Bible Time

¹BUT Solomon took 13 years to build his own house and to finish it. ²He also built the house of the forest of Lebanon; its length was 100 cubits and its breadth 50 cubits and its height 30 cubits, on 4 rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams on the pillars. ³And it was covered with cedar above on beams that lay on 45 pillars, 15 in a row. ⁴And there were balconies in 3 rows set one against another in 3 tiers. ⁵And all the doors and posts were square, set one against another in 3 tiers. ⁶And he made a porch of pillars; its length was 50 cubits, its breadth 30 cubits; and the porch was on the pillars, with a court in front. ⁷Then he made a porch for the throne where he might judge, even the porch of judgment; and covered it with cedar from the floor to the ceiling. ⁸And his own house where he lived was in another court inside the porch, and was of like workmanship. Solomon also made a house like this in workmanship for Pharaoh's daughter, whom he had taken as his wife. ⁹All these were of costly stones, according to the measures of hewn stones, sawed with saws inside and outside, even from the foundation to the coping, and from the outside to the court of the temple. ¹⁰And the foundation was of great and costly stones, some of 10 cubits and some of 8 cubits. ¹¹And above were costly stones, after the measures of hewn stones, and cedars. ¹²And the surounding great court was made with 3 rows of hewn stones and a row of cedar beams, both for the inner court of the house of Yahvah and for the porch of the house.

¹³And King Solomon sent and brought Hiram from Tyre. ¹⁴He was a widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was an artist and a worker in brass; and he was filled with wisdom and understanding and cunning knowledge to fashion any work in brass. And he came to King Solomon and did all his work. ¹⁵He cast 2 pillars of brass; the height of each pillar was 18 cubits and the circumference was 12 cubits. ¹⁶And he made 2 capitals of molten brass to set on the tops of the pillars; the height of one capital was 5 cubits, and the height of the other was 5 cubits; ¹⁷And he made carved ornaments of network and wreaths of chain work for the capitals which were on the top of the pillars; 7 for one capital and 7 for the other. ¹⁸And he made the pillars, and 2 rows of buds around on 1 network, to cover the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; and he did so to the other pillar. ¹⁹And the capitals that were on the top of the pillars were of lily work in the porch, 4 cubits. ²⁰And the capitals that were on the 2 pillars also had pomegranates above, and over against the side which was by the network; and the pomegranates were 200 in rows around the 1st capital; and in like manner on the other capital. ²¹And he made the pillars of the porch of the temple; and he set up the pillar on the right hand, and called its name Jachin; and he set up the pillar on the left hand, and called its name Boaz. ²²And on the top of the pillars was lily work; so was the work of the pillars finished. ²³Then he made a molten sea, 10 cubits in diameter; it was round, and its height was 5 cubits and its circumference 30 cubits. ²⁴And under the brim, around it, there were buds encircling it, 10 in a cubit, enclosing the sea; the buds were formed in 2 rows when it was cast. ²⁵It stood on 12 oxen, 3 looking toward the north, 3 looking toward the west, 3 looking toward the south, and 3 looking toward the east; and the sea was set on them, and their hinder parts were inward. ²⁶And its thickness was a hand-breadth, and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, with lilies; it contained 2,000 baths. ²⁷And he made 10 bases of brass; 4 cubits was the length of one base, and 4 cubits its breadth, and 3 cubits the height of it. ²⁸And the work of the bases was in this manner: they had borders between panels; ²⁹And on the borders that were between the panels were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and on the panels was the same, both above and below, lions and oxen; the appearance of the work was beautiful. ³⁰And every base had 4 bronze wheels and axles of brass; and its 4 corners had a framework under the laver joined to it, framework molten, beautiful work. ³¹And the opening of the base inside was 1 cubit; and its opening was round like the work of the base, a cubit and 1/2; and on the opening of it were also engravings with borders 4-square, not round. ³²And under each border were 4 wheels; and the axletrees of the wheels were joined to the base; and the height of a wheel was a cubit and a 1/2. ³³And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel; their axletrees and their spokes and their rims and their hubs were all cast. ³⁴And there were 4 supports at the 4 corners of one base; and the supports were part of the very base itself. ³⁵The supports and the frame of the base were 1/2 a cubit; and on the top of the base there was a rim; and the top of the base, its axletrees, and its borders were of the same. ³⁶And on the plates of the axletrees and on its borders he engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees around it. ³⁷After this manner he made the 10 bases: all of them were of one casting, one measure, and one size. ³⁸Then he made 10 lavers of brass; one laver held 40 baths; and every laver was 4 cubits; and on each one of the 10 bases one laver. ³⁹And he put 5 bases on the right side of the house and 5 on the left side of the house; and he set the sea on the right side of the house, toward the south. ⁴⁰And Hiram made the lavers and the pots and the cauldrons and the large hanging pots. So Hiram finished all the work that King Solomon made in the house of Yahvah; ⁴¹The 2 pillars, and the 2 bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the 2 pillars; and the 2 networks to cover the 2 bowls of the capitals which were on the top of the pillars; ⁴²And 400 pomegranates for the 2 networks, 2 rows of pomegranates for each network to cover the 2 bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars; ⁴³And the 10 bases and the 10 lavers on the bases; ⁴⁴And the one sea and the 12 oxen under the sea; ⁴⁵And the pots and the cauldrons and the hanging pots; and all the vessels of ministration which Hiram made for King Solomon for the house of Yahvah were of Corinthian brass. ⁴⁶In Kakar which is in the plain of Jericho by the side of the Jordan the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarthan. ⁴⁷And Solomon made all sorts of vessels, exceeding many; there was no limit to the weighing of the brass which King Solomon used for the house of Yahvah;

⁴⁸And he made all the vessels that pertained to the house of Yahvah: the altar of gold, and the table of gold on which the shewbread was, ⁴⁹And the candlesticks of pure gold, 5 on the right side and 5 on the left before the sanctuary, the snuffers, and the lamps, and the tongs of gold, ⁵⁰And the bowls, and the saucers, and the basins, and the spoons, and the censers of pure gold; and the hinges of pure gold, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the house of the temple. ⁵¹Thus was ended all the work that King Solomon made in the house of Yahvah. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated; the silver and the gold and the vessels, and placed them among the treasures of the house of Yahvah.