1 Kings 6

1 In the four hundred [480 years, a significant period] and eightieth year [a time of completion and new beginnings] after the Israelites [the descendants of Jacob, God’s chosen people] had come out [been delivered, set free] of the land [the soil, the ground] of Egypt [a place of bondage and slavery], in the month [a lunar cycle, a time of renewal] of Ziv [brightness, a time of illumination], the second [a time of confirmation, a period of testing] month of the fourth [a time of stability, a season of establishment] year of Solomon’s [a king of peace, a wise ruler] reign [a period of leadership, a time of guidance] over Israel [God’s chosen people, a nation set apart], he began [initiated, took the first step] to build [construct, establish] the house [a dwelling place, a temple] of the LORD [Yehovah, the covenant-keeping God]. word study 2 The house [dwelling place, temple] that King [royal ruler, monarch] Solomon [successor of David] built [constructed, established] for the LORD [Yehovah, God Almighty] was sixty [threescore] cubits [unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] long, twenty [twentieth] cubits wide [broad, expansive], and thirty [thirtieth] cubits high [tall, elevated]. word study 3 The portico [porch, entrance room] at the front of the main hall of the temple [a large public building] was twenty [a multiple of ten] cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] long, extending across the width [breadth, a measure of space] of the temple and projecting out ten cubits in front of [before the face, in the presence of] the temple [the house of God]. word study 4 He also had narrow [with fixed lattice-work] windows [holes in the wall, or oblique openings] framed [structured with a casing, or shuttered] high [in an elevated position] in the [dwelling place, or temple] temple. word study 5 Against the walls [surrounding structures] of the temple [large public building, God’s dwelling place] and the inner sanctuary [most holy place, where God’s presence dwelled], Solomon built [constructed, established] a chambered structure [stories, galleries] around the temple, in which he constructed [made, formed] the side rooms [side chambers, ribs, architectural supports]. word study 6 The bottom floor [nethermost chamber, lowest level] was five cubits wide, the middle floor [central level] six cubits, and the third floor [upper level] seven cubits. He also placed offset [narrowed, recessed] ledges [rests, beams] around the outside [external, outer wall] of the temple [house of God, sacred dwelling], so that nothing would be inserted [fastened, laid hold] into its walls [surrounding structures, divine barriers]. word study 7 The temple [house of worship, dwelling place of God] was constructed using finished [complete, whole] stones [rocks, foundation stones] cut at the quarry [place of stone extraction], so that no hammer [tool of strength, instrument of force] or chisel [instrument of shaping] or any other iron [strong, harsh] tool was heard [perceived, listened to] in the temple [place of worship, house of God] while it was being built [constructed, established]. word study 8 The entrance [opening, doorway] to the bottom floor [ground level, lowest story] was on the south [right, southern] side [rib, flank] of the temple [house, dwelling place]. A stairway [winding stairs, spiral staircase] led up to the middle [central, midst] level, and from there [out of the middle] to the third [uppermost, highest] floor. word study 9 So Solomon [the king, son of David] built [constructed, established] the temple [a dwelling place for God, the house of worship] and finished [completed, ended] it, roofing [covering, overlaying] it with beams [rafters, logs] and planks [boards, rows] of cedar [a strong and durable wood]. word study 10 He built [constructed, established] chambers [stories, side rooms] all along the temple [the house of God, the place of worship], each [every one] five [a quantity of five, a specific measurement] cubits [a unit of length, about the length of a forearm] high [in height, elevated] and attached [joined, connected] to the temple [the house, the building] with beams [timbers, wooden planks] of cedar [a strong and durable tree]. word study 11 Then the word [message, declaration] of the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] came to Solomon [king of Israel], saying [to speak, to command, to promise]: word study 12 “As for this [specific] temple you are building, if you walk [live, conduct yourself] in My statutes [ordinances, divine laws], carry out [execute, fulfill] My ordinances [judgments, regulations], and keep [obey, guard] all My commandments [laws, instructions] by walking [living, following] in them, I will fulfill [establish, bring to pass] through you the promise [word, covenant] I made to your father David [the king, my servant]. word study 13 And I will dwell [live among, tabernacle in the midst of] among the Israelites [children of Israel, descendants of Jacob] and will not [never] abandon [forsake, loosen my grip on] My people [nation, Amaw] Israel [the symbolic name of Jacob, referring to his descendants].” word study 14 So Solomon [the king of Israel, son of David] built [constructed, established] the temple [house, place of worship] and finished [completed, ended] it [the building project, the task]. word study 15 He lined the interior walls [with wooden panels, from floor to ceiling] with cedar [a strong and durable tree, known for its strength] paneling from the floor [the foundation, the base] of the temple [the house of God, a place of worship] to the ceiling [the uppermost part, the roof], and he covered the floor [the ground, the foundation] with cypress [a type of evergreen tree] boards [planks of wood, used for building]. word study 16 He partitioned off the twenty cubits [measuring units of length, about the length of a forearm] at the rear [the back or hinder part] of the temple with cedar [a strong and durable wood, known for its resistance to decay] boards from floor [the base or foundation] to ceiling to form within the temple an inner sanctuary [a sacred and set-apart space], the Most Holy Place [the innermost and most sacred area, where God’s presence dwelled]. word study 17 And the main hall [the Temple, a large public building] in front [before, prior to] of this room [the holy place, a dwelling place] was forty cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] long. word study 18 The cedar [a cedar tree, strong and durable] paneling inside the temple was carved with gourds [decorative knobs] and open flowers [blooming, in full blossom]. Everything was cedar [completely covered, lined with cedar wood]; not a stone [rock, foundation material] could be seen [visible, exposed]. word study 19 Solomon also prepared [made ready, established] the inner sanctuary [most holy place] within [inside] the temple [house] to set [place, put] the ark [box, chest] of the covenant [promise, agreement] of the LORD [Yehovah] there [in that place]. word study 20 The inner sanctuary [most holy place, the divine presence chamber] was twenty cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high [the height of completeness]. He overlaid [covered, plated] the inside with pure [refined, most precious] gold, and he also overlaid [covered, adorned] the altar [place of sacrifice, worship] of cedar [a cedar tree, strong and durable]. word study 21 So Solomon [the king of Israel, successor of David] overlaid [covered, plated] the inside [within, interior] of the temple [the house of God, a dwelling place] with pure [refined, unadulterated] gold [a valuable metal], and he extended [drew, stretched] gold [precious, brilliant] chains [bindings, connectors] across [before, in front of] the front [face, presence] of the inner [most holy, sacred] sanctuary [the debir, the most holy place], which [the oracle, the place of God’s presence] was overlaid [covered, adorned] with gold [gold; something yellow or brilliant]. word study 22 So he overlaid [covered completely] with gold [a valuable metal] the whole [entire, all] interior [inner space] of the temple [a dwelling place, house of worship], until [as far as, to the point of] everything [all, the whole] was completely [totally, fully] finished [completed, brought to an end]. He also overlaid [plated, coated] with gold [precious, brilliant] the entire [whole, all] altar [a place of sacrifice, table of offerings] that belonged to [was part of, associated with] the inner [most holy, innermost] sanctuary [the Most Holy Place, the divine presence]. word study 23 In the inner [most holy, sacred] sanctuary [the very holy place, oracle] he made [crafted, fashioned] two [a pair, dual] cherubim [angelic beings, heavenly guardians], each ten [a decade, a multitude] cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] high, out of [from, made of] olive [oil-rich] wood [a strong and firm object, like a tree or a wooden plank]. word study 24 One wing [the first, primary extension] of the first cherub [a heavenly, angelic being] was five [exactly, a specific quantity] cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] long, and the other wing [the second, corresponding extension] was five cubits long as well [equally, of the same measure]. So the full wingspan [the entire, outstretched width] was ten cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm]. word study 25 The second cherub also measured ten cubits [a unit of length, about the forearm’s length]; both cherubim [angelic beings, heavenly guardians] had the same [one, united] size [measurement, stature] and shape [form, outward appearance], word study 26 and the height [stature, vertical measurement] of each cherub [a heavenly guardian, an angelic being] was ten [a decade, a multiple of ten] cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm]. word study 27 And he placed the cherubim [angelic beings, heavenly guardians] inside the innermost [most intimate, inner] room of the temple [house of worship, sacred dwelling]. Since their wings were spread out [stretched forth, fully extended], the wing of the first cherub touched one wall [side, barrier], while the wing of the second cherub touched the other wall [opposite side], and in the middle [center, midst] of the room their wingtips [extremities, outer edges] touched [came into contact, reached]. word study 28 He also overlaid [covered with a gold coating, plated over] the cherubim [angelic beings, winged ones] with gold [a valuable metal]. word study 29 Then he carved [with skilled craftsmanship] the walls [surrounding structures] all around the temple [place of worship], in both the inner [most holy] and outer [external] sanctuaries [set apart areas], with carved engravings [intricate designs] of cherubim [angelic beings], palm trees, and open [blooming] flowers [beautiful creations]. word study 30 And he overlaid [covered with a layer of] the temple floor [the foundation, the base] with gold [a valuable, brilliant metal] in both the inner [within, inside] and outer [external, secular] sanctuaries [holy places, areas set apart]. word study 31 For the entrance [doorway, gate] to the inner sanctuary [most holy place, the presence of God], Solomon constructed doors [made, fashioned] of olive wood [oil tree] with five-sided [a fifth part of the wall, pentagonal] doorposts [side posts, vertical beams]. word study 32 The double doors [two doors, a pair] were made of olive wood [oil tree], and he carved into them cherubim [angelic beings, guardians], palm trees [decorative columns], and open flowers [blooming, flourishing] and overlaid [covered, laid gold upon] the cherubim and palm trees with hammered gold [valuable metal, brilliant and yellow]. word study 33 In the same way [thus, so] he made [constructed, formed] four-sided [square, a fourth part of the wall] doorposts [pillars, posts] of olive wood [oliue tree, strong and firm] for the sanctuary [temple, a large public building] entrance [doorway]. word study 34 The two [pair, dual] doors were made of cypress [evergreen, fir] wood, and each had two [a pair of] folding [turned, hinged] panels [leaves, sides]. word study 35 He carved [with skilled craftsmanship, to sling or shape] into them cherubim [angelic beings, guardians of God’s throne], palm trees [decorative columns], and open flowers [blooming, flourishing]; and he overlaid [covered, plated] them with gold [a valuable, brilliant metal], hammered [beaten, smoothed] evenly [straight, level] over the carvings [engraved work, intricate designs]. word study 36 Solomon built [constructed, established] the inner [interior, most sacred] courtyard [court, enclosed space] with three [thrice, a complete set] rows [courses, layers] of dressed [cut, hewn] stone [carved rocks] and one row [course, line] of trimmed [hewn, shaped] cedar [durable wood] beams [wooden planks]. word study 37 The foundation [base, starting point] of the house [dwelling place, temple] of the LORD [Yehovah, the Lord God] was laid [founded, established] in the fourth year [period of time, like when Abraham was 100 years old] of Solomon’s reign [rule, kingdom], in the month [lunar cycle, moon] of Ziv [brightness, the 2nd month of the Hebrew calendar, corresponding to April-May]. word study 38 In his eleventh year and eighth month, the month of Bul [a time of harvest, similar to October or November], the temple [house of worship, a sacred dwelling place] was finished [completed, ended] in every detail [all its parts, according to its design] and according to every specification [all its ordinances, every plan]. So he built [constructed, established] the temple [a dwelling place for God] in seven years. word study