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Texts -- 1 Kings 7:1-17 (NET)

Context
The Building of the Royal Palace
7:1 Solomon took thirteen years to build his palace . 7:2 He named it “The Palace of the Lebanon Forest ”; it was 150 feet long , 75 feet wide , and 45 feet high . It had four rows of cedar pillars and cedar beams above the pillars . 7:3 The roof above the beams supported by the pillars was also made of cedar ; there were forty-five beams, fifteen per row . 7:4 There were three rows of windows arranged in sets of three . 7:5 All of the entrances were rectangular in shape and they were arranged in sets of three . 7:6 He made a colonnade 75 feet long and 45 feet wide . There was a porch in front of this and pillars and a roof in front of the porch. 7:7 He also made a throne room , called “The Hall of Judgment ,” where he made judicial decisions . It was paneled with cedar from the floor to the rafters. 7:8 The palace where he lived was constructed in a similar way. He also constructed a palace like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter , whom he had married . 7:9 All of these were built with the best stones , chiseled to the right size and cut with a saw on all sides , from the foundation to the edge of the roof and from the outside to the great courtyard . 7:10 The foundation was made of large valuable stones , measuring either 15 feet or 12 feet . 7:11 Above the foundation the best stones , chiseled to the right size , were used along with cedar . 7:12 Around the great courtyard were three rows of chiseled stones and one row of cedar beams , like the inner courtyard of the Lord’s temple and the hall of the palace .
Solomon Commissions Hiram to Supply the Temple
7:13 King Solomon sent for Hiram of Tyre . 7:14 He was the son of a widow from the tribe of Naphtali , and his father was a craftsman in bronze from Tyre . He had the skill and knowledge to make all kinds of works of bronze . He reported to King Solomon and did all the work he was assigned. 7:15 He fashioned two bronze pillars ; each pillar was 27 feet high and 18 feet in circumference . 7:16 He made two bronze tops for the pillars ; each was seven-and-a-half feet high . 7:17 The latticework on the tops of the pillars was adorned with ornamental wreaths and chains ; the top of each pillar had seven groupings of ornaments .

Pericope

NET
  • 1Ki 7:1-12 -- The Building of the Royal Palace
  • 1Ki 7:13-51 -- Solomon Commissions Hiram to Supply the Temple

Bible Dictionary

  • Solomon

    [ebd] peaceful, (Heb. Shelomoh), David's second son by Bathsheba, i.e., the first after their legal marriage (2 Sam. 12). He was probably born about B.C. 1035 (1 Chr. 22:5; 29:1). He succeeded his father on the throne in early man...
    [isbe] SOLOMON - sol'-o-mun (shelomoh; New Testament Solomon): I. EARLY LIFE 1. Name and Meaning 2. Sources 3. Birth and Upbringing 4. His Accession 5. Closing Days of David II. REIGN OF SOLOMON 1. His Vision 2. His Policy 3. Its R...
    [smith] (peaceful). I. Early life and occasion to the throne . --Solomon was the child of David?s old age, the last born of all his sons. (1 Chronicles 3:5) The yearnings of the "man of war" led him to give to the new-horn infant ...
    [nave] SOLOMON Son of David by Bathsheba, 2 Sam. 12:24; 1 Kin. 1:13, 17, 21. Named Jedidiah, by Nathan the prophet, 2 Sam. 12:24, 25. Ancestor of Joseph, Matt. 1:6. Succeeds David to the throne of Israel, 1 Kin. 1:11-48; 2:12; 1...

  • Palace

    [ebd] Used now only of royal dwellings, although originally meaning simply (as the Latin word palatium, from which it is derived, shows) a building surrounded by a fence or a paling. In the Authorized Version there are many differ...
    [isbe] PALACE - pal'-as: In Hebrew chiefly 'armon, in the Revised Version (British and American) text translated "castle" in 1 Ki 16:18; 2 Ki 15:25; birah, hekhal, the same word often rendered "temple"; in Greek aule, in the Revise...
    [nave] PALACE For kings, 1 Kin. 21:1; 2 Kin. 15:25; Jer. 49:27; Amos 1:12; Nah. 2:6. Of David, 2 Sam. 7:2. Of Solomon, 1 Kin. 7:1-12. At Babylon, Dan. 4:29; 5:5; 6:18. At Shushan, Neh. 1:1; Esth. 1:2; 7:7; Dan. 8:2. Archives k...

  • House

    [ebd] Till their sojourn in Egypt the Hebrews dwelt in tents. They then for the first time inhabited cities (Gen. 47:3; Ex. 12:7; Heb. 11:9). From the earliest times the Assyrians and the Canaanites were builders of cities. The He...
    [isbe] HOUSE - hous (bayith; oikos, in classical Greek generally "an estate," oikia, oikema (literally, "habitation"), in Acts 12:1, "prison"): I. CAVE DWELLINGS II. STONE-BUILT AND MUD/BRICK-BUILT HOUSES 1. Details of Plan and Con...
    [nave] HOUSE Built of stone, Lev. 14:40-45; Isa. 9:10; Amos 5:11; brick, Gen. 11:3; Ex. 1:11-14; Isa. 9:10; wood, Song 1:17; Isa. 9:10. Built into city walls, Josh. 2:15. Used for worship, Acts 1:13, 14; 12:12; Rom. 16:5; 1 Cor. ...

  • Israel

    [nave] ISRAEL 1. A name given to Jacob, Gen. 32:24-32; 2 Kin. 17:34; Hos. 12:3, 4. 2. A name of the Christ in prophecy, Isa. 49:3. 3. A name given to the descendants of Jacob, a nation. Called also Israelites, and Hebrews, Gen. 4...

  • Church and State

    [nave] CHURCH AND STATE (Identical in the theocratic period. No particular Scripture can be cited, but the student is directed to the legislative, judicial, and administrative functions of Moses, Joshua, the Judges, and Samuel as s...

  • TEMPLE, A1

    [isbe] TEMPLE, A1 - tem'-p'l (hekhal, "palace"; sometimes, as in 1 Ki 6:3,5, etc.; Ezek 41:1,15 ff, used for "the holy place" only; bayith, "house," thus always in the Revised Version (British and American); hieron, naos): A. STRUC...

  • KING; KINGDOM

    [isbe] KING; KINGDOM - king'-dum: I. KING 1. Etymology and Definition 2. Earliest Kings 3. Biblical Signification of the Title II. KINGDOM 1. Israel's Theocracy 2. Period of Judges 3. Establishment of the Monarchy 4. Appointment of...

  • COURT OF THE SANCTUARY; TABERNACLE; TEMPLE

    [isbe] COURT OF THE SANCTUARY; TABERNACLE; TEMPLE - kort, sank'~-tu-a-ri: By "court" (chatser) is meant a clear space enclosed by curtains or walls, or surrounded by buildings. It was always an uncovered enclosure, but might have w...

  • Esarhaddon

    [ebd] Assur has given a brother, successor of Sennacherib (2 Kings 19:37; Isa. 37:38). He ascended the throne about B.C. 681. Nothing further is recorded of him in Scripture, except that he settled certain colonists in Samaria (Ez...

  • Temple

    [smith] There is perhaps no building of the ancient world which has excited so much attention since the time of its destruction as the temple which Solomon built by Herod. Its spoils were considered worthy of forming the principal il...
    [nave] TEMPLE. Solomon's Called also Temple of the Lord, 2 Kin. 11:10; Holy Temple, Psa. 79:1; Holy House, 1 Chr. 29:3; House of God, 1 Chr. 29:2; 2 Chr. 23:9; House of the Lord, 2 Chr. 23:5, 12; Jer. 28:5; Father's House, John 2...

  • JERUSALEM, 4

    [isbe] JERUSALEM, 4 - IX. History. Pre-Israelite period.--The beginnings of Jerusalem are long before recorded history: at various points in the neighborhood, e.g. at el Bukei`a to the Southwest, and at the northern extremity of th...

  • Cedar

    [ebd] (Heb. e'rez, Gr. kedros, Lat. cedrus), a tree very frequently mentioned in Scripture. It was stately (Ezek. 31:3-5), long-branched (Ps. 80:10; 92:12; Ezek. 31:6-9), odoriferous (Cant. 4:11; Hos. 14:6), durable, and therefore...
    [isbe] CEDAR - se'-dar, se'-der ('erez, from Hebrew root meaning "to be firm"; kedros): The 'erez was in almost all the Old Testament references the true cedar, Cedrus libani, but the name may have been applied in a loose way to al...
    [smith] The Hebrew word erez , invariably rendered "cedar" by the Authorized Version, stands for that tree in most of the passages where the word occurs. While the word is sometimes used in a wider sense, (Leviticus 14:6) for evergre...
    [nave] CEDAR Valuable for building purposes, Isa. 9:10. David's ample provision of, in Jerusalem, for the temple, 2 Chr. 1:15; 22:4. Furnished by Hiram, king of Tyre, for Solomon's temple, 1 Kin. 5:6-10; 9:11; 2 Chr. 2:16. Used ...

  • Hiram

    [ebd] high-born. (1.) Generally "Huram," one of the sons of Bela (1 Chr. 8:5). (2.) Also "Huram" and "Horam," king of Tyre. He entered into an alliance with David, and assisted him in building his palace by sending him able workme...
    [isbe] HIRAM - hi'-ram (chiram; Septuagint Chiram, but Cheiram, in 2 Sam 5:11; 1 Ch 14:1): There is some confusion regarding the form of this name. In the books of Samuel and Kings the prevailing form is "Hiram" (chiram); but in 1 ...
    [nave] HIRAM 1. Called Huram, king of Tyre. Builds a house for David, 2 Sam. 5:11; 1 Chr. 14:1; 2 Chr. 2:3. Aids Solomon in building the temple, 1 Kin. 5; 2 Chr. 2:3-16. Dissatisfied with cities given by Solomon, 1 Kin. 9:11-13. ...

  • JACHIN AND BOAZ

    [ebd] the names of two brazen columns set up in Solomon's temple (1 Kings 7:15-22). Each was eighteen cubits high and twelve in circumference (Jer. 52:21, 23; 1 Kings 7:17-21). They had doubtless a symbolical import.
    [isbe] JACHIN AND BOAZ - ja'-kin (yakhin, "he shall establish"; bo`az, "in it is strength," 1 Ki 7:15-22; 2 Ki 25:16,17; 2 Ch 3:15-17; Jer 52:17): These were the names of the two bronze pillars that stood before the temple of Solom...

  • Pillar

    [nave] PILLAR Of Solomon's temple, 1 Kin. 7:13-22; 2 Kin. 25:17. Broken and carried to Babylon, 2 Kin. 25:13; Jer. 52:17, 20, 21. Of Solomon's palaces, 1 Kin. 7:6. Used to mark roads, Jer. 31:21. Pillar of salt, Lot's wife turn...

  • Carving

    [nave] CARVING Woodwork of the temple was decorated with carvings of flowers, cherubim, and palm trees, 1 Kin. 6:18, 29, 32, 35; Psa. 74:6. Beds decorated with, Prov. 7:16. Idols manufactured by, Deut. 7:5; Isa. 44:9-17; 45:20; H...

  • Master Workman

    [nave] MASTER WORKMAN, Prov. 8:30; 1 Cor. 3:10. Instances of Tubal-cain, Gen. 4:22; Bezaleel, Ex. 31:2-11; 35:30-35; Hiram, 1 Kin. 7:13-50; 2 Chr. 2:13, 14; 4:11-18. See: Arts and Crafts.

  • ARCHITECTURE

    [isbe] ARCHITECTURE - ar'-ki-tek-tur: I. GENERAL HISTORY 1. Plans, Estimates and Measuring 2. Old Testament References II. TEMPLE AND PALACE OF SOLOMON 1. Construction and Materials 2. Style 3. Facts 4. Phoenician Designers III. CO...
    [smith] The book of (Genesis 4:17,20,22) appears to divide mankind into two great characteristic sections, viz., the "dwellers in tents" and the "dwellers in cities." To the race of Shem is attributed (Genesis 10:11,12,22; 11:2-9) th...

  • Arts and Crafts

    [nave] ARTS AND CRAFTS. Primitive Invention of musical instruments and instruments of iron and copper, Gen. 4:21, 22. Carpentry, Gen. 6:14-16; Ex. 31:2-9. Of the perfumer, Ex. 30:25, 35; armorer, 1 Sam. 8:12; baker, Gen. 40:1; ...

  • Bronze

    [nave] BRONZE or more probably Copper. Smelted, Ezek. 22:20; Job 28:2. A mineral of Canaan, Deut. 8:9; Josh. 22:8; of Syria, 2 Sam. 8:8. Tyrians traded in, Ezek. 27:13. Abundance of, for the temple, 1 Kin. 7:47; 1 Chr. 22:14. A...
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Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • The Book of Samuel covers the period of Israel's history bracketed by Samuel's conception and the end of David's reign. David turned the kingdom over to Solomon in 971 B.C.3David reigned for 40 and one-half years (2 Sam. 2:11...
  • I. The reign of Solomon chs. 1-11A. Solomon's succession to David's throne 1:1-2:121. David's declining health 1:1-42. Adonijah's attempt to seize the throne 1:5-533. David's charge to Solomon 2:1-94. David's death 2:10-12B. ...
  • The Holy Spirit led the writer of Kings to give an interpretation of history, not just a chronologically sequential record of events. This is true of all the writers of the Old Testament historical books. Some of the events i...
  • The flowing narrative of chapters 1-2 now gives way to reports and lists that catalogue facts about Solomon's reign.The writer constructed the Solomon narrative (chs. 3-11), like so many others in the Old Testament, to draw a...
  • Should Solomon have married Pharaoh's daughter? In view of 11:1-2 and 2 Chronicles 8:1 there is no way we can say yes. Furthermore Solomon already had a wife when he married Pharaoh's daughter (14:21; cf. Gen. 2:24). Why then...
  • Solomon's palace complex took longer to build than the temple because it was much larger. The king evidently completed the temple and then began work on his palace (cf. 9:10). Solomon seems to have built several separate but ...
  • As in the Mosaic tabernacle, the metals used expressed the glory of God also. The closer to the ark, the throne of Yahweh, the more valuable was the metal. Everything inside the temple was gold or gold plated. Outside the tem...
  • Aharoni, Yohanan. "The Building Activities of David and Solomon."Israel Exploration Journal24:1(1974):13-16.Aharoni, Yohanan, and Michael Avi-Yonahl. The Macmillan Bible Atlas. Revised ed., New York: Macmillan Publishing Co.,...
  • Numbers in Chronicles That Disagree With Their Old Testament Parallels89HigherSameLowerParallel PassageEvaluation of ChroniclesA.1 Chron. 11:11300 slain by Jashobeam, not 8002 Sam. 23:8Scribal errorB.1 Chron. 18:4Hadadezer's ...
  • The Chronicler's main interest in David's reign, as we have seen, focused on the Davidic Covenant with its promises to David and his descendants. In recounting the events of Solomon's reign he proceeded to emphasize the templ...
  • The cherubim (3:10-13) represented angelic beings (cf. Gen. 3:24). Probably they looked more like the sculptured combination human-animal-bird creatures that archaeologists have discovered in the ancient Assyrian and Babyloni...
  • As in the first series of oracles, God's people occupy the fourth place in this second series, which points farther into the future, surrounded by the nations of the world. In the first series the Northern Kingdom was in view...
  • This group of prophecies begins and ends with oracles concerning the kings' duties (21:11-12; 22:1-9). In the middle is an oracle against Jerusalem (21:13-14).21:11-12 Jeremiah was to tell the king of Judah and his administra...
  • This section reprises the destruction of the temple just described. Before the Babylonians burned the temple, they looted it. This was the second time they had done this, the first being in 597 B.C. (27:16; 2 Kings 24:13; cf....
  • 26:7-9 In an explanatory prophecy about Tyre's destruction, the Lord promised to send Nebuchadnezzar as an invader from the north (cf. 2 Kings 25:21; Jer. 52:9). He was a "king of kings"in that many rulers were subject to him...
  • It is interesting to compare this temple with the one that Solomon built (1 Kings 6-7). There are similarities but also differences.
  • The walls that supported the door frames leading into the vestibule of the temple were five cubits deep on each side of the opening.524These walls protruded three cubits from the side walls of the temple on each side. The ves...
  • 11:1 The prophet announced in vigorous poetic language that Lebanon's famous cedars would perish. The Israelites referred to the royal palace in Jerusalem as Lebanon because it contained so much cedar from Lebanon (Jer. 22:23...
  • Jesus Christ gave no rebuke to this church, as was true of the church in Smyrna. He gave the Christians five promises instead.1. Their Jewish antagonists would eventually have to acknowledge that the Christians were the true ...
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