History · Chapter 5 of 22
1 Kings 5
Hiram king of Tyre, long a friend of David, sends greetings to Solomon, who proposes a partnership to build the temple. Solomon explains that David could not build because of constant war, but now the LORD has given rest. Hiram supplies cedar and fir from Lebanon by sea in exchange for wheat and oil, and the two make a treaty. Solomon raises a large labor force to quarry stone and prepare timber for the house.
What happens in 1 Kings 5
Hearing that Solomon has succeeded David, Hiram king of Tyre, who had loved David, sends his servants to greet him. Solomon replies with a proposal: David could not build a house for the LORD because of surrounding wars, but now God has granted rest, so Solomon intends to build the temple God promised David's son would build. He asks Hiram to cut cedar from Lebanon with his skilled Sidonians, offering wages and food. Hiram rejoices, blesses the LORD for giving David a wise son, and agrees to float the timber by sea to an appointed place.
Solomon gives Hiram wheat and pure oil yearly, and the two make a league of peace. Solomon then conscripts a levy of thirty thousand men in shifts, with seventy thousand burden-bearers and eighty thousand stonecutters under thousands of officers, and they prepare timber and costly stone for the foundation of the house.
1 Kings 5 in context
Building a national temple required resources Israel lacked, especially cedar and skilled craftsmen, so Solomon partnered with Phoenician Tyre, a maritime trading power. The rest God had given, promised in the covenant and won through David's wars, is the precondition Solomon names for building.
The chapter also introduces the massive conscripted labor that made such projects possible, a burden that will resurface as a grievance. The cooperation of a Gentile king in building God's house is quietly significant.
Main themes of 1 Kings 5
1 Kings 5 (KJV)
1And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for Hiram was ever a lover of David. 2And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying, 3Thou knowest how that David my father could not build an house unto the name of the LORD his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until the LORD put them under the soles of his feet. 4But now the LORD my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent. 5And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name. 6Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy servants: and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt appoint: for thou knowest that there is not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians. 7And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, Blessed be the LORD this day, which hath given unto David a wise son over this great people. 8And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, I have considered the things which thou sentest to me for: and I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir. 9My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon unto the sea: and I will convey them by sea in floats unto the place that thou shalt appoint me, and will cause them to be discharged there, and thou shalt receive them: and thou shalt accomplish my desire, in giving food for my household. 10So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire. 11And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year. 12And the LORD gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him: and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together. 13And king Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men. 14And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses: a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home: and Adoniram was over the levy. 15And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains; 16Beside the chief of Solomon’s officers which were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, which ruled over the people that wrought in the work. 17And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house. 18And Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers: so they prepared timber and stones to build the house.
Verses to carry from 1 Kings 5
“But now the LORD my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent.”1 Kings 5:4
“And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name.”1 Kings 5:5
“And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, Blessed be the LORD this day, which hath given unto David a wise son over this great people.”1 Kings 5:7
Christian typology
How 1 Kings 5 points to Jesus
Solomon builds the temple only after God grants rest, and the true and greater temple is built by the Son who gives rest to all who come to him. Hiram, a Gentile king, rejoices to supply cedar and skill, foreshadowing the nations who bring their glory into the house of God and are built together into a spiritual temple in Christ. Solomon says his father David could not build but he would; Jesus, the Son of David, is himself both builder and temple, the place where God and humanity meet.
Where Solomon's house was raised by conscripted burden-bearers, Christ builds his house by carrying the burden himself, laying down his life as the costly, chosen cornerstone on which the whole structure rises.
Questions about 1 Kings 5
Why did David not build the temple himself?
Solomon explains that David was occupied with constant wars on every side and could not build until the LORD subdued his enemies. Elsewhere Scripture adds that God did not want a man of much bloodshed to build his house. The temple was to rise in a time of rest and peace, so the task passed to Solomon, whose very name is linked to peace and whose reign enjoyed the rest David's wars had secured.
Why did Solomon involve a pagan king in building God's temple?
Israel lacked the cedar of Lebanon and the skilled craftsmen Tyre possessed, so Solomon made a treaty with Hiram, trading wheat and oil for timber and labor. The narrative presents Hiram gladly blessing the LORD and contributing to the house. This cooperation shows the temple drawing on the resources of the nations from the very beginning, a quiet foreshadowing of God's purpose to gather all peoples.
Reflection
Solomon built only after God gave rest. We often try to build good things out of anxious striving, hammering away while still at war within. Consider whether God is first inviting you into his rest, so that what you build flows from peace rather than pressure. The most enduring work is raised on the settled ground of trusting him.
A prayer from 1 Kings 5
Read the whole Bible with the family
Open it in the app, study it live with someone, and let it lead you to Christ.
Open the BibleRead it togetherSee what God is doing