Advanced Commentary

(ex.: John 3:14-18)

Table of Contents Bible Dictionary
Arts
Questions
Resources/Books

Context
4:4 “The Sea” stood <05975> on <05921> top of twelve <06240> <08147> bulls <01241>. Three <07969> faced <06437> northward <06828>, three <07969> westward <03220> <06437>, three <07969> southward <05045>, and three <07969> eastward <04217> <06437>. “The Sea <03220>” was placed on <05921> top <04605> of them, and they all <03605> faced outward <01004> <0268>. 4:5 It was four fingers <02947> thick <05672> and its rim <08193> was like that <08193> of a cup <03563> shaped <04639> like a lily <07799> blossom <06525>. It could hold <03557> 18,000 gallons <0505> <07969> <01324>. 4:6 He made <06213> ten <06235> washing <07364> basins <03595>; he put <05414> five <02568> on the south <03225> side and five <02568> on the north <08040> side. In them they rinsed <01740> the items <04639> used for burnt sacrifices <05930>; the priests <03548> washed <07364> in “The Sea <03220>.” 4:7 He made <06213> ten <06235> gold <02091> lampstands <04501> according to specifications <04941> and put <05414> them in the temple <01964>, five <02568> on the right <03225> and five <02568> on the left <08040>. 4:8 He made <06213> ten <06235> tables <07979> and set <03240> them in the temple <01964>, five <02568> on the right <03225> and five <02568> on the left <08040>. He also made <06213> one hundred <03967> gold <02091> bowls <04219>. 4:9 He made <06213> the courtyard <02691> of the priests <03548> and the large <01419> enclosure <05835> and its doors <05835> <01817>; he plated <06823> their doors <01817> with bronze <05178>. 4:10 He put <05414> “The Sea <03220>” on the south <03233> side <03802>, in the southeast <05045> <04136> <06924> corner. 4:11 Huram <02361> Abi made <06213> the pots <05518>, shovels <03257>, and bowls <04219>. He <02438> finished <03615> all the work <04399> on God’s <0430> temple <01004> he had been assigned <06213> by King <04428> Solomon <08010>. 4:12 He made the two <08147> pillars <05982>, the two <08147> bowl-shaped <01543> tops <03805> of the pillars <05982>, the latticework <07639> for the bowl-shaped <01543> tops <03805> of the two pillars <05982>, 4:13 the four <0702> hundred <03967> pomegranate-shaped <07416> ornaments for the latticework <07639> of the two <08147> pillars (each <0259> latticework <07639> had two <08147> rows <02905> of these ornaments at <05921> the bowl-shaped <01543> top <06440> of the pillar <05982>), 4:14 the ten movable stands <04350> with their ten basins <03595>, 4:15 the big bronze basin called “The Sea <03220>” with its twelve <06240> <08147> bulls <01241> underneath <08478>, 4:16 and the pots <05518>, shovels <03257>, and meat forks <04207>. All <03605> the items <03627> King <04428> Solomon <08010> assigned <06213> Huram <02361> Abi <01> to make for the Lord’s <03069> temple <01004> were made from polished <04838> bronze <05178>. 4:17 The king <04428> had them cast <03332> in earthen <05645> foundries <0127> in the region <03603> of the Jordan <03383> between <0996> Succoth <05523> and Zarethan <06868>. 4:18 Solomon <08010> made <06213> so many <07230> of these <0428> items <03627> they did not <03808> weigh <04948> <02713> the bronze <05178>. 4:19 Solomon <08010> also made <06213> these items <03627> for God’s <0430> temple <01004>: the gold <02091> altar <04196>, the tables <07979> on <05921> which the Bread <03899> of the Presence <06440> was kept, 4:20 the pure <05462> gold <02091> lampstands <04501> and their lamps <05216> which burned <01197> as specified <04941> at the entrance <06440> to the inner sanctuary <01687>, 4:21 the pure <04357> gold <02091> <02091> flower-shaped <06525> ornaments, lamps <05216>, and tongs <04457>, 4:22 the pure <05462> gold trimming <04212> shears, basins <04219>, pans <03709>, and censers <04289>, and the gold <02091> door sockets <06607> for the inner <06442> sanctuary <06944> (the most holy place <06944>) and for the doors <01817> of the main hall <01964> of the temple <01004>.

• 2Ch 3:1--5:1 -- The Building of the Temple

• 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...
  [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...
  

• Temple

  [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...
  

• Laver

  [ebd] (Heb. kiyor), a "basin" for boiling in, a "pan" for cooking (1 Sam. 2:14), a "fire-pan" or hearth (Zech. 12:6), the sacred wash-bowl of the tabernacle and temple (Ex. 30:18, 28; 31:9; 35:16; 38:8; 39:39; 40:7, 11, 30, etc.),...
  [isbe] LAVER - la'-ver (kiyor): 1. In the Tabernacle: Every priest in attendance on the altar of Yahweh was required to wash his hands and his feet before entering upon his official duties (Ex 30:19 ff). To this end a laver was ord...
  [smith] In the tabernacle, a vessel of brass containing water for the priests to wash their hands and feet before offering sacrifice. It stood in the fore offering sacrifice. It stood in the court between the altar and the door of t...
  [nave] LAVER Directions for making, Ex. 30:18-20. Situation of, in the tabernacle, tent of the congregation, and the altar, Ex. 40:7. Sanctified, Ex. 30:28; 40:11; Lev. 8:11. Used for washing, Ex. 40:30-32. Brazen, made by Solo...
  

• 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...
  

• 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.
  

• 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...
  [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. ...
  

• Temple, Solomon's

  [ebd] Before his death David had "with all his might" provided materials in great abundance for the building of the temple on the summit of Mount Moriah (1 Chr. 22:14; 29:4; 2 Chr. 3:1), on the east of the city, on the spot where ...
  

• HURAM

  [isbe] HURAM - hu'-ram (churam, "noble-born"): (1) Grandson of Benjamin (1 Ch 8:5). (2) King of Tyre in alliance with David and Solomon. So named in 2 Ch 2:3,11,12; 8:2; 9:10,21, but elsewhere written HIRAM (which see). (3) The Tyr...
  [smith] (noble born). A Benjamite; son of Bela, the first-born of the patriarch. (1 Chronicles 8:5) The form in which the name of the king of Tyre in alliance with David and Solomon --and elsewhere given as HIRAM, OR HURAM-- appe...
  

• POMMELS

  [ebd] (2 Chr. 4:12, 13), or bowls (1 Kings 7:41), were balls or "rounded knobs" on the top of the chapiters (q.v.).
  [smith] only in (2 Chronicles 4:12,13) In (1 Kings 7:41) "bowls." The word signifies convex projections belonging to the capitals of pillars.
  

• SEA, THE MOLTEN; SEA, THE BRAZEN

  [isbe] SEA, THE MOLTEN; SEA, THE BRAZEN - mol'-t'n, or (yam mutsaq, yam hanechosheth): This was a large brazen (bronze) reservoir for water which stood in the court of Solomon's Temple between the altar and the temple porch, toward...
  

• Lily

  [ebd] The Hebrew name shushan or shoshan, i.e., "whiteness", was used as the general name of several plants common to Syria, such as the tulip, iris, anemone, gladiolus, ranunculus, etc. Some interpret it, with much probability, a...
  [isbe] LILY - lil'-i (shushan (1 Ki 7:19), shoshannah (2 Ch 4:5; Song 2:1 f; Hos 14:5); plural (Song 2:16; 4:5; 5:13; 6:2 f; 7:2; Ecclesiasticus 39:14; 50:8); krinon (Mt 6:28; Lk 12:27)): The Hebrew is probably a loan word from the...
  [nave] LILY The principal chapiters of the temple ornamented with carvings of, 1 Kin. 7:19, 22, 26. Molded on the rim of the molten layer in the temple, 1 Kin. 7:26; 2 Chr. 4:5. Lessons of trust gathered from, Matt. 6:28-30; Luke...
  

• Censer

  [ebd] the vessel in which incense was presented on "the golden altar" before the Lord in the temple (Ex. 30:1-9). The priest filled the censer with live coal from the sacred fire on the altar of burnt-offering, and having carried ...
  [smith] A small portable vessel of metal fitted to receive burning coals from the altar, and on which the incense for burning was sprinkled. (2 Chronicles 26:19; Luke 1:9) The only distinct precepts regarding the use of the censer...
  [nave] CENSER Used for offering incense, Lev. 16:12; Num. 4:14; 16:6, 7, 16-18, 46; Rev. 8:3. For the temple, made of gold, 1 Kin. 7:50; 2 Chr. 4:22; Heb. 9:4. Those which Korah used were converted into plates, Num. 16:37-39. Us...
  

• Bowl

  [isbe] BOWL - bol: (1) The primitive Hebrews, like the wandering Bedouin of today, probably used bowls of wood, as less breakable than earthenware. Some hollow dish of the sort would be indispensable, even in the lowest stage of no...
  [nave] BOWL Made of gold: For the tabernacle, Ex. 25:29; 37:16; temple, 1 Kin. 7:50; 1 Chr. 28:17; 2 Chr. 4:8; of silver, Num. 4:7; 7:13, 19, 25, 31, 37, 43, 49, 55, 61, 67, 73, 79, 84. Stamped "Holiness to the Lord,'' Zech. 14:20...
  

• Basin

  [ebd] or Bason. (1.) A trough or laver (Heb. aggan') for washing (Ex. 24:6); rendered also "goblet" (Cant. 7:2) and "cups" (Isa. 22:24). (2.) A covered dish or urn (Heb. k'for) among the vessels of the temple (1 Chr. 28:17; Ezra 1...
  [nave] BASIN Made of gold, 1 Kin. 7:50; 1 Chr. 28:17; 2 Chr. 4:8, 22; Ezra 1:10; 8:27; of bronze, Ex. 27:3; 38:3; 1 Kin. 7:45. See: Tabernacle, Furniture of.
  

• Chapiter

  [ebd] the ornamental head or capital of a pillar. Three Hebrew words are so rendered. (1.) Cothereth (1 Kings 7:16; 2 Kings 25:17; 2 Chr. 4:12), meaning a "diadem" or "crown." (2.) Tzepheth (2 Chr. 3:15). (3.) Rosh (Ex. 36:38; 38:...
  [nave] CHAPITER, head of a pillar, Ex. 36:38; 1 Kin. 7:16-42; 2 Kin. 25:17; 2 Chr. 4:12, 13; Jer. 52:22.
  

• Succoth

  [smith] (booths). An ancient town, first heard of in the account of the homeward journey of Jacob from Padan-aram. (Genesis 35:17) The name is derived from the fact of Jacob?s having there put up "booths" (succoth) for his cattle as...
  [nave] SUCCOTH 1. A city probably east of the Jordan. Jacob builds a house in, Gen. 33:17. Allotted to Gad, Josh. 13:27. People of, punished by Gideon, Judg. 8:5-8, 14-16. Located near the Jordan, 1 Kin. 7:46; 2 Chr. 4:17; Psa. ...
  

• Consecrated Bread

  [nave] CONSECRATED BREAD Heb. 9:2. Called Hallowed Bread, 1 Sam. 21:6. Ordinance concerning, Lev. 24:5-9. Required to be kept before the Lord continually, Ex. 25:30; 2 Chr. 2:4. Provided by a yearly per capita tax, Neh. 10:32,...
  

• Handbreadth

  [isbe] HANDBREADTH - hand'-bredth (Tephach, Tophach, 1 Ki 7:26; 2 Ch 4:5; Ps 39:5; Ex 25:25; 37:12; Ezek 40:5,43; 43:13): A Hebrew linear measure containing 4 fingers, or digits, and equal to about 3 inches. See WEIGHTS AND MEASURE...
  [nave] HANDBREADTH, a measure, about four inches, Ex. 25:25; 1 Kin. 7:26; 2 Chr. 4:5; Psa. 39:5; Isa. 48:13; Ezek. 40:5, 43; Jer. 52:21. See: Span; Fingerbreadth.
  

• POMMEL

  [isbe] POMMEL - pum'-el (2 Ch 4:12,13): the Revised Version (British and American) reads "bowl" (which see).
  

• Zeredathah

  [ebd] a place in the plain of Jordan; the same as Zarthan (2 Chr. 4:17; 1 Kings 7:46). Here Solomon erected the foundries in which Hiram made the great castings of bronze for the temple.
  [nave] ZEREDATHAH, in Manasseh, 2 Chr. 4:17.
  

• The Temple's Furnishings

  

Back to Commentary Page