Text -- 2 Chronicles 2:1-4 (NET)

Solomon Gathers Building Materials for the Temple

2:1 Solomon ordered a temple to be built to honor the Lord, as well as a royal palace for himself. 2:2 Solomon had 70,000 common laborers and 80,000 stonecutters in the hills, in addition to 3,600 supervisors. 2:3 Solomon sent a message to King Huram of Tyre: “Help me as you did my father David, when you sent him cedar logs for the construction of his palace. 2:4 Look, I am ready to build a temple to honor the Lord my God and to dedicate it to him in order to burn fragrant incense before him, to set out the bread that is regularly displayed, and to offer burnt sacrifices each morning and evening, and on Sabbaths, new moon festivals, and at other times appointed by the Lord our God. This is something Israel must do on a permanent basis.

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)

Wesley: 2Ch 2:1

A royal palace for himself and his successors.

JFB: 2Ch 2:1

The temple is the grand subject of this narrative, while the palace--here and in other parts of this book--is only incidentally noticed. The duty of building the temple was reserved for Solomon before his birth. As soon as he became king, he addressed himself to the work, and the historian, in proceeding to give an account of the edifice, begins with relating the preliminary arrangements.

JFB: 2Ch 2:3-6

The correspondence was probably conducted on both sides in writing (2Ch 2:11; also see on 1Ki 5:8).

JFB: 2Ch 2:3-6

This would seem decisive of the question whether the Huram then reigning in Tyre was David's friend (see on 1Ki 5:1-6). In opening the business, Solomon grounded his request for Tyrian aid on two reasons: 1. The temple he proposed to build must be a solid and permanent building because the worship was to be continued in perpetuity; and therefore the building materials must be of the most durable quality. 2. It must be a magnificent structure because it was to be dedicated to the God who was greater than all gods; and, therefore, as it might seem a presumptuous idea to erect an edifice for a Being "whom the heaven and the heaven of heavens do not contain," it was explained that Solomon's object was not to build a house for Him to dwell in, but a temple in which His worshippers might offer sacrifices to His honor. No language could be more humble and appropriate than this. The pious strain of sentiment was such as became a king of Israel.

Clarke: 2Ch 2:1

A house for the name of the Lord - A temple for the worship of Jehovah

Clarke: 2Ch 2:1

A house for his kingdom - A royal palace for his own use as king of Israel.

Clarke: 2Ch 2:3

Solomon sent to Huram - This man’ s name is written חירם Chiram in Kings; and in Chronicles, חורם Churam : there is properly no difference, only a י yod and a ו vau interchanged. See on 1Ki 5:2 (note).

TSK: 2Ch 2:1

determined : 1Ki 5:5

for the name : Deu 12:5, Deu 12:11, Deu 28:58; 1Ki 8:18, 1Ki 8:20; 1Ch 22:10; Mat 6:9, Mat 6:10

an house : 1Ki 7:1, 1Ki 9:1

TSK: 2Ch 2:2

told out threescore : 2Ch 2:18; 1Ki 5:15, 1Ki 5:16

TSK: 2Ch 2:3

Huram : 1Ki 5:1, Hiram

As thou didst : 2Sa 5:11; 1Ch 14:1

TSK: 2Ch 2:4

build : 2Ch 2:1; 1Ki 8:18

to dedicate : 1Ki 8:63

to burn : Exo 30:7

sweet incense : Heb. incense of spices

the continual : Exo 25:30; Lev 24:5-9

the burnt : Exo 29:38-42; Num 28:3, Num 28:4, Num 28:9-11

the solemn feasts : Lev. 23:1-17; Num. 28:1-29:40

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)

Barnes: 2Ch 2:3

Huram, the form used throughout Chronicles (except 1Ch 14:1) for the name both of the king and of the artisan whom he lent to Solomon 2Ch 2:13; 2Ch 4:11, 2Ch 4:16, is a late corruption of the true native word, Hiram (marginal note and reference).

Barnes: 2Ch 2:4

The symbolic meaning of "burning incense"is indicated in Rev 8:3-4. Consult the marginal references to this verse.

The solemn feasts - The three great annnual festivals, the Passover, the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost), and the Feast of tabernacles Lev. 23:4-44; Deut. 16:1-17.

Poole: 2Ch 2:3

Which words may be commodiously understood from the nature of the thing, and from the following words, such ellipses being frequent in the Hebrew. Or, without any ellipsis, the sense, being here suspended, is completed 2Ch 2:7 , so send me, &c., the 4th, 5th, and 6th verses being inserted by way of parenthesis, to usher in and enforce his following request.

Poole: 2Ch 2:4

To dedicate it to him i.e. to his honour and worship.

For the continual shew-bread so called here and Num 9:7 , because it was to be there continually, by a constant succession of new bread when the old was removed; of which see Exo 25:30 Lev 24:8 .

Haydock: 2Ch 2:1

Floats. So the Septuagint well express the Hebrew raphsodoth, which seems to be borrowed from the Greek Rapsodia, which denotes a collection of verses (Calmet) and was applied to Homer's poems, before they were collected. (ֶlian xiii. 14.) Joppe was a port much used, (Calmet) though dangerous. (Josephus, Jewish Wars iii. 15.)

Haydock: 2Ch 2:1

Himself, worthy of his great empire. He deemed that which David had built too mean, though that pious king had been ashamed to dwell in such a magnificent palace, while the ark of God was under skins, 2 Kings vii. 2. (Calmet)

Haydock: 2Ch 2:2

Numbered, of the proselytes, ver. 17. (Tirinus) ---

Hew. The stones were made ready for use, as well as the wood, before it was brought to the temple, 3 Kings vi. 7. ---

Six. Only three are mentioned [in] 3 Kings v. 16. (Calmet) ---

But three hundred overseers of higher order are here included. (Tirinus)

Gill: 2Ch 2:1

And Solomon determined to build an house for the name of the Lord,.... For the worship and service of God, and for his honour and glory, being directed, enjoined, and encouraged to it by his father David:

and an house for his kingdom; for a royal palace for him, and his successors, first the one, and then the other; and in this order they were built.

Gill: 2Ch 2:2

And Solomon told out threescore and ten thousand men,.... Of whom, and the difference of the last number in this text from 1Ki 5:15, see the notes there. See Gill on 1Ki 5:15. See Gill on 1Ki 5:16.

Gill: 2Ch 2:3

And Solomon sent to Huram king of Tyre,.... The same with Hiram, 1Ki 5:1 and from whence it appears, that Huram first sent a letter to Solomon to congratulate him on his accession to the throne, which is not taken notice of here:

as thou didst deal with my father, and didst send him cedars to build him an house to dwell therein; see 1Ch 14:1, even so deal with me; which words are a supplement.

Gill: 2Ch 2:4

Behold, I build an house to the name of the Lord my God,.... Am about to do it, and determined upon it, see 2Ch 2:1,

to dedicate it to him; to set it apart for sacred service to him:

and to burn before him sweet incense; on the altar of incense:

and for the continual shewbread; the loaves of shewbread, which were continually on the shewbread table; which, and the altar of incense, both were set in the holy place in the tabernacle, and so to be in the temple:

and for the burnt offerings morning and evening; the daily sacrifice: on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts of the Lord our God: at which seasons, besides the daily sacrifice, additional burnt offerings were offered, and all on the brasen altar in the court: this is an ordinance

for ever unto Israel: to offer the above sacrifices, even for a long time to come, until the Messiah comes; and therefore Solomon suggests, as Jarchi and Kimchi think, that a good strong house ought to be built.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: 2Ch 2:1

¹ sn Beginning with 2:1, the verse numbers through 2:18 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 2:1 ET = 1:18 HT, 2:2 ET = 2:1 HT, 2:3 ET = 2:2 HT, etc., through 2:18 ET = 2:17 HT. Beginning with 3:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.

² tn Heb “and Solomon said to build a house for the name of the Lord and house for his kingship.”

NET Notes: 2Ch 2:2

¹ tn Heb “counted,” perhaps “conscripted” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV).

² tn Heb “carriers of loads.”

³ tn Or “quarry workers”; Heb “cutters” (probably referring to stonecutters).

⁴ tc The parallel text of MT in 1 Kgs 5:16 has “thirty-six hundred,” but some Greek mss there read “thirty-six hundred” in agreement with 2 Chr 2:2, 18.

tn Heb “and 3,600 supervisors over them.”

NET Notes: 2Ch 2:3

¹ tn Heb “Huram.” Some medieval Hebrew mss, along with the LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate spell the name “Hiram,” agreeing with 1 Chr 14:1. “Huram” is a variant spelling referring to the same individual.

² map For location see Map1 A2; Map2 G2; Map4 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

³ tn The words “help me” are supplied in the translation for clarification and stylistic reasons.

⁴ tn Heb “cedars.” The word “logs” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

⁵ tn Heb “to build for him a house to live in it.”

NET Notes: 2Ch 2:4

¹ tn Heb “for the name of.”

² tn Heb “and the regular display.”

³ tn Heb “permanently [is] this upon Israel.”

Geneva Bible: 2Ch 2:2

And Solomon told out threescore and ten thousand men to bear burdens, and fourscore thousand to hew in the mountain, and three thousand and ^{( a )} six hundred to oversee them.

^{( a )} Which is to be understood of all sorts of officers and overseers: for else the chief officers were but 3300 as in (1Ki 5:16).

Commentary -- Verse Range Notes

TSK Synopsis: 2Ch 2:1-18

1 Solomon's labourers for the building of the temple.

3 His embassage to Huram for workmen and provision of stuff.

11 Huram sends him a kind answer.

17 Solomon employs strangers, as labourers, and overseers.

MHCC: 2Ch 2:1-18

Solomon informs Huram of the particular services to be performed in the temple. The mysteries of the true religion, unlike those of the Gentile superstitions, sought not concealment. Solomon endeavoured to possess Huram with great and high thoughts of the God of Israel. We should not be afraid or ashamed to embrace every opportunity to speak of God, and to impress others with a deep sense of the importance of his favour and service. Now that the people of Israel kept close to the law and worship of God, the neighbouring nations were willing to be taught by them in the true religion, as the Israelites had been willing in the days of their apostacy, to be infected with the idolatries and superstitions of their neighbours. A wise and pious king is an evidence of the Lord's special love for his people. How great then was God's love to his believing people, in giving his only-begotten Son to be their Prince and their Saviour.

Matthew Henry: 2Ch 2:1-10

Solomon's wisdom was given him, not merely for speculation, to entertain himself (though it is indeed a princely entertainment), nor merely for conversation, to entertain his friends, but for action; and therefore to action he immediately applies himself. Observe,

I. His resolution within himself concerning his business (2Ch 2:1): He determined to build, in the first place, a house for the name of the Lord. It is fit that he who is the first should be served - first a temple and then a palace, a house not so much for himself, or his own convenience and magnitude, as for the kingdom, for the honour of it among its neighbours and for the decent reception of the people whenever they had occasion to apply to their prince; so that in both he aimed at the public good. Those are the wisest men that lay out themselves most for the honour of the name of the Lord and the welfare of communities. We are not born for ourselves, but for God and our country.

II. His embassy to Huram, king of Tyre, to engage his assistance in the prosecution of his designs. The purport of his errand to him is much the same here as we had it 1Ki 5:2, etc., only here it is more largely set forth.

1. The reasons why he makes this application to Huram are here more fully represented, for information to Huram as well as for inducement. (1.) He pleads his father's interest in Huram, and the kindness he had received from him (2Ch 2:3): As thou didst deal with David, so deal with me. As we must show kindness to, so we may expect kindness from, our fathers' friends, and with them should cultivate a correspondence. (2.) He represents his design in building the temple: he intended it for a place of religious worship (2Ch 2:4), that all the offerings which God had appointed for the honour of his name might be offered up there. The house was built that it might be dedicated to God and used in his service. This we should aim at in all our business, that our havings and doings may be all to the glory of God. He mentions various particular services that were there to be performed, for the instruction of Huram. The mysteries of the true religion, unlike those of the Gentile superstition, coveted not concealment. (3.) He endeavors to inspire Huram with very great and high thoughts of the God of Israel, by expressing the mighty veneration he had for his holy name: Great is our God above all gods, above all idols, above all princes. Idols are nothing, princes are little, and both under the control of the God of Israel; and therefore, [1.] "The house must be great; not in proportion to the greatness of that God to whom it is to be dedicated (for between finite and infinite there can be no proportion), but in some proportion to the great value and esteem we have for this God."[2.] "Yet, be it ever so great, it cannot be a habitation for the great God. Let not Huram think that the God of Israel, like the gods of the nations, dwells in temples made with hands, Act 17:24. No, the heaven of heavens cannot contain him. It is intended only for the convenience of his priests and worshippers, that they may have a fit place wherein to burn sacrifice before him."[3.] He looked upon himself, though a mighty prince, as unworthy the honour of being employed in this great work: Who am I that I should build him a house? It becomes us to go about every work for God with a due sense of our utter insufficiency for it and our incapacity to do any thing adequate to the divine perfections. It is part of the wisdom wherein we ought to walk towards those that are without carefully to guard against all misapprehension which any thing we say or do may occasion concerning God; so Solomon does here in his treaty with Huram.

2. The requests he makes to him are more particularly set down here. (1.) He desired Huram would furnish him with a good hand to work (2Ch 2:7): Send me a man. He had cunning men with him in Jerusalem and Judah, whom David provided, 1Ch 22:15. Let them not think but that Jews had some among them that were artists. But " send me a man to direct them. There are ingenious men in Jerusalem, but not such engravers as are in Tyre; and therefore, since temple-work must be the best in its kind, let me have the best workmen that can be got."(2.) With good materials to work on (2Ch 2:8), cedar and other timber in abundance (2Ch 2:8, 2Ch 2:9); for the house must be wonderfully great, that is, very stately and magnificent, no cost must be spared, nor any contrivance wanting in it.

3. Here is Solomon's engagement to maintain the workmen (2Ch 2:10), to give them so much wheat and barley, so much wine and oil. He did not feed his workmen with bread and water, but with plenty, and every thing of the best. Those that employ labourers ought to take care they be not only well paid, but well provided for with sufficient of that which is wholesome and fit for them. Let the rich masters do for their poor workmen as they would be done by if the tables were turned.

Keil-Delitzsch: 2Ch 2:1-2

(1:18). The account of these is introduced by 1:18: "Solomon thought to build." אמר with an infinitive following does not signify here to command one to do anything, as e.g., in 1Ch 21:17, but to purpose to do something, as e.g., in 1Ki 5:5. For יהוה לשׁם , see on 1Ki 5:17. למלכוּתו בּית , house for his kingdom, i.e., the royal palace. The building of this palace is indeed shortly spoken of in 2Ch 2:11; 2Ch 7:11, and 2Ch 8:1, but is not in the Chronicle described in detail as in 1Ki 7:1-12.

(2:1). With 2Ch 2:1 begins the account of the preparations which Solomon made for the erection of these buildings, especially of the temple building, accompanied by a statement that the king caused all the workmen of the necessary sort in his kingdom to be numbered. There follows thereafter an account of the negotiations with King Hiram of Tyre in regard to the sending of a skilful architect, and of the necessary materials, such as cedar wood and hewn stones, from Lebanon (2Ch 2:2-15); and, in conclusion, the statements as to the levying of the statute labourers of Israel (2Ch 2:1) are repeated and rendered more complete (2Ch 2:16, 2Ch 2:17). If we compare the parallel account in 1Ki 5:5., we find that Solomon's negotiation with Hiram about the proposed buildings is preceded (1Ki 5:5) by a notice, that Hiram, after he had heard of Solomon's accession, had sent him an embassy to congratulate him. This notice is omitted in the Chronicle, because it was of no importance in the negotiations which succeeded. In the account of Solomon's negotiation with Hiram, both narratives (2Ch 2:2-15 and 1Ki 5:16.) agree in the main, but differ in form so considerably, that it is manifest that they are free adaptations of one common original document, quite independent of each other, as has been already remarked on 1Ki 5:5. On 2Ch 2:2 see further on 1Ki 5:15.

Keil-Delitzsch: 2Ch 2:3-10

(2:2-9). Solomon, through his ambassadors, addressed himself to Huram king of Tyre, with the request that he would send him an architect and building wood for the temple. On the Tyrian king Huram or Hiram, the contemporary of David and Solomon, see the discussion on 2Sa 5:11. According to the account in 1 Kings 5, Solomon asked cedar wood from Lebanon from Hiram; according to our account, which is more exact, he desired an architect, and cedar, cypress, and other wood. In 1 Kings 5 the motive of Solomon's request is given in the communication to Hiram, viz., that David could not carry out the building of the proposed temple on account of his wars, but that Jahve had given him (Solomon) rest and peace, so that he now, in accordance with the divine promise to David, desired to carry on the building (1Ki 5:3-5). In the 2Ch 2:2-5, on the contrary, Solomon reminds the Tyrian king of the friendliness with which he had supplied his father David with cedar wood for his palace, and then announces to him his purpose to build a temple to the Lord, at the same time stating that it was designed for the worship of God, whom the heavens and the earth cannot contain. It is clear, therefore, that both authors have expanded the fundamental thoughts of their authority in somewhat freer fashion. The apodosis of the clause beginning with כּאשׁר is wanting, and the sentence is an anacolouthon. The apodosis should be: "do so also for me, and send me cedars."This latter clause follows in 2Ch 2:6, 2Ch 2:7, while the first can easily be supplied, as is done e.g., in the Vulg., by sic fac mecum .

2Ch 2:4

"Behold, I will build." הנּה with a participle of that which is imminent, what one intends to do. לו להקדּישׁ , to sanctify (the house) to Him. The infinitive clause which follows ( וגו להקטיר ) defines more clearly the design of the temple. The temple is to be consecrated by worshipping Him there in the manner prescribed, by burning incense, etc. סמּים קטרת , incense of odours, Exo 25:6, which was burnt every morning and evening on the altar of incense, Exo 30:7. The clauses which follow are to be connected by zeugma with להקטיר , i.e., the verbs corresponding to the objects are to be supplied from הקטיר : "and to spread the continual spreading of bread"(Exo 25:30), and to offer burnt-offerings, as is prescribed in Num 28 and 29. וגו זאת לעולם , for ever is this enjoined upon Israel, cf. 1Ch 23:31.

2Ch 2:5-6

In order properly to worship Jahve by these sacrifices, the temple must be large, because Jahve is greater than all gods; cf. Exo 18:11; Deu 10:17.

No one is able ( כּוח עצר as in 1Ch 29:14) to build a house in which this God could dwell, for the heaven of heavens cannot contain Him. These words are a reminiscence of Solomon's prayer (1Ki 8:27; 2Ch 6:18). How should I (Solomon) be able to build Him a house, scil. that He should dwell therein? In connection with this, there then comes the thought: and that is not my purpose, but only to offer incense before Him will I build a temple. הקטיר is used as pars pro toto , to designate the whole worship of the Lord. After this declaration of the purpose, there follows in Deu 10:6 the request that he would send him for this end a skilful chief workman, and the necessary material, viz., costly woods. The chief workman was to be a man wise to work in gold, silver, etc. According to 2Ch 4:11-16 and 1Ki 7:13., he prepared the brazen and metal work, and the vessels of the temple; here, on the contrary, and in 2Ch 2:13 also, he is described as a man who was skilful also in purple weaving, and in stone and wood work, to denote that he was an artificer who could take charge of all the artistic work connected with the building of the temple. To indicate this, all the costly materials which were to be employed for the temple and its vessels are enumerated. ארגּון , the later form of ארגּמן , deep-red purple, see on Exo 25:4. כּרמיל , occurring only here, 2Ch 2:6, 2Ch 2:13, and in 2Ch 3:14, in the signification of the Heb. שׁני תּולעת , crimson or scarlet purple, see on Exo 25:4. It is not originally a Hebrew word, but is probably derived from the Old-Persian, and has been imported, along with the thing itself, from Persia by the Hebrews. תּכלת , deep-blue purple, hyacinth purple, see on Exo 25:4. פּתּוּהים פּתּח , to make engraved work, and Exo 28:9, Exo 28:11, Exo 28:36, and Exo 39:6, of engraving precious stones, but used here, as כּל־פּתּוּח , 2Ch 2:13, shows, in the general signification of engraved work in metal or carved work in wood; cf. 1Ki 6:29. עם־החכמים depends upon לעשׂות : to work in gold ..., together with the wise (skilful) men which are with me in Judah. הכין אשׁר , quos comparavit , cf. 1Ch 28:21; 1Ch 22:15.

2Ch 2:7

The materials Hiram was to send were cedar, cypress, and algummim wood from Lebanon. אלגוּמים , 2Ch 2:7 and 2Ch 9:10, instead of אלמגּים , 1Ki 10:11, probably means sandal wood, which was employed in the temple, according to 1Ki 10:12, for stairs and musical instruments, and is therefore mentioned here, although it did not grow in Lebanon, but, according to 1Ki 9:10 and 1Ki 10:11, was procured at Ophir. Here, in our enumeration, it is inexactly grouped along with the cedars and cypresses brought from Lebanon.

2Ch 2:8-9

The infinitive וּלהכין cannot be regarded as the continuation of לכרות , nor is it a continuation of the imperat. לי שׁלח (2Ch 2:7), with the signification, "and let there be prepared for me"(Berth.). It is subordinated to the preceding clauses: send me cedars, which thy people who are skilful in the matter hew, and in that my servants will assist, in order, viz., to prepare me building timber in plenty (the ו is explic ). On 2Ch 2:8 cf. 2Ch 2:4. The infin. abs. הפלא is used adverbially: "wonderfully"(Ew. §280, c ). In return, Solomon promises to supply the Tyrian workmen with grain, wine, and oil for their maintenance - a circumstance which is omitted in 1Ki 5:10; see on 2Ch 2:14. להטבים is more closely defined by העצים לכרתי , and ל is the introductory ל : "and behold, as to the hewers, the fellers of trees." חטב , to hew (wood), and to dress it (Deu 29:10; Jos 9:21, Jos 9:23), would seem to have been supplanted by חצב , which in 2Ch 2:2, 2Ch 2:18 is used for it, and it is therefore explained by העצים כּרת . "I will give wheat מכּות to thy servants"(the hewers of wood). The word מכּות gives no suitable sense; for "wheat of the strokes,"for threshed wheat, would be a very extraordinary expression, even apart from the facts that wheat, which is always reckoned by measure, is as a matter of course supposed to be threshed, and that no such addition is made use of with the barley. מכּות is probably only an orthographical error for מכּלת , food, as may be seen from 1Ki 5:11.

Constable: 2Ch 1:1--9:31

III. THE REIGN OF SOLOMON chs. 1--9

The Chronicler's main interest in David's reign, as we have seen, focused on the Davidic Covenant with its promises to David and his descendants. In recounting the events of Solomon's reign he proceeded to emphasize the temple that Solomon built. Almost everything he mentioned about Solomon ties in with the temple somehow. The writer of Kings, on the other hand, emphasized many different aspects of Solomon's reign, though his interest was particularly Solomon's fidelity to the Mosaic Covenant (1 Kings 1-11). In the rest of 2 Chronicles the writer likewise pointed out how the kings who succeeded Solomon cared for the temple and perpetuated temple worship.

When the Chronicler wrote his history there was controversy over the second temple (i.e., the temple that Ezra built). Some of the residents in and around Jerusalem opposed its construction (Ezra 4:4-24; Hag. 1:2-4). If the returned exiles were to renew their (Mosaic) covenant relationship with God, they had to have a temple. There they could obey the laws regarding expiation of sin, worship, and fellowship with God (cf. Exod. 25:8).

Furthermore, when the Chronicler lived the Israelites realized that God had not fulfilled the promises concerning David's son completely in Solomon's day or during any of his successors' reigns. They looked for a Messiah to appear who would be both a king and a priest. The prophets had given revelation that such a person would come someday. He would be a perfect king who would rule the whole world, not just Israel (Ps. 2; et al.). Moreover he would be a priest, not of the Aaronic order, but of the order of Melchizedek (Ps. 110; et al.). David was the first king of Israel who served as a faithful priest after this order. He personally offered sacrifices and led the people in worship as well as in government. David's successors on the throne did the same things. The prophets promised that Messiah would build a house (temple) for God. He would give attention to His people's worship of God and their fellowship with God. He would be a man of peace compared to David who was a man of war (1 Chron. 22:7-9). David's rule was the kind of rule the coming King would establish. Consequently the writer of Chronicles measured all David's successors by the standard of David and his kingdom.

Concern for temple worship marked David's rule, as we have seen in 1 Chronicles 17-29. The King who would fulfill God's covenant promises to David would have to possess similar zeal for temple worship (cf. John 2:17). The writer viewed Solomon as a second David and compared him to David as Joshua compares to Moses.² The Chronicler reviewed the histories of David's successors to see if any one of them was that King. He showed in 2 Chronicles that none was. He was yet to come.

When Solomon began to rule he stepped onto a political stage in the ancient Near East that God had prepared. There were no major empires reaching out to conqueror surrounding territories because these empires had internal problems that demanded their attention. Some of them were experiencing harassment from their neighbors. Consequently Solomon was free to solidify David's gains in an atmosphere of peace.

Constable: 2Ch 2:1--5:2

B. The Building of the Temple 2:1-5:1

Solomon was a model of the ultimate Davidic temple builder. Consequently the writer gave his temple construction much attention. This was Solomon's major accomplishment from the writer's point of view.

Constable: 2Ch 2:1-18

1. Preparations for building the temple ch. 2

Though he gave some attention to the materials Solomon used in the temple, the writer's primary interest was the communications between Solomon and Hiram (Huram). Solomon's letter reveals that he had a sincere desire to glorify God. He did not regard building the temple as a duty David had imposed on him. Furthermore his conception of Yahweh was appropriate and realistic (v. 5). Hiram's reply (vv. 11-16) shows that in Solomon's day Israel was drawing Gentile nations to Yahweh. This was part of God's purpose for Israel and was something the ideal Son of David would accomplish (cf. Hag. 2:7; Zech. 8:22-23). Verses 11 and 12 are not in the parallel passage in 1 Kings 5.⁷

Guzik: 2Ch 2:1-18

2 Chronicles 2 - Supplies and Workers for the Temple

A. An overview of the work of building the temple.

1. (1) Solomon's determination to build the temple.

Then Solomon determined to build a temple for the name of the LORD, and a royal house for himself.

a. Then Solomon determined to build a temple: His determination was fitting because of all that his father David did to prepare for the building and because of the charge David gave him to do the work.

i. We might think that the greatest thing about Solomon was his wisdom, his riches, his proverbs or his writings. Clearly for the Chronicler the most important thing about Solomon was the temple he built. This was most important because it was most relevant to a community of returning exiles who struggled to build a new temple and to make a place for Israel among the nations again.

ii. "Chronicles' record of Solomon's achievements moves straight away to the construction of the temple. Several important items in the account of his reign in Kings are left out as a result, such as his wisdom in action, administration, educational reforms, and some building activities (e.g. 1 Kings 3:16-4:34; 7:1-12). These were not unimportant, but, for Chronicles, they were all subsidiary to the temple." (Selman)

b. And a royal house for himself: Solomon's great building works did not end with temple. He also built a spectacular palace (1 Kings 7:1-12) and more.

2. (2) The magnitude of the work

Solomon selected seventy thousand men to bear burdens, eighty thousand to quarry stone in the mountains, and three thousand six hundred to oversee them.

a. Seventy thousand men to bear burdens, eighty thousand to quarry stone: This seems to describe the number of Canaanite slave laborers that Solomon used.

i. Ginzberg relates some of the legends surrounding the building of the temple. "During the seven years it took to build the Temple, not a single workman died who was employed about it, nor even did a single one fall sick. And as the workmen were sound and robust from first to last, so the perfection of their tools remained unimpaired until the building stood complete. Thus the work suffered no sort of interruption." (Ginzberg)

b. And three thousand six hundred to oversee them: This was the middle management team administrating the work of building the temple.

i. "The number of thirty-six hundred foremen differs from 1 Kings 5:16 (3,300), but the LXX of Kings is quite insecure here, and Chronicles may preserve the better reading." (Selman)

B. Solomon's correspondence with Hiram king of Tyre.

1. (3-6) Solomon describes the work to Hiram.

Then Solomon sent to Hiram king of Tyre, saying: As you have dealt with David my father, and sent him cedars to build himself a house to dwell in, so deal with me. Behold, I am building a temple for the name of the LORD my God, to dedicate it to Him, to burn before Him sweet incense, for the continual showbread, for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the Sabbaths, on the New Moons, and on the set feasts of the LORD our God. This is an ordinance forever to Israel. And the temple which I build will be great, for our God is greater than all gods. But who is able to build Him a temple, since heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain Him? Who am I then, that I should build Him a temple, except to burn sacrifice before Him?

a. Solomon sent to Hiram king of Tyre, saying: As you have dealt with David my father: Solomon appealed to Hiram based on his prior good relationship with his father David. This shows us that David did not regard every neighbor nation as an enemy. David wisely built alliances and friendships with neighbor nations, and the benefit of this also came to Solomon.

i. "Hiram is an abbreviation of Ahiram which means 'Brother of Ram,' or 'My brother is exalted,' or 'Brother of the lofty one.' . . . Archaeologists have discovered a royal sarcophagus in Byblos of Tyre dated about 1200 B.C. inscribed with the king's name, 'Ahiram.' Apparently it belonged to the man in this passage." (Dilday, commentary on 1 Kings)

b. Then Solomon sent to Hiram: "According to Josephus, copies of such a letter along with Hiram's reply were preserved in both Hebrew and Tyrian archives and were extant in his day (Antiquities, 8.2.8)." (Dilday)

c. I am building a temple for the name of the LORD my God: Of course, Solomon did not build a temple for a name but for a living God. This is a good example of avoiding direct mention of the name of God in Hebrew writing and speaking. They did this out of reverence to God.

i. Solomon also used this phrase because he wanted to explain that he didn't think the temple would be the house of God in the way pagans thought. This is especially shown in his words, who is able to build Him a temple, since heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain Him? By the standards of the paganism of his day, Solomon's conception of God was both Biblical and high.

ii. "He never conceived it as a place to which God would be confined. He did expect, and he received, manifestations of the Presence of God in that house. Its chief value was that it afforded man a place in which he should offer incense; that is, the symbol of adoration, praise, worship, to God." (Morgan)

iii. God is, "good without quality, great without quantity, everlasting without time, present everywhere without place, containing all without extent . . . he is within all things, and contained of nothing: without all things, and sustained of nothing." (Trapp)

2. (7-10) Solomon's request to Hiram.

Therefore send me at once a man skillful to work in gold and silver, in bronze and iron, in purple and crimson and blue, who has skill to engrave with the skillful men who are with me in Judah and Jerusalem, whom David my father provided. Also send me cedar and cypress and algum logs from Lebanon, for I know that your servants have skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and indeed my servants will be with your servants, to prepare timber for me in abundance, for the temple which I am about to build shall be great and wonderful. And indeed I will give to your servants, the woodsmen who cut timber, twenty thousand kors of ground wheat, twenty thousand kors of barley, twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.

a. Therefore send me at once a man skillful to work in gold and silver: Solomon wanted the temple to be the best it could be, so he used Gentile labor when it was better. This means that Solomon was willing to build this great temple to God with "Gentile" wood and using "Gentile" labor. This was a temple to the God of Israel, but it was not only for Israel.

i. "The leading craftsmen for the Tent, Bezalel and his assistant Oholiab, were both similarly skilled in a range of abilities (cf. Exodus 31:1-6; 35:30-36:2)." (Selman)

ii. "Despite a growing number of 'skilled craftsmen' in Israel, their techniques remained inferior to those of their northern neighbors, as is demonstrated archaeologically by less finely cut building stones and by the lower level of Israelite culture in general." (Payne)

b. To prepare timber for me in abundance: The cedar trees of Lebanon were legendary for their excellent timber. This means Solomon wanted to build the temple out of the best materials possible.

i. "The Sidonians were noted as timber craftsmen in the ancient world, a fact substantiated on the famous Palmero Stone. Its inscription from 2200 B.C. tells us about timber-carrying ships that sailed from Byblos to Egypt about four hundred years previously. The skill of the Sidonians was expressed in their ability to pick the most suitable trees, know the right time to cut them, fell them with care, and then properly treat the logs." (Dilday)

3. (11-16) Hiram's response to Solomon.

Then Hiram king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon: Because the LORD loves His people, He has made you king over them. Hiram also said: Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, for He has given King David a wise son, endowed with prudence and understanding, who will build a temple for the LORD and a royal house for himself! And now I have sent a skillful man, endowed with understanding, Huram my master craftsman (the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre), skilled to work in gold and silver, bronze and iron, stone and wood, purple and blue, fine linen and crimson, and to make any engraving and to accomplish any plan which may be given to him, with your skillful men and with the skillful men of my lord David your father. Now therefore, the wheat, the barley, the oil, and the wine which my lord has spoken of, let him send to his servants. And we will cut wood from Lebanon, as much as you need; we will bring it to you in rafts by sea to Joppa, and you will carry it up to Jerusalem.

a. Then Hiram king of Tyre answered in writing: "We find . . . that kings could write and read in what were called the by the proud and insolent Greeks and Romans barbarous nations. Nearly two thousand years after this we find a king on the British throne who could not sign his own name." (Clarke)

b. Blessed be the LORD God of Israel: We can't say if Hiram was a saved man, but he certainly respected the God of Israel. This was no doubt due to David's godly influence on Hiram.

c. I have sent a skillful man, endowed with understanding, Huram my master craftsman: King Hiram answered Solomon's request for a skillful man (2 Chronicles 2:7). Huram had a Jewish mother and a Gentile father.

d. The wheat, the barley, the oil, and the wine which my lord has spoken of, let him send to his servants: Hiram agreed to work for the arrangement suggested by Solomon, though he could have asked for more (1 Kings 5:6).

i. This shows us that Hiram did expect to be paid. His service and the service of His people were not a gift or a sacrifice. "There are a good many people who get mixed up with religious work, and talk as if it were very near their hearts, who have as sharp an eye to their own advantage as he had. The man who serves God because he gets paid for it, does not serve Him." (Maclaren)

4. (17-18) The laborers who built the temple.

Then Solomon numbered all the aliens who were in the land of Israel, after the census in which David his father had numbered them; and there were found to be one hundred and fifty-three thousand six hundred. And he made seventy thousand of them bearers of burdens, eighty thousand stonecutters in the mountain, and three thousand six hundred overseers to make the people work.

a. All the aliens who were in the land of Israel: This specifically tells us where the seventy thousand man labor force described here and in 1 Chronicles 2:2 came from.

i. "The temple, then, did not become a house of prayer for all nations by accident. The nations even played a part in its construction!" (Selman)

© 2006 David Guzik - No distribution beyond personal use without permission

Commentary -- Other

Contradiction: 2Ch 2:2

14. Did Solomon appoint 3,600 overseers (2 Chronicles 2:2) for the work of building the temple, or was it only 3,300 (1 Kings 5:16)?

(Category: misunderstood the author's intent)

This is not too great a problem. The most likely solution is that the author of 2 Chronicles included the 300 men who were selected as reservists to take the place of any supervisors who would become ill or who had died, while the author of the 1 Kings 5:16 passage includes only the supervisory force. With the group as large as the 3,300, sickness and death certainly did occur, requiring reserves who would be called up as the need arose.

(Light of Life II 1992:192)

Introduction / Outline

JFB: 2 Chronicles (Book Introduction)

THE FIRST AND SECOND BOOKS OF CHRONICLES were also considered as one by the ancient Jews, who called them "words of days," that is, diaries or journals, being probably compiled from those registers that were kept by the king's historiographers of passing occurrences. In the Septuagint the title given them is Paraleipomenon, "of things omitted," that is, the books are supplementary because many things unnoticed in the former books are here recorded; and not only the omissions are supplied, but some narratives extended while others are added. The authorship is commonly ascribed to Ezra, whose leading object seems to have been to show the division of families, possessions, &c., before the captivity, with a view to the exact restoration of the same order after the return from Babylon. Although many things are restated and others are exact repetitions of what is contained in Kings, there is so much new and important information that, as JEROME has well said, the Chronicles furnish the means of comprehending parts of the New Testament, which must have been unintelligible without them. They are frequently referred to by Christ and the Apostles as forming part of "the Word of God" (see the genealogies in Mat. 1:1-16; Luk. 3:23-38; compare 2Ch 19:7 with 1Pe 1:17; 2Ch 24:19-21 with Mat 23:32-35).

JFB: 2 Chronicles (Outline)

• SOLEMN OFFERING OF SOLOMON AT GIBEON. (2Ch 1:1-6)
• HIS CHOICE OF WISDOM IS BLESSED BY GOD. (2Ch 1:7-13)
• HIS STRENGTH AND WEALTH. (2Ch 1:14-17)
• SOLOMON'S LABORERS FOR BUILDING THE TEMPLE. (2Ch 2:1-2)
• HIS MESSAGE TO HURAM FOR SKILFUL ARTIFICERS. (2Ch 2:3-10)
• HURAM'S KIND ANSWER. (2Ch 2:11-18)
• PLACE AND TIME OF BUILDING THE TEMPLE. (2Ch 3:1-2)
• MEASURES AND ORNAMENTS OF THE HOUSE. (2Ch 3:3-7)
• DIMENSIONS, &C., OF THE MOST HOLY HOUSE. (2Ch 3:8-13)
• ALTAR OF BRASS. (2Ch 4:1)
• MOLTEN SEA. (2Ch 4:2-5)
• THE TEN LAVERS, CANDLESTICKS, AND TABLES. (2Ch 4:6-18)
• THE DEDICATED TREASURES. (2Ch 5:1)
• BRINGING UP OF THE ARK OF THE COVENANT. (2Ch 5:2-13)
• SOLOMON BLESSES THE PEOPLE AND PRAISES GOD. (2Ch. 6:1-41)
• GOD GIVES TESTIMONY TO SOLOMON'S PRAYER; THE PEOPLE WORSHIP. (2Ch 7:1-3)
• SOLOMON'S SACRIFICES. (2Ch 7:4-11)
• GOD APPEARS TO HIM. (2Ch 7:12-22)
• SOLOMON'S BUILDINGS. (2Ch 8:1-6)
• THE CANAANITES MADE TRIBUTARIES. (2Ch 8:7-11)
• SOLOMON'S FESTIVAL SACRIFICES. (2Ch 8:15-18)
• THE QUEEN OF SHEBA VISITS SOLOMON; SHE ADMIRES HIS WISDOM AND MAGNIFICENCE. (2Ch 9:1-12)
• HIS RICHES. (2Ch. 9:13-28)
• REHOBOAM REFUSING THE OLD MEN'S GOOD COUNSEL. (2Ch 10:1-15)
• REHOBOAM, RAISING AN ARMY TO SUBDUE ISRAEL, IS FORBIDDEN BY SHEMAIAH. (2Ch. 11:1-17)
• HIS WIVES AND CHILDREN. (2Ch 11:18-23)
• REHOBOAM, FORSAKING GOD, IS PUNISHED BY SHISHAK. (2Ch 12:1-12)
• HIS REIGN AND DEATH. (2Ch 12:13-16)
• ABIJAH, SUCCEEDING, MAKES WAR AGAINST JEROBOAM, AND OVERCOMES HIM. (2Ch. 13:1-20)
• ASA DESTROYS IDOLATRY. (2Ch 14:1-5)
• HAVING PEACE, HE STRENGTHENS HIS KINGDOM WITH FORTS AND ARMIES. (2Ch 14:6-8)
• HE OVERCOMES ZERAH, AND SPOILS THE ETHIOPIANS. (2Ch 14:9-15)
• JUDAH MAKES A SOLEMN COVENANT WITH GOD. (2Ch 15:1-15)
• ASA, BY A LEAGUE WITH THE SYRIANS, DIVERTS BAASHA FROM BUILDING RAMAH. (2Ch 16:1-14)
• JEHOSHAPHAT REIGNS WELL AND PROSPERS. (2Ch 17:1-6)
• HE SENDS LEVITES TO TEACH IN JUDAH. (2Ch 17:7-11)
• HIS GREATNESS, CAPTAINS, AND ARMIES. (2Ch 17:12-19)
• JEHOSHAPHAT AND AHAB GO AGAINST RAMOTH-GILEAD. (2Ch. 18:1-34)
• JEHOSHAPHAT VISITS HIS KINGDOM. (2Ch 19:1-4)
• HIS INSTRUCTIONS TO THE JUDGES. (2Ch 19:5-7)
• TO THE PRIESTS AND LEVITES. (2Ch 19:8-11)
• JEHOSHAPHAT, INVADED BY THE MOABITES, PROCLAIMS A FAST. (2Ch. 20:1-21)
• THE OVERTHROW OF HIS ENEMIES. (2Ch 20:22-30)
• HIS REIGN. (2Ch 20:31-37)
• JEHORAM SUCCEEDS JEHOSHAPHAT. (2Ch 21:1-4)
• HIS WICKED REIGN. (2Ch 21:5-7)
• EDOM AND LIBNAH REVOLT. (2Ch 21:8-17)
• AHAZIAH SUCCEEDING JEHORAM, REIGNS WICKEDLY. (2Ch 22:1-9)
• ATHALIAH, DESTROYING THE SEED ROYAL SAVE JOASH, USURPS THE KINGDOM. (2Ch 22:10-12)
• JEHOIADA MAKES JOASH KING. (2Ch 23:1-11)
• ATHALIAH SLAIN. (2Ch 23:12-15)
• JEHOIADA RESTORES THE WORSHIP OF GOD, AND SETTLES THE KING. (2Ch 23:16)
• JOASH REIGNS WELL ALL THE DAYS OF JEHOIADA. (2Ch 24:1-14)
• JEHOIADA BEING DEAD. (2Ch 24:15-16)
• JOASH FALLS INTO IDOLATRY. (2Ch 24:17-22)
• HE IS SLAIN BY HIS SERVANTS. (2Ch 24:23-27)
• AMAZIAH BEGINS TO REIGN WELL. (2Ch 25:1-4)
• HAVING HIRED AN ARMY OF ISRAELITES AGAINST THE EDOMITES, AT THE WORD OF A PROPHET HE LOSES A HUNDRED TALENTS AND DISMISSES THEM. (2Ch 25:5-10)
• HE PROVOKES JOASH TO HIS OVERTHROW. (2Ch 25:17)
• UZZIAH SUCCEEDS AMAZIAH AND REIGNS WELL IN THE DAYS OF ZECHARIAH. (2Ch 26:1-8)
• HIS BUILDINGS. (2Ch 26:9-10)
• HIS HOST, AND ENGINES OF WAR. (2Ch 26:11-15)
• HE INVADES THE PRIEST'S OFFICE, AND IS SMITTEN WITH LEPROSY. (2Ch 26:16-21)
• JOTHAM, REIGNING WELL, PROSPERS. (2Ch 27:1-4)
• HE SUBDUES THE AMMONITES. (2Ch 27:5-9)
• AHAZ, REIGNING WICKEDLY, IS AFFLICTED BY THE SYRIANS. (2Ch. 28:1-21)
• HIS IDOLATRY IN HIS DISTRESS. (2Ch 28:22-27)
• HEZEKIAH'S GOOD REIGN. (2Ch 29:1-2)
• HE RESTORES RELIGION. (2Ch 29:3-11)
• THE HOUSE OF GOD CLEANSED. (2Ch. 29:12-36)
• HEZEKIAH PROCLAIMS A PASSOVER. (2Ch 30:1-12)
• THE ASSEMBLY DESTROYS THE ALTARS OF IDOLATRY. (2Ch 30:13-27)
• THE PEOPLE FORWARD IN DESTROYING IDOLATRY. (2Ch 31:1-10)
• HEZEKIAH APPOINTS OFFICERS TO DISPOSE OF THE TITHES. (2Ch 31:11-19)
• HIS SINCERITY OF HEART. (2Ch 31:20-21)
• SENNACHERIB INVADES JUDAH. (2Ch. 32:1-20)
• AN ANGEL DESTROYS THE ASSYRIANS. (2Ch 32:21-23)
• HEZEKIAH'S SICKNESS AND RECOVERY. (2Ch 32:24-26)
• HIS RICHES AND WORKS. (2Ch 32:27-33)
• MANASSEH'S WICKED REIGN. (2Ch 33:1-10)
• HE IS CARRIED UNTO BABYLON, WHERE HE HUMBLES HIMSELF BEFORE GOD, AND IS RESTORED TO HIS KINGDOM. (2Ch 33:11-19)
• HE DIES AND AMON SUCCEEDS HIM. (2Ch 33:20-25)
• JOSIAH'S GOOD REIGN. (2Ch 34:1-2)
• HE DESTROYS IDOLATRY. (2Ch 34:3-7)
• HE REPAIRS THE TEMPLE. (2Ch 34:8-18)
• AND, CAUSING THE LAW TO BE READ, RENEWS THE COVENANT BETWEEN GOD AND THE PEOPLE. (2Ch 34:19-33)
• JOSIAH KEEPS A SOLEMN PASSOVER. (2Ch. 35:1-19)
• HIS DEATH. (2Ch 35:20-27)
• JEHOAHAZ, SUCCEEDING, IS DEPOSED BY PHARAOH. (2Ch 36:1-4)
• JEHOIAKIM, REIGNING ILL, IS CARRIED INTO BABYLON. (2Ch 36:5-8)
• ZEDEKIAH'S REIGN. (2Ch 36:11-21)
• CYRUS' PROCLAMATION. (2Ch 36:22-23)

TSK: 2 Chronicles 2 (Chapter Introduction)

Overview

2Ch 2:1, Solomon’s labourers for the building of the temple; 2Ch 2:3, His embassage to Huram for workmen and provision of stuff; 2Ch 2:11, Huram sends him a kind answer; 2Ch 2:17, Solomon employs strangers, as labourers, and overseers.

Poole: 2 Chronicles 2 (Chapter Introduction)

CHRONICLES CHAPTER 2

Solomon appointeth workmen to build the temple: his embassage to king Huram for workmen and materials, promising to furnish him with victuals, 2Ch 2:1-10 . Huram’ s kindness, 2Ch 2:11-16 . Solomon numbereth and divideth the workmen, 2Ch 2:17,18 .

i.e. A royal palace for himself and his successors. This whole chapter, for the substance of it, is contained in 1Ki 5 , and in the notes there it is explained, and the seeming differences reconciled.

MHCC: 2 Chronicles 2 (Chapter Introduction)

Solomon's message to Huram respecting the temple, His treaty with Huram.

Matthew Henry: 2 Chronicles (Book Introduction)

An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The Second Book of Chronicles

This book begins with the reign of Solomon and the building of the temple, and continues the history of the kings of Judah thenceforward to the captivity and so concludes with the fall of that illustrious monarchy and the destruction of the temple. That monarchy of the house of David, as it was prior in time, so it was superior in worth and dignity to all those four celebrated ones of which Nebuchadnezzar dreamed. The Babylonian monarchy I reckon to begin in Nebuchadnezzar himself - Thou art that head of gold, and that lasted but about seventy years; The Persian monarchy, in several families, about 130; the Grecian, in their several branches, about 300; and 300 more went far with the Roman. But as I reckon David a greater hero than any of the founders of those monarchies, and Solomon a more magnificent prince than any of those that were the glories of them, so the succession was kept up in a lineal descent throughout the whole monarchy, which continued considerable between 400 and 500 years, and, after a long eclipse, shone forth again in the kingdom of the Messiah, of the increase of whose government and peace there shall be no end. This history of the Jewish monarchy, as it is more authentic, so it is more entertaining and more instructive, than the histories of any of those monarchies. We had the story of the house of David before, in the first and second books of Kings, intermixed with that of the kings of Israel, which there took more room than that of Judah; but here we have it entire. Much is repeated here which we had before, yet many of the passages of the story are enlarged upon, and divers added, which we had not before, especially relating to the affairs of religion; for it is a church-history, and it is written for our learning, to let nations and families know that then, and then only, they can expect to prosper, when they keep in the way of their duty to God: for all along the good kings prospered and the wicked kings suffered. The peaceable reign of Solomon we have (ch. 1-9), the blemished reign of Rehoboam (ch. 10-12), the short but busy reign of Abijah (ch. 13), the long and happy reign of Asa (ch. 14-16), the pious and prosperous reign of Jehoshaphat (ch. 17-20), the impious and infamous reigns of Jehoram and Ahaziah (ch. 21-22), the unsteady reigns of Joash and Amaziah (ch. 24, 25), the long and prosperous reign of Uzziah (ch. 26), the regular reign of Jotham (2Ch 27:1-9), the profane and wicked reign of Ahaz (ch. 28), the gracious glorious reign of Hezekiah (ch. 29-32), the wicked reigns of Manasseh and Amon (ch. 33), the reforming reign of Josiah (ch. 34, 35), the ruining reigns of his sons (ch. 36). Put all these together, and the truth of that word of God will appear, Those that honour me I will honour, but those that despise me shall be lightly esteemed. The learned Mr. Whiston, in his chronology, suggests that the historical books which were written after the captivity (namely, the two books of Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah) have more mistakes in names and numbers than all the books of the Old Testament besides, through the carelessness of transcribers: but, though that should be allowed, the things are so very minute that we may be confident the foundation of God stands sure notwithstanding.

Matthew Henry: 2 Chronicles 2 (Chapter Introduction)

Solomon's trading, which we read of in the close of the foregoing chapter, and the encouragement he gave both to merchandise and manufacturers, were very commendable. But building was the work he was designed for, and to that business he is here applying himself. Here is, I. Solomon's determination to build the temple and a royal palace, and his appointing labourers to be employed herein (2Ch 2:1, 2Ch 2:2, 2Ch 2:17, 2Ch 2:18). II. His request to Huram king of Tyre to furnish him both with artists and materials (2Ch 2:3-10). III. Huram's obliging answer to, and compliance with, his request (2Ch 2:11-16).

Constable: 2 Chronicles (Book Introduction)

Introduction

For an explanation of the title, writer, date, scope, and purpose of this book, see my comments in my notes on 1 Chronicles. Second Chronicles continues the historical narrative begun in 1 Chronicles.

Message¹

Even though 1 and 2 Chronicles give one continuous story the emphasis in 2 Chronicles is different from that in 1 Chronicles. In 1 Chronicles the emphasis is the importance of the temple in national life. However in 2 Chronicles the emphasis is the impotence of the temple in national life. First Chronicles condemns rationalism in national life, the idea that we can get along without God. Second Chronicles condemns ritualism in national life, the idea that what satisfies God is external conformity rather than internal reality. First Chronicles emphasizes the importance of recognizing God in national life. Second Chronicles emphasizes the importance of following up that formal recognition with actual recognition in attitudes and actions. Second Chronicles is a negative lesson because in it we see that the Israelites' recognition of God was only formal, not actual.

In the first part of the book (chs. 1-9) we have the story of Solomon. It is a demonstration of the impotence and uselessness of merely formal religion. This comes through in four respects.

First, Solomon's inheritance was more than the throne of Israel. His throne only gave him the opportunity to fulfill God's purpose for his life. That purpose was to enable the people to acknowledge Yahweh's rule over them that the temple symbolized. This had been David's great passion in life. He wanted the people to realize that national strength came from submission to God's heavenly throne. Solomon appreciated that fact. When he offered his first sacrifice as king to God he did so at the old tabernacle, not at the temporary tent where the ark resided. He realized that Israel's strength lay in her relationship to God that the tabernacle symbolized. His temple was to become the tabernacle's successor. Solomon's real inheritance then was his opportunity to build the temple as a reminder to the people of how important it was for them to recognize Yahweh as their real Ruler.

Second, Solomon's greatness was not really his wealth and political influence. These were the results of his greatness. His real greatness lay in his humility before God and in his intercession for the people with God. He got away from these things, but when he began to reign he had the essentials of greatness.

Third, Solomon's service was not most importantly the administration of Israel, though he did that well. His primary service to the nation was the erection of the temple, which the writer emphasized.

Fourth, Solomon's failure was more significant than that he oppressed the people and that he set the stage for the division of the kingdom. It was essentially the fact that he ceased to recognize God's rule over him and his kingdom, the very thing the temple he had built promoted. His life became self-centered rather than God-centered. He stopped submitting to the Word of God. For Solomon the temple became only an outward form, not the expression of his inward life. It became an object of ritual rather than the expression of reality. In the years that followed, what had become true of Solomon became true of the whole nation.

In the second part of the book (chs. 10-36) we have the history of the nation Solomon ruled. It is an illustration of the impotence and uselessness of merely formal religion. Let me point this out in four respects.

First, the division of the kingdom resulted because Rehoboam did not acknowledge God's sovereignty over the nation in reality even though he did so formally. Rehoboam continued the true form of worship in Judah, but Jeroboam substituted a new form of worship in Israel. In both cases the worship was only a matter of formal observance, not a matter of reality. That is why both nations failed.

Second, the degeneracy of the kingdom of Judah, as well as Israel, continued because most of the kings and people that followed continued worship only as a matter of formal observance. This resulted too in increasing neglect of even the form. People do not continue to observe a form of worship that is devoid of power very long. Mere formalism dies eventually, as it should. The real issue in Judah was apostasy, infidelity.

Third, the reformations in the kingdom began at the temple. Asa restored the altar. Jehoshaphat sent messengers throughout the land to read the Word of God to the people. Joash renovated the temple. Hezekiah reopened it and revitalized worship in it. Josiah repaired it. In each case, conditions were appalling when these reformations began. In Asa's day the altar was in disrepair. In Jehoshaphat's day the people were ignorant of God's Word. In Joash's day Athaliah had damaged the temple. In Hezekiah's day no one came to the temple. Its doors were shut and its worship abandoned. In Josiah's day not one copy of the Law was available. When the king heard the copy that someone had found in the rubble of the temple read, he was completely unfamiliar with it. Throughout this period of history, about 350 years in chapters 10-36, the nation moved farther and farther from God.

Fourth, the ultimate disaster in the kingdom was the burning of the temple and the captivity of the people. All through the years Solomon's temple had stood as a reminder to the people to recognize God's rule over them as a nation. It had become a hollow symbol, the symbol of a formal ritualism rather than the symbol of a vital relationship. It was only fitting that when the nation ceased to exist and the people left their land the Babylonians destroyed the temple.

If 1 Chronicles teaches that it was necessary that the people recognize God, 2 Chronicles teaches that if that recognition is only formal and ceremonial it is not only useless but impotent.

That is the message of this book. If our recognition of God is only formal and not real, that recognition will be useless for us and impotent in us.

I would like to apply this lesson to us.

First, let me remind you of the similarity that exists between ourselves and the Israelites. They had a physical, material temple. We are a spiritual temple (1 Cor. 3:16; cf. 1 Pet. 2:4-10, esp. vv. 5, 9-10). As the presence of God filled Solomon's temple at its beginning, God's presence filled the church at its beginning (2 Chron. 5:13-14; Acts 2:1-4). As Solomon's temple was the center of national life in Israel, so the church is to be the center of international life in the world. As God intended Solomon's temple to remind His people of His heavenly rule over them, so God intended the church to remind all people of God's rule over them. As Solomon's temple became simply a symbol of a form of worship, so can the church. We must remember what we are here to do, namely to call people to recognize God's gracious and beneficent rule over them that can result in their blessing.

Second, let me point out some manifestations of formalism in the church today. One of these is insistence on doctrinal orthodoxy without a corresponding vital spiritual life. This is what James called dead faith (James 2:20). This can be the possession of both individual Christians and local churches. I do not mean to suggest that doctrinal orthodoxy is unimportant. I am not suggesting that we tear down the temple. But let us make sure that our theological edifice is having its full effect and not merely giving us a false sense of God's approval. It is possible to argue for the correctness of our views and to curse the person who does not share them. That is an evidence of formalism. It is possible to go to church faithfully and yet to live out of church as though there were no God. That is ritualism. It is possible to worship God earnestly and then to goof off at work. That is formalism, ritualism, empty hypocrisy.

Third, let me point out the consequences of formalism. The most serious consequence is not only that a church will fail to be what God wants it to be. It is also that it will fail to do what God has placed it on the earth to do. As Israel failed to bring the light of God's revelation to the world, the church can fail to do so too. Our nation and our world can rush headlong toward godlessness if we are content merely with playing church. We Christians can bear the marks of unworthy conduct, cowardice in the face of wrong, and carelessness about what is right. If we do, we will be useless and impotent. Why is the modern church unlike the Jerusalem church in Acts 2? It is different because of formalism, ritualism, lack of reality. The world has no time or patience with formalism. Why are so many local churches not growing? They are stagnant because the Christians in them are just going through motions. There is no evidence to others that they are anything but useless and impotent. Is your Christian life vital, or are you just going through motions?

Constable: 2 Chronicles (Outline)

Outline

(Continued from notes on 1 Chronicles)

III. The reign of Solomon chs. 1-9

A. Solomon's wisdom and prosperity ch. 1

B. The building of the temple 2:1-5:1

1. Preparations for building the temple ch. 2

2. The temple proper 3:1-9

3. The temple furnishings 3:10-5:1

C. The dedication of the temple 5:2-7:10

1. The installation of the ark 5:2-14

2. Solomon's address 6:1-11

3. Solomon's prayer 6:12-42

4. The celebration of the people 7:1-10

D. God's blessings and curses 7:11-22

E. Solomon's successes chs. 8-9

1. Solomon's political success 8:1-11

2. Solomon's religious success 8:12-16

3. Solomon's economic success 8:17-9:28

4. Solomon's death 9:29-31

IV. The reigns of Solomon's successors chs. 10-36

A. Rehoboam chs. 10-12

1. The division of the nation ch. 10

2. Rehoboam's kingdom ch. 11

3. The invasion by Egypt ch. 12

B. Abijah 13:1-14:1

C. Asa 14:2-16:14

1. Asa's wisdom 14:2-15

2. Asa's reform ch. 15

3. Asa's failure ch. 16

D. Jehoshaphat chs. 17-20

1. Summary of Jehoshaphat's reign 17:1-6

2. The strength of Jehoshaphat's kingdom 17:7-19

3. Jehoshaphat and Ahab ch. 18

4. Jehoshaphat's appointment of judges ch. 19

5. Victory over the Moabite-Ammonite alliance 20:1-30

6. Jehoshaphat's failures 20:31-37

E. Jehoram ch. 21

F. Ahaziah ch. 22

G. Athaliah ch. 23

H. Joash ch. 24

I. Amaziah ch. 25

J. Uzziah ch. 26

K. Jotham ch. 27

L. Ahaz ch. 28

M. Hezekiah chs. 29-32

1. The cleansing and rededication of the temple ch. 29

2. Hezekiah's Passover 30:1-31:1

3. Re-establishment of proper worship 31:2-21

4. The invasion by Sennacherib 32:1-23

5. Hezekiah's humility and greatness 32:24-33

N. Manasseh 33:1-20

O. Amon 33:21-25

P. Josiah chs. 34-35

1. Josiah's reforms ch. 34

2. Josiah's Passover 35:1-19

3. Josiah's death 35:20-27

Q. The last four kings 36:1-21

1. Jehoahaz 36:1-4

2. Jehoiakim 36:5-8

3. Jehoiachin 36:9-10

4. Zedekiah 36:11-21

R. The edict of Cyrus 36:22-23

Constable: 2 Chronicles

2 Chronicles

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Copyright 2003 by Thomas L. Constable

Haydock: 2 Chronicles (Book Introduction)

THE SECOND BOOK OF PARALIPOMENON.

INTRODUCTION.

As the former Book shews how David was chosen to rule over God's peculiar people, so this [Book] explains briefly the reign of Solomon, in the nine first chapters; and in the rest, that of nineteen of his successors, who governed two tribes till the captivity, while Israel was divided. (Worthington)

Gill: 2 Chronicles (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO 2 CHRONICLES

This, and the preceding, were but one book originally, but divided into two because of the size of it, so that this is only a continuation of the former history; that ends at the death of David; this begins with the reign of Solomon, goes through that, and the reigns of all the kings of the house of David; of the kings of Judah only, after the separation of the ten tribes, quite down to the captivity of Judah in Babylon, and reaches to the deliverance of the Jews from thence by Cyrus, and contains an history of four hundred and seventy nine years. It treats not at all of the kings of Israel, after the separation, only of the kings of Judah, through whom the line of the Messiah was drawn; and though it omits several things recorded of them in the book of Kings, yet it gives abundance of anecdotes not to be met with there, which are of great use and advantage in history to know.

Gill: 2 Chronicles 2 (Chapter Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO 2 CHRONICLES 2

Solomon intending to build a temple for God, and a palace for himself, sent to Hiram, king of Tyre, to furnish him with materials and workmen, 2Ch 2:1, to which Hiram returned an agreeable answer, 2Ch 2:11, and for this service Solomon numbered all the strangers in Israel, 2Ch 2:17.