The Building of Solomon's Temple

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Chapter 6 records the actual building of Solomon's Temple. It was built some 315 to 480 years after the Exodus from Egypt. Notice the "timelines" below, the work of two different historians.

The Bible Timeline			Matthew Henry
1275 - 1235	40 years	Moses	1291 - 1251	40 years
1234 - 1211	23 years	Joshua	1250 - 1234	17 years
1210 - 1099	111 years	Judges	1234 - 935	299 years
1098 - 1049	49 years	Eli	935 - 895	40 years
1048 - 1003	45 years	Samuel and Saul	895 - 855	40 years
1002 - 965	37 years	David	854 - 814	40 years
Total	315 years		Total	480 years (I Kings 6:1)

The difference lies in the years of the Judges. Their total reigns, 299, only covered 111 years because some of their reigns overlapped.

Verse 2 gives the size of the house that Solomon built for the Lord. It was 60 cubits long, 20 cubits wide and 30 cubits high. Most authorities say that a cubit was 17 inches long. (Some say 20.9 inches). Using 18 inches as a cubit makes the transition quite easy. It was 90 feet long, 30 feet wide and 45 feet high.

Before going on, lets look at some history concerning the Temple. There were two Temples built in Old Testament times. The first was built by Solomon between 961 and 953 BC. The Babylonians destroyed it in 586 BC. The second one was built in 516 BC by Zerubbabel and suffered the ravages of time until 20 BC when Herod rebuilt it. The Romans destroyed this one in 70 AD. The second one was poor compared to the first. There was nothing in the Holy of Holies as the Ark of the Covenant had been destroyed or stolen by the Babylonians in 586 BC.

Getting back to the lesson, Solomon's Temple was built on a hill about 2500 feet above sea level. The place was called Mt. Mor-i-ah. It was the place where the Lord appeared unto David on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite and stopped the plague that was caused by David having taken a census and there David built an Altar unto the Lord.

The Temple was built facing east, looking out over the Mt. of Olives. Even though God would not allow David to build the Temple, He did allow him to provide much of the financing and elaborate furnishings. He also organized the Priests and established a choir and orchestra to minister to it.

Solomon's Temple was built mostly by Phoenician craftsmen and some believe it was modeled after a Phoenician Chapel. Obviously the floor plan was modeled after the Tabernacle. The Temple was built on a 9-foot high platform about 7 feet wider than the Temple. It was constructed of white limestone and the interior was lined with cedar. There were 10 steps and 2 landings leading up from the ground to the top of the platform. These were used in different ceremonies.

The main portion of the Temple was 60 cubits (90 feet) long, 20 cubits (30 feet) wide and 30 cubits (45 feet) high. Across the front of the Temple was a porch or foyer 20 cubits (30 feet) wide by 10 cubits (15 feet) deep. There were storage rooms the full length on both the north and the south sides, three stories high. The materials used in the construction of the Temple were pre-finished and assembled at the site without the noise or necessity of tools. The inside was paneled with cedar and the floors were made of cypress. The first room in from the porch was the Holy Place. It was 45 cubits (60 feet) by 20 cubits (30 feet) wide. The back room, The Holy of Holies, was 20 cubits (30 feet) by 20 cubits (30 feet) square. Its walls and ceiling was overlaid with pure gold and it was in this room that the Ark of the Covenant was placed. Also, in this room, he made two cherubim from olive wood. Their wingspan was 10 cubits (15 feet) and they were 10 cubits (15 feet) high.

Figures of Palm trees, Angels and flowers were carved on the walls of both rooms. At the entrance of the Temple, there were two folding doors made of cypress wood. The foundation of the Temple was laid in the month of Ziv (May) in the fourth year of Solomon's reign, and it took 7 years to build.

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