1 Kings 9:15-25

15 This is the record of the forced laborers whom King Solomon drafted to build the LORD's house, his own house, the Millo, the walls of Jerusalem, and [the cities of] Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer.
16 (The king of Egypt captured Gezer, burned it down, and killed the Canaanites living there. Then he gave it to his daughter, Solomon's wife, as a wedding present.)
17 So Solomon rebuilt Gezer, Lower Beth Horon,
18 Baalath, Tadmor in the desert (inside the country), and
19 all the storage cities that he owned. He also built cities for his chariots, cities for his war horses, and whatever [else] he wanted to build in Jerusalem, Lebanon, or the entire territory that he governed.
20 The Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites had been left [in the land] because the Israelites had not been able to claim them for God by destroying them. They were not Israelites,
21 but they had descendants who were still in the land. Solomon drafted them for slave labor. (They are still [slaves] today.)
22 But Solomon didn't make any of the Israelites slaves. Instead, they were soldiers, officials, officers, generals, and commanders of his chariot and cavalry units.
23 These were the officers in charge of Solomon's projects: 550 foremen for the people who did the work.
24 Pharaoh's daughter moved from the City of David to the palace that Solomon had built for her. Then he built the Millo.
25 Three times a year Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar he built for the LORD. He burnt them on the altar that was in the LORD's presence. And he finished the temple.

1 Kings 9:15-25 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 9

This chapter relates a second vision Solomon had at Gibeon, in which he received an answer to his prayer in the preceding chapter, 1Ki 9:1-9 that passed between him and Hiram king of Tyre, 1Ki 9:10-14, the places that Solomon built or repaired, 1Ki 9:15-19, the Canaanitish people that became bondmen to him, and the officers he had among the children of Israel, 1Ki 9:20-23 the removal of Pharaoh's daughter to the house built for her, 1Ki 9:24. Solomon's attention to religious services, 1Ki 9:25 and the navy of ships he employed, which brought him in great riches, 1Ki 9:26-28.

GOD'S WORD® is a copyrighted work of God's Word to the Nations. Copyright © 1995 by God's Word to the Nations. All rights reserved. Used by permission.