Mason
Summary
A craftsman skilled in cutting and setting stone for construction, employed extensively in building temples, palaces, and fortifications in ancient Israel.
☩David's Preparations
When David desired to build a house for God, he gathered materials and skilled workers: 'And David commanded to gather together the strangers that were in the land of Israel; and he set masons to hew wrought stones to build the house of God' (1 Chronicles 22:2). Though David was not permitted to build the Temple, his preparations included assembling a workforce of skilled stone craftsmen.
☩Phoenician Expertise
King Hiram of Tyre sent masons to assist Solomon: 'And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house' (1 Kings 5:17). The Phoenicians were renowned for their stonecutting skills. The collaboration between Israelite and Phoenician craftsmen produced the magnificent Temple of Solomon.
☩Temple Repairs
Masons were essential for maintaining sacred structures. During King Joash's reign, money collected for Temple repairs was given 'to the masons, and hewers of stone, and to buy timber and hewed stone to repair the breaches of the house of the LORD' (2 Kings 12:12). Similar restoration work employed masons under King Josiah (2 Kings 22:6; 2 Chronicles 34:11).
☩Post-Exilic Rebuilding
When the exiles returned under Zerubbabel, they hired masons and carpenters to rebuild the Temple: 'They gave money also unto the masons, and to the carpenters; and meat, and drink, and oil, unto them of Zidon, and to them of Tyre' (Ezra 3:7). The same pattern of employing Phoenician craftsmen continued from Solomon's day. Nehemiah also employed masons in rebuilding Jerusalem's walls.
