The MacArthur Study Bible, NKJV

by John MacArthur

  25And the other cherub was ten cubits; both cherubim were of the same size and shape.

  26The height of one cherub was ten cubits, and so was the other cherub.

  27Then he set the cherubim inside the inner 15room; and pthey stretched out the wings of the cherubim so that the wing of the one touched one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall. And their wings touched each other in the middle of the room.

  28Also he overlaid the cherubim with gold.

  29Then he carved all the walls of the temple all around, both the inner and outer sanctuaries, with carved qfigures of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers.

  30And the floor of the temple he overlaid with gold, both the inner and outer sanctuaries.

  31For the entrance of the inner sanctuary he made doors of olive wood; the lintel and doorposts were 16one-fifth of the wall.

  32The two doors were of olive wood; and he carved on them figures of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he spread gold on the cherubim and on the palm trees.

  33So for the door of the 17sanctuary he also made doorposts of olive wood, 18one-fourth of the wall.

  34And the two doors were of cypress wood; rtwo panels comprised one folding door, and two panels comprised the other folding door.

  35Then he carved cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers on them, and overlaid them with gold applied evenly on the carved work.

  36And he built the sinner court with three rows of hewn stone and a row of cedar beams.

  37tIn the fourth year the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid, in the month of 19Ziv.

  38And in the eleventh year, in the month of 20Bul, which is the eighth month, the house was finished in all its details and according to all its plans. So he was useven years in building it.

  1 Kings 7

  Solomon’s Other Buildings

  1But Solomon took athirteen years to build his own house; so he finished all his house.

  2He also built the bHouse of the Forest of Lebanon; its length was 1one hundred cubits, its width 2fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits, with four rows of cedar pillars, and cedar beams on the pillars.

  3And it was paneled with cedar above the beams that were on forty-five pillars, fifteen to a row.

  4There were windows with beveled frames in three rows, and window was opposite window in three tiers.

  5And all the doorways and doorposts had rectangular frames; and window was opposite window in three tiers.

  6He also made the Hall of Pillars: its length was fifty cubits, and its width thirty cubits; and in front of them was a portico with pillars, and a canopy was in front of them.

  7Then he made a hall for the throne, the Hall of Judgment, where he might judge; and it was paneled with cedar from floor to 3ceiling.

  8And the house where he dwelt had another court inside the hall, of like workmanship. Solomon also made a house like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, cwhom he had taken as wife.

  9All these were of costly stones cut to size, trimmed with saws, inside and out, from the foundation to the eaves, and also on the outside to the great court.

  10The foundation was of costly stones, large stones, some ten cubits and some eight cubits.

  11And above were costly stones, hewn to size, and cedar wood.

  12The great court was enclosed with three rows of hewn stones and a row of cedar beams. So were the dinner court of the house of the LORD eand the vestibule of the temple.

  Hiram the Craftsman

  13Now King Solomon sent and brought 4Huram from Tyre.

  14fHe was the son of a widow from the tribe of Naphtali, and ghis father was a man of Tyre, a bronze worker; hhe was filled with wisdom and understanding and skill in working with all kinds of bronze work. So he came to King Solomon and did all his work.

  The Bronze Pillars for the Temple

  (2 Chr. 3:15–17)

  15And he 5cast itwo pillars of bronze, each one eighteen cubits high, and a line of twelve cubits measured the circumference of each.

  16Then he made two capitals of cast bronze, to set on the tops of the pillars. The height of one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits.

  17He made a lattice network, with wreaths of chainwork, for the capitals which were on top of the pillars: seven chains for one capital and seven for the other capital.

  18So he made the pillars, and two rows of pomegranates above the network all around to cover the capitals that were on top; and thus he did for the other capital.

  19The capitals which were on top of the pillars in the hall were in the shape of lilies, four cubits.

  20The capitals on the two pillars also had pomegranates above, by the convex surface which was next to the network; and there were jtwo hundred such pomegranates in rows on each of the capitals all around.

  21kThen he set up the pillars by the vestibule of the temple; he set up the pillar on the right and called its name 6Jachin, and he set up the pillar on the left and called its name 7Boaz.

  22The tops of the pillars were in the shape of lilies. So the work of the pillars was finished.

  The Sea and the Oxen

  23And he made lthe Sea of cast bronze, ten cubits from one brim to the other; it was completely round. Its height was five cubits, and a line of thirty cubits measured its circumference.

  24Below its brim were ornamental buds encircling it all around, ten to a cubit, mall the way around the Sea. The ornamental buds were cast in two rows when it was cast.

  25It stood on ntwelve oxen: three looking toward the north, three looking toward the west, three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; the Sea was set upon them, and all their back parts pointed inward.

  26It was a handbreadth thick; and its brim was shaped like the brim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It contained 8two thousand baths.

  The Carts and the Lavers

  27He also made ten 9carts of bronze; four cubits was the length of each cart, four cubits its width, and three cubits its height.

  28And this was the design of the carts: They had panels, and the panels were between frames;

  29on the panels that were between the frames were lions, oxen, and cherubim. And on the frames was a pedestal on top. Below the lions and oxen were wreaths of plaited work.

  30Every cart had four bronze wheels and axles of bronze, and its four feet had supports. Under the laver were supports of cast bronze beside each wreath.

  31Its opening inside the crown at the top was one cubit in diameter; and the opening was round, shaped like a pedestal, one and a half cubits in outside diameter; and also on the opening were engravings, but the panels were square, not round.

  32Under the panels were the four wheels, and the axles of the wheels were joined to the cart. The height of a wheel was one and a half cubits.

  33The workmanship of the wheels was like the workmanship of a chariot wheel; their axle pins, their rims, their spokes, and their hubs were all of cast bronze.

  34And there were four supports at the four corners of each cart; its supports were part of the cart itself.

  35On the top of the cart, at the height of half a cubit, it was perfectly round. And on the top of the cart, its flanges and its panels were of the same casting.

  36On the plates of its flanges and on its panels he engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, wherever there was a clear space on each, with wreaths all around.

  37Thus he made the ten carts. All of them were of 10the same mold, one measure, and one shape.

  38Then ohe made ten lavers of bronze; each laver contained 11forty baths, and each laver was four cubits. On each of the ten carts was a laver.

  39And he put five carts on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house. He set the Sea on the right side of the house, toward the southeast.

  Furnishings of the Temple

  (2 Chr. 4:11–18)

  40pHuram12 made the lavers and the shovels and the bowls
. So Huram finished doing all the work that he was to do for King Solomon for the house of the LORD:

  41the two pillars, the two bowl-shaped capitals that were on top of the two pillars; the two qnetworks covering the two bowl-shaped capitals which were on top of the pillars;

  42rfour hundred pomegranates for the two networks (two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowl-shaped capitals that were on top of the pillars);

  43the ten carts, and ten lavers on the carts;

  44one Sea, and twelve oxen under the Sea;

  45sthe pots, the shovels, and the bowls. All these articles which 13Huram made for King Solomon for the house of the LORD were of burnished bronze.

  46tIn the plain of Jordan the king had them cast in clay molds, between uSuccoth and vZaretan.

  47And Solomon did not weigh all the articles, because there were so many; the weight of the bronze was not wdetermined.

  48Thus Solomon had all the furnishings made for the house of the LORD: xthe altar of gold, and ythe table of gold on which was zthe showbread;

  49the lampstands of pure gold, five on the right side and five on the left in front of the inner sanctuary, with the flowers and the lamps and the wick-trimmers of gold;

  50the basins, the trimmers, the bowls, the ladles, and the 14censers of pure gold; and the hinges of gold, both for the doors of the inner room (the Most Holy Place) and for the doors of the main hall of the temple.

  51So all the work that King Solomon had done for the house of the LORD was finished; and Solomon brought in the things awhich his father David had dedicated: the silver and the gold and the furnishings. He put them in the treasuries of the house of the LORD.

  1 Kings 8

  The Ark Brought into the Temple

  (2 Chr. 5:2—6:2)

  1Now aSolomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the chief fathers of the children of Israel, to King Solomon in Jerusalem, bthat they might bring cup the ark of the covenant of the LORD from the City of David, which is Zion.

  2Therefore all the men of Israel assembled with King Solomon at the dfeast in the month of 1Ethanim, which is the seventh month.

  3So all the elders of Israel came, eand the priests took up the ark.

  4Then they brought up the ark of the LORD, fthe 2tabernacle of meeting, and all the holy furnishings that were in the tabernacle. The priests and the Levites brought them up.

  5Also King Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel who were assembled with him, were with him before the ark, gsacrificing sheep and oxen that could not be counted or numbered for multitude.

  6Then the priests hbrought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD to iits place, into the inner sanctuary of the temple, to the Most Holy Place, junder the wings of the cherubim.

  7For the cherubim spread their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubim overshadowed the ark and its poles.

  8The poles kextended so that the 3ends of the poles could be seen from the holy place, in front of the inner sanctuary; but they could not be seen from outside. And they are there to this day.

  9lNothing was in the ark mexcept the two tablets of stone which Moses nput there at Horeb, owhen the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.

  10And it came to pass, when the priests came out of the holy place, that the cloud pfilled the house of the LORD,

  11so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the qglory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD.

  12rThen Solomon spoke:

  “The LORD said He would dwell sin the dark cloud.

  13t I have surely built You an exalted house,

  u And a place for You to dwell in forever.”

  Solomon’s Speech at Completion of the Work

  (2 Chr. 6:3–11)

  14Then the king turned around and vblessed the whole assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel was standing.

  15And he said: w“Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who xspoke with His mouth to my father David, and with His hand has fulfilled it, saying,

  16‘Since the day that I brought My people Israel out of Egypt, I have chosen no city from any tribe of Israel in which to build a house, that yMy name might be there; but I chose zDavid to be over My people Israel.’

  17“Now ait was in the heart of my father David to build a 4temple for the name of the LORD God of Israel.

  18b“But the LORD said to my father David, ‘Whereas it was in your heart to build a temple for My name, you did well that it was in your heart.

  19‘Nevertheless cyou shall not build the temple, but your son who will come from your body, he shall build the temple for My name.’

  20“So the LORD has fulfilled His word which He spoke; and I have 5filled the position of my father David, and sit on the throne of Israel, das the LORD promised; and I have built a temple for the name of the LORD God of Israel.

  21“And there I have made a place for the ark, in which is ethe covenant of the LORD which He made with our fathers, when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.”

  Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication

  (2 Chr. 6:12–39)

  22Then Solomon stood before fthe altar of the LORD in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and gspread out his hands toward heaven;

  23and he said: “LORD God of Israel, hthere is no God in heaven above or on earth below like You, iwho keep Your covenant and mercy with Your servants who jwalk before You with all their hearts.

  24“You have kept what You promised Your servant David my father; You have both spoken with Your mouth and fulfilled it with Your hand, as it is this day.

  25“Therefore, LORD God of Israel, now keep what You promised Your servant David my father, saying, k‘You shall not fail to have a man sit before Me on the throne of Israel, only if your sons take heed to their way, that they walk before Me as you have walked before Me.’

  26l“And now I pray, O God of Israel, let Your word come true, which You have spoken to Your servant David my father.

  27“But mwill God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the nheaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this temple which I have built!

  28“Yet regard the prayer of Your servant and his supplication, O LORD my God, and listen to the cry and the prayer which Your servant is praying before You today:

  29“that Your eyes may be open toward this 6temple night and day, toward the place of which You said, o‘My name shall be pthere,’ that You may hear the prayer which Your servant makes qtoward this place.

  30r“And may You hear the supplication of Your servant and of Your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. Hear in heaven Your dwelling place; and when You hear, forgive.

  31“When anyone sins against his neighbor, and is forced to take san oath, and comes and takes an oath before Your altar in this temple,

  32“then hear in heaven, and act, and judge Your servants, tcondemning the wicked, bringing his way on his head, and justifying the righteous by giving him according to his righteousness.

  33u“When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and vwhen they turn back to You and confess Your name, and pray and make supplication to You in this temple,

  34“then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and bring them back to the land which You gave to their wfathers.

  35x“When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, when they pray toward this place and confess Your name, and turn from their sin because You afflict them,

  36“then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel, that You may yteach them zthe good way in which they should walk; and send rain on Your land which You have given to Your people as an inheritance.

  37a“When there is famine in the land, pestilence or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers; when their enemy besieges them in the land of their 7cities; whatever pla
gue or whatever sickness there is;

  38“whatever prayer, whatever supplication is made by anyone, or by all Your people Israel, when each one knows the plague of his own heart, and spreads out his hands toward this temple:

  39“then hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive, and act, and give to everyone according to all his ways, whose heart You know (for You alone bknow the hearts of all the sons of men),

  40c“that they may fear You all the days that they live in the land which You gave to our fathers.

  41“Moreover, concerning a foreigner, who is not of Your people Israel, but has come from a far country for Your name’s sake

  42“(for they will hear of Your great name and Your dstrong hand and Your outstretched arm), when he comes and prays toward this temple,

  43“hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to You, ethat all peoples of the earth may know Your name and ffear You, as do Your people Israel, and that they may know that this temple which I have built is called by Your name.

  44“When Your people go out to battle against their enemy, wherever You send them, and when they pray to the LORD toward the city which You have chosen and the temple which I have built for Your name,

  45“then hear in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their 8cause.

  46“When they sin against You g(for there is no one who does not sin), and You become angry with them and deliver them to the enemy, and they take them captive hto the land of the enemy, far or near;

  47i“yet when they 9come to themselves in the land where they were carried captive, and repent, and make supplication to You in the land of those who took them captive, jsaying, ‘We have sinned and done wrong, we have committed wickedness’;

  48“and when they kreturn to You with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies who led them away captive, and lpray to You toward their land which You gave to their fathers, the city which You have chosen and the temple which I have built for Your name:

  49“then hear in heaven Your dwelling place their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their 10cause,