1 Solomon began work on the Temple. It was four hundred and eighty years after the people of Israel left Egypt, during the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the second month, the month of Ziv.2 The Temple Solomon built was ninety feet long, thirty feet wide, and forty-five feet high inside.3 The entrance room was fifteen feet deep and thirty feet wide. It was as wide as the sanctuary.4 He made windows for the Temple. Their openings were narrower on the outside than on the inside.5 A third-story annex, seven and one half feet high, was built against the outside walls. It was on the sides and the back of the Temple.6 Each room in the lowest story was seven and one half feet wide. The middle story was nine feet wide. The top story was ten and one half feet wide. The Temple wall on each floor was thinner than on the floor below, so that the rooms could rest on the wall without having their beams built into it.7 The stones with which the Temple was built were prepared at the quarry. That way there was no noise made by hammers, axes, or any other iron tools as the Temple was built.8 The entrance to the lowest story of the annex was on the south side of the Temple. It had stairs leading up to the second and third stories.9 King Solomon finished building the Temple. He put in a ceiling made of beams and boards of cedar.10 The three-story annex, each story seven and one half feet high, was built against the outside walls of the Temple. Cedar beams were used to join it to them.11 Jehovah spoke to Solomon:12 »If you obey all my laws and commands, I will do for you what I promised your father David.13 »I will live among my people Israel in this Temple that you are building. I will never abandon them.«14 Solomon finished building the Temple.15 The inside walls were covered with cedar panels from the floor to the ceiling. The floor was made of pine.16 An inner room, called the Most Holy Place, was built in the rear of the Temple. It was thirty feet long and was partitioned off by cedar boards reaching from the floor to the ceiling.17 The room in front of the Most Holy Place was sixty feet long.18 The cedar panels were decorated with carvings of gourds and flowers. The entire interior was covered with cedar. The stones of the walls could not be seen.19 An inner room was built in the rear of the Temple. The Ark of the Covenant was to be placed there.20 This inner room was thirty feet long, thirty feet wide, and thirty feet high, all covered with pure gold. The altar was covered with cedar panels.21 The inside of the Temple was covered with gold. Gold chains were placed across the entrance of the inner room.22 The whole interior of the Temple was covered with gold, as well as the altar in the Most Holy Place.23 Two cherubim made of olive wood were placed in the Most Holy Place. Each one was fifteen feet tall.24 Each had two wings, each wing was seven and one half feet long. The distance from one wing tip to the other was fifteen feet.25 The other cherub was fifteen feet tall.26 Both were the same size and shape.27 They were placed side by side in the Most Holy Place. Their outstretched wings touched each other in the middle of the room, and the other two wings touched the walls.28 The two cherubim were covered with gold.29 The walls of the main room and of the inner room were all decorated with carved figures of cherubim, palm trees, and flowers.30 Even the floor was covered with gold.31 A double door made of olive wood was hung at the entrance of the Most Holy Place. There was a pointed arch on top of the doorway.32 The doors were decorated with carved figures of cherubim, palm trees, and flowers. The doors, the cherubim, and the palm trees were covered with gold.33 A rectangular doorframe of olive wood was made for the entrance to the main room.34 There were two folding doors made of pine35 and decorated with carved figures of cherubim, palm trees, and flowers, which were evenly covered with gold.36 An inner court was built in front of the Temple. They enclosed it with walls that had one layer of cedar beams for every three layers of stone.37 The foundation of the Temple was laid in the second month, the month of Ziv, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign.38 In the eighth month, the month of Bul, in the eleventh year of Solomon's reign, the Temple was completely finished exactly as it had been planned. It took Solomon seven years to build it.

1 Sucedeu, pois, que no ano quatrocentos e oitenta depois de saírem os filhos de Israel da terra do Egito, no quarto ano do reinado de Salomão sobre Israel, no mês de zive, que é o segundo mês, começou-se a edificar a casa do Senhor.2 Ora, a casa que e rei Salomão edificou ao Senhor era de sessenta côvados de comprimento, vinte côvados de largura, e trinta côvados de altura.3 E o pórtico diante do templo da casa era de vinte côvados de comprimento, segundo a largura da casa, e de dez côvados de largura.4 E fez para a casa janelas de gelósias fixas.5 Edificou andares em torno da casa, contra a parede, tanto do templo como do oráculo, fazendo assim câmaras laterais ao seu redor.6 A câmara de baixo era de cinco côvados, a do meio de seis côvados, e a terceira de sete côvados de largura. E do lado de fora, ao redor da casa, fez pilastras de reforço, para que as vigas não se apoiassem nas paredes da casa.7 E edificava-se a casa com pedras lavradas na pedreira; de maneira que nem martelo, nem machado, nem qualquer outro instrumento de ferro se ouviu na casa enquanto estava sendo edificada.8 A porta para as câmaras laterais do meio estava à banda direita da casa; e por escadas espirais subia-se ao andar do meio, e deste ao terceiro.9 Assim, pois, edificou a casa, e a acabou, cobrindo-a com traves e pranchas de cedro.10 Também edificou os andares, contra toda a casa, de cinco côvados de altura, e os ligou à casa com madeira de cedro.11 Então veio a palavra do Senhor a Salomão, dizendo:12 Quanto a esta casa que tu estás edificando, se andares nos meus estatutos, e executares os meus preceitos, e guardares todos os meus mandamentos, andando neles, confirmarei para contigo a minha palavra, que falei a Davi, teu pai;13 e habitarei no meio dos filhos de Israel, e não desampararei o meu povo de Israel.14 Salomão, pois, edificou aquela casa, e a acabou.15 Também cobriu as paredes da casa por dentro com tábuas de cedro; desde o soalho da casa até e teto, tudo cobriu com madeira por dentro; e cobriu o soalho da casa com tábuas de cipreste.16 A vinte côvados do fundo da casa fez de tábuas de cedro uma divisão, de altura igual à do teto; e por dentro a preparou para o oráculo, isto é, para a lugar santíssimo.17 E era a casa, isto é, o templo fronteiro ao oráculo, de quarenta côvados de comprido.18 O cedro da casa por dentro era lavrado de botões e flores abertas; tudo era cedro; pedra nenhuma se via.19 No meio da casa, na parte mais interior, preparou o oráculo, para pôr ali a arca do pacto do Senhor.20 E o oráculo era, por dentro, de vinte côvados de comprimento, vinte de largura e vinte de altura; e o cobriu de ouro puro. Também cobriu de cedro o altar.21 Salomão, pois, cobriu a casa por dentro de ouro puro; e estendeu cadeias de ouro diante do oráculo, que cobriu também de ouro.22 Assim cobriu inteiramente de ouro a casa toda; também cobriu de ouro todo o altar do oráculo.23 No oráculo fez dois querubins de madeira de oliveira, cada um com dez côvados de altura.24 Uma asa de um querubim era de cinco côvados, e a outra de cinco côvados; dez côvados havia desde a extremidade de uma das suas asas até a extremidade da outra.25 Assim era também o outro querubim; ambos os querubins eram da mesma medida e do mesmo talho.26 Um querubim tinha dez côvados de altura, e assim também o outro.27 E pôs os querubins na parte mais interior da casa. As asas dos querubins se estendiam de maneira que a asa de um tocava numa parede, e a do outro na outra parede, e as suas asas no meio da casa tocavam uma na outra.28 Também cobriu de ouro os querubins.29 Quanto a todas as paredes da casa em redor, entalhou-as de querubins, de palmas e de palmas abertas, tanto na parte mais interior como na mais exterior.30 Também cobriu de ouro o soalho da casa, de uma e de outra parte.31 E para a entrada do oráculo fez portas de madeira de oliveira; a verga com os umbrais faziam a quinta parte da parede.32 Assim fez as duas portas de madeira de oliveira; e entalhou-as de querubins, de palmas e de flores abertas, que cobriu de ouro também estendeu ouro sobre os querubins e sobre as palmas.33 Assim também fez para a porta do templo umbrais de madeira de oliveira, que constituíam a quarta parte da parede;34 E eram as duas partes de madeira de cipreste; e as duas folhas duma porta eram dobradiças, como também as duas folhas da outra porta.35 E as lavrou de querubins, de palmas e de flores abertas; e as cobriu de ouro acomodado ao lavor.36 Também edificou o átrio interior de três ordens de pedras lavradas e de uma ordem de vigas de cedro.37 No quarto ano se pôs o fundamento da casa do Senhor, no mês de zive.38 E no undécimo ano, no mês de bul, que é o oitavo mês, se acabou esta casa com todas as suas dependências, e com tudo o que lhe convinha. Assim levou sete anos para edificá-la.