1 I n the 480th year after the people of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s rule over Israel, in the month of Ziv, the second month, he began to build the house of the Lord.

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 of Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the Lord.

2 T he house which King Solomon built for the Lord was as long as thirty long steps, as wide as ten long steps, and eight times taller than a man.

Now the house which King Solomon built for the Lord, its length was sixty cubits, its width twenty, and its height thirty cubits.

3 A ll along the front of the House of God was a porch ten long steps long and five long steps wide. It was as long as the house was wide.

The vestibule in front of the sanctuary of the house was twenty cubits long across the width of the house, and the width of the vestibule extended ten cubits from the front of the house.

4 H e made windows for the house with beautiful cross-pieces.

And he made for the house windows with beveled frames.

5 H e made a building of rooms against the outer walls of three sides of the house. These rooms were three floors high.

Against the wall of the temple he built chambers all around, against the walls of the temple, all around the sanctuary and the inner sanctuary. Thus he made side chambers all around it.

6 T he bottom floor was as wide as three steps. The second floor was as wide as three long steps. And the third floor was as wide as four steps. For around the outside of the house he made places for the large wood cross-pieces to rest on. That way they would not need to be put into holes in the walls of the house.

The lowest chamber was five cubits wide, the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for he made narrow ledges around the outside of the temple, so that the support beams would not be fastened into the walls of the temple.

7 T he house was built of stone that was cut at the place where it was taken from the ground. There was no noise of a hammer or an ax or any iron object heard in the house while it was being built.

And the temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built.

8 T he door for the first floor room was on the right side of the house. They would go up steps to the second floor, and from the second to the third.

The doorway for the middle story was on the right side of the temple. They went up by stairs to the middle story, and from the middle to the third.

9 S o he built the house and finished it. And he made the roof of the house of large pieces of cedar wood.

So he built the temple and finished it, and he paneled the temple with beams and boards of cedar.

10 H e built the three floors against the outside wall of the house. Each one was as high as a man could raise his hand. They were joined to the house with big pieces of cedar wood.

And he built side chambers against the entire temple, each five cubits high; they were attached to the temple with cedar beams.

11 N ow the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying,

Then the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying:

12 “ If you obey My Laws and keep My Word, then I will keep My promise with you, which I spoke to your father David about this house you are building.

“ Concerning this temple which you are building, if you walk in My statutes, execute My judgments, keep all My commandments, and walk in them, then I will perform My word with you, which I spoke to your father David.

13 I will live among the sons of Israel. And I will not leave My people Israel alone.”

And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel.”

14 S o Solomon built the house and finished it.

So Solomon built the temple and finished it.

15 H e built the walls of the house on the inside with pieces of cedar wood. He put wood over the inside walls from the floor of the house to the roof. And he put pieces of cypress wood over the floor of the house.

And he built the inside walls of the temple with cedar boards; from the floor of the temple to the ceiling he paneled the inside with wood; and he covered the floor of the temple with planks of cypress.

16 A n inside room called the most holy place was built in the back part of the house with pieces of cedar wood, from the floor to the roof and as wide as ten long steps.

Then he built the twenty-cubit room at the rear of the temple, from floor to ceiling, with cedar boards; he built it inside as the inner sanctuary, as the Most Holy Place.

17 T he rest of the house, the center room in front of the most holy place, was as long as twenty long steps.

And in front of it the temple sanctuary was forty cubits long.

18 T here was cedar on the house within, cut to look like gourds and open flowers. It was all cedar. No stone was seen.

The inside of the temple was cedar, carved with ornamental buds and open flowers. All was cedar; there was no stone to be seen.

19 T hen he built the most holy place inside the house, in which to put the special box of the agreement.

And he prepared the inner sanctuary inside the temple, to set the ark of the covenant of the Lord there.

20 T he most holy place was as long as ten long steps, as wide as ten long steps, and more than five times taller than a man. He covered it with pure gold. And he covered the altar with cedar.

The inner sanctuary was twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high. He overlaid it with pure gold, and overlaid the altar of cedar.

21 S olomon covered the inside of the house with pure gold. He crossed the front of the most holy place with chains of gold, and he covered it with gold.

So Solomon overlaid the inside of the temple with pure gold. He stretched gold chains across the front of the inner sanctuary, and overlaid it with gold.

22 H e covered the whole house with gold, until all the house was finished. And he covered the whole altar by the most holy place with gold.

The whole temple he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the temple; also he overlaid with gold the entire altar that was by the inner sanctuary.

23 I n the most holy place he made two cherubim of olive wood. Each one was almost three times taller than a man.

Inside the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits high.

24 O ne wing of the cherub was as long as three steps. And the other wing of the cherub was as long as three steps. It was as far as five long steps from the end of one wing to the end of the other wing.

One wing of the cherub was five cubits, and the other wing of the cherub five cubits: ten cubits from the tip of one wing to the tip of the other.

25 I t was as much as five long steps between the ends of the wings of the other cherub also. Both the cherubim were the same height, length and width, and they looked alike.

And the other cherub was ten cubits; both cherubim were of the same size and shape.

26 E ach of the cherubim was almost three times taller than a man.

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

27 H e put the cherubim in the most holy place of the house. The wings of the cherubim were spread out. The wing of the one cherub was touching the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub was touching the other wall. So their wings were touching each other in the center of the house.

Then he set the cherubim inside the inner room; and they stretched out the wings of the cherubim so that the wing of the one touched one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall. And their wings touched each other in the middle of the room.

28 H e covered the cherubim with gold.

Also he overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29 T hen he cut pictures in all the walls around the house to look like cherubim, palm trees and open flowers, in the center room and the most holy place.

Then he carved all the walls of the temple all around, both the inner and outer sanctuaries, with carved figures of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers.

30 H e covered the floor of the house with gold, in the center room and the most holy place.

And the floor of the temple he overlaid with gold, both the inner and outer sanctuaries.

31 H e made doors of olive wood for the most holy place. The top and sides of the door had five sides.

For the entrance of the inner sanctuary he made doors of olive wood; the lintel and doorposts were one-fifth of the wall.

32 H e cut pictures in the two doors of olive wood, to look like cherubim, palm trees and open flowers, and covered them with gold. He spread the gold on the cherubim and on the palm trees.

The two doors were of olive wood; and he carved on them figures of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he spread gold on the cherubim and on the palm trees.

33 F or the doorway of the center room he made four-sided side pieces of olive wood

So for the door of the sanctuary he also made doorposts of olive wood, one-fourth of the wall.

34 a nd two doors of cypress wood. Each door had two moving parts.

And the two doors were of cypress wood; two panels comprised one folding door, and two panels comprised the other folding door.

35 O n them he cut pictures of cherubim, palm trees and open flowers. And he covered the pictures with an even covering of gold.

Then he carved cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers on them, and overlaid them with gold applied evenly on the carved work.

36 H e built the inside place with three rows of cut stone and one row of large pieces of cedar wood.

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

37 I n the fourth year the base of the house was laid in the month of Ziv.

In the fourth year the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid, in the month of Ziv.

38 I n the eleventh year, in the month of Bul, the eighth month, all the parts of the house were finished just as all the plans had been made. Solomon took seven years to build it.

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