Hiram the Craftsman

13 Now King Solomon sent and brought [a]Huram from Tyre. 14 (A)He was the son of a widow from the tribe of Naphtali, and (B)his father was a man of Tyre, a bronze worker; (C)he was filled with wisdom and understanding and skill in working with all kinds of bronze work. So he came to King Solomon and did all his work.

The Bronze Pillars for the Temple(D)

15 And he [b]cast (E)two pillars of bronze, each one eighteen cubits high, and a line of twelve cubits measured the circumference of each. 16 Then he made two capitals of cast bronze, to set on the tops of the pillars. The height of one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits. 17 He made a lattice network, with wreaths of chainwork, for the capitals which were on top of the pillars: seven chains for one capital and seven for the other capital. 18 So he made the pillars, and two rows of pomegranates above the network all around to cover the capitals that were on top; and thus he did for the other capital.

19 The capitals which were on top of the pillars in the hall were in the shape of lilies, four cubits. 20 The capitals on the two pillars also had pomegranates above, by the convex surface which was next to the network; and there were (F)two hundred such pomegranates in rows on each of the capitals all around.

21 (G)Then he set up the pillars by the vestibule of the temple; he set up the pillar on the right and called its name [c]Jachin, and he set up the pillar on the left and called its name [d]Boaz. 22 The tops of the pillars were in the shape of lilies. So the work of the pillars was finished.

The Sea and the Oxen

23 And he made (H)the Sea of cast bronze, ten cubits from one brim to the other; it was completely round. Its height was five cubits, and a line of thirty cubits measured its circumference.

24 Below its brim were ornamental buds encircling it all around, ten to a cubit, (I)all the way around the Sea. The ornamental buds were cast in two rows when it was cast. 25 It stood on (J)twelve oxen: three looking toward the north, three looking toward the west, three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; the Sea was set upon them, and all their back parts pointed inward. 26 It was a handbreadth thick; and its brim was shaped like the brim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It contained [e]two thousand baths.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 7:13 Heb. Hiram; cf. 2 Chr. 2:13, 14
  2. 1 Kings 7:15 fashioned
  3. 1 Kings 7:21 Lit. He Shall Establish
  4. 1 Kings 7:21 Lit. In It Is Strength
  5. 1 Kings 7:26 About 12,000 gallons; three thousand, 2 Chr. 4:5

Furnishings of the Temple(A)

40 (B)Huram[a] made the lavers and the shovels and the bowls. So Huram finished doing all the work that he was to do for King Solomon for the house of the Lord: 41 the two pillars, the two bowl-shaped capitals that were on top of the two pillars; the two (C)networks covering the two bowl-shaped capitals which were on top of the pillars; 42 (D)four hundred pomegranates for the two networks (two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowl-shaped capitals that were on top of the pillars); 43 the ten carts, and ten lavers on the carts; 44 one Sea, and twelve oxen under the Sea; 45 (E)the pots, the shovels, and the bowls.

All these articles which [b]Huram made for King Solomon for the house of the Lord were of burnished bronze. 46 (F)In the plain of Jordan the king had them cast in clay molds, between (G)Succoth and (H)Zaretan. 47 And Solomon did not weigh all the articles, because there were so many; the weight of the bronze was not (I)determined.

48 Thus Solomon had all the furnishings made for the house of the Lord: (J)the altar of gold, and (K)the table of gold on which was (L)the showbread; 49 the lampstands of pure gold, five on the right side and five on the left in front of the inner sanctuary, with the flowers and the lamps and the wick-trimmers of gold; 50 the basins, the trimmers, the bowls, the ladles, and the [c]censers of pure gold; and the hinges of gold, both for the doors of the inner room (the Most Holy Place) and for the doors of the main hall of the temple.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 7:40 Heb. Hiram; cf. 2 Chr. 2:13, 14
  2. 1 Kings 7:45 Heb. Hiram; cf. 2 Chr. 2:13, 14
  3. 1 Kings 7:50 firepans

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