Wherever I moved throughout Israel, I did not say<n id="1" /> to any of the leaders whom I appointed to care for my people Israel,<n id="2" /> &#8216;Why have you not built me a house made from cedar?&#8217;&#8221;&#8217;p>

<p class="bodytext">Solomon sent a message to King Huram<n id="1" /> of Tyre:<n id="2" /> &#8220;Help me<n id="3" /> as you did my father David, when you sent him cedar logs<n id="4" /> for the construction of his palace.<n id="5" />

Send me cedars, evergreens, and algum<n id="1" /> trees from Lebanon, for I know your servants are adept<n id="2" /> at cutting down trees in Lebanon. My servants will work with your servants

<t /><p class="bodytext">So they provided money<n id="1" /> for the masons and carpenters, and food, beverages, and olive oil for the people of Sidon<n id="2" /> and Tyre,<n id="3" /> so that they would bring cedar timber from Lebanon to the seaport<n id="4" /> at Joppa, in accord with the edict of King Cyrus of Persia.

<p class="poetry">The cedars in the garden of God could not eclipse it,p> <p class="poetry">nor could the fir trees<n id="1" /> match its boughs;p> <p class="poetry">the plane trees were as nothing compared to its branches;p> <p class="poetry">no tree in the garden of God could rival its beauty.p>