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1 Kings 7
Expanded Bible

Solomon’s Palace

7 King Solomon also built a ·palace [L house] for himself; it took him thirteen years to finish it. 2 ·Built of cedars from [He built the House/Palace of] the Forest of Lebanon, it was ·one hundred fifty feet [L one hundred cubits] long, ·seventy-five feet [L fifty cubits] wide, and ·forty-five feet [L thirty cubits] high. It had four rows of cedar columns which supported the cedar beams. 3 There were forty-five beams on the roof, with fifteen beams in each row, and the ceiling was ·covered [paneled] with cedar above the beams. 4 Windows were placed in three rows facing each other. 5 All the doors ·were square [had rectangular frames], and the three ·doors [or windows] at each end faced each other.

6 Solomon also built the ·porch that had pillars [Hall of Pillars; Colonnade]. This porch was ·seventy-five feet [L fifty cubits] long and ·forty-five feet [L thirty cubits] wide. Along the front of the porch was a ·roof [cornice; canopy] supported by pillars.

7 Solomon also built a throne room where he ·judged people [dispensed justice/judgment; decided legal matters], called the Hall of ·Justice [or Judgment]. This room was ·covered [paneled] with cedar from floor to ·ceiling [beams; rafters; or floor]. 8 The ·palace [L house] where Solomon lived was built like the Hall of Justice, and it was behind this hall. Solomon also built the same kind of ·palace [L house] for his wife, who was the daughter of ·the king of Egypt [L Pharaoh].

9 All these buildings were made with blocks of ·fine [costly, high-grade] stone. First they were ·carefully cut [cut to measure/size]. Then they were trimmed with a saw in the front and back. These fine stones went from the foundations of the buildings to the ·top of the walls [eaves; coping]. ·Even the courtyard was made with blocks of stone […and all the way to the courtyard]. 10 The foundations were made with large blocks of ·fine [costly; high-grade] stone, some as long as ·fifteen feet [L ten cubits]. Others were ·twelve feet [L eight cubits] long. 11 On top of these foundation stones were other blocks of ·fine [costly; high-grade] stone and cedar beams [cut to measure/size]. 12 The ·palace courtyard [great court], the courtyard inside the ·Temple [L house], and the porch of the ·Temple [L house] were surrounded by walls. All of these walls had three ·rows [layers] of stone blocks ·and one row [for each layer] of cedar beams.

The Temple Is Completed Inside(A)

13 King Solomon sent to Tyre and had ·Huram [L Hiram; C a variant spelling of Huram (2 Chr. 2:13; 4:11); this craftsman is to be distinguished from the king of the same name (5:1)] brought to him. 14 ·Huram’s mother was [L He was the son of] a widow from the tribe of Naphtali. His father was from Tyre and had been ·skilled in making things from [a craftsman/artisan in] bronze. ·Huram [L He] was also very skilled and ·experienced [knowledgeable; wise] in bronze work. So he came to King Solomon and did all ·the bronze [his] work.

15 He made two bronze pillars, each one ·twenty-seven feet [L eighteen cubits] tall and ·eighteen feet [L twelve cubits] ·around [in circumference]. 16 He also made two bronze capitals that were ·seven and one-half feet [L five cubits] tall, and he put them on top of the pillars. 17 Then he made a net of seven ·chains [sets of filigree/latticework] for each capital, which covered the capitals on top of the two pillars. 18 He made two rows of bronze pomegranates to go ·on [around] the nets. These covered the capitals at the top of the pillars. 19 The capitals on top of the pillars in the porch were shaped like lilies, and they were ·six feet [L four cubits] tall. 20 The capitals were on top of both pillars, above the ·bowl-shaped [round] section and next to the nets. At that place there were two hundred pomegranates in rows all around the capitals. 21 ·Huram [L He] put these two bronze pillars at the ·porch [portico; entrance] of the ·Temple [L house]. He named the ·south [right-hand] pillar ·He Establishes [L Jachin] and the ·north [left-hand] pillar ·In Him Is Strength [L Boaz]. 22 The capitals on top of the pillars were shaped like lilies. So the work on the pillars was finished [C pillars represent establishment].

23 Then ·Huram [L he] made from bronze a large round bowl, which was called the Sea [C symbol of chaos subdued]. It was ·forty-five feet [L thirty cubits] around, ·fifteen feet [L ten cubits] across, and ·seven and one-half feet [L five cubits] deep. 24 Around the outer edge of the bowl was a rim. Under this rim were two rows of ·bronze plants [gourds] which surrounded the ·bowl [Sea]. There were ten ·plants [gourds] every ·eighteen inches [L cubit], and these ·plants [gourds] were made in one piece with the bowl. 25 The ·bowl [Sea] rested on the backs of twelve ·bronze bulls [oxen] that faced outward from the center of the bowl. Three bulls faced north, three faced west, three faced south, and three faced east. 26 The sides of the bowl were ·four inches [L a hand’s breadth] thick, and it held ·about eleven thousand gallons [L two thousand baths]. The rim of the bowl was like the rim of a cup or like a lily blossom.

27 Then ·Huram [L he] made ten bronze ·stands [water carts], each one ·six feet [L four cubits] long, ·six feet [L four cubits] wide, and ·four and one-half feet [L three cubits] high. 28 The ·stands [water carts] were made from ·square sides, which were put on frames [or side panels braced with crossbars/uprights]. 29 On the sides were bronze lions, ·bulls [oxen], and ·creatures with wings [L cherubim]. On the ·frames [panels] above and below the lions and ·bulls [oxen] were ·designs of flowers [wreaths] hammered into the bronze. 30 Each stand had four bronze wheels with bronze axles. At the corners there were bronze supports for a ·large bowl [basin], and the supports had ·designs of flowers [wreaths]. 31 There was a frame on top of the bowls, ·eighteen inches [L one cubit] high above the bowls. The opening of the bowl was round, ·twenty-seven inches [L one and one-half cubits] deep. ·Designs [Engravings] were carved into the bronze on the frame, which was square, not round. 32 The four wheels, placed under the frame, were ·twenty-seven inches [L one and one-half cubits] high. The axles between the wheels were ·made as one piece with [within; attached to] the stand. 33 The wheels were like a chariot’s wheels. Everything on the wheels—the axles, rims, spokes, and hubs—were ·made [cast] of bronze.

34 The four supports were on the four corners of each stand. They were made as one piece with the stand. 35 A ·strip of bronze [rim; band] around the top of each stand was ·nine inches [L one-half cubit] deep. ·It was [The corner supports were] also made as one piece with the stand. 36 ·Wherever there was room [L According to the space of each], the sides of the stand and the frames were ·covered with carvings of [engraved with] ·creatures with wings [cherubim; 6:23], as well as lions, palm trees, and ·flowers [wreaths]. 37 This is the way ·Huram [L he; v. 13] made the ten ·stands [water carts]. ·The bronze for each stand [L Each] was melted and poured into a mold, ·so all the stands were [L all] the same size and shape.

38 ·Huram [L He] also made ten bronze ·bowls [basins], one ·bowl [basin] for each of the ten ·stands [water carts]. Each bowl was ·six feet [L four cubits] across and could hold ·about two hundred thirty gallons [L forty baths]. 39 ·Huram [Hiram] put five stands on the ·south [right] side of the ·Temple [L house] and five on the ·north [left] side. He put the ·large bowl [Sea on the right] in the southeast corner of the ·Temple [L house]. 40 ·Huram [Hiram] also made ·bowls [washbasins; pots], shovels, and small bowls.

So ·Huram [L Hiram; v. 13] finished all his work for King Solomon on the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord:

41 two pillars;
two ·large bowls for the [bowl-shaped] capitals on top of the pillars;
two ·nets [sets of latticework/filigree] to cover the two large bowls for the capitals on top of the pillars;
42 four hundred pomegranates for the two ·nets [sets of latticework/filigree] (there were two rows of pomegranates for each ·net [set of latticework/filigree] covering the bowls for the capitals on top of the pillars);
43 ten ·stands [water carts] with a ·bowl [basin] on each ·stand [one];
44 the ·large bowl [Sea] with twelve ·bulls [oxen] under it;
45 the ·pots [pails; ash buckets], shovels, small bowls, and all the utensils for the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord.

·Huram [L Hiram] made everything King Solomon wanted from ·polished [burnished] bronze. 46 The king had these things ·poured [cast] into clay molds that were made in the plain of the Jordan River between Succoth and Zarethan. 47 Solomon never weighed the bronze used to make these things, because there ·was too much to weigh [were so many]. So the total weight of all the bronze was never ·known [calculated].

48 Solomon also made all the items for the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord:

the golden altar;
the golden table which held the bread ·that shows God’s people are in his presence [of the Presence];
49 the lampstands of pure gold (five on the right side and five on the left side in front of the inner ·room [L house], the ·Most Holy Place [T Holy of Holies]);
the flowers, lamps, and tongs—all of gold;
50 the pure gold bowls, wick ·trimmers [snuffers], small bowls, pans, and ·dishes used to carry coals [firepans; incense burners];
the gold hinges for the doors of the inner ·room [L house], the ·Most Holy Place [T Holy of Holies] and the ·main room [main hall; nave] of the ·Temple [L house].

51 ·Finally [Thus] the work King Solomon did for the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord was finished. Solomon brought in everything his father David had ·set apart [dedicated; consecrated] for the ·Temple [L house]—silver, gold, and ·other articles [the various utensils]. He put everything in the treasuries of the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord.

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1 Kings 7
Christian Standard Bible

Solomon’s Palace Complex

7 Solomon completed his entire palace complex after thirteen years of construction.(A) 2 He built the House of the Forest of Lebanon.(B) It was one hundred fifty feet[a] long, seventy-five feet[b] wide, and forty-five feet[c] high on four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams on top of the pillars. 3 It was paneled above with cedar at the top of the chambers that rested on forty-five pillars, fifteen per row. 4 There were three rows of window frames, facing each other[d] in three tiers.[e](C) 5 All the doors and doorposts had rectangular frames, the openings facing each other[f] in three tiers. 6 He made the hall of pillars seventy-five feet long and forty-five feet wide. A portico was in front of the pillars, and a canopy with pillars[g] was in front of them. 7 He made the Hall of the Throne where he would judge(D)—the Hall of Judgment. It was paneled with cedar from the floor to the rafters.[h] 8 Solomon’s own palace where he would live, in the other courtyard behind the hall, was of similar construction. And he made a house like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, his wife.[i](E)

9 All of these buildings were of costly stones, cut to size and sawed with saws on the inner and outer surfaces, from foundation to coping and from the outside to the great courtyard. 10 The foundation was made of large, costly stones twelve and fifteen feet[j] long. 11 Above were also costly stones, cut to size, as well as cedar wood. 12 Around the great courtyard, as well as the inner courtyard of the Lord’s temple and the portico of the temple, were three rows of dressed stone and a row of trimmed cedar beams.(F)

13 King Solomon had Hiram[k](G) brought from Tyre. 14 He was a widow’s son from the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a bronze craftsman. Hiram had great skill,(H) understanding, and knowledge to do every kind of bronze work. So he came to King Solomon and carried out all his work.(I)

The Bronze Pillars

15 He cast two bronze pillars,(J) each 27 feet[l] high and 18 feet[m] in circumference.[n](K) 16 He also made two capitals(L) of cast bronze to set on top of the pillars; 7½ feet[o] was the height of the first capital, and 7½ feet was also the height of the second capital. 17 The capitals on top of the pillars had gratings of latticework, wreaths[p] made of chainwork—seven for the first capital and seven for the second.

18 He made the pillars with two encircling rows of pomegranates on the one grating to cover the capital on top; he did the same for the second capital. 19 And the capitals on top of the pillars in the portico were shaped like lilies, six feet[q] high. 20 The capitals on the two pillars were also immediately above the rounded surface next to the grating, and two hundred pomegranates(M) were in rows encircling each[r] capital. 21 He set up the pillars at the portico(N) of the sanctuary: he set up the right pillar and named it Jachin;[s] then he set up the left pillar and named it Boaz.[t](O) 22 The tops of the pillars were shaped like lilies. Then the work of the pillars was completed.(P)

The Basin

23 He made the cast metal basin,[u](Q) 15 feet[v] from brim to brim, perfectly round. It was 7½ feet high and 45 feet in circumference. 24 Ornamental gourds(R) encircled it below the brim, ten every half yard,[w] completely encircling the basin.(S) The gourds were cast in two rows when the basin was cast. 25 It stood on twelve oxen,(T) three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The basin was on top of them and all their hindquarters were toward the center. 26 The basin was three inches[x] thick, and its rim was fashioned like the brim of a cup or of a lily blossom. It held eleven thousand gallons.[y]

The Bronze Water Carts

27 Then he made ten bronze water carts.[z](U) Each water cart was 6 feet long, 6 feet wide, and 4½ feet[aa] high. 28 This was the design of the carts: They had frames; the frames were between the cross-pieces, 29 and on the frames between the cross-pieces were lions, oxen, and cherubim.(V) On the cross-pieces there was a pedestal above, and below the lions and oxen were wreaths of hanging[ab] work. 30 Each cart(W) had four bronze wheels with bronze axles. Underneath the four corners of the basin were cast supports, each next to a wreath. 31 And the water cart’s opening inside the crown on top was eighteen inches[ac] wide. The opening was round, made as a pedestal twenty-seven inches[ad] wide. On it were carvings, but their frames were square, not round. 32 There were four wheels under the frames, and the wheel axles were part of the water cart; each wheel was twenty-seven inches[ae] tall. 33 The wheels’ design was similar to that of chariot wheels: their axles, rims, spokes, and hubs were all of cast metal. 34 Four supports were at the four corners of each water cart; each support was one piece with the water cart. 35 At the top of the cart was a band nine inches[af] high encircling it; also, at the top of the cart, its braces and its frames were one piece with it. 36 He engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees(X) on the plates of its braces and on its frames, wherever each had space, with encircling wreaths. 37 In this way he made the ten water carts using the same casting, dimensions, and shape for all of them.

Bronze Basins and Other Utensils

38 Then he made ten bronze basins(Y)—each basin held 220 gallons[ag] and each was six feet wide—one basin for each of the ten water carts. 39 He set five water carts on the right side of the temple and five on the left side. He put the basin near the right side of the temple toward the southeast.(Z) 40 Then Hiram made(AA) the basins, the shovels, and the sprinkling basins.

Completion of the Bronze Works

So Hiram finished all the work that he was doing for King Solomon on the Lord’s temple: 41 two pillars;(AB) bowls for the capitals that were on top of the two pillars; the two gratings for covering both bowls of the capitals that were on top of the pillars;(AC) 42 the four hundred pomegranates for the two gratings (two rows of pomegranates for each grating covering both capitals’ bowls on top of the pillars(AD)); 43 the ten water carts;(AE) the ten basins on the water carts;(AF) 44 the basin;(AG) the twelve oxen underneath the basin;(AH) 45 and the pots, shovels, and sprinkling basins.(AI) All the utensils that Hiram made for King Solomon at the Lord’s temple were made of burnished bronze. 46 The king had them cast in clay molds in the Jordan Valley between Succoth(AJ) and Zarethan.(AK) 47 Solomon left all the utensils unweighed because there were so many; the weight of the bronze was not determined.(AL)

Completion of the Gold Furnishings

48 Solomon also made all the equipment in the Lord’s temple: the gold altar; the gold table that the Bread of the Presence was placed on;(AM) 49 the pure gold lampstands in front of the inner sanctuary, five on the right and five on the left;(AN) the gold flowers, lamps, and tongs; 50 the pure gold ceremonial bowls, wick trimmers, sprinkling basins, ladles,[ah] and firepans;(AO) and the gold hinges for the doors of the inner temple (that is, the most holy place) and for the doors of the temple sanctuary.

51 So all the work King Solomon did in the Lord’s temple was completed.(AP) Then Solomon brought in the consecrated things of his father David(AQ)—the silver, the gold, and the utensils—and put them in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple.(AR)

Footnotes

  1. 7:2 Lit 100 cubits
  2. 7:2 Lit 50 cubits, also in v. 6
  3. 7:2 Lit 30 cubits, also in vv. 6,23
  4. 7:4 Lit frames, window to window
  5. 7:4 Lit three times; = at 3 different places, also in v. 5
  6. 7:5 Lit frames, opposing window to window
  7. 7:6 Hb obscure
  8. 7:7 Syr, Vg; MT reads floor
  9. 7:8 Lit daughter he had taken
  10. 7:10 Lit ten cubits and eight cubits
  11. 7:13 = Huram in 2Ch 4:11
  12. 7:15 Lit 18 cubits
  13. 7:15 Lit 12 cubits
  14. 7:15 LXX adds and the thickness of the pillar was four fingers hollowed and similarly the second pillar
  15. 7:16 Lit five cubits, also in v. 23
  16. 7:17 Lit tassels
  17. 7:19 Lit four cubits, also in vv. 27,38
  18. 7:20 Lit encircling the second
  19. 7:21 = He Will Establish
  20. 7:21 = In Him Is Strength
  21. 7:23 Lit sea
  22. 7:23 Lit 10 cubits
  23. 7:24 Lit 10 per cubit
  24. 7:26 Lit a handbreadth
  25. 7:26 Lit 2,000 baths
  26. 7:27 Lit bronze stands
  27. 7:27 Lit three cubits
  28. 7:29 Or hammered-down
  29. 7:31 Lit a cubit
  30. 7:31 Lit one and a half cubits
  31. 7:32 Lit was one and a half cubits
  32. 7:35 Lit half a cubit
  33. 7:38 Lit 40 baths
  34. 7:50 Or dishes, or spoons; lit palms
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