Building of the temple
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| .1 ¶ And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month Zif, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the LORD. | Four
hundred and eightieth year This text enables
scholars to establish dates for chronologies of the kings of Israel and
even helps tie in the Assyrian dates.
Zif Later the months had different names. Began to build The time had come for a permanent structure as the center of worship. The tabernacle would have been deteriorating although repairs had likely been made. |
 .2
And the house which king Solomon built for the LORD, the length thereof
was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height
thereof thirty cubits.
3 And the porch before the temple of the house, twenty cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house; and ten cubits was the breadth thereof before the house. .4 And for the house he made windows of narrow lights. 2 - The length All measures were doubled. The 60 cubits would have been 87½ feet (or about 27 meters) long. This was only the temple itself, not including porches and courts. 4 - Windows of narrow lights The KJV marginal note may have been based on how medieval castles were built but is reasonable "narrow without and broad within." This was long before the invention of glass. If you recognize the castle in the photo, please contact us referring to this chapter. Image
© Corel
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| .5
And against the wall of the house he built chambers round about, against
the walls of the house round about, both of the temple and of the oracle:
and he made chambers round about:
6 The nethermost chamber was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad: for without in the wall of the house he made narrowed rests round about, that the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house. |
5 -
Against
the wall .... chambers These could have been places for on-duty
priests to sleep and eat or places for storage.
5 - Oracle The innermost room – the most holy place. |
| 7 And the house, when it was
in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither:
so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in
the house, while it was in building.
8 The door for the middle chamber was in the right side of the house: and they went up with winding stairs into the middle chamber, and out of the middle into the third. .9 So he built the house, and finished it; and covered the house with beams and boards of cedar. 10 And then he built chambers against all the house, five cubits high: and they rested on the house with timber of cedar. |
7 - Hammer .... not heard Even in the building of the temple reverence was maintained. How careless we tend to be in the places dedicated to the worship of God! |
| 11 ¶ And the word of
the LORD came to Solomon, saying,
.12 Concerning this house which thou art in building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father: 13 And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel. 14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it. |
11
- Word of the Lord An important reminder.
12 - If thou wilt walk Our cooperation is required if blessings are expected je1807, je2613. Righteousness – right doing 1jo0307 – opens the way for God to prosper us pr1105, pr1228, is3217. Passages are indicated by their first verses. |
| 15 ¶ And he built the
walls of the house within with boards of cedar, both the floor of the house,
and the walls of the cieling: and he covered them on the inside with wood,
and covered the floor of the house with planks of fir.
16 And he built twenty cubits on the sides of the house, both the floor and the walls with boards of cedar: he even built them for it within, even for the oracle, even for the most holy place. .17 And the house, that is, the temple before it, was forty cubits long. 18 And the cedar of the house within was carved with knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen. |
15
- Built the walls within "The walls were wainscotted with
cedar-wood; the floor, paved with cypress planks; the interior was divided
(by a partition consisting of folding doors, which were opened and shut
with golden chains) into two apartments--the back or inner room, that is,
the most holy place, was twenty cubits long and broad; the front, or outer
room, that is, the holy place, was forty cubits. The cedar-wood was beautifully
embellished with figures in relievo, representing clusters of foliage,
open flowers, cherubims, and palm trees. The whole interior was overlaid
with gold, so that neither wood nor stone was seen; nothing met the eye
but pure gold, either plain or richly chased." (JFB)
16 - Oracle Or "the most holy place." |
| .19
And the oracle he prepared in the house within, to set there the ark of
the covenant of the LORD.
20 And the oracle in the forepart was twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof: and he overlaid it with pure gold; and so covered the altar which was of cedar. .21 So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold: and he made a partition by the chains of gold before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold. 22 And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the house: also the whole altar that was by the oracle he overlaid with gold. |
19
- Oracle Or "the most holy place."
19 - Ark of the covenant The most important article with the tables of stone. See ex34, ex2633. 20 - Twenty cubits The most holy place was a 20-cubit cube. |
| 23 And within the oracle he
made two cherubims of olive tree, each ten cubits high.
24 And five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub: from the uttermost part of the one wing unto the uttermost part of the other were ten cubits. 25 And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubims were of one measure and one size. 26 The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub. 27 And he set the cherubims within the inner house: and they stretched forth the wings of the cherubims, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house. 28 And he overlaid the cherubims with gold. |
22 - Oracle
Altar ... by oracle. That is, by the Most Holy Place. See
v19.
See more about the temple in 2ch3. |
| .29
And he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures
of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, within and without.
30 And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without. .31 And for the entering of the oracle he made doors of olive tree: the lintel and side posts were a fifth part of the wall. 32 The two doors also were of olive tree; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold, and spread gold upon the cherubims, and upon the palm trees. |
31 - Oracle See v5. |
| .33
So also made he for the door of the temple posts of olive tree, a fourth
part of the wall.
34 And the two doors were of fir tree: the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding. 35 And he carved thereon cherubims and palm trees and open flowers: and covered them with gold fitted upon the carved work. .36 And he built the inner court with three rows of hewed stone, and a row of cedar beams. |
33 - Posts See 1ki0702. |
| 37 In the fourth year was
the foundation of the house of the LORD laid, in the month Zif:
.38 And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it. |
The old names for the months confirm the authenticity of the document. |
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