¶ But Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished
all his house.
.2 He built also the house of the forest of Lebanon; the length thereof was an hundred cubits, and the breadth thereof fifty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits, upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars.
3 And it was covered with cedar above upon the beams, that lay on forty five pillars, fifteen in a row.
4 And there were windows in three rows, and light was against light in three ranks.
5 And all the doors and posts were square, with the windows: and light was against light in three ranks.
6 And he made a porch of pillars; the length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth thereof thirty cubits: and the porch was before them: and the other pillars and the thick beam were before them.
- Own house Actually the palace complex
with various buildings. With Solomon's wide interests, we may assume that
he was the chief architect.
1 - Thirteen years These were after seven years completing the temple 1ki0638. The temple would have taken longer without the extensive work of preparation 1ch2202. The construction thus lasted for twenty years 1ki0910, 2ch0801.
2 - House of the forest This may have been his private dwelling separate from or adjoining the queen's house v8. The "king's house" (1ki0910 linked above) must have included both of these along with other buildings but no one knows.
4 - Windows Compare 1ki0604.
| 7 Then he made a porch for
the throne where he might judge, even the porch of judgment: and it was
covered with cedar from one side of the floor to the other.
.8 And his house where he dwelt had another court within the porch, which was of the like work. Solomon made also an house for Pharaoh's daughter, whom he had taken to wife, like unto this porch.
9 All these were of costly stones, according to the measures of hewed stones, sawed with saws, within and without, even from the foundation unto the coping, and so on the outside toward the great court.
| 7 -
This may have been a chamber in the house of the forest of Lebanon. It
may then have been a special area at the entrance of the throne room, or
it could have been a separate building.
8 - His house Little is known about the King's living quarters.
| 10 And the foundation was
of costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of
11 And above were costly stones, after the measures of hewed stones, and cedars.
.12 And the great court round about was with three rows of hewed stones, and a row of cedar beams, both for the inner court of the house of the LORD, and for the porch of the house.
|12 - The great court The whole complex may have been surrounded by a walled courtyard.|
¶ And king Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre.
14 He was a widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass: and he was filled with wisdom, and understanding, and cunning to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his work.
.15 For he cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece: and a line of twelve cubits did compass either of them about.
16 And he made two chapiters of molten brass, to set upon the tops of the pillars: the height of the one chapiter was five cubits, and the height of the other chapiter was five cubits:
.17 And nets of checker work, and wreaths of chain work, for the chapiters which were upon the top of the pillars; seven for the one chapiter, and seven for the other chapiter.
|13 - Hiram There could have been two people with the same name 2ch0207.|
| 18 And he made the pillars,
and two rows round about upon the one network, to cover the chapiters that
were upon the top, with pomegranates: and so did he for the other chapiter.
19 And the chapiters that were upon the top of the pillars were of lily work in the porch, four cubits.
20 And the chapiters upon the two pillars had pomegranates also above, over against the belly which was by the network: and the pomegranates were two hundred in rows round about upon the other chapiter.
.21 And he set up the pillars in the porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof Jachin: and he set up the left pillar, and called the name thereof Boaz.
|21 - Name ... Jachin ... Boaz Meaning "He shall establish" and probably "In Him is strength" They would have represented the source of Israel's existence and strength ps02807, is4524, je1619, ps04601|
| 22 And upon the top of the
pillars was lily work: so was the work of the pillars finished.
.23 And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.
.24 And under the brim of it round about there were knops compassing it, ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about: the knops were cast in two rows, when it was cast.
25 It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.
.26 And it was an hand breadth thick, and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies: it contained two thousand baths.
|23 - Molten sea A brass laver holding water as before the tabernacle ex3017, ex3808 except much larger. It's capacity of 2,000 baths v26 comes to about 12,000 gallons or 44,000 liters! Seas were for priests to wash in before their ministry in the temple 2ch0406.|
| 27 And he made ten bases of
brass; four cubits was the length of one base, and four cubits the breadth
thereof, and three cubits the height of it.
28 And the work of the bases was on this manner: they had borders, and the borders were between the ledges:
29 And on the borders that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and cherubims: and upon the ledges there was a base above: and beneath the lions and oxen were certain additions made of thin work.
30 And every base had four brasen wheels, and plates of brass: and the four corners thereof had undersetters: under the laver were undersetters molten, at the side of every addition.
31 And the mouth of it within the chapiter and above was a cubit: but the mouth thereof was round after the work of the base, a cubit and an half: and also upon the mouth of it were gravings with their borders, foursquare, not round.
|27-39 - Ten bases of brass These were trucks or four-wheeled carriages, for the support and conveyance of the lavers. The description of their structure shows that they were elegantly fitted up and skilfully adapted to their purpose. They stood, not on the axles, but on four rests attached to the axles, so that the figured sides were considerably raised above the wheels. They were all exactly alike in form and size. The lavers which were borne upon them were vessels capable each of holding three hundred gallons of water, upwards of a ton weight. The whole, when full of water, would be no less than two tons." (JFB)|
| 32 And under the borders were
four wheels; and the axletrees of the wheels were joined to the base: and
the height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit.
33 And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel: their axletrees, and their naves, and their felloes, and their spokes, were all molten.
34 And there were four undersetters to the four corners of one base: and the undersetters were of the very base itself.
35 And in the top of the base was there a round compass of half a cubit high: and on the top of the base the ledges thereof and the borders thereof were of the same.
36 For on the plates of the ledges thereof, and on the borders thereof, he graved cherubims, lions, and palm trees, according to the proportion of every one, and additions round about.
37 After this manner he made the ten bases: all of them had one casting, one measure, and one size.
| 38 Then made he
ten lavers of brass: one laver contained forty baths: and every laver was
four cubits: and upon every one of the ten bases one laver.
.39 And he put five bases on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house: and he set the sea on the right side of the house eastward over against the south.
.40 And Hiram made the lavers, and the shovels, and the basons. So Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he made king Solomon for the house of the LORD:
.41 The two pillars, and the two bowls of the chapiters that were on the top of the two pillars; and the two networks, to cover the two bowls of the chapiters which were upon the top of the pillars;
.42 And four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, even two rows of pomegranates for one network, to cover the two bowls of the chapiters that were upon the pillars;
43 And the ten bases, and ten lavers on the bases;
44 And one sea, and twelve oxen under the sea;
.45 And the pots, and the shovels, and the basons: and all these vessels, which Hiram made to king Solomon for the house of the LORD, were of bright brass.
| 46 In the plain of Jordan
did the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarthan.
.47 And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because they were exceeding many: neither was the weight of the brass found out.
|46 - Succoth (means "booths") "A spot in the valley of the Jordan and near the Jabbok, where Jacob set up his tents on his return from Mesopotamia. Joshua assigned the city subsequently built here to the tribe of Gad Gideon tore the flesh of the principal men of Succoth with thorn and briars, because they returned him a haughty answer when pursuing the Midianites. It seems to have lain on the east side of the Jordan; but may possibly have been on the west side, at the place now called Sakut. Compare; Ps 60:6." (ATS Dict.) ge3317, jos1327, jg0805. See map, near Jabbok."Succoth" is also the name of the first encampment of the exodus.|
¶ And Solomon made all the vessels that pertained unto the house of
the LORD: the altar of gold, and the table of gold, whereupon the shewbread
.49 And the candlesticks of pure gold, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the oracle, with the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs of gold,
.50 And the bowls, and the snuffers, and the basons, and the spoons, and the censers of pure gold; and the hinges of gold, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the house, to wit, of the temple.
.51 So was ended all the work that king Solomon made for the house of the LORD. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated; even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, did he put among the treasures of the house of the LORD.
|49 - Candlesticks (lampstands) "made, probably, according to the model of that in the tabernacle, which, along with the other articles of furniture, were deposited with due honor, as sacred relics, in the temple. But these seem not to have been used in the temple service; for Solomon made new lavers tables, and candlesticks, ten of each. (See further regarding the dimensions and furniture of the temple, in 2Ch 3:1-5:14)."(JFB).|