Bible Study 2 Chronicles 2
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2 Chronicles 2 · WEB

Preparations for the Temple; Alliance with Hiram of Tyre

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

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Now Solomon determined to build a house for the name of Yahweh, and a house for his kingdom.
2Solomon counted out seventy thousand men to bear burdens, and eighty thousand men who were stone cutters in the mountains, and three thousand six hundred to oversee them.
3Solomon sent to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, "As you dealt with David my father, and sent him cedars to build himself a house to dwell in, so deal with me.
4Behold, I am about to build a house for the name of Yahweh my God, to dedicate it to him, to burn sweet incense before him, and for the continual show bread, and for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the Sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the appointed feasts of Yahweh our God. This is an ordinance forever to Israel.
5The house which I build is great; for our God is greater than all gods.
6But who is able to build him a house, seeing heaven and the heaven of heavens can't contain him? Who am I then, that I should build him a house, except just to burn incense before him?
7Now send me a man skillful to work in gold, and in silver, and in bronze, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and who knows how to engrave all kinds of engravings, to be with the skillful men who are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father provided.
8Send me also cedar trees, cypress trees, and algum trees out of Lebanon; for I know that your servants know how to cut timber in Lebanon. Behold, my servants will be with your servants,
9even to prepare timber for me in abundance; for the house which I am about to build shall be great and wonderful.
10Behold, I will give to your servants, the cutters 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."
11Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon: "Because Yahweh loves his people, he has made you king over them."
12Huram continued, "Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who has given to David the king a wise son, endued with discretion and understanding, who would build a house for Yahweh, and a house for his kingdom.
13Now I have sent a skillful man, endued with understanding, Huram my master craftsman,
14the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre; skillful to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, in iron, in stone, and in timber, in purple, in blue, and in fine linen, and in crimson; also to engrave all kinds of engravings, and to devise all sorts of skillful works that shall be given to him with your skillful men and with the skillful 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 to 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."
17Solomon numbered all the foreigners who were in the land of Israel, after the numbering with which David his father had numbered them; and they were found to be one hundred fifty-three thousand six hundred.
18He set seventy thousand of them to bear burdens, and eighty thousand were stone cutters in the mountains, and three thousand six hundred overseers to set the people to work.
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Summary

Solomon begins organizing the massive labor force for the temple project and writes to Hiram (Huram) of Tyre requesting skilled craftsmen and cedar, cypress, and algum timber from Lebanon. Solomon's letter is theologically remarkable — he acknowledges that no earthly building can truly contain God, yet commits to building a magnificent house for worship. Hiram responds warmly, blessing the God of Israel, and sends his master craftsman Huram-abi along with the requested timber. Solomon also conscripts the resident foreigners in Israel as laborers.

Themes

  • The greatness of God transcending any earthly building
  • International cooperation in service of God's purposes
  • Excellence and skill as offerings to God

Key verses

  • 2 Chr 2:11 — “Because Yahweh loves his people, he has made you king over them.”
  • 2 Chr 2:5-6 — “The house which I build is great; for our God is greater than all gods. But who is able to build him a house, seeing heaven and the heaven of heavens can't contain him?”

Context & background

Tyre (modern Tyre/Sur, southern Lebanon, on the Mediterranean coast) was a Phoenician city-state famous for its cedar forests and master craftsmen. The cedars of Lebanon were the premier building material of the ancient Near East — hard, fragrant, and resistant to decay. Hiram-abi (the craftsman, different from King Hiram) was of mixed heritage — a Danite mother and Tyrian father — making him a skilled Gentile artisan integrated into Israel's greatest building project. Joppa (modern Jaffa, part of Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel) was the Mediterranean port where the timber rafts would be landed, then transported ~55 km inland to Jerusalem. Solomon's conscription of 153,600 foreigners as laborers reflects the population of Canaanites remaining in the land.

Cross-references

  • 1 Kings 5 — Parallel account of Solomon's negotiations with Hiram
  • Acts 7:47-50 — Stephen cites Solomon's acknowledgment that God does not dwell in houses made by hands
  • Exodus 31:1-11 — Bezalel and Oholiab as Spirit-filled craftsmen for the tabernacle; Huram-abi is their counterpart
  • Ezra 3:7 — Post-exilic community again gets cedar from Lebanon via Joppa
  • Isaiah 66:1-2 — "Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool... where is the house you will build for me?" — echoes Solomon's humility here

Check your reading

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  1. Observe

    How many workers did Solomon organize for the temple project, and what were their roles?

  2. Observe

    What did King Hiram of Tyre send to Solomon in response to his request?

  3. Interpret

    What is the theological significance of Solomon's confession that "heaven and the heaven of heavens can't contain him" while still building a temple?

  4. Interpret

    Why is Hiram's confession "Because Yahweh loves his people, he has made you king over them" theologically striking?

  5. Apply

    What does Solomon's use of the most skilled craftsmen and finest materials teach about how we should serve God?

  6. Apply

    How should Hiram's blessing on Solomon shape the way you live among unbelievers?

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