New Revised Standard NRS
The Bible in Basic English BBE
1 At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon had built the house of the Lord and his own house,
1
Now at the end of twenty years, in which time Solomon had put up the house of the Lord and a house for himself,
2 Solomon rebuilt the cities that Huram had given to him, and settled the people of Israel in them.
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He took in hand the building up of the towns which Huram had given him, causing the children of Israel to make living-places for themselves there.
3 Solomon went to Hamath-zobah, and captured it.
3
And Solomon went to Hamath-zobah and overcame it.
4 He built Tadmor in the wilderness and all the storage towns that he built in Hamath.
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And he put up the buildings of Tadmor in the waste land, and of all the store-towns in Hamath;
5 He also built Upper Beth-horon and Lower Beth-horon, fortified cities, with walls, gates, and bars,
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And of Beth-horon the higher and the lower, walled towns with walls and doorways and locks;
6 and Baalath, as well as all Solomon's storage towns, and all the towns for his chariots, the towns for his cavalry, and whatever Solomon desired to build, in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.
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And of Baalath, and all the store-towns which Solomon had, and the towns where he kept his war-carriages and his horse men, and everything which it was his pleasure to put up in Jerusalem and in Lebanon and in all the land under his rule.
7 All the people who were left of the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not of Israel,
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As for all the rest of the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, who were not of Israel:
8 from their descendants who were still left in the land, whom the people of Israel had not destroyed—these Solomon conscripted for forced labor, as is still the case today.
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Their men who were still living in the land, and whom the children of Israel had not put an end to, these Solomon put to forced work, as is done to this day;
9 But of the people of Israel Solomon made no slaves for his work; they were soldiers, and his officers, the commanders of his chariotry and cavalry.
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But Solomon did not make use of the children of Israel as servants for his work; they were men of war, his chiefs and his captains, and captains of his war-carriages and his horsemen.
10 These were the chief officers of King Solomon, two hundred fifty of them, who exercised authority over the people.
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Now these were the chief men in authority whom King Solomon had: two hundred and fifty of them, in authority over the people.
11 Solomon brought Pharaoh's daughter from the city of David to the house that he had built for her, for he said, "My wife shall not live in the house of King David of Israel, for the places to which the ark of the Lord has come are holy."
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Then Solomon made Pharaoh's daughter come up from the town of David to the house which he had made for her; for he said, I will not have my wife living in the house of David, king of Israel, because those places where the ark of the Lord has come are holy.
12 Then Solomon offered up burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of the Lord that he had built in front of the vestibule,
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Then Solomon made burned offerings to the Lord on the altar of the Lord which he had put up in front of the covered way,
13 as the duty of each day required, offering according to the commandment of Moses for the sabbaths, the new moons, and the three annual festivals—the festival of unleavened bread, the festival of weeks, and the festival of booths.
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Offering every day what had been ordered by Moses, on the Sabbaths and at the new moon and at the regular feasts three times a year, that is at the feast of unleavened bread, the feast of weeks, and the feast of tents.
14 According to the ordinance of his father David, he appointed the divisions of the priests for their service, and the Levites for their offices of praise and ministry alongside the priests as the duty of each day required, and the gatekeepers in their divisions for the several gates; for so David the man of God had commanded.
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And he gave the divisions of the priests their places for their work, as ordered by his father David, and to the Levites he gave their work of praise and waiting on the priests, to do what was needed day by day; and he gave the door-keepers their places in turn at every door; for so David, the man of God, had given orders.
15 They did not turn away from what the king had commanded the priests and Levites regarding anything at all, or regarding the treasuries.
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All the orders given by the king to the priests and Levites, in connection with any business or stores, were done with care.
16 Thus all the work of Solomon was accomplished from the day the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid until the house of the Lord was finished completely.
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And all the work of Solomon was complete, from the day when he put the base of the Lord's house in position, till Solomon had come to the end of building the Lord's house.
17 Then Solomon went to Ezion-geber and Eloth on the shore of the sea, in the land of Edom.
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Then Solomon went to Ezion-geber and to Eloth by the sea in the land of Edom.
18 Huram sent him, in the care of his servants, ships and servants familiar with the sea. They went to Ophir, together with the servants of Solomon, and imported from there four hundred fifty talents of gold and brought it to King Solomon.
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And Huram sent him, by his servants, ships and experienced seamen, who went with the servants of Solomon to Ophir and came back with four hundred and fifty talents of gold, which they took to King Solomon.
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.