Solomon and the entire assembly went to the worship center ¹  in Gibeon, for the tent where they met God ²  was located there, which Moses the Lord’s servant had made in the wilderness.

Solomon left the meeting tent at the worship center in Gibeon and went to Jerusalem, where he reigned over Israel. ¹ 

“Now send me a man who is skilled in working with gold, silver, bronze, and iron, as well as purple, crimson, and violet colored fabrics, and who knows how to engrave. He will work with my skilled craftsmen here in Jerusalem ¹  and Judah, whom my father David provided.

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

Huram also said, “Worthy of praise is the Lord God of Israel, who made the sky and the earth! He has given David a wise son who has discernment and insight and will build a temple for the Lord, as well as a royal palace for himself. ¹ 

whose mother is a Danite and whose father is a Tyrian. ¹  He knows how to work with gold, silver, bronze, iron, stones, and wood, as well as purple, violet, white, and crimson fabrics. He knows how to do all kinds of engraving and understands any design given to him. He will work with your skilled craftsmen and the skilled craftsmen of my lord David your father.

He designated ¹  70,000 as common laborers, ²  80,000 as stonecutters ³  in the hills, and 3,600 as supervisors to make sure the people completed the work. ⁴ 

Huram Abi ¹  made the pots, shovels, and bowls. He finished all the work on God’s temple he had been assigned by King Solomon. ² 

All the Levites who were musicians, including Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, and their sons and relatives, wore linen. They played cymbals and stringed instruments as they stood east of the altar. They were accompanied by 120 priests who blew trumpets.

He said, “The Lord God of Israel is worthy of praise because he has fulfilled ¹  what he promised ²  my father David.

You have kept your word to your servant, my father David; ¹  this very day you have fulfilled what you promised. ² 

When all the Israelites saw the fire come down and the Lord’s splendor over the temple, they got on their knees with their faces downward toward the pavement. They worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, ¹  “Certainly he is good; certainly his loyal love endures!”

“But if you people ¹  ever turn away from me, fail to obey the regulations and rules I instructed you to keep, ²  and decide to serve and worship other gods, ³ 

Others will then answer, ¹  ‘Because they abandoned the Lord God of their ancestors, ²  who led them out of Egypt. They embraced other gods whom they worshiped and served. ³  That is why he brought all this disaster down on them.’”

Their descendants remained in the land (the Israelites were unable to wipe them out). Solomon conscripted them for his work crews and they continue in that role to this very day. ¹ 

Solomon did not assign Israelites to these work crews; ¹  the Israelites served as his soldiers, officers, charioteers, and commanders of his chariot forces. ² 

These men worked for Solomon as supervisors; there were a total of 250 of them who were in charge of the people. ¹ 

As his father David had decreed, Solomon ¹  appointed the divisions of the priests to do their assigned tasks, the Levitical orders to lead worship and help the priests with their daily tasks, ²  and the divisions of the gatekeepers to serve at their assigned gates. ³  This was what David the man of God had ordered. ⁴ 

All the work ordered by Solomon was completed, from the day the foundation of the Lord’s temple was laid until it was finished; the Lord’s temple was completed.

“Your father made us work too hard! ¹  Now if you lighten the demands he made and don’t make us work as hard, we will serve you.” ²