Text -- 1 Kings 7:1-51 (NET)

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. 7:18 When he made the pillars, there were two rows of pomegranate-shaped ornaments around the latticework covering the top of each pillar. 7:19 The tops of the two pillars in the porch were shaped like lilies and were six feet high. 7:20 On the top of each pillar, right above the bulge beside the latticework, there were two hundred pomegranate-shaped ornaments arranged in rows all the way around. 7:21 He set up the pillars on the porch in front of the main hall. He erected one pillar on the right side and called it Jakin; he erected the other pillar on the left side and called it Boaz. 7:22 The tops of the pillars were shaped like lilies. So the construction of the pillars was completed. 7:23 He also made the large bronze basin called “The Sea.” It measured 15 feet from rim to rim, was circular in shape, and stood seven-and-a-half feet high. Its circumference was 45 feet. 7:24 Under the rim all the way around it were round ornaments arranged in settings 15 feet long. The ornaments were in two rows and had been cast with “The Sea.” 7:25 “The Sea” stood on top of twelve bulls. Three faced northward, three westward, three southward, and three eastward. “The Sea” was placed on top of them, and they all faced outward. 7:26 It was four fingers thick and its rim was like that of a cup shaped like a lily blossom. It could hold about 12,000 gallons. 7:27 He also made ten bronze movable stands. Each stand was six feet long, six feet wide, and four-and-a-half feet high. 7:28 The stands were constructed with frames between the joints. 7:29 On these frames and joints were ornamental lions, bulls, and cherubs. Under the lions and bulls were decorative wreaths. 7:30 Each stand had four bronze wheels with bronze axles and four supports. Under the basin the supports were fashioned on each side with wreaths. 7:31 Inside the stand was a round opening that was a foot-and-a-half deep; it had a support that was two and one-quarter feet long. On the edge of the opening were carvings in square frames. 7:32 The four wheels were under the frames and the crossbars of the axles were connected to the stand. Each wheel was two and one-quarter feet high. 7:33 The wheels were constructed like chariot wheels; their crossbars, rims, spokes, and hubs were made of cast metal. 7:34 Each stand had four supports, one per side projecting out from the stand. 7:35 On top of each stand was a round opening three-quarters of a foot deep; there were also supports and frames on top of the stands. 7:36 He engraved ornamental cherubs, lions, and palm trees on the plates of the supports and frames wherever there was room, with wreaths all around. 7:37 He made the ten stands in this way. All of them were cast in one mold and were identical in measurements and shape. 7:38 He also made ten bronze basins, each of which could hold about 240 gallons. Each basin was six feet in diameter; there was one basin for each stand. 7:39 He put five basins on the south side of the temple and five on the north side. He put “The Sea” on the south side, in the southeast corner. 7:40 Hiram also made basins, shovels, and bowls. He finished all the work on the Lord’s temple he had been assigned by King Solomon. 7:41 He made the two pillars, the two bowl-shaped tops of the pillars, the latticework for the bowl-shaped tops of the two pillars, 7:42 the four hundred pomegranate-shaped ornaments for the latticework of the two pillars (each latticework had two rows of these ornaments at the bowl-shaped top of the pillar), 7:43 the ten movable stands with their ten basins, 7:44 the big bronze basin called “The Sea” with its twelve bulls underneath, 7:45 and the pots, shovels, and bowls. All these items King Solomon assigned Hiram to make for the Lord’s temple were made from polished bronze. 7:46 The king had them cast in earth foundries in the region of the Jordan between Succoth and Zarethan. 7:47 Solomon left all these items unweighed; there were so many of them they did not weigh the bronze. 7:48 Solomon also made all these items for the Lord’s temple: the gold altar, the gold table on which was kept the Bread of the Presence, 7:49 the pure gold lampstands at the entrance to the inner sanctuary (five on the right and five on the left), the gold flower-shaped ornaments, lamps, and tongs, 7:50 the pure gold bowls, trimming shears, basins, pans, and censers, and the gold door sockets for the inner sanctuary (the most holy place) and for the doors of the main hall of the temple. 7:51 When King Solomon finished constructing the Lord’s temple, he put the holy items that belonged to his father David (the silver, gold, and other articles) in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:1

¹ tn Heb “His house Solomon built in thirteen years and he completed all his house.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:2

¹ tn Heb “he built.”

² sn The Palace of the Lebanon Forest. This name was appropriate because of the large amount of cedar, undoubtedly brought from Lebanon, used in its construction. The cedar pillars in the palace must have given it the appearance of a forest.

³ tn Heb “one hundred cubits.”

⁴ tn Heb “fifty cubits.”

⁵ tn Heb “thirty cubits.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:4

¹ tn Heb “and framed [windows in] three rows, and opening to opening three times.” The precise meaning of this description is uncertain. Another option might be, “overhung [in] three rows.” This might mean they were positioned high on the walls.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:5

¹ tn Heb “all of the doors and doorposts.”

² sn Rectangular in shape. That is, rather than arched.

³ tn Heb “and all the entrances and the doorposts [had] four frames, and in front of opening to opening three times” (the precise meaning of the description is uncertain).

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:6

¹ tn Heb “a porch of pillars.”

² tn Heb “fifty cubits.”

³ tn Heb “thirty cubits.”

⁴ tn Heb “and a porch was in front of them (i.e., the aforementioned pillars) and pillars and a roof in front of them (i.e., the aforementioned pillars and porch).” The precise meaning of the term translated “roof” is uncertain; it occurs only here and in Ezek 41:25-26.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:7

¹ tn Heb “and a porch for the throne, where he was making judicial decisions, the Porch of Judgment, he made.”

² tc The Hebrew text reads, “from the floor to the floor.” The second occurrence of the term הַקַּרְקָע (haqqarqa’, “the floor”) is probably an error; one should emend to הַקּוֹרוֹת (haqqorot, “the rafters”). See 6:16.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:8

¹ tn Heb “and his house where he lived, the other court [i.e., as opposed to the great court], separated from the house belonging to the hall, was like this work [i.e., this style of architecture].”

² tn Heb “and a house he was making for the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Solomon had taken, like this porch.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:9

¹ tn Or “valuable” (see 5:17).

² tn Heb “according to the measurement of chiseled [stone].”

³ tn Heb “inside and out.”

⁴ tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew word טְפָחוֹת (tÿfakhot) is uncertain, but it is clear that the referent stands in opposition to the foundation.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:10

¹ tn Heb “stones of ten cubits and stones of eight cubits” (it is unclear exactly what dimension is being measured). If both numbers refer to the length of the stones (cf. NCV, CEV, NLT), then perhaps stones of two different sizes were used in some alternating pattern.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:11

¹ tn Heb “on top,” or “above.”

² tn Or “valuable” (see 5:17).

³ tn Heb “according to the measurement of chiseled [stone].”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:12

¹ tn Or “the porch of the temple.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:13

¹ tn Heb “King Solomon sent and took Hiram from Tyre.” In 2 Chr 2:13 (MT v. 12) and 4:11, 16 his name is spelled “Huram.”

² map For location see Map1 A2; Map2 G2; Map4 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:14

¹ tn 2 Chr 2:14 (13 HT) says “from the daughters of Dan.”

² tn Heb “he was filled with the skill, understanding, and knowledge.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:15

¹ tn Heb “eighteen cubits.”

² tn Heb “twelve cubits.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:16

¹ tn Heb “two capitals he made to place on the tops of the pillars, cast in bronze; five cubits was the height of the first capital, and five cubits was the height of the second capital.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:17

¹ tn Heb “there were seven for the first capital, and seven for the second capital.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:18

¹ tn Heb “he made the pillars, and two rows surrounding one latticework to cover the capitals which were on top of the pomegranates, and so he did for the second latticework.” The translation supplies “pomegranates” after “two rows,” and understands “pillars,” rather than “pomegranates,” to be the correct reading after “on top of.” The latter change finds support from many Hebrew mss and the ancient Greek version.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:19

¹ tn Heb “the capitals which were on the top of the pillars were the work of lilies, in the porch, four cubits.” It is unclear exactly what dimension is being measured.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:20

¹ tn Heb “and the capitals on the two pillars, also above, close beside the bulge which was beside the latticework, two hundred pomegranates in rows around, on the second capital.” The precise meaning of the word translated “bulge” is uncertain.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:21

¹ tn Or “south.”

² sn The name Jakin appears to be a verbal form and probably means, “he establishes.”

³ tn Or “north.”

⁴ sn The meaning of the name Boaz is uncertain. For various proposals, see BDB 126-27 s.v. בעז. One attractive option is to revocalize the name as בְּעֹז (be’oz, “in strength”) and to understand it as completing the verbal form on the first pillar. Taking the words together and reading from right to left, one can translate the sentence, “he establishes [it] in strength.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:23

¹ tn Heb “He made the sea, cast.”

sn This large basin that was mounted on twelve bronze bulls and contained water for the priests to bathe themselves (2 Chr 4:6; cf. Exod 30:17-21).

² tn Heb “ten cubits.”

³ tn Heb “five cubits.”

⁴ tn Heb “and a measuring line went around it thirty cubits all around.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:24

¹ tn Heb “The Sea.” The proper noun has been replaced by the pronoun (“it”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

² tn Or “gourd-shaped ornaments.”

³ tn Heb “ten cubits surrounding the sea all around.” The precise meaning of this description is uncertain.

⁴ tn Heb “the gourd-shaped ornaments were in two rows, cast in its casting.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:25

¹ tn Heb “all their hindquarters were toward the inside.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:26

¹ tn Heb “two thousand baths” (a bath was a liquid measure roughly equivalent to six gallons).

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:27

¹ tn Heb “four cubits.”

² tn Heb “four cubits.”

³ tn Heb “three cubits.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:29

¹ tn The precise meaning of these final words is uncertain. A possible literal translation would be, “wreaths, the work of descent.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:30

¹ tn The precise meaning of this last word, translated “wreaths,” is uncertain.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:31

¹ tn Heb “And its opening from the inside to the top and upwards [was] a cubit, and its opening was round, the work of a stand, a cubit-and-a-half.” The precise meaning of this description is uncertain.

² tn Heb “also over its opening were carvings and their frames [were] squared, not round.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:32

¹ tn Heb “a cubit-and-a-half” (a cubit was a unit of measure roughly equivalent to 18 inches or 45 cm).

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:34

¹ tn Heb “four shoulders to the four sides of each stand, from the stand its shoulders.” The precise meaning of the description is uncertain.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:35

¹ tn Heb “and on top of the stand, a half cubit [in] height, round all around” (the meaning of this description is uncertain).

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:36

¹ tn Heb “according to the space of each.”

² tn The precise meaning of this last word, translated “wreaths,” is uncertain.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:38

¹ tn Heb “forty baths” (a bath was a liquid measure roughly equivalent to six gallons).

² tn Heb “four cubits, each basin.” It is unclear which dimension is being measured.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:40

¹ tn Heb “Hiram.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

² tn Heb “Hiram finished doing all the work which he did for King Solomon [on] the house of the Lord.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:41

¹ tn The words “he made” are added for stylistic reasons.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:44

¹ tn Heb “underneath ‘The Sea.’”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:45

¹ tn Heb “which Hiram made for King Solomon [for] the house of the Lord.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:46

¹ tn Or perhaps, “molds.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:47

¹ tn Heb “Solomon left all the items, due to their very great abundance; the weight of the bronze was not sought.”

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:48

¹ tn Heb “the bread of the face [or presence].” Many recent English versions employ “the bread of the Presence,” although this does not convey much to the modern reader.

sn This bread was viewed as a perpetual offering to God and was regarded as holy. See Lev 24:5-9.

NET Notes: 1Ki 7:51

¹ tn Heb “Solomon.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.