^7:1Solomon took thirteen years to build his palace.¹^7:2He named² it “The Palace of the Lebanon Forest”;³ it was 150 feet⁴ long, 75 feet⁵ wide, and 45 feet⁶ high. It had four rows of cedar pillars and cedar beams above the pillars. ^7:3The roof above the beams supported by the pillars was also made of cedar; there were forty-five beams, fifteen per row. ^7:4There were three rows of windows arranged in sets of three.⁷^7:5All of the entrances⁸ were rectangular in shape⁹ and they were arranged in sets of three.¹⁰^7:6He made a colonnade¹¹ 75 feet¹² long and 45 feet¹³ wide. There was a porch in front of this and pillars and a roof in front of the porch.¹⁴^7:7He also made a throne room, called “The Hall of Judgment,” where he made judicial decisions.¹⁵ It was paneled with cedar from the floor to the rafters.¹⁶^7:8The palace where he lived was constructed in a similar way.¹⁷ He also constructed a palace like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom he had married.¹⁸^7:9All of these were built with the best¹⁹ stones, chiseled to the right size²⁰ and cut with a saw on all sides,²¹ from the foundation to the edge of the roof²² and from the outside to the great courtyard. ^7:10The foundation was made of large valuable stones, measuring either 15 feet or 12 feet.²³^7:11Above the foundation²⁴ the best²⁵ stones, chiseled to the right size,²⁶ were used along with cedar. ^7:12Around the great courtyard were three rows of chiseled stones and one row of cedar beams, like the inner courtyard of the Lord’s temple and the hall of the palace.²⁷

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Footnotes

1 Heb “His house Solomon built in thirteen years and he completed all his house.”
2 Heb “he built.”
3 The Palace of the Lebanon Forest. This name was appropriate because of the large amount of cedar, undoubtedly brought from Lebanon, used in its construction. The cedar pillars in the palace must have given it the appearance of a forest.
4 Heb “one hundred cubits.”
5 Heb “fifty cubits.”
6 Heb “thirty cubits.”
7 Heb “and framed [windows in] three rows, and opening to opening three times.” The precise meaning of this description is uncertain. Another option might be, “overhung [in] three rows.” This might mean they were positioned high on the walls.
8 Heb “all of the doors and doorposts.”
9 Rectangular in shape. That is, rather than arched.
10 Heb “and all the entrances and the doorposts [had] four frames, and in front of opening to opening three times” (the precise meaning of the description is uncertain).
11 Heb “a porch of pillars.”
12 Heb “fifty cubits.”
13 Heb “thirty cubits.”
14 Heb “and a porch was in front of them (i.e., the aforementioned pillars) and pillars and a roof in front of them (i.e., the aforementioned pillars and porch).” The precise meaning of the term translated “roof” is uncertain; it occurs only here and in Ezek 41:25–26.
15 Heb “and a porch for the throne, where he was making judicial decisions, the Porch of Judgment, he made.”
16 The Hebrew text reads, “from the floor to the floor.” The second occurrence of the term הַקַּרְקָע (haqqarqa’, “the floor”) is probably an error; one should emend to הַקּוֹרוֹת (haqqorot, “the rafters”). See 6:16.
17 Heb “and his house where he lived, the other court [i.e., as opposed to the great court], separated from the house belonging to the hall, was like this work [i.e., this style of architecture].”
18 Heb “and a house he was making for the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Solomon had taken, like this porch.”
19 Or “valuable” (see 5:17).
20 Heb “according to the measurement of chiseled [stone].”
21 Heb “inside and out.”
22 The precise meaning of the Hebrew word טְפָחוֹת (téfakhot) is uncertain, but it is clear that the referent stands in opposition to the foundation.
23 Heb “stones of ten cubits and stones of eight cubits” (it is unclear exactly what dimension is being measured). If both numbers refer to the length of the stones (cf. , , ), then perhaps stones of two different sizes were used in some alternating pattern.
24 Heb “on top,” or “above.”
25 Or “valuable” (see 5:17).
26 Heb “according to the measurement of chiseled [stone].”
27 Or “the porch of the temple.”