1 Kings 9

And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he was pleased to do,

Once Solomon had completed constructing both the Lord's house and his own, as well as all the projects he was passionate about, he felt a deep sense of accomplishment and satisfaction.

That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon.

The LORD, in His divine presence, visited Solomon again, just as He had done in Gibeon.

And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.

The Lord responded, "I've heard your heartfelt prayer and plea. I've blessed this home you've built for me, where my name will always reside. My gaze and love will forever be present here."

And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:

If you choose to follow my path, just like your father David did, with a pure heart and honesty, obeying all my commands and respecting my laws and decisions:

Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.

I will forever secure your reign in Israel, just as I assured your father, David. There will always be a successor from your line on Israel's throne.

But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them:

If you or your children ever turn away from following me, ignore the rules and commands I have set before you, and go off to serve and worship other gods,

Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people:

I will cut Israel off from the land I gave them, and I will cast this house, which I made holy for my name, out of my sight. Israel will become an object of scorn and ridicule among all nations.

And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?

At this towering house, all who pass by will be shocked and will hiss in scorn, asking, "Why has God done this to this land and to this house?"

And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD brought upon them all this evil.

And others will answer, "Because they abandoned the Lord their God, who freed their ancestors from Egypt, and embraced other gods, worshipping and serving them. That's why the Lord has brought all this disaster upon them."

And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, when Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the LORD, and the king’s house,

After twenty long years, Solomon finally completed his two monumental projects - the sacred house of the LORD and his own royal palace.

(Now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees, and with gold, according to all his desire,) that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.

King Hiram of Tyre generously provided King Solomon with cedar and fir trees, and gold, fulfilling all his wishes. In return, Solomon, deeply grateful, gifted Hiram twenty cities in Galilee.

And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him; and they pleased him not.

Hiram journeyed from Tyre to visit the cities gifted to him by Solomon. However, they failed to impress him.

And he said, What cities are these which thou hast given me, my brother? And he called them the land of Cabul unto this day.

He asked, "What are these cities you've gifted me, my brother?" He named them 'Cabul', a name that still stands today.

And Hiram sent to the king sixscore talents of gold.

Hiram had sent the king 120 talents of gold.

And this is the reason of the levy which king Solomon raised; for to build the house of the LORD, and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer.

This is the account of the forced labor King Solomon imposed to build the Lord's temple, his own home, the Millo and the wall of Jerusalem, and to fortify Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer.

For Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and given it for a present unto his daughter, Solomon’s wife.

The Egyptian Pharaoh, in his power, had seized and destroyed Gezer, mercilessly killing its Canaanite inhabitants. He then gifted the ruined city to his daughter, Solomon's wife, as a chilling present.

And Solomon built Gezer, and Bethhoron the nether,

With great passion and dedication, Solomon constructed Gezer and the lower region of Bethhoron.

And Baalath, and Tadmor in the wilderness, in the land,

Baalath and Tadmor, isolated in the vast wilderness, within the realm.

And all the cities of store that Solomon had, and cities for his chariots, and cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.

Solomon also built his storage cities, the cities for his chariots and horsemen, and whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, Lebanon, and throughout his kingdom.

And all the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which were not of the children of Israel,

All the remaining people from the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who were not part of Israel's children,

Their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel also were not able utterly to destroy, upon those did Solomon levy a tribute of bondservice unto this day.

The children who remained in the land, whom the Israelites couldn't completely eliminate, were made to serve Solomon. They are still serving to this day.

But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bondmen: but they were men of war, and his servants, and his princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots, and his horsemen.

Solomon never enslaved his fellow Israelites. Instead, they served as his soldiers, aides, leaders, chariot commanders, and cavalry.

These were the chief of the officers that were over Solomon’s work, five hundred and fifty, which bare rule over the people that wrought in the work.

The top leaders overseeing Solomon's project were 550 strong, guiding the workers with authority and care.

But Pharaoh’s daughter came up out of the city of David unto her house which Solomon had built for her: then did he build Millo.

Pharaoh's daughter journeyed from the city of David to her home, a magnificent creation by Solomon. Then Solomon built the Millo.

And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt offerings and peace offerings upon the altar which he built unto the LORD, and he burnt incense upon the altar that was before the LORD. So he finished the house.

Thrice yearly, Solomon expressed his devotion to the Lord by making offerings of peace and sacrifice on the altar he built. He also burned incense on the altar before the Lord, marking the completion of the sacred house.

And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Eziongeber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red sea, in the land of Edom.

King Solomon, with a heart full of ambition, built a grand fleet of ships near Eloth, on the Red Sea's edge, in the territory of Edom.

And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon.

Hiram passionately dispatched his skilled sailors, who knew the sea like the back of their hand, to join forces with Solomon's servants, aboard his mighty fleet.

And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.

They journeyed to Ophir, returning with a vast treasure of 420 talents of gold, a gift of immense value, which they presented to King Solomon with awe and reverence.