Bible Study 1 Kings 5
‹ 1 Kings

1 Kings 5 · WEB

Solomon's Agreement with Hiram of Tyre

Listen — WEB narration 0:00 / 0:00 Narration: World English Bible (David Williams), public domain — AudioTreasure.

Tap a verse to copy it, open the Hebrew, or write a note.

Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon, for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the place of his father; for Hiram was always a lover of David.
2Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,
3"You know that David my father could not build a house for the name of Yahweh his God because of the wars which were around him on every side, until Yahweh put his enemies under the soles of his feet.
4But now Yahweh my God has given me rest on every side. There is no adversary, and no evil occurrence.
5Behold, I intend to build a house for the name of Yahweh my God, as Yahweh spoke to David my father, saying, 'Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, he will build the house for my name.'
6Now therefore command that cedar trees be cut for me out of Lebanon. My servants will be with your servants; and I will give you wages for your servants according to all that you say. For you know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians."
7When Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly and said, "Blessed is Yahweh today, who has given to David a wise son to be king over this great people."
8Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, "I have heard the message which you have sent to me. I will do all your desire concerning timber of cedar and concerning timber of cypress.
9My servants will bring them down from Lebanon to the sea. I will make them into rafts to go by sea to the place that you specify to me, and will cause them to be broken up there, and you will receive them. You will fulfill my desire by giving food for my household."
10So Hiram gave Solomon timber of cedar and timber of cypress according to all his desire.
11Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand cors of wheat for food to his household, and twenty cors of pure oil. Solomon gave this to Hiram year by year.
12Yahweh gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty together.
13King Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men.
14He sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month in shifts. They were a month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram was over the men subject to forced labor.
15Solomon had seventy thousand who bore burdens and eighty thousand who were stone cutters in the mountains,
16in addition to Solomon's three thousand three hundred chief officers who were over the work, who ruled over the people who labored in the work.
17The king commanded, and they cut out great stones, costly stones, to lay the foundation of the house with worked stone.
18Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders and the Gebalites cut them, and prepared the timber and the stones to build the house.
✶

Summary

Solomon prepares to build the Temple his father David had desired but was not permitted to construct. He reaches out to Hiram king of Tyre, Israel's northern neighbor, to arrange for the supply of cedar and cypress timber from Lebanon, in exchange for vast quantities of wheat and olive oil. The agreement reflects both diplomatic wisdom and international cooperation, with God's peace enabling the great building project to begin. Solomon also conscripts a massive labor force from Israel to handle quarrying and transport.

Themes

  • Peace as a precondition for sacred building — rest from war enables worship
  • International diplomacy in service of God's purposes
  • Fulfillment of God's promise to David regarding the Temple
  • The vast scale of resources needed to honor God

Key verses

  • 1 Kgs 5:12 — “Yahweh gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty together.”
  • 1 Kgs 5:3 — “David my father could not build a house for the name of Yahweh his God because of the wars which were around him on every side.”
  • 1 Kgs 5:5 — “I intend to build a house for the name of Yahweh my God, as Yahweh spoke to David my father.”

Context & background

Hiram of Tyre was a longtime ally of Israel who had provided cedar and craftsmen for David's palace (2 Sam 5:11). Tyre and Sidon were Phoenician city-states located in what is now modern Lebanon, renowned throughout the ancient world for their skilled woodworkers and access to the famous cedars of Lebanon. The arrangement Solomon negotiated — timber by sea in exchange for agricultural goods — reflects the complementary economies of coastal Phoenicia and agrarian Israel. The Gebalites (from Byblos, modern Jbeil, Lebanon) were expert stonemasons. The forced labor levy Solomon imposed would later become a source of political resentment that contributed to the kingdom's division after his death.

Cross-references

  • 1 Chr 22:8-10 — David explains to Solomon why God forbade him from building the Temple
  • 2 Sam 5:11 — Hiram's earlier alliance with David and provision of cedar for his palace
  • 2 Sam 7:12-13 — God's promise to David that his son would build the Temple
  • Acts 7:47 — Stephen references Solomon building the house for God in his speech before the council
  • Deut 17:15-16 — The law's caution about a king multiplying forced labor

Check your reading

Log in to take the quiz and save your progress.

  1. Observe

    What reason did Solomon give Hiram for why David had not built the Temple?

  2. Observe

    What were the terms of the agreement between Solomon and Hiram?

  3. Interpret

    What does Solomon's quotation of God's promise to David teach about God's promises and human action?

  4. Interpret

    What does the link between Solomon's wisdom and the peace with Hiram suggest about wisdom?

  5. Apply

    How should we use seasons of rest God grants us?

  6. Apply

    What might God-honoring work alongside people outside our usual community look like?

Your journal

Write your own answers — they save automatically, and only you can see them.

Log in to write and save journal answers.

Apply (How does it apply to me?)

Personal notes (anything else about this chapter)