1 Kings 9:5-15

5 then I will establish the throne of your rulership over Isra'el forever, just as I promised David your father when I said, 'You will never lack a man on the throne of Isra'el.'
6 But if you turn away from following me, you or your children, and do not observe my mitzvot and regulations which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods, worshipping them;
7 then I will cut off Isra'el from the land I have given them. This house, which I consecrated for my name, I will eject from my sight; and Isra'el will become an example to avoid and an object of scorn among all peoples.
8 This house, now so exalted - everyone passing by will gasp in shock at the sight of it and will ask, 'Why has ADONAI done this to this land and to this house?'
9 But the answer will be, 'It's because they abandoned ADONAI their God, who brought their ancestors out of the land of Egypt, and took hold of other gods, worshipping and serving them; this is why ADONAI brought all these calamities on them.'"
10 At the end of twenty years, during which time Shlomo had built the two buildings, the house of ADONAI and the royal palace,
11 King Shlomo gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of the Galil (recall that Hiram the king of Tzor had supplied Shlomo with cedar and cypress logs and with all the gold Shlomo wanted).
12 Hiram came over from Tzor to see the cities Shlomo had given him, but he was not satisfied with them.
13 He said, "What kind of cities are these which you have given me, my brother?" So they have been called the land of Kabul [good for nothing] till this day.
14 (Hiram had sent the king four tons of gold.)
15 Following is the account of the forced labor levied by King Shlomo for building the house of ADONAI, his own palace, the Millo, the wall of Yerushalayim, and the cities of Hatzor, Megiddo and Gezer.

1 Kings 9:5-15 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.

Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.