King Chapter 4
1. So king Solomon was king over [d]all Israel.
[d] All Israel,
not divided, as in the days of Saul, Ish-bosheth, and
David, or in the days following Solomon.
2. And these were the [e]princes which he
had; Azari'ah the son of Za'dok [f]the priest,
[e] 11 princes of Solomon:
1. Azariah, son of Zadok the priest
2. Elihoreph, a scrib
3. Ahiah, a scrib
4. Jehoshaphat, the recorder or
remembrancer
5. Benaiah, commander of the army
6. Zadok. the high priest
7. Abiathar, deposed high priest.
8. Azariah, overseer of officers.
9. Zabud, the principal officer and
Solomon's friend and counsellor.
10. Ahishar, officer over the household.
11. Adoniram, overseer of taxes.
[f] The priest belongs to
Azarian, not to Zadok, and this should read: Azariah, the priest, son of Zadok.
The term used [cohen] means a priest sometimes, otherwise a civil officer of
perhaps a semi-priestly character. In this passage it has the definite article
prefix, and can only mean the high priest. Here Azariah is called
the son, but he was really the grandson of Zadok. He seems to have succeeded
him in the high priesthood (1 Chr. 6:10). His position as high priest at the
time this record was made gives Azariah the foremost place in this list of men
called princes and who lived part or all the time of 40 years Solomon reigned.
3. Elihoreph and Ahiah, the sons of Shi'sha, [g]scrubs;
Jehoshaphat the son of Ahibud, the [h]recorder.
[g] The scribes were probably royal
secretaries who drew up the kings edicts, wrote his letters, and perhaps managed
his other affairs. They were amng his most influential counselors.
[h] The recorser was really a
remembrancer or court analyst.
4. And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, was over the host: and Zadok and
[i]Abiathar were the priests:
[i] It is noticeable that Abiathar was lilsted
among the princes of Solomon, after the disgrace of being put out of the
priesthood as in 2:26-27, 35. Perhaps the historian made a list of the princes
in any part of Solomon's reign (v 4).
5. And Axariah the son [j]of Nathan was
over the officers: and Zabud the son of Nathan was [k]principal
officer, and the king's friend:
[j] Which Nathan this was is not known, unless
it was the son of David of whom came Mary, the mother of the Messiah (Lk.
3:23-38). If it had been Nathan the prophet his name no doubt would have
been so listed.
[k] Principal or chief officer and the king's
friend and counselor, as Hushai had been to David (2 Sam. 15:37).
13 Twelve commissaries of Solomon
7. And Solomon had [l]twelve officers over
all Isreal, which provided [m]victuals for the king
and his houshold: each man his month in a year made provision.
[l] 12 officers of the
commassaries:
1. The son of Hur [v 7-8}
2. The son of Dekar [v 9]
4. The son of Abinadab [v 11]
5. Baana, son of Ahilud [v 12]
6. The son of Geber [v 13]
7. Ahinadab, the son of Iddo [v 14]
8. Ahimaaz [v 15]
9. Baanah, son of Paruah [v 17]
10. Jehoshaphat, son of Paruah [v 17]
11. Shimei, son of Elah [v 18]
12. geber, son of Uri [v 19]
[m] The 12 men in these verses [7-19] were
over 12 sections of the kingdom and levied taxes on the people to supply the
king, his household, and all those at ther king's court, and any others whom he
was responsible to support. Each man supplied the king for a whole month each
year.
8. And these are the names: The son of Hur, in mount Ephraim:
9. The son of Dekar, in Makaz and in Sha-al'bim and Beth-she'mesh and
E'on-beth-ha'nan:
10. The son of He'sed, in Ar'u-both; to him pertained Lo'choc, and
[a]all the land of He'pher:
[a] The territory assinged to each of these 12
commissary officers is named in v 7-19. From each of these 12 districts the
king and his household of many servents were supplied once a year for an entire
month.
11. The son of A-bn'a-dab, in all the region of Dor; which had
Ta'phath the daughter of Solomon to wife:
12. Ba'a-na the son of A-hi'lud; to him pertained Ta'a-nach and Me-gid'do,
and all Beth-she'ba, which is by Zar'ta-na beneath Jez're-el, from Beth-she'an
to A'bel-me-ho'-lah, even unto the place that is beyond Jok'ne-am:
13. The son of Ge'ber, in Ra'moth-gil'e-ad; to him pertained the towns
of Ja'ir the son of Ma-nas'seh, which are in Gil'e-ad; to him also pertained
the region of Ar'gob, which is in Ba'shan, threescore great cities with walls
and brasen bars:
14. A-hin'a-dab the son of Id'do had Ma-ha-na'im:
15. A-him'a-az was in Naph'ta-li; he also took Bas'math the daughter
of Sol'o-mon to wife:
16. Ba'a-nah the son of [b]Hu'shai was in
Ash'er and A'loth:
[b] Hushai was David's chief friend and
counsellor (2 Sam. 15:27). Now his son became honored as one of the 12
commissary officers of Solomon (v 16)
17. Je-hos'a-phat the son of Par'u-ah, in Is'sa-char:
18. Shim'e-i the son of E'lah, in Ben'ja-min:
19. Ge'ber the son of U'ri was in the country of Gil'e-ad, in the
country of Si'hon king of the Am'or-ites, and he was [c]the
only officer which was in the land.
[c] This is said to let us know that one officer
took care of all the vast territory of Sihon and Og easo to the Jordan.
14 Solomon's dominions
20. [d]Ju'dah and Is'ra-el were many,
[e]as the sand which is by the sea in multitued.
[f]eating and drinking, and making merry.
[d] Here we come again to the terms Judah
and Israel, but thisdoes not mean that they were two separate people,
that they had two different destinies, or that all Israelites werenot Jews. The
purpose is to make clear again that Judah was the ruling tribe; it was
therefore mentioned in perticular (v 20).
[e] A julfillment of Gen. 13:16; 22:17
[f] An expression of blessing, contentment, and
peace - not of sinfulness (v 20).
21. And Sol'o-mon [g]reigned over all
kingdoms from the river unto the land of the Philis'tines, and unto the border
of E'gypt: [h]they brought presents, and served
Sol'o-mon [i]all the days of his life.
[g] The extent of Solomon's kingdon was from the
river Euphrates on the east and north to the land of the Philistines and the
Mediterranean sea and to Egypt (v 21: Gen. 15:18-21: Josh. 1:4).
[h] It was customary for subject nations to send
gifts along with trubute to their masteres (v 21: Ps. 72: 10 - 11)
[i] this was for 40 years (11:42)
15 Solomon's provisions
22. And Solomon's [j]provisions for one
day was [k]thirty measures of fine flour, and
threescore measures of meal.
[j] Solomon's daily provisions: (est.
cost)
315 bu. fine flour @ $6.00
$1,890.00
630 bu. course flour @$6.00 $3,780.00
10 fat oxen @ $325.00 $3,250.00
20 pasture oxen @ $325.00 $6,500.00
100 sheep @ $20.00 $2,000.00
Total, less other animals
$17,420.00
How many harts, roebucks, fallow - deer, and
fowels were used is not stated, but without them the daily cost for a year, on
the above gasis would be $6,358,300.00. From this we suppose that the number
fed at the royal board were at least 30,000 people.
[k] 30 measures (Heb. kor or cor,
the same as an homer or about 10 1/2 Bu.) would be 315 bushels; and 60
measures or cors, of course flour would be 630 bushels, daily.
23. Ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pastures, and an hundred
sheep, beside harts, and roebucks, and fallowdeer, and fatted fowel.
16 Solomon's peaceful reign and prosperity (3:13)
24. For he had dominion over all the region on [l]this
side of the river, from Tiph'sah even [m]to Az'zah,
over all the kings on this side of the river; and he had peace on all sides
round about him.
[l] This side the river Euphrates, the region
west of the river. Tiphsah, meaning ford or passage. It was no doubt
the modern Suriyeh, 45 miles below Balis, at the point where the river
changesits coursefrom south to east. It is fordable here and at no other place.
[m] This is supposed to be Gaza in Philistia,
meaning from Tiphsah on the river Euphrateas to Gaza in Philistia (v 24).
25. And Ju'dah and Is'ra - el dwelt safely, every man
[n]under his vine and under his fig tree, from
[o]Dan even to Be'er - she'ba, all the days of
Sol'o-mon.
[n] An expression of peace, safety and
prosperity (v 25; Mic. 4:4; Zecg. 3:10).
[o] The north and south extremities of
thekingdom (v 25; Judg. 20:1; 1 Sam. 3:20).
26. And Sol'o-mon had [p]forty thousand
stalls [q]of hoerses for his chariots, and
[r]twelve thousand horsemen.
[p] In 2 Chr. 9:25 the number of stalls is said
to be 4,000 instead of 40,000 as here. 40,000 may be a corruption of the
ancient scroll. Mistakes in copying or even similarity of letters (which were
used for numbers) could have led to a misgtake in one of these places. It seems
that 4,000 stalls would be more correct, as there were only 1,400 chariots and
12,000 horsemen. Since some chariots used 3 horses and others only 2, the 4,000
horses would be sufficient for this number of chariots and horsemen (v 26).
[q] Multipllying horses was a violation of the
law of Moses (Dt. 17:16), the reason being that in doing so Israel would begin
to trust in the horses instead of Jehovah (Ps. 20:7; Isa. 31:1 - 3).
[r] The same number as in 2 Chr. 9:25
27. And those officers provided victual for king Solomon, and for all
that came unto king Solomon's table, every man in his month: they
[a]lacked nothing.
[a] This is the way it will always be when men
serve God and He blesses them. This is the way it would have been if Adam had
not fallen; and it is the way it will be when the Messiah reigns in the
Millennium and on the new earth eternally (v 27: Isa. 35:1 - 8; 65:20 - 25;
Rev. 22:3).
28. [b]Barley also and straw for the
horses and dromedaries brought they unto the place where the officers were,
every man accorcing to his charge.
[b] Barley was the usual fodder for cattle.
They were also fed with a mixture of chopped straw, barley, beans and
poundeddate kernels (v 28).
Chapter 5
18 Solomon's religious policies (5:1 - 9:9. (1) Preparation for
building the temple (2 Chr. 2). A - Solomon's request of Hiram, king of Tyre
1. And [f]Hi'ram kingof Tyre sent his servents
unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of
his father: for Hiram was ever a [g]lover of
David.
[f] Not the Hiram of David's day, but the son of
the Hiram of 2 Sam. 5:11. Meander of Ephesus who wrote a history of Tyre in
Greek about 300 B. C. mentoned this Hiram as the son of Abibaal , king of Tyre,
and said that he ascended the throne when he was 19 years old, that he reigned
34 years, and died at the age of 53, being succeeded by his son, Baleazar. This
history speaks at length on the dealings of Hiram with Solomon.
[g] Lover or ally. The Hebrews were always at
peace woith the Phoenicians, but never with the Canaanites (v 1).
2. And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,
3. [h]Thou knowest how that David my
father [i]could not build an house unto the name of
the Lord his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until the Lord
put them under the soles of his feet.
[h] See 2 Sam. 5:11; 1 Chr. 14:1; 22:4.
[i] 2 reasons David could not build temple:
4. But now the Lord my God hath given me rest on every side, so that
there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent.
5. [j]And, behold, I purpos to
build an house unto the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord spake unto David my
father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne lin thy room, he shall
build an house unto my name.
[j] 3rd prophecy in 1 Ki.(5:5, fulfilled).
Next 8:19
2 predictions fulfilled:
6. Now therefore [k]command thou they hew me
[l]cedar trees out of Lebanon; and my servants
shall be with thy servants; and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants
according to all that thou shalt appoint; for thou knowest that there is not
among us [a]any that can skill to hew like unto the
Sidonians.
[k] This communication between Hiram and Solomon is
given in much more detrail in 2 Chr. 2:2-16. Solomon's presumption that Hiram
knew David's design is not recorded here, but it is in perfect harmony with 1
Chr. 22:4.
[l] The Heb. word for cedar appears to be
used, not only for the cedar but also other trees - the filr and juniper (v
10). The cedar still grows in Lebanon on parts of the mountains, but it is not
as plentiful as in ancient times. The Tyrians made masts for their ships from
it (Ezek. 27:5). It seems that Assyrians and other peoples also cut down many
of these trees to take to their own countries, which added to the scarcity, as
time went on.
[a] The mechanical genius and nautical skill of the
Phoenicians and of the Sidonians in particular, were noticed by both Homer and
Herodotus. Though Sidon might have had a king of her own, she acknowledged the
supremacy of Tyre during the reign of Hiram.
Hiram co-operates with Solomon to build the temple
7. And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he
rejoiced greatly, and said, Blessed be the Lord this day, which hath given unto
David a wise son over this great people.
8. And Hiram [b]sent to Solomon, saying, I
have considered the things which thou sentest to me for: and I will do all thy
desire concerning timber of cedar and concerning timber of fir.
(b) Sent by writing and ambassadors
9. My servants shall (c)bring them down from
Lebanon unto the sea; and I will convey them by sea in floats unto the place
that thou shalt appoint me, and will cause them to be discharged there, and thou
shalt receive them: and thou shalt accomplish my desire,
(d)in giving food for my household.
(b) Sent by writing and ambassadors.
(c) The timber was first carried westward from the
flanks of Lebonan to the nearest part of the coast, where it was collected into
floats or rafts and conveyed southward on the waters to Joppa (now Jaffa) where
the land journey to Jerusalem was not more than 40 miles (v 9). A similar
course was taken in the building of the second temple (Ezra. 3:7).
(d) Supply of food for hiram's household was at
least part of the payment for the timber cut in Lebanon and floated down to
Joppa for the building of the temple (v 8). The Phoenician cities had very
little arable land so had to depend upon imports of food from abroad.
10. So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his
desire.
Hiram's yearly wages
11. And Solomon gave Hiram (e)twenty thousand
measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of plure oil:
thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year.
(e) 20,000 measures (Heb. cors) at 10 1/2 bu.
to the measure or cor would be 210,000 bu. of wheat; and 20 cors of pure olive
oil would be 1,680 gal. This amount given to Hiram each year during
construction of the temple and Solomon's house, a period of 20 years, would make
a total of 4,200,000 bu. of wheat(@$6.00 a bu.= $25,200,000.00) and 33,600 gal.
of olive oil (@ $5.60 a gal. = $188,180.00).
Solomon's league with Tyre
12. And the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him: and there was
peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two (f)made
a league together.
(f) The league was broken by Tyre later and for
this the peple were judged (Amos. 1:9)
183,300 laborers and overseers working on the temple
13. And king Solomon raised a (g)levy
(h)out of all Isreal; and the levy was thirty
thousand men.
(g) A levy or tribute of menfor free labor, not the
bond service of 9:21 - 22. Such a levy was predicted when Israel demanded a
king (1 Sam. 8:16). David employed forced service of resident aliens (1 Chr.
22:2; 2 Sam. 12:31).
(h) This was the first time that Israelites had
been called upon to perform forced labor for a big project stretching out over a
number of years. Out of 1,300,000 able bodied men in Israel (2 Sam. 24:9), a
band of 30,000 - one in 44 was raised, of whom 1/3 - 10,000 worked a month, then
returned home for 2 months (v 14). This levy of men in Israel helped cause the
division of the kingdom after thedeath of Solomon (12:4).
14. And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses: a month
they were in Lebanon, and two months at home: and Adoniram was over the levy.
15. And Solomon had (i)threescore and ten
thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand (j)hewers
in the mountains:
(i) Besides the 30,000 hewers of wood in Lebanon,
of v 14 - 14, Solomon had 70,000 that bare burdens, and 80,000 hewers in the
mountains. These 150,000 men were continuous workers made up of aliens in the
land - Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites, and others whom he
continued in slavery as did his father David (1 Chr. 22:2).
(j) These were hewers of stone in the rock
quarries, not hewers of wood in Lebanon as in v 14( 15, 17, 18).
16. Besides the chief of Solomon's officers which were over the work,
(k)three thousand and three hundred, which ruled
over the people that wrought in the work.
(k) Here we have 3,300 overseers of all the people
that worked in the mountains cutting wood, hewing stones, and carrying burdens
(v 16). Another 550 are mentioned in 9:23, who were chief overseers, making
altogether 3,850. Of the 550 there were 300 under 250 of the overseers,
according to 2 Ch. 8:10. The 163,850 regular workers were almost as many as the
number hired by Ford Motor Company, U.S.A.
17. And the king commanded, and they brought (l)great
stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house.
(l) Some of the stones were extra large and heavy.
The largest said to be found in modern Jerusalem thus far is 38 ft. 9 in. long
and weighs 100 tons. It is no doubt one of the many stones hewn out of the
mountains in the days of Solomon (v 17). The marks of the Phoenicians masons
are still on some stones. They were fully cut on the mountains to exact size,
so that no chiseling or hammering took place when they were set together. The
same was true of the wooden beams, so that the use of no tools was heard in the
construction (6:7).
18. And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them, and the
(m)stonesqujarers: so they prepared timber and
stones to build the house.
(m) The Gebalites, the inhabitants of Gebal, a
Phoenician city between Beyrout and Tripolis, which the Greeks called Byblus,
and which is now known as Jebeil, a place about 40 miles north of Sidon (Ezek.
27:9, Cp. Ps. 83:7).
Chapter 6
(2) Building the temple (6:1 - 7:51: 2 Chr. 3:1 - 4:22)
A. Beginning date for building
1. And it came to pass in the (a)four
hundred and eighth 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 of
Zif, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the Lord.
(a) 480 years. This was not the whole
time of the period between the exodus and the 4th year of Solomon's reign. It
really refers to the 480th year of the security of Isreal as a nation: it does
not include the 41 years of Sinai and the Wondering in the wilderness, the
period of the conquest of Canaan and division of the land (about 10 years), or
the 3 years of confusion under Abimelech and the 111 years of servitudes during
the judges. The entire pleriod from the exodus to the 4th year of Solomon was
645 years. Some chronologists have made the mistake of basing their whole
system upon this 480 year period. 12 chronologists differ from 330 to 680 years
reguarding the entire time from the exodus to the 4th year of Solomon, which
shows no basis of proof for their conclusions. Scriptures can be found for most
of the lengths of various periods and these prove some modern scholars to be
mistaken as much as 300 - 400 years in their figuring of the time from the
exodus to Christ. Any chronoogical differences noted in this work as compared
with others can be accounted for by the fact that the Scripture themselves have
been searched and chapter and verse used as proof whenever available.
B. Dimensions of the temple
2. And the house which king Solomon built for the Lord, the
(b)length thereof was threescore cubits, and the
(c)bread thereof twenty cubits, and the height
therof (d)thirty cubits.
(b) 60 cubits - 125 ft. counting 25 in. as a
cubit.
(c) 20 cubits - 41 ft. 8 in.
(d) 30 cubits - 62 1/5 ft.
C. Porches and outside rooms
3. And the porch before the temple of the house, (e)twenty
cubits was the length therof, according to the breadth of the house: and
(f)ten cubits was the breadth therof before the
house.
(e) 20 cubits - 41 ft. 8 in. long, or all the
way in fromt of the temple (v 3).
(f) 10 cubits - 20 ft. 10 in. wide (v 3)
5. And against the wall of the house he built (h)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:
(h) He built chambers or rooms round about the
temple on the outside walls of the 2 sides and the end (v r). They were 10 ft.
5 in. hiht (v 10).
6. The nethermost chamber was (i)five
cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third 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.
(i) The rooms were 10 ft. 5 in. wide: 12 ft. 6
in. wide: and 14 ft. 7 in. wide, with pillars for the ceiling beams so they
would not rest on the wall (v 6)
D. Materials of the temple
7. And the house, when it was in building, was buuilt of stone made
ready before it was brought thither: (j)so that
there was neither hammer nor ax nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while
it was in building.
(j) All the stones and timbers were cut to exact
size, being prepared for their places before being brought to the temple site;
and these were so perfect that it was not necessary for use of hammer, ax, or
any other tool during the entire consrtruction work (6:7)
E. Door, stairs, and outside rooms around the temple
8. The door for the middle chamber was in the right side of the house:
and they went up with (k)winding stairs into the
middle chamaber, and out of the middle into the third.
(k) The rooms were on top of each other making 3
stories with winding stairs (v 8).
9. So he built the house and finished it; and (l)covered
the house with beams and boards of decar.
(l) The temple was covered 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.
F. Davidic Covenant confirmed in Solomon (2 Sam. 7:7 - 17)
11. And the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying,
12. Concerning this house which thou art in building,
(m)if thou (n)will
walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to
walk in them; then will I perform my work with thee, which I spake unto David
thy father:
(m) Here we
have another conditional prophecy, one based upon aoedience. Then when
obedience is rendered, the Lord promised to perform His work which He had spoken
to both David and Solomon concerning the continuation of the kingdom and God
dwelling in the midst of His people (v 12 - 13). The prophecy never was
completely fulfilled for Solomon rebelled and Israel sinned until God could not
bless them further or dwell in their midst.
(n) 3 conditions of blessings (v 12)
1. Walk in My statutes
2. Execute My judgments
3. Keep all My commandments to walk in
them.
13. (a)And I will dwell among the children of
Israel, and (b)will not forsake my people Israel.
(a) God laid down the conditions on which He would
dwell among Israel and not forsake them; and the fact that He ceased to dwell
with them and forsook them is proof that they did nogt continue meeting the
conditions. God would have proved himself untrue before all beings if He had
continued His grace with them when they sinned; and so it is today. If a
believer sins God is obligated to imput it to him. There is no place in Christ
or out of Him where one is not held responsible and where he does not incure the
death penalty for breaking the new conenant laws when sin is committed (Mk. 7:19
- 21; Rom. 1:18 - 32; 6:1 - 23; 8:12 - 13: 1 Cor. 3:16 - 17; 6:9 - 11;
Gal. 5:10 - 21: Col. 3:5 - 10)
(b) Just as God promised not to forsake Israel as
long as they lived true to Him, so He also promised to forsake them when they
sinned, regardless of past grace and blessings.
14. So Solomon (c)built the house and
finished it.
(c) The 2nd time it is stated here that he built
the house and finished it (v 9, 14).
V - 9 refers to the external shell of the temple, and
v 14 to the internal finishing of it.
G. Inside cedar walls
15. And he built the (d)walls of the house
within with boards of cedar, both the floor of the house and the walls of the
ceiling; and he covered them on the inside with wood, and covered the floor of
the house with planks of fir.
(d) All the inside walls, the ceiling, and the
floors of the temple were covered with cedar and fir or juniper boards (v 15).
H. Dimensions and decorations of the Holy of Holies and the Holy Place (v
2:20)
16. And he built (e)twenty cubits on the
sides of the house, both the floor and the walls he covered with boards of
cedar: he even built them for it within, even for the oracle, even for the most
holy place.
(e) 20 cubits - 41 ft. 8 in. square for the most
holy place (v 16).
17. And the house, that is, the temple before it, was
(f)forty cubits long.
(f) 40 cubits - 83 ft. 4 in. long and 20 cubits -
41 ft. 8 in. wide for the holy place.
18. And the cedar of the house within was (g)carved
with knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stones seen.
(g) The cedar of the walls of the holy and most
holy places was carved with knops and flowers. The boards fully covered the
inside so that no stone of the walls was seen and they were covered with pure
gold. The altar alsowas covered with gold, as well as the partition between the
holy and most holy places (v 18 - 22)
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 height therof: and so covered the altar
was of cedar.
21. So Solomon overlaid the house within with pur gold: and he made a
partition by the chains of gold before the oracle; and he overlaid it with pure
gold.
22. And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until hehad finished all
the house: also the whole altar that was by the orqcle he overlaid with gold.
I. Two cherubims in the Holy of Holies
23. And within the oracle he made (h)two
cherubims of olive tree, each ten cubits high.
(h) 2 cherubims of olive wood measuring 10
cubits - 20 ft. 10 in. high, with each wing measuring 5 cubits - 10 ft. 5 in.
making a full wing spread of 10 cubits or 20 ft. 10 in., were made and set up in
the most holy place side by side woth the outer wings touching th outside walls
and the inner ones touching each other. These were overlaid with gold (v 23 -
28).
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 cherubim 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 wings 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.
J. Walls and floor decorations
29. And he (a)carved all the walls of the
house round about with carved figures of cherubims and palm trees and open
flowers, within and without.
(a) The walls all around the inner and outer
rooms, theholy and most holy places, were carved with figures of cherubims, palm
trees, and open flowers; and the floor was covered with gold (v 29 - 30).
30. And the door of the house he overlaid with gold, within and
without.
K. Doors of the Holy of Holies
31. And for the entering of the oracle he make (b)doors
of olive tree: the lintel and side posts were a fifth part of the wall.
(b) The two doors of the most holy place were
made of olive wood, carved with cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, and
covered with gold (v 31 - 32). They formed a fifth part of the wall or about 8
1/2 ft. 8 in. wall (v 31). Each of the 2 doors was possibly 3 1/2 ft. wide
which would leave some room for posts and lintels.
32. The two doors also were of olive tree; and he carved upon them
carvings of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, andoverlaid them oith
gold upon the cherubims, and upon the palm trees.
33. So also made he for (c)the door of the
temple posts of olive tree, a fourth part of the wall.
(c) The two folding doors between the porch and
the most holy place, with the posts and lintels, took up 1/4 of the wall. They
were made of olive wood, carved with cherubims, palm trees, and open flowers,
and covered with gold. This 10 ft. 8 in. space for the 2 folding doors would
make each opening at least about 4 1/2 ft. (v 33 - 35).
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.
L. The inner court
36. And he built the (d)inner court with
(e)three rows of hewed stone, and a row of cedar
beams.
(d) The inner court. An outer court is
mentioned in 2 Ch. 4:9. The inner courtwas perhaps the same as the higher court
of Jer. 36:10, being raised above the outer one a few steps. It seems the inner
court surrounded the temple building and was perhaps double the size of the
temple all the way around. The outside width of the temple was no doubt 40
cubits - 104 ft. 2 in. (We cannot be certain because we do not know how thick
the walls were). If double, the inner court then, extended 208 ft. 4 in. from
the temple itself on all sides. There may have even been more space in front to
make room for the brazen altar and sacrifices. The outer court was evidently
much larger, measuring perhaps 500 - 750 feet.
(e) There were three rows of stone in the inner
court walls and a row of cedar beams (v 36). This does not tell us how wide
thestones were, but we know they were seen only on the outside of the court
walls. Inside there was a covering of cedar.
M. The temple finished
37. In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of the Lord
(f)laid, in the month Zif:
(f) The foundation was laid in the mont of Zif,
the 2nd month or May(v 1, 37), and the temple was finished in the 8th month, Bul
or November, 7 years and 6 monthes later (v 38). It was dedicated in the 7th
month or October (8:2), which means it took 11 months to complete the
furnishings unless the people waited purposely until the next feast of
tabernacles for lthe dedication. Compare this with the years Solomon took to
build his own house - 13 years in all or 6 more than the time spent on the
temple (7:1).
We have a fair idea of what it would cost to build
such a temple - more than $174,000,000,000.00; and for the two buildings, over
$261,000,000,000.00.
38. And in the eleventh year, in the mont Bul, which is the eighth
month, was the house finished throughout all the parts therof, and according to
all the fashions of it. So was he seven years in building it.
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