First Kings 5:1

The Bible says in First Kings 5:1-5, “And 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.[2] And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,[3] Thou 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.[4] But now the LORD my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent.[5] 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.” As we often see in the Bible, these verses show us the hand of God using everything to bring about His plan. King Hiram loved David. Therefore, King Hiram wanted to have contact with David’s son, King Solomon. Of course, Tyre is in Lebanon, and Lebanon is known for its great cedar trees. Solomon had a use for the wood of the cedar trees: to build he temple according to the will of God. When God wants something to happen, He wonderfully brings everything together.

The Bible says in First Kings 5:6-11, “Now 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.[7] 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.[8] And 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.[9] My 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.[10] So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire.[11] And 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.” Solomon’s wisdom is shown by the result of his conversation with Hiram. They made a deal that was beneficial to both parties. Hiram used his expertise to get the cedar trees cut down and floated them in the Mediterranean Sea to get them to Israel; and then Solomon supplied grain and oil to Hiram and his citizens “year by year.” A wise leader will have good relationships with other countries for the purpose of trade and for the benefit of their citizens.

The Bible says in First Kings 5:12-18, “And the LORD gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him: and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together.[13] And king Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men.[14] And 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.[15] And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains;[16] Beside 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.[17] And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house.[18] And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers: so they prepared timber and stones to build the house.” The first part of verse twelve does not surprise us. It says, “And the LORD gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him…” God always keeps His promises. That is important to remember as you read and study the Bible. Look for God’s promises. He has made promises about eternal life and forgiveness of sins through Jesus. He has made promises about answer to prayer. He has made promises about having a plan for your life. He has made promises about providing your needs. He has made promises about always being with you. The list is very long, and God always keeps His promises. God promised that He would give wisdom to Solomon, and God is a very great giver. He gave a lot of wisdom to Solomon. Solomon had the wisdom to know where to get workers for his project. He simply instituted a draft for that purpose. But Solomon did not place a hardship on the entire family of each worker. We see in verse fourteen that two out of three months they were at home.

The Bible says in First Kings 6:1-10, “And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month Zif, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the LORD.[2] And the house which king Solomon built for the LORD, the length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits.[3] And the porch before the temple of the house, twenty cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house; and ten cubits was the breadth thereof before the house.[4] And for the house he made windows of narrow lights.[5] And against the wall of the house he built chambers round about, against the walls of the house round about, both of the temple and of the oracle: and he made chambers round about:[6] The nethermost chamber was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad: for without in the wall of the house he made narrowed rests round about, that the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house.[7] And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.[8] The door for the middle chamber was in the right side of the house: and they went up with winding stairs into the middle chamber, and out of the middle into the third.[9] So he built the house, and finished it; and covered the house with beams and boards of cedar.[10] And then he built chambers against all the house, five cubits high: and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.” It is interesting to think about the size of the temple itself. Its dimensions are given in verse two. The temple had a length of sixty cubits, which equals ninety feet. It had a width of twenty cubits, which equals thirty feet. That makes 2700 square feet. Compared to the buildings of that day, it was probably a very substantial building, if the stones at the wailing wall in Jerusalem are any indication. Compared to some of the buildings of today, the temple was not really that big. Our church building is 4700 square feet, and is not that big of a church building compared to others. Of course, there is no temple in Jerusalem right now. The last temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. There has to be at least one more temple built eventually because Jesus said in Matthew chapter twenty-four that the antichrist will commit the abomination of desolation in the middle of the Great Tribulation. The abomination of desolation will take place when the antichrist enters into the temple in Jerusalem. Another temple has to be built in order for that to happen. But because of the size of the temple, the temple could be built very quickly: in a matter of months, and even less. We do not know when it will be built, but the temple could be built even after the start of the Great Tribulation. This is just one more fact that demonstrates that the next prophetic event to take place is the appearing of Christ at the Rapture. The rapture can occur at any moment. Those who say that the rapture will occur at the middle of the Tribulation or the end of the Tribulation have a couple of problems that they cannot overcome with such an idea. If the Rapture takes place sometime later than the beginning of the Tribulation, then the appearing of Christ is not an “any moment” event. The temple would have to be built before Christ could appear to Rapture believers. The tribulation would have to start first, and the antichrist would already be in power. But over and over in the Scriptures we find the sudden and any-moment appearing of Christ as a clear teaching. Three times in the last chapter of the Bible Jesus said, “I come quickly.” And it is the very last thing that Jesus says in the Bible in Revelation 22:20, “I come quickly.” That means, “I come instantly,” “I come without delay,” and “I come at any moment.” It is the last message of Jesus and the last teaching of Jesus. Do you think that He wants us to always remember the very last thing that He says? Of course. The next thing to look for prophetically is the appearing of Christ at the Rapture of all believers. It says in First Thessalonians 4:15-18, “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.[16] For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:[17] Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.[18] Wherefore comfort one another with these words.”

The Bible says in First Kings 6:11-13, “And the word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying,[12] Concerning this house which thou art in building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father:[13] And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.” It is kind of like God is saying to Solomon, “Yes, you are building the temple. But there is something more important than building the temple: obeying God.” The question for each of us is this: how good are we at obeying the Lord? “To obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.” Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” Some of the problems that take place in a nation are directly related to how well the people are obeying God. Some of the problems taking place in our own lives are directly related to how well we are obeying God.

The Bible says in First Kings 6:14-18, “So Solomon built the house, and finished it.[15] And he built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar, both the floor of the house, and the walls of the ceiling: and he covered them on the inside with wood, and covered the floor of the house with planks of fir.[16] And he built twenty cubits on the sides of the house, both the floor and the walls with boards of cedar: he even built them for it within, even for the oracle, even for the most holy place.[17] And the house, that is, the temple before it, was forty cubits long.[18] And the cedar of the house within was carved with knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen.” Notice the words at the end of verse fourteen, “finished it.” Solomon started something, and then he finished it. Always finish the job. Do not quit until the job is done. If God wants you to start something, then He probably also wants you to finish it. The entire Christian life is like that. Once you start following Jesus, then the goal is to keep following Him all the way to the end: to the finish line. If you do, that alone will be a great accomplishment. Paul exclaimed at the end of his life in Second Timothy 4:6-7, “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.[7] I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.”

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