1 Kings 9:21

whom the children of Israel also were not able utterly to destroy There is no word to represent -also" in the original, nor does the English sentence require it. The utter destruction spoken of here is that which had been decreed upon them by God's judgement, and which Israel was to be the agent in executing.

upon those did Solomon levy a tribute of bondservice The Hebrew noun מם here rendered -tribute" is applied in a concrete sense to the -renderers of the tribute." The verb also here is literally -he caused to go up." As the narrative in this verse is dealing entirely with the persons it is better to render (as R.V.) of these did Solomon raise a levy of bondservants. Theirs was slave service, such as is alluded to in Joshua 16:10.

unto this day A faithful copying by the compiler of the Books of Kings from some earlier record which lay before him, and which noted the continuation of this forced service for some time after the reign of Solomon.