CHAPTER 2

(1015 B.C.)

PREPARATIONS FOR BUILDING THE TEMPLE

¹And Solomon determined to build an house for the Name of the LORD, and an house (a royal residence for himself) for his kingdom (the wording of this Passage proclaims to us that Solomons determination was even more than the prompting to do so by his father David; the Holy Spirit is, in fact, now helping him).

²And Solomon told out threescore and ten thousand men to bear burdens (70,000), and fourscore thousand (80,000) to hew in the mountain, and three thousand and six hundred to oversee them. (A total of 153,600. These were all foreigners, Gentiles, actually prisoners of war, justly condemned to hard labor for life. David could easily have put these men to death, as he might justly have done; for when they were captured, they had been attempting to kill David, destroy Israel, and the God of Israel. So, David allowing these people to remain alive was an act of mercy on his part.

As well, any one of these individuals could have subscribed to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, by submitting to the Law of Moses and to circumcision. They would have then become free men. Possibly, some of them did this.)

³And Solomon sent to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, As you did deal with David my father, and did send him cedars to build him an house to dwell therein, even so deal with me (this was not the Hiram of Davids day, but the son of the Hiram of II Samuel 5:11).

⁴Behold, I build an 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 shewbread, 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 (the mention of these three particulars portray Christ; the Sweet Incense speaks of His glorious Presence; the continual Shewbread speaks of His continual life, for Jesus is the Bread of Life; the Burnt Offerings speak of His glorious Sacrifice at Calvary, that would forever atone for the sins of man in their Redemption).

⁵And the house which I build is great: for great is our God above all gods (the testimony of Solomon, as to the greatness of God above the heathen entities of surrounding nations, is a witness to his boldness of testimony; he did not flinch from proclaiming the greatness of God over the insignificance of the god of Tyre).

⁶But who is able to build Him an house, seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain Him? who am I then, that I should build Him an house, save only to burn Sacrifice before Him? (This refers back to the time that David desired to build a House for the Lord [I Chron., Chpt. 17], and the Lord, in effect, told David, I do not want or need your house, and furthermore, I will build you a house [I Chron. 17:10]. The major problem of the Church is that it tries to build the Lord a house. We are the ones who need the house, and that House is Jesus.)

⁷Send me now therefore a man cunning to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and who can skill to grave with the cunning men who are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did provide (it is remarkable in Solomons letter that nearly two-thirds extols the God of Glory, with only about one-third of it itemizing his request).

⁸Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that your servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall be with your servants,

⁹Even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I am about to build shall be wonderful great (it would be wonderful great, because the Lord would occupy the House; otherwise, it would be just another house).

¹⁰And, behold, I will give to your servants, the hewers who 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 (a measure equals about 3 gallons, while a bath equals about 6 gallons).

HURAM AGREES TO HELP SOLOMON

¹¹Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon, Because the LORD has loved His people, He has made you king over them. (This Verse and the following are also testimony to the indirect influences on surrounding nations of the knowledge of the One True Creator-God and Ruler-God, Who was domiciled by special Revelation and Oracle [Rom. 3:2] with Israel. Even when nations near were bitter foes, they often feared Israels God.)

¹²Huram said moreover, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, Who made Heaven and Earth, Who has given to David the king a wise son, endued with prudence and understanding, who might build an house for the LORD, and an house (a palace for Solomon) for his kingdom (Hiram and the kingdom of Tyre will, no doubt, be greatly blessed, because of their participation in this great work for God).

¹³And now I have sent a cunning man, endued with understanding, of Huram my fathers,

¹⁴The 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 grave any manner of graving, and to find out every device which shall be put to him, with your cunning men, and with the cunning men of my lord David your father.

¹⁵Now therefore the wheat, and the barley, the oil, and the wine, which my lord has spoken of, let him send unto his servants:

¹⁶And we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as you shall need: and we will bring it to you in floats by sea to Joppa; and you shall carry it up to Jerusalem (from Joppa to Jerusalem was about 34 miles).

¹⁷And Solomon numbered all the strangers who were in the land of Israel, after the numbering wherewith David his father had numbered them; and they were found an hundred and fifty thousand and three thousand and six hundred (Vs. 2).

¹⁸And he set threescore and ten thousand of them to be bearers of burdens, and fourscore thousand to be hewers in the mountain, and three thousand and six hundred overseers to set the people a work.