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Solomon Builds the Temple(A)

So Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where He appeared to David his father, at the place that David established on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. He began to build in the second month[a] on the second day during the fourth year of his reign.[b]

These are the foundation measurements that Solomon used for building the house of God. The cubit[c] length in the former standard measure was sixty cubits and the width twenty cubits.[d] The porch vestibule that was in front of the nave hall had its length, like the width of the house, as twenty cubits,[e] and its height was one hundred and twenty cubits;[f] and he overlaid the inside with pure gold.

And he paneled the great house with cypress trees and then covered it with fine gold. Then he decorated it with palm trees and chain work. And he overlaid the house with precious stones for decoration, and the gold was from Parvaim. And he covered the house—its beams, thresholds, walls, and doors—with gold, and he engraved cherubim on the walls.

Then he made the dwelling of the Most Holy Place. Its length was as the width of twenty cubits, and its width also twenty cubits; and he covered it with fine gold, six hundred talents[g] worth. And the weight in gold for the nails was fifty shekels.[h] And he covered the upper chamber in gold.

10 Then in the dwelling of the Most Holy Place, he made two cherubim that were cast metal and overlaid them with gold. 11 And the wings of the cherubim were the length of twenty cubits. The wing of one cherub was five cubits, reaching the wall of the house, and the wing of the other was five cubits,[i] reaching to the wing of the other cherub. 12 And the wing of this cherub was five cubits, reaching to the other wall of the house, and the other wing was five cubits, touching the wing of the first cherub. 13 So the wings of these cherubim spread out were twenty cubits; they were upright on their feet facing inward toward the house.

14 Then he made the curtain of violet, purple, crimson, and blue thread, and he wove cherubim into it.

15 And he made two pillars in front of the house thirty-five cubits[j] high, with a five cubit capital on the top of the pillar. 16 Then he made ornamental chain work, like in the Most Holy Place, and set it on the top of the pillars. Then he designed a hundred pomegranates and set them on the chain work. 17 He then raised the pillars in front of the temple, with one on the right to the south and the other on the left to the north, and the pillar to the south he called Jakin, and the pillar to the north he called Boaz.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 3:2 Ziv or Iyyar in the Hebrew calendar.
  2. 2 Chronicles 3:2 April or May in 966 BC.
  3. 2 Chronicles 3:3 The Egyptian cubit had a royal measure of 20.6 inches (52.3cm) and a commercial measure of 17.6 inches (44.7 cm). The cubit standards in Egypt and Mesopotamia were slightly different.
  4. 2 Chronicles 3:3 About 90 feet long and 30 feet wide, or 27 meters long and 9 meters wide.
  5. 2 Chronicles 3:4 About 30 feet, or 9 meters; and in vv. 8, 11, and 13.
  6. 2 Chronicles 3:4 About 180 feet, or 54 meters.
  7. 2 Chronicles 3:8 About 23 tons, or 21 metric tons.
  8. 2 Chronicles 3:9 About 1¼ pounds, or 575 grams.
  9. 2 Chronicles 3:11 About 7½ feet, or 2.3 meters; and in v. 15.
  10. 2 Chronicles 3:15 About 53 feet, or 16 meters.

Then Solomon began to build the house of Jehovah at Jerusalem on mount Moriah, where Jehovah appeared unto David his father, which he made ready [a]in the place that David had appointed, in the threshing-floor of [b]Ornan the Jebusite. And he began to build in the second day of the second month, in the fourth year of his reign. Now [c]these are the foundations which Solomon laid for the building of the house of God. The length by cubits after the first measure was threescore cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits. And the porch that was before the house, the length of it, according to the breadth of the house, was twenty cubits, and the height a hundred and twenty; and he overlaid it within with pure gold. And the greater house he ceiled with [d]fir-wood, which he overlaid with fine gold, and wrought thereon palm-trees and chains. And he garnished the house with precious stones for beauty: and the gold was gold of Parvaim. He overlaid also the house, the beams, the thresholds, and the walls thereof, and the doors thereof, with gold; and graved cherubim on the walls.

And he made the most holy house: the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house, was twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits; and he overlaid it with fine gold, amounting to six hundred talents. And the weight of the nails was fifty shekels of gold. And he overlaid the upper chambers with gold.

10 And in the most holy house he made two cherubim of image work; and they overlaid them with gold. 11 And the wings of the cherubim were twenty cubits long: the wing of the one cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house; and the other wing was likewise five cubits, reaching to the wing of the other cherub. 12 And the wing of the other cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house; and the other wing was five cubits also, joining to the wing of the other cherub. 13 The wings of these cherubim spread themselves forth twenty cubits: and they stood on their feet, and their faces were [e]toward the house. 14 And he made the veil of blue, and purple, and crimson, and fine linen, and wrought cherubim thereon.

15 Also he made before the house two pillars of thirty and five cubits high, and the capital that was on the top of each of them was five cubits. 16 And he made chains in the oracle, and put them on the tops of the pillars; and he made a hundred pomegranates, and put them on the chains. 17 And he set up the pillars before the temple, one on the right hand, and the other on the left; and called the name of that on the right hand [f]Jachin, and the name of that on the left [g]Boaz.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 3:1 Hebrew in the place of David.
  2. 2 Chronicles 3:1 In 2 Sam. 24:16, etc., Araunah
  3. 2 Chronicles 3:3 Or, these are the things wherein Solomon was instructed for etc.
  4. 2 Chronicles 3:5 Or, cypress-wood
  5. 2 Chronicles 3:13 Or, inward
  6. 2 Chronicles 3:17 That is, He shall establish.
  7. 2 Chronicles 3:17 That is, In it is strength.