III. THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE AND MAKING OF THE SACRED VESSELS (2 Chronicles 3:1 to 2 Chronicles 5:1; comp. 1 Kings 6:7). (_a_) Site and date (2 Chronicles 3:1). (_b_) Its dimensions: the porch and the Holy Place, or nave (2 Chronicles 3:3). (c) The Holy of holies, or chancel, with the cherubim a... [ Continue Reading ]
(_a_) SITE AND DATE (2 Chronicles 3:1). (1) AT JERUSALEM IN MOUNT MORIAH. — Nowhere else in the Old Testament is the Temple site so specified. (Comp. “the land of Moriah,” the place appointed for the sacrifice of Isaac, Genesis 22:2.) WHERE THE LORD APPEARED UNTO DAVID HIS FATHER. — So LXX.; rather... [ Continue Reading ]
IN THE SECOND DAY OF THE SECOND MONTH. — Heb., _in the second month in the second._ The versions omit the repetition, which is probably a scribe’s error. “On the second day” would be expressed in Hebrew differently. Read simply, “And he began to build in the second month,” _i.e.,_ in Zif (or April —... [ Continue Reading ]
(_b_) DIMENSIONS OF THE TEMPLE; THE PORCK AND THE HOLY PLACE, OR NAVE (2 Chronicles 3:3). (3) NOW THESE ARE THE THINGS WHEREIN SOLOMON WAS INSTRUCTED. — Rather, _And this is the foundation_ (or ground-plan) _of Solomon._ The plural pronoun _‘çllè, “_these,” is used as a neut. sing. “this” (comp. 1... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE PORCH... TWENTY CUBITS. — Heb., _and the porch that was before the length_ (_i.e.,_ that lay in front of the oblong main building), _before the breadth of the house, was twenty cubits_ (_i.e.,_ the porch was as. long as the house was broad). This curious statement answers to what we read in... [ Continue Reading ]
THE GREATER HOUSE. — Or, _the great chamber, i.e._ the Holy Place, or nave. (Comp. 1 Chronicles 28:11.) HE CIELED WITH FIR TREE. — _He covered with planks of fir;_ or, _panelled with fir._ To _ciel, or_ rather _seel_ (from _syle_ or _cyll,_ a canopy: Skeat, _Etymol. Dict._ s.v.) a room, meant in ol... [ Continue Reading ]
GARNISHED. — _Overlaid_ (2 Chronicles 3:4) _the chamber._ PRECIOUS STONES. — See 1 Chronicles 29:2; and 1 Kings 10:11, which relates that Hiram’s fleet brought “precious stones” from Ophir for Solomon. But no mention of this kind of decoration is made in 1 Kings 6. The Vulgate explains the phrase a... [ Continue Reading ]
HE OVERLAID ALSO THE HOUSE. — _And he covered_ (2 Chronicles 3:5) _the chamber_ — that is, the great chamber or Holy Place. (See 1 Kings 6:21.) THE BEAMS. — Of the roof. THE POSTS. — _The thresholds_ (Isaiah 6:4). AND GRAVED CHERUBIMS ON THE WALLS. — See 1 Kings 6:29, which gives a fuller account... [ Continue Reading ]
(_c_) THE HOLY OF HOLIES, OR CHANCEL, WITH THE CHERUBIM AND THE VAIL (2 Chronicles 3:8). (8) THE MOST HOLY HOUSE. — _The chamber of the Holy of holies,_ or _chancel,_ called also the _oracle_ (_Dĕbîr_)_,_ 1 Kings 6:5. (So 2 Chronicles 3:10.) THE LENGTH WHEREOF WAS ACCORDING TO THE BREADTH OF THE H... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE WEIGHT OF THE NAILS WAS FIFTY SHEKELS OF GOLD. — Literally, _And a weight for nails for shekels — fifty in gold._ The LXX. and Vulg. take this to mean that the weight of each nail was fifty shekels; and this is probably right, for fifty shekels as a total would be a trifling sum to record al... [ Continue Reading ]
TWO CHERUBIMS. — 1 Kings 6:23. They were made of oleaster, plated with gold. OF IMAGE WORK. — Literally, _a work of statuary._ The Hebrew word meaning “statuary” occurs here only, and looks suspicious. The Vulg. renders _opere statuario;_ the LXX. “a work of logs”; the Syriac “a durable work.” With... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE WINGS OF THE CHERUBIMS WERE TWENTY CUBITS LONG. — _Their length_ was, altogether, _twenty cubits;_ so that, being outspread, they reached from wall to wall of the Holy of holies, which was twenty cubits wide. Of this breadth each cherub covered half, or ten cubits, with his wings, which were... [ Continue Reading ]
Literally, _And the wing of the one cherub — five cubits_ — _was touching the wall of the chamber, and the other wing — five cubits_ — _was cleaving to the wing of the other cherub. _... [ Continue Reading ]
THE WINGS OF THESE CHERUBIMS. — Or, _These wings of the cherubim._ SPREAD THEMSELVES FORTH. — _Were outspreading_ (participle), 1 Chronicles 28:18. AND THEY STOOD. — _Were standing._ They were ten cubits high (1 Kings 6:26). INWARD. — See margin. Translate, _toward the chamber._ The cherubs did n... [ Continue Reading ]
THE VAIL. — The _Pârôkheth,_ or curtain, which divided the holy place from the holy of holies, is not mentioned in the existing text of 1 Kings 6:21, which passage, however, speaks of the chains of gold by which the vail was probably suspended. BLUE, AND PURPLE, AND CRIMSON, AND FINE LINEN. — See N... [ Continue Reading ]
(_d_) THE TWO BRONZE PILLARS IN THE PORCH (2 Chronicles 3:15). Comp. 1 Kings 7:15. (15) BEFORE THE HOUSE. — Before the holy place, in the porch. TWO PILLARS OF THIRTY AND FIVE CUBITS HIGH. — _Two pillars thirty and five cubits in length._ 1 Kings 7:15 says “eighteen cubits,” so also 2 Kings 25:17;... [ Continue Reading ]
AND HE MADE CHAINS, AS IN THE ORACLE. — Heb., _And he made chainwork in the oracle,_ or chancel, which is clearly corrupt. But if we read _kad-debîr_ for _bad-debîr,_ an infinitesimal change in Hebrew writing, we get the sense which our version suggests: _And he made chainwork as in the chancel._ It... [ Continue Reading ]
BEFORE THE TEMPLE. — Vulg., _in vestibulo templi._ So 1 Kings 7:21 has, “at the porch of the temple.” 1 Kings 7:22 adds, “and upon the top of the pillars was lily-work.” JACHIN... BOAZ. — See 1 Kings 7:21. “The description of the two brazen pillars,” says Reuss, “much more detailed in 1 Kings 7:15 f... [ Continue Reading ]