The
Book of first kings
Chapter 9
[1] And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the
building of the house of the LORD, and the king's house, and all Solomon's
desire which he was pleased to do,
[2] That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto
him at Gibeon.
[3] And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed
this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes
and mine heart shall be there perpetually.
1) Divine Appearance (1-3)
After Solomon had finished building, dedicating and
praying the Lord appeared to Solomon the 2nd time
The first time was at
The Lord God acknowledged His pleasure in the House of
the Lord that Solomon built
The Lord hallowed, consecrated the House. His glory, His
name and His presence was there
[4] And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity
of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded
thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:
[5] Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I
promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the
throne of Israel.
[6] But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and
will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but
go and serve other gods, and worship them:
[7] Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and
this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and
Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people:
[8] And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth
by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the
LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?
[9] And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought
forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other
gods, and have worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD
brought upon them all this evil.
2)
Dutiful Admonition (4-9)
If Solomon would walk before the Lord in obedience and
faithfulness
Then God will bless the reign of Solomon and of his
descendants
* not a perfect walk (David was
not perfect) but and upright walk (willing to agree & follow)
2 Chronicles 7:12-16 “If my people......”
If we will do our part, God will not fail to do His
If Solomon or his descendants turn away from God
Then God will punish all
*Forsake the God of the
So severe the chastisement that
other nations are astonished how God brought calamity
[10] And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, when Solomon had built the
two houses, the house of the LORD, and the king's house,
[11] (Now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished
Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees, and with gold, according to all his
desire,) that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of
Galilee.
[12] And Hiram came out from
[13] And he said, What cities are these which thou
hast given me, my brother? And he called them the
[14] And Hiram sent to the king sixscore talents of
gold.
3)
Determined Agreement (10-14)
Hiram, the King of Tyre, who
had supplied all the wood (cedar & fir) for Solomon’s ambitions
Hiram had fulfilled the agreement (1K5:9)he had made with Solomon (supplied materials &
gold)
Vs 14 Hiram had provided 120 talents of gold
*at todays prices gold =774.40 oz or 12,390.40lb or 867,328
talent (70lb) or $104,079,360 120talents
Solomon had given the payment he promised and evidently
gave over and above
The King gave Hiram 20 cities (insignificant settlements)
that Hiram could raise food
·
God had given
Hiram came to see his investment and was displeased and
called them Cabul (meaning good for nothing)
2 Chr 8:2 Hiram gave them back
to Solomon as Hiram was a merchant not a farmer
Solomon may have given the another gift equivalent in
value
[15] And this is the reason of the levy which king Solomon raised; for to build
the house of the LORD, and his own house, and Millo,
and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo,
and Gezer.
[16] For Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer,
and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and
given it for a present unto his daughter, Solomon's wife.
[17] And Solomon built Gezer, and Beth-horon the nether,
[18] and Baalath, and Tadmor
in the wilderness, in the land,
[19] And all the cities of store that Solomon had, and cities for his chariots,
and cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build in
Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.
[20] And all the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which were not of the children of Israel,
[21] Their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of
Israel also were not able utterly to destroy, upon those did Solomon levy a
tribute of bondservice unto this day.
4)
Deeds of Administration (15-28)
A. Levy (15-21)
Solomon raised a great levy (labor force and
tax money) for his expansive building projects
He
built the House of the Lord, royal palace, Pharoahs daughters house, Millo, wall of
3
fortified cities (Hazor,
Other cities were Bethhoron,
Baalath and Tadmor
Solomon kept the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites for slave labor
Yet God commanded all these peoples be driven
out (compromise)
[22] But of the children of
[23] These were the chief of the officers that were over Solomon's work, five
hundred and fifty, which bare rule over the people that wrought in the work.
B. Israelites
(22,23)
Solomon caused them to
be men of war and his servants
[24] But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of
C. Wife (24)
Solomon had many wives one of which was
Pharaohs daughter (Gentile)
2 Chr
8:9 Solomon did not want her living in the city of
[25] And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt offerings and peace
offerings upon the altar which he built unto the LORD, and he burnt incense
upon the altar that was before the LORD. So he finished the house.
D. Offerings
(25)
Solomon, via a priest
acting for him, offered burnt offerings & peace offerings 3 times a year
[26] And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion-geber, which is beside Eloth,
on the shore of the Red sea, in the
[27] And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the
sea, with the servants of Solomon.
[28] And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence
gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king
Solomon.
E. Navy (26-28)
Solomon built a great navy and Hiram supplied
some of the manpower but the skill & technics
This may have been how Solomon gave an
equivalent to Hiram
The navy sailed to Ophir
(
The navy returned 420 talents of gold to Solomon
*at todays prices gold =774.40
oz or 12,390.40lb or 867,328 talent (70lb) or $364,277,760 420talents
This would be enough, even if it
was shared with Hiram, to pay Solomon’s debt
***David prepared 100,000 talents of
gold (I Chr 22:14) $86,732,800,000 worth