1 The building of the house of Solomon. 15 The excellent workmanship of Hiram in the pieces which he made for the Temple.

But Solomon was building his own house (A)thirteen years, and [a]finished all his house.

He built also an house [b]called the forest of Lebanon, an hundred cubits long, and fifty cubits broad, and thirty cubits high, upon four rows of Cedar pillars: and Cedar beams were laid upon the pillars.

And it was covered above with cedar upon the beams, that lay on the forty and five pillars, fifteen in a row.

And the windows were in three rows, and window was [c]against window in three ranks.

And all the doors, and the side posts with the windows were foursquare, and window was over against window in three ranks.

And he made a porch of pillars fifty cubits long, and thirty cubits broad, and the porch was before [d]them, even before them were thirty pillars.

¶ Then he made a porch [e]for the throne, where he judged, even a porch of judgment, and it was ceiled with cedar from pavement to pavement.

And in his house where he dwelt was another hall more inward than the porch which was of the same work. Also Solomon made an house for Pharaoh’s daughter ((B)whom he had taken to wife) like unto this porch.

All these were [f]of costly stones, hewed by measure, and sawed with saws within and without, from the foundation unto [g]the stones of an [h]hand breadth, and on the outside to the great court.

10 And the foundation was of costly stones, and great stones, even of stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits.

11 [i]Above also were costly stones squared by rule, and boards of cedar.

12 ¶ And the great court round about was with three rows of hewed stones, and a row of cedar beams: [j]so was it to the inner court of the house of the Lord, and to the porch of the house.

13 ¶ Then King Solomon sent, and fet one Hiram out of [k]Tyre.

14 He was a widow’s son of the tribe of Naphtali, his father being a man of Tyre, and wrought in brass: [l]he was full of wisdom, and understanding, and knowledge to work all manner of work in brass: who came to King Solomon, and wrought all his work.

15 For he cast two pillars of brass: the height of a pillar was eighteen cubits, and a thread of twelve cubits did compass [m]either of the pillars.

16 And he made two [n]chapiters of molten brass to set on the tops of the pillars: the height of one of the chapiters was five cubits, and the height of the other chapiter was five cubits.

17 He made grates like network and [o]wreathen work like chains for the chapiters that were on the top of the pillars, even seven for the one chapiter, and seven for the other chapiter.

18 So he made the pillars and two rows of pomegranates round about in the one grate to cover the chapiters that were upon the top. And thus did he for the other chapiter.

19 And the chapiters that were on the top of the pillars were after [p]lily work in the porch, four cubits.

20 And the chapiters upon the two pillars had also above, [q]over against the belly [r]within the network pomegranates: for two hundred pomegranates were in the two ranks about upon [s]either of the chapiters.

21 And he set up the pillars in the [t]porch of the Temple. And when he had set up the right pillar, he called the name thereof [u]Jachin: and when he had set up the left pillar, he called the name thereof [v]Boaz.

22 And upon the top of the pillars was work of lilies: so was the workmanship of the pillars finished.

23 ¶ And he made a molten [w]sea of ten cubits wide from brim to brim, round in compass, and five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits did compass it about.

24 And under the brim of it were knops like wild cucumbers compassing it round about, ten in one cubit, compassing the sea (C)round about: and the two rows of knops were cast, when it was molten.

25 It stood on twelve bulls, three looking toward the North, and three toward the West, and three toward the South, and three toward the East: and the sea stood above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.

26 It was [x]an handbreadth thick, and the brim thereof was like the work of the brim of a cup with flowers of lilies: it contained two thousand [y]baths.

27 ¶ And he made ten bases of brass, one base was four cubits long, and four cubits broad, and three cubits high.

28 ¶ And the work of the bases was on this manner, They had borders, and the borders were between the ledges:

29 And on the borders that were between the ledges, were lions, bulls and Cherubims: and upon the ledges there was a base above: and beneath the lions and bulls, were additions made of thin work.

30 And every base had four brazen wheels, and plates of brass: and the four corners had [z]undersetters: under the caldron were undersetters molten at the side of every addition.

31 And the [aa]mouth of it was within the chapiter and above to measure by the cubit: for the mouth thereof was round, made like a base, and it was a cubit and half a cubit: and also upon the mouth thereof were graven works, whose borders were foursquare, and not round.

32 And under the borders were four wheels and the axletrees of the wheels joined to the base: and the height of a wheel was a cubit, and half a cubit.

33 And the fashion of the wheels was like the fashion of a chariot wheel, their axletrees, and their naves and their [ab]felloes, and their spokes were all molten.

34 And four undersetters were upon the four corners of one base: and the undersetters thereof were of the base itself.

35 And in the top of the base was a round [ac]compass of half a cubit high round about: and upon the top of the base the ledges thereof, and the borders thereof were of the same.

36 And upon the tables of the ledges thereof, and on the borders thereof he did grave Cherubims, lions and palm trees, on the side of every one, and additions round about.

37 Thus made he the ten bases, They had all one casting, one measure, and one size.

38 ¶ Then made he [ad]ten cauldrons of brass, one cauldron contained forty baths, and every cauldron was four cubits, one cauldron was upon one base throughout the ten bases.

39 And he set the bases, five on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house. And he set the sea on the right side of the [ae]house Eastward toward the South.

40 ¶ And Hiram made cauldrons, and besoms, and basins, and Hiram finished all the work that he made to King Solomon for the house of the Lord:

41 To wit, two pillars and two bowls of the chapiters that were on the top of the two pillars, and two grates to cover the two bowls of the chapiters which were upon the top of the pillars,

42 And four hundred pomegranates for the two grates, even two rows of pomegranates for every grate to cover the two bowls of the chapiters, that were upon the pillars,

43 And the ten bases, and ten cauldrons upon the bases,

44 And the sea, and twelve bulls under that sea,

45 And pots, and besoms, and basins: and all these vessels, which [af]Hiram made to king Solomon for the house of the Lord, were of shining brass.

46 In the plain of Jordan did the King cast them in [ag]clay between Succoth and Zaretan.

47 And Solomon left to weigh all the vessels, because of the exceeding abundance, neither could the weight of the brass be counted.

48 So Solomon made all the vessels that pertained unto the house of the Lord, the [ah]golden altar, and the golden table, whereon the showbread was,

49 And the candlesticks, five at the right side, and five at the left, before the oracle of pure gold, and the flowers, and the lamps, and the snuffers of gold,

50 And the bowls, [ai]and the hooks, and the basins, and the spoons, and the ashpans of pure gold, and hinges of gold for the doors of the house within, even for the most holy place, and for the doors of the house, to wit, of the Temple.

51 So was finished all the work that king Solomon made for the house of the Lord, and Solomon brought in the things which (D)David his father had dedicated: the silver and the gold and the vessels, and laid them among the treasures of the house of the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 7:1 After he had built the Temple.
  2. 1 Kings 7:2 For the beauty of the place, and great abundance of cedar trees that went to the building thereof, it was compared to mount Lebanon in Syria: this house he used in summer for pleasure and recreation.
  3. 1 Kings 7:4 There were as many, and like proportion on the one side as the other, and at every end even three in a row one above another.
  4. 1 Kings 7:6 Before the pillars of the house.
  5. 1 Kings 7:7 For his house which was at Jerusalem.
  6. 1 Kings 7:9 Or, precious.
  7. 1 Kings 7:9 Which were rests and stays for the beams to lie upon.
  8. 1 Kings 7:9 Or, span.
  9. 1 Kings 7:11 From the foundation upward.
  10. 1 Kings 7:12 As the Lord’s house was built, so was this: only the great court of Solomon’s house was uncovered.
  11. 1 Kings 7:13 Or, Zor.
  12. 1 Kings 7:14 Thus when God will have his glory set forth, he raiseth up men, and giveth them excellent gifts for the accomplishment of the same, Exod. 31:2,3.
  13. 1 Kings 7:15 Hebrew, the second.
  14. 1 Kings 7:16 Or, pommels.
  15. 1 Kings 7:17 Or, cords like chains.
  16. 1 Kings 7:19 As was seen commonly wrought in costly porches.
  17. 1 Kings 7:20 Or, round about the midst.
  18. 1 Kings 7:20 Or, bound.
  19. 1 Kings 7:20 Hebrew, the second.
  20. 1 Kings 7:21 Which was in the inner court between the Temple and the oracle.
  21. 1 Kings 7:21 That is, he will stablish, to wit, his promise toward this house.
  22. 1 Kings 7:21 That is, in strength: meaning the power thereof shall continue.
  23. 1 Kings 7:23 So called for the hugeness of the vessel.
  24. 1 Kings 7:26 Or, a span.
  25. 1 Kings 7:26 Bath and Ephah seem to be both one measure, Ezek. 45:11, every bath contained about ten pottles.
  26. 1 Kings 7:30 Hebrew, shoulders.
  27. 1 Kings 7:31 The mouth of the great base or frame entered into the chapiter, or pillar that bare up the cauldron.
  28. 1 Kings 7:33 Or, rings.
  29. 1 Kings 7:35 Which was called the pillar, chapiter, or small base, wherein the cauldron stood.
  30. 1 Kings 7:38 To keep waters for the use of the sacrifices.
  31. 1 Kings 7:39 To wit, of the Temple or Sanctuary.
  32. 1 Kings 7:45 By this name also Hiram the king of Tyre was called.
  33. 1 Kings 7:46 Or, thick earth.
  34. 1 Kings 7:48 This was done according to the form that the Lord prescribed unto Moses in Exodus.
  35. 1 Kings 7:50 Some take this for some instrument of music.

Solomon Builds His Palace

It took Solomon thirteen years, however, to complete the construction of his palace.(A) He built the Palace(B) of the Forest of Lebanon(C) a hundred cubits long, fifty wide and thirty high,[a] with four rows of cedar columns supporting trimmed cedar beams. It was roofed with cedar above the beams that rested on the columns—forty-five beams, fifteen to a row. Its windows were placed high in sets of three, facing each other. All the doorways had rectangular frames; they were in the front part in sets of three, facing each other.[b]

He made a colonnade fifty cubits long and thirty wide.[c] In front of it was a portico, and in front of that were pillars and an overhanging roof.

He built the throne hall, the Hall of Justice, where he was to judge,(D) and he covered it with cedar from floor to ceiling.[d](E) And the palace in which he was to live, set farther back, was similar in design. Solomon also made a palace like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom he had married.(F)

All these structures, from the outside to the great courtyard and from foundation to eaves, were made of blocks of high-grade stone cut to size and smoothed on their inner and outer faces. 10 The foundations were laid with large stones of good quality, some measuring ten cubits[e] and some eight.[f] 11 Above were high-grade stones, cut to size, and cedar beams. 12 The great courtyard was surrounded by a wall of three courses(G) of dressed stone and one course of trimmed cedar beams, as was the inner courtyard of the temple of the Lord with its portico.

The Temple’s Furnishings(H)(I)

13 King Solomon sent to Tyre and brought Huram,[g](J) 14 whose mother was a widow from the tribe of Naphtali and whose father was from Tyre and a skilled craftsman in bronze. Huram was filled with wisdom,(K) with understanding and with knowledge to do all kinds of bronze work. He came to King Solomon and did all(L) the work assigned to him.

15 He cast two bronze pillars,(M) each eighteen cubits high and twelve cubits in circumference.[h] 16 He also made two capitals(N) of cast bronze to set on the tops of the pillars; each capital was five cubits[i] high. 17 A network of interwoven chains adorned the capitals on top of the pillars, seven for each capital. 18 He made pomegranates in two rows[j] encircling each network to decorate the capitals on top of the pillars.[k] He did the same for each capital. 19 The capitals on top of the pillars in the portico were in the shape of lilies, four cubits[l] high. 20 On the capitals of both pillars, above the bowl-shaped part next to the network, were the two hundred pomegranates(O) in rows all around. 21 He erected the pillars at the portico of the temple. The pillar to the south he named Jakin[m] and the one to the north Boaz.[n](P) 22 The capitals on top were in the shape of lilies. And so the work on the pillars(Q) was completed.

23 He made the Sea(R) of cast metal, circular in shape, measuring ten cubits from rim to rim and five cubits high. It took a line(S) of thirty cubits[o] to measure around it. 24 Below the rim, gourds encircled it—ten to a cubit. The gourds were cast in two rows in one piece with the Sea.

25 The Sea stood on twelve bulls,(T) three facing north, three facing west, three facing south and three facing east. The Sea rested on top of them, and their hindquarters were toward the center. 26 It was a handbreadth[p] in thickness, and its rim was like the rim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held two thousand baths.[q]

27 He also made ten movable stands(U) of bronze; each was four cubits long, four wide and three high.[r] 28 This is how the stands were made: They had side panels attached to uprights. 29 On the panels between the uprights were lions, bulls and cherubim—and on the uprights as well. Above and below the lions and bulls were wreaths of hammered work. 30 Each stand(V) had four bronze wheels with bronze axles, and each had a basin resting on four supports, cast with wreaths on each side. 31 On the inside of the stand there was an opening that had a circular frame one cubit[s] deep. This opening was round, and with its basework it measured a cubit and a half.[t] Around its opening there was engraving. The panels of the stands were square, not round. 32 The four wheels were under the panels, and the axles of the wheels were attached to the stand. The diameter of each wheel was a cubit and a half. 33 The wheels were made like chariot wheels; the axles, rims, spokes and hubs were all of cast metal.

34 Each stand had four handles, one on each corner, projecting from the stand. 35 At the top of the stand there was a circular band half a cubit[u] deep. The supports and panels were attached to the top of the stand. 36 He engraved cherubim, lions and palm trees on the surfaces of the supports and on the panels, in every available space, with wreaths all around. 37 This is the way he made the ten stands. They were all cast in the same molds and were identical in size and shape.

38 He then made ten bronze basins,(W) each holding forty baths[v] and measuring four cubits across, one basin to go on each of the ten stands. 39 He placed five of the stands on the south side of the temple and five on the north. He placed the Sea on the south side, at the southeast corner of the temple. 40 He also made the pots[w] and shovels and sprinkling bowls.(X)

So Huram finished all the work he had undertaken for King Solomon in the temple of the Lord:

41 the two pillars;

the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars;

the two sets of network decorating the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars;

42 the four hundred pomegranates for the two sets of network (two rows of pomegranates for each network decorating the bowl-shaped capitals(Y) on top of the pillars);

43 the ten stands with their ten basins;

44 the Sea and the twelve bulls under it;

45 the pots, shovels and sprinkling bowls.(Z)

All these objects that Huram(AA) made for King Solomon for the temple of the Lord were of burnished bronze. 46 The king had them cast in clay molds in the plain(AB) of the Jordan between Sukkoth(AC) and Zarethan.(AD) 47 Solomon left all these things unweighed,(AE) because there were so many;(AF) the weight of the bronze(AG) was not determined.

48 Solomon also made all(AH) the furnishings that were in the Lord’s temple:

the golden altar;

the golden table(AI) on which was the bread of the Presence;(AJ)

49 the lampstands(AK) of pure gold (five on the right and five on the left, in front of the inner sanctuary);

the gold floral work and lamps and tongs;

50 the pure gold basins, wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, dishes(AL) and censers;(AM)

and the gold sockets for the doors of the innermost room, the Most Holy Place, and also for the doors of the main hall of the temple.

51 When all the work King Solomon had done for the temple of the Lord was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated(AN)—the silver and gold and the furnishings(AO)—and he placed them in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 7:2 That is, about 150 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high or about 45 meters long, 23 meters wide and 14 meters high
  2. 1 Kings 7:5 The meaning of the Hebrew for this verse is uncertain.
  3. 1 Kings 7:6 That is, about 75 feet long and 45 feet wide or about 23 meters long and 14 meters wide
  4. 1 Kings 7:7 Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew floor
  5. 1 Kings 7:10 That is, about 15 feet or about 4.5 meters; also in verse 23
  6. 1 Kings 7:10 That is, about 12 feet or about 3.6 meters
  7. 1 Kings 7:13 Hebrew Hiram, a variant of Huram; also in verses 40 and 45
  8. 1 Kings 7:15 That is, about 27 feet high and 18 feet in circumference or about 8.1 meters high and 5.4 meters in circumference
  9. 1 Kings 7:16 That is, about 7 1/2 feet or about 2.3 meters; also in verse 23
  10. 1 Kings 7:18 Two Hebrew manuscripts and Septuagint; most Hebrew manuscripts made the pillars, and there were two rows
  11. 1 Kings 7:18 Many Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts pomegranates
  12. 1 Kings 7:19 That is, about 6 feet or about 1.8 meters; also in verse 38
  13. 1 Kings 7:21 Jakin probably means he establishes.
  14. 1 Kings 7:21 Boaz probably means in him is strength.
  15. 1 Kings 7:23 That is, about 45 feet or about 14 meters
  16. 1 Kings 7:26 That is, about 3 inches or about 7.5 centimeters
  17. 1 Kings 7:26 That is, about 12,000 gallons or about 44,000 liters; the Septuagint does not have this sentence.
  18. 1 Kings 7:27 That is, about 6 feet long and wide and about 4 1/2 feet high or about 1.8 meters long and wide and 1.4 meters high
  19. 1 Kings 7:31 That is, about 18 inches or about 45 centimeters
  20. 1 Kings 7:31 That is, about 2 1/4 feet or about 68 centimeters; also in verse 32
  21. 1 Kings 7:35 That is, about 9 inches or about 23 centimeters
  22. 1 Kings 7:38 That is, about 240 gallons or about 880 liters
  23. 1 Kings 7:40 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Syriac and Vulgate (see also verse 45 and 2 Chron. 4:11); many other Hebrew manuscripts basins