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7
1 However, it took Solomon thirteen years to finish building the whole of his palace. 2 He built the House of the Forest of Lebanon— a hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide, and thirty cubits high. There were four rows of cedar pillars that supported cedar beams. 3 The cedar roof of the house was on top of the beams that rested on the pillars. There were forty-five beams, fifteen in each row. 4 The windows were placed high up, in three rows facing each other. 5 All the doorways and door casings had rectangular frames, the openings facing each other in sets of three.
6 He also had the Hall of Columns made—forty cubits long and thirty cubits wide. It had a porch in front, its canopy also supported by columns. 7 The throne room where he sat as judge was called the Hall of Justice, lined with cedar panels from floor to ceiling.
8 Solomon's own palace where he lived was in a courtyard behind the porch, made in a similar way to the Temple.*“To the Temple”: implied. He also had a palace made for Pharaoh's daughter, whom he'd married.
9 All these buildings were built using stone blocks that were expensive to produce. They were cut to size and trimmed with saws on the inside and outside. These stones were used from the foundation to the eaves, from the outside of the building all the way to the great courtyard. 10 The foundations were laid with very large top-quality stones, between eight and ten cubits long. 11 On these were placed top-quality stones, cut to size, along with cedar timber. 12 Around the great courtyard, the inner courtyard, and the porch of the Lord's Temple were three courses of dressed stone and a course of cedar beams.
13 King Solomon sent for Hiram†“Hiram,” or “Huram.” Not the King of Tyre who bore the same name. from Tyre. 14 He was the son of a widow from the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was from Tyre, a craftsman who worked in bronze. Hiram had great expertise, understanding and being familiar with all kinds of bronze work. He came to King Solomon and carried out all that the king required.
15 He cast two columns in bronze. They were both eighteen cubits high and twelve cubits in circumference. 16 He also cast two capitals in bronze to place on top of the columns. Each capital was five cubits high. 17 He made a network of lattice using interlinked chains for both capitals, seven for each one. 18 Around the lattice network he made two rows of ornamental pomegranates to cover the capitals on the top of both the columns. 19 The capitals placed on top of columns in the porch were in the shape of lilies, four cubits high. 20 On the capitals of both columns were the two hundred pomegranates in rows that encircled them, just above the rounded part that was next to the chain network. 21 He erected the columns at the entrance porch of the Temple. The southern column he named Jachin, and the northern column he named Boaz. 22 The capitals on the columns were in the shape of lilies. And so the work on the columns was finished.
23 Then he made the Sea of cast metal.‡The “Sea” was a very large metal bowl that contained water. Its shape was circular, and measured ten cubits from edge to edge, five cubits in height, and thirty cubits in circumference. 24 Below the edge it was decorated with ornamental gourds that encircled it, ten per cubit all the way around. They were in two rows cast as one piece with the Sea. 25 The Sea stood on twelve metal bulls. Three faced to the north, three to the west, three to the south, and three to the east. The Sea was placed on them, with their rears toward the center. 26 It was as thick as the width of a hand, and its edge was like the flared edge of a cup or a lily flower. It held two thousand baths.
27 He also made ten carts to carry basins. The carts measured four cubits long, four cubits wide, and three cubits high. 28 This is how they were put together: side panels were attached to uprights. 29 Both the side panels and the uprights were decorated with lions, bulls, and cherubim. Above and below the lions and the bulls were decorative wreaths.
30 Each cart had four bronze wheels with bronze axles. A basin rested on four supports that had decorative wreaths on each side. 31 At the top of each cart was a round opening like a pedestal to hold the basin.§“To hold the basin”: implied. The opening was one cubit deep, and one and a half cubits wide. The opening had carvings around it. The panels of the cart were square, not round. 32 The four wheels were under the panels, and the axles of the wheels were attached to the cart. Each wheel measured one and a half cubits in diameter. 33 The wheels were made in the same way as chariot wheels; their axles, rims, spokes, and hubs were all made by casting.
34 Each cart had four handles, one on each corner, made as part of the stand. 35 There was a ring on the top of the cart a half cubit wide. The supports and panels were cast as one piece with the top of the cart. 36 He had designs of cherubim, lions, and palm trees engraved on the panels, supports, and frame, wherever there was space, with decorative wreaths all around. 37 This is how he made the ten carts, with the same casts, size, and shape. 38 Then he made ten bronze basins. Each one held forty baths and measured four cubits across, one basin for each of the ten carts. 39 He placed five carts on the south side of the Temple and five on the north side. He placed the Sea on the south side, by the southeast corner of the Temple. 40 He also made the pots, shovels, and bowls.
So Hiram finished making everything required by King Solomon for the Temple of the Lord: 41 the two columns; the two capitals shaped like bowls on top the columns; the two chain networks that covered the capitals shaped like bowls on top of the columns; 42 the four hundred ornamental pomegranates for the chain networks (in two rows for the chain networks that covered the capitals on top of the columns); 43 the ten carts; the ten basins on the carts; 44 the Sea; the twelve bulls under the Sea; 45 and the pots, shovels, and bowls. Everything that Hiram made for King Solomon in the Temple of the Lord was made of polished bronze. 46 The king had them cast in molds made of clay in the Jordan valley between Succoth and Zarethan. 47 Solomon did not weigh anything that had been made because there was just so much—the weight of bronze used could not be measured. 48 Solomon also had made all the items for the Temple of the Lord: the golden altar; the golden table where the Bread of the Presence was placed; 49 the lampstands made of pure gold that stood in front of the inner sanctuary, five on the right and five on the left; the flowers, lamps, and tongs that were all made of pure gold; 50 the basins, wick trimmers, bowls, ladles, and censers that again were all made of pure gold; and the gold hinges for the doors of the inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place, in addition to the doors of the main hall of the Temple. 51 In this way all King Solomon's work for the Temple of the Lord was completed. Then Solomon brought in the items his father David had dedicated, the special objects made of silver, the gold, and the Temple furnishings, and he placed them in the treasuries of the Temple of the Lord.

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*7:8 “To the Temple”: implied.

†7:13 “Hiram,” or “Huram.” Not the King of Tyre who bore the same name.

‡7:23 The “Sea” was a very large metal bowl that contained water.

§7:31 “To hold the basin”: implied.

© 2018 Dr. Jonathan Gallagher