1 Kings 5:15

And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains. [These 150,000, destined for the more laborious and menial works, were not Israelites, but Canaanites. We learn from 2 Chronicles 2:17 , 2 Chronicles 2:18 that "all the strangers that were in the land of Israel" were subjected to forced labour by Solomon—there were, that is to say, but 150,000 of them remaining. They occupied a very different position from that of the 30,000 Hebrews. None of the latter were reduced to bondage ( 1 Kings 9:22 ), while the former had long been employed in servile work. The Gibeonites were reduced to serfdom by Joshua ( Joshua 9:27 ), and the rest of the Canaanites as they were conquered ( Joshua 6:10 ; Joshua 17:13 ; 1:29 , 1:30 ). In 1 Chronicles 22:2 , we find some of them employed on public works by David. By the "hewers" many commentators have supposed that stonecutters alone are intended (so Jos; Ant; 1 Chronicles 8:2 . 9) partly because stone is mentioned presently, and partly because חָצַב is mostly used of the quarrying or cutting of stone, as in Deuteronomy 6:11 ; Deuteronomy 8:9 ; 2 Kings 12:12 , etc. Gesenius understands the word both of stone and wood cutters. But is it not probable that the latter alone are indicated? That the word is sometimes used of woodcutting Isaiah 10:15 shows. And the words, " in the mountain" ( בָּהָר ) almost compel us so to understand it here. "The mountain" must be Lebanon. But surely the stone was not transported, to any great extent, like the wood, so great a distance over land and sea, especially when it abounded on the spot. It is true the number of wood cutters would thus appear to be very great, but it is to be remembered how few comparatively were the appliances or machines of those days: almost everything must be done by manual labour. And Pliny tells us that no less than 360,000 men were employed for twenty years on one of the pyramids. It is possible, however, that the huge foundations mentioned below ( Isaiah 10:17 ) were brought from Lebanon.]