1-Kings - 5:15

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15 Solomon had seventy thousand who bore burdens, and eighty thousand who were stone cutters in the mountains;

Verse In-Depth

Explanation and meaning of 1-Kings 5:15.

Differing Translations

Compare verses for better understanding.
And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains;
And Solomon had seventy thousand to carry burdens, and eighty thousand to hew stones in the mountain:
And Solomon had seventy thousand that bore burdens, and eighty thousand stone-masons in the mountains;
And Solomon had seventy thousand that bore burdens, and eighty thousand hewers in the mountains;
And king Solomon hath seventy thousand bearing burdens, and eighty thousand hewing in the mountain,
And Solomon had three score and ten thousand that bore burdens, and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains;
Then he had seventy thousand for the work of transport, and eighty thousand stone-cutters in the mountains;
And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bore burdens, and fourscore thousand that were hewers in the mountains;
And Solomon had seventy thousand of those who were carrying burdens, and eighty thousand of those who cut stones from the mountain,

*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.


Historical Commentaries

Scholarly Analysis and Interpretation.

That bare burdens - Compare the marginal references. These laborers, whose services were continuous, consisted of "strangers" - "the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites" - whom Solomon, following the example of his father 1-Chronicles 22:2, condemned to slavery, and employed in this way.

Threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens - These were all strangers, or proselytes, dwelling among the Israelites; as we learn from the parallel place, 2-Chronicles 2:17, 2-Chronicles 2:18.

And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens,.... Seventy thousand to carry the stones from the mountains out of which they were dug, and which were near Jerusalem, to the city; these were strangers in Israel, as were those that follow:
and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains: eighty thousand that dug the stones out of the quarries, and squared them; these, with the others, made 150,000, see 2-Chronicles 2:17; according to Jacob Leon (g), the number of workmen at the temple for seven years was 163,600, and some make them more.
(g) Relation of Memorable Things in the Temple, ch. 3. p. 14.

And Solomon had 70,000 bearers of burdens and 80,000 hewers of stone on the mountains (of Lebanon). חצב is understood by the older translators as referring simply to hewers of stone. This is favoured both by the context, since 1-Kings 5:18 speaks of stone-mason's work, and also by the usage of the language, inasmuch as חצב is mostly applied to the quarrying and cutting of stones (Deuteronomy 6:11; Isaiah 5:2; Proverbs 9:1; 2-Kings 12:13), and only occurs in Isaiah 10:15 in connection with the cutting of wood. The hewing and preparing of the wood were amply provided for by 30,000 Israelites. That the 150,000 bearers of burdens and hewers of stone were not taken from the Israelites, is evident from the fact that they are distinguished from the latter, or at all events are not described as Israelites. We obtain certainty on this point from the parallel passages, 1-Kings 9:20-21; 2-Chronicles 2:16-17, and 2-Chronicles 8:1-9, according to which Solomon pressed the Canaanites who were left in the land to this bond-service.

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