2 Chronicles 2

1And Solomon said that he would build a house to the name of the Lord, and a house for hiskingdom. 2And Solomon gathered seventy thousand men that bore burdens, and eighty thousand hewersof stone in the mountain, andthere were three thousand six hundred superintendents over them. 3And Solomon sent to Chiram king of Tyre, saying, Whereas you did dealfavourably with David my father, and did send him cedars to build for himself a house to dwellin, 4behold, I also his son am building a house to the name of the Lord my God, to consecrateit to him, to burn incense before him, andto offer show bread continually, and to offer up whole burnt offerings continually morningand evening, and on the sabbaths, and at the new moons, and at the feasts of the Lord our God: thisis a perpetualstatute for Israel. 5And the house which I am buildingis to be great: for the Lord our Godis great beyond all gods. 6And who will be able to build him a house? for the heaven and heaven of heavens do notbear his glory: and who am I, that I should build him a house, save only to burn incense before him? 7And now send me a man wise and skilled to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, andin iron, and in purple, and in scarlet, and in blue, and one that knows how to grave together with thecraftsmen who are with me in Juda and in Jerusalem, which materials my father David prepared. 8And send me from Libanus cedar wood, and wood of juniper, and pine; for I know that yourservants are skilled in cutting timber in Libanus: and, behold, your servants shall go with my servants, 9to prepare timber for me in abundance: for the house which I am buildingmust be great and glorious. 10And, behold, I have given freely to your servants that work and cut the wood, corn forfood,even twenty thousand measures of wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twentythousand measures of wine, and twenty thousand measures of oil. 11And Chiram king of Tyre answered in writing, and sent to Solomon, saying, Because theLord loved his people, he made you king over them. 12And Chiram said, Blessedbe the Lord God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who has given to king David a wise son,and one endowed with knowledge and understanding, who shall build a house for the Lord, and a house forhis kingdom. 13And now I have sent you a wise and understanding manwho belonged to Chiram my father 14(his motherwas of the daughters of Dan, and his fatherwas a Tyrian), skilled to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in stonesand wood; and to weave with purple, and blue, and fine linen, and scarlet; and to engrave, and to understandevery device, whatever you shall give himto do with your craftsmen, and the craftsmen of my lord David your father. 15And now, the wheat, and the barley, and the oil, and the wine which my lord mentioned,let him send to his servants. 16And we will cut timber out of Libanus according to all your need, and we will bring iton rafts to the sea of Joppa, and you shall bring it to Jerusalem. 17And Solomon gathered all the foreigners that were in the land of Israel, after the numberingwith which David his father numbered them; and there were found a hundred and fifty-three thousand sixhundred. 18And he made of them seventy thousand burden-bearers, and eighty thousand hewers of stone,and three thousand six hundred taskmasters over the people.

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