1 Kings 6
DOYLY1 Kings 6:7
- — so that there was neither hammer nor ax &c.] The sense is plain, that the stones were laid without any noise, there being nothing to be done but to join them together. Bp. Patrick. All the materials, whether of wood or stone, were so adapted and prepared beforehand, that they were put together with great quickness, little trouble, and very little or no noise of workmanship. Pyle.
1 Kings 6:12
- Concerning this house &c.] While Solomon was laying the foundation, and raising the building very firm and strong, which would last for many generations, God conveys this intimation to him, that he should not presume upon its duration, unless he and the people of Israel continued in obedience; and therefore that he had better not proceed in his work, nor incur further
charges respecting it, unless he firmly intended to lead a religious life, and observe all the Divine laws. Bp. Patrick.
1 Kings 6:15
- — the walls of the house] He here speaks, ver. 15, 16, of the most holy place, which, of all parts of the temple, was properly called “the house,” because here the Divine glory dwelt, and here answers were given from the oracle of God. It is called “the house within,” ver. 19, probably on account of its being farthest from the entrance into the whole building.
1 Kings 6:17
- — the house, that is, the temple before it.] He here speaks of the holy place, or that part of the house, which was before the most holy place; the former being forty cubits in length, and the latter twenty. Bp. Patrick.
1 Kings 6:19
- And the oracle he prepared &c.] The inmost or holiest room (agreeably to that in the tabernacle) was the place where the ark (or oracle) was to stand, whence the whole room is called the oracle, ver. 20. This room was plated every where with beaten gold, ver. 20, as was also the altar (of incense) that stood before the ark. The holy place, and the most holy, ver. 21, 22, were parted by a large costly rail or curtain, hung upon golden
The ornaments of the temple. The time of building it. Before CHRIST 1065. of oil. c Exod. 25. 20. cherubims stretched forth their wings. opennings of flowers. all the house: also the whole altar that was by the oracle he overlaid with gold.
1 Kings 6:23
- — two cherubims of olive tree.] These were different from the cherubims constructed by Moses, which were of solid gold, rising out of each end of the mercy seat, and looking towards each other, Exod. xxv. 18, 19. But these were of a much larger size, and made of olive wood. Thus, in the most holy place of Solomon’s temple, there were four cherubims; two lesser made by Moses of massy gold, and two larger made by Solomon, overlaid with gold. Those constructed by Moses formed part of the mercy seat, and were inseparable from it; these of Solomon seem to have spread their wings over it, being added only for the greater ornament and glory of God’s house. It is generally agreed, that, by the cherubims which were so plentifully delineated in every part of this holy place, the hosts of angels were represented, there attending on the Divine Majesty, as ministers to execute his pleasure. Bp. Patrick.
1 Kings 6:36
- — he built the inner court.] Meaning the court of the priests, or that in which they were to perform their services; and which, as here described, was parted from the court of the people by a low wall faced with wood, so that the people might see what the priests did, and the priests could address the people for any purpose which they might wish. Pyle.
1 Kings 6:38
- — So was he seven years in building it.] He was seven years and a half in building it, but the half year is omitted to express the time in round numbers. Bp. Patrick. This building of the temple was a work of extraordinary despatch, if we consider its magnitude, variety, and minuteness. The summit of the rocky limestone mount of Moriah was first to be levelled, and hollows and inequalities to be filled up, in order to form a sufficient area or platform for the temple itself, its courts, porticoes, and surrounding offices, which altogether composed a prodigious pile of building, the most splendid and magnificent, perhaps, that the world ever saw; worthy of the Divine Architect who planned, and of the wise and opulent prince who executed it. Dr. Hales. Though the temple itself was a small edifice, yet the many courts and offices about it made the whole a vast pile; and the exquisiteness of the art, and the small number of the artists that could be employed, rendered a long time necessary for the construction. It must be owned, however, that, considering all things, singular despatch was used; for, if the building of Diana’s temple at Ephesus employed all Asia for 200 years; and if no less than 360,000 men were employed for twenty years in erecting one pyramid, (as Pliny affirms,) no reasonable man can wonder that the temple was seven years and a half in building. Stackhouse. The following is a further account of Solomon’s temple, given by Calmet, from whom the plan of the structure which accompanies this work is taken.