chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem. 15 The king made silver and gold to be as common as stones in Jerusalem, and he made cedars to be as common as the sycamore trees that are in the lowland. 16 The horses which Solomon had were brought out of Egypt and from Kue. The king’s merchants purchased them from Kue. 17 They imported from Egypt then exported a chariot for six hundred pieces of silver and a horse for one hundred and fifty.§ They also exported them to the Hittite kings and the Syrian† kings.
2
1 Now Solomon decided to build a house for the LORD’s name, and a house for his kingdom. 2 Solomon counted out seventy thousand men to bear burdens, eighty thousand men who were stone cutters in the mountains, and three thousand and six hundred to oversee them.
3 Solomon sent to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, “As you dealt with David my father, and sent him cedars to build him a house in which to dwell, so deal with me. 4 Behold,† I am about to build a house for the name of the LORD my God, to dedicate it to him, to burn before him incense of sweet spices, for the continual show bread, and for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the Sabbaths, on the new moons, and on the set feasts of the LORD our God. This is an ordinance forever to Israel.
5 “The house which I am building will be great, for our God is greater than all gods. 6 But who is able to build him a house, since heaven and the heaven of heavens can’t contain him? Who am I then, that I should build him a house, except just to burn incense before him?
7 “Now therefore send me a man skilful to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, in iron, and in purple, crimson, and blue, and who knows how to engrave engravings, to be with the skilful men who are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father provided.
8 “Send me also cedar trees, cypress trees, and algum trees out of Lebanon, for I know that your servants know how to cut timber in Lebanon. Behold, my servants will be with your servants, 9 even to prepare me timber in abundance; for the house which I am about to build will be great and wonderful. 10 Behold, I will give to your servants, the cutters who cut timber, twenty thousand cors‡ of beaten wheat, twenty thousand baths§ of barley, twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.”
11 Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon, “Because the LORD loves his people, he has made you king over them.” 12 Huram continued, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who has given to David the king a wise son, endowed with discretion and understanding, who would build a house for the LORD and a house for his kingdom.
13 Now I have sent a skilful man, endowed with understanding, Huram-abi,† 14 the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan; and his father was a man of Tyre. He is skilful to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, in iron, in stone, in timber, in purple, in blue, in fine linen, and in crimson, also to engrave any kind of engraving and to devise any device, that there may be a place appointed to him with your skilful men, and with the skilful men of my lord David your father.
15 “Now therefore, the wheat, the barley, the oil, and the wine which my lord has spoken of, let him send to his servants; 16 and we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as you need. We will bring it to you in rafts by sea to Joppa; then you shall carry it up to Jerusalem.”
17 Solomon counted all the foreigners who were in the land of Israel, after the census with which David his father had counted them; and they found one hundred and fifty-three thousand and six hundred. 18 He set seventy thousand of them to bear burdens, eighty thousand who were stone cutters in the mountains, and three thousand and six hundred overseers to assign the people their work.
3
1 Then Solomon began to build the LORD’s house at Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the LORD appeared to David his father, which he prepared in the place that David had appointed, on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. 2 He began to build in the second day of the second month, in the fourth year of his reign. 3 Now these are the foundations which Solomon laid for the building of God’s house: the length by cubits† after the first measure was sixty cubits, and the width twenty cubits. 4 The porch that was in front, its length, across the width of the house, was twenty cubits, and the height one hundred and twenty; and he overlaid it within with pure gold. 5 He made the larger room with a ceiling of cypress wood, which he overlaid with fine gold, and ornamented it with palm trees and chains. 6 He decorated the house with precious stones for beauty. The gold was gold from Parvaim. 7 He also overlaid the house, the beams, the thresholds, its walls, and its doors with gold, and engraved cherubim on the walls.
8 He made the most holy place. Its length, according to the width of the house, was twenty cubits, and its width twenty cubits; and he overlaid it with fine gold, amounting to six hundred talents.‡ 9 The weight of the nails was fifty shekels§ of gold. He overlaid the upper rooms with gold.
10 In the most holy place he made two cherubim by carving, and they overlaid them with gold. 11 The wings of the cherubim were twenty cubits long: the wing of the one was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house; and the other wing was five cubits, reaching to the wing of the other cherub. 12 The wing of the other cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house; and the other wing was five cubits, joining to the wing of the other cherub. 13 The wings of these cherubim spread themselves out twenty cubits. They stood on their feet, and their faces were towards the house. 14 He made the veil of blue, purple, crimson, and fine linen, and ornamented it with cherubim.
15 Also he made before the house two pillars thirty-five cubits high, and the capital that was on the top of each of them was five cubits. 16 He made chains in the inner sanctuary, and put them on the tops of the pillars; and he made one hundred pomegranates, and put them on the chains. 17 He set up the pillars before the temple, one on the right hand and the other on the left; and called the name of that on the right hand Jachin, and the name of that on the left Boaz.
4
1 Then he made an altar of bronze, twenty cubits† long, twenty cubits wide, and ten cubits high. 2 Also he made the molten sea‡ of ten cubits from brim to brim. It was round, five cubits high, and thirty cubits in circumference. 3 Under it was the likeness of oxen, which encircled it, for ten cubits, encircling the sea. The oxen were in two rows, cast when it was cast. 4 It stood on twelve oxen, three looking towards the north, three looking towards the west, three looking towards the south, and three looking towards the east; and the sea was set on them above, and all their hindquarters were inward. 5 It was a handbreadth thick. Its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily. It received and held three thousand baths.§ 6 He also made ten basins, and put five on the right hand and five on the left, to wash in them. The things that belonged to the burnt offering were washed in them, but the sea was for the priests to wash in.
7 He made the ten lamp stands of gold according to the ordinance concerning them; and he set them in the temple, five on the right hand and five on the left. 8 He made also ten tables, and placed them in the temple, five on the right side and five on the left. He made one hundred basins of gold. 9 Furthermore he made the court of the priests, the great court, and doors for the court, and overlaid their doors with bronze. 10 He set the sea on the right side of the house eastward, towards the south.
11 Huram made the pots, the shovels, and the basins.
So Huram finished doing the work that he did for King Solomon in God’s house: 12 the two pillars, the bowls, the two capitals which were on the top of the pillars, the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars, 13 and the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks—two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars. 14 He also made the bases, and he made the basins on the bases— 15 one sea, and the twelve oxen under it. 16 Huram-abi† also made the pots, the shovels, the forks, and all its vessels for