2 Chronicles 2-3

American Standard Version

2 Now Solomon purposed to build a house for the name of Jehovah, and a house for his kingdom. ² And Solomon counted out threescore and ten thousand men to bear burdens, and fourscore thousand men that were hewers in the mountains, and three thousand and six hundred to oversee them. ³ And Solomon sent to ^[a]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 therein, even so deal with me. ⁴ Behold, I am about to build a house for the name of Jehovah my God, to dedicate it to him, and to burn before him incense of sweet spices, and for the continual showbread, and for the burnt-offerings morning and evening, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the set feasts of Jehovah our God. This is an ordinance for ever to Israel. ⁵ And the house which I build is great; for great is our God above all gods. ⁶ But who ^[b]is able to build him a house, seeing heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who am I then, that I should build him a house, save only to burn incense before him? ⁷ Now therefore send me a man skilful to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and that knoweth how to grave all manner of gravings, to be with the skilful men that are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did provide. ⁸ Send me also cedar-trees, ^[c]fir-trees, and ^[d]algum-trees, out of Lebanon; for I know that thy servants know how to cut timber in Lebanon. And, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants, ⁹ even to prepare me timber in abundance; for the house which I am about to build shall be great and wonderful. ¹⁰ And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand ^[e]measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand ^[f]measures of barley, and 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 Jehovah loveth his people, he hath made thee king over them. ¹² Huram said moreover, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, that made heaven and earth, who hath given to David the king a wise son, endued with discretion and understanding, that should build a house for Jehovah, and a house for his kingdom. ¹³ And now I have sent a skilful man, endued with understanding, ^[g]of Huram my father’s, ¹⁴ the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan; and his father was a man of Tyre, skilful 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 devise any device; that there may be a place appointed unto him with thy skilful men, and with the skilful men of my lord David thy father. ¹⁵ Now therefore the wheat and the barley, the oil and the wine, which my lord hath spoken of, let him send unto his servants: ¹⁶ 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 ^[h]Joppa; and thou shalt carry it up to Jerusalem.

¹⁷ And Solomon numbered all the sojourners that were in the land of Israel, after the numbering wherewith David his father had numbered them; and they were found a hundred and fifty thousand and three thousand and six hundred. ¹⁸ And he set threescore and ten thousand of them to bear burdens, and fourscore thousand that were hewers in the mountains, and three thousand and six hundred overseers to set the people at work.

3 Then Solomon began to build the house of Jehovah at Jerusalem on mount Moriah, where Jehovah appeared unto David his father, which he made ready ^[i]in the place that David had appointed, in the threshing-floor of ^[j]Ornan the Jebusite. ² And he began to build in the second day of the second month, in the fourth year of his reign. ³ Now ^[k]these are the foundations which Solomon laid for the building of the house of God. The length by cubits after the first measure was threescore cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits. ⁴ And the porch that was before the house, the length of it, according to the breadth of the house, was twenty cubits, and the height a hundred and twenty; and he overlaid it within with pure gold. ⁵ And the greater house he ceiled with ^[l]fir-wood, which he overlaid with fine gold, and wrought thereon palm-trees and chains. ⁶ And he garnished the house with precious stones for beauty: and the gold was gold of Parvaim. ⁷ He overlaid also the house, the beams, the thresholds, and the walls thereof, and the doors thereof, with gold; and graved cherubim on the walls.

⁸ And he made the most holy house: the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house, was twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits; and he overlaid it with fine gold, amounting to six hundred talents. ⁹ And the weight of the nails was fifty shekels of gold. And he overlaid the upper chambers with gold.

¹⁰ And in the most holy house he made two cherubim of image work; and they overlaid them with gold. ¹¹ And the wings of the cherubim were twenty cubits long: the wing of the one cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house; and the other wing was likewise five cubits, reaching to the wing of the other cherub. ¹² And the wing of the other cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house; and the other wing was five cubits also, joining to the wing of the other cherub. ¹³ The wings of these cherubim spread themselves forth twenty cubits: and they stood on their feet, and their faces were ^[m]toward the house. ¹⁴ And he made the veil of blue, and purple, and crimson, and fine linen, and wrought cherubim thereon.

¹⁵ Also he made before the house two pillars of thirty and five cubits high, and the capital that was on the top of each of them was five cubits. ¹⁶ And he made chains in the oracle, and put them on the tops of the pillars; and he made a hundred pomegranates, and put them on the chains. ¹⁷ And 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 ^[n]Jachin, and the name of that on the left ^[o]Boaz.