1 Kings 6

1 Then it happened that, in the four hundred and eightieth year after the sons of Israel departed from the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of the reign of Solomon over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, the house of the Lord began to be built.

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 Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the LORD.

2 Now the house, which king Solomon was building to the Lord, was sixty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in width, and thirty cubits in height.

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 a portico was before the temple, of twenty cubits in length, in accord with the measure of the width of the temple. And it had ten cubits of width before the face of the temple.

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 he made oblique windows in the temple.

And for the house he made windows of fixed lattice-work.

5 And upon the wall of the temple, he built panels on all sides, in the walls of the house around the temple and the oracle. And he made side chambers all around.

And against the wall of the house he built stories round about, against the walls of the house round about, both of the temple and of the oracle: and he made side-chambers round about:

6 The flooring on the bottom level held five cubits in width, and the middle floor was six cubits in width, and the third floor held seven cubits in width. Then he positioned beams on the house all around the outside, in such a way that they would not be fastened to the walls of the temple.

The nethermost story was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad: for on the outside he made rebatements [in the wall] of the house round about, that [the beams] should not have hold in the walls of the house.

7 Now the house, while it was being built, was made from cut and finished stones. And so, neither mallet, nor chisel, nor any tool of iron was heard in the house while it was being built.

And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready at the quarry: and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.

8 The door at the side of the middle section was to the right of the house. And they would ascend along winding stairs to the middle level, and from the middle level to the third level.

The door for the middle side-chambers was in the right side of the house: and they went up by winding stairs into the middle [chambers], and out of the middle into the third.

9 And he built the house, and finished it. And he overlaid the house with boards of cedar.

So he built the house, and finished it; and he covered the house with beams and planks of cedar.

10 And he built a paneling over the entire house, five cubits in height, and he covered the house with cedar wood.

And he built the stories against all the house, each five cubits high: and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.

11 And the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying:

And the word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying,

12 “Concerning this house, which you are building: if you will walk in my precepts, and carry out my judgments, and keep all my commandments, advancing by them, I will confirm my word to you, which I spoke to your father David.

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 establish my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father.

13 And I will dwell in the midst of the sons of Israel, and I will not forsake my people Israel.”

And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.

14 And so, Solomon built the house, and finished it.

So Solomon built the house, and finished it.

15 And he built the walls of the house, on the interior, with panels of cedar, from the floor of the house, to the top of the walls, and even to the ceiling. He covered it with cedar wood on the interior. And he overlaid the floor of the house with panels of spruce.

And he built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar; from the floor of the house unto the walls of the cieling, he covered them on the inside with wood: and he covered the floor of the house with boards of fir.

16 And he built panels of cedar, of twenty cubits, at the back part of the temple, from the floor even to the top. And he made the inner house of the oracle as the Holy of Holies.

And he built twenty cubits on the hinder part of the house with boards of cedar from the floor unto the walls: he even built [them] for it within, for an oracle, even for the most holy place.

17 And the temple itself, before the doors of the oracle, was forty cubits.

And the house, that is, the temple before [the oracle], was forty cubits [long].

18 And the entire house was clothed with cedar on the interior, having its turnings and junctures artfully wrought, with carvings projecting outward. Everything was clothed with panels of cedar. And no stone at all was able to be seen in the wall.

And there was cedar on the house within, carved with knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen.

19 Now he made the oracle in the middle of the house, in the inner part, so that he might station the ark of the covenant of the Lord there.

And he prepared an oracle in the midst of the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of the LORD.

20 And the oracle held twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in width, and twenty cubits in height. And he covered and clothed it with the purest gold. Then, too, he clothed the altar in cedar.

And within the oracle was [a space of] twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof; and he overlaid it with pure gold: and he covered the altar with cedar.

21 Also, the house before the oracle, he covered with the purest gold, and he fastened the plates with nails of gold.

So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold: and he drew chains of gold across before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold.

22 And there was nothing in the temple that was not covered with gold. Moreover, the entire altar of the oracle he overlaid with gold.

And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until all the house was finished: also the whole altar that belonged to the oracle he overlaid with gold.

23 And he made in the oracle two cherubim from wood of the olive tree, of ten cubits in height.

And in the oracle he made two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits high.

24 One wing of a cherub was five cubits, and the other wing of a cherub was five cubits, that is, having ten cubits from the summit of one wing even to the summit of the other wing.

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 Likewise, the second cherub was ten cubits. And the measure was equal and the work was one, in the two cherubim,

And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubim were of one measure and one form.

26 that is, one cherub had a height of ten cubits, and similarly the second cherub.

The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub.

27 And he stationed the cherubim in the middle of the inner temple. And the cherubim extended their wings, and the wing of the one was touching the wall, and the wing of the second cherub was touching the other wall. But the other wings, in the middle of the temple, were touching each another.

And he set the cherubim within the inner house: and the wings of the cherubim were stretched forth, 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 He also overlaid the cherubim with gold.

And he overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29 And all the walls of the temple all around he engraved with diverse carvings and turnings. And he made in them cherubim, and palm trees, and various images, as if these were projecting out, and going forth from, the wall.

And he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, within and without.

30 Then, too, the floor of the house he overlaid with gold within and without.

And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without.

31 And at the entrance of the oracle, he made little doors, from wood of the olive tree, with posts of five corners.

And for the entering of the oracle he made doors of olive wood: the lintel [and] door posts were a fifth part [of the wall].

32 And there were two doors, from wood of the olive tree. And he carved upon them pictures of cherubim, and images of palm trees, and very prominent figures. And he overlaid these with gold. And he covered the cherubim, as well as the palm trees and the other things, with gold.

So [he made] two doors of olive wood; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he spread the gold upon the cherubim, and upon the palm trees.

33 And he made, at the entrance of the temple, posts from wood of the olive tree, with four corners,

So also made he for the entering of the temple door posts of olive wood, out of a fourth part [of the wall];

34 and two doors, from wood of the spruce tree, on the other side. And each door was double, and so it opened by folding upon itself.

and two doors of fir wood; the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding.

35 And he carved cherubim, and palm trees, and very prominent engravings. And he covered everything with gold plates, worked to be perfectly square.

And he carved [thereon] cherubim and palm trees and open flowers: and he overlaid them with gold fitted upon the graven work.

36 And he built the inner atrium with three rows of polished stones, and one row of cedar wood.

And he built the inner court with three rows of hewn stone, and a row of cedar beams.

37 In the fourth year, the house of the Lord was founded, in the month of Ziv.

In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of the LORD laid, in the month Ziv.

38 And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, the house was perfected in all its works and in all its equipment. And he built it for seven years.

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.