1 Kings 7:9

7:9 All of these were built with the best ¹  stones, chiseled to the right size ²  and cut with a saw on all sides, ³  from the foundation to the edge of the roof ⁴  and from the outside to the great courtyard.

1 Kings 7:21

7:21 He set up the pillars on the porch in front of the main hall. He erected one pillar on the right ⁵  side and called it Jakin; ⁶  he erected the other pillar on the left ⁷  side and called it Boaz. ⁸ 

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.

⁵ tn Or “south.”

⁶ sn The name Jakin appears to be a verbal form and probably means, “he establishes.”

⁷ tn Or “north.”

⁸ 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.”