1 *Kings 6

₁Solomon started to build the temple 480 years after the Israelites came out of Egypt. It was in the 4th year after Solomon became king, in the month of Ziv, the 2nd month. ₂The temple that Solomon built for the Lord was 60 cubits long, 20 cubits wide and 30 cubits high. ₃The porch at the front of the temple building was 20 cubits long and 10 cubits wide. The porch was as long as the temple was wide. ₄Solomon told them to put windows in the walls of the temple, windows that could close. ₅He built another building next to the outside of the wall of the temple, around the front rooms of the temple. It was 3 storeys high. ₆The room on the ground-floor was 5 cubits wide, the middle room was on top of the first room and it was 6 cubits wide, and the top room was 7 cubits wide. He built it like that because this wall was against the wall of the temple and he did not tie the wall against the temple. ₇They cut the stones for the temple where they took them out and the people at the temple did not hear hammers and chisels and other iron tools that make a noise. ₈The door to the lower room was on the side of the temple, at the southern side, and there were stairs to the middle and top rooms. ₉Solomon finished building the temple and he put the roof onto it. The roof was rows of thick cedar poles. ₁₀Each room of the building next to the temple was 5 cubits high, and the floors and the roof were from cedar poles that were tied to the temple.

₁₁The Lord talked to Solomon and said: ₁₂‘You are building the temple. If you live like I told you in my laws, and if you do what I want, I will be good to you as I promised your father David. ₁₃I will live among the Israelites and I will not leave them.’

₁₄Solomon built the temple and he finished it. ₁₅He covered the walls inside the temple with cedar wood planks. The planks were from the floor to the roof and the floor was made of pine wood. ₁₆At the back of the temple he built a wall of cedar wood. The wall was from the floor to the roof and on the other side of the wall was a room that was 20 cubits long. It was the most_holy room. ₁₇The front room of the temple was 40 cubits long. ₁₈The walls inside the temple were covered with cedar wood. There were flowers and fruit carved on the wood. All the walls were covered, so one could not see the stones of the walls. ₁₉They prepared the most_holy room inside the temple to put the covenant box of the Lord there. ₂₀This room was 20 cubits long and 20 cubits wide and 20 cubits high, and they covered the walls with thin pure gold and they covered the altar in the most_holy room with cedar wood. ₂₁They covered the inside walls of the temple with thin gold and they hung golden chains in front of the most_holy room. ₂₂They covered the inside of the whole temple and the altar in front of the most_holy room with gold. ₂₃They made 2 cherub-angels of olive wood and put them in the most_holy room. Each cherub-angel was 10 cubits high. ₂₄The wings of the cherub-angels were 5 cubits wide. From the tip of one wing to the tip of the other wing was 10 cubits. ₂₅The 2 cherub-angels looked the same. ₂₆Each cherub-angel was 10 cubits high. ₂₇They put the 2 cherub-angels in the most_holy room. Their wings were open and the tip of one cherub-angel's wing touched one wall and the other cherub-angel's wing touched the other wall. In the middle of the room, the cherub-angels' wings touched each other. ₂₈They covered the cherub-angels with gold. ₂₉They carved cherub-angels, palm trees and flowers on all the walls inside the temple, in the front room and in the most_holy room. ₃₀They also covered the floors of the front room and the most_holy room with gold. ₃₁They made 2 doors from olive wood for the most_holy room. The frames of the doors had 5 corners. ₃₂They carved out cherub-angels, palm trees and flowers on the 2 doors and they covered them all with gold. ₃₃They did the same with the door of the front room, but the frame of this door had 4 corners. The frame was made of olive wood. ₃₄The 2 doors were made of pine wood and each door had 2 parts that were folding. ₃₅They carved out cherub-angels, palm trees and flowers on the doors and they covered them all with gold. ₃₆They built an inner courtyard with walls that had 3 rows of stone and one row of cedar poles.

₃₇They put down the rocks of the foundation of the temple in the 4th year in the month of Ziv, ₃₈and they finished building the temple and everything with it in the 11th year in the month of Bul, the 8th month. It took Solomon 7 years to build the temple and then it was finished.