Solomon Builds His Palace

7 But it took Solomon 13 years to finish constructing his palace and the other buildings related to it. ² He built the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. It was 150 feet long. It was 75 feet wide. And it was 45 feet high. It had four rows of cedar columns. They held up beautiful cedar beams. ³ Above the beams was a roof made out of cedar boards. It rested on the columns. There were three rows of beams with 15 in each row. The total number of beams was 45. ⁴ The windows of the palace were placed high up in the walls. They were in groups of three. And they faced each other. ⁵ All the doorways had frames shaped like rectangles. They were in front. They were in groups of three. And they faced each other.

⁶ Solomon made a covered area. It was 75 feet long. And it was 45 feet wide. Its roof was held up by columns. In front of it was a porch. In front of that were pillars and a roof that went out beyond them.

⁷ Solomon built the throne hall. It was called the Hall of Justice. That’s where he would serve as judge. He covered the hall with cedar boards from floor to ceiling. ⁸ The palace where he would live was set farther back. Its plan was something like the plan for the hall. Solomon had married Pharaoh’s daughter. He made a palace for her. It was like the hall.

⁹ All those buildings were made out of blocks of good quality stone. They were cut to the right size. They were made smooth on their back and front sides. Those stones were used for the outside of each building and for the large courtyard. They were also used from the foundations up to the roofs. ¹⁰ Large blocks of good quality stone were used for the foundations. Some were 15 feet long. Others were 12 feet long. ¹¹ The walls above them were made out of good quality stones. The stones were cut to the right size. On top of them was a layer of cedar beams. ¹² The large courtyard had a wall around it. The first three layers of the wall were made out of blocks of stone. The top layer was made out of beautiful cedar wood. The same thing was done with the inside courtyard of the Lord’s temple and its porch.

More Facts About the Temple

¹³ King Solomon sent messengers to Tyre. He wanted them to bring Huram back with them. ¹⁴ Huram’s mother was a widow. She was from the tribe of Naphtali. Huram’s father was from Tyre. He was skilled in working with bronze. Huram also had great skill, knowledge and understanding in working with bronze. He came to King Solomon and did all the work he was asked to do.

¹⁵ Huram made two bronze pillars. Each of them was 27 feet high. And each was 18 feet around. ¹⁶ Each pillar had a decorated top made out of bronze. Each top was seven and a half feet high. ¹⁷ Chains that were linked together hung down from the tops of the pillars. There were seven chains for each top. ¹⁸ Huram made two rows of pomegranates. They circled the chains. The pomegranates decorated the tops of the pillars. Huram did the same thing for each pillar. ¹⁹ The tops on the pillars of the porch were shaped like lilies. The lilies were 6 feet high. ²⁰ On the tops of both pillars were 200 pomegranates. They were in rows all around the tops. They were above the part that was shaped like a bowl. And they were next to the chains. ²¹ Huram set the pillars up at the temple porch. The pillar on the south he named Jakin. The one on the north he named Boaz. ²² The tops of the pillars were shaped like lilies. So the work on the pillars was finished.

²³ Huram made a huge metal bowl for washing. Its shape was round. It measured 15 feet from rim to rim. It was seven and a half feet high. And it was 45 feet around. ²⁴ Below the rim there was a circle of gourds around the bowl. In every 18 inches around the bowl there were ten gourds. The gourds were arranged in two rows. They were made as part of the bowl itself.

²⁵ The huge bowl stood on 12 bulls. Three of them faced north. Three faced west. Three faced south. And three faced east. The bowl rested on top of the bulls. Their rear ends were toward the center. ²⁶ The bowl was three inches thick. Its rim was like the rim of a cup. The rim was shaped like the bloom of a lily. The bowl held 12,000 gallons of water.

²⁷ Huram also made ten stands out of bronze. They could be moved around. Each stand was six feet long. It was six feet wide. And it was four and a half feet high. ²⁸ Here is how the stands were made. They had sides that were joined to posts. ²⁹ On the sides between the posts were lions, bulls and cherubim. They were also on all of the posts. Above and below the lions and bulls were wreaths made out of hammered metal. ³⁰ Each stand had four bronze wheels with bronze axles. Each stand had a bowl that rested on four supports. The stand had wreaths on each side. ³¹ There was a round opening on the inside of each stand. The opening had a frame 18 inches deep. The sides were 27 inches high from the top of the opening to the bottom of the base. There was carving around the opening. The sides of the stands were square, not round. ³² The four wheels were under the sides. The axles of the wheels were connected to the stand. Each wheel was 27 inches across. ³³ The wheels were made like chariot wheels. All the axles, rims, spokes and hubs were made out of metal.

³⁴ Each stand had four handles on it. There was one on each corner. They came out from the stand. ³⁵ At the top of the stand there was a round band. It was nine inches deep. The sides and supports were connected to the top of the stand. ³⁶ Huram carved cherubim, lions and palm trees on the sides of the stands. He also carved them on the surfaces of the supports. His carving covered every open space. He had also carved wreaths all around. ³⁷ That’s how he made the ten stands. All of them were made in the same molds. And they had the same size and shape.

³⁸ Then Huram made ten bronze bowls. Each one held 240 gallons. The bowls measured six feet across. There was one bowl for each of the ten stands. ³⁹ He placed five of the stands on the south side of the temple. He placed the other five on the north side. He put the huge bowl on the south side. It was at the southeast corner of the temple. ⁴⁰ He also made the pots, shovels and sprinkling bowls.

So Huram finished all the work he had started for King Solomon. Here’s what he made for the Lord’s temple.

Huram made all those objects for King Solomon for the Lord’s temple. He made them out of bronze. Then he shined them up. ⁴⁶ The king had made them in clay molds. It was done on the plain of the Jordan River between Sukkoth and Zarethan. ⁴⁷ Solomon didn’t weigh any of those things. There were too many of them to weigh. No one even tried to weigh the bronze they were made out of.

⁴⁸ Solomon also made everything in the Lord’s temple.

⁵¹ King Solomon finished all the work for the Lord’s temple. Then he brought in the things his father David had set apart for the Lord. They included the silver and gold and all the other things for the Lord’s temple. Solomon placed them with the other treasures that were there.

The Ark Is Brought to the Temple

8 Then King Solomon sent for the elders of Israel. He told them to come to him in Jerusalem. They included all the leaders of the tribes. They also included the chiefs of the families of Israel. Solomon wanted them to bring up the ark of the Lord’s covenant from Zion. Zion was the City of David. ² All the Israelites came together to where King Solomon was. It was at the time of the Feast of Booths. The feast was held in the month of Ethanim. That’s the seventh month.

³ All the elders of Israel arrived. Then the priests picked up the ark and carried it. ⁴ They brought up the ark of the Lord. They also brought up the tent of meeting and all the sacred things in the tent. The priests and Levites carried everything up. ⁵ The entire community of Israel had gathered around King Solomon. All of them were in front of the ark. They sacrificed huge numbers of sheep and cattle. There were so many animals that they couldn’t be recorded. In fact, they couldn’t even be counted.

⁶ The priests brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant law to its place in the Most Holy Room of the temple. They put it under the wings of the cherubim. ⁷ Their wings were spread out over the place where the ark was. They covered the ark. They also covered the poles used to carry it. ⁸ The poles were very long. Their ends could be seen from the Holy Room in front of the Most Holy Room. But they couldn’t be seen from outside the Holy Room. They are still there to this day. ⁹ There wasn’t anything in the ark except the two stone tablets. Moses had placed them in it at Mount Horeb. That’s where the Lord had made a covenant with the Israelites. He made it after they came out of Egypt.

¹⁰ The priests left the Holy Room. Then the cloud filled the temple of the Lord. ¹¹ The priests couldn’t do their work because of it. That’s because the glory of the Lord filled his temple.

¹² Then Solomon said, “Lord, you have said you would live in a dark cloud. ¹³ As you can see, I’ve built a beautiful temple for you. You can live in it forever.”

¹⁴ The whole community of Israel was standing there. The king turned around and gave them his blessing. ¹⁵ Then he said,

“I praise the Lord. He is the God of Israel. With his own mouth he made a promise to my father David. With his own powerful hand he made it come true. He said, ¹⁶ ‘I brought my people Israel out of Egypt. Ever since, I haven’t chosen a city in any tribe of Israel where a temple could be built for my Name. But I have chosen David to rule over my people Israel.’

¹⁷ “With all his heart my father David wanted to build a temple. He wanted to do it so the Lord could put his Name there. The Lord is the God of Israel. ¹⁸ But the Lord spoke to my father David. He said, ‘With all your heart you wanted to build a temple for my Name. It is good that you wanted to do that. ¹⁹ But you will not build the temple. Instead, your son will build the temple for my Name. He is your own flesh and blood.’

²⁰ “The Lord has kept the promise he made. I’ve become the next king after my father David. Now I’m sitting on the throne of Israel. That’s exactly what the Lord promised would happen. I’ve built the temple where the Lord will put his Name. He is the God of Israel. ²¹ I’ve provided a place for the ark there. The tablets of the Lord’s covenant law are inside it. He made that covenant with our people of long ago. He made it when he brought them out of Egypt.”

Solomon Prays to Set the Temple Apart to the Lord

²² Then Solomon stood in front of the Lord’s altar. He stood in front of the whole community of Israel. He spread out his hands toward heaven. ²³ He said,

“Lord, you are the God of Israel. There is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below. You keep the covenant you made with us. You show us your love. You do that when we follow you with all our hearts. ²⁴ You have kept your promise to my father David. He was your servant. With your mouth you made a promise. With your powerful hand you have made it come true. And today we can see it.

²⁵ “Lord, you are the God of Israel. Keep the promises you made to my father David. Do it for him. He was your servant. Here is what you said to him. ‘A son from your family line will sit before me on the throne of Israel. This will always be true if your children after you are careful in everything they do. They must live in my sight faithfully the way you have lived.’ ²⁶ God of Israel, let your promise to my father David come true.

²⁷ “But will you really live on earth? After all, the heavens can’t hold you. In fact, even the highest heavens can’t hold you. So this temple I’ve built certainly can’t hold you! ²⁸ But please pay attention to my prayer. Lord my God, be ready to help me as I make my appeal to you. Listen to my cry for help. Hear the prayer I’m praying to you today. ²⁹ Let your eyes look toward this temple night and day. You said, ‘I will put my Name there.’ So please listen to the prayer I’m praying toward this place. ³⁰ Hear me when I ask you to help us. Listen to your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Listen to us from heaven. It’s the place where you live. When you hear us, forgive us.

³¹ “Suppose someone does something wrong to their neighbor. And the person who has done something wrong is required to give their word. They must tell the truth about what they have done. They must come and do it in front of your altar in this temple. ³² When they do, listen to them from heaven. Take action. Judge between the person and their neighbor. Punish the guilty one. Do to that person what they have done to their neighbor. Deal with the one who isn’t guilty in a way that shows they are free from blame. That will prove they aren’t guilty.

³³ “Suppose your people Israel have lost the battle against their enemies. And suppose they’ve sinned against you. But they turn back to you and praise your name. They pray to you in this temple. And they ask you to help them. ³⁴ Then listen to them from heaven. Forgive the sin of your people Israel. Bring them back to the land you gave to their people who lived long ago.

³⁵ “Suppose your people have sinned against you. And because of that, the sky is closed up and there isn’t any rain. But your people pray toward this place. They praise you by admitting they’ve sinned. And they turn away from their sin because you have made them suffer. ³⁶ Then listen to them from heaven. Forgive the sin of your people Israel. Teach them the right way to live. Send rain on the land you gave them as their share.

³⁷ “Suppose there isn’t enough food in the land. And a plague strikes the land. The hot winds completely dry up our crops. Or locusts or grasshoppers come and eat them up. Or an enemy surrounds one of our cities and gets ready to attack it. Or trouble or sickness comes. ³⁸ But suppose one of your people prays to you. They ask you to help them. They are aware of how much their own heart is suffering. And they spread out their hands toward this temple to pray. ³⁹ Then listen to them from heaven. It’s the place where you live. Forgive them. Take action. Deal with everyone in keeping with everything they do. You know their hearts. In fact, you are the only one who knows every human heart. ⁴⁰ Your people will have respect for you. They will respect you as long as they are in the land you gave our people long ago.