2 Chronicles 4
Expanded Bible
4 He made a bronze altar ·thirty feet [L twenty cubits] long, ·thirty feet [L twenty cubits] wide, and ·fifteen feet [L ten cubits] tall. 2 Then he made from ·bronze [cast metal] a large round ·bowl [basin], which was called the Sea [C symbol of chaos subdued; 1 Kin. 7:23]. It was ·forty-five feet [L thirty cubits] ·around [in circumference], ·fifteen feet [L ten cubits] ·across [from rim to rim], and ·seven and one-half feet [L five cubits] ·deep [high]. 3 There were ·carvings [figures; images] of ·bulls [oxen] under the rim of the bowl—ten ·bulls [oxen] every ·eighteen inches [L cubit]. They were in two rows and were ·made [cast] in one piece with the bowl.
4 The bowl rested on the backs of twelve bronze ·bulls [oxen] ·that faced outward from the center of the bowl [L all their hindquarters were toward the inside]. Three ·bulls [oxen] faced north, three faced west, three faced south, and three faced east. 5 The sides of the bowl were ·four inches [four fingers; L a handbreadth] thick, and it held ·about seventeen thousand five hundred gallons [L three thousand baths]. The rim of the bowl was like the rim of a cup ·or like [and resembled] a lily blossom.
6 He made ten ·smaller bowls [basins] and put five on the ·south [L right] side and five on the ·north [L left]. They were for ·washing [rinsing] the ·animals [or utensils; L things] for the burnt offerings [Lev. 1:1–17], but the ·large bowl [L Sea; v. 2] was for the priests to wash in.
7 He ·made [cast] ten lampstands of gold, ·following the plans [according to the specifications]. He put them in the Temple, five on the ·south [L right] side and five on the ·north [L left].
8 He made ten tables and put them in the Temple, five on the ·south [L right] side and five on the ·north [L left]. And he used gold to ·make [mold] a hundred other ·bowls [basins].
9 He also made the priests’ courtyard and the large courtyard. He made the doors that opened to the courtyard and ·covered [overlaid] them with bronze. 10 Then he put the large ·bowl [basin; C the Sea] on the right side toward the southeast corner.
11 Huram also made ·bowls [pots; pails; washbasins], shovels, and ·small [or sprinkling] bowls. So he finished his work for King Solomon on the ·Temple [L house] of God:
12 two pillars;
two ·large bowls for the [bowl-shaped] capitals on top of the pillars;
two ·nets [networks of interwoven chains] to cover the two ·large bowls for the [bowl-shaped] capitals on top of the pillars;
13 four hundred pomegranates for the ·two nets [chains] (there were two rows of pomegranates for each ·net [chain] covering the ·bowls for the [bowl-shaped] capitals on top of the pillars);
14 the ·stands [water carts] with a ·bowl [basin] on each stand;
15 the large ·bowl [basin] with twelve ·bulls [oxen] under it;
16 the ·pots [pails; ash buckets], shovels, ·forks [meat hooks], and all the ·things to go with them [related articles/utensils].
All the things that Huram-Abi made for King Solomon for the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord were made of ·polished [burnished] bronze. 17 The king had these things ·poured [cast] into clay molds that were made in the plain of the Jordan River between Succoth and Zarethan. 18 Solomon had so many things made that the total weight of all the bronze ·was never known [could not be/was not calculated].
19 Solomon also made all the ·things [furnishings] for God’s ·Temple [L house]: the golden altar; tables which held the bread ·that shows God’s people are in his presence [L of Presence; Ex. 25:23–30]; 20 the lampstands and their lamps of ·pure [solid] gold, to burn in front of the ·Most Holy Place [inner sanctuary] as ·planned [prescribed; specified]; 21 the flowers, lamps, and tongs of pure gold; 22 the pure gold ·wick trimmers [lamp snuffers], small bowls, pans, and dishes ·used to carry coals [and incense burners/censers], the gold doors for the ·Temple [L house], and the inside doors of the ·Most Holy Place [T Holy of Holies] and of the ·main room [main hall; nave].
2 Chronicles 4
Good News Translation
Equipment for the Temple(A)
4 (B)King Solomon had a bronze altar made, which was 30 feet square and 15 feet high. 2 He also made a round tank of bronze, 7½ feet deep, 15 feet in diameter, and 45 feet in circumference. 3 All around the outer edge of the rim of the tank[a] were two rows of decorations, one above the other. The decorations were in the shape of bulls, which had been cast all in one piece with the rest of the tank. 4 The tank rested on the backs of twelve bronze bulls that faced outward, three facing in each direction. 5 The sides of the tank were 3 inches thick. Its rim was like the rim of a cup, curving outward like the petals of a flower. The tank held about 15,000 gallons. 6 (C)They also made ten basins, five to be placed on the south side of the Temple and five on the north side. They were to be used to rinse the parts of the animals that were burned as sacrifices. The water in the large tank was for the priests to use for washing.
7-8 (D)They made ten gold lampstands according to the usual pattern, and ten tables, and placed them in the main room of the Temple, five lampstands and five tables on each side. They also made a hundred gold bowls.
9 They made an inner courtyard for the priests, and also an outer courtyard. The doors in the gates between the courtyards were covered with bronze. 10 The tank was placed near the southeast corner of the Temple.
11-16 Huram also made pots, shovels, and bowls. He completed all the objects that he had promised King Solomon he would make for the Temple:
The two columns
The two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the columns
The design of interwoven chains on each capital
The 400 bronze pomegranates arranged in two rows around the design of each capital
The ten[b] carts
The ten basins
The tank
The twelve bulls supporting the tank
The pots, shovels, and forks
Huram the master metalworker made all these objects[c] out of polished bronze, as King Solomon had commanded, for use in the Temple of the Lord.
17 The king had them all made in the foundry between Sukkoth and Zeredah[d] in the Jordan Valley. 18 So many objects were made that no one determined the total weight of the bronze used.
19 King Solomon also had gold furnishings made for the Temple: the altar and the tables for the bread offered to God; 20 the lampstands and the lamps of fine gold that were to burn in front of the Most Holy Place, according to plan; 21 the flower decorations, the lamps, and the tongs; 22 the lamp snuffers, the bowls, the dishes for incense, and the pans used for carrying live coals. All these objects were made of pure gold. The outer doors of the Temple and the doors to the Most Holy Place were overlaid with gold.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 4:3 Probable text All around … tank; Hebrew unclear.
- 2 Chronicles 4:11 Probable text (see 1 K 7.40-45) ten; Hebrew he made.
- 2 Chronicles 4:11 One ancient translation all these objects; Hebrew all their objects.
- 2 Chronicles 4:17 (see Zarethan 1 K 7.46).
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Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
