Hi´ram, King of Tyre, at the commencement of David's reign. He sent an embassy to felicitate David on his accession, which led to an alliance, or strengthened a previous friendship between them. It seems that the dominion of this prince extended over the western slopes of Lebanon; and when David built himself a palace, Hiram materially assisted the work by sending cedar-wood from Lebanon, and able workmen to Jerusalem (; ) B.C. 1055.
Hiram, 2
Hiram, King of Tyre, son of Abibaal, and grandson of the Hiram who was contemporary with David, in the last years of whose reign he ascended the throne of Tyre. Following his grandfather's example, he sent to Jerusalem an embassy of condolence and congratulation when David died and Solomon succeeded, and contracted with the new king a more intimate alliance than ever before or after existed between a Hebrew king and a foreign prince. The alliance seems to have been very substantially beneficial to both parties, and without it Solomon would scarcely have been able to realize all the great designs he had in view. In consideration of large quantities of corn, wine, and oil, furnished by Solomon, the king of Tyre agreed to supply from Lebanon the timber required for the temple, to float it along the coast, and deliver it at Joppa, which was the port of Jerusalem (, sq.; 9:10, sq.; , sq.). The vast commerce of Tyre made gold very plentiful there; and Hiram supplied no less than 500 talents to Solomon for the ornamental works of the temple, and received in return twenty towns in Galilee; which, when he came to inspect them, pleased him so little, that he applied to them a name of contempt, and restored them to the Jewish king () [CABUL]. It does not, however, appear that the good understanding between the two kings was broken by this unpleasant circumstance; for it was after this that Hiram suggested, or at least took part in, Solomon's traffic to the Eastern seas—which certainly could not have been undertaken by the Hebrew king without his assistance in providing ships and experienced mariners (; , etc.;; , etc.), B.C. 1007 [OPHIR; SOLOMON; PHOENICIA].
Hiram, 3
Hiram, or Huram, son of a widow of the tribe of Dan and of a Tyrian father. He was sent by the king of the same name to execute the principal works of the interior of the temple, and the various utensils required for the sacred services. It is probable that he was selected for this purpose by the king from among others equally gifted, in the notion that his half Hebrew blood would render him the more acceptable at Jerusalem.
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John Kitto was an English biblical scholar of Cornish descent.Born in Plymouth, John Kitto was a sickly child, son of a Cornish stonemason. The drunkenness of his father and the poverty of his family meant that much of his childhood was spent in the workhouse. He had no more than three years of erratic and interrupted education. At the age of twelve John Kitto fell on his head from a rooftop, and became totally and permanently deaf. As a young man he suffered further tragedies, disappointments and much loneliness. His height was 4 ft 8 in, and his accident left him with an impaired sense of balance. He found consolation in browsing at bookstalls and reading any books that came his way.
From these hardships he was rescued by friends who became aware of his mental abilities and encouraged him to write topical articles for local newspapers, arranging eventually for him to work as an assistant in a local library. Here he continued to educate himself.
One of his benefactors was the Exeter dentist Anthony Norris Groves, who in 1824 offered him employment as a dental assistant. Living with the Groves family, Kitto was profoundly influenced by the practical Christian faith of his employer. In 1829 he accompanied Groves on his pioneering mission to Baghdad and served as tutor to Groves's two sons. In 1833 Kitto returned to England via Constantinople, accompanied by another member of the Groves mission, Francis William Newman. Shortly afterwards he married, and in due course had several children.
A London publisher asked Kitto to write up his travel journals for a series of articles in the Penny Magazine, a publication read at that time by a million people in Britain, reprinted in America and translated into French, German and Dutch. Other writing projects followed as readers enquired about his experiences in the East amidst people living in circumstances closely resembling those of Bible times.
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