And the two doors were of fir tree ,.... the posts were of olive, but the doors of fir, and they were both folding doors, as appears by what follows: the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding ; which, taking up less room, made the passage wider, see Ezekiel 41:24 . read more
And the two doors were [As in 1 Kings 6:32 , the verb is to be supplied from the verse preceding. And he made two doors, etc.] of fir tree [ בְּרוֹש see note on 1 Kings 5:8 ]: the two leaves [lit. ribs, same word as in 1 Kings 5:5 , 1 Kings 5:8 , 1 Kings 5:10 ] of the one door were folding [Heb. rolling ], and the two leaves [ קְלָעִים is probably—a clerical error for צְלָעִים arising out of the קָלַע , in verses 32, 35] of the other [Heb. second ... read more
Fir-tree - Rather, juniper (1 Kings 5:6 note). Each door was made in two parts, which folded back one on the other like shutters, by means of hinges. The weight of the doors no doubt made it inconvenient to open the whole door on every occasion. read more
Details of the temple’s interior (6:14-38)Inside the temple the stonework was covered with lavishly carved wood panelling overlaid with beaten gold (14-15; see v. 22). A partition divided the main temple into two rooms. The larger front room was called the nave or Holy Place; the smaller rear room was called the inner sanctuary or Most Holy Place (16-18).The Most Holy Place contained the ark of the covenant, symbol of God’s presence (19). This room had a lower ceiling than the rest of the... read more
2. Temple construction ch. 6After arrangements for building the temple were in order, construction began. This building took seven years to complete (1 Kings 6:38)."In an earlier era scholars debunked the reality of a temple in Israel like Solomon’s because nothing similar was known from the ancient Near East. However, at ’Ain Dara (and earlier in Tall Ta’yinat), Syria, a temple from the tenth century B.C. came to light that bore a remarkable similarity to the temple of Jerusalem. The size is... read more
The inside of the temple 6:14-36The altar (1 Kings 6:19; 1 Kings 6:22) refers to the altar of incense (cf. 1 Kings 7:48). This altar evidently stood in the west end of the holy place (cf. Exodus 30:6; Exodus 40:5; Leviticus 16:2; Hebrews 9:4; Hebrews 9:7). The cherubim were figures of angels carved out of olive wood (1 Kings 6:23-28). They may have resembled "winged sphinxes." [Note: Auld, p. 44.] Since there were cherubim attached to the mercy seat of the ark, these were two additional... read more
The Construction of the TempleIn shape the Temple was a rectangular hall 60 x 20 x 30 cubits (a cubit being about 18 inches). On its E. face it had a porch (forming an entrance) which extended across the whole front and added 10 cubits to the length of the building (1 Kings 6:3). The height of this is given in 2 Chronicles 3:4 as 120 cubits; but such a measurement is out of all proportion to the others, and is probably an error (one of the MSS of the LXX substitutes 20 cubits). On three sides... read more
; 1 Kings 6:1-38; 1 Kings 7:1-51THE TEMPLE1 Kings 5:1-18; 1 Kings 6:1-38; 1 Kings 7:1-51"And his next son, for wealth and wisdom famed, The clouded Ark of God, till then in tents Wandering, shall in a glorious temple enshrine."-Paradise Lost, 12:340.AFTER the destructive battle of Aphek, in which the Philistines had defeated Israel, slain the two sons of Eli, and taken captive the Ark of God, they had inflicted a terrible vengeance on the old sanctuary at Shiloh. They had burnt the young men in... read more
CHAPTER 6The Description of the Temple 1. The date of the beginning of the building (1 Kings 6:1 ) 2. The house, the porches and side chambers (1 Kings 6:2-10 ) 3. The divine charge (1 Kings 6:11-14 ) 4. The internal arrangements (1 Kings 6:15-22 ) 5. The cherubim (1 Kings 6:23-30 ) 6. The doors (1 Kings 6:31-35 ) 7. The inner court and the temple finished (1 Kings 6:36-38 ) Three chapters are taken up with the description of the temple, its contents, Solomon’s house of the... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Kings 6:15-38
Here, I. We have a particular account of the details of the building. 1. The wainscot of the temple. It was of cedar (1 Kgs. 6:15), which was strong and durable, and of a very sweet smell. The wainscot was curiously carved with knops (like eggs or apples) and flowers, no doubt as the fashion then was, 1 Kgs. 6:18. 2. The gilding. It was not like ours, washed over, but the whole house, all the inside of the temple (1 Kgs. 6:22), even the floor (1 Kgs. 6:30), he overlaid with gold, and the most... read more