1 Kings 6:9 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Kings 6:1-10

Here, I. The temple is called the house of the Lord (1 Kgs. 6:1), because it was, 1. Directed and modelled by him. Infinite Wisdom was the architect, and gave David the plan or pattern by the Spirit, not by word of mouth only, but, for the greater certainty and exactness, in writing (1 Chron. 28:11, 12), as he had given to Moses in the mouth a draught of the tabernacle. 2. Dedicated and devoted to him and to his honour, to be employed in his service, so his as never any other house was, for he... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 6:9

So he built the house, and finished it ,.... The body of it, the walls of the holy and most holy place, with the chambers on the sides of them, and the porch at the end that led into them: and covered the house with beams and boards of cedar ; with hollow boards, as the Targum, which formed an arch ceiling to it, and made it look very grand and beautiful; and then over them were laid beams and planks of cedar, not properly as a flat roof to it, but rather as a flooring for other... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Kings 6:9

Covered the house with beams and boards of cedar - The Eastern custom is very different from ours: we ceil with plaster, and make our floors of wood; they make their floors of plaster or painted tiles, and make their ceilings of wood. But it may not be improper to observe that, in ancient times, our buildings were somewhat similar. Westminster Hall is a proof of this. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 6:2-20

Christianity built on the Foundations of Judaism. The Jewish temple in its resemblance to the Gothic church is a not inapt illustration of the relations of Christianity to Judaism. The temple of Solomon was not only architecturally the exact reproduction on a larger scale, and in a more permanent form, of the tabernacle of witness, it was also the model and archetype of the sacred buildings of the Christian faith. In appearance, no doubt, it was somewhat different—the purposes for which... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Kings 6:9

So he built the house and finished it [ i.e; the exterior (see on 1 Kings 6:14 )] and covered [ i.e; roofed, same word Deuteronomy 33:21 ; Jeremiah 22:14 ; Haggai 1:4 . There is no reference to the lining of cedar which was applied to the interior. That is described in Haggai 1:15 ] the house with beams and boards [Heb. rows, ranks. The same word is used of soldiers 2 Kings 11:8 , 2 Kings 11:15 ] of cedar. [It has been universally held till quite lately that the... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - 1 Kings 6:9

He built the house, and finished it - i. e., the external shell of the house. The internal fittings were added afterward. See 1 Kings 6:15-22.Covered the house - Roofed it with a wooden roof, sloped like our roofs. read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - 1 Kings 6:9-10

1 Kings 6:9-10. So he built the house, and finished it That is, the walls of the house. And then he built chambers There is nothing in the Hebrew for the word then, which being omitted, the sense is, that he here gives an account of the height of these chambers, as, 1 Kings 6:6, he did of the breadth. But it is very briefly; and we are to understand that those below, and those in the middle, and those above, were all of an equal height, namely, five cubits. So they were fifteen cubits... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 6:1-13

Click image for full-size versionOverall plan of the temple (6:1-13)The simplest way to describe Solomon’s temple is as a rectangular stone building with a porch added to the front, and three storeys of storerooms added to the sides and rear. The side and rear walls of the main building were reduced in thickness by one cubit (about forty-four centimetres, or eighteen inches) for the middle storey, and by a further cubit for the top storey. This created ‘steps’ on which the timber beams rested... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - 1 Kings 6:9

9, 10. built the house—The temple is here distinguished from the wings or chambers attached to it—and its roofing was of cedar-wood. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - 1 Kings 6:1-10

The outside of the temple 6:1-101 Kings 6:1 is one of the most important verses in the Old Testament chronologically. The dates of Solomon’s reign (971-931 B.C.) are quite certain. They rest on references that other ancient Near Eastern king lists corroborate. Solomon began temple construction about 966 B.C. According to this verse the Exodus took place in 1445 or 1446 B.C. Most conservative scholars who take statements in Scripture like this verse seriously hold this date for the Exodus. The... read more