(1 Kings 5:1-18) Now Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, for Hiram had always been a friend of David. 2 Then Solomon sent word to Hiram, saying, 3 “You know that David my father was unable to build a house for the name of the Lord his God because of the wars which surrounded him, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet. 4 But now the Lord my God has secured me rest on every side; there is neither adversary nor misfortune. 5 So behold, I intend to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, just as the Lord spoke to David my father, saying, ‘Your son, whom I will put on your throne in your place, he will build the house for My name.’ 6 Now then, issue orders that they cut cedars from Lebanon for me, and my servants will be with your servants; and I will give you wages for your servants in accordance with all that you say, for you yourself know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians.”
7 When Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he greatly rejoiced; and he said, “Blessed be the Lord today, who has given to David a wise son over this great people.” 8 So Hiram sent word to Solomon, saying, “I have heard the message which you sent me; I will do everything you wish concerning the cedar and juniper timber. 9 My servants will bring the timbers down from Lebanon to the sea; and I will have them made into rafts to go by sea to the place where you direct me, and I will have them broken up there, and you will carry them away. Then you shall do what I wish, by giving food to my household.” 10 So Hiram gave Solomon all that he wished of the cedar and juniper timber. 11 Solomon then gave Hiram twenty thousand kors of wheat as food for his household, and twenty kors of pure oil; this is what Solomon would give Hiram year by year. 12 And the Lord gave wisdom to Solomon, just as He promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a covenant.
13 Now King Solomon conscripted forced laborers from all Israel; and the forced laborers numbered thirty thousand men. 14 Then he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month in shifts; they were in Lebanon for a month, and two months at home. And Adoniram was in charge of the forced laborers. 15 Now Solomon had seventy thousand porters, and eighty thousand stonemasons in the mountains, 16 besides Solomon’s 3,300 chief deputies who were in charge of the project and ruled over the people who were doing the work. 17 Then the king issued orders, and they quarried large stones, valuable stones, to lay the foundation of the house with cut stones. 18 So Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the Gebalites cut the stones, and they prepared the timbers and the stones to build the house.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
It is very difficult to build anything when one's energy and resources are being consumed with political games and battles. So when God assigned Solomon to build His house, God equipped Solomon in order to accomplish this great task This included giving Solomon both peace and wisdom! Was Solomon perfectly wise in some of his approaches? No. Using forced labor was not wise, fair or just.
So what else can we learn about relationships in this passage? It was wise of Solomon to respect his neighbor and have fair dealings with him. Just because there is a friend, does not mean we should take advantage of them.
I remember people going to my dad for his services, and even after he gave them a very fair price, these people would say, "But I'm your friend, shouldn't you give me a better deal." Well... if they are a friend, shouldn't they offer to pay MORE??? Just a thought. But, to not have expectations of people doing us favors, aligns with the message of how we shouldn't expect people to work as forced labor.
We have been called to serve one another - not - expect others to serve us! In the same way, in Ephesians 5:21, believers are told to submit to each other. And then in verse 22, a Christian woman is reminded to not forget about submitting to her husband. Verse 25 then says - what? Husbands, make sure your wives submit to you? NO! A husband is to love their wife as Christ loved the church!
As the disciples were arguing about who was greater in God's kingdom, Jesus was washing their feet. This job was reserved for slaves, and if the people didn't have a slave, then it was the servants' job. Jesus' response to them in that moment was,
(Matthew 20:26b-28) "...whoever wants to become prominent among you shall be your servant, 27 and whoever desires to be first among you shall be your slave; 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”
As Solomon was having the temple built (the house for the name of the Lord), Solomon understood that God deserved the very best. The Lord also deserves our very best, but it has to come from us. We cannot force or expect others to serve the Lord FOR us. Our hearts should desire and choose to serve the Lord... and to serve the Lord - is to serve others!
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