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.

Four hundred and eighty years after the Israelites left Egypt, in the fourth year of King Solomon's reign, in the month of Ziv, Solomon began building the Temple 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 Temple King Solomon built for the Lord measured sixty cubits long by twenty cubits wide by 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 entrance room at the front of the Temple was twenty cubits wide. It ran the whole width of the Temple and projected out ten cubits in front of the Temple.

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

He had latticed windows made to be placed high up 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.

He also had a structure built against the outer wall of the Temple, both the outer and the inner sanctuary, to provide a series of 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 ground floor measured five cubits wide, the first floor six cubits, and the second floor seven cubits. In addition he had offset ledges placed all the way around the outside, so that beams would not have to be inserted into the Temple 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.

When the Temple was built the stones were finished at the quarry so that no noise from any hammer, ax, or any iron tool was heard in the Temple during construction.

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 ground floor was on the south side of the Temple. Stairs led to the first floor, and then on to the second floor.

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

So Solomon finished building the Temple, covering it with a roof made of cedar rafters and planks.

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 the external structure along the whole of the Temple. It was five cubits high, joined to the Temple with cedar joists.

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

The Lord sent this message to Solomon, telling him,

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.

“About this Temple you are building: if you follow what I have said, fulfilling my requirements and keeping my commandments in what you do, I will keep the promise I made to your father David through you.

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

I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon Israel, my people.”

14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it.

Solomon finished building the Temple.

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 walls with cedar panels from floor to ceiling and he covered the floor of the Temple 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 sectioned off twenty cubits at the rear of the Temple with boards of cedar from floor to ceiling, making an inner sanctuary as the Most Holy Place.

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

The main Temple in front of this room measured 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 panels inside the Temple were decorated with carvings of gourds and open flowers. Everything was lined with cedar—none of the stone was visible.

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

He also had the inner sanctuary made within the Temple where the Ark of the Lord's Agreement would be placed.

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 measured twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high. He had the interior covered with a coating with pure gold, as well as 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.

Solomon had the whole of the inside of the Temple covered with pure gold, He had gold chains stretched across the front of the inner sanctuary, which was also covered 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.

He covered the whole inside of the Temple with a coating of gold until it was all finished. He also covered with gold the entire altar for the inner sanctuary.

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

He had two cherubim made out of olive wood for the inner sanctuary, each one ten cubits tall.

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.

Both wings of the cherub measured five cubits, making a total wingspan of ten cubits.

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

The other cherub was also ten cubits tall, since they were identical both in size and shape.

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

Both cherubs were ten cubits tall.

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.

He had the cherubim placed inside the inner sanctuary of the Temple. Since their wings were fully spread, a wing of the first cherub touched one wall, a wing of the second cherub touched the other wall, and in the middle of the Temple their wings touched.

28 He overlaid the cherubim with gold.

The cherubim were also covered with a gold coating.

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

He had all the Temple walls, both the inner and outer sanctuaries, carved with designs of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers.

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

He also had the floor of the Temple floor covered with gold, 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.

He had doors of olive wood made for the entrance to the inner sanctuary, together with a lintel and doorposts that had five sides.

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.

These olive wood double doors had carved into them designs of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. The cherubim and palm trees carvings were covered with beaten 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;

Similarly he had four-sided doorposts of olive wood made for the entrance to the sanctuary.

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.

Its doors were made of cypress wood, each with two hinged panels.

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

He had them carved with designs of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, and covered them with gold beaten evenly over the carvings.

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

Solomon had the inner courtyard built with three courses of dressed stone and one of 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 Lord's Temple 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.

The Temple was finished exactly as specified and planned in Solomon's eleventh year, in the eighth month, the month of Bul. So it took him seven years to build the Temple.