1 Kings 7
King James Version
7 But Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all his house.
2 He built also the house of the forest of Lebanon; the length thereof was an hundred cubits, and the breadth thereof fifty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits, upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars.
3 And it was covered with cedar above upon the beams, that lay on forty five pillars, fifteen in a row.
4 And there were windows in three rows, and light was against light in three ranks.
5 And all the doors and posts were square, with the windows: and light was against light in three ranks.
6 And he made a porch of pillars; the length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth thereof thirty cubits: and the porch was before them: and the other pillars and the thick beam were before them.
7 Then he made a porch for the throne where he might judge, even the porch of judgment: and it was covered with cedar from one side of the floor to the other.
8 And his house where he dwelt had another court within the porch, which was of the like work. Solomon made also an house for Pharaoh's daughter, whom he had taken to wife, like unto this porch.
9 All these were of costly stones, according to the measures of hewed stones, sawed with saws, within and without, even from the foundation unto the coping, and so on the outside toward the great court.
10 And the foundation was of costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits.
11 And above were costly stones, after the measures of hewed stones, and cedars.
12 And the great court round about was with three rows of hewed stones, and a row of cedar beams, both for the inner court of the house of the Lord, and for the porch of the house.
13 And king Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre.
14 He was a widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass: and he was filled with wisdom, and understanding, and cunning to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his work.
15 For he cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece: and a line of twelve cubits did compass either of them about.
16 And he made two chapiters of molten brass, to set upon the tops of the pillars: the height of the one chapiter was five cubits, and the height of the other chapiter was five cubits:
17 And nets of checker work, and wreaths of chain work, for the chapiters which were upon the top of the pillars; seven for the one chapiter, and seven for the other chapiter.
18 And he made the pillars, and two rows round about upon the one network, to cover the chapiters that were upon the top, with pomegranates: and so did he for the other chapiter.
19 And the chapiters that were upon the top of the pillars were of lily work in the porch, four cubits.
20 And the chapiters upon the two pillars had pomegranates also above, over against the belly which was by the network: and the pomegranates were two hundred in rows round about upon the other chapiter.
21 And he set up the pillars in the porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof Jachin: and he set up the left pillar, and called the name thereof Boaz.
22 And upon the top of the pillars was lily work: so was the work of the pillars finished.
23 And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.
24 And under the brim of it round about there were knops compassing it, ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about: the knops were cast in two rows, when it was cast.
25 It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.
26 And it was an hand breadth thick, and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies: it contained two thousand baths.
27 And he made ten bases of brass; four cubits was the length of one base, and four cubits the breadth thereof, and three cubits the height of it.
28 And the work of the bases was on this manner: they had borders, and the borders were between the ledges:
29 And on the borders that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and cherubims: and upon the ledges there was a base above: and beneath the lions and oxen were certain additions made of thin work.
30 And every base had four brasen wheels, and plates of brass: and the four corners thereof had undersetters: under the laver were undersetters molten, at the side of every addition.
31 And the mouth of it within the chapiter and above was a cubit: but the mouth thereof was round after the work of the base, a cubit and an half: and also upon the mouth of it were gravings with their borders, foursquare, not round.
32 And under the borders were four wheels; and the axletrees of the wheels were joined to the base: and the height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit.
33 And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel: their axletrees, and their naves, and their felloes, and their spokes, were all molten.
34 And there were four undersetters to the four corners of one base: and the undersetters were of the very base itself.
35 And in the top of the base was there a round compass of half a cubit high: and on the top of the base the ledges thereof and the borders thereof were of the same.
36 For on the plates of the ledges thereof, and on the borders thereof, he graved cherubims, lions, and palm trees, according to the proportion of every one, and additions round about.
37 After this manner he made the ten bases: all of them had one casting, one measure, and one size.
38 Then made he ten lavers of brass: one laver contained forty baths: and every laver was four cubits: and upon every one of the ten bases one laver.
39 And he put five bases on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house: and he set the sea on the right side of the house eastward over against the south.
40 And Hiram made the lavers, and the shovels, and the basons. So Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he made king Solomon for the house of the Lord:
41 The two pillars, and the two bowls of the chapiters that were on the top of the two pillars; and the two networks, to cover the two bowls of the chapiters which were upon the top of the pillars;
42 And four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, even two rows of pomegranates for one network, to cover the two bowls of the chapiters that were upon the pillars;
43 And the ten bases, and ten lavers on the bases;
44 And one sea, and twelve oxen under the sea;
45 And the pots, and the shovels, and the basons: and all these vessels, which Hiram made to king Solomon for the house of the Lord, were of bright brass.
46 In the plain of Jordan did the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarthan.
47 And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because they were exceeding many: neither was the weight of the brass found out.
48 And Solomon made all the vessels that pertained unto the house of the Lord: the altar of gold, and the table of gold, whereupon the shewbread was,
49 And the candlesticks of pure gold, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the oracle, with the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs of gold,
50 And the bowls, and the snuffers, and the basons, and the spoons, and the censers of pure gold; and the hinges of gold, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the house, to wit, of the temple.
51 So was ended all the work that king Solomon made for the house of the Lord. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated; even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, did he put among the treasures of the house of the Lord.
1 Kings 7
Evangelical Heritage Version
The Five Buildings of Solomon’s Palace Complex
7 It took Solomon thirteen years to finish building his whole palace complex.
The House of the Forest of Lebanon
2 He built the House of the Forest of Lebanon. It was one hundred fifty feet long. It was seventy-five feet wide and forty-five feet high. It had four rows[a] of cedar pillars, with cedar beams on top of the pillars. 3 It was roofed with cedar above the forty-five beams that rested on the pillars, fifteen beams in each row.[b]
4 There were three rows[c] of windows with recessed frames on each side of the building. 5 All the doors and posts were made with square beams.[d] They were arranged in groups of three.
The Hall of Pillars
6 He built a pillared entry hall.[e] It was seventy-five feet wide and forty-five feet deep. There was another porch in front of the pillars, and more pillars and a canopy in front of them.
The Hall of Justice
7 He made another hall, named the Hall of Justice. The throne from which he judged cases was located there. The hall was covered with cedar from floor to ceiling.[f]
Palaces for Solomon and Pharaoh’s Daughter
8 His house in which he lived was made the same way. It was on the other side of a courtyard behind the Hall of Pillars.[g] Solomon also made another house like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom he had married.
9 All of these were made of high-quality stone, precisely cut to the exact measure, trimmed with saws on both sides. Such stones were used from the foundation to the edge of the roof, from the outside of the complex to the great courtyard on the inside. 10 The foundation was made of high-quality stones, huge stones, twelve or fifteen feet long. 11 Above this were high-quality stones, precisely cut, with layers of cedar wood in between. 12 The great courtyard all the way around had three courses of cut stone and then a course of cedar beams, like the inner courtyard of the House of the Lord and the porch of that building.
The Chief Craftsman
13 King Solomon sent for Hiram[h] from Tyre. 14 He was the son of a widow from the tribe of Naphtali, but his father was a craftsman in bronze from Tyre. Hiram too was filled with wisdom, understanding, and skill for all kinds of work in bronze. He came to King Solomon and performed the work for him.
The Large Bronze Pillars
15 He cast two bronze pillars, each twenty-seven feet tall. Their circumference was eighteen feet.
16 He made two capitals of cast bronze to set on top of the pillars. The height of one capital was seven and a half feet, and the height of the other capital was seven and a half feet. 17 The capitals that sat on top of the pillars were decorated with a latticework of interwoven chains. There were seven rows of decoration on one capital and seven rows on the other capital. 18 This is how he made the pillars: He made two rows of pomegranates to go above the latticework on the capitals that were on top of the pillars.[i] He did this for each pillar. 19 The capitals that were on top of the pillars for the porch were shaped like lilies, six feet tall. 20 On top of each pillar, above the bulge, beside the latticework, there were two hundred pomegranates arranged in rows all the way around.[j]
21 He set up the pillars on the porch of the temple building. He set up one pillar on the south and named it Jakin,[k] and he set up the other pillar on the north and named it Boaz.[l] 22 The tops of the pillars were shaped like lilies. In this way the work for the pillars was finished.
The Sea
23 He made the sea of cast metal. It was round, fifteen feet from rim to rim. It was seven and a half feet high. Its circumference was forty-five feet. 24 Under its rim all the way around there were round, gourd-shaped ornaments, one every two inches, all the way around the sea.[m] The ornaments were in two rows, cast as one piece with the sea. 25 The sea stood on twelve cattle, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The sea was set on them. All their hindquarters faced toward the center of the sea. 26 The sea was three inches[n] thick. Its rim was shaped like the rim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held twelve thousand gallons.[o]
The Carts
27 He made ten bronze carts. Each cart was six feet long and six feet wide and four and a half feet tall. 28 This is how the carts were constructed: They had side panels between supporting frames. 29 The panels between the frames were decorated with lions, cattle, and cherubim. On the frames, both above and below the lions and cattle, there were wreaths hanging down.[p] 30 Each cart had four bronze wheels with bronze axles, and at each of the four corners of the cart there were supports for the basin, with wreaths beside each of them. 31 The opening on top of the cart within a crowning structure was a foot and a half deep. The opening was round. It had a supporting pedestal a little more than two feet tall.[q] Around the opening there were engravings, and the panel that surrounded the opening was square, not round.
32 The four wheels were underneath the side panels, and the axles for the wheels were inserted through the cart. The height of each wheel was twenty-seven inches. 33 The wheels were made like a chariot wheel. Their axles, rims, spokes, and hubs were all of cast metal. 34 There were supports at each of the four corners of each cart. The supports were part of the cart itself. 35 In the top of the cart there was a round opening nine inches deep.[r] On top of the cart the supports and its panels were one piece with it. 36 On the panels between the supports he engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees wherever there was room, with wreaths all around. 37 That is how he made the carts. All of them were cast with the same mold, so they had the same size and shape.
The Basins
38 He made ten bronze basins. Each basin contained two hundred forty gallons.[s] Each basin was six feet in diameter, and there was one basin for every one of the ten carts. 39 He placed five carts on the south side of the temple and five on the north side of the temple. He set the sea on the south side of the temple near the southeast corner.
40 Hiram made the basins, the shovels, and the sprinkling bowls.
Summary
So Hiram completed all the work that he had been assigned by King Solomon for the House of the Lord: 41 the two pillars, the two globe-shaped capitals on top of the pillars, the two latticeworks that covered the two globe-shaped capitals that were on top of the pillars, 42 the four hundred pomegranates for the two latticeworks (two rows of pomegranates for each latticework to cover the globe-shaped capitals that were on top of the pillars), 43 the ten carts, the ten basins on the carts, 44 the one sea, the twelve cattle under the sea, 45 the pots, the shovels, and the sprinkling bowls. All these items, which Hiram made for King Solomon for the house of the Lord, were burnished bronze. 46 The king had them cast in clay molds in the ground, in the plain of the Jordan, between Succoth and Zarethan. 47 Solomon did not weigh all the vessels, because there were so many of them. The weight of the bronze was never determined.
The Furnishings for the House
48 Solomon made all the furnishings that were in the House of the Lord: the gold altar and the table for the Bread of the Presence, which was also gold. 49 The lampstands were placed in front of the inner room of the sanctuary, five on the south side, and five on the north. They also were made of pure gold,[t] as were the flowers, the lamps, and the gold tongs, 50 the basins, the snuffers, the sprinkling bowls, the small dishes, and the fire pans of pure gold, and the gold hinges,[u] both those for the doors of the inner sanctuary, that is, the Most Holy Place, and also those for the doors of the front room. 51 In this way all the work that King Solomon did for the House of the Lord was finished. Solomon brought the things which David his father had dedicated, the silver, the gold, and the vessels, and put them in the treasuries of the House of the Lord.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 7:2 Verses 2-6 are very difficult, and the translation is uncertain. In verse 2, the Hebrew text reads four rows of pillars. Some Greek texts read three rows of pillars.
- 1 Kings 7:3 Another interpretation of the Hebrew includes chambers on an upper level of the building: It was covered with cedar above the chambers that were on the forty-five pillars, fifteen in each row.
- 1 Kings 7:4 Or groups
- 1 Kings 7:5 Or with rectangular frames or with four recessed frames. See the footnote at 6:31.
- 1 Kings 7:6 Or colonnade
- 1 Kings 7:7 Ceiling is the reading of the Latin and Syriac. The Hebrew reads from floor to floor.
- 1 Kings 7:8 The meaning of this sentence is uncertain.
- 1 Kings 7:13 Called Huram in Chronicles. He is not to be confused with Hiram king of Tyre.
- 1 Kings 7:18 Pillars is the reading of the Syriac and many Hebrew manuscripts. Most Hebrew manuscripts read pomegranates.
- 1 Kings 7:20 The meaning of this sentence is uncertain.
- 1 Kings 7:21 Jakin means he establishes.
- 1 Kings 7:21 Boaz means in him is strength.
- 1 Kings 7:24 The meaning of this sentence is uncertain. The parallel in 2 Chronicles 4:3 says the ornaments were cattle.
- 1 Kings 7:26 A handbreadth
- 1 Kings 7:26 Literally two thousand baths. The reading in 2 Chronicles 4:5 is three thousand baths. They may have been using different standards for the size of a bath or rounding off.
- 1 Kings 7:29 A very different interpretation of this phrase is: On top of the framed sides there was a platform/pedestal/mounting stand. The mounting stand would be the structure that supported the basin that was inserted into the stand. The translation of the description of the carts is uncertain.
- 1 Kings 7:31 The meaning of this sentence is uncertain, and the interpretations in different translations vary.
- 1 Kings 7:35 The meaning of this sentence is uncertain.
- 1 Kings 7:38 Hebrew forty baths
- 1 Kings 7:49 Literally closed gold. Most translators think this means pure gold or solid gold, but it may mean gold plate.
- 1 Kings 7:50 The precise identification of some of these items is uncertain.
1 Kings 7
New King James Version
Solomon’s Other Buildings
7 But Solomon took (A)thirteen years to build his own house; so he finished all his house.
2 He also built the (B)House of the Forest of Lebanon; its length was [a]one hundred cubits, its width [b]fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits, with four rows of cedar pillars, and cedar beams on the pillars. 3 And it was paneled with cedar above the beams that were on forty-five pillars, fifteen to a row. 4 There were windows with beveled frames in three rows, and window was opposite window in three tiers. 5 And all the doorways and doorposts had rectangular frames; and window was opposite window in three tiers.
6 He also made the Hall of Pillars: its length was fifty cubits, and its width thirty cubits; and in front of them was a portico with pillars, and a canopy was in front of them.
7 Then he made a hall for the throne, the Hall of Judgment, where he might judge; and it was paneled with cedar from floor to [c]ceiling.
8 And the house where he dwelt had another court inside the hall, of like workmanship. Solomon also made a house like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, (C)whom he had taken as wife.
9 All these were of costly stones cut to size, trimmed with saws, inside and out, from the foundation to the eaves, and also on the outside to the great court. 10 The foundation was of costly stones, large stones, some ten cubits and some eight cubits. 11 And above were costly stones, hewn to size, and cedar wood. 12 The great court was enclosed with three rows of hewn stones and a row of cedar beams. So were the (D)inner court of the house of the Lord (E)and the vestibule of the temple.
Hiram the Craftsman
13 Now King Solomon sent and brought [d]Huram from Tyre. 14 (F)He was the son of a widow from the tribe of Naphtali, and (G)his father was a man of Tyre, a bronze worker; (H)he was filled with wisdom and understanding and skill in working with all kinds of bronze work. So he came to King Solomon and did all his work.
The Bronze Pillars for the Temple(I)
15 And he [e]cast (J)two pillars of bronze, each one eighteen cubits high, and a line of twelve cubits measured the circumference of each. 16 Then he made two capitals of cast bronze, to set on the tops of the pillars. The height of one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits. 17 He made a lattice network, with wreaths of chainwork, for the capitals which were on top of the pillars: seven chains for one capital and seven for the other capital. 18 So he made the pillars, and two rows of pomegranates above the network all around to cover the capitals that were on top; and thus he did for the other capital.
19 The capitals which were on top of the pillars in the hall were in the shape of lilies, four cubits. 20 The capitals on the two pillars also had pomegranates above, by the convex surface which was next to the network; and there were (K)two hundred such pomegranates in rows on each of the capitals all around.
21 (L)Then he set up the pillars by the vestibule of the temple; he set up the pillar on the right and called its name [f]Jachin, and he set up the pillar on the left and called its name [g]Boaz. 22 The tops of the pillars were in the shape of lilies. So the work of the pillars was finished.
The Sea and the Oxen
23 And he made (M)the Sea of cast bronze, ten cubits from one brim to the other; it was completely round. Its height was five cubits, and a line of thirty cubits measured its circumference.
24 Below its brim were ornamental buds encircling it all around, ten to a cubit, (N)all the way around the Sea. The ornamental buds were cast in two rows when it was cast. 25 It stood on (O)twelve oxen: three looking toward the north, three looking toward the west, three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; the Sea was set upon them, and all their back parts pointed inward. 26 It was a handbreadth thick; and its brim was shaped like the brim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It contained [h]two thousand baths.
The Carts and the Lavers
27 He also made ten [i]carts of bronze; four cubits was the length of each cart, four cubits its width, and three cubits its height. 28 And this was the design of the carts: They had panels, and the panels were between frames; 29 on the panels that were between the frames were lions, oxen, and cherubim. And on the frames was a pedestal on top. Below the lions and oxen were wreaths of plaited work. 30 Every cart had four bronze wheels and axles of bronze, and its four feet had supports. Under the laver were supports of cast bronze beside each wreath. 31 Its opening inside the crown at the top was one cubit in diameter; and the opening was round, shaped like a pedestal, one and a half cubits in outside diameter; and also on the opening were engravings, but the panels were square, not round. 32 Under the panels were the four wheels, and the axles of the wheels were joined to the cart. The height of a wheel was one and a half cubits. 33 The workmanship of the wheels was like the workmanship of a chariot wheel; their axle pins, their rims, their spokes, and their hubs were all of cast bronze. 34 And there were four supports at the four corners of each cart; its supports were part of the cart itself. 35 On the top of the cart, at the height of half a cubit, it was perfectly round. And on the top of the cart, its flanges and its panels were of the same casting. 36 On the plates of its flanges and on its panels he engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, wherever there was a clear space on each, with wreaths all around. 37 Thus he made the ten carts. All of them were of [j]the same mold, one measure, and one shape.
38 Then (P)he made ten lavers of bronze; each laver contained [k]forty baths, and each laver was four cubits. On each of the ten carts was a laver. 39 And he put five carts on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house. He set the Sea on the right side of the house, toward the southeast.
Furnishings of the Temple(Q)
40 (R)Huram[l] made the lavers and the shovels and the bowls. So Huram finished doing all the work that he was to do for King Solomon for the house of the Lord: 41 the two pillars, the two bowl-shaped capitals that were on top of the two pillars; the two (S)networks covering the two bowl-shaped capitals which were on top of the pillars; 42 (T)four hundred pomegranates for the two networks (two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowl-shaped capitals that were on top of the pillars); 43 the ten carts, and ten lavers on the carts; 44 one Sea, and twelve oxen under the Sea; 45 (U)the pots, the shovels, and the bowls.
All these articles which [m]Huram made for King Solomon for the house of the Lord were of burnished bronze. 46 (V)In the plain of Jordan the king had them cast in clay molds, between (W)Succoth and (X)Zaretan. 47 And Solomon did not weigh all the articles, because there were so many; the weight of the bronze was not (Y)determined.
48 Thus Solomon had all the furnishings made for the house of the Lord: (Z)the altar of gold, and (AA)the table of gold on which was (AB)the showbread; 49 the lampstands of pure gold, five on the right side and five on the left in front of the inner sanctuary, with the flowers and the lamps and the wick-trimmers of gold; 50 the basins, the trimmers, the bowls, the ladles, and the [n]censers of pure gold; and the hinges of gold, both for the doors of the inner room (the Most Holy Place) and for the doors of the main hall of the temple.
51 So all the work that King Solomon had done for the house of the Lord was finished; and Solomon brought in the things (AC)which his father David had dedicated: the silver and the gold and the furnishings. He put them in the treasuries of the house of the Lord.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 7:2 About 150 feet
- 1 Kings 7:2 About 75 feet
- 1 Kings 7:7 Lit. floor of the upper level
- 1 Kings 7:13 Heb. Hiram; cf. 2 Chr. 2:13, 14
- 1 Kings 7:15 fashioned
- 1 Kings 7:21 Lit. He Shall Establish
- 1 Kings 7:21 Lit. In It Is Strength
- 1 Kings 7:26 About 12,000 gallons; three thousand, 2 Chr. 4:5
- 1 Kings 7:27 Or stands
- 1 Kings 7:37 one
- 1 Kings 7:38 About 240 gallons
- 1 Kings 7:40 Heb. Hiram; cf. 2 Chr. 2:13, 14
- 1 Kings 7:45 Heb. Hiram; cf. 2 Chr. 2:13, 14
- 1 Kings 7:50 firepans
1 Kings 7
English Standard Version
Solomon Builds His Palace
7 Solomon was (A)building his own house thirteen years, and he finished his entire house.
2 He built (B)the House of the Forest of Lebanon. Its length was a hundred cubits[a] and its breadth fifty cubits and its height thirty cubits, and it was built on four[b] rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams on the pillars. 3 And it was covered with cedar above the chambers that were on the forty-five pillars, fifteen in each row. 4 There were window frames in three rows, and window opposite window in three tiers. 5 All the doorways and windows[c] had square frames, and window was opposite window in three tiers.
6 And he made (C)the Hall of Pillars; its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth thirty cubits. There was a porch in front with pillars, and (D)a canopy in front of them.
7 And he made the Hall of the Throne where he was to pronounce judgment, even the Hall of Judgment. (E)It was finished with cedar from floor to rafters.[d]
8 His own house where he was to dwell, in the other court at the back of the hall, was of like workmanship. Solomon also made a house like this hall for Pharaoh's daughter (F)whom he had taken in marriage.
9 All these were made of costly stones, cut according to measure, sawed with saws, back and front, even from the foundation to the coping, and from the outside to the great court. 10 The foundation was of costly stones, huge stones, stones of eight and ten cubits. 11 And above were costly stones, cut according to measurement, and cedar. 12 (G)The great court had three courses of cut stone all around, and a course of cedar beams; so had the inner court of the house of the Lord and (H)the vestibule of the house.
The Temple Furnishings
13 And King Solomon sent and brought (I)Hiram from Tyre. 14 He was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in bronze. And (J)he was full of wisdom, understanding, and skill for making any work in bronze. He came to King Solomon and did all his work.
15 (K)He cast (L)two pillars of bronze. (M)Eighteen cubits was the height of one pillar, and a line of twelve cubits measured its circumference. It was hollow, and its thickness was four fingers. The second pillar was the same.[e] 16 He also made two capitals of cast bronze to set on the tops of the pillars. The height of the one capital was five cubits, and (N)the height of the other capital was five cubits. 17 There were lattices of checker work with wreaths of chain work for the capitals on the tops of the pillars, a lattice[f] for the one capital and a lattice for the other capital. 18 Likewise he made pomegranates[g] in two rows around the one latticework to cover the capital that was on the top of the pillar, and he did the same with the other capital. 19 Now the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars in the vestibule were of lily-work, four cubits. 20 The capitals were on the two pillars and also above the rounded projection which was beside the latticework. There were (O)two hundred pomegranates in two rows all around, and so with the other capital. 21 (P)He set up the pillars at the vestibule of the temple. He set up the pillar on the south and called its name Jachin, and he set up the pillar on the north and called its name Boaz. 22 And on the tops of the pillars was lily-work. Thus the work of the pillars was finished.
23 (Q)Then he made (R)the sea of cast metal. It was round, ten cubits from brim to brim, and five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits measured its circumference. 24 Under its brim were (S)gourds, for ten cubits, compassing the sea all around. The gourds were in two rows, cast with it when it was cast. 25 It stood on (T)twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The sea was set on them, and all their rear parts were inward. 26 Its thickness was a handbreadth,[h] and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily. It held two thousand baths.[i]
27 He also made the (U)ten stands of bronze. Each stand was four cubits long, four cubits wide, and three cubits high. 28 This was the construction of the stands: they had panels, and the panels were set in the frames, 29 and on the panels that were set in the frames were lions, oxen, and cherubim. On the frames, both above and below the lions and oxen, there were wreaths of beveled work. 30 Moreover, each stand had four bronze wheels and axles of bronze, and at the four corners were supports for a basin. The supports were cast with wreaths at the side of each. 31 Its opening was within a crown that projected upward one cubit. Its opening was round, as a pedestal is made, a cubit and a half deep. At its opening there were carvings, and its panels were square, not round. 32 And the four wheels were underneath the panels. The axles of the wheels were of one piece with the stands, and the height of a wheel was a cubit and a half. 33 The wheels were made like a chariot wheel; their axles, their rims, their spokes, and their hubs were all cast. 34 There were four supports at the four corners of each stand. The supports were of one piece with the stands. 35 And on the top of the stand there was a round band half a cubit high; and on the top of the stand its stays and its panels were of one piece with it. 36 And on the surfaces of its stays and on its panels, he carved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, according to the space of each, with wreaths all around. 37 After this manner he made (V)the ten stands. All of them were cast alike, of the same measure and the same form.
38 And he made (W)ten basins of bronze. Each basin held forty baths, each basin measured four cubits, and there was a basin for each of the ten stands. 39 And he set the stands, five on the south side of the house, and five on the north side of the house. And he set the sea at the southeast corner of the house.
40 (X)Hiram also made (Y)the pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Hiram finished all the work that he did for King Solomon on the house of the Lord: 41 the two pillars, the two bowls of the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars, and the two (Z)latticeworks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars; 42 and the (AA)four hundred pomegranates for the two latticeworks, two rows of pomegranates for each latticework, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars; 43 the ten stands, and the ten basins on the stands; 44 and (AB)the one sea, and the twelve oxen underneath the sea.
45 Now (AC)the pots, the shovels, and the basins, all these vessels in the house of the Lord, which Hiram made for King Solomon, were of burnished bronze. 46 In the plain of the Jordan the king cast them, in the clay ground between (AD)Succoth and (AE)Zarethan. 47 And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because there were so many of them; (AF)the weight of the bronze was not ascertained.
48 So Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of the Lord: (AG)the golden altar, (AH)the golden table for (AI)the bread of the Presence, 49 (AJ)the lampstands of pure gold, five on the south side and five on the north, before the inner sanctuary; (AK)the flowers, the lamps, and the tongs, of gold; 50 the cups, snuffers, basins, dishes for incense, and (AL)fire pans, of pure gold; and the sockets of gold, for the doors of the innermost part of the house, (AM)the Most Holy Place, and for the doors of the nave of the temple.
51 Thus all the work that King Solomon did on the house of the Lord was finished. And Solomon brought in (AN)the things that David his father had dedicated, the silver, the gold, and the vessels, and stored them in the treasuries of the house of the Lord.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 7:2 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
- 1 Kings 7:2 Septuagint three
- 1 Kings 7:5 Septuagint; Hebrew posts
- 1 Kings 7:7 Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew floor
- 1 Kings 7:15 Targum, Syriac (compare Septuagint and Jeremiah 52:21); Hebrew and a line of twelve cubits measured the circumference of the second pillar
- 1 Kings 7:17 Septuagint; Hebrew seven; twice in this verse
- 1 Kings 7:18 Two manuscripts (compare Septuagint); Hebrew pillars
- 1 Kings 7:26 A handbreadth was about 3 inches or 7.5 centimeters
- 1 Kings 7:26 A bath was about 6 gallons or 22 liters
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
