Now at the end of the twenty years during which Solomon had built the house of the LORD and his own palace, Solomon rebuilt the cities Hiram had given him and settled Israelites there. Then Solomon went to Hamath-zobah and captured it. He built Tadmor in the wilderness, in addition to all the store cities that he had built in Hamath. He rebuilt Upper and Lower Beth-horon as fortified cities with walls, gates, and bars, as well as Baalath, all the store cities that belonged to Solomon, and all the cities for his chariots and horses—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, Lebanon, and throughout the land of his dominion. As for all the people who remained of the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites (the people who were not Israelites)— their descendants who remained in the land, those whom the Israelites were unable to destroy—Solomon conscripted these people to be forced laborers, as they are to this day. But Solomon did not consign any of the Israelites to slave labor, because they were his men of war, his officers and captains, and the commanders of his chariots and cavalry. They were also the chief officers for King Solomon: 250 supervisors. Solomon brought the daughter of Pharaoh up from the City of David to the palace he had built for her. For he said, “My wife must not live in the house of David king of Israel, because the places the ark of the LORD has entered are holy.”
King Solomon also assembled a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber, which is near Eloth in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea. And Hiram sent his servants, men who knew the sea, to serve in the fleet with Solomon's servants.
Significance
The Chronicler's account of Solomon's activities (2 Chr 8:1-11) covers some of the same ground as 1 Kings 9:26-27, which describes Solomon's fleet at Ezion-geber near Eloth on the Red Sea coast. Both texts attest to Solomon's maritime commercial ventures with Hiram's seamen, demonstrating the scope of Solomonic imperial reach. The Chronicler integrates these trading activities into a broader summary of Solomon's building and administrative achievements, presenting a comprehensive picture of the peace and prosperity that characterized the temple-builder's reign.
Found via
Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type
Allusion
Connection Method(s)
None
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