1 Kings 6

1 It happened in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the LORD.

In the four hundred and eightieth year after the Israelites had come out of the land of Egypt, in the month of Ziv, the second month of the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, he began to build the house of the LORD.

2 The house which king Solomon built for the LORD, its length was one hundred three feet and four inches, and its breadth thirty-four feet and five inches, and its height fifty-one feet and eight inches.

The house that King Solomon built for the LORD was sixty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and thirty cubits high.

3 The porch before the temple of the house, thirty-four feet and five inches was its length, according to the breadth of the house. Seventeen feet and three inches was its breadth before the house.

The portico at the front of the main hall of the temple was twenty cubits long, extending across the width of the temple and projecting out ten cubits in front of the temple.

4 For the house he made windows of fixed lattice work.

He also had narrow windows framed high in the temple.

5 Against the wall of the house he built stories all around, against the walls of the house all around, both of the temple and of the inner sanctuary; and he made side-rooms all around.

Against the walls of the temple and the inner sanctuary, Solomon built a chambered structure around the temple, in which he constructed the side rooms.

6 The lowest story was eight feet and seven inches broad, and the middle was ten feet and four inches broad, and the third was twelve feet and one inch broad; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house all around, that the beams should not have hold in the walls of the house.

The bottom floor was five cubits wide, the middle floor six cubits, and the third floor seven cubits. He also placed offset ledges around the outside of the temple, so that nothing would be inserted into its walls.

7 The house, when it was in building, was built of stone prepared at the quarry; and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.

The temple was constructed using finished stones cut at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any other iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built.

8 And the door for the lowest side-rooms was in the right side of the house: and they went up by winding stairs into the middle story, and out of the middle into the third.

The entrance to the bottom floor was on the south side of the temple. A stairway led up to the middle level, and from there to the third floor.

9 So he built the house, and finished it; and he covered the house with beams and planks of cedar.

So Solomon built the temple and finished it, roofing it with beams and planks of cedar.

10 He built the stories against all the house, each eight feet and seven inches high: and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.

He built chambers all along the temple, each five cubits high and attached to the temple with beams of cedar.

11 The word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying,

Then the word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying:

12 "Concerning this house which you are building, if you will walk in my statutes, and execute my ordinances, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I establish my word with you, which I spoke to David your father.

“As for this temple you are building, if you walk in My statutes, carry out My ordinances, and keep all My commandments by walking in them, I will fulfill through you the promise I made to your father David.

13 I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel."

And I will dwell among the Israelites and will not abandon My people Israel.”

14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it.

So Solomon built the temple and finished it.

15 He built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar: from the floor of the house to the walls of the ceiling, he covered them on the inside with wood; and he covered the floor of the house with boards of fir.

He lined the interior walls with cedar paneling from the floor of the temple to the ceiling, and he covered the floor with cypress boards.

16 He built thirty-four feet and five inches on the back part of the house with boards of cedar from the floor to the beams, and he built this within as an inner sanctuary, the most holy place.

He partitioned off the twenty cubits at the rear of the temple with cedar boards from floor to ceiling to form within the temple an inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place.

17 In front of the temple sanctuary was sixty-eight feet and eleven inches.

And the main hall in front of this room was forty cubits long.

18 And the inside of the house was cedar, carved with buds and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen.

The cedar paneling inside the temple was carved with gourds and open flowers. Everything was cedar; not a stone could be seen.

19 He prepared an inner sanctuary in the midst of the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of the LORD.

Solomon also prepared the inner sanctuary within the temple to set the ark of the covenant of the LORD there.

20 And before the sanctuary was thirty-four feet and five inches in length, and thirty-four feet and five inches in breadth, and thirty-four feet and five inches in its height; and he overlaid it with pure gold. And he made the altar of cedar.

The inner sanctuary was twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high. He overlaid the inside with pure gold, and he also overlaid the altar of cedar.

21 So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold, and he drew chains of gold across, in front of the inner sanctuary, and he overlaid it with gold.

So Solomon overlaid the inside of the temple with pure gold, and he extended gold chains across the front of the inner sanctuary, which was overlaid with gold.

22 The whole house he overlaid with gold, until all the house was finished: also the whole altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary he overlaid with gold.

So he overlaid with gold the whole interior of the temple, until everything was completely finished. He also overlaid with gold the entire altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary.

23 In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olive wood, each seventeen feet and three inches high.

In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim, each ten cubits high, out of olive wood.

24 Eight feet and seven inches was the one wing of the cherub, and eight feet and seven inches the other wing of the cherub: from the uttermost part of the one wing to the uttermost part of the other were seventeen feet and three inches.

One wing of the first cherub was five cubits long, and the other wing was five cubits long as well. So the full wingspan was ten cubits.

25 The other cherub was seventeen feet and three inches: both the cherubim were of one measure and one form.

The second cherub also measured ten cubits; both cherubim had the same size and shape,

26 The height of the one cherub was seventeen feet and three inches, and so was it of the other cherub.

and the height of each cherub was ten cubits.

27 He set the cherubim within the inner house; and the wings of the cherubim were stretched forth, so that the wing 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.

And he placed the cherubim inside the innermost room of the temple. Since their wings were spread out, the wing of the first cherub touched one wall, while the wing of the second cherub touched the other wall, and in the middle of the room their wingtips touched.

28 He overlaid the cherubim with gold.

He also overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29 He carved all the walls of the house around with carved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, inside and outside.

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

30 The floor of the house he overlaid with gold, inside and outside.

And he overlaid the temple floor with gold in both the inner and outer sanctuaries.

31 For the entrance of the inner sanctuary he made doors of olive wood: the lintel and door posts were a fifth part of the wall.

For the entrance to the inner sanctuary, Solomon constructed doors of olive wood with five-sided doorposts.

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

The double doors were made of olive wood, and he carved into them cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers and overlaid the cherubim and palm trees with hammered gold.

33 So also he made for the entrance of the temple door posts of olive wood, out of a fourth part of the wall;

In the same way he made four-sided doorposts of olive wood for the sanctuary entrance.

34 and two doors of fir wood: the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding.

The two doors were made of cypress wood, and each had two folding panels.

35 He carved cherubim and palm trees and open flowers; and he overlaid them with gold fitted on the engraved work.

He carved into them cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers; and he overlaid them with gold, hammered evenly over the carvings.

36 He built the inner court with three courses of cut stone, and a course of cedar beams.

Solomon built the inner courtyard with three rows of dressed stone and one row of trimmed cedar beams.

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

The foundation of the house of the LORD was laid in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign, in the month of Ziv.

38 In the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all its parts, and according to all its fashion. So was he seven years in building it.

In his eleventh year and eighth month, the month of Bul, the temple was finished in every detail and according to every specification. So he built the temple in seven years.