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1 Kings 6
New American Standard Bible

The Building of the Temple

6 (A)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 [a]began to build the house of the Lord. 2 And the house which King Solomon built for the Lord was [b]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 [c]twenty cubits in [d]length, [e]corresponding to the width of the house, and its width along the front of the house was ten cubits. 4 Also for the house (B)he made windows with artistic frames. 5 (C)Against the wall of the house he built stories encompassing the walls of the house around both the main room and the [f](D)inner sanctuary; so he made (E)side chambers all around. 6 The lowest story was [g]five cubits wide, the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for on the outside he [h]made offsets in the wall of the house all around so that the beams would not [i]be inserted into the walls of the house.

7 (F)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 [j]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 (G)he built the house and finished it; and he covered the house with beams and [k]planks of cedar. 10 He also built the stories against the whole house, each [l]five cubits high; and they [m]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, (H)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 (I)I will dwell among the sons of Israel, and (J)will not abandon My people Israel.”

14 (K)So Solomon built the house and finished it. 15 He (L)built the walls of the house on the inside with boards of cedar; from the floor of the house to the [n]ceiling he paneled the walls on the inside with wood, and he paneled the floor of the house with boards of juniper. 16 (M)He also built [o]twenty cubits on the rear part of the house with boards of cedar from the floor to the [p]ceiling; he built them for it on the inside as an inner sanctuary, as (N)the Most Holy Place. 17 The house, that is, the main room in front of the inner sanctuary, was [q]forty cubits long. 18 There was cedar inside the house, carved in the shape of (O)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 [r]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 (P)the entire altar which was by the inner sanctuary he overlaid with gold.

23 (Q)And in the inner sanctuary he made two [s]cherubim of olive wood, each [t]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 (R)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 [u]end to [v]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 (S)two doors of juniper wood; the two leaves of the one door turned on pivots, and the two [w]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 (T)he built the inner courtyard with three rows of cut stone and a row of cedar beams.

37 (U)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 6:1 Lit built
  2. 1 Kings 6:2 About 90 ft. long, 30 ft. wide, and 45 ft. high or 27 m, 9 m, and 14 m
  3. 1 Kings 6:3 About 30 ft. long and 15 ft. deep or 9 m and 4.6 m
  4. 1 Kings 6:3 Lit its length
  5. 1 Kings 6:3 Lit on the face of
  6. 1 Kings 6:5 I.e., Most Holy Place
  7. 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
  8. 1 Kings 6:6 Lit gave
  9. 1 Kings 6:6 Lit take hold
  10. 1 Kings 6:8 As in LXX and ancient versions; MT middle
  11. 1 Kings 6:9 Or rows
  12. 1 Kings 6:10 About 7.5 ft. or 2.3 m
  13. 1 Kings 6:10 Lit took hold
  14. 1 Kings 6:15 Lit walls of the ceiling
  15. 1 Kings 6:16 About 30 ft. or 9 m
  16. 1 Kings 6:16 Lit walls
  17. 1 Kings 6:17 About 60 ft. or 18 m
  18. 1 Kings 6:20 Lit Before the
  19. 1 Kings 6:23 Heb plural of cherub
  20. 1 Kings 6:23 About 15 ft. or 4.6 m
  21. 1 Kings 6:27 Lit wing
  22. 1 Kings 6:27 Lit wing
  23. 1 Kings 6:34 As in LXX; MT curtains
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1 Kings 6
International Standard Version

Temple Construction Begins(A)

6 During the month of Ziv, which was the second month of the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, 480 years after the Israelis left the land of Egypt, Solomon began to build the Lord’s Temple. 2 The Temple for the Lord that Solomon was building was 60 cubits[a] long and 20 cubits[b] wide. 3 A portico extended in front of the Temple for 20 cubits[c] outward, corresponding to the width of the Temple. Along the front of the Temple its depth was ten cubits.[d] 4 Solomon[e] also constructed windows in the Temple with specially designed[f] frames.

5 Against the wall of the Temple he built a series of rooms that encompassed the exterior of the Temple walls around the inner sanctuary. He built these side chambers all around the building.[g] 6 The lower structures were five cubits[h] wide, the middle structures were six cubits[i] wide and the third structures were seven cubits[j] wide. Offsets were placed all around the Temple so that beams would not protrude through the walls of the Temple. 7 The Temple was constructed of stone precut at the quarry so that no hammer, axe, or any other iron implement would be heard in the Temple while it was being built. 8 A passageway to the side chamber was constructed on the south side of the Temple by which people[k] could ascend winding stairs to the middle story, then from there to the third story.

Interior Finishing with Gold and Cedar

9 After Solomon[l] built the Temple and finished it, he covered the Temple with beams and planks made of cedar. 10 He constructed this structure to adjoin the entire Temple, five cubits[m] high, and fastened it to the Temple with cedar timbers.

11 Then this message from the Lord came to Solomon: 12 “Concerning[n] this Temple that you’re building, if you live your life[o] according to my statutes, carry out my ordinances, and keep all of my commands, and live according to them, then I will do what I promised to your father David. 13 I will reside among the Israelis and will never abandon my people Israel.”

14 So Solomon kept on building the Temple and finished it. 15 Then he built the inside walls of the Temple, lining them from floor to ceiling with cedar boards, and overlaying the Temple floor with boards made of cypress wood. 16 He lined 20 cubits[p] of the rear part of the Temple from floor to ceiling with cedar boards specially constructed for the inside to serve as the Most Holy Place. 17 The rest of the main nave in the front was 40 cubits[q] long. 18 Cedar[r] carvings in the form of gourds and blooming flowers covered the entire interior of the Temple so that no stone could be seen.

19 Solomon[s] also prepared an inner sanctuary within the Temple where the Lord’s Ark of the Covenant was placed. 20 The inner sanctuary was 20 cubits[t] long, 20 cubits[u] wide, and 20 cubits[v] high, and overlaid with pure gold. The altar was also overlaid with cedar. 21 Solomon overlaid the inside of the Temple with pure gold, fastened gold chains across the front of the inner sanctuary, and overlaid it with gold. 22 He finished the Temple by overlaying it entirely with gold, including overlaying with gold the whole altar that was by the inner sanctuary.

Temple Furnishings(B)

23 Inside the inner sanctuary Solomon[w] placed two cherubim crafted from olive wood, each ten cubits[x] high. 24 Each wing of one cherub was five cubits[y] long, and each wing of the other cherub was five cubits[z] long, so that the distance from the end of one wing to the end of the other wing was ten cubits.[aa] 25 Each cherub was ten cubits[ab] high, and both were of the same size and shape, 26 the height of one cherub being ten cubits,[ac] as was the height of the other.

27 Solomon[ad] placed the cherubim in the middle of the inner sanctuary, with their wings spread in such a way that the wing of one was touching the one wall and the opposite wing of the other cherub was touching the opposite wall. Furthermore, their wings in the center of the wall were touching each other wing-to-wing. 28 Each cherub was overlaid with gold.

29 Solomon[ae] also inlaid all the inner walls of the Temple—both the inner and outer sanctuaries—with carved engravings of cherubim, palm trees, and blooming flowers. 30 He also overlaid the floor of the Temple with gold in both the inner and outer sanctuaries.

31 Solomon[af] also provided doors, lintels, and five-sided doorposts for the entrance to the inner sanctuary. 32 He installed two doors made of olive wood, inlaying them with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and blooming flowers, and overlaying them with gold. Then he added more gold to cover the cherubim and palm trees.

33 Solomon[ag] also provided four-sided doorposts made of cypress wood for the entrance to the outer sanctuary, 34 along with two doors of cypress wood, one door of which had two leaves that turned on hinges, as did the other door, which also had two leaves that turned on hinges.

35 Solomon[ah] also inlaid the doors with[ai] cherubim, palm trees, and blooming flowers. He overlaid them with gold that was carefully[aj] applied on the engraved work. 36 He constructed the inner court with three rows of precut stone and a row of cedar beams.

Temple Construction is Completed

37 The foundation for the Lord’s Temple was laid in the month of Ziv during the fourth year of Solomon’s reign, 38 and the Temple was completely finished according to its plans and specifications in the eighth month of the eleventh year of Solomon’s[ak] reign, that is, during the month of Bul. It took about seven years to build.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 6:2 I.e. about 90 feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  2. 1 Kings 6:2 I.e. about 30 feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  3. 1 Kings 6:3 I.e. about 30 feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  4. 1 Kings 6:3 I.e. about fifteen feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  5. 1 Kings 6:4 Lit. He
  6. 1 Kings 6:4 Or latticed
  7. 1 Kings 6:5 The Heb. lacks the building
  8. 1 Kings 6:6 I.e. about seven and a half feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  9. 1 Kings 6:6 I.e. about nine feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  10. 1 Kings 6:6 I.e. about ten and a half feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  11. 1 Kings 6:8 Lit. they
  12. 1 Kings 6:9 Lit. he
  13. 1 Kings 6:10 I.e. about seven and a half feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  14. 1 Kings 6:12 The Heb. lacks Concerning
  15. 1 Kings 6:12 Lit. you walk
  16. 1 Kings 6:16 I.e. about 30 feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  17. 1 Kings 6:17 I.e. about 60 feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  18. 1 Kings 6:18 I.e. a genus of coniferous evergreen in the family Pinaceae; and so throughout the book
  19. 1 Kings 6:19 Lit. He
  20. 1 Kings 6:20 I.e. about 30 feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  21. 1 Kings 6:20 I.e. about 30 feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  22. 1 Kings 6:20 I.e. about 30 feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  23. 1 Kings 6:23 Lit. he
  24. 1 Kings 6:23 I.e. about fifteen feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  25. 1 Kings 6:24 I.e. about seven and a half feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  26. 1 Kings 6:24 I.e. about seven and a half feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  27. 1 Kings 6:24 I.e. about fifteen feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  28. 1 Kings 6:25 I.e. about fifteen feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  29. 1 Kings 6:26 I.e. about fifteen feet; a cubit was about eighteen inches
  30. 1 Kings 6:27 Lit. He
  31. 1 Kings 6:29 Lit. He
  32. 1 Kings 6:31 Lit. He
  33. 1 Kings 6:33 Lit. He
  34. 1 Kings 6:35 Lit. He
  35. 1 Kings 6:35 The Heb. lacks the doors with
  36. 1 Kings 6:35 Or evenly
  37. 1 Kings 6:38 Lit. his
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1 Kings 6
New International Version

Solomon Builds the Temple(A)

6 In the four hundred and eightieth[a] 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,(B) he began to build the temple of the Lord.(C)

2 The temple(D) that King Solomon built for the Lord was sixty cubits long, twenty wide and thirty high.[b] 3 The portico(E) at the front of the main hall of the temple extended the width of the temple, that is twenty cubits,[c] and projected ten cubits[d] from the front of the temple. 4 He made narrow windows(F) 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.(G) 6 The lowest floor was five cubits[e] wide, the middle floor six cubits[f] and the third floor seven.[g] 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(H) at the quarry were used, and no hammer, chisel or any other iron tool(I) was heard at the temple site while it was being built.

8 The entrance to the lowest[h] 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(J) 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(K) to Solomon: 12 “As for this temple you are building, if you follow my decrees, observe my laws and keep all my commands(L) and obey them, I will fulfill through you the promise(M) I gave to David your father. 13 And I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon(N) my people Israel.”

14 So Solomon(O) built the temple and completed(P) it. 15 He lined its interior walls with cedar boards, paneling them from the floor of the temple to the ceiling,(Q) and covered the floor of the temple with planks of juniper.(R) 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.(S) 17 The main hall in front of this room was forty cubits[i] long. 18 The inside of the temple was cedar,(T) carved with gourds and open flowers. Everything was cedar; no stone was to be seen.

19 He prepared the inner sanctuary(U) within the temple to set the ark of the covenant(V) of the Lord there. 20 The inner sanctuary(W) was twenty cubits long, twenty wide and twenty high. He overlaid the inside with pure gold, and he also overlaid the altar of cedar.(X) 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(Y) 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(Z) 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(AA) all around the temple, in both the inner and outer rooms, he carved cherubim,(AB) 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(AC) 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(AD) of three courses(AE) 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(AF) according to its specifications.(AG) He had spent seven years building it.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 6:1 Hebrew; Septuagint four hundred and fortieth
  2. 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
  3. 1 Kings 6:3 That is, about 30 feet or about 9 meters; also in verses 16 and 20
  4. 1 Kings 6:3 That is, about 15 feet or about 4.5 meters; also in verses 23-26
  5. 1 Kings 6:6 That is, about 7 1/2 feet or about 2.3 meters; also in verses 10 and 24
  6. 1 Kings 6:6 That is, about 9 feet or about 2.7 meters
  7. 1 Kings 6:6 That is, about 11 feet or about 3.2 meters
  8. 1 Kings 6:8 Septuagint; Hebrew middle
  9. 1 Kings 6:17 That is, about 60 feet or about 18 meters
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