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¹ BUT Solomon took thirteen years to build his own house and to finish it.² He built also the house of the forest of Lebanon; its length was a hundred cubits and its breadth fifty cubits and its height thirty cubits, upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars.³ And it was covered with cedar above upon beams that lay upon forty-five pillars, fifteen in a row.⁴ And there were balconies in three rows set one against another in three tiers.⁵ And all the doors and posts were square, set one against another in three tiers.⁶ And he made a porch of pillars; its length was fifty cubits, its breadth thirty cubits; and the porch was upon the pillars, with a court in front.⁷ Then he made a porch for the throne where he might judge, even the porch of judgment; and covered it with cedar from the floor to the ceiling.⁸ And his own house where he dwelt was in another court within the porch, and was of like workmanship. Solomon also made a house like this in workmanship for Pharaohs daughter, whom he had taken to wife.⁹ All these were of costly stones, according to the measures of hewn stones, sawed with saws within and without, even from the foundation to the coping, and from the outside to the court of the temple.¹⁰ And the foundation was of great and costly stones, some of ten cubits and some of eight cubits.¹¹ And above were costly stones, after the measures of hewn stones, and cedars.¹² And the great court round about was made with three rows of hewn stones and a row of cedar beams, both for the inner court of the house of the LORD and for the porch of the house.

¹³ And King Solomon sent and brought Hiram from Tyre.¹⁴ He was a widows son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was an artist and a worker in brass; and he was filled with wisdom and understanding and cunning knowledge to fashion any work in brass. And he came to King Solomon and did all his work.¹⁵ He cast two pillars of brass; the height of each pillar was eighteen cubits and the circumference was twelve cubits.¹⁶ And he made two capitals of molten brass to set upon the tops of the pillars; the height of one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other was five cubits;¹⁷ And he made carved ornaments of network and wreaths of chain work for the capitals which were upon the top of the pillars; seven for one capital and seven for the other.¹⁸ And he made the pillars, and two rows of buds round about upon one network, to cover the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars; and he did so to the other pillar.¹⁹ And the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars were of lily work in the porch, four cubits.²⁰ And the capitals that were upon the two pillars had pomegranates also above, and over against the side which was by the network; and the pomegranates were two hundred in rows round about upon the one capital; and in like manner the other capital.²¹ And he made the pillars of the porch of the temple; and he set up the pillar on the right hand, and called its name Jachin; and he set up the pillar on the left hand, and called its name Boaz.²² And upon the top of the pillars was lily work; so was the work of the pillars finished.²³ Then he made a molten sea, ten cubits in diameter; it was round about, and its height was five cubits and its circumference thirty cubits.²⁴ And under the brim of it round about there were buds encircling it, ten in a cubit, enclosing the sea; the buds were formed in two rows when it was cast.²⁵ It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, three looking toward the west, three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; and the sea was set upon them, and their hinder parts were inward.²⁶ And its thickness was a hand-breadth, and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, with lilies; it contained two thousand baths.²⁷ And he made ten bases of brass; four cubits was the length of one base, and four cubits its breadth, and three cubits the height of it.²⁸ And the work of the bases was in this manner: they had borders between panels;²⁹ And on the borders that were between the panels were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and upon the panels was the same, both above and below, lions and oxen; the appearance of the work was beautiful.³⁰ And every base had four bronze wheels and axles of brass; and the four corners thereof had a framework under the laver joined to it, framework molten, beautiful work.³¹ And the opening of the base within was a cubit; and its opening was round like the work of the base, a cubit and a half; and also upon the opening of it were engravings with borders foursquare, not round.³² And under each border were four wheels; and the axletrees of the wheels were joined to the base; and the height of a wheel was a cubit and a half.³³ And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel; their axletrees and their spokes and their rims and their hubs were all cast.³⁴ And there were four supports at the four corners of one base; and the supports were part of the very base itself.³⁵ The supports and the frame of the base were half a cubit; and on the top of the base there was a rim; and the top of the base, its axletrees, and its borders were of the same.³⁶ And on the plates of the axletrees and on its borders he engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees round about.³⁷ After this manner he made the ten bases: all of them were of one casting, one measure, and one size.³⁸ Then he made ten lavers of brass; one laver held forty baths; and every laver was four cubits; and upon every one of the ten bases one laver.³⁹ And he put five bases on the right side of the house and five on the left side of the house; and he set the sea on the right side of the house, toward the south.⁴⁰ And Hiram made the lavers and the pots and the cauldrons and the large hanging pots. So Hiram finished all the work that King Solomon made in the house of the LORD;⁴¹ The two pillars, and the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the two pillars; and the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals which were upon the top of the pillars;⁴² And four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, two rows of pomegranates for each network to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were upon the pillars;⁴³ And the ten bases and the ten lavers upon the bases;⁴⁴ And the one sea and the twelve oxen under the sea;⁴⁵ And the pots and the cauldrons and the hanging pots; and all the vessels of ministration which Hiram made for King Solomon for the house of the LORD were of Corinthian brass.⁴⁶ In Kakar which is in the plain of Jericho by the side of the Jordan did the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarthan.⁴⁷ And Solomon made all sorts of vessels, exceeding many; there was no limit to the weighing of the brass which King Solomon used for the house of the LORD;

⁴⁸ And he made all the vessels that pertained to the house of the LORD: the altar of gold, and the table of gold whereupon the shewbread was,⁴⁹ And the candlesticks of pure gold, five on the right side and five on the left before the sanctuary, the snuffers, and the lamps, and the tongs of gold,⁵⁰ And the bowls, and the saucers, and the basons, and the spoons, and the censers of pure gold; and the hinges of pure gold, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the house of the temple.⁵¹ Thus was ended all the work that King Solomon made in the house of the LORD. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated; the silver and the gold and the vessels, and placed them among the treasures of the house of the LORD.