Preparations for Building the Temple

¹Solomon decided to build a Temple to honor the name of the Lord , and also a royal palace for himself.[#2:1 Verse 2:1 is numbered 1:18 in Hebrew text.]

²He enlisted a force of 70,000 laborers, 80,000 men to quarry stone in the hill country, and 3,600 foremen.[#2:2 Verses 2:2-18 are numbered 2:1-17 in Hebrew text.]

³Solomon also sent this message to King Hiram at Tyre:[#2:3 Hebrew Huram, a variant spelling of Hiram; also in 2:11.]

¹¹King Hiram sent this letter of reply to Solomon:

¹⁷Solomon took a census of all foreigners in the land of Israel, like the census his father had taken, and he counted 153,600.

¹⁸He assigned 70,000 of them as common laborers, 80,000 as quarry workers in the hill country, and 3,600 as foremen.