1: Solomon gave orders to begin construction on the house of worship in honor of GOD and a palace for himself.
2: Solomon assigned 70,000 common laborers, 80,000 to work the quarries in the mountains, and 3,600 foremen to manage the workforce.
3: Then Solomon sent this message to King Hiram of Tyre: "Send me cedar logs, the same kind you sent David my father for building his palace.
4: I'm about to build a house of worship in honor of GOD, a holy place for burning perfumed incense, for setting out holy bread, for making Whole-Burnt-Offerings at morning and evening worship, and for Sabbath, New Moon, and Holy Day services of worship--the acts of worship required of Israel.
5: "The house I am building has to be the best, for our God is the best, far better than competing gods.
6: But who is capable of building such a structure? Why, the skies--the entire cosmos!-can't begin to contain him. And me, who am I to think I can build a house adequate for God--burning incense to him is about all I'm good for!
7: I need your help: Send me a master artisan in gold, silver, bronze, iron, textiles of purple, crimson, and violet, and who knows the craft of engraving; he will supervise the trained craftsmen in Judah and Jerusalem that my father provided.
8: Also send cedar, cypress, and algum logs from Lebanon; I know you have lumberjacks experienced in the Lebanon forests. I'll send workers to join your crews
9: to cut plenty of timber--I'm going to need a lot, for this house I'm building is going to be absolutely stunning--a showcase temple!
10: I'll provide all the food necessary for your crew of lumberjacks and loggers: 130,000 bushels of wheat, 120,000 gallons of wine, and 120,000 gallons of olive oil."
11: Hiram king of Tyre wrote Solomon in reply: "It's plain that GOD loves his people--he made you king over them!"
12: He wrote on, "Blessed be the GOD of Israel, who made heaven and earth, and who gave King David a son so wise, so knowledgeable and shrewd, to build a temple for GOD and a palace for himself.
13: I've sent you Huram-Abi--he's already on his way--he knows the construction business inside and out.
14: His mother is from Dan and his father from Tyre. He knows how to work in gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, and wood, in purple, violet, linen, and crimson textiles; he is also an expert engraver and competent to work out designs with your artists and architects, and those of my master David, your father.
15: "Go ahead and send the wheat, barley, olive oil, and wine you promised for my work crews.
16: We'll log the trees you need from the Lebanon forests and raft them down to Joppa. You'll have to get the timber up to Jerusalem yourself."
17: Solomon then took a census of all the foreigners living in Israel, using the same census-taking method employed by his father. They numbered 153,600.
18: He assigned 70,000 of them as common laborers, 80,000 to work the quarries in the mountains, and 3,600 as foremen to manage the work crews.