused to ascend, three times in a year, burnt-offerings and peace-offerings on the altar that he built to Jehovah, and he perfumed it with that which is before Jehovah, and finished the house.
26And a navy hath king Solomon made in Ezion-Geber, that is beside Eloth, on the edge of the Sea of Suph, in the land of Edom. 27And Hiram sendeth in the navy his servants, shipmen knowing the sea, with servants of Solomon, 28and they come in to Ophir and take thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and bring it in unto king Solomon.
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