The Building of the Temple
EGW
The long-cherished plan of David to erect a temple to the Lord was wisely carried out by Solomon, who “determined to build an house for the name of the Lord.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 1
“Solomon sent to Hiram the king of Tyre,” saying, “Thou knowest how that David my father could not build an house unto the name of the Lord his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet. But now the Lord my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent. And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 2
“Behold, I build an house to the name of the Lord my God, to dedicate it to him, and to burn before him sweet incense, and for the continual showbread, and for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the Sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts of the Lord our God. This is an ordinance forever to Israel. And the house which I build is great: for great is our God above all gods. But who is able to build him an house, seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens can not contain him? who am I then, that I should build him an house, save only to burn sacrifice before him? RH November 2, 1905, par. 3
“Send me now therefore a man cunning to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and that can skill to grave with the cunning men that are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did provide. RH November 2, 1905, par. 4
“Send me also cedar trees, fir-trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants, even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I am about to build shall be wonderful great.” “Thou knowest that there is not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians.” “And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that 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.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 5
“It came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said. Blessed be the Lord this day, which hath given unto David a wise son over this great people. And Hiram” “answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon,” saying: RH November 2, 1905, par. 6
“Because the Lord hath loved his people, he hath made thee king over them.... Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, that made heaven and earth, who hath given to David the king a wise son, endued with prudence and understanding, that might build an house for the Lord.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 7
“I have considered the things which thou sentest to me for:” “and now I have sent a cunning man, endued with understanding, of Hiram my father's the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre, skilful 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 grave any manner of graving, and to find out every device which shall be put to him, with thy cunning men, and with the cunning men of my lord David thy father. RH November 2, 1905, par. 8
“Now therefore the wheat, and the barley, the oil, and the wine, which my lord hath spoken of, let him send unto his servants: and we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as thou shalt need: and we will bring it to thee in floats by sea to Joppa; and thou shalt carry it up to Jerusalem.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 9
“So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir-trees according to all his desire. RH November 2, 1905, par. 10
“And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year. RH November 2, 1905, par. 11
“And the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him: and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together. RH November 2, 1905, par. 12
“And King Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men. And 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 levy. And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains; beside the chief of Solomon's officers which were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, which ruled over the people that wrought in the work. RH November 2, 1905, par. 13
“And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house. And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them, and the stone squarers: so they prepared timber and stones to build the house.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 14
“It came to pass 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 second day of the second month,” that “Solomon began to build the house of the Lord at Jerusalem in Mount Moriah, where the Lord appeared unto David his father, in the place that David’ had prepared in the thrashing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 15
Of the inner temple,—the building containing the holy place and the most holy place,—we read: “The length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 16
“The house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor ax nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 17
“He built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar, both the floor of the house, and the walls of the ceiling: and he covered them on the inside with wood, and covered the floor of the house with planks of fir.” “The cedar of the house within was carved with knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 18
“The oracle he prepared in the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of the Lord. And the oracle in the forepart was twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof: and he overlaid it with pure gold; and so covered the altar which was of cedar. RH November 2, 1905, par. 19
“So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold: and he made a partition by the chains of gold before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold. And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the house: also the whole altar that was by the oracle he overlaid with gold. RH November 2, 1905, par. 20
“And within the oracle he made two cherubims of olive tree, each ten cubits high. And 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 unto the uttermost part of the other were ten cubits. And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubims were of one measure and one size. The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub. And he set the cherubims within the inner house: and they stretched forth the wings of the cherubims, 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. And he overlaid the cherubims with gold. And he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of cherubims and palm-trees and open flowers, within and without. And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without.” “He garnished the house with precious stones for beauty.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 21
“For the entering of the oracle he made doors of olive tree: the lintel and side-posts were a fifth part of the wall. The two doors also were olive tree; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubims and palm-trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold, and spread gold upon the cherubims, and upon the palm-trees. So also made he for the door of the temple posts of olive tree, a fourth part of the wall. And the two doors were of fir-tree: the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding. And he carved thereon cherubims and palm-trees and open flowers: and covered them with gold fitted upon the carved work.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 22
“He made the veil of blue, and purple, and crimson, and fine linen, and wrought cherubims thereon.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 23
“Solomon made all the vessels that were for the house of God, the golden altar also, and the tables whereon the showbread was set; moreover the candlesticks with their lamps, that they should burn after the manner before the oracle, of pure gold; and the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs, made he of gold, and that perfect gold; and the snuffers, and the basons, and the spoons, and the censers, of pure gold: and the entry of the house, the inner doors thereof for the most holy place, and the doors of the house of the temple, were of gold.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 24
“He made before the house two pillars of thirty and five cubits high, and the chapiter that was on the top of each of them was five cubits. And he made chains, as in the oracle, and put them on the heads of the pillars; and made an hundred pomegranates, and put them on the chains. And he reared 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 Jachin, and the name of that on the left Boaz.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 25
“The porch before the temple of the house, twenty cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house; and ten cubits was the breadth thereof before the house.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 26
“He built the inner court with three rows of hewed stone, and a row of cedar beams.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 27
“Furthermore he made the court of the priests, and the great court, and doors for the court, and overlaid the doors of them with brass.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 28
“Moreover he made an altar of brass, twenty cubits the length thereof, and twenty cubits the breadth thereof, and ten cubits the height thereof.” This stood in the court of the priests. RH November 2, 1905, par. 29
“The pots also, and the shovels, and the flesh-hooks, and all their instruments,” he made “of bright brass.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 30
“Also he made a molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in compass, and five cubits the height thereof; and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.” “It stood upon twelve oxen” cast of brass; “three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east.” “And the thickness of it was an handbreadth, and the brim of it like the work of the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies; and it received and held three thousand baths.... And he set the sea on the right side of the east end” of the court of the priests, “over against the south.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 31
“He made also ten lavers, and put five on the right hand, and five on the left, to wash in them: such things as they offered for the burnt offering they washed in them; but the sea was for the priests to wash in.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 32
These vessels were cast “in the plain of Jordan, ... in the clay ground between Succoth and Zeredathah. Thus Solomon made all these vessels in great abundance: for the weight of the brass could not be found out.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 33
“So was ended all the work that King Solomon made for the house of the Lord. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated; even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, did he put among the treasures of the house of the Lord.” “Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord, ... and all that came into Solomon's heart to make in the house of the Lord, ... he prosperously effected.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 34
“In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of the Lord laid, in the month Zif: and in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it.” RH November 2, 1905, par. 35