1 Quatrocentos e oitenta anos depois que os israelitas saíram do Egito, no quarto ano do reinado de Salomão em Israel, no mês de zive, o segundo mês, ele começou a construir o templo do Senhor.2 O templo que o rei Salomão construiu para o Senhor media vinte e sete metros de comprimento, nove metros de largura e treze metros e meio de altura.3 O pórtico da entrada do santuário tinha a largura do templo, que era de nove metros, e avançava quatro metros e meio à frente do templo.4 Ele fez para o templo, janelas com grades estreitas.5 Junto às paredes do átrio principal e do santuário interior, construiu uma estrutura em torno do edifício, na qual havia salas laterais.6 O andar inferior tinha dois metros e vinte e cinco centímetros de largura, o andar intermediário tinha dois metros e setenta centímetros e o terceiro andar tinha três metros e quinze centímetros. Ele fez saliências de apoio nas paredes externas do templo, de modo que não houve necessidade de perfurar as paredes.7 Na construção do templo só foram usados blocos lavrados nas pedreiras, e não se ouviu no templo nenhum barulho de martelo, nem de talhadeira, nem de qualquer outra ferramenta de ferro durante a sua construção.8 A entrada para o andar inferior ficava no lado sul do templo; uma escada conduzia até o andar intermediário e dali ao terceiro.9 Assim ele construiu o templo e o terminou, fazendo-lhe um forro com vigas e tábuas de cedro.10 E fez as salas laterais ao longo de todo o templo. Cada uma tinha dois metros e vinte e cinco centímetros de altura, e elas estavam ligadas ao templo por vigas de cedro.11 E a palavra do Senhor veio a Salomão dizendo:12 "Quanto a este templo que você está construindo, se você seguir os meus decretos, executar os meus juízos e obedecer a todos os meus mandamentos, cumprirei por meio de você a promessa que fiz ao seu pai Davi,13 viverei no meio dos israelitas e não abandonarei Israel, o meu povo".14 E assim Salomão concluiu a construção do templo.15 Forrou as paredes do templo por dentro com tábuas de cedro, cobrindo-as desde o chão até o teto, e fez o soalho do templo com tábuas de pinho.16 Separou nove metros na parte de trás do templo, fazendo uma divisão com tábuas de cedro, do chão ao teto, para formar dentro do templo o santuário interno, o Lugar Santíssimo.17 O átrio principal em frente dessa sala media dezoito metros de comprimento.18 O interior do templo era de cedro, com figuras entalhadas de frutos e flores abertas. Tudo era de cedro; não se via pedra alguma.19 Preparou também o santuário interno no templo para ali colocar a arca da aliança do Senhor.20 O santuário interno tinha nove metros de comprimento, nove de largura e nove de altura. Ele revestiu o interior de ouro puro, e também revestiu de ouro o altar de cedro.21 Salomão cobriu o interior do templo de ouro puro, e estendeu correntes de ouro em frente do santuário interno, que também foi revestido de ouro.22 Assim, revestiu de ouro todo o interior do templo e também o altar que pertencia ao santuário interno.23 No santuário interno ele esculpiu dois querubins de madeira de oliveira, cada um com quatro metros e meio de altura.24 As asas abertas dos querubins mediam dois metros e vinte e cinco centímetros: quatro metros e meio da ponta de uma asa à ponta da outra.25 Os dois querubins tinham a mesma medida e a mesma forma.26 A altura de cada querubim era de quatro metros e meio.27 Ele colocou os querubins, com as asas abertas, no santuário interno do templo. A asa de um querubim encostava numa parede, e a do outro encostava na outra. As suas outras asas encostavam uma na outra no meio do santuário.28 Ele revestiu os querubins de ouro.29 Nas paredes ao redor do templo, tanto na parte interna como na externa, ele esculpiu querubins, tamareiras e flores abertas.30 Também revestiu de ouro os pisos, tanto na parte interna como na externa do templo.31 Para a entrada do santuário interno fez portas de oliveira com batentes de cinco lados.32 E nas duas portas de madeira de oliveira esculpiu querubins, tamareiras e flores abertas, e revestiu os querubins e as tamareiras de ouro batido.33 Também fez pilares de quatro lados, de madeira de oliveira para a entrada do templo.34 Fez também duas portas de pinho, cada uma com duas folhas que se articulavam por meio de dobradiças.35 Entalhou figuras de querubins, de tamareiras e de flores abertas nas portas e as revestiu todas igualmente de ouro batido.36 E construiu o pátio interno com três camadas de pedra lavrada e uma de vigas de cedro.37 O alicerce do templo do Senhor foi lançado no mês de zive do quarto ano.38 No mês de bul, o oitavo mês, do décimo primeiro ano, o templo foi terminado em todos os seus detalhes, de acordo com as suas especificações. Ele levou sete anos para construí-lo.

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.