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Thursday, August 21st, 2025
the Week of Proper 15 / Ordinary 20
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Read the Bible

Wycliffe Bible

2 Chronicles 2:5

For the hows which Y coueyte to bilde is greet; for `oure Lord God is greet ouer alle goddis.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Hiram;   Liberality;   Temple;   Tyre;   Scofield Reference Index - Sanctify;   The Topic Concordance - God;   Greatness;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - God;   Temple, the First;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Hiram or Huram;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Solomon;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Chronicles, Books of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Chronicles, I;   Ships and Boats;   Solomon;   Tyre;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Hiram ;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Gods;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The temple that I am building will be great, for our God is greater than any of the gods.
Hebrew Names Version
The house which I build is great; for great is our God above all gods.
King James Version
And the house which I build is great: for great is our God above all gods.
English Standard Version
The house that I am to build will be great, for our God is greater than all gods.
New Century Version
"The temple I build will be great, because our God is greater than all gods.
New English Translation
I will build a great temple, for our God is greater than all gods.
Amplified Bible
"The house I am going to build will be great, for our God is greater than all the gods.
New American Standard Bible
"The house which I am about to build will be great, for our God is greater than all the gods.
World English Bible
The house which I build is great; for great is our God above all gods.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And the house which I buylde, is great: for great is our God aboue all gods.
Legacy Standard Bible
Now the house which I am about to build will be great, for greater is our God than all the gods.
Berean Standard Bible
The house that I am building will be great, for our God is greater than all gods.
Contemporary English Version
This will be a great temple, because our God is greater than all other gods.
Complete Jewish Bible
But who is equal to building him a house? Why, heaven itself, even the heaven of heavens, cannot contain him; so who am I to build him a house, except to offer sacrifices before him?
Darby Translation
And the house that I will build is great; for great is our God above all gods.
Easy-to-Read Version
"I will build a great temple because our God is greater than all the other gods.
George Lamsa Translation
And the house which I am about to build is very great, for our God is greater than all kings.
Good News Translation
I intend to build a great temple, because our God is greater than any other god.
Lexham English Bible
And the house that I am building will be great, for our God is greater than all gods.
Literal Translation
And the house which I am building shall be great, for our God is greater than all gods.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And the house that I wyl buylde, shal be greate: for oure God is greater then all goddes.
American Standard Version
And the house which I build is great; for great is our God above all gods.
Bible in Basic English
And the house which I am building is to be great, for our God is greater than all gods.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the house which I buylde shalbe great: for great is our God aboue all gods.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
But who is able to build Him a house, seeing the heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain Him? who am I then, that I should build Him a house, save only to offer before Him?
King James Version (1611)
And the house which I build, is great: for great is our God aboue all gods.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the house which I am building is to be great: for the Lord our God is great beyond all gods.
English Revised Version
And the house which I build is great: for great is our God above all gods.
Update Bible Version
And the house which I build is great; for great is our God above all gods.
Webster's Bible Translation
And the house which I build [is] great: for great [is] our God above all gods.
New King James Version
And the temple which I build will be great, for our God is greater than all gods.
New Living Translation
"This must be a magnificent Temple because our God is greater than all other gods.
New Life Bible
The house I am about to build will be great. For our God is greater than all the gods.
New Revised Standard
The house that I am about to build will be great, for our God is greater than other gods.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, the house which I am about to build, must be great, - for great is our God, above all gods.
Douay-Rheims Bible
For the house which I desire to build, is great: for our God is great above all gods.
Revised Standard Version
The house which I am to build will be great, for our God is greater than all gods.
Young's Literal Translation
`And the house that I am building [is] great, for greater [is] our God than all gods;
THE MESSAGE
"The house I am building has to be the best, for our God is the best, far better than competing gods. But who is capable of building such a structure? Why, the skies—the entire cosmos!—can't begin to contain him. And me, who am I to think I can build a house adequate for God—burning incense to him is about all I'm good for! I need your help: Send me a master artisan in gold, silver, bronze, iron, textiles of purple, crimson, and violet, and who knows the craft of engraving; he will supervise the trained craftsmen in Judah and Jerusalem that my father provided. Also send cedar, cypress, and algum logs from Lebanon; I know you have lumberjacks experienced in the Lebanon forests. I'll send workers to join your crews to cut plenty of timber—I'm going to need a lot, for this house I'm building is going to be absolutely stunning—a showcase temple! I'll provide all the food necessary for your crew of lumberjacks and loggers: 130,000 bushels of wheat, 120,000 gallons of wine, and 120,000 gallons of olive oil."
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"The house which I am about to build will be great, for greater is our God than all the gods.

Contextual Overview

1 Forsothe Salomon demyde to bilde an hows to the name of the Lord, and a paleis to hym silf. 2 And he noumbride seuenti thousynde of men berynge in schuldris, and fourescore thousynde that schulden kitte stoonys in hillis; and the souereyns of hem thre thousynde and sixe hundrid. 3 And he sente to Iram, kyng of Tire, and seide, As thou didist with my fadir Dauid, and sentist to hym trees of cedre, that he schulde bilde to hym an hows, in which also he dwellide; 4 so do thou with me, that Y bilde an hows to the name of `my Lord God, and that Y halewe it, to brenne encense bifor hym, and to make odour of swete smellynge spiceries, and to euerlastynge settynge forth of looues, and to brent sacrifices in the morewtid and euentid, and in sabatis, and neomenyes, and solempnytees of `oure Lord God in to with outen ende, that ben comaundid to Israel. 5 For the hows which Y coueyte to bilde is greet; for `oure Lord God is greet ouer alle goddis. 6 Who therfor may haue myyt to bilde a worthi hows to hym? For if heuene and the heuenes of heuenes moun not take hym, hou greet am Y, that Y may bilde `an hows to hym, but to this thing oonli, that encense be brent bifor hym? 7 Therfor sende thou to me a lernd man, that can worche in gold, and siluer, bras, and yrun, purpur, rede silke, and iacynct; and that can graue in grauyng with these crafti men, which Y haue with me in Judee and Jerusalem, whiche Dauid, my fadir, made redi. 8 But also sende thou to me cedre trees, and pyne trees, and thyne trees of the Liban; for Y woot, that thi seruauntis kunnen kitte trees of the Liban; and my seruauntis schulen be with thi seruauntis, 9 that ful many trees be maad redi to me; for the hows which Y coueyte to bilde is ful greet and noble. 10 Ferthermore to thi seruauntis, werk men that schulen kitte trees, Y schal yyue in to meetis twenti thousynde chorus of whete, and so many chorus of barli, and twenti thousynde mesuris of oile, that ben clepid sata.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

great: 2 Chronicles 2:9, 1 Kings 9:8, 1 Chronicles 29:1, Ezekiel 7:20

great is our God: Exodus 15:11, 1 Chronicles 16:25, Psalms 86:8, Psalms 86:9, Psalms 135:5, Psalms 145:3, Jeremiah 10:6, 1 Timothy 6:15

Reciprocal: Exodus 18:11 - the Lord 2 Samuel 7:22 - Wherefore 1 Kings 5:5 - behold 1 Chronicles 22:5 - exceeding Psalms 68:29 - Because Psalms 76:1 - his Psalms 136:2 - the God Jeremiah 17:12 - General Daniel 4:30 - that Acts 7:48 - dwelleth

Cross-References

Genesis 2:9
And the Lord God brouyte forth of the erthe ech tre fair in siyt, and swete to ete; also he brouyte forth the tre of lijf in the middis of paradis, and the tre of kunnyng of good and of yuel.
Genesis 2:11
The name of the o ryuer is Fyson, thilke it is that cumpassith al the lond of Euilath, where gold cometh forth,
Genesis 2:12
and the gold of that lond is the beste, and there is foundun delium, that is, a tree of spicerie, and the stoon onychyn;
Genesis 3:23
And the Lord God sente hym out of paradijs of likyng, that he schulde worche the erthe, of which he was takun.
Genesis 4:2
And efte sche childide his brother Abel. Forsothe Abel was a kepere of scheep, and Cayn was an erthe tilyere.
Genesis 4:12
Whanne thou schalt worche the erthe, it schal not yyue his fruytis to thee; thou schalt be vnstable of dwellyng and fleynge aboute on erthe in alle the daies of thi lijf.
Job 5:10
Which yyueth reyn on the face of erthe, and moistith alle thingis with watris.
Psalms 104:14
And thou bringist forth hei to beestis; and eerbe to the seruyce of men. That thou bringe forth breed of the erthe;
Psalms 135:7
He ledde out cloudis fro the ferthest part of erthe; and made leitis in to reyn. Which bringith forth wyndis fro hise tresours;
Jeremiah 14:22
Whether in grauun ymagis of hethene men ben thei that reynen, ethir heuenes moun yyue reynes? whether thou art not oure Lord God, whom we abididen? For thou madist alle these thingis.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the house which I build is great,.... Not so very large, though that, with all apartments and courts belonging to it, he intended to build, was so; but because magnificent in its structure and decorations:

for great is our God above all gods; and therefore ought to have a temple to exceed all others, as the temple at Jerusalem did.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

See 1 Kings 6:2 note. In Jewish eyes, at the time that the temple was built, it may have been “great,” that is to say, it may have exceeded the dimensions of any single separate building existing in Palestine up to the time of its erection.

Great is our God ... - This may seem inappropriate as addressed to a pagan king. But it appears 2 Chronicles 2:11-12 that Hiram acknowledged Yahweh as the supreme deity, probably identifying Him with his own Melkarth.


 
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