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1 Kings Chapter 7 | Parsha: Va-yakhel Pekudei

1And it took Solomon thirteen years to build his palace, until his whole palace was completed.

2He built the Lebanon Forest House with four rows of cedar columns, and with hewn cedar beams above the columns. Its length was 100 cubits, its breadth 50 cubits, and its height 30 cubits. 3It was paneled above with cedar, with the planks that were above on the 45 columns—15 in each row. 4And there were three rows of window frames, with three tiers of windows facing each other. 5All the doorways and doorposts had square frames—with three tiers of windows facing each other.

6He made the portico of columns 50 cubits long and 30 cubits wide; the portico was in front of [the columns], and there were columns with a canopy in front of them. 7He made the throne portico, where he was to pronounce judgment—the Hall of Judgment. It was paneled with cedar from floor to floor.

8The house that he used as a residence, in the rear courtyard, back of the portico, was of the same construction. Solomon also constructed a palace like that portico for the daughter of Pharaoh, whom he had married.

9All these buildings, from foundation to coping and all the way out to the great courtyard, were of choice stones, hewn according to measure, smooth on all sides. 10The foundations were huge blocks of choice stone, stones of 10 cubits and stones of 8 cubits; 11and above were choice stones, hewn according to measure, and cedar wood. 12The large surrounding courtyard had three tiers of hewn stone and a row of cedar beams, the same as for the inner court of the House of the Lord, and for the portico of the House.

13King Solomon sent for Hiram and brought him down from Tyre. 14He was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father had been a Tyrian, a coppersmith. He was endowed with skill, ability, and talent for executing all work in bronze. He came to King Solomon and executed all his work. 15He cast two columns of bronze; one column was 18 cubits high and measured 12 cubits in circumference, [and similarly] the other column. 16He made two capitals, cast in bronze, to be set upon the two columns, the height of each of the two capitals being 5 cubits; 17also nets of meshwork with festoons of chainwork for the capitals that were on the top of the columns, seven for each of the two capitals. 18He made the columns so that there were two rows [of pomegranates] encircling the top of the one network, to cover the capitals that were on the top of the pomegranates; and he did the same for [the network on] the second capital. 19The capitals upon the columns of the portico were of lily design, 4 cubits high; 20so also the capitals upon the two columns extended above and next to the bulge that was beside the network. There were 200 pomegranates in rows around the top of the second capital.

21He set up the columns at the portico of the Great Hall; he set up one column on the right and named it Jachin, and he set up the other column on the left and named it Boaz. 22Upon the top of the columns there was a lily design. Thus the work of the columns was completed.

23Then he made the tank of cast metal, 10 cubits across from brim to brim, completely round; it was 5 cubits high, and it measured 30 cubits in circumference. 24There were gourds below the brim completely encircling it—ten to a cubit, encircling the tank; the gourds were in two rows, cast in one piece with it. 25It stood upon twelve oxen: three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east, with the tank resting upon them; their haunches were all turned inward. 26It was a handbreadth thick, and its brim was made like that of a cup, like the petals of a lily. Its capacity was 2,000 baths.

27He made the ten laver stands of bronze. The length of each laver stand was 4 cubits and the width 4 cubits, and the height was 3 cubits. 28The structure of the laver stands was as follows: They had insets, and there were insets within the frames; 29and on the insets within the frames were lions, oxen, and cherubim. Above the frames was a stand; and both above and below the lions and the oxen were spirals of hammered metal. 30Each laver stand had four bronze wheels and [two] bronze axletrees. Its four legs had brackets; the brackets were under the laver, cast with spirals beyond each. 31Its funnel, within the crown, rose a cubit above it; this funnel was round, in the fashion of a stand, a cubit and a half in diameter. On the funnel too there were carvings.
But the insets were square, not round.
32And below the insets were the four wheels. The axletrees of the wheels were [fixed] in the laver stand, and the height of each wheel was a cubit and a half. 33The structure of the wheels was like the structure of chariot wheels; and their axletrees, their rims, their spokes, and their hubs were all of cast metal. 34Four brackets ran to the four corners of each laver stand; the brackets were of a piece with the laver stand. 35At the top of the laver stand was a round band half a cubit high, and together with the top of the laver stand; its sides and its insets were of one piece with it. 36On its surface—on its sides—and on its insets [Hiram] engraved cherubim, lions, and palms, as the clear space on each allowed, with spirals roundabout. 37It was after this manner that he made the ten laver stands, all of them cast alike, of the same measure and the same form. 38Then he made ten bronze lavers, one laver on each of the ten laver stands, each laver measuring 4 cubits and each laver containing forty baths.

39He disposed the laver stands, five at the right side of the House and five at its left side; and the tank he placed on the right side of the House, at the southeast [corner].

40Hiram also made the lavers, the scrapers, and the sprinkling bowls.
So Hiram finished all the work that he had been doing for King Solomon on the House of the Lord:
41the two columns, the two globes of the capitals upon the columns; and the two pieces of network to cover the two globes of the capitals upon the columns; 42the four hundred pomegranates for the two pieces of network, two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two globes of the capitals upon the columns; 43the ten stands and the ten lavers upon the stands; 44the one tank with the twelve oxen underneath the tank; 45the pails, the scrapers, and the sprinkling bowls. All those vessels in the House of the Lord that Hiram made for King Solomon were of burnished bronze. 46The king had them cast in earthen molds, in the plain of the Jordan between Succoth and Zarethan. 47Solomon left all the vessels [unweighed] because of their very great quantity; the weight of the bronze was not reckoned.

48And Solomon made all the furnishings that were in the House of the Lord: the altar, of gold; the table for the bread of display, of gold; 49the lampstands—five on the right side and five on the left—in front of the Shrine, of solid gold; and the petals, lamps, and tongs, of gold; 50the basins, snuffers, sprinkling bowls, ladles, and fire pans, of solid gold; and the hinge sockets for the doors of the innermost part of the House, the Holy of Holies, and for the doors of the Great Hall of the House, of gold.


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