2 Chronicles 2:1 - 2:10
Yahweh’s House Will Be Great
Then Solomon decided to build a house for the name of Yahweh and a royal palace for himself. 2 So Solomon numbered 70,000 men to carry loads and 80,000 men to hew stone in the mountains and 3,600 to direct them. 3 Then Solomon sent word to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, “As you dealt with David my father and sent him cedars to build him a house to live in, so do for me. 4 Behold, I am about to build a house for the name of Yahweh my God, setting it apart to Him as holy, to burn fragrant incense before Him and to set out the showbread continually, and to offer burnt offerings morning and evening, on sabbaths and on new moons and on the appointed feasts of Yahweh our God, this being required forever in Israel. 5 Now the house which I am about to build will be great, for greater is our God than all the gods. 6 But who is able to build a house for Him, for the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain Him? So who am I, that I should build a house for Him, except to burn incense before Him? 7 So now, send me a wise man to work in gold, silver, brass, and iron, and in purple, crimson, and blue fabrics, and who knows how to make engravings, to work with the wise men whom I have in Judah and Jerusalem, whom David my father prepared. 8 Send me also cedar, cypress and algum timber from Lebanon, for I know that your servants know how to cut timber of Lebanon; and behold, my servants will work with your servants, 9 to prepare timber in abundance for me, for the house which I am about to build will be great and wonderful. 10 And behold, I will give to your servants, the woodsmen who cut the timber, 20,000 kors of crushed wheat and 20,000 kors of barley, and 20,000 baths of wine and 20,000 baths of oil.”