1 Kings 6

1Ki 6:1  And 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 month Zif, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the LORD.

Four hundred and eighty years - So long it was before that holy house was built, which in less than four hundred and thirty years was burnt by Nebuchadnezzar. It was thus deferred, because Israel had by their sins, made themselves unworthy of this honor: and because God would show how little He values external pomp and splendor in His service. God ordered it now, chiefly to be a shadow of good things to come.

In the four hundred and eightieth year - The Septuagint has the four hundred and fortieth year. The Septuagint adds more detail. 1 Kings 6:1 And it came to pass in the four hundred and fortieth year after the departure of the children of Israel out of Egypt, in the fourth year and second month of the reign of king Solomon over Israel, that the king commanded that they should take great [and] costly stones for the foundation of the house, and hewn stones. And the men of Solomon, and the men of Chiram hewed [the stones], and laid them [for a foundation]. In the fourth year he laid the foundation of the house of the Lord, in the month Ziu, even in the second month. In the eleventh year, in the month Baal, this [is] the eighth month, the house was completed according to all its plan, and according to all its arrangement.

The month Zif - This answers to a part of our April and May; and was the second month of the sacred year, but the eighth month of the civil year. Before the time of Solomon, the Jews do not appear to have had any names for their months, but mentioned them in the order of their consecutive occurrence, first month, second month, third month, etc. In this chapter we find Zif and Bul; and in 1Ki_8:2, we find another, Ethanim; and these are supposed to be borrowed from the Chaldeans; and consequently this book was written after the Babylonish captivity. Before this time we find only the word Abib mentioned as the name of a month, Exo_13:4. Whether there were any others at that time, or whether Abib was really intended as the name of a month, we cannot absolutely say.

in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel - when he was clear of all disturbers of his government, and had got all things ready for the building of the temple, and had gathered together gold and silver enough of his own to defray the expenses; for, as for what David gave him, he put that into the treasury of the Lord's house, 1Ki_7:51 So all the work that King Solomon made for the house of the LORD was finished. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated: the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, he had put into the treasuries of the house of the LORD.

The building of the temple, a fixed and splendid house of Jehovah as the dwelling-place of His name in the midst of His people, formed an important epoch so far as the Old Testament kingdom of God was concerned, inasmuch as, according to the declaration of God made through the prophet Nathan, an end would thereby be put to the provisional condition of the people of Israel in the land of Canaan, since the temple was to become a substantial pledge of the permanent possession of the inheritance promised by the Lord. The importance of this epoch is indicated by the fact, that the time when the temple was built is defined not merely in relation to the year of Solomon's reign, but also in relation to the exodus of the Israelites out of Egypt. “In the 480th year after the exodus of the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign, in the second month of the year, Solomon built the house of the Lord.” The correctness of the number 480, as contrasted with the 440th year of the Septuagint and the different statements made by Josephus, is now pretty generally admitted; and it agrees with the duration of the period of the Judges when rightly estimated.

1Ki 6:2  And the house which king Solomon built for the LORD, the length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits.

The size of Solomon’s temple depends upon the true length of the ancient cubit, which is doubtful. It has been estimated as somewhat less than a foot (short cubit), and again as between 19 and 21 inches (long cubit), a difference of nearly 8 inches, which would produce a variation of nearly 40 feet in the length of the temple-chamber, and of 46 in that of the entire building. 2 Chronicles 3:3 indicates that Solomon likely used the older long cubit in his temple construction. 2 Chronicles 3:3 Now these are the foundations Solomon laid , to build the house of God. The length by cubits according to the first measure, sixty cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits. It is worthy of remark that, even according to the highest estimate, Solomon’s temple was really a small building, less than 120 feet long, and less than 35 broad. Remark that the measures of the temple, both “house” and porch 1Ki_6:3, were exactly double those of the older tabernacle. This identity of proportion amounts to an undesigned coincidence, indicating the thoroughly historical character of both Kings and Exodus.

This constituted what was called the temple or house, the house of God, etc. But, besides this, there were courts and colonnades, where the people might assemble to perform their devotions and assist at the sacrifices, without being exposed to the open air. The court surrounded the temple, or holy place, into which the priests alone entered.

1Ki 6:3  And 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.

And the porch before the temple of the house - Which stood at the east end of it:

And the porch before the temple of the house - the height of the porch is not here given, but in 2Ch_3:4 And the porch on the front, the length according to the breadth of the house, was twenty cubits, and the height a hundred and twenty. And he overlaid it inside with pure gold. where it is said to be an hundred twenty cubits high, equal to the height of the house, with the chambers over it; but there the breadth of the porch is not given, as it is here; by these dimensions we may observe the difference between the tabernacle and the temple; the temple was twice as long, and as broad, and thrice as high as the tabernacle, Exo_26:8. This fabric was an emblem of the church of God, sometimes called an holy temple, and the temple of the living God, 2Co_6:16 And what agreement does a temple of God have with idols? For you are the temple of the living God, as God has said, "I will dwell in them and walk among them ; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people."

1Ki 6:4  And for the house he made windows of narrow lights.

Windows of narrow lights - Possibly latticed windows: windows through which a person within could see well; but a person without, nothing. Windows, says the Targum, which were open within and shut without. The windows seem to have been placed high in the walls, above the chambers spoken of in 1Ki_6:5-8.

windows of narrow lights — that is, windows with lattices, capable of being shut and opened at pleasure, partly to let out the vapor of the lamps, the smoke of the frankincense, and partly to give light.

1Ki 6:5  And against the wall of the house he built chambers round about, against the walls of the house round about, both of the temple and of the oracle: and he made chambers round about:

he made chambers round about - how many chambers there were, is not said; Josephus says there were thirty of them, and over them others of the same measure and number, and over them others also; so that there were three stories of them, and in all ninety; and which is countenanced by what follows in 1Ki_6:6 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, so as not to lay hold of the walls of the house. and agrees with Eze_41:6 And the side chambers were a side chamber over a side chamber, three stories, and thirty times. And they entered the wall of the house for the side chambers all around, that they might be fastened, for they were not fastened to the wall of the house. Jewish scholars say there were thirty eight of them, fifteen on the north, fifteen on the south, and eight on the west; they that were to the north and south were five upon five, and five over them; and they that were to the west were three upon three, and two over them.

against the wall of the house he built chambers — On three sides, there were chambers in three stories, each story wider than the one beneath it, as the walls were narrowed or made thinner as they ascended, by a rebate being made, on which the beams of the side floor rested, without penetrating the wall. These chambers were approached from the right-hand side, in the interior of the under story, by a winding staircase of stone, which led to the middle and upper stories.

against the wall of the house he built chambers — These appear to have been what we should now call corridors or galleries; in which were apartments for the use of the priests. They consisted of three stories, and increased one cubit in breadth in every story, the wall of the temple being two cubits thicker at the bottom than at the top; and where the wall diminished, a rest was thus formed for the beams of the chambers to lodge upon.

Against the wall - The beams of the chambers were not fastened into the wall, but leaned upon the buttresses of the wall.

1Ki 6:6  The nethermost chamber was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad: for without in the wall of the house he made narrowed rests round about, that the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house.

And the nethermost chamber - The nethermost row of them, which were upon the first floor:

for without in the wall of the house he made narrowed rests round about - or rebatements; the thickness of the wall, as it was raised, became narrower at the height of every five cubits; thus the wall being supposed to be six cubits broad, as in Eze_41:5; when it came to be five cubits high, it was narrowed a cubit, which left a projection, rebatement, or bench for the beams of the first chambers to be laid upon, which made the second row of chambers broader by a cubit; and the same being observed in the next story, made the highest a cubit broader than the middlemost:

that the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house - or be inserted into them, which could not be done without making holes in it; and these holes could not be made without an iron instrument, and which was not to be used, as the next words show; whereas by the above method the beams of the chambers could be laid upon the buttresses, benches, or rebatements left, without the use of any:

1Ki 6:7  And 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 axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.

The house was built of stone - It appears that every stone was hewn and squared, and its place in the building ascertained, before it came to Jerusalem: the timbers were fitted in like manner. The builders had nothing more to do than to lay them in their proper places in the building; it was built with these stones quite up to the ceiling, as Josephus says; and these so admirably polished, and so artificially joined together, that not the least sign of an axe, or of any working tool, could be discerned in them:

so that there was neither hammer, nor axe, nor any tool of iron, heard in the house while it was in building - this observation shows, that none are to be laid in the spiritual building of the church, but such as are first hewed and squared by the Spirit, grace, and word of God: or who have an experience of the grace of God, are sound in the faith, and of becoming lives and good conduct.

1Ki 6:8  The door for the middle chamber was in the right side of the house: and they went up with winding stairs into the middle chamber, and out of the middle into the third.

The door for the middle chamber - the door which gave access to the mid-most “set of chambers.” The chambers on the ground-floor were possibly reached each by their own door in the outer wall of the lean-to. The middle and upper floors were reached by a single door in the right or south wall, from which a winding staircase ascended to the second tier, while another ascended from the second to the third. The door to the stairs was in the outer wall of the building, not in the wall between the chambers and the temple. That would have desecrated the temple far more than the insertion of beams.

1Ki 6:9  So he built the house, and finished it; and covered the house with beams and boards of cedar.

He built the house, and finished it - the external shell of the house. In 1Ki_6:9 and 1Ki_6:10 the description of the exterior of the temple building is brought to a close. The internal fittings were added afterward. 1Ki_6:15-22.

1Ki 6:10  And then he built chambers against all the house, five cubits high: and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.

he built chambers against all the house five cubits high - Which some understand of the same chambers in 1Ki_6:5; here made mention of again for the sake of giving the height of them.

1Ki 6:11  And the word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying,

The word of the Lord came to Solomon - The word of prophecy, as the Targum states, foretelling what would be the case of this building, according to the obedience or disobedience of him and the people of Israel; which was brought to him either by an impulse of the Spirit of God upon him; or by the hand of a prophet. The expression “And the word of the Lord came” seems to point to a prophetic medium. And this is in harmony with 1Ki_9:2, according to which the Lord only revealed Himself to Solomon twice by an actual appearance. 1 Kings 9:2 the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon.

The word of the Lord came to Solomon - It was designed: first, to encourage him to go on with the building, by confirming anew the promise made to his father David (2Sa_7:12-16); and secondly, to warn him against the pride and presumption of supposing that after the erection of so magnificent a temple, he and his people would always be sure of the presence and favor of God. The condition on which that blessing could alone be expected was expressly stated. The dwelling of God among the children of Israel refers to those symbols of His presence in the temple, which were the visible tokens of His spiritual relation to that people.

1Ki 6:12  Concerning this house which thou art in building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father:

The meaning is, “So far as this house goes, thou art obedient 2Sa_7:12-13 And when your days are fulfilled, and you shall sleep with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who shall come out of your bowels. And I will make his kingdom sure. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 1Ch_17:11-12 And it will be, when your days have ended so that you must go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your seed after you, who shall be from your sons. And I will make his kingdom sure. He shall build Me a house, and I will establish his throne forever. if thou wilt be obedient in other things also, then will I perform My word,” etc., God’s promises here being conditional. The promises made to David were:

(1) that he should be succeeded by one of his sons 2Sa_7:12 And when your days are fulfilled, and you shall sleep with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who shall come out of your bowels. And I will make his kingdom sure. Psa_132:11 The LORD has sworn to David in truth; He will not turn from it; Of the fruit of your body I will set on the throne for you.

(2) that the kingdom should be established in the line of his descendants forever, if they were faithful Psa_132:12 If your sons will keep My covenant and My testimonies which I shall teach them, their sons shall also sit on your throne forever. and

(3) that the Israelites should be no more afflicted as beforetime 2Sa_7:10 And I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them so that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more. Neither shall the sons of wickedness afflict them any more, as before.

These promises are now confirmed to Solomon, but on the express condition of obedience, and two further promises are added. 1 Kings 6: And I will live among the sons of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel.

if thou wilt walk in my statutes - even all the laws of God, moral, ceremonial, and judicial; and this respects not only Solomon personally, but his successors, and even all the people of Israel:

I perform my covenant with thee, which I spake unto David - by Nathan the prophet; not only that he should build an house for God, which should be a settled dwelling place, but that his own house and kingdom should be established for a long time to come, and his posterity should enjoy the presence of God in this house, provided regard was had to the precepts and ordinances of the Lord, 2Sa_7:12.

This dwelling of God is now to receive a new and lasting realization. The temple is to be a pledge that the Lord will maintain for His people His covenant of grace and His gracious presence. In this respect the promised, “I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel, and not forsake my people Israel,” is a confirmation of the word which the Lord had spoken to David, although, so far as the actual words are concerned, it is more closely connected with Lev_26:11-12 And I will set My tabernacle among you. And My soul shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be My people. when the highest blessing attendant upon the faithful observance of the commandments of God is summed up in the promise, “I will make my abode among you, and my soul will not despise you.”

1Ki 6:13  And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.

I will dwell among the children of Israel - The first promise to “dwell among” the Israelites had been made to Moses Exo_25:8 And let them make Me a sanctuary, so that I may dwell among them. Exo_29:45 And I will dwell among the sons of Israel, and will be their God. but had not been repeated to David. The next promise, “I will not forsake, etc.,” if not absolutely new, seems to have been more positive and general than previous similar promises Deu_31:6 Be strong and of a good courage. Do not fear nor be afraid of them. For the LORD your God is He who goes with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you. Deu_31:8 And Jehovah is He who goes before you. He will be with you; He will not fail you nor forsake you. Do not fear; nor be dismayed. Jos_1:5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not fail you nor forsake you. God will not at any time or under any circumstances wholly forsake Israel.

1Ki 6:14  So Solomon built the house, and finished it.

1Ki 6:15  And he built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar, both the floor of the house, and the walls of the cieling: and he covered them on the inside with wood, and covered the floor of the house with planks of fir.

And he built the walls of the house - The description of this verse applies to the main chamber of the temple, the holy place, only. The writer describes the holy of holies in the next verse.

Boards of cedar and planks of fir - which Hiram sent him, 1Ki_5:8 And Hiram sent to Solomon saying, I have heard that for which you sent to me. I will do all your desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir.

he built the walls of the house within — The walls were wainscotted with cedar-wood; the floor, paved with cypress planks; the interior was divided (by a partition consisting of folding doors, which were opened and shut with golden chains) into two apartments - the back or inner room, that is, the most holy place, was twenty cubits long and broad; the front, or outer room, that is, the holy place, was forty cubits. The cedar-wood was beautifully embellished with figures in relievo, representing clusters of foliage, open flowers, cherubims, and palm trees. The whole interior was overlaid with gold, so that neither wood nor stone was seen; nothing met the eye but pure gold, either plain or richly chased.

See what was typified by this temple. 1. Christ is the true Temple. In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead; in Him meet all God's spiritual Israel; through Him we have access with confidence to God. 2. Every believer is a living temple, in whom the Spirit of God dwells, 1Co_3:16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? This living temple is built upon Christ as its Foundation, and will be perfect in due time. 3. The gospel church is the mystical temple. It grows to a holy temple in the Lord, enriched and beautified with the gifts and graces of the Spirit. This temple is built firm, upon a Rock. 4. Heaven is the everlasting temple. There the church will be fixed. All that shall be stones in that building, must, in the present state of preparation, be fitted and made ready for it. Let sinners come to Jesus as the living Foundation, that they may be built on Him, a part of this spiritual house, consecrated in body and soul to the glory of God.

1Ki 6:16  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 within, even for the oracle, even for the most holy place.

And he built twenty cubits on the sides of the house - At the end or extremity of it; that is, he built the most holy place, which was twenty cubits long, at the end of the holy place, which he lined with wood as the other:

And he built twenty cubits on the sides of the house - The meaning is, that at the distance of 20 cubits, measured along the side walls of the house from the end wall, Solomon constructed a partition, which reached from the floor to the ceiling and had a doorway in it. He thus made within the house, a sanctuary for a holy of holies. This part took off twenty cubits in length from each side of the house, and was also twenty cubits from side to side, so it was twenty cubits every way.

the oracle - The oracle was the sanctuary, or holy of holies, in which there was nothing but the ark of the covenant, including the tables of the law, and into which the high priest alone was to enter but once a year. The words “the most holy place” are added, to explain what he means by the word oracle, which he had not used before.

1Ki 6:17  And the house, that is, the temple before it, was forty cubits long.

was forty cubits long - which with the most holy place being twenty cubits, as in the preceding verse, made the length of the whole house sixty cubits.

1Ki 6:18  And the cedar of the house within was carved with knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen.

Knops and open flowers - Rather, “gourds and opening flower-buds.” The Targum says the knops had an oval form, the appearance of eggs. Imitations of the vegetable world are among the earliest of architectural ornaments.

1Ki 6:19  And the oracle he prepared in the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of the LORD.

the ark of the covenant of the Lord - the same that Moses made, Exo_37:1, for which David had pitched a tent in Zion, 1Ch_15:1 And David made houses for himself in the City of David, and prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched a tent for it. and where it now was; for Solomon made no new ark. Solomon made every thing new, but the ark. The ark was the token of God's presence, which is with His people, whether they meet in tent or temple, and changes not with their condition.

1Ki 6:20  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.

twenty cubits in length, breadth, and height -  and was a perfect square, and as the most holy place may be an emblem of the church triumphant, it may denote the perfection of its heavenly state; so the new Jerusalem is a foursquare, Rev_21:16 And the city lies four-square, and the length is as large as the breadth. And he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand stadia. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.

the altar which was of cedar - the altar of incense, which is here mentioned, because it was near the most holy place; this altar by Moses was made of shittim wood, but Solomon's was of cedar.

1Ki 6:21  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.

The chains of gold - Their object was to form a barrier between the holy place and the holy of holies.

1Ki 6:22  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.

1Ki 6:23  And within the oracle he made two cherubims of olive tree, each ten cubits high.

Two cherubims - The pattern of the tabernacle was followed but without exact imitation. The original cherubs were entirely of gold. These, being so much larger, were of wood, merely overlaid with a golden plating. The arrangement of the wings, and the direction of the faces, seem also to have been different. Moses’ cherubim “covered with their wings over the mercy seat;” Solomon’s stretched out theirs to the full 1Ki_6:27, so that the four wings, each five cubits long 1Ki_6:24, extended across the whole sanctuary, the width of which was twenty cubits 1Ki_6:20. The former looked toward one another, and were bent downward toward the mercy-seat; the latter looked outward, toward the great chamber.  

Two cherubims - these cherubim are different from those made by Moses, and were besides them; these were larger than they; these were made of olive wood, they of gold; these stood on the floor of the house, they at the two ends of the mercy seat, and were made out of it, and were with it in this holy place in Solomon's temple:

Two cherubims - He made (caused to be made) in the hinder room two cherubs of olive wood, that is, wood of the oleaster or wild olive-tree, which is very firm and durable, and, according to 2Ch_3:10, a peculiar kind of sculpture, which cannot be more precisely defined. “Ten cubits was the height of it” (i.e., of the one and of the other). The figures had a human form, like the golden cherubs upon the ark of the covenant, and stood upright upon their feet (2Ch_3:13), with extended wings of five cubits in length, so that one wing of the one reached to one wing of the other in the center of the room, and the other wing of each reached to the opposite wall, and consequently the four extended wings filled the entire breadth of the Most Holy Place ( a breadth of twenty cubits), and the two cherubs stood opposite to one another and ten cubits apart. The wings were evidently fastened to the back and placed close to one another upon the shoulder-blades, so that the small space between their starting-points is not taken into consideration in the calculation of their length. The figures were completely overlaid with gold. The ark of the covenant was placed between these cherubs, and under the wings which pointed towards one another. As they were made like those upon the ark, they had evidently the same meaning, and simply served to strengthen the idea which was symbolized in the cherub. Only their faces were not turned towards one another and bent down towards the ark, as in the case of the golden cherubim of the ark; but, according to 2Ch_3:13, they were turned towards the house, i.e., the Holy Place, so as to allow of the extension of the wings along the full length of the Most Holy Place.

1Ki 6:24  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.

from the uttermost part of the one wing, to the uttermost part of the other wing, were ten cubits - half the breadth of the house.

1Ki 6:25  And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubims were of one measure and one size.

both the cherubim were of one measure, and of one size - of the same height and stature, of the same breadth of their wings, and of the same bulk of their bodies; they were of "image work";

1Ki 6:26  The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub.

1Ki 6:27  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.

1Ki 6:28  And he overlaid the cherubims with gold.

1Ki 6:29  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.

Cherubim - As signs of the presence and protection of the angels vouch - safed by God to that place.

Palm trees - Emblems of that peace and victory over their enemies, which the Israelites duly serving God in that place might expect.

Palms, cherubs, and flowers - This completes the account of the nature of the covering of wood. In addition to the oval figures and open flowers, there were also figures of cherubim and palm-trees carved in the wooden panels. Nothing is said as to the distribution of these figures. But a comparison with Eze_41:18 And it was made with cherubs and palm trees, and a palm tree was between cherub and cherub. And each cherub had two faces, shows at any rate so much, that the palm-trees alternated with the cherubs, so that there was always one cherub standing between two palm-trees. The gourd-shaped figures and the open flowers probably formed the upper and lower setting of the rows of palms and cherubs, the flowers hanging in the form of garlands above the palms and cherubs, and the rows of gourds arranged in bars constituting the boundary lines both above and below.

1Ki 6:30  And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without.

he overlaid with gold within and without - Both the floor of the holy place, and of the holy of holies; so the street of the new Jerusalem is said to be pure gold, Rev_21:21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls. Respectively, each one of the gates was one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, as transparent glass.

1Ki 6:31  And for the entering of the oracle he made doors of olive tree: the lintel and side posts were a fifth part of the wall.

A fifth part - The meaning seems to be that the lintel was one-fifth of the width of the wall, and each door-post one-fifth of its height. Thus the opening was a square of four cubits, or roughly six feet. He made the entrance to the back room, doors of olive wood, which moved, according to 1Ki_7:50 and the bowls, and the snuffers, and the basins, and the spoons, and the fire-pans of pure gold, and the hinges of gold for the doors of the inner house, the Holy of Holies, and for the doors of the house, the temple. on golden hinges.

for the entering of the oracle — The door of the most holy place was made of solid olive tree and adorned with figures. The door of the holy place was made of cypress wood, the sides being of olive wood.

1Ki 6:32  The two doors also were of 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.

Spread gold - The doors were not simply sheeted with gold, like the floors 1Ki_6:30, but had the gold hammered to fit the forms of the palms, cherubs, and flowers carved upon them. 1Ki_6:35 And he carved on them cherubs and palm trees and open bowers. And he covered them with gold fitted on the carved work.

1Ki 6:33  So also made he for the door of the temple posts of olive tree, a fourth part of the wall.

The door of the temple - The door which led from the porch into the great chamber of the temple. Its posts were “a fourth part of the wall,” or, “five cubits high,” which was, therefore, the height of the doorway, roughly 7 to 8 feet. This door was a cubit wider than that into the most holy place.

1Ki 6:34  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.

the two leaves of the one door were folding – which, taking up less room, made the passage wider, Eze_41:24 And two doors leaves were to each of the doors, two turning doors, two for the one door, and two for the other door. Each door was made in two parts, which folded back one on the other like shutters, by means of hinges.

1Ki 6:35  And he carved thereon cherubims and palm trees and open flowers: and covered them with gold fitted upon the carved work.

1Ki 6:36  And he built the inner court with three rows of hewed stone, and a row of cedar beams.

And he built the inner court - The court of the priests, 2Ch_4:9; so called to distinguish it from the outer court, where the people assembled.

The inner court - An outer court is mentioned in 2Ch_4:9 And he made the court of the priests, and the great court, and doors for the court, and overlaid their doors with bronze. The inner court is probably identical with the “higher court” of Jeremiah Jer_36:10 And Baruch read in the book, the words of Jeremiah in the house of the LORD, in the room of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe, in the higher court, at the entrance to the New Gate of the LORD's house, in the ears of all the people. The court seems to have surrounded the temple.

With three rows of hewed stone - Either a fence enclosing the court, or the area of the court, which was possibly formed by three layers of hewn stone placed one above the other, and was then boarded on the top with cedar planks.

With three rows of hewed stone - the rows of stones were one upon another, topped with a row of cedar beams; or rather the cedar was a lining to the stones; and the whole is supposed to be about three cubits high, and was so low, that the people in the outward court might see priests ministering for them.

The inner court - The epithet inner court applied to the “court of the priests” (2Ch_4:9) presupposes an outer one, which is also mentioned in 2Ch_4:9, and called “the great court.” The inner one is called the upper (higher) court in Jer_36:10, from which it follows that it was situated on a higher level than the outer one, which surrounded it on all sides. It was enclosed by a low wall, consisting of three rows of hewn stones, or square stones, laid one upon another, and a row of hewn cedar beams. According to 2Ch_4:9, the outer court had gates lined with brass, so that it was also surrounded with a high wall. Around it there were chambers and cells (2Ki_23:11; Jer_35:4; Jer_36:10) for the priests and Levites, the plans for which had already been made by David (1Ch_28:12). The principal gate was the east gate (Eze_11:1). Other gates are mentioned in 2Ki_11:6; 2Ch_23:5, Jer_20:2 2Ki_12:10; 2Ch_24:8. The size of these courts is not given.

1Ki 6:37  In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of the LORD laid, in the month Zif:

In the fourth year - The fourth year of Solomon's reign: The building was begun in the second month of the fourth year and completed in the eighth month of the eleventh year of Solomon’s reign, comprising a period of seven and a half years. The immense number of workmen employed, together with the previous preparation of the materials, serves to account for the short time occupied in building it.

1Ki 6:38  And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it.

Was the house finished - The dedication did not take place till the following year, the twelfth of Solomon, because then, according to Archbishop Usher, the jubilee happened.

So was he seven years in building it - Properly seven years and six months; but the Scripture generally expresses things in round numbers.