2 Chronicles 2

1 Now Solomon commanded the building of a house for Yahweh's name and the building of a palace for his kingdom.

And Solomon determined to build a house for the name of the LORD, and a house for his kingdom.

2 Solomon assigned seventy thousand men to carry loads, and eighty thousand men as stonecutters in the mountains, and 3,600 men to supervise them.

And Solomon numbered out seventy thousand men to bear burdens, and eighty thousand to hew in the mountain, and three thousand and six hundred to oversee them.

3 Solomon sent a message to Hiram, the king of Tyre, saying, “As you did with David my father, sending him cedar logs to build a house to live in, do the same with me.

And Solomon sent to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, As thou didst deal with David my father, and didst send him cedars to build him a house to dwell in it, [even so deal with me].

4 See, I am about to build a house for the name of Yahweh my God, to set it apart to him, to burn incense of sweet spices before him, to set out the bread of the presence, and for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the Sabbaths and on the new moons, and on the appointed feasts for Yahweh our God. This is forever, for Israel.

Behold, 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 the continual show-bread, and for the burnt-offerings morning and evening, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts of the LORD our God. This [is an ordinance] for ever to Israel.

5 The house that I will build will be very large, for our God is greater than all other gods.

And the house which I build [is] great: for great [is] our God above all gods.

6 But who is able to build God a house, since the entire universe and even heaven itself cannot contain him? Who am I to build him a house, except to burn sacrifices before him?

But who is able to build him a house, seeing the 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?

7 So send me a man who is skilled at work in gold, silver, bronze, iron, and in purple, crimson, and blue wool, a man who knows how to make all kinds of engraved wood. He will be with the skilled men who are with me in Judah and Jerusalem, whom David my father provided.

Send me now therefore a man skillful to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and that hath skill to grave with the skillful men that [are] with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father provided.

8 Send me also cedar, cypress, and algum trees from Lebanon, for I know that your servants know how to cut timber in Lebanon. See, my servants will be with your servants,

Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants have skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and behold, my servants [shall be] with thy servants,

9 in order to prepare for me timber in abundance, for the house which I am about to build will be great and marvelous.

Even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I am about to build [shall be] wonderfully great.

10 See, I will give to your servants, the men who will cut the timber, twenty thousand cors of ground wheat, twenty thousand cors of barley, twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.”

And behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.

11 Then Hiram, the king of Tyre, answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon: “Because Yahweh loves his people, he has made you king over them.”

Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon, Because the LORD hath loved his people, he hath made thee king over them.

12 In addition, Hiram said, “Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who has given to David the king a wise son, gifted with prudence and understanding, who will build a house for Yahweh and a palace for himself.

Huram said moreover, Blessed [be] the LORD God of Israel, that made heaven and earth, who hath given to David the king a wise son, endued with prudence and understanding, that may build a house for the LORD, and a house for his kingdom.

13 Now I have sent a skillful man, Huram-Abi, who is gifted with understanding.

And now I have sent a skillful man, endued with understanding, of Huram my father's,

14 He is the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan. His father was a man from Tyre. He is skilled at work in gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, and in timber, and in purple, blue, and crimson wool, and fine linen. He is also skilled in making any kind of engraving and in making any kind of design. Let a place be made for him among your skilled workers, and with those of my master, David, your father.

The son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father [was] a man of Tyre, skillful to work in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber, in purple, in blue, and in fine linen, and in crimson; also to engrave any manner of engraving, and to find out every device which shall be put to him, with thy skillful men, and with the skillful men of my lord David thy father.

15 Now then, the wheat and the barley, the oil and the wine, of which my master has spoken, let him send these things to his servants.

Now therefore the wheat, and the barley, the oil, and the wine which my lord hath spoken of, let him send to his servants;

16 We will cut wood from Lebanon, as much wood as you need. We will take it to you as rafts by sea to Joppa, and you will carry it up to Jerusalem.”

And we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as thou shalt need: and we will bring it to thee in floats by sea to Joppa; and thou mayest convey it to Jerusalem.

17 Solomon counted all the foreigners who were in the land of Israel, following the method that David, his father, had counted them. They were found to be 153,600.

And Solomon numbered all the strangers that [were] in the land of Israel, after the numbering with which David his father had numbered them; and they were found a hundred and fifty thousand and three thousand and six hundred.

18 He assigned seventy thousand of them to carry loads, eighty thousand to be stonecutters in the mountains, and 3,600 to be supervisors to put the people to work.

And he set seventy thousand of them [to be] bearers of burdens, and eighty thousand [to be] hewers in the mountain, and three thousand and six hundred overseers to set the people to work.