Solomon Builds his Palace

1And Solomon built a house for himself in thirteen years. 2And he built the house with the wood of Libanus; its length was a hundred cubits, and its breadth was fifty cubits, and its height was of thirty cubits, and it was made with three rows of cedar pillars, and the pillars had side-pieces of cedar. 3And he formed the house with chambers above on the sides of the pillars, and the number of the pillars was each row forty and five, 4and there were three chambers, and space against space in three rows. 5And all the doors and spaces formed like chambers were square, and from door to door was a correspondence in three rows.

6And he made the porch of the pillars, they were fifty cubits long and fifty broad, the porch joining them in front; and the other pillars and the thick beam were in front of the house by the porches.

7And there was the Porch of seats where he would judge, the porch of judgment.

8And their house where he would dwell, had one court communicating with these according to this work; and he built the house for the daughter of Pharao whom Solomon had taken, according to this porch.

9All these were of costly stones, sculptured at intervals within even from the foundation even to the top, and outward to the great court,

10founded with large costly stones, stones of ten cubits and eight cubits long. 11And above with costly stones, according to the measure of hewn stones, and with cedars. 12There were three rows of hewn stones round about the great hall, and a row of sculptured cedar: and Solomon finished all his house.

The Work of Hiram

13And king Solomon sent, and took Chiram out of Tyre, 14the son of a widow woman; and he was of the tribe of Nephthalim, and his father was a Tyrian; a worker in brass, and accomplished in art and skill and knowledge to work every work in brass: and he was brought in to king Solomon, and he wrought all the works.

15And he cast the two pillars for the porch of the house: eighteen cubits was the height of each pillar, and a circumference of fourteen cubits encompassed it, even the thickness of the pillar: the flutings were four fingers wide, and thus was the other pillar formed. 16And he made two molten chapiters to put on the heads of the pillars: five cubits was the height of one chapiter, and five cubits was the height of the other chapiter. 17And he made two ornaments of net-work to cover the chapiters of the pillars; even a net for one chapiter, and a net for the other chapiter. 18And hanging work, two rows of brazen pomegranates, formed with net-work, hanging work, row upon row: and thus he framed the ornaments for the second chapiter. 19And on the heads of the pillars he made lily-work against the porch, of four cubits, 20and a chamber over both the pillars, and above the sides an addition equal to the chamber in width. 21And he set up the pillars of the porch of the temple: and he set up the one pillar, and called its name Jachum: and he set up the second pillar, and called its name Boloz.

The Sea of Cast Metal

23And he made the sea, ten cubits from one rim to the other, the same was completely circular round about: its height was five cubits, and its circumference thirty-three cubits. 24And stays underneath its rim round about compassed it ten cubits round; 25And there were twelve oxen under the sea: three looking to the north, and three looking to the west, and three looking to the south, and three looking to the east: and all their hinder parts were inward, and the sea was above upon them. 26and its rim was as the work of the rim of a cup, a lily-flower, and the thickness of it was a span.

The Ten Bases

27And he made ten brazen bases: five cubits was the length of one base, and four cubits the breadth of it, and its height was six cubits. 28And this work of the bases was formed with a border the them, and there was a border between the ledges. 29And upon their borders between the projection were lions, and oxen, and cherubs: and on the projections, even so above, and also below were the places of lions and oxen, hanging work. 30And there were four brazen wheels to one base; and there were brazen bases, and their four sides answering to them, side pieces under the bases. 31And there were axles in the wheels under the base. 32And the height of one wheel was a cubit and a half. 33And the work of the wheels was as the work of chariot wheels: their axles, and their felloes, and the rest of their work, were all molten. 34The four side pieces were at the four corners of each base; its shoulders were formed of the base. 35And on the top of the base half a cubit was the size of it, there was a circle on the top of the base, and there was the top of its spaces and its borders: and it was open at the top of its spaces. 36And its borders were cherubs, and lions, and palm-trees, upright, each was joined in front and within and round about. 37According to the same form he made all the ten bases, even one order and one measure to all.

The Ten Bronze Basins

38And he made ten brazen lavers, each laver containing forty baths, and measuring four cubits, each laver placed on a several base throughout the ten bases. 39And he put five bases on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house: and the sea was placed on the right side of the house eastward in the direction of the south.

The Vessels

40And Chiram made the caldrons, and the pans, and the bowls; and Chiram finished making all the works that he wrought for king Solomon in the house of the Lord: 41two pillars and the wreathen works of the pillars on the heads of the two pillars; and the two net-works to cover both the wreathen works of the flutings that were upon the pillars. 42The four hundred pomegranates for both the net-works, two rows of pomegranates for one net-work, to cover both the wreathen works of the bases belonging to both pillars. 43And the ten bases, and the ten lavers upon the bases. 44And one sea, and the twelve oxen under the sea. 45And the caldrons, and pans, and bowls, and all the furniture, which Chiram made for king Solomon for the house of the Lord: and there were eight and forty pillars of the house of the king and of the house of the Lord: all the works of the king which Chiram made were entirely of brass. 46In the country round about Jordan did he cast them, in the clay land between Socchoth and Sira. 47There was no reckoning of the brass of which he made all these works, from the very great abundance, there was no end of the weight of the brass.

48And king Solomon took the furniture which Chiram made for the house of the Lord, the golden altar, and the golden table of shewbread. 49And he put the five candlesticks on the left, and five on the right in front of the oracle, being of pure gold, and the lamp-stands, and the lamps, and the snuffers of gold. 50And there were made the porches, and the nails, and the bowls, and the spoons, and the golden censers, of pure gold: and the panels of the doors of the innermost part of the house, even the holy of holies, and the golden doors of the temple.

51So the work of the house of the Lord which Solomon wrought was finished; and Solomon brought in the holy things of David his father, and all the holy things of Solomon; he put the silver, and the gold, and the furniture, into the treasures of the house of the Lord.