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January 2 - 1 Kings 5 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello friends, it's Sean here and it is Thursday.
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  It is the 2nd of January, although this week I am betting
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  for many of you it may as well be Shmee Day, the flunk of
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  Lupiti, as days and calendars probably mean very little and
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  the Oompa Loompas may as well have invented entirely new names
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  for them. OK, that was a brief insight
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  into the way my brain works, which is quite alarming and
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  concerning for most of you. But hello friends, it is great
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  that even in this strange time of year when days all bleed into
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  the other, you have hit on play and this is what has come to
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  you, this wonderful opportunity for you and to step back into
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  time to this time, This this very brief window of history
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  where the whole of Israel was unified under one king and
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  things were going so well for them.
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  They were living in God's favour, following God's laws and
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  decrees and everything is just going swimmingly.
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  These are the glory days, the golden years, and the author
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  wants you to know that things were good in those years and so
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  that is how they write. So let us go back and hear those
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  good years as we read together. First Kings Chapter 5.
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  King Haram of Tyre had always been a loyal friend of David.
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  When Haram learned that David's son Solomon was the new king of
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  Israel, he sent ambassadors to congratulate him.
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  Then Solomon sent this message back to Haram.
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  You know that my father David was not able to build a temple
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  to honour the name of the Lord his God because of the many wars
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  waged against him by surrounding nations.
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  He could not build until the Lord gave him victory over all
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  his enemies. But now the Lord my God has
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  given me peace on every side. I have no enemies and all is
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  well, so I am planning to build a temple to honour the name of
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  the Lord my God, just as he had instructed my father David, For
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  the Lord told him, your son, whom I will place on your
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  throne, will build the temple to honour my name.
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  Therefore please command that Cedars from Lebanon be cut for
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  me. Let my men work alongside yours
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  and I will pay your men whatever wages you ask.
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  As you know, there is no one among us who can cut timber like
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  you Sidonians. When Haram received Solomon's
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  message, he was very pleased and said, Praise the Lord today for
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  giving David a wise son to be king of the great nation of
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  Israel. Then he sent this reply to
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  Solomon. I have received your message and
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  I will supply all the cedar and Cypress timber you need.
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  My servants will bring the logs from the Lebanon Mountains to
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  the Mediterranean Sea and make them into rafts and float them
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  along the coast to whatever place you choose.
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  Then we will break the rafts apart so you can carry the logs
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  away. You can pay me by supplying me
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  with food for my household. So Haram supplied as much cedar
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  and Cypress timber as Solomon desired.
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  In return, Solomon sent him an annual payment of 100,000
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  bushels of wheat for his household and 110,000 gallons of
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  pure olive oil. So the Lord gave wisdom to
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  Solomon, just as he had promised, and Haram and Solomon
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  made a formal alliance of peace. Then King Solomon conscripted a
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  labour force of 30,000 men from all Israel.
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  He sent them to Lebanon in shifts 10,000 every month so
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  that each man would be one month in Lebanon and two months at
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  home. Adeniram was in charge of this
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  labour force. Solomon also had 70,000 common
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  labourers, 80,000 quarry workers in the Hill Country and 3600
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  foreman to supervise the work. At the King's command, they
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  quarried large blocks of high quality stone and shaped them to
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  make the foundation of the temple.
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  Men of the city of Gabal helped Solomon's and her arms builders
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  prepare the timber and stone for the temple.
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  Our Lord, we come to you today as little people who live on
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  this little planet at this particular time in history.
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  And we see the way you have journeyed with your people here
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  for so many generations. And we know that your plans
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  stretch all the way back before us and all the way forward
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  beyond us. And we see that your interest
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  and attention is so broad it covers all the universe.
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  And yet here you are right now, with us, hearing our prayer,
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  resident in our hearts through Your Spirit, having sent us Your
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  Son to save us. Ah, Your magnitude simply blows
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  our minds, and Your kindness and Your presence with us simply
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  humbles us beyond words. So, Father, we just stand before
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  you in utter awe at Your enormity and Your majesty, and
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  we throw up our arms and we praise you, and we worship you,
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  our mighty King, our wonderful Saviour.
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  And it's in the name of that Saviour, Jesus, that we pray.
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  Amen.