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1 And Sh'lomo conscripted threescore and ten thousand ish to bear burdens, and fourscore thousand ish as stonecutters in the hill country, and three thousand and six hundred to be their foremen to oversee them. 2 And Sh'lomo sent to Churam Melech Tzor, saying, As thou didst deal with Dovid Avi, and didst send him cedars to build him a Bais (palace) to dwell therein, even so deal with me. 3 Hinei, I build a Bais for the Shem of Hashem Elohai, to set it apart as kodesh and to dedicate it to Him, and to burn before Him ketoret sammim (fragrant incense), and for the ma'arekhet tamid (regular offering of the rows of bread), and for the olot boker and erev, on the Shabbatot, and on every Rosh-Chodesh, and on the Mo'adei Hashem Eloheinu. This is for l'olam (forever) to Yisroel. 4 And HaBeis which I build is gadol, for gadol is Eloheinu above kol HaElohim (all the g-ds). 5 But who has the ko'ach to build Him a Bais, seeing the Shomayim and Shomayim of Shomayim cannot contain Him? Who am I then, that I should build Him a Bais, except to burn sacrifices before Him? 6 Send me now therefore an ish chacham in zahav, and in kesef, and in nechoshet, and in barzel, and in purple, and in crimson, and in blue wool, and that has skill in the art of engraving to work with my chachamim in Yehudah and in Yerushalayim whom Dovid Avi did provide. 7 Send me also cedar, pine, and algum logs, from the Levanon, for I know that thy avadim have skill to cut timber in the Levanon; and, hinei, my avadim shall be with thy avadim, 8 Even to provide me lumber in abundance, for the Bais which I am about to build shall be gadol v'hafeleh (great and magnificent). 9 And, hinei, I will give to thy avadim, the woodsmen that cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten chittim, and twenty thousand measures of se'orim, and twenty thousand baths of yayin, and twenty thousand baths of shemen (olive oil).
10 Then Churam Melech Tzor answered by letter, which he sent to Sh'lomo, Because Hashem hath loved His people, He hath made thee Melech over them. 11 Churam said moreover, Baruch Hashem Elohei Yisroel, that made Shomayim v'et HaAretz, Who hath given to Dovid HaMelech a ben chacham (wise son), endued with seichel and binah, that might build a Bais for Hashem, and a Bais (palace) for his kingdom.
12 And now I have sent an ish chacham, endued with binah, namely my master craftsman Churam-Avi, 13 ben isha of the Banot Dan, and his av was an ish Tzor, trained to work in zahav, and in kesef, in nechoshet, in barzel, in avanim (stone), and in etzim (wood), in purple, in blue wool, and in fine linen, and in crimson; also to engrave every kind of engraving, and to execute every design which shall be put to him, with thy chachamim, and with the chachmei adoni Dovid Avicha. 14 Now therefore the chittim, and the se'orim, the shemen, and the yayin, which adoni hath spoken of, let him send unto his avadim, 15 And we will cut etzim out of the Levanon, as much as thou shalt need; and we will float it to thee in rafts by yam to Yafo, and thou shalt carry it up to Yerushalayim.
16 And Sh'lomo took a census of all the gerim that were in Eretz Yisroel, after the census wherewith Dovid Aviv had numbered them; and they were found a hundred and fifty thousand and three thousand and six hundred. 17 And he set threescore and ten thousand of them to be bearers of burdens, and fourscore thousand to be stonecutters in the hill country, and three thousand and six hundred menatzkhim (foremen overseers) to keep HaAm working.*
* 2:17 T.N. See 1Kgs 6:1. 966 B.C.E. the construction began on the Beis HaMikdash.