2 Chronicles Chapter 2

At a Glance

  • 2 CHRONICLES CHAPTER 2.
  • 2 Chronicles 2 documents Solomon’s grand project of temple-building as a national, sacred endeavor.
  • Solomon’s diplomacy with Huram of Tyre is central.
  • The request for artisans and materials is framed not as personal prestige but as an offering to God.
  • Historical & Literary Context.

2 CHRONICLES CHAPTER 2

Chapter Overview

2 Chronicles 2 documents Solomon’s grand project of temple-building as a national, sacred endeavor. Solomon determines to construct a house for the name of the LORD and a house for his kingdom, signaling worship and governance intertwined. He organizes labor on a massive scale—sixty-seven thousand to bear burdens, eighty thousand to hew stone, and three thousand six hundred overseers—demonstrating that the temple project is a corporate, national enterprise that requires disciplined organization and skilled craft.

Solomon’s diplomacy with Huram of Tyre is central. He seeks foreign assistance, echoing David’s earlier need for cedar from Lebanon, and envisions a collaboration that would bring in expert craftsmanship to realize a temple “great, for great is our God above all gods.” The chapter underscores the humility (self-awareness) of Solomon: he recognizes the limits of human ability to contain God and seeks skilled partnership to undertake sacred work.

The request for artisans and materials is framed not as personal prestige but as an offering to God. The tone blends practical logistics with theological aspiration: the temple will be magnificently adorned with gold, silver, bronze, purple, and precious stones, all to be dedicated to God. The chapter ends with a sense of divine endorsement: Huram’s favorable response, a recognition that the LORD loves his people and has made Solomon king.

Historical & Literary Context

Date and setting: This chapter sits in the early phase of Solomon’s reign and the temple-building era, expanding on the preparations outlined in 1 Chronicles.

Genre: It is a mixture of administrative record, diplomatic correspondence, and liturgical ambition. It emphasizes the worldly scale of sacred enterprise while anchoring it in covenant devotion.

Placement within the book: The chapter lays the logistical groundwork for the temple’s construction, bridging Solomon’s wisdom and the temple’s erection with divine purpose. It demonstrates how kingship and worship collaborate to form a national identity.

Key Themes

- Sacred architecture as worship and symbol of divine presence

- Collaboration across cultures for the sake of sacred space

- Humble recognition of human limits and the need for skilled labor

- The fusion of beauty, wealth, and devotion in worship spaces

- The unity of church and state in service to God

Modern Application

- Project management for sacred space: Modern religious communities can learn from Solomon’s organizational approach—clear roles, substantial resource planning, and disciplined labor.

- Cross-cultural collaboration: The Tyre-Sidon–Israel partnership shows how diverse gifts can contribute to shared worship.

- Humility before God’s grandeur: Acknowledging limits and seeking skilled help can lead to a more dignified, faithful worship space.

- Worshipful design: The emphasis on beauty for God’s house invites contemporary communities to think how design, art, and architecture can convey reverence and truth.

- 1 Kings 5-7 (Temple construction under Solomon)

- 2 Chronicles 3-4 (Temple details and dedication)

- Exodus 25-31 (Sacred furniture and construction patterns)

- Psalm 27:4 (Longing to dwell in God’s temple)

Recommended Personas

- Solomon (for architectural vision and leadership)

- Huram/Hiram (for cross-cultural collaboration)

- Moses (for building sacred space and obedience)

- Jesus (for the temple’s deeper meaning)

- Paul (for temple imagery as the body of Christ)

Chapter Text

1

And Solomon determined to build an house for the name of the LORD, and an house for his kingdom.

2

And Solomon told out threescore and ten thousand men to bear burdens, and fourscore thousand to hew in the mountain, and three thousand and six hundred to oversee them.

3

And Solomon sent to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, As thou didst deal with David my father, and didst send him cedars to build him an house to dwell therein, even so deal with me.

4

Behold, I build an house to the name of the LORD my God, to dedicate it to him, and to burn before him sweet incense, and for the continual shewbread, and for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts of the LORD our God. This is an ordinance for ever to Israel.

5

And the house which I build is great: for great is our God above all gods.

6

But who is able to build him an house, seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who am I then, that I should build him an house, save only to burn sacrifice before him?

7

Send me now therefore a man cunning to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and that can skill to grave with the cunning men that are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did provide.

8

Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants,

9

Even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I am about to build shall be wonderful great.

10

And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.

11

Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon, Because the LORD hath loved his people, he hath made thee king over them.

12

Huram said moreover, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, that made heaven and earth, who hath given to David the king a wise son, endued with prudence and understanding, that might build an house for the LORD, and an house for his kingdom.

13

And now I have sent a cunning man, endued with understanding, of Huram my father’s,

14

The son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre, skilful to work in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber, in purple, in blue, and in fine linen, and in crimson; also to grave any manner of graving, and to find out every device which shall be put to him, with thy cunning men, and with the cunning men of my lord David thy father.

15

Now therefore the wheat, and the barley, the oil, and the wine, which my lord hath spoken of, let him send unto his servants:

16

And we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as thou shalt need: and we will bring it to thee in floats by sea to Joppa; and thou shalt carry it up to Jerusalem.

17

And Solomon numbered all the strangers that were in the land of Israel, after the numbering wherewith David his father had numbered them; and they were found an hundred and fifty thousand and three thousand and six hundred.

18

And he set threescore and ten thousand of them to be bearers of burdens, and fourscore thousand to be hewers in the mountain, and three thousand and six hundred overseers to set the people a work.

Discuss This Chapter with Biblical Personas

Explore 2 Chronicles Chapter 2 with Biblical figures who can provide unique perspectives grounded in Scripture.

Ask Apostle PaulAsk MosesAsk King DavidAsk Jesus Christ
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