Solomon's Agreement with King Hiram

51 Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for Hiram was ever a lover of David. 2 Solomon sent to Hiram, saying, 3 “You know how that David my father could not build a house for the name of Yahweh his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until Yahweh put them under the soles of his feet. 4 But now Yahweh my God has given me rest on every side. There is neither adversary, nor evil occurrence. 5 Behold, I purpose to build a house for the name of Yahweh my God, as Yahweh spoke to David my father, saying, ‘Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your room, he shall build the house for my name.’ 6 Now therefore command that they cut me cedar trees out of Lebanon. My servants shall be with your servants; and I will give you wages for your servants according to all that you shall say. For you know that there is not among us any who knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians.” 7 It happened, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, “Blessed is Yahweh this day, who has given to David a wise son over this great people.” 8 Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, “I have heard the message which you have sent to me. I will do all your desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir. 9 My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon to the sea. I will make them into rafts to go by sea to the place that you shall appoint me, and will cause them to be broken up there, and you shall receive them. You shall accomplish my desire, in giving food for my household.”

10 So Hiram gave Solomon timber of cedar and timber of fir according to all his desire. 11 Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil. Solomon gave this to Hiram year by year. 12 Yahweh gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together. 13 King Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men. 14 He sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses; a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home; and Adoniram was over the men subject to forced labor. 15 Solomon had seventy thousand who bore burdens, and eighty thousand who were stone cutters in the mountains; 16 besides Solomon’s chief officers who were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, who bore rule over the people who labored in the work. 17 The king commanded, and they cut out great stones, costly stones, to lay the foundation of the house with worked stone. 18 Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the Gebalites did fashion them, and prepared the timber and the stones to build the house.

Solomon Builds the House of the LORD

61 It happened in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of Yahweh. 2 The house which king Solomon built for Yahweh, its length was sixty cubits, and its breadth twenty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. 3 The porch before the temple of the house, twenty cubits was its length, according to the breadth of the house; and ten cubits was its breadth before the house. 4 For the house he made windows of fixed lattice work. 5 Against the wall of the house he built stories all around, against the walls of the house all around, both of the temple and of the oracle; and he made side chambers all around. 6 The nethermost story was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house all around, that the beams should not have hold in the walls of the house. 7 The house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready at the quarry; and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building. 8 The door for the middle side chambers was in the right side of the house: and they went up by winding stairs into the middle story, and out of the middle into the third. 9 So he built the house, and finished it; and he covered the house with beams and planks of cedar. 10 He built the stories against all the house, each five cubits high: and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.

11 The word of Yahweh came to Solomon, saying, 12 “Concerning this house which you are building, if you will walk in my statutes, and execute my ordinances, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I establish my word with you, which I spoke to David your father. 13 I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.” 14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it.

15 He built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar: from the floor of the house to the walls of the ceiling, he covered them on the inside with wood; and he covered the floor of the house with boards of fir. 16 He built twenty cubits on the hinder part of the house with boards of cedar from the floor to the walls of the ceiling: he built them for it within, for an oracle, even for the most holy place. 17 The house, that is, the temple before the oracle, was forty cubits long. 18 There was cedar on the house within, carved with buds and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen. 19 He prepared an oracle in the midst of the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of Yahweh. 20 Within the oracle was a space of twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in its height; and he overlaid it with pure gold: and he covered the altar with cedar. 21 So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold: and he drew chains of gold across before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold. 22 The whole house he overlaid with gold, until all the house was finished: also the whole altar that belonged to the oracle he overlaid with gold. 23 In the oracle he made two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits high. 24 Five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub: from the uttermost part of the one wing to the uttermost part of the other were ten cubits. 25 The other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubim were of one measure and one form. 26 The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub. 27 He set the cherubim within the inner house; and the wings of the cherubim were stretched forth, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house. 28 He overlaid the cherubim with gold. 29 He carved all the walls of the house around with carved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, inside and outside. 30 The floor of the house he overlaid with gold, inside and outside. 31 For the entrance of the oracle he made doors of olive wood: the lintel and door posts were a fifth part of the wall. 32 So he made two doors of olive wood; and he carved on them carvings of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he spread the gold on the cherubim, and on the palm trees. 33 So also made he for the entrance of the temple door posts of olive wood, out of a fourth part of the wall; 34 and two doors of fir wood: the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding. 35 He carved thereon cherubim and palm trees and open flowers; and he overlaid them with gold fitted on the engraved work. 36 He built the inner court with three courses of cut stone, and a course of cedar beams. 37 In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of Yahweh laid, in the month Ziv. 38 In the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all its parts, and according to all its fashion. So was he seven years in building it.

Solomon's Agreement with King Huram

21 Now Solomon purposed to build a house for the name of Yahweh, and a house for his kingdom. 2 Solomon counted out seventy thousand men to bear burdens, and eighty thousand men who were stone cutters in the mountains, and three thousand and six hundred to oversee them. 3 Solomon sent to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, As you dealt with David my father, and sent him cedars to build him a house in which to dwell, even so deal with me. 4 Behold, I am about to build a house for the name of Yahweh my God, to dedicate it to him, and to burn before him incense of sweet spices, and for the continual show bread, and for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the Sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the set feasts of Yahweh our God. This is an ordinance forever to Israel. 5 The house which I build is great; for great is our God above all gods. 6 But who is able to build him a house, seeing heaven and the heaven of heavens can’t contain him? who am I then, that I should build him a house, save only to burn incense before him? 7 Now therefore send me a man skillful to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and who knows how to engrave all manner of engravings, to be with the skillful men who are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did provide. 8 Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon; for I know that your servants know how to cut timber in Lebanon: and behold, my servants shall be with your servants, 9 even to prepare me timber in abundance; for the house which I am about to build shall be great and wonderful. 10 Behold, I will give to your servants, the cutters who cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.

11 Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon, “Because Yahweh loves his people, he has made you king over them.” 12 Huram continued, “Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, that made heaven and earth, who has given to David the king a wise son, endowed with discretion and understanding, that should build a house for Yahweh, and a house for his kingdom. 13 Now I have sent a skillful man, endowed with understanding, of Huram my father’s, 14 the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan; and his father was a man of Tyre, skillful to work in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber, in purple, in blue, and in fine linen, and in crimson, also to engrave any manner of engraving, and to devise any device; that there may be a place appointed to him with your skillful men, and with the skillful men of my lord David your father. 15 Now therefore the wheat and the barley, the oil and the wine, which my lord has spoken of, let him send to his servants: 16 and we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as you shall need; and we will bring it to you in floats by sea to Joppa; and you shall carry it up to Jerusalem.” 17 Solomon numbered all the foreigners who were in the land of Israel, after the numbering with which David his father had numbered them; and they were found one hundred fifty-three thousand six hundred. 18 He set seventy thousand of them to bear burdens, and eighty thousand who were stone cutters in the mountains, and three thousand six hundred overseers to set the people at work.

Solomon Builds the House of the LORD

31 Then Solomon began to build the house of Yahweh at Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where Yahweh appeared to David his father, which he made ready in the place that David had appointed, in the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. 2 He began to build in the second day of the second month, in the fourth year of his reign. 3 Now these are the foundations which Solomon laid for the building of the house of God. The length by cubits after the first measure was sixty cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits. 4 The porch that was before the house, its length, according to the breadth of the house, was twenty cubits, and the height one hundred twenty; and he overlaid it within with pure gold. 5 The greater house he made a ceiling with fir wood, which he overlaid with fine gold, and ornamented it with palm trees and chains. 6 He garnished the house with precious stones for beauty: and the gold was gold of Parvaim. 7 He overlaid also the house, the beams, the thresholds, and its walls, and its doors, with gold; and engraved cherubim on the walls. 8 He made the most holy house: its length, according to the breadth of the house, was twenty cubits, and its breadth twenty cubits; and he overlaid it with fine gold, amounting to six hundred talents. 9 The weight of the nails was fifty shekels of gold. He overlaid the upper chambers with gold.

10 In the most holy house he made two cherubim of image work; and they overlaid them with gold. 11 The wings of the cherubim were twenty cubits long: the wing of the one cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house; and the other wing was likewise five cubits, reaching to the wing of the other cherub. 12 The wing of the other cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house; and the other wing was five cubits also, joining to the wing of the other cherub. 13 The wings of these cherubim spread themselves forth twenty cubits: and they stood on their feet, and their faces were toward the house. 14 He made the veil of blue, and purple, and crimson, and fine linen, and ornamented it with cherubim.

The Two Pillars

15 Also he made before the house two pillars of thirty-five cubits high, and the capital that was on the top of each of them was five cubits. 16 He made chains in the oracle, and put them on the tops of the pillars; and he made one hundred pomegranates, and put them on the chains. 17 He set up the pillars before the temple, one on the right hand, and the other on the left; and called the name of that on the right hand Jachin, and the name of that on the left Boaz.