Solomon Builds His Palace

1 Solomon was ^xbuilding his own house thirteen years, and he finished his entire house.

2 He built ^ythe House of the Forest of Lebanon. Its length was a hundred cubits¹ and its breadth fifty cubits and its height thirty cubits, and it was built on four² rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams on the pillars. 3 And it was covered with cedar above the chambers that were on the forty-five pillars, fifteen in each row. 4 There were window frames in three rows, and window opposite window in three tiers. 5 All the doorways and windows³ had square frames, and window was opposite window in three tiers.

6 And he made ^zthe Hall of Pillars; its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth thirty cubits. There was a porch in front with pillars, and ^aa canopy in front of them.

7 And he made the Hall of the Throne where he was to pronounce judgment, even the Hall of Judgment. ^bIt was finished with cedar from floor to rafters.⁴

8 His own house where he was to dwell, in the other court back of the hall, was of like workmanship. Solomon also made a house like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter ^cwhom he had taken in marriage.

9 All these were made of costly stones, cut according to measure, sawed with saws, back and front, even from the foundation to the coping, and from the outside to the great court. 10 The foundation was of costly stones, huge stones, stones of eight and ten cubits. 11 And above were costly stones, cut according to measurement, and cedar. 12 ^dThe great court had three courses of cut stone all around, and a course of cedar beams; so had the inner court of the house of the Lord and ^ethe vestibule of the house.

The Temple Furnishings

13 And King Solomon sent and brought ^fHiram from Tyre. 14 He was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in bronze. And ^ghe was full of wisdom, understanding, and skill for making any work in bronze. He came to King Solomon and did all his work.

15 ^hHe cast ⁱtwo pillars of bronze. ^jEighteen cubits was the height of one pillar, and a line of twelve cubits measured its circumference. It was hollow, and its thickness was four fingers. The second pillar was the same.⁵ 16 He also made two capitals of cast bronze to set on the tops of the pillars. The height of the one capital was five cubits, and ^jthe height of the other capital was five cubits. 17 There were lattices of checker work with wreaths of chain work for the capitals on the tops of the pillars, a lattice⁶ for the one capital and a lattice for the other capital. 18 Likewise he made pomegranates⁷ in two rows around the one latticework to cover the capital that was on the top of the pillar, and he did the same with the other capital. 19 Now the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars in the vestibule were of lily-work, four cubits. 20 The capitals were on the two pillars and also above the rounded projection which was beside the latticework. There were ^ktwo hundred pomegranates in two rows all around, and so with the other capital. 21 ^lHe set up the pillars at the vestibule of the temple. He set up the pillar on the south and called its name Jachin, and he set up the pillar on the north and called its name Boaz. 22 And on the tops of the pillars was lily-work. Thus the work of the pillars was finished.

23 ^mThen he made ⁿthe sea of cast metal. It was round, ten cubits from brim to brim, and five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits measured its circumference. 24 Under its brim were ^ogourds, for ten cubits, compassing the sea all around. The gourds were in two rows, cast with it when it was cast. 25 It stood on ^ptwelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The sea was set on them, and all their rear parts were inward. 26 Its thickness was a handbreadth,⁸ and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily. It held two thousand baths.⁹

27 He also made the ^qten stands of bronze. Each stand was four cubits long, four cubits wide, and three cubits high. 28 This was the construction of the stands: they had panels, and the panels were set in the frames, 29 and on the panels that were set in the frames were lions, oxen, and cherubim. On the frames, both above and below the lions and oxen, there were wreaths of beveled work. 30 Moreover, each stand had four bronze wheels and axles of bronze, and at the four corners were supports for a basin. The supports were cast with wreaths at the side of each. 31 Its opening was within a crown that projected upward one cubit. Its opening was round, as a pedestal is made, a cubit and a half deep. At its opening there were carvings, and its panels were square, not round. 32 And the four wheels were underneath the panels. The axles of the wheels were of one piece with the stands, and the height of a wheel was a cubit and a half. 33 The wheels were made like a chariot wheel; their axles, their rims, their spokes, and their hubs were all cast. 34 There were four supports at the four corners of each stand. The supports were of one piece with the stands. 35 And on the top of the stand there was a round band half a cubit high; and on the top of the stand its stays and its panels were of one piece with it. 36 And on the surfaces of its stays and on its panels, he carved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, according to the space of each, with wreaths all around. 37 After this manner he made ^qthe ten stands. All of them were cast alike, of the same measure and the same form.

38 And he made ^rten basins of bronze. Each basin held forty baths, each basin measured four cubits, and there was a basin for each of the ten stands. 39 And he set the stands, five on the south side of the house, and five on the north side of the house. And he set the sea at the southeast corner of the house.

40 ^sHiram also made ^tthe pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Hiram finished all the work that he did for King Solomon on the house of the Lord: 41 the two pillars, the two bowls of the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars, and the two ^ulatticeworks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars; 42 and the ^vfour hundred pomegranates for the two latticeworks, two rows of pomegranates for each latticework, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars; 43 the ten stands, and the ten basins on the stands; 44 and ^wthe one sea, and the twelve oxen underneath the sea.

45 Now ^xthe pots, the shovels, and the basins, all these vessels in the house of the Lord, which Hiram made for King Solomon, were of burnished bronze. 46 In the plain of the Jordan the king cast them, in the clay ground between ^ySuccoth and ^zZarethan. 47 And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because there were so many of them; ^athe weight of the bronze was not ascertained.

48 So Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of the Lord: ^bthe golden altar, ^cthe golden table for ^dthe bread of the Presence, 49 ^ethe lampstands of pure gold, five on the south side and five on the north, before the inner sanctuary; ^fthe flowers, the lamps, and the tongs, of gold; 50 the cups, snuffers, basins, dishes for incense, and ^gfire pans, of pure gold; and the sockets of gold, for the doors of the innermost part of the house, ^hthe Most Holy Place, and for the doors of the nave of the temple.

51 Thus all the work that King Solomon did on the house of the Lord was finished. And Solomon brought in ⁱthe things that David his father had dedicated, the silver, the gold, and the vessels, and stored them in the treasuries of the house of the Lord.

Unless the Lord Builds the House

A Song of ^mAscents. Of Solomon.

The Supremacy of God’s Son

1 Long ago, at many times and ^ain many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but ^bin these last days ^che has spoken to us by ^dhis Son, whom he appointed ^ethe heir of all things, ^fthrough whom also he created ^gthe world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and ^hthe exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. ⁱAfter making purification for sins, ^jhe sat down ^kat the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name ^lhe has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

5 For to which of the angels did God ever say,

Or again,

6 And again, when he brings ^othe firstborn into the world, he says,

7 Of the angels he says,

8 But of the Son he says,

10 And,

13 And to which of the angels has he ever said,

14 Are they not all ministering spirits ^ysent out to serve for the sake of those who are to ^zinherit salvation?

Warning Against Neglecting Salvation

1 Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. 2 For since ^athe message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and ^bevery transgression or disobedience received a just ^cretribution, 3 ^dhow shall we escape if we ^eneglect such a great salvation? It was ^fdeclared at first by the Lord, and it was ^gattested to us ^hby those who heard, 4 ^gwhile God also bore witness ⁱby signs and wonders and various miracles and by ^jgifts of the Holy Spirit ^kdistributed according to his will.

The Founder of Salvation

5 For it was not to angels that God subjected the world ^lto come, of which we are speaking. 6 It has been testified somewhere,

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, ⁿwe do not yet see everything in subjection to him. 9 But we see him ^owho for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, ^pcrowned with glory and honor ^qbecause of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might ^rtaste death ^sfor everyone.

10 For it ^twas fitting that he, ^ufor whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons ^vto glory, should make the ^wfounder of their salvation ^xperfect through suffering. 11 For ^yhe who sanctifies and ^zthose who are sanctified ^aall have one source.³ That is why he is not ashamed to call them ^bbrothers,⁴ 12 saying,

13 And again,

And again,

14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise ^hpartook of the same things, that ⁱthrough death he might ^jdestroy ^kthe one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who ^lthrough fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he ^mhelps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had ⁿto be made like his brothers in every respect, ^oso that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest ^pin the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered ^qwhen tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Jesus Greater Than Moses

1 Therefore, holy brothers,⁵ you who share in ^ra heavenly calling, consider Jesus, ^sthe apostle and high priest of our confession, 2 who was faithful to him who appointed him, ^tjust as Moses also was faithful in all God’s⁶ house. 3 For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. 4 (For every house is built by someone, but ^uthe builder of all things is God.) 5 ^vNow Moses was faithful in all God’s house ^was a servant, ^xto testify to the things that were to be spoken later, 6 but Christ is faithful over God’s house as ^ya son. And ^zwe are his house, if indeed we ^ahold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.⁷

A Rest for the People of God

7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says,

12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from ^ethe living God. 13 But ^fexhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by ^gthe deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have come to share in Christ, ^hif indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. 15 As it is said,

16 For ⁱwho were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not ^jall those who left Egypt led by Moses? 17 And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, ^kwhose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did he swear that ^lthey would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? 19 So we see that ^mthey were unable to enter because of unbelief.