1 Kings 9:12

12 So Hiram went out from Tyre to see the cities that Solomon had given him, but they were not right in his eyes.

1 Kings 9:12 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 9:12

And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon
had given him
For these cities, being in or near Galilee, were not far from Tyre:

and they pleased him not;
being either out of repair, as some think; see ( 2 Chronicles 8:2 ) or the ground barren, and unfruitful; which is not likely, being in a very fruitful country, as the tribes on which they bordered were: but they were not agreeable to him, they did not suit with the disposition of him and his people, who were given not to husbandry, but to merchandise; and the land about these would require a good deal of pains and labour to till, which they were not used to.

1 Kings 9:12 In-Context

10 It happened at the end of twenty years [in] which Solomon had built the two houses, the house of Yahweh and the house of the king,

11 [since] Hiram king of Tyre had supplied Solomon with wood of cedar and with wood of cypresses and with the gold according to all his desire, then King Solomon gave twenty cities in the land of the Galilee to Hiram.

12 So Hiram went out from Tyre to see the cities that Solomon had given him, but they were not right in his eyes.

13 So he said, "What [are] these cities that you have given to me, my brother?" {So they are called the land of Cabul until this day}.

14 Then Hiram sent to the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold.