And Hiram added: "Praise be to
the LORD, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth! He has given King David
a wise son, endowed with intelligence and discernment, who will build a temple
for the LORD and a palace for himself. (2 Chronicles 2:12)
Hiram, king of Tyre had earlier built
a palace for King David. When he heard that Solomon had been anointed king to
succeed his father David, he sent his envoys to Solomon, because he had always
been on friendly terms with David. When Solomon set out to build a temple for
the Lord, he asked for help from Hiram.
When Hiram heard Solomon's message,
he was greatly pleased and said, "Praise be to the LORD today, for he has
given David a wise son to rule over this great nation." So Hiram sent word
to Solomon: "I have received the message you sent me and will do all you
want in providing the cedar and pine logs. My men will haul them down from
Lebanon to the sea, and I will float them in rafts by sea to the place you
specify. There I will separate them and you can take them away. And you are to
grant my wish by providing food for my royal household." (1 Kings 5:7-9)
In this way Hiram kept Solomon
supplied with all the cedar and pine logs he wanted, and Solomon gave Hiram
twenty thousand cors of wheat as food for his household, in addition to twenty
thousand baths of pressed olive oil. Solomon continued to do this for Hiram
year after year.
Hiram took great interest in this project
that Solomon had undertaken and on Solomon’s request sent him Huram-Abi, a man
who was highly skilled and experienced in all kinds of gold, silver, bronze,
iron, stone and wood work. He worked with the craftsmen of Solomon and was a
great help in building the temple.
In the title verse, we read of how
Hiram praised the Lord of Israel, though he was a gentile king. The awesome
power with which the God of Israel had delivered his children time and again
was well known among the nations and Hiram did not hide his admiration for the
God of Israel. He acknowledges that the God of Israel is the maker of heaven
and earth. He praised God for giving David a wise son and for having endowed
him with intelligence and discernment.
The praises of our God, the great “I
am” flows out from all corners of the earth from the mouths of people of all
nations, literate and illiterate and it will continue forever and ever. Let’s
continue to praise him all the more as we see our redemption drawing near.
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