2 Then Shelomoh decided to build a temple to honour Yahweh, as well as a palace for himself, 2 so he conscripted seventy thousand men as porters, eighty thousand as stone-cutters in the hillside quarries, and 3,600 supervisors.

3 Shelomoh contacted King Hiram in Tsor (Tyre), saying, “In my father David’s time, you sent cedar timber to him so he could build himself a palace to live in. 4 Listen, I’m building a temple to honour my god Yahweh, to consecrate to him. There we’ll burn spiced incense for him, plus we’ll have the regular bread display, and burnt offerings in the morning and in the evening, on rest days and on the new moons, and at Yahweh our god’s other appointed times. Yisrael is required to do this forever. 5 We want to build an impressive building, because our god is more powerful than all the other gods. 6 But who could stay strong enough to build a house for him, since the sky and the heavens of the heavens can’t contain him? And who am I that I could build a house for him—maybe I’m good enough to burn incense for him?[ref] 7 So then, send me a skilled man who can work in gold, and in silver, and in bronze, and in iron, and with purple, red, and blue threads, and who knows how to engrave. He’ll work with the skilled craftsmen who my father David appointed and who are with me here in Yerushalem and across Yehudah. 8 Also, send me cedar, cypress, and algum timber from there in Lebanon, because I myself know that your servants know how to cut the trees from Lebanon’s forests. And listen, my servants will help your servants 9 so they can supply me with plenty of timber, because the temple I’m building will be large and beautiful. 10 I’ll pay your wood-cutters three thousand tonnes of ground wheat, and the same amount of barley, and four hundred thousand litres of wine, and the same amount of olive oil.

11 King Hiram of Tsor (Tyre) wrote back to King Shelomoh, “Yahweh has appointed you as king over his people because he loves them. 12 Blessed be Yisrael’s god Yahweh who made the heavens and the earth, who’s given King David a wise son with insight and understanding, who’ll build a temple for Yahweh and a palace for his kingdom.

13 “I’ll send Huram-Avi to you—he’s a skilled craftsman. 14 His mother’s from the tribe of Dan, and his father’s from Tsor. He knows how to work in gold and silver, in bronze and iron, in stone and in timber, with purple and blue threads, with fine white linen and with crimson thread, and do any kind of engraving. He can follow any pattern that’s given to him by your designers, and the designers of my master, David, your father. 15 So then go ahead and send the wheat, barley, olive oil, and wine that you promised to send to us, 16 then we’ll cut the trees you need from Lebanon and raft them to Yafo by sea. The responsibility of getting them up the hills to Yerushalem will be yours.