1 Kings 6
The Building of the Temple
1 In the four hundred and eightieth year after the Israelites left Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, during the month Ziv ▼▼sn During the month Ziv. This would be April-May, 966 b.c. by modern reckoning.
(the second month), he began building the Lord’s temple. 2The temple King Solomon built for the Lord was 90 feet ▼ long, 30 feet ▼▼tn Heb “20 [cubits].”
wide, and 45 feet ▼▼tn Heb “30 cubits.”
high. 3The porch in front of the main hall of the temple was 30 feet ▼▼tn Heb “20 cubits.”
long, corresponding to the width of the temple. It was 15 feet ▼▼tn Heb “10 cubits.”
wide, extending out from the front of the temple. 4He made framed windows for the temple. 5He built an extension all around the walls of the temple’s main hall and Holy Place and constructed side rooms in it. ▼▼tn Heb “and he built on the wall of the temple an extension all around, the walls of the temple all around, for the main hall and for the holy place, and he made side rooms all around.”
6The bottom floor of the extension was 7½ feet ▼▼tn Heb “five cubits.”
wide, the middle floor 9 feet ▼▼tn Heb “six cubits.”
wide, and the third floor 10½ feet ▼▼tn Heb “7 cubits.”
wide. He made ledges ▼▼tn Or “offsets” (ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NIV “offset ledges.”
on the temple’s outer walls so the beams would not have to be inserted into the walls. ▼▼tn Heb “so that [the beams] would not have a hold in the walls of the temple.”
7As the temple was being built, only stones shaped at the quarry ▼▼tn Heb “finished stone of the quarry,” i.e., stones chiseled and shaped at the time they were taken out of the quarry.
were used; the sound of hammers, pickaxes, or any other iron tool was not heard at the temple while it was being built. 8The entrance to the bottom ▼▼tc The Hebrew text has “middle,” but the remainder of the verse suggests this is an error.
level of side rooms was on the south side of the temple; stairs went up ▼▼tn Heb “by stairs they went up.” The word translated “stairs” occurs only here. Other options are “trapdoors” or “ladders.”
to the middle floor and then on up to the third ▼▼tc The translation reads with a few medieval Hebrew mss, the Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate הַשְּׁלִשִׁית (hashelishit, “the third”) rather than MT הַשְּׁלִשִׁים (hashelishim, “the thirty”).
floor. 9He finished building the temple ▼▼tn Heb “built the house and completed it.”
and covered it ▼▼tn Heb “the house.”
with rafters ▼▼tn The word occurs only here; the precise meaning is uncertain.
and boards made of cedar. ▼▼tn Heb “and rows with cedar wood.”
10He built an extension all around the temple; it was 7½ feet high ▼▼tn Heb “5 cubits.” This must refer to the height of each floor or room.
and it was attached to the temple by cedar beams. 11 ▼ The Lord’s message came to Solomon: 12“As for this temple you are building, if you follow ▼▼tn Heb “walk in.”
my rules, observe ▼▼tn Heb “do.”
my regulations, and obey all my commandments, ▼▼tn Heb “and keep all my commandments by walking in them.”
I will fulfill through you the promise I made to your father David. ▼▼tn Heb “I will establish my word with you which I spoke to David your father.”
13I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon my people Israel.” 14 So Solomon finished building the temple. ▼▼tn Heb “built the house and completed it.”
15He constructed the walls inside the temple with cedar planks; he paneled the inside with wood from the floor of the temple to the rafters ▼▼tc The MT reads קִירוֹת (qirot, “walls”), but this should be emended to קוֹרוֹת (qorot, “rafters”). See BDB 900 s.v. קוֹרָה.
of the ceiling. He covered the temple floor with boards made from the wood of evergreens. 16He built a wall 30 feet in from the rear of the temple as a partition for an inner sanctuary that would be the Most Holy Place. ▼▼tn Heb “He built 20 cubits from the rear areas of the temple with cedar planks from the floor to the walls, and he built it on the inside for an inner sanctuary, for a holy place of holy places.”
He paneled the wall with cedar planks from the floor to the rafters. ▼▼tc The MT reads קִירוֹת (qirot, “walls”), but this should be emended to קוֹרוֹת (qorot, “rafters”). See BDB 900 s.v. קוֹרָה.
17The main hall in front of the inner sanctuary was 60 feet long. ▼▼tn Heb “and the house was 40 cubits, that is, the main hall before it.”
18The inside of the temple was all cedar and was adorned with carvings of round ornaments and of flowers in bloom. Everything was cedar; no stones were visible. ▼▼tn Heb “Cedar was inside the temple, carvings of gourds (i.e., gourd-shaped ornaments) and opened flowers; the whole was cedar, no stone was seen.”
19 He prepared the inner sanctuary inside the temple so that the ark of the covenant of the Lord could be placed there. 20The inner sanctuary was 30 feet ▼▼tn Heb “20 cubits” (this measurement occurs three times in this verse).
long, 30 feet wide, and 30 feet high. He plated it with gold, ▼▼tn Heb “with plated gold” (or perhaps, “with pure gold”).
as well as the cedar altar. ▼▼tn Heb “he plated [the] altar of cedar.”
21Solomon plated the inside of the temple with gold. ▼▼tn Heb “with plated gold” (or perhaps, “with pure gold”).
He hung golden chains in front of the inner sanctuary and plated the inner sanctuary ▼▼tn Heb “it.”
with gold. 22He plated the entire inside of the temple with gold, as well as the altar inside the inner sanctuary. ▼▼tn Heb “all the temple he plated with gold until all the temple was finished; and the whole altar which was in the inner sanctuary he plated with gold.”
23 In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olive wood; each stood 15 feet ▼▼tn Heb “10 cubits” (a cubit was a unit of measure roughly equivalent to 18 inches or 45 cm).
high. 24Each of the first cherub’s wings was 7½ feet long; its entire wingspan was 15 feet. ▼▼tn Heb “The first wing of the [one] cherub was 5 cubits, and the second wing of the cherub was 5 cubits, 10 cubits from the tips of his wings to the tips of his wings.”
25The second cherub also had a wingspan of 15 feet; it was identical to the first in measurements and shape. ▼▼tn Heb “and the second cherub was 10 cubits, the two cherubim had one measurement and one shape.”
26Each cherub stood 15 feet high. ▼▼tn Heb “the height of the first cherub was 10 cubits; and so was the second cherub.”
27He put the cherubim in the inner sanctuary of the temple. ▼▼tn Heb “in the midst of the inner house,” i.e., in the inner sanctuary.
Their wings were spread out. One of the first cherub’s wings touched one wall and one of the other cherub’s wings touched the opposite wall. The first cherub’s other wing touched the second cherub’s other wing in the middle of the room. ▼▼tn Heb “and their wings were in the middle of the room, touching wing to wing.”
28He plated the cherubim with gold. 29 On all the walls around the temple, inside and out, ▼▼sn Inside and out probably refers to the inner and outer rooms within the building.
he carved ▼▼tn Heb “carved engravings of carvings.”
cherubim, palm trees, and flowers in bloom. 30He plated the floor of the temple with gold, inside and out. ▼▼sn Inside and out probably refers to the inner and outer rooms within the building.
31He made doors of olive wood at the entrance to the inner sanctuary; the pillar on each doorpost was five sided. ▼▼tn Heb “the pillar, doorposts, a fifth part” (the precise meaning of this description is uncertain).
32On the two doors made of olive wood he carved ▼▼tn Heb “carved carvings of.”
cherubim, palm trees, and flowers in bloom, and he plated them with gold. ▼▼tn Heb “he plated [with] gold” (the precise object is not stated).
He plated the cherubim and the palm trees with hammered gold. ▼▼tn Heb “and he hammered out the gold on the cherubim and the palm trees.”
33In the same way he made doorposts of olive wood for the entrance to the main hall, only with four-sided pillars. ▼▼tn Heb “and so he did at the entrance of the main hall, doorposts of olive wood, from a fourth.”
34He also made ▼▼tn The words “he also made” are added for stylistic reasons.
two doors out of wood from evergreens; each door had two folding leaves. ▼▼tc Heb “two of the leaves of the first door were folding, and two of the leaves of the second door were folding.” In the second half of the description, the MT has קְלָעִים (qelaʿim, “curtains”), but this probably should be emended to צְלָעִים (tselaʿim, “leaves”), which appears in the first half of the statement. One Hebrew ms, the LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate support צְלָעִים (tselaʿim, “leaves”).
35He carved cherubim, palm trees, and flowers in bloom and plated them with gold, leveled out over the carvings. 36He built the inner courtyard with three rows of chiseled stones and a row of cedar beams. 37 In the month of Ziv ▼▼sn In the month of Ziv. This would be April-May, 966 b.c. by modern reckoning.
in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign ▼ the foundation was laid for the Lord’s temple. 38In the eleventh year, in the month of Bul ▼▼sn In the month Bul. This would be October-November 959 b.c. in modern reckoning.
(the eighth month) the temple was completed in accordance with all its specifications and blueprints. It took seven years to build. ▼▼tn Heb “he built it in seven years.”
Copyright information for
NET2full