1Ki 6 | BSB | STEP | In the four hundred and eightieth year after the Israelites had come out of the land of Egypt, in the month of Ziv, the second month of the fourth year of [Solomon's] reign over Israel, [he] began to build the house of the LORD.

‏ 1 Kings 6

Temple Construction Begins

1 In the four hundred and eightieth ^{▼▼Hebrew; LXX four hundred and fortieth} year after the Israelites had come out of the land of Egypt, in the month of Ziv, the second month of the fourth year of [Solomon's] reign over Israel, [he] began to build the house of the LORD. 2 The house that King Solomon built for the LORD [was] sixty cubits long, twenty [cubits] wide, and thirty cubits high. ^{▼▼That is, about 90 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 45 feet high (27 meters long, 9 meters wide, and 14 meters high)} 3 The portico at the front of the main hall of the temple [was] twenty cubits ^{▼▼That is, about 30 feet or 9.1 meters; also in verses 16 and 20} long, extending across the width of the temple and projecting out ten cubits ^{▼▼That is, about 15 feet or 4.6 meters; also in verses 23 - 26} in front of the temple. 4 He also had narrow windows framed high in the temple.

The Chambers

5 Against the walls of the temple and the inner sanctuary, [Solomon] built a chambered structure all around the temple, in which he constructed the side rooms. 6 The bottom floor [was] five cubits ^{▼▼That is, about 7.5 feet or 2.3 meters; also in verses 10 and 24} wide, the middle floor six cubits, ^{▼▼That is, about 9 feet or 2.7 meters} and the third [floor] seven cubits. ^{▼▼That is, about 11 feet or 3.2 meters} . . . He also placed offset ledges all around the outside of the temple, so that nothing would be inserted into [its] walls. 7 The temple was constructed using finished stones cut at the quarry, so that no hammer, chisel, or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built. 8 The entrance to the bottom ^{▼▼LXX, Targum; Hebrew middle} floor was on the south side of the temple. A stairway led up to the middle level, and from [there] to the third floor. 9 So [Solomon] built the temple and finished it, roofing it with beams and planks of cedar. 10 He built chambers all along the temple, [each] five cubits high and attached to the temple with beams of cedar.

God's Promise

11 Then the word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying: 12 “As for this temple you are building, if you walk in My statutes, carry out My ordinances, and keep all My commandments by walking in them, I will fulfill through you the promise I made to your father David. 13 And I will dwell among the Israelites and will not abandon My people Israel.”

The Temple's Interior

14 So Solomon built the temple and finished it. 15 He lined the interior walls with cedar paneling from the floor of the temple to the ceiling, and he covered the floor with cypress boards. 16 He partitioned off the twenty cubits at the rear of the temple with cedar boards from floor to ceiling to form within [the temple] and inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place. 17 And the main hall in front of [this room] was forty cubits [long] . ^{▼▼That is, about 60 feet or 18.3 meters} 18 The cedar paneling inside the temple was carved with gourds and open flowers. Everything was cedar; not a stone could be seen. 19 [Solomon] also prepared the inner sanctuary within the temple to set the ark of the covenant of the LORD there. 20 The inner sanctuary [was] twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high. He overlaid [the inside] with pure gold, and he also overlaid the altar of cedar. 21 So Solomon overlaid the inside of the temple with pure gold, and he extended gold chains across the front of the inner sanctuary, which was overlaid with gold. 22 So he overlaid with gold the whole interior of the temple, until everything was completely finished. He also overlaid with gold the entire altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary.

The Cherubim

23 In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim, [each] ten cubits high, out of olive wood. 24 One wing of the first cherub [was] five cubits long, and the other wing five cubits [as well] . So the full wingspan [was] ten cubits. 25 The second cherub [also measured] ten cubits; both cherubim had the same size and shape, 26 and the height of each cherub [was] ten cubits. 27 And he placed the cherubim inside the innermost room of the temple. Since their wings were spread out, the wing of the first [cherub] touched one wall, while the wing of the second cherub touched the other wall, and in the middle of the room their wingtips touched. 28 He also overlaid the cherubim with gold. 29 Then he carved the walls all around the temple, in both the inner and outer sanctuaries, with carved engravings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. 30 And he overlaid the temple floor with gold in both the inner and outer sanctuaries.

The Doors

31 For the entrance of the inner sanctuary, [Solomon] constructed doors of olive wood with five-sided doorposts. 32 The double doors were made of olive wood, and he carved into them cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers and overlaid the cherubim and palm trees with hammered gold. 33 In the same way, he made four-sided doorposts of olive wood for the sanctuary entrance. 34 The two doors were made of cypress wood, [and] each had two folding panels. 35 And he carved [into them] cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers and overlaid them with gold hammered evenly over the carvings.

The Courtyard

36 [Solomon] built the inner courtyard with three rows of dressed stone and one row of trimmed cedar beams. 37 The foundation of the house of the LORD was laid in the fourth year [of Solomon's reign] , in the month of Ziv. 38 In his eleventh year and eighth month, the month of Bul, the temple was finished in every detail and according to every specification. So he built [the temple] in seven years.