1 Kings 5
1 Hiram, the king of Tyre [city], had always been a close friend of King David. When he heard that Solomon had been appointed to become the king after his father was no longer king, he sent some messengers to Solomon [to congratulate him].
And Chiram king of Tyre sent his servants to anoint Solomon in the room of David his father, because Chiram always loved David.
2 Solomon [gave those messengers] this message to take back to Hiram:
And Solomon sent to Chiram, saying,
3 “You know that my father David [led his soldiers to] fight many wars against his enemies in the nearby countries. So he could not [arrange to] build a temple in which we [MTY] could worship Yahweh our God, until after Yahweh enabled [the Israeli army] to defeat [IDM] all his enemies.
You knew my father David, that he could not build a house to the name of the Lord my God because of the wars that compassed him about, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet.
4 But now Yahweh our God has enabled us to have peace with all the surrounding countries. [(There is no danger that/We do not need to worry that)] we will be attacked.
And now the Lord my God has given me rest round about; there is no one plotting against [me], and there is no evil trespass [against me].
5 Yahweh promised my father David, ‘Your son, whom I will enable to be king after you are no longer king, will build a temple for me [MTY].’ Because of that, I have decided to build a temple in which we can worship [MTY] Yahweh our God.
And, behold, I intend to build a house to the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord God spoke to my father David, saying, Your son whom I will set on your throne in your place, he shall build a house to my name.
6 “So [I am requesting that] you command your workers to cut cedar trees for me. My men will work with them, and I will pay your workers whatever you decide. [But] my men [cannot do the work alone, ] because they do not know how to cut down trees like your workers from Sidon [city] do.”
And now command, and let [men] cut wood for me out of Libanus: and, behold, my servants [shall be] with your servants, and I will give you the wages of your service, according to all that you shall say, because you know that we have no one skilled in cutting timber like the Sidonians.
7 When Hiram heard the message from Solomon, he was very happy and said, “I praise Yahweh today for giving David a very wise son to rule that great nation!”
And it came to pass, as soon as Chiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, Blessed [be] God today, who has given to David a wise son over this numerous people.
8 He sent this message back to Solomon: “I have heard the message that you sent to me, and I am ready to do what you ask. I will provide cedar and cypress logs.
And he sent to Solomon, saying, I have listened concerning all that you have sent to me for: I will do all your will: [as for] timber of cedar and fir,
9 My workers will bring the logs down from [the] Lebanon [mountains] to the [Mediterranean] sea. Then they will [tie them together to] make rafts to float them [in the water] along the coast to the place that you indicate. Then my workers will untie the logs, and your workers will take them from there. What I want you to do is to supply food for the people who work in my palace.”
my servants shall bring them down from Libanus to the sea: I will form them [into] rafts, [and bring them] to the place which you shall send to me [about]; and I will land them there, and you shall take [them] up: and you shall do my will, in giving bread to my household.
10 So Hiram [arranged for his workers to] supply all the cedar and cypress logs that Solomon wanted.
So Chiram gave to Solomon cedars, and fir trees, and all his desire.
11 Each year Solomon gave Hiram 100,000 bushels of wheat and 110,000 gallons of pure [olive] oil to feed the people who worked in his palace.
And Solomon gave to Chiram twenty thousand measures of wheat as food for his house, and twenty thousand baths of beaten oil thus Solomon gave to Chiram yearly.
12 Yahweh enabled Solomon to be wise, just like he had promised. Solomon and Hiram made a treaty/agreement that there would be peace between their [two governments/countries].
And the Lord gave wisdom to Solomon as he promised him; and there was peace between Chiram and Solomon, and they made a covenant between them.
13 King Solomon forced 30,000 men from all over Israel to become his workers.
And the king raised a levy out of all Israel, and the levy was thirty thousand men.
14 Adoniram was their boss. Solomon divided the men into three groups. Each month 10,000 of them went to Lebanon and worked for a month there, and then they came back home for two months.
And he sent them to Libanus, ten thousand taking turn every month: they were a month in Libanus and two months at home: and Adoniram [was] over the levy.
15 Solomon also forced 80,000 men to cut stones in the hilly area and 70,000 men to haul the stones [to Jerusalem].
And Solomon had seventy thousand bearers of burdens, and eighty thousand hewers of stone in the mountain;
16 And he also assigned 3,600 men to supervise their work.
besides the rulers that were appointed over the works of Solomon, [there were] three thousand six hundred masters who wrought in the works.
17 The king also commanded his workers to cut huge blocks of stones from the quarries and to smooth the sides of the stones. Those huge stones were for the foundation of the temple.
[And the king commanded and they ] [brought great stones, precious stones for the foundation of the house, and unhewn stones. ]
18 Solomon’s workers and Hiram’s workers and men from Gebal/Byblos [city] shaped the stones and prepared the timber to build the temple.
And they prepared the stones and the timber [during] three years.
