1 Kings 7:1-12
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)
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- 7:2 Lit 100 cubits
- 7:2 Lit 50 cubits, also in v. 6
- 7:2 Lit 30 cubits, also in vv. 6,23
- 7:4 Lit frames, window to window
- 7:4 Lit three times; = at 3 different places, also in v. 5
- 7:5 Lit frames, opposing window to window
- 7:6 Hb obscure
- 7:7 Syr, Vg; MT reads floor
- 7:8 Lit daughter he had taken
- 7:10 Lit ten cubits and eight cubits
1 Kings 7:1-12
New English Translation
The Building of the Royal Palace
7 Solomon took thirteen years to build his palace.[a] 2 He named[b] it “The Palace of the Lebanon Forest”;[c] it was 150 feet[d] long, 75 feet[e] wide, and 45 feet[f] high. It had four rows of cedar pillars and cedar beams above the pillars. 3 The roof above the beams supported by the pillars was also made of cedar; there were forty-five beams, fifteen per row. 4 There were three rows of windows arranged in sets of three.[g] 5 All the entrances[h] were rectangular in shape[i] and they were arranged in sets of three.[j] 6 He made a colonnade[k] 75 feet[l] long and 45 feet[m] wide. There was a porch in front of this and pillars and a roof in front of the porch.[n] 7 He also made a throne room, called “The Hall of Judgment,” where he made judicial decisions.[o] It was paneled with cedar from the floor to the rafters.[p] 8 The palace where he lived was constructed in a similar way.[q] He also constructed a palace like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom he had married.[r] 9 All these were built with the best[s] stones, chiseled to the right size[t] and cut with a saw on all sides,[u] from the foundation to the edge of the roof[v] and from the outside to the great courtyard. 10 The foundation was made of large valuable stones, measuring either 15 feet or 12 feet.[w] 11 Above the foundation[x] the best[y] stones, chiseled to the right size,[z] were used along with cedar. 12 Around the great courtyard were three rows of chiseled stones and one row of cedar beams, like the inner courtyard of the Lord’s temple and the hall of the palace.[aa]
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- 1 Kings 7:1 tn Heb “His house Solomon built in thirteen years and he completed all his house.”
- 1 Kings 7:2 tn Heb “he built.”
- 1 Kings 7:2 sn The Palace of the Lebanon Forest. This name was appropriate because of the large amount of cedar, undoubtedly brought from Lebanon, used in its construction. The cedar pillars in the palace must have given it the appearance of a forest.
- 1 Kings 7:2 tn Heb “100 cubits.”
- 1 Kings 7:2 tn Heb “50 cubits.”
- 1 Kings 7:2 tn Heb “30 cubits.”
- 1 Kings 7:4 tn Heb “and framed [windows in] three rows, and opening to opening three times.” The precise meaning of this description is uncertain. Another option might be, “overhung [in] three rows.” This might mean they were positioned high on the walls.
- 1 Kings 7:5 tn Heb “all of the doors and doorposts.”
- 1 Kings 7:5 sn Rectangular in shape. That is, rather than arched.
- 1 Kings 7:5 tn Heb “and all the entrances and the doorposts [had] four frames, and in front of opening to opening three times” (the precise meaning of the description is uncertain).
- 1 Kings 7:6 tn Heb “a porch of pillars.”
- 1 Kings 7:6 tn Heb “50 cubits.”
- 1 Kings 7:6 tn Heb “30 cubits.”
- 1 Kings 7:6 tn Heb “and a porch was in front of them (i.e., the aforementioned pillars) and pillars and a roof in front of them (i.e., the aforementioned pillars and porch).” The precise meaning of the term translated “roof” is uncertain; it occurs only here and in Ezek 41:25-26.
- 1 Kings 7:7 tn Heb “and a porch for the throne, where he was making judicial decisions, the Porch of Judgment, he made.”
- 1 Kings 7:7 tc The Hebrew text reads, “from the floor to the floor.” The second occurrence of the term הַקַּרְקָע (haqqarqaʿ, “the floor”) is probably an error; one should emend to הַקּוֹרוֹת (haqqorot, “the rafters”). See 6:16.
- 1 Kings 7:8 tn Heb “and his house where he lived, the other court [i.e., as opposed to the great court], separated from the house belonging to the hall, was like this work [i.e., this style of architecture].”
- 1 Kings 7:8 tn Heb “and a house he was making for the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Solomon had taken, like this porch.”
- 1 Kings 7:9 tn Or “valuable” (see 5:17).
- 1 Kings 7:9 tn Heb “according to the measurement of chiseled [stone].”
- 1 Kings 7:9 tn Heb “inside and out.”
- 1 Kings 7:9 tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew word טְפָחוֹת (tefakhot) is uncertain, but it is clear that the referent stands in opposition to the foundation.
- 1 Kings 7:10 tn Heb “stones of 10 cubits and stones of 8 cubits” (it is unclear exactly what dimension is being measured). If both numbers refer to the length of the stones (cf. NCV, CEV, NLT), then perhaps stones of two different sizes were used in some alternating pattern.
- 1 Kings 7:11 tn Heb “on top,” or “above.”
- 1 Kings 7:11 tn Or “valuable” (see 5:17).
- 1 Kings 7:11 tn Heb “according to the measurement of chiseled [stone].”
- 1 Kings 7:12 tn Or “the porch of the temple.”
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