1 Kings 7
7
Solomon Builds His Palace
1But it took Solomon 13 years to finish constructing his palace and the other buildings related to it. 2He 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. 3Above 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. 4The windows of the palace were placed high up in the walls. They were in groups of three. And they faced each other. 5All the doorways had frames shaped like rectangles. They were in front. They were in groups of three. And they faced each other.
6Solomon 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.
7Solomon 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. 8The 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.
9All 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. 10Large blocks of good quality stone were used for the foundations. Some were 15 feet long. Others were 12 feet long. 11The 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. 12The 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
13King Solomon sent messengers to Tyre. He wanted them to bring Huram back with them. 14Huram’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.
15Huram made two bronze pillars. Each of them was 27 feet high. And each was 18 feet around. 16Each pillar had a decorated top made out of bronze. Each top was seven and a half feet high. 17Chains that were linked together hung down from the tops of the pillars. There were seven chains for each top. 18Huram 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. 19The tops on the pillars of the porch were shaped like lilies. The lilies were 6 feet high. 20On 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. 21Huram set the pillars up at the temple porch. The pillar on the south he named Jakin. The one on the north he named Boaz. 22The tops of the pillars were shaped like lilies. So the work on the pillars was finished.
23Huram 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. 24Below 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.
25The 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. 26The 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.
27Huram 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. 28Here is how the stands were made. They had sides that were joined to posts. 29On 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. 30Each 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. 31There 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. 32The four wheels were under the sides. The axles of the wheels were connected to the stand. Each wheel was 27 inches across. 33The wheels were made like chariot wheels. All the axles, rims, spokes and hubs were made out of metal.
34Each stand had four handles on it. There was one on each corner. They came out from the stand. 35At 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. 36Huram 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. 37That’s how he made the ten stands. All of them were made in the same molds. And they had the same size and shape.
38Then 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. 39He 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. 40He 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.
41He made the two pillars.
He made the two tops for the pillars. The tops were shaped like bowls.
He made the two sets of chains that were linked together. They decorated the two bowl-shaped tops of the pillars.
42He made the 400 pomegranates for the two sets of chains. There were two rows of pomegranates for each chain. They decorated the bowl-shaped tops of the pillars.
43He made the ten stands with their ten bowls.
44He made the huge bowl. He made the 12 bulls that were under it.
45He made the pots, shovels and sprinkling bowls.
Huram made all those objects for King Solomon for the Lord’s temple. He made them out of bronze. Then he shined them up. 46The king had made them in clay molds. It was done on the plain of the Jordan River between Sukkoth and Zarethan. 47Solomon 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.
48Solomon also made everything in the Lord’s temple.
He made the golden altar.
He made the golden table for the holy bread.
49He made the pure gold lampstands. There were five on the right and five on the left. They were in front of the Most Holy Room.
He made the gold flowers. He made the gold lamps and tongs.
50He made the bowls, wick cutters, sprinkling bowls, dishes, and shallow cups for burning incense. All of them were made out of pure gold.
He made the gold bases for the doors of the inside room. That’s the Most Holy Room. He also made gold bases for the doors of the main hall of the temple.
51King 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.
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1 Kings 7: NIrV
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I Kings 7
7
Solomon’s Other Buildings
1But Solomon took #1 Kin. 3:1; 9:10; 2 Chr. 8:1thirteen years to build his own house; so he finished all his house.
2He also built the #1 Kin. 10:17, 21; 2 Chr. 9:16House of the Forest of Lebanon; its length was one hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits, with four rows of cedar pillars, and cedar beams on the pillars. 3And it was paneled with cedar above the beams that were on forty-five pillars, fifteen to a row. 4There were windows with beveled frames in three rows, and window was opposite window in three tiers. 5And all the doorways and doorposts had rectangular frames; and window was opposite window in three tiers.
6He 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.
7Then he made a hall for the throne, the Hall of Judgment, where he might judge; and it was paneled with cedar from floor to ceiling.
8And 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, #1 Kin. 3:1; 9:24; 11:1; 2 Chr. 8:11whom he had taken as wife.
9All 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. 10The foundation was of costly stones, large stones, some ten cubits and some eight cubits. 11And above were costly stones, hewn to size, and cedar wood. 12The great court was enclosed with three rows of hewn stones and a row of cedar beams. So were the #1 Kin. 6:36inner court of the house of the Lord #John 10:23; Acts 3:11and the vestibule of the temple.
Hiram the Craftsman
13Now King Solomon sent and brought Huram from Tyre. 14#2 Chr. 2:14He was the son of a widow from the tribe of Naphtali, and #2 Chr. 4:16his father was a man of Tyre, a bronze worker; #Ex. 31:3; 36:1he 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
15And he cast #2 Kin. 25:17; 2 Chr. 3:15; 4:12; Jer. 52:21two pillars of bronze, each one eighteen cubits high, and a line of twelve cubits measured the circumference of each. 16Then 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. 17He 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. 18So 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.
19The capitals which were on top of the pillars in the hall were in the shape of lilies, four cubits. 20The capitals on the two pillars also had pomegranates above, by the convex surface which was next to the network; and there were #2 Chr. 3:16; 4:13; Jer. 52:23two hundred such pomegranates in rows on each of the capitals all around.
21#2 Chr. 3:17Then he set up the pillars by the vestibule of the temple; he set up the pillar on the right and called its name Jachin, and he set up the pillar on the left and called its name Boaz. 22The tops of the pillars were in the shape of lilies. So the work of the pillars was finished.
The Sea and the Oxen
23And he made #2 Kin. 25:13; 2 Chr. 4:2; Jer. 52:17the 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.
24Below its brim were ornamental buds encircling it all around, ten to a cubit, #2 Chr. 4:3all the way around the Sea. The ornamental buds were cast in two rows when it was cast. 25It stood on #2 Chr. 4:4, 5; Jer. 52:20twelve 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. 26It was a handbreadth thick; and its brim was shaped like the brim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It contained two thousand baths.
The Carts and the Lavers
27He also made ten carts of bronze; four cubits was the length of each cart, four cubits its width, and three cubits its height. 28And this was the design of the carts: They had panels, and the panels were between frames; 29on 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. 30Every 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. 31Its 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. 32Under 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. 33The 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. 34And there were four supports at the four corners of each cart; its supports were part of the cart itself. 35On 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. 36On 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. 37Thus he made the ten carts. All of them were of the same mold, one measure, and one shape.
38Then #Ex. 30:18; 2 Chr. 4:6he made ten lavers of bronze; each laver contained forty baths, and each laver was four cubits. On each of the ten carts was a laver. 39And 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
40#2 Chr. 4:11—5:1Huram 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: 41the two pillars, the two bowl-shaped capitals that were on top of the two pillars; the two #1 Kin. 7:17, 18networks covering the two bowl-shaped capitals which were on top of the pillars; 42#1 Kin. 7:20four 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); 43the ten carts, and ten lavers on the carts; 44one Sea, and twelve oxen under the Sea; 45#Ex. 27:3; 2 Chr. 4:16the pots, the shovels, and the bowls.
All these articles which Huram made for King Solomon for the house of the Lord were of burnished bronze. 46#2 Chr. 4:17In the plain of Jordan the king had them cast in clay molds, between #Gen. 33:17; Josh. 13:27Succoth and #Josh. 3:16Zaretan. 47And Solomon did not weigh all the articles, because there were so many; the weight of the bronze was not #1 Chr. 22:3, 14determined.
48Thus Solomon had all the furnishings made for the house of the Lord: #Ex. 37:25, 26; 2 Chr. 4:8the altar of gold, and #Ex. 37:10, 11the table of gold on which was #Lev. 24:5–8the showbread; 49the 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; 50the basins, the trimmers, the bowls, the ladles, and the 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.
51So all the work that King Solomon had done for the house of the Lord was finished; and Solomon brought in the things #2 Sam. 8:11; 1 Chr. 18:11; 2 Chr. 5:1which 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.
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.