1 Kings 9
9
God Comes to Solomon Again
1So Solomon finished building the Lord’s Temple and his own palace. Solomon built everything that he wanted to build. 2Then the Lord appeared to Solomon again, just as he did at Gibeon. 3The Lord said to him,
“I heard your prayer and what you asked me to do. You built this Temple, and I have made it a holy place. So I will be honored there forever. I will watch over it and think of it always. 4You must serve me with a pure and honest heart, just as your father David did. You must obey my laws and do everything that I commanded you. 5If you do, I will make sure that your family will always rule Israel, just as I promised your father David when I told him that Israel would always be ruled by one of his descendants.
6-7“But if you or your children stop following me, and don’t obey the laws and commands that I have given you, and if you serve and worship other gods, I will force Israel to leave the land that I have given to them. Israel will be an example to other people. Other people will make jokes about Israel. I made the Temple holy. It is the place where people honor me. But I will tear it down. 8This Temple will be destroyed. Everyone who sees it will be amazed. They will ask, ‘Why did the Lord do this terrible thing to this land and to this temple?’ 9People will say, ‘This happened because they left the Lord their God. He brought their ancestors out of Egypt, but they decided to follow other gods. They worshiped and served those gods. That is why the Lord caused all these bad things to happen to them.’”
10It took 20 years for King Solomon to build the Lord’s Temple and the king’s palace. 11Hiram supplied Solomon with all the cedar, pine and gold that he wanted, so Solomon gave him 20 cities in Galilee. 12So Hiram traveled from Tyre to see the cities that Solomon had given him. But Hiram was not pleased when he saw them. 13King Hiram said, “What are these towns that you have given me, my brother?” King Hiram named that land the Land of Cabul.#9:13 Cabul This name is like the Hebrew word meaning “worthless.” And that area is still called Cabul today. 14Hiram had sent King Solomon about 9000 pounds#9:14 9000 pounds Literally, “120 talents” (4140 kg). of gold to use in building the Temple.
15King Solomon forced slaves to work for him to build the Temple and his palace. Then he used these slaves to build many other things. He built the Millo and the city wall around Jerusalem. Then he rebuilt the cities of Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer.
16In the past the king of Egypt had fought against the city of Gezer and burned it. He killed the Canaanites who lived there. When Solomon married Pharaoh’s daughter, Pharaoh gave him that city as a wedding present. 17Solomon rebuilt Gezer and the city of Lower Beth Horon. 18He also built the cities of Baalath and Tamar in the Judean desert. 19He also built cities where he could store grain, and he built places for his chariots and his horses. King Solomon also built whatever he wanted in Jerusalem, Lebanon, and all the places he ruled.
20There were people left in the land who were not Israelites. There were Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. 21The Israelites had not been able to destroy them, but Solomon forced them to work for him as slaves. They are still slaves today. 22Solomon did not force any Israelites to be his slaves. The Israelites were soldiers, government officials, officers, captains, and chariot commanders and drivers. 23There were 550 supervisors over Solomon’s projects. They supervised the men who did the work.
24Pharaoh’s daughter moved from the City of David to the palace that Solomon had built for her. Then he built the Millo.
25Three times each year Solomon offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar that he built for the Lord. King Solomon also burned incense before the Lord and supplied what was needed for the Temple.
26King Solomon also built ships at Ezion Geber. This town is near Elath on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. 27King Hiram had some skilled sailors who knew the sea well. He sent them to serve in Solomon’s navy and work with Solomon’s men. 28Solomon’s ships went to Ophir and brought back about 16 tons#9:28 16 tons Literally, “420 talents” (14,490 kg). of gold for him.
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1 Kings 9: ERV
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