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2 Chronicles 8
New Catholic Bible
2 Chronicles 8
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 8
Solomon’s Buildings.[a] 1 At the end of the twenty years that Solomon had taken to build the house of the Lord and his own palace, 2 he rebuilt the cities that Huram had given to him, and he settled the Israelites in them.
3 Then Solomon went to Hamath-zobah and captured it.[b] 4 After that he fortified Tadmor[c] in the wilderness and all the storage towns that he had built in Hamath. 5 He also built Upper Beth-horon and Lower Beth-horon, fortified cities with walls, gates, and bars, 6 and Baalath, all the supply cities belonging to Solomon, and all the towns for his chariots and for his cavalry and whatever else Solomon decided to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and throughout his entire dominion.
7 All the people who still remained of the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites who did not belong to Israel— 8 that is, from their descendants still surviving in the land, whom the people of Israel had not destroyed—Solomon subjected to forced labor, as is still the case today.[d]
9 However, Solomon did not use the people of Israel as slaves for all the work he wanted done. Rather, they were assigned as soldiers and his officers, as well as the commanders of his soldiers and his cavalry.[e] 10 These served as King Solomon’s officials, two hundred and fifty in number, who exercised authority over the people.
11 Solomon’s Piety. Solomon brought the daughter of Pharaoh up from the City of David to the place that he had built for her, for he said: “No wife of mine shall live in the house of King David of Israel, for the places that the Ark of the Lord has entered are sacred.”
12 Then Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings to the Lord upon the altar of the Lord that he had built in front of the portico, 13 in accordance with what was required for each day, offerings in accordance with the law of Moses for the Sabbaths, the new moons, and the annual dedicated feasts—the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Booths.
14 Following the ordinances of his father David, Solomon designated the various divisions of the priests for their service, and the Levites for their offices of praise and ministry alongside the priests as the duty of each day required, and the gatekeepers designated for specific gates, for such was the command of David, the man of God. 15 The instructions that David had specified in regard to the priests and Levites and also concerning the treasuries were never disregarded.
16 Thus all of Solomon’s work was accomplished, from the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid until the house of the Lord was completed.
17 Solomon’s Glory. Then Solomon went to Ezion-geber and Elath on the seacoast of Edom, 18 and Huram sent ships under the command of his own officers and manned by experienced seamen familiar with the sea. They went to Ophir, together with the servants of Solomon, and brought back from there four hundred and fifty talents that they presented to King Solomon.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 8:1 The Lord prospers the undertakings of the man who built his temple. But the picture which the Chronicler sketches of the reign of Solomon is brighter than the reality. For a more concrete and less grandiloquent description of the facts, see the first Book of Kings.
- 2 Chronicles 8:3 See 1 Ki 9:11f. Zobah was an Aramean kingdom north of Damascus. “He went,” like “he built,” etc., means he had it done.
- 2 Chronicles 8:4 Tadmor: the Semitic name, still in use, for Palmyra, an oasis which is mentioned in an Assyrian inscription dating from a century before Solomon and which became famous in the third century A.D. In fact, however, the reference is clearly to Tamar, on the southern shore of the Dead Sea; see the parallel in 1 Ki 9:18.
- 2 Chronicles 8:8 As is still the case today: the expression is repeated elsewhere, showing that the author is using an ancient source.
- 2 Chronicles 8:9 The opening statement does not correspond to the facts (see 1 Ki 5:13), but attests to the Israelites’ sense of being free people.
2 Chronicles 8
New International Version
2 Chronicles 8
New International Version
Solomon’s Other Activities(A)
8 At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon built the temple of the Lord and his own palace,(B) 2 Solomon rebuilt the villages that Hiram[a] had given him, and settled Israelites in them. 3 Solomon then went to Hamath Zobah and captured it. 4 He also built up Tadmor in the desert and all the store cities he had built in Hamath.(C) 5 He rebuilt Upper Beth Horon(D) and Lower Beth Horon as fortified cities, with walls and with gates and bars, 6 as well as Baalath(E) and all his store cities, and all the cities for his chariots and for his horses[b]—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled.
7 There were still people left from the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites(F) (these people were not Israelites). 8 Solomon conscripted(G) the descendants of all these people remaining in the land—whom the Israelites had not destroyed—to serve as slave labor, as it is to this day. 9 But Solomon did not make slaves of the Israelites for his work; they were his fighting men, commanders of his captains, and commanders of his chariots and charioteers. 10 They were also King Solomon’s chief officials—two hundred and fifty officials supervising the men.
11 Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter(H) up from the City of David to the palace he had built for her, for he said, “My wife must not live in the palace of David king of Israel, because the places the ark of the Lord has entered are holy.”
12 On the altar(I) of the Lord that he had built in front of the portico, Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings to the Lord, 13 according to the daily requirement(J) for offerings commanded by Moses for the Sabbaths,(K) the New Moons(L) and the three(M) annual festivals—the Festival of Unleavened Bread,(N) the Festival of Weeks(O) and the Festival of Tabernacles.(P) 14 In keeping with the ordinance of his father David, he appointed the divisions(Q) of the priests for their duties, and the Levites(R) to lead the praise and to assist the priests according to each day’s requirement. He also appointed the gatekeepers(S) by divisions for the various gates, because this was what David the man of God(T) had ordered.(U) 15 They did not deviate from the king’s commands to the priests or to the Levites in any matter, including that of the treasuries.
16 All Solomon’s work was carried out, from the day the foundation of the temple of the Lord was laid until its completion. So the temple of the Lord was finished.
17 Then Solomon went to Ezion Geber and Elath on the coast of Edom. 18 And Hiram sent him ships commanded by his own men, sailors who knew the sea. These, with Solomon’s men, sailed to Ophir and brought back four hundred and fifty talents[c] of gold,(V) which they delivered to King Solomon.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 8:2 Hebrew Huram, a variant of Hiram; also in verse 18
- 2 Chronicles 8:6 Or charioteers
- 2 Chronicles 8:18 That is, about 17 tons or about 15 metric tons
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