Study Desk

"But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai the Gil‘adi. Include them with those who eat at your table, because they came and stood with me when I was fleeing from Avshalom your brother.

"Finally, you have with you Shim‘i the son of Gera the Binyamini, from Bachurim. He laid a terrible curse on me when I was on my way to Machanayim; but he came down to meet me at the Yarden; so I swore to him by Adonai that I would not have him put to death with the sword.

But now I ask one favor of you; don't deny me." "Go on," she said.

To Evyatar the cohen the king said, "You, get yourself to ‘Anatot, to your own fields. You deserve to die; but I won't put you to death just now; since you did carry the ark of A donai Elohim before David my father; and you suffered together with my father in everything he suffered."

In this way their blood will return on the head of Yo'av and his descendants forever; but for David, his descendants, his family and his throne there will be peace forever from Adonai ."

But after three years, two of Shim‘i's slaves ran away and went to Akhish son of Ma‘akhah, king of Gat. They told Shim‘i, "Your slaves are in Gat."

But King Shlomo will be blessed, and the throne of David will be established before Adonai forever."

So now, Adonai my God, you have made your servant king in the place of David my father; but I am a mere child — I don't know how to lead!

God said to him, "Because you have made this request instead of asking long life or riches for yourself, or your enemies' death, but rather asked for yourself understanding to discern justice;

Shlomo awoke and found it had been a dream. But he went to Yerushalayim, stood before the ark for the covenant of Adonai and offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings. He also made a feast for all his servants.

When I awoke in the morning to feed my child from my breast, there it was, dead. But when I took a closer look later in the morning, why, it wasn't my son at all — not the one I gave birth to!"

At this, the woman to whom the living child belonged addressed the king, because she felt so strongly toward her son: "Oh, my lord, give her the living child; you mustn't kill it!" But the other one said, "It will be neither yours nor mine. Divide it up!"

But now Adonai my God has given me rest on every side; there is neither adversary nor calamity. So now I intend to build a house for the name of Adonai my God, in keeping with what Adonai said to David my father, ‘Your son, whom I will put on your throne in your place, will be the one to build the house for my name.' Therefore, order your people to cut down cedar trees from the L'vanon for me. My servants will be with your servants. I will pay your servants according to everything you say; for you know that we have no one among us as skilled in felling trees as the Tzidonim." When Hiram heard Shlomo's message, he was very happy and said, "Blessed be Adonai today, who has given David a wise son to rule this great people." Then Hiram sent Shlomo this message: "I have heard the message you sent me, and I will do everything you want concerning cedar logs and cypress logs. My servants will bring them down from the L'vanon to the sea. I will make them into rafts to go by sea to whatever place you tell me and will have them broken up there, and you will receive them. You will compensate me by providing food for my household." So Hiram gave Shlomo all the cedar logs and cypress logs he wanted; and Shlomo gave Hiram 100,000 bushels of wheat as food for his household and a thousand gallons of oil from pressed olives — this is what Shlomo gave Hiram each year. Adonai gave Shlomo wisdom, as he had promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Shlomo — the two of them formed an alliance together. King Shlomo conscripted 30,000 men from all Isra'el for forced labor. He sent them to the L'vanon in monthly relays of 10,000; they would stay a month in the L'vanon and two months at home. Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor. Shlomo had 70,000 men to carry loads and another 80,000 stonecutters in the hills, besides Shlomo's 3,300 supervisors who were in charge of the people doing the work. The king gave orders; and they quarried large stones, expensive stones, to lay the foundation of the house with cut stone. Shlomo's and Hiram's builders, along with the men from G'val, worked the stones and prepared the timber and stones for building the house.

He was the son of a widow from the tribe of Naftali, but his father was from Tzor, a bronze-worker filled with wisdom, understanding and skill for all kinds of bronze craftsmanship. He came to King Shlomo and did all his bronzework.

The poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place in front of the sanctuary, but they could not be seen from outside; they are there to this day.

But I have built you a magnificent house, a place where you can live forever."

‘Since the day I brought my people Isra'el out of Egypt, I chose no city from any of the tribes of Isra'el in which to build a house, so that my name might be there; but I did choose David to be over my people Isra'el.'

but Adonai said to David my father, ‘Although it was in your heart to build a house for my name, and you did well that it was in your heart,

"But can God actually live on the earth? Why, heaven itself, even the heaven of heavens, cannot contain you; so how much less this house I have built?

But if you turn away from following me, you or your children, and do not observe my mitzvot and regulations which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods, worshipping them;