2 Chronicles 2:1-3

Solomon Gathers Building Materials for the Temple

2:1 (1:18) ¹  Solomon ordered a temple to be built to honor the Lord, as well as a royal palace for himself. ²  2:2 (2:1) Solomon had ³  70,000 common laborers ⁴  and 80,000 stonecutters ⁵  in the hills, in addition to 3,600 supervisors. ⁶ 

2:3 Solomon sent a message to King Huram ⁷  of Tyre: ⁸  “Help me ⁹  as you did my father David, when you sent him cedar logs ¹⁰  for the construction of his palace. ¹¹ 

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.”

³ tn Heb “counted,” perhaps “conscripted” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV).

⁴ tn Heb “carriers of loads.”

⁵ tn Or “quarry workers”; Heb “cutters” (probably referring to stonecutters).

⁶ 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.

⁵ 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.

⁶ map For location see Map1-A2; Map2-G2; Map4-A1; JP3-F3; JP4-F3.

⁷ tn The words “help me” are supplied in the translation for clarification and stylistic reasons.

⁸ tn Heb “cedars.” The word “logs” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

⁹ tn Heb “to build for him a house to live in it.”