I Kings 6

1. And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children
of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month Zif, which is the second month, he began to build the house of the LORD.

2. And the house which King Solomon built for the LORD, its length was sixty cubits and its breadth twenty cubits, and its height thirty cubits.

3. And the porch before the temple of the house was twenty cubits in length, according to the breadth of the house. Ten cubits was its breadth on the front of the house.

4. And for the house he made windows of narrow frames.

5. And against the wall of the house he built floors all around, against the walls of the house all around, of the temple and of the sanctuary. And he made rooms all around.

6. The lowest story was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad, for around the outside of the house he made narrowed ledges for the house all around, that the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house.

7. And when it was being built, the house was built of stone made ready beforehand. And there was not heard in the house a hammer or an axe, or any iron tool, while it was being built.

8. The door for the middle story was in the right side of the house. And they went up with winding stairs into the middle story and out of the middle story into the third.

9. And he built the house and finished it. And he covered the house with beams and rows of cedar.

10. And he built the side stories on all the house, five cubits high. And they rested on the house with timbers of cedar.

11. And the word of the LORD came to Solomon saying,

12. “As to this house which you are building, if you will walk in My statutes and do My judgments and keep all My commandments to walk in them, then I will perform My work with you which I spoke to David your father.

13. And I will live among the children of Israel and will not forsake My people Israel.”

14. And Solomon built the house and finished it.

15. And he built the walls of the house inside with boards of cedar from the floor of the house and the walls of the ceiling. He covered them on the inside with wood and covered the floor of the house with planks of fir.

16. And he built twenty cubits on the sides of the house, both the floor and the walls with boards of cedar. He even built them for it inside for the sanctuary, for the Holy of Holies.

17. And the house, that is, the temple before it, was forty cubits.

18. And the cedar of the house inside was carved with ornamental buds and open flowers. All was cedar; there was no stone seen.

19. And he prepared the Holy of Holies in the house inside, to set there the ark of the covenant of the LORD.

20. And the Holy of Holies in the front part was twenty cubits in length and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in height. And he overlaid it with pure gold and covered the altar of cedar.

21. And Solomon overlaid the house inside with pure gold. And he drew chains of gold across in front of the Holy of Holies. And he overlaid it with gold.

22. And he overlaid the whole house with gold until he had finished all the house. Also all of the altar that belonged to the Holy of Holies, he overlaid with gold.

23. And inside the Holy of Holies he made two cherubim of olive wood, ten cubits high.

24. And one wing of the cherub was five cubits, and the other wing of the cherub was five cubits; ten cubits from the ends of its wings even to the ends of its wings.

25. And the other cherub was ten cubits. Both the cherubim were of one measure and one size.

26. The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was the other cherub.

27. And he set the cherubim inside the inner house. And they stretched forth the wings of the cherubim 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. And he overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29. And he carved all the walls of the house all around with carved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, inside and out.

30. And the floor of the house was overlaid with gold inside and out.

31. As to the entrance of the holy place, he made doors of olive wood. The lintel and side posts were a fifth part of the wall.

32. And the two doors were of olive wood. And he carved upon them carvings of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold and spread gold upon the cherubim and upon the palm trees.

33. So also he made side posts for the entrance of the temple from the olive tree, a fourth part of the wall.

34. 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.

35. And he carved on them cherubim and palm trees and open flowers. And he covered them with gold fitted upon the carved work.

36. And he built the inner court with three rows of cut stone and a row of cedar beams.

37. In the fourth year, in the month Zif, the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.

38. And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, the house was finished according to all its parts, and according to all its plans. So he was seven years in building it.