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1 Kings 5-6
New International Version

Preparations for Building the Temple(A)

5 [a]When Hiram(B) king of Tyre heard that Solomon had been anointed king to succeed his father David, he sent his envoys to Solomon, because he had always been on friendly terms with David. 2 Solomon sent back this message to Hiram:

3 “You know that because of the wars(C) waged against my father David from all sides, he could not build(D) a temple for the Name of the Lord his God until the Lord put his enemies under his feet.(E) 4 But now the Lord my God has given me rest(F) on every side, and there is no adversary(G) or disaster. 5 I intend, therefore, to build a temple(H) for the Name of the Lord my God, as the Lord told my father David, when he said, ‘Your son whom I will put on the throne in your place will build the temple for my Name.’(I)

6 “So give orders that cedars(J) of Lebanon be cut for me. My men will work with yours, and I will pay you for your men whatever wages you set. You know that we have no one so skilled in felling timber as the Sidonians.”

7 When Hiram heard Solomon’s message, he was greatly pleased and said, “Praise be to the Lord(K) today, for he has given David a wise son to rule over this great nation.”

8 So Hiram sent word to Solomon:

“I have received the message you sent me and will do all you want in providing the cedar and juniper logs. 9 My men will haul them down from Lebanon to the Mediterranean Sea(L), and I will float them as rafts by sea to the place you specify. There I will separate them and you can take them away. And you are to grant my wish by providing food(M) for my royal household.”

10 In this way Hiram kept Solomon supplied with all the cedar and juniper logs he wanted, 11 and Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand cors[b] of wheat as food(N) for his household, in addition to twenty thousand baths[c][d] of pressed olive oil. Solomon continued to do this for Hiram year after year. 12 The Lord gave Solomon wisdom,(O) just as he had promised him. There were peaceful relations between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.(P)

13 King Solomon conscripted laborers(Q) from all Israel—thirty thousand men. 14 He sent them off to Lebanon in shifts of ten thousand a month, so that they spent one month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram(R) was in charge of the forced labor. 15 Solomon had seventy thousand carriers and eighty thousand stonecutters in the hills, 16 as well as thirty-three hundred[e] foremen(S) who supervised the project and directed the workers. 17 At the king’s command they removed from the quarry(T) large blocks of high-grade stone(U) to provide a foundation of dressed stone for the temple. 18 The craftsmen of Solomon and Hiram(V) and workers from Byblos(W) cut and prepared the timber and stone for the building of the temple.

Solomon Builds the Temple(X)

6 In the four hundred and eightieth[f] year after the Israelites came out of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, the second month,(Y) he began to build the temple of the Lord.(Z)

2 The temple(AA) that King Solomon built for the Lord was sixty cubits long, twenty wide and thirty high.[g] 3 The portico(AB) at the front of the main hall of the temple extended the width of the temple, that is twenty cubits,[h] and projected ten cubits[i] from the front of the temple. 4 He made narrow windows(AC) high up in the temple walls. 5 Against the walls of the main hall and inner sanctuary he built a structure around the building, in which there were side rooms.(AD) 6 The lowest floor was five cubits[j] wide, the middle floor six cubits[k] and the third floor seven.[l] He made offset ledges around the outside of the temple so that nothing would be inserted into the temple walls.

7 In building the temple, only blocks dressed(AE) at the quarry were used, and no hammer, chisel or any other iron tool(AF) was heard at the temple site while it was being built.

8 The entrance to the lowest[m] floor was on the south side of the temple; a stairway led up to the middle level and from there to the third. 9 So he built the temple and completed it, roofing it with beams and cedar(AG) planks. 10 And he built the side rooms all along the temple. The height of each was five cubits, and they were attached to the temple by beams of cedar.

11 The word of the Lord came(AH) to Solomon: 12 “As for this temple you are building, if you follow my decrees, observe my laws and keep all my commands(AI) and obey them, I will fulfill through you the promise(AJ) I gave to David your father. 13 And I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon(AK) my people Israel.”

14 So Solomon(AL) built the temple and completed(AM) it. 15 He lined its interior walls with cedar boards, paneling them from the floor of the temple to the ceiling,(AN) and covered the floor of the temple with planks of juniper.(AO) 16 He partitioned off twenty cubits at the rear of the temple with cedar boards from floor to ceiling to form within the temple an inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place.(AP) 17 The main hall in front of this room was forty cubits[n] long. 18 The inside of the temple was cedar,(AQ) carved with gourds and open flowers. Everything was cedar; no stone was to be seen.

19 He prepared the inner sanctuary(AR) within the temple to set the ark of the covenant(AS) of the Lord there. 20 The inner sanctuary(AT) was twenty cubits long, twenty wide and twenty high. He overlaid the inside with pure gold, and he also overlaid the altar of cedar.(AU) 21 Solomon covered 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 the whole interior with gold. He also overlaid with gold the altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary.

23 For the inner sanctuary he made a pair of cherubim(AV) out of olive wood, each ten cubits high. 24 One wing of the first cherub was five cubits long, and the other wing five cubits—ten cubits from wing tip to wing tip. 25 The second cherub also measured ten cubits, for the two cherubim were identical in size and shape. 26 The height of each cherub was ten cubits. 27 He placed the cherubim(AW) inside the innermost room of the temple, with their wings spread out. The wing of one cherub touched one wall, while the wing of the other touched the other wall, and their wings touched each other in the middle of the room. 28 He overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29 On the walls(AX) all around the temple, in both the inner and outer rooms, he carved cherubim,(AY) palm trees and open flowers. 30 He also covered the floors of both the inner and outer rooms of the temple with gold.

31 For the entrance to the inner sanctuary he made doors out of olive wood that were one fifth of the width of the sanctuary. 32 And on the two olive-wood doors(AZ) he carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid the cherubim and palm trees with hammered gold. 33 In the same way, for the entrance to the main hall he made doorframes out of olive wood that were one fourth of the width of the hall. 34 He also made two doors out of juniper wood, each having two leaves that turned in sockets. 35 He carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers on them and overlaid them with gold hammered evenly over the carvings.

36 And he built the inner courtyard(BA) of three courses(BB) of dressed stone and one course of trimmed cedar beams.

37 The foundation of the temple of the Lord was laid in the fourth year, in the month of Ziv. 38 In the eleventh year in the month of Bul, the eighth month, the temple was finished in all its details(BC) according to its specifications.(BD) He had spent seven years building it.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 5:1 In Hebrew texts 5:1-18 is numbered 5:15-32.
  2. 1 Kings 5:11 That is, probably about 3,600 tons or about 3,250 metric tons
  3. 1 Kings 5:11 Septuagint (see also 2 Chron. 2:10); Hebrew twenty cors
  4. 1 Kings 5:11 That is, about 120,000 gallons or about 440,000 liters
  5. 1 Kings 5:16 Hebrew; some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 2 Chron. 2:2,18) thirty-six hundred
  6. 1 Kings 6:1 Hebrew; Septuagint four hundred and fortieth
  7. 1 Kings 6:2 That is, about 90 feet long, 30 feet wide and 45 feet high or about 27 meters long, 9 meters wide and 14 meters high
  8. 1 Kings 6:3 That is, about 30 feet or about 9 meters; also in verses 16 and 20
  9. 1 Kings 6:3 That is, about 15 feet or about 4.5 meters; also in verses 23-26
  10. 1 Kings 6:6 That is, about 7 1/2 feet or about 2.3 meters; also in verses 10 and 24
  11. 1 Kings 6:6 That is, about 9 feet or about 2.7 meters
  12. 1 Kings 6:6 That is, about 11 feet or about 3.2 meters
  13. 1 Kings 6:8 Septuagint; Hebrew middle
  14. 1 Kings 6:17 That is, about 60 feet or about 18 meters
Listen to 1 Kings 5-6
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1 Kings 5-6
New King James Version

Solomon Prepares to Build the Temple(A)

5 Now (B)Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon, because he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, (C)for Hiram had always loved David. 2 Then (D)Solomon sent to Hiram, saying:

3 (E)You know how my father David could not build a house for the name of the Lord his God (F)because of the wars which were fought against him on every side, until the Lord put [a]his foes under the soles of his feet.

4 But now the Lord my God has given me (G)rest[b] on every side; there is neither adversary nor [c]evil occurrence.

5 (H)And behold, [d]I propose to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, (I)as the Lord spoke to my father David, saying, “Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, he shall build the house for My name.”

6 Now therefore, command that they cut down (J)cedars for me from Lebanon; and my servants will be with your servants, and I will pay you wages for your servants according to whatever you say. For you know there is none among us who has skill to cut timber like the Sidonians.

7 So it was, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly and said,

Blessed be the Lord this day, for He has given David a wise son over this great people!

8 Then Hiram sent to Solomon, saying:

I have considered the message which you sent me, and I will do all you desire concerning the cedar and cypress logs.

9 My servants shall bring them down (K)from Lebanon to the sea; I will float them in rafts by sea to the place you indicate to me, and will have them broken apart there; then you can take them away. And you shall fulfill my desire (L)by giving food for my household.

10 Then Hiram gave Solomon cedar and cypress logs according to all his desire. 11 (M)And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand [e]kors of wheat as food for his household, and [f]twenty kors of pressed oil. Thus Solomon gave to Hiram year by year.

12 So the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, (N)as He had promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty together.

13 Then King Solomon raised up a labor force out of all Israel; and the labor force was thirty thousand men. 14 And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month in shifts: they were one month in Lebanon and two months at home; (O)Adoniram was in charge of the labor force. 15 (P)Solomon had seventy thousand who carried burdens, and eighty thousand who quarried stone in the mountains, 16 besides three thousand [g]three hundred from the (Q)chiefs of Solomon’s deputies, who supervised the people who labored in the work. 17 And the king commanded them to quarry large stones, costly stones, and (R)hewn stones, to lay the foundation of the [h]temple. 18 So Solomon’s builders, Hiram’s builders, and the Gebalites quarried them; and they prepared timber and stones to build the [i]temple.

Solomon Builds the Temple(S)

6 And (T)it came to pass in the four hundred and [j]eightieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of [k]Ziv, which is the second month, (U)that he began to build the house of the Lord. 2 Now (V)the house which King Solomon built for the Lord, its length was sixty cubits, its width twenty, and its height thirty cubits. 3 The vestibule in front of the [l]sanctuary of the house was [m]twenty cubits long across the width of the house, and the width of [n]the vestibule extended [o]ten cubits from the front of the house. 4 And he made for the house (W)windows with beveled frames.

5 Against the wall of the [p]temple he built (X)chambers all around, against the walls of the temple, all around the sanctuary (Y)and the [q]inner sanctuary. Thus he made side chambers all around it. 6 The lowest chamber was five cubits wide, the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for he made narrow ledges around the outside of the temple, so that the support beams would not be fastened into the walls of the [r]temple. 7 And (Z)the temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built. 8 The doorway for the [s]middle story was on the right side of the temple. They went up by stairs to the middle story, and from the middle to the third.

9 (AA)So he built the [t]temple and finished it, and he paneled the temple with beams and boards of cedar. 10 And he built side chambers against the entire temple, each five cubits high; they were attached to the temple with cedar beams.

11 Then the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying: 12 “Concerning this [u]temple which you are building, (AB)if you walk in My statutes, execute My judgments, keep all My commandments, and walk in them, then I will perform My [v]word with you, (AC)which I spoke to your father David. 13 And (AD)I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not (AE)forsake My people Israel.”

14 So Solomon built the temple and finished it. 15 And he built the inside walls of the temple with cedar boards; from the floor of the temple to the ceiling he paneled the inside with wood; and he covered the floor of the temple with planks of cypress. 16 Then he built the twenty-cubit room at the rear of the temple, from floor to ceiling, with cedar boards; he built it inside as the inner sanctuary, as the (AF)Most Holy Place. 17 And in front of it the temple sanctuary was forty cubits long. 18 The inside of the temple was cedar, carved with ornamental buds and open flowers. All was cedar; there was no stone to be seen.

19 And he prepared the [w]inner sanctuary inside 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 it with pure gold, and overlaid the altar of cedar. 21 So Solomon overlaid the inside of the temple with pure gold. He stretched gold chains across the front of the inner sanctuary, and overlaid it with gold. 22 The whole temple he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the temple; also he overlaid with gold (AG)the entire altar that was by the inner sanctuary.

23 Inside the inner sanctuary (AH)he made two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits high. 24 One wing of the cherub was five cubits, and the other wing of the cherub five cubits: ten cubits from the tip of one wing to the tip of the other. 25 And the other cherub was ten cubits; both cherubim were of the same size and shape. 26 The height of one cherub was ten cubits, and so was the other cherub. 27 Then he set the cherubim inside the inner [x]room; and (AI)they stretched out the wings of the cherubim so that the wing of the one touched one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall. And their wings touched each other in the middle of the room. 28 Also he overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29 Then he carved all the walls of the temple all around, both the inner and outer sanctuaries, with carved (AJ)figures of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. 30 And the floor of the temple he overlaid with gold, both the inner and outer sanctuaries.

31 For the entrance of the inner sanctuary he made doors of olive wood; the lintel and doorposts were [y]one-fifth of the wall. 32 The two doors were of olive wood; and he carved on them figures of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he spread gold on the cherubim and on the palm trees. 33 So for the door of the [z]sanctuary he also made doorposts of olive wood, [aa]one-fourth of the wall. 34 And the two doors were of cypress wood; (AK)two panels comprised one folding door, and two panels comprised the other folding door. 35 Then he carved cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers on them, and overlaid them with gold applied evenly on the carved work.

36 And he built the (AL)inner court with three rows of hewn stone and a row of cedar beams.

37 (AM)In the fourth year the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid, in the month of [ab]Ziv. 38 And in the eleventh year, in the month of [ac]Bul, which is the eighth month, the house was finished in all its details and according to all its plans. So he was (AN)seven years in building it.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 5:3 Lit. them
  2. 1 Kings 5:4 peace
  3. 1 Kings 5:4 misfortune
  4. 1 Kings 5:5 Lit. I am saying
  5. 1 Kings 5:11 Each about 5 bushels
  6. 1 Kings 5:11 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX, Syr. twenty thousand kors
  7. 1 Kings 5:16 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX six hundred
  8. 1 Kings 5:17 Lit. house
  9. 1 Kings 5:18 Lit. house
  10. 1 Kings 6:1 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX fortieth
  11. 1 Kings 6:1 Or Ayyar, April or May
  12. 1 Kings 6:3 Heb. heykal; here the main room of the temple; elsewhere called the holy place, Ex. 26:33; Ezek. 41:1
  13. 1 Kings 6:3 About 30 feet
  14. 1 Kings 6:3 Lit. it
  15. 1 Kings 6:3 About 15 feet
  16. 1 Kings 6:5 Lit. house
  17. 1 Kings 6:5 Heb. debir; here the inner room of the temple; elsewhere called the Most Holy Place, v. 16
  18. 1 Kings 6:6 Lit. house
  19. 1 Kings 6:8 So with MT, Vg.; LXX upper story; Tg. ground story
  20. 1 Kings 6:9 Lit. house
  21. 1 Kings 6:12 Lit. house
  22. 1 Kings 6:12 promise
  23. 1 Kings 6:19 The Most Holy Place
  24. 1 Kings 6:27 Lit. house
  25. 1 Kings 6:31 Or five-sided
  26. 1 Kings 6:33 temple
  27. 1 Kings 6:33 Or four-sided
  28. 1 Kings 6:37 Or Ayyar, April or May
  29. 1 Kings 6:38 Or Heshvan, October or November
Listen to 1 Kings 5-6
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1 Kings 5-6
New American Standard Bible

Alliance with King Hiram

5 [a](A)Now Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, for (B)Hiram had [b]always been a friend of David. 2 Then (C)Solomon sent word to Hiram, saying, 3 “You know that (D)David my father was unable to build a house for the name of the Lord his God because of the wars which surrounded him, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet. 4 But now (E)the Lord my God has secured me rest on every side; there is neither adversary nor [c]misfortune. 5 So behold, (F)I [d]intend to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, just as the Lord spoke to David my father, saying, ‘Your son, whom I will put on your throne in your place, he will build the house for My name.’ 6 Now then, issue orders that they cut (G)cedars from Lebanon for me, and my servants will be with your servants; and I will give you wages for your servants in accordance with all that you say, for you yourself know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians.”

7 When Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he greatly rejoiced; and he said, “Blessed be the Lord today, who has given to David a wise son over this great people.” 8 So Hiram sent word to Solomon, saying, “I have heard the message which you sent me; I will do everything you wish concerning the cedar and juniper timber. 9 My servants will bring the timbers down from Lebanon to the sea; and I will have them made into rafts to go by sea (H)to the place where you [e]direct me, and I will have them broken up there, and you will carry them away. Then (I)you shall do what I wish, by giving food to my household.” 10 So [f]Hiram [g]gave Solomon all that he wished of the cedar and juniper timber. 11 (J)Solomon then gave [h]Hiram [i]twenty thousand kors of wheat as food for his household, and [j]twenty kors of pure oil; this is what Solomon would give Hiram year by year. 12 And (K)the Lord gave wisdom to Solomon, just as He [k]promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a covenant.

Conscription of Laborers

13 Now (L)King Solomon [l]conscripted forced laborers from all Israel; and the forced laborers numbered thirty thousand men. 14 Then he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month in shifts; they were in Lebanon for a month, and two months at home. And (M)Adoniram was in charge of the forced laborers. 15 Now (N)Solomon had seventy thousand porters, and eighty thousand stonemasons in the mountains, 16 (O)besides Solomon’s 3,300 chief deputies who were in charge of the [m]project and ruled over the people who were doing the work. 17 Then (P)the king issued orders, and they quarried large stones, valuable stones, to lay the foundation of the house with cut stones. 18 So Solomon’s builders and [n]Hiram’s builders and (Q)the Gebalites [o]cut the stones, and they prepared the timbers and the stones to build the house.

The Building of the Temple

6 (R)Now it came about in the four hundred and eightieth year after the sons of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, that is, the second month, that he [p]began to build the house of the Lord. 2 And the house which King Solomon built for the Lord was [q]sixty cubits in its length, and twenty cubits in its width, and its height was thirty cubits. 3 The porch in front of the main room of the house was [r]twenty cubits in [s]length, [t]corresponding to the width of the house, and its width along the front of the house was ten cubits. 4 Also for the house (S)he made windows with artistic frames. 5 (T)Against the wall of the house he built stories encompassing the walls of the house around both the main room and the [u](U)inner sanctuary; so he made (V)side chambers all around. 6 The lowest story was [v]five cubits wide, the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for on the outside he [w]made offsets in the wall of the house all around so that the beams would not [x]be inserted into the walls of the house.

7 (W)The house, while it was being built, was built of stone finished at the quarry, and neither hammer, nor axe, nor any iron tool was heard in the house while it was being built.

8 The doorway for the [y]lowest side chamber was on the right side of the house; and they would go up by a winding staircase to the middle story, and from the middle to the third. 9 So (X)he built the house and finished it; and he covered the house with beams and [z]planks of cedar. 10 He also built the stories against the whole house, each [aa]five cubits high; and they [ab]were attached to the house with timbers of cedar.

11 Now the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying, 12 “As for this house which you are building, (Y)if you will walk in My statutes and execute My ordinances and keep all My commandments by walking in them, then I will fulfill My word with you which I spoke to David your father. 13 And (Z)I will dwell among the sons of Israel, and (AA)will not abandon My people Israel.”

14 (AB)So Solomon built the house and finished it. 15 He (AC)built the walls of the house on the inside with boards of cedar; from the floor of the house to the [ac]ceiling he paneled the walls on the inside with wood, and he paneled the floor of the house with boards of juniper. 16 (AD)He also built [ad]twenty cubits on the rear part of the house with boards of cedar from the floor to the [ae]ceiling; he built them for it on the inside as an inner sanctuary, as (AE)the Most Holy Place. 17 The house, that is, the main room in front of the inner sanctuary, was [af]forty cubits long. 18 There was cedar inside the house, carved in the shape of (AF)gourds and open flowers; everything was cedar, there was no stone visible. 19 Then he prepared an inner sanctuary inside the house in order to place there the ark of the covenant of the Lord. 20 [ag]The inner sanctuary was twenty cubits in length, twenty cubits in width, and twenty cubits in height; and he overlaid it with pure gold. He also paneled the altar with cedar. 21 So Solomon overlaid the inside of the house with pure gold. And he extended chains of gold across the front of the inner sanctuary, and he overlaid it with gold. 22 He overlaid the entire house with gold, until all the house was finished. Also (AG)the entire altar which was by the inner sanctuary he overlaid with gold.

23 (AH)And in the inner sanctuary he made two [ah]cherubim of olive wood, each [ai]ten cubits high. 24 The one wing of the first cherub was five cubits, and the other wing of the first cherub was five cubits; from the end of one wing to the end of the other wing were ten cubits. 25 The second cherub was ten cubits; both of the cherubim were of the same measurement and the same form. 26 The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was that of the other cherub. 27 He placed the cherubim in the midst of the inner house, and (AI)the wings of the cherubim spread out so that the wing of the one was touching the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub was touching the other wall. And their wings were touching [aj]end to [ak]end in the center of the house. 28 He also overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29 Then he carved all the surrounding walls of the house with engravings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, for the inner and outer sanctuaries. 30 And he overlaid the floor of the house with gold, for the inner and outer sanctuaries.

31 And for the entrance of the inner sanctuary he made doors of olive wood, the lintel, and five-sided doorposts. 32 So he made two doors of olive wood, and he carved on them carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he overlaid the cherubim and the palm trees with gold.

33 So too he made for the entrance of the main room four-sided doorposts of olive wood, 34 and (AJ)two doors of juniper wood; the two leaves of the one door turned on pivots, and the two [al]leaves of the other door turned on pivots. 35 He carved on it cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers; and he overlaid them with gold plated on the carved work. 36 And (AK)he built the inner courtyard with three rows of cut stone and a row of cedar beams.

37 (AL)In the fourth year the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid, in the month of Ziv. 38 And in the eleventh year, in the month of Bul, that is, the eighth month, the house was finished in all its parts and in accordance with all its plans. So he was seven years in building it.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 5:1 Ch 5:15 in Heb
  2. 1 Kings 5:1 Lit all the days
  3. 1 Kings 5:4 Lit evil occurrence
  4. 1 Kings 5:5 Lit say
  5. 1 Kings 5:9 Lit send to me
  6. 1 Kings 5:10 Heb Hirom
  7. 1 Kings 5:10 Lit was giving
  8. 1 Kings 5:11 In 2 Chr 2:3, Huram
  9. 1 Kings 5:11 About 154,000 cubic feet or 4,360 cubic meters
  10. 1 Kings 5:11 About 154 cubic feet or 4.4 cubic meters
  11. 1 Kings 5:12 Lit spoke to
  12. 1 Kings 5:13 Lit raised up
  13. 1 Kings 5:16 Lit work
  14. 1 Kings 5:18 Heb Hirom’s
  15. 1 Kings 5:18 Or chiseled
  16. 1 Kings 6:1 Lit built
  17. 1 Kings 6:2 About 90 ft. long, 30 ft. wide, and 45 ft. high or 27 m, 9 m, and 14 m
  18. 1 Kings 6:3 About 30 ft. long and 15 ft. deep or 9 m and 4.6 m
  19. 1 Kings 6:3 Lit its length
  20. 1 Kings 6:3 Lit on the face of
  21. 1 Kings 6:5 I.e., Most Holy Place
  22. 1 Kings 6:6 About 7.5 ft. wide, 9 ft. wide, and 11 ft. wide or 2.3 m, 2.7 m, and 3.3 m
  23. 1 Kings 6:6 Lit gave
  24. 1 Kings 6:6 Lit take hold
  25. 1 Kings 6:8 As in LXX and ancient versions; MT middle
  26. 1 Kings 6:9 Or rows
  27. 1 Kings 6:10 About 7.5 ft. or 2.3 m
  28. 1 Kings 6:10 Lit took hold
  29. 1 Kings 6:15 Lit walls of the ceiling
  30. 1 Kings 6:16 About 30 ft. or 9 m
  31. 1 Kings 6:16 Lit walls
  32. 1 Kings 6:17 About 60 ft. or 18 m
  33. 1 Kings 6:20 Lit Before the
  34. 1 Kings 6:23 Heb plural of cherub
  35. 1 Kings 6:23 About 15 ft. or 4.6 m
  36. 1 Kings 6:27 Lit wing
  37. 1 Kings 6:27 Lit wing
  38. 1 Kings 6:34 As in LXX; MT curtains
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1 Kings 5-6
New Living Translation

Preparations for Building the Temple

5 [a]King Hiram of Tyre had always been a loyal friend of David. When Hiram learned that David’s son Solomon was the new king of Israel, he sent ambassadors to congratulate him.

2 Then Solomon sent this message back to Hiram:

3 “You know that my father, David, was not able to build a Temple to honor the name of the Lord his God because of the many wars waged against him by surrounding nations. He could not build until the Lord gave him victory over all his enemies. 4 But now the Lord my God has given me peace on every side; I have no enemies, and all is well. 5 So I am planning to build a Temple to honor the name of the Lord my God, just as he had instructed my father, David. For the Lord told him, ‘Your son, whom I will place on your throne, will build the Temple to honor my name.’

6 “Therefore, please command that cedars from Lebanon be cut for me. Let my men work alongside yours, and I will pay your men whatever wages you ask. As you know, there is no one among us who can cut timber like you Sidonians!”

7 When Hiram received Solomon’s message, he was very pleased and said, “Praise the Lord today for giving David a wise son to be king of the great nation of Israel.” 8 Then he sent this reply to Solomon:

“I have received your message, and I will supply all the cedar and cypress timber you need. 9 My servants will bring the logs from the Lebanon mountains to the Mediterranean Sea[b] and make them into rafts and float them along the coast to whatever place you choose. Then we will break the rafts apart so you can carry the logs away. You can pay me by supplying me with food for my household.”

10 So Hiram supplied as much cedar and cypress timber as Solomon desired. 11 In return, Solomon sent him an annual payment of 100,000 bushels[c] of wheat for his household and 110,000 gallons[d] of pure olive oil. 12 So the Lord gave wisdom to Solomon, just as he had promised. And Hiram and Solomon made a formal alliance of peace.

13 Then King Solomon conscripted a labor force of 30,000 men from all Israel. 14 He sent them to Lebanon in shifts, 10,000 every month, so that each man would be one month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram was in charge of this labor force. 15 Solomon also had 70,000 common laborers, 80,000 quarry workers in the hill country, 16 and 3,600[e] foremen to supervise the work. 17 At the king’s command, they quarried large blocks of high-quality stone and shaped them to make the foundation of the Temple. 18 Men from the city of Gebal helped Solomon’s and Hiram’s builders prepare the timber and stone for the Temple.

Solomon Builds the Temple

6 It was in midspring, in the month of Ziv,[f] during the fourth year of Solomon’s reign, that he began to construct the Temple of the Lord. This was 480 years after the people of Israel were rescued from their slavery in the land of Egypt.

2 The Temple that King Solomon built for the Lord was 90 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 45 feet high.[g] 3 The entry room at the front of the Temple was 30 feet[h] wide, running across the entire width of the Temple. It projected outward 15 feet[i] from the front of the Temple. 4 Solomon also made narrow recessed windows throughout the Temple.

5 He built a complex of rooms against the outer walls of the Temple, all the way around the sides and rear of the building. 6 The complex was three stories high, the bottom floor being 7 1⁄2 feet wide, the second floor 9 feet wide, and the top floor 10 1⁄2 feet wide.[j] The rooms were connected to the walls of the Temple by beams resting on ledges built out from the wall. So the beams were not inserted into the walls themselves.

7 The stones used in the construction of the Temple were finished at the quarry, so there was no sound of hammer, ax, or any other iron tool at the building site.

8 The entrance to the bottom floor[k] was on the south side of the Temple. There were winding stairs going up to the second floor, and another flight of stairs between the second and third floors. 9 After completing the Temple structure, Solomon put in a ceiling made of cedar beams and planks. 10 As already stated, he built a complex of rooms along the sides of the building, attached to the Temple walls by cedar timbers. Each story of the complex was 7 1⁄2 feet[l] high.

11 Then the Lord gave this message to Solomon: 12 “Concerning this Temple you are building, if you keep all my decrees and regulations and obey all my commands, I will fulfill through you the promise I made to your father, David. 13 I will live among the Israelites and will never abandon my people Israel.”

The Temple’s Interior

14 So Solomon finished building the Temple. 15 The entire inside, from floor to ceiling, was paneled with wood. He paneled the walls and ceilings with cedar, and he used planks of cypress for the floors. 16 He partitioned off an inner sanctuary—the Most Holy Place—at the far end of the Temple. It was 30 feet deep and was paneled with cedar from floor to ceiling. 17 The main room of the Temple, outside the Most Holy Place, was 60 feet[m] long. 18 Cedar paneling completely covered the stone walls throughout the Temple, and the paneling was decorated with carvings of gourds and open flowers.

19 He prepared the inner sanctuary at the far end of the Temple, where the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant would be placed. 20 This inner sanctuary was 30 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 30 feet high. He overlaid the inside with solid gold. He also overlaid the altar made of cedar.[n] 21 Then Solomon overlaid the rest of the Temple’s interior with solid gold, and he made gold chains to protect the entrance[o] to the Most Holy Place. 22 So he finished overlaying the entire Temple with gold, including the altar that belonged to the Most Holy Place.

23 He made two cherubim of wild olive[p] wood, each 15 feet[q] tall, and placed them in the inner sanctuary. 24 The wingspan of each of the cherubim was 15 feet, each wing being 7 1⁄2 feet[r] long. 25 The two cherubim were identical in shape and size; 26 each was 15 feet tall. 27 He placed them side by side in the inner sanctuary of the Temple. Their outspread wings reached from wall to wall, while their inner wings touched at the center of the room. 28 He overlaid the two cherubim with gold.

29 He decorated all the walls of the inner sanctuary and the main room with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. 30 He overlaid the floor in both rooms with gold.

31 For the entrance to the inner sanctuary, he made double doors of wild olive wood with five-sided doorposts.[s] 32 These double doors were decorated with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. The doors, including the decorations of cherubim and palm trees, were overlaid with gold.

33 Then he made four-sided doorposts of wild olive wood for the entrance to the Temple. 34 There were two folding doors of cypress wood, and each door was hinged to fold back upon itself. 35 These doors were decorated with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers—all overlaid evenly with gold.

36 The walls of the inner courtyard were built so that there was one layer of cedar beams between every three layers of finished stone.

37 The foundation of the Lord’s Temple was laid in midspring, in the month of Ziv,[t] during the fourth year of Solomon’s reign. 38 The entire building was completed in every detail by midautumn, in the month of Bul,[u] during the eleventh year of his reign. So it took seven years to build the Temple.

Footnotes

  1. 5:1 Verses 5:1-18 are numbered 5:15-32 in Hebrew text.
  2. 5:9 Hebrew the sea.
  3. 5:11a Hebrew 20,000 cors [4,400 kiloliters].
  4. 5:11b As in Greek version, which reads 20,000 baths [420 kiloliters] (see also 2 Chr 2:10); Hebrew reads 20 cors, about 1,000 gallons or 4.4 kiloliters in volume.
  5. 5:16 As in some Greek manuscripts (see also 2 Chr 2:2, 18); Hebrew reads 3,300.
  6. 6:1 Hebrew It was in the month of Ziv, which is the second month. This month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar usually occurs within the months of April and May.
  7. 6:2 Hebrew 60 cubits [27.6 meters] long, 20 cubits [9.2 meters] wide, and 30 cubits [13.8 meters] high.
  8. 6:3a Hebrew 20 cubits [9.2 meters]; also in 6:16, 20.
  9. 6:3b Hebrew 10 cubits [4.6 meters].
  10. 6:6 Hebrew the bottom floor being 5 cubits [2.3 meters] wide, the second floor 6 cubits [2.8 meters] wide, and the top floor 7 cubits [3.2 meters] wide.
  11. 6:8 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads middle floor.
  12. 6:10 Hebrew 5 cubits [2.3 meters].
  13. 6:17 Hebrew 40 cubits [18.4 meters].
  14. 6:20 Or overlaid the altar with cedar. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  15. 6:21 Or to draw curtains across. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  16. 6:23a Or pine; Hebrew reads oil tree; also in 6:31, 33.
  17. 6:23b Hebrew 10 cubits [4.6 meters]; also in 6:24, 26.
  18. 6:24 Hebrew 5 cubits [2.3 meters].
  19. 6:31 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  20. 6:37 Hebrew was laid in the month of Ziv. This month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar usually occurs within the months of April and May.
  21. 6:38 Hebrew by the month of Bul, which is the eighth month. This month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar usually occurs within the months of October and November.
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1 Kings 5-6
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5 1-4 Hiram king of Tyre sent ambassadors to Solomon when he heard that he had been crowned king in David’s place. Hiram had loved David his whole life. Solomon responded, saying, “You know that David my father was not able to build a temple in honor of God because of the wars he had to fight on all sides, until God finally put them down. But now God has provided peace all around—no one against us, nothing at odds with us.

5-6 “Now here is what I want to do: Build a temple in honor of God, my God, following the promise that God gave to David my father, namely, ‘Your son whom I will provide to succeed you as king, he will build a house in my honor.’ And here is how you can help: Give orders for cedars to be cut from the Lebanon forest; my loggers will work alongside yours and I’ll pay your men whatever wage you set. We both know that there is no one like you Sidonians for cutting timber.”

7 When Hiram got Solomon’s message, he was delighted, exclaiming, “Blessed be God for giving David such a wise son to rule this flourishing people!”

8-9 Then he sent this message to Solomon: “I received your request for the cedars and cypresses. It’s as good as done—your wish is my command. My lumberjacks will haul the timbers from the Lebanon forest to the sea, assemble them into log rafts, float them to the place you set, then have them disassembled for you to haul away. All I want from you is that you feed my crew.”

10-12 In this way Hiram supplied all the cedar and cypress timber that Solomon wanted. In his turn, Solomon gave Hiram 125,000 bushels of wheat and 115,000 gallons of virgin olive oil. He did this every year. And God, for his part, gave Solomon wisdom, just as he had promised. The healthy peace between Hiram and Solomon was formalized by a treaty.

The Temple Work Begins

13-18 King Solomon raised a workforce of thirty thousand men from all over Israel. He sent them in shifts of ten thousand each month to the Lebanon forest; they would work a month in Lebanon and then be at home two months. Adoniram was in charge of the work crew. Solomon also had seventy thousand unskilled workers and another eighty thousand stonecutters up in the hills—plus thirty-three hundred foremen managing the project and supervising the work crews. Following the king’s orders, they quarried huge blocks of the best stone—dressed stone for the foundation of The Temple. Solomon and Hiram’s construction workers, assisted by the men of Gebal, cut and prepared the timber and stone for building The Temple.

6 1-6 Four hundred and eighty years after the Israelites came out of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s rule over Israel, in the month of Ziv, the second month, Solomon started building The Temple of God. The Temple that King Solomon built to God was ninety feet long, thirty feet wide, and forty-five feet high. There was a porch across the thirty-foot width of The Temple that extended out fifteen feet. Within The Temple he made narrow, deep-silled windows. Against the outside walls he built a supporting structure in which there were smaller rooms: The lower floor was seven and a half feet wide, the middle floor nine feet, and the third floor ten and a half feet. He had projecting ledges built into the outside Temple walls to support the buttressing beams.

7 The stone blocks for the building of The Temple were all dressed at the quarry so that the building site itself was reverently quiet—no noise from hammers and chisels and other iron tools.

8-10 The entrance to the ground floor was at the south end of The Temple; stairs led to the second floor and then to the third. Solomon built and completed The Temple, finishing it off with roof beams and planks of cedar. The supporting structure along the outside walls was attached to The Temple with cedar beams and the rooms in it were seven and a half feet tall.

11-13 The word of God came to Solomon saying, “About this Temple you are building—what’s important is that you live the way I’ve set out for you and do what I tell you, following my instructions carefully and obediently. Then I’ll complete in you the promise I made to David your father. I’ll personally take up my residence among the Israelites—I won’t desert my people Israel.”

14-18 Solomon built and completed The Temple. He paneled the interior walls from floor to ceiling with cedar planks; for flooring he used cypress. The thirty feet at the rear of The Temple he made into an Inner Sanctuary, cedar planks from floor to ceiling—the Holy of Holies. The Main Sanctuary area in front was sixty feet long. The entire interior of The Temple was cedar, with carvings of fruits and flowers. All cedar—none of the stone was exposed.

19-22 The Inner Sanctuary within The Temple was for housing the Chest of the Covenant of God. This Inner Sanctuary was a cube, thirty feet each way, all plated with gold. The Altar of cedar was also gold-plated. Everywhere you looked there was pure gold: gold chains strung in front of the gold-plated Inner Sanctuary—gold everywhere—walls, ceiling, floor, and Altar. Dazzling!

23-28 Then he made two cherubim, gigantic angel-like figures, from olivewood. Each was fifteen feet tall. The outstretched wings of the cherubim (they were identical in size and shape) measured another fifteen feet. He placed the two cherubim, their wings spread, in the Inner Sanctuary. The combined wingspread stretched the width of the room, the wing of one cherub touched one wall, the wing of the other the other wall, and the wings touched in the middle. The cherubim were gold-plated.

29-30 He then carved engravings of cherubim, palm trees, and flower blossoms on all the walls of both the Inner and the Main Sanctuary. And all the floors of both inner and outer rooms were gold-plated.

31-32 He constructed doors of olivewood for the entrance to the Inner Sanctuary; the lintel and doorposts were five-sided. The doors were also carved with cherubim, palm trees, and flowers, and then covered with gold leaf.

33-35 Similarly, he built the entrance to the Main Sanctuary using olivewood for the doorposts but these doorposts were four-sided. The doors were of cypress, split into two panels, each panel swinging separately. These also were carved with cherubim, palm trees, and flowers, and plated with finely hammered gold leaf.

36 He built the inner court with three courses of dressed stones topped with a course of planed cedar timbers.

37-38 The foundation for God’s Temple was laid in the fourth year in the month of Ziv. It was completed in the eleventh year in the month of Bul (the eighth month) down to the last detail, just as planned. It took Solomon seven years to build it.

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