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 he was filled with wisdom and understanding and skill, to work all works in bronze. He came to king Solomon, and performed all his work. For he fashioned the two pillars of bronze, eighteen cubits high apiece; and a line of twelve cubits encircled either of them. He made two capitals of molten bronze, to set on the tops of the pillars. The height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits. There were nets of checker work, and wreaths of chain work, for the capitals which were on the top of the pillars; seven for the one capital, and seven for the other capital. So he made the pillars; and there were two rows around on the one network, to cover the capitals that were on the top of the pillars: and he did so for the other capital. The capitals that were on the top of the pillars in the porch were of lily work, four cubits. There were capitals above also on the two pillars, close by the belly which was beside the network. There were two hundred pomegranates in rows around the other capital. He set up the pillars at the porch of the temple. He set up the right pillar, and called its name Jachin; and he set up the left pillar, and called its name Boaz. On the top of the pillars was lily work: so the work of the pillars was finished. He made the molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in shape. Its height was five cubits; and a line of thirty cubits encircled it. Under its brim around there were buds which encircled it for ten cubits, encircling the sea. The buds were in two rows, cast when it was cast. It stood on twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; and the sea was set on them above, and all their hindquarters were inward. It was a hand width thick. Its brim was worked like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily. It held two thousand baths. He made the ten bases of bronze. The length of one base was four cubits, four cubits its width, and three cubits its height. The work of the bases was like this: they had panels; and there were panels between the ledges; and on the panels that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and on the ledges there was a pedestal above; and beneath the lions and oxen were wreaths of hanging work. Every base had four bronze wheels, and axles of bronze; and the four feet of it had supports. The supports were cast beneath the basin, with wreaths at the side of each. Its mouth within the capital and above was a cubit. Its mouth was round after the work of a pedestal, a cubit and a half; and also on its mouth were engravings, and their panels were square, not round. The four wheels were underneath the panels; and the axles of the wheels were in the base. The height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit. The work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel. Their axles, and their rims, and their spokes, and their naves, were all of cast metal. There were four supports at the four corners of each base. Its supports were of the base itself. In the top of the base there was a round band half a cubit high; and on the top of the base its supports and its panels were the same. On the plates of its supports, and on its panels, he engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, each in its space, with wreaths all around. He made the ten bases in this way: all of them had one casting, one measure, and one form. He made ten basins of bronze. One basin contained forty baths; and every basin was four cubits; and on every one of the ten bases one basin. He set the bases, five on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house. He set the sea on the right side of the house eastward and toward the south. Hiram made the pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Hiram finished doing all the work that he worked for king Solomon in Yahweh’s house: the two pillars; the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks; two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars; the ten bases; the ten basins on the bases; the one sea; the twelve oxen under the sea; the pots; the shovels; and the basins: even all these vessels, which Hiram made for king Solomon, in Yahweh’s house, were of burnished bronze. The king cast them in the plain of the Jordan, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan. Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because there were so many of them. The weight of the bronze could not be determined.
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1 Kings 7:14-47 sits inside this longer paragraph.
Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all his house. For he built the House of the Forest of Lebanon. Its length was one hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits, on four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams on the pillars. It was covered with cedar above over the forty-five beams, that were on the pillars, fifteen in a row. There were beams in three rows, and window was facing window in three ranks. All the doors and posts were made square with beams: and window was facing window in three ranks. He made the porch of pillars. Its length was fifty cubits and its width thirty cubits; with a porch before them, and pillars and a threshold before them. He made the porch of the throne where he was to judge, even the porch of judgment; and it was covered with cedar from floor to floor. His house where he was to dwell, the other court within the porch, was of the like work. He made also a house for Pharaoh’s daughter (whom Solomon had taken as wife), like this porch. All these were of costly stones, even of cut stone, according to measure, sawed with saws, inside and outside, even from the foundation to the coping, and so on the outside to the great court. The foundation was of costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits. Above were costly stones, even cut stone, according to measure, and cedar wood. The great court around had three courses of cut stone, and a course of cedar beams; like the inner court of Yahweh’s house and the porch of the house. King Solomon sent and brought Hiram out of Tyre. 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 he was filled with wisdom and understanding and skill, to work all works in bronze. He came to king Solomon, and performed all his work. For he fashioned the two pillars of bronze, eighteen cubits high apiece; and a line of twelve cubits encircled either of them. He made two capitals of molten bronze, to set on the tops of the pillars. The height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits. There were nets of checker work, and wreaths of chain work, for the capitals which were on the top of the pillars; seven for the one capital, and seven for the other capital. So he made the pillars; and there were two rows around on the one network, to cover the capitals that were on the top of the pillars: and he did so for the other capital. The capitals that were on the top of the pillars in the porch were of lily work, four cubits. There were capitals above also on the two pillars, close by the belly which was beside the network. There were two hundred pomegranates in rows around the other capital. He set up the pillars at the porch of the temple. He set up the right pillar, and called its name Jachin; and he set up the left pillar, and called its name Boaz. On the top of the pillars was lily work: so the work of the pillars was finished. He made the molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in shape. Its height was five cubits; and a line of thirty cubits encircled it. Under its brim around there were buds which encircled it for ten cubits, encircling the sea. The buds were in two rows, cast when it was cast. It stood on twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; and the sea was set on them above, and all their hindquarters were inward. It was a hand width thick. Its brim was worked like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily. It held two thousand baths. He made the ten bases of bronze. The length of one base was four cubits, four cubits its width, and three cubits its height. The work of the bases was like this: they had panels; and there were panels between the ledges; and on the panels that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and on the ledges there was a pedestal above; and beneath the lions and oxen were wreaths of hanging work. Every base had four bronze wheels, and axles of bronze; and the four feet of it had supports. The supports were cast beneath the basin, with wreaths at the side of each. Its mouth within the capital and above was a cubit. Its mouth was round after the work of a pedestal, a cubit and a half; and also on its mouth were engravings, and their panels were square, not round. The four wheels were underneath the panels; and the axles of the wheels were in the base. The height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit. The work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel. Their axles, and their rims, and their spokes, and their naves, were all of cast metal. There were four supports at the four corners of each base. Its supports were of the base itself. In the top of the base there was a round band half a cubit high; and on the top of the base its supports and its panels were the same. On the plates of its supports, and on its panels, he engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, each in its space, with wreaths all around. He made the ten bases in this way: all of them had one casting, one measure, and one form. He made ten basins of bronze. One basin contained forty baths; and every basin was four cubits; and on every one of the ten bases one basin. He set the bases, five on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house. He set the sea on the right side of the house eastward and toward the south. Hiram made the pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Hiram finished doing all the work that he worked for king Solomon in Yahweh’s house: the two pillars; the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks; two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars; the ten bases; the ten basins on the bases; the one sea; the twelve oxen under the sea; the pots; the shovels; and the basins: even all these vessels, which Hiram made for king Solomon, in Yahweh’s house, were of burnished bronze. The king cast them in the plain of the Jordan, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan. Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because there were so many of them. The weight of the bronze could not be determined. Solomon made all the vessels that were in Yahweh’s house: the golden altar and the table that the show bread was on, of gold; and the lamp stands, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the inner sanctuary, of pure gold; and the flowers, the lamps, and the tongs, of gold; the cups, the snuffers, the basins, the spoons, and the fire pans, of pure gold; and the hinges, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the house, of the temple, of gold. Thus all the work that king Solomon did in Yahweh’s house was finished. Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated, the silver, the gold, and the vessels, and put them in the treasuries of Yahweh’s house.
Parallel Translations
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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 he was filled with wisdom and understanding and skill, to work all works in bronze. He came to king Solomon, and performed all his work.
For he fashioned the two pillars of bronze, eighteen cubits high apiece; and a line of twelve cubits encircled either of them.
He made two capitals of molten bronze, to set on the tops of the pillars. The height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits.
There were nets of checker work, and wreaths of chain work, for the capitals which were on the top of the pillars; seven for the one capital, and seven for the other capital.
So he made the pillars; and there were two rows around on the one network, to cover the capitals that were on the top of the pillars: and he did so for the other capital.
The capitals that were on the top of the pillars in the porch were of lily work, four cubits.
There were capitals above also on the two pillars, close by the belly which was beside the network. There were two hundred pomegranates in rows around the other capital.
He set up the pillars at the porch of the temple. He set up the right pillar, and called its name Jachin; and he set up the left pillar, and called its name Boaz.
On the top of the pillars was lily work: so the work of the pillars was finished.
He made the molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in shape. Its height was five cubits; and a line of thirty cubits encircled it.
Under its brim around there were buds which encircled it for ten cubits, encircling the sea. The buds were in two rows, cast when it was cast.
It stood on twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; and the sea was set on them above, and all their hindquarters were inward.
It was a hand width thick. Its brim was worked like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily. It held two thousand baths.
He made the ten bases of bronze. The length of one base was four cubits, four cubits its width, and three cubits its height.
The work of the bases was like this: they had panels; and there were panels between the ledges;
and on the panels that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and on the ledges there was a pedestal above; and beneath the lions and oxen were wreaths of hanging work.
Every base had four bronze wheels, and axles of bronze; and the four feet of it had supports. The supports were cast beneath the basin, with wreaths at the side of each.
Its mouth within the capital and above was a cubit. Its mouth was round after the work of a pedestal, a cubit and a half; and also on its mouth were engravings, and their panels were square, not round.
The four wheels were underneath the panels; and the axles of the wheels were in the base. The height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit.
The work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel. Their axles, and their rims, and their spokes, and their naves, were all of cast metal.
There were four supports at the four corners of each base. Its supports were of the base itself.
In the top of the base there was a round band half a cubit high; and on the top of the base its supports and its panels were the same.
On the plates of its supports, and on its panels, he engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, each in its space, with wreaths all around.
He made the ten bases in this way: all of them had one casting, one measure, and one form.
He made ten basins of bronze. One basin contained forty baths; and every basin was four cubits; and on every one of the ten bases one basin.
He set the bases, five on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house. He set the sea on the right side of the house eastward and toward the south.
Hiram made the pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Hiram finished doing all the work that he worked for king Solomon in Yahweh’s house:
the two pillars; the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars;
the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks; two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars;
the ten bases; the ten basins on the bases;
the one sea; the twelve oxen under the sea;
the pots; the shovels; and the basins: even all these vessels, which Hiram made for king Solomon, in Yahweh’s house, were of burnished bronze.
The king cast them in the plain of the Jordan, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan.
Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because there were so many of them. The weight of the bronze could not be determined.
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He was a widow’s son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass: and he was filled with wisdom, and understanding, and cunning to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his work.
For he cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece: and a line of twelve cubits did compass either of them about.
And he made two chapiters of molten brass, to set upon the tops of the pillars: the height of the one chapiter was five cubits, and the height of the other chapiter was five cubits:
And nets of checker work, and wreaths of chain work, for the chapiters which were upon the top of the pillars; seven for the one chapiter, and seven for the other chapiter.
And he made the pillars, and two rows round about upon the one network, to cover the chapiters that were upon the top, with pomegranates: and so did he for the other chapiter.
And the chapiters that were upon the top of the pillars were of lily work in the porch, four cubits.
And the chapiters upon the two pillars had pomegranates also above, over against the belly which was by the network: and the pomegranates were two hundred in rows round about upon the other chapiter.
And he set up the pillars in the porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof Jachin: and he set up the left pillar, and called the name thereof Boaz.
And upon the top of the pillars was lily work: so was the work of the pillars finished.
And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.
And under the brim of it round about there were knops compassing it, ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about: the knops were cast in two rows, when it was cast.
It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.
And it was an hand breadth thick, and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies: it contained two thousand baths.
And he made ten bases of brass; four cubits was the length of one base, and four cubits the breadth thereof, and three cubits the height of it.
And the work of the bases was on this manner: they had borders, and the borders were between the ledges:
And on the borders that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and cherubims: and upon the ledges there was a base above: and beneath the lions and oxen were certain additions made of thin work.
And every base had four brasen wheels, and plates of brass: and the four corners thereof had undersetters: under the laver were undersetters molten, at the side of every addition.
And the mouth of it within the chapiter and above was a cubit: but the mouth thereof was round after the work of the base, a cubit and an half: and also upon the mouth of it were gravings with their borders, foursquare, not round.
And under the borders were four wheels; and the axletrees of the wheels were joined to the base: and the height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit.
And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel: their axletrees, and their naves, and their felloes, and their spokes, were all molten.
And there were four undersetters to the four corners of one base: and the undersetters were of the very base itself.
And in the top of the base was there a round compass of half a cubit high: and on the top of the base the ledges thereof and the borders thereof were of the same.
For on the plates of the ledges thereof, and on the borders thereof, he graved cherubims, lions, and palm trees, according to the proportion of every one, and additions round about.
After this manner he made the ten bases: all of them had one casting, one measure, and one size.
Then made he ten lavers of brass: one laver contained forty baths: and every laver was four cubits: and upon every one of the ten bases one laver.
And he put five bases on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house: and he set the sea on the right side of the house eastward over against the south.
And Hiram made the lavers, and the shovels, and the basons. So Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he made king Solomon for the house of the LORD:
The two pillars, and the two bowls of the chapiters that were on the top of the two pillars; and the two networks, to cover the two bowls of the chapiters which were upon the top of the pillars;
And four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, even two rows of pomegranates for one network, to cover the two bowls of the chapiters that were upon the pillars;
And the ten bases, and ten lavers on the bases;
And one sea, and twelve oxen under the sea;
And the pots, and the shovels, and the basons: and all these vessels, which Hiram made to king Solomon for the house of the LORD, were of bright brass.
In the plain of Jordan did the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarthan.
And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because they were exceeding many: neither was the weight of the brass found out.
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He was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass; and he was filled with wisdom and understanding and skill, to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his work.
Thus he fashioned the two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high each; and a line of twelve cubits did compass it about; and so the other pillar.
And he made two capitals of molten brass, to set upon the tops of the pillars; the height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits.
He also made nets of checker-work, and wreaths of chain-work, for the capitals which were upon the top of the pillars: seven for the one capital, and seven for the other capital.
And he made the pillars; and there were two rows round about upon the one network, to cover the capitals that were upon the top of the pomegranates; and so did he for the other capital.
And the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars in the porch were of lily-work, four cubits.
And there were capitals above also upon the two pillars, close by the belly which was beside the network; and the pomegranates were two hundred, in rows round about upon each capital.
And he set up the pillars at the porch of the temple; and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof Jachin; and he set up the left pillar, and called the name thereof Boaz.
And upon the top of the pillars was lily-work; so was the work of the pillars finished.
And he made the molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in compass, and the height thereof was five cubits; and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.
And under the brim of it round about there were knops which did compass it, for ten cubits, compassing the sea round about; the knops were in two rows, cast when it was cast.
It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; and the sea was set upon them above, and all their hinder parts were inward.
And it was a hand-breadth thick; and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily; it held two thousand baths.
And he made the ten bases of brass; four cubits was the length of one base, and four cubits the breadth thereof, and three cubits the height of it.
And the work of the bases was on this manner: they had borders; and there were borders between the stays;
and on the borders that were between the stays were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and upon the stays it was in like manner above; and beneath the lions and oxen were wreaths of hanging work.
And every base had four brazen wheels, and axles of brass; and the four feet thereof had undersetters; beneath the laver were the undersetters molten, with wreaths at the side of each.
And the mouth of it within the crown and above was a cubit high; and the mouth thereof was round after the work of a pedestal, a cubit and a half; and also upon the mouth of it were gravings; and their borders were foursquare, not round.
And the four wheels were underneath the borders; and the axletrees of the wheels were in the base; and the height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit.
And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel; their axletrees, and their felloes, and their spokes, and their naves, were all molten.
And there were four undersetters at the four corners of each base; the undersetters thereof were of one piece with the base itself.
And in the top of the base was there a round compass of half a cubit high; and on the top of the base the stays thereof and the borders thereof were of one piece therewith.
And on the plates of the stays thereof, and on the borders thereof, he graved cherubim, lions, and palm-trees, according to the space of each, with wreaths round about.
After this manner he made the ten bases; all of them had one casting, one measure, and one form.
And he made ten lavers of brass: one laver contained forty baths; and every laver was four cubits; and upon every one of the ten bases one laver.
And he set the bases, five on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house; and he set the sea on the right side of the house eastward, toward the south.
And Hiram made the pots, and the shovels, and the basins. So Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he wrought for king Solomon in the house of the LORD:
the two pillars, and the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; and the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars;
and the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars;
and the ten bases, and the ten lavers on the bases;
and the one sea, and the twelve oxen under the sea;
and the pots, and the shovels, and the basins; even all these vessels, which Hiram made for king Solomon, in the house of the LORD, were of burnished brass.
In the plain of the Jordan did the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan.
And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because they were exceeding many; the weight of the brass could not be found out.
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Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Cross-references (148)
- Jeremiah 52:20 (vv23, 25, 27) They took the two pillars, the one sea, and the twelve bronze bulls that were under the bases, which king Solomon had made for Yahweh’s…
- 2 Kings 25:13 (vv23, 27) The Chaldeans broke up the pillars of bronze that were in Yahweh’s house and the bases and the bronze sea that were in Yahweh’s house, and…
- Jeremiah 52:21 (vv15, 26) As for the pillars, the height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits; and a line of twelve cubits encircled it; and its thickness was four…
- Exodus 27:3 (v45) You shall make its pots to take away its ashes; and its shovels, its basins, its meat hooks, and its fire pans. You shall make all its…
- Joshua 3:16 (v46) the waters which came down from above stood, and rose up in one heap a great way off, at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan; and those…
Show all 100 cross-references
- 2 Chronicles 3:16 (v20) He made chains in the inner sanctuary, and put them on the tops of the pillars; and he made one hundred pomegranates, and put them on the…
- 2 Chronicles 3:17 (v21) He set up the pillars before the temple, one on the right hand, and the other on the left; and called the name of that on the right hand…
- 2 Chronicles 4:2 (v23) Also he made the molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim. It was round, five cubits high, and thirty cubits in circumference.
- 2 Chronicles 4:13 (v20) and the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks; two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals…
- 2 Chronicles 4:14 (v27) He also made the bases, and he made the basins on the bases;
- 1 Kings 6:18 (vv19, 24, 26) There was cedar on the house within, carved with buds and open flowers. All was cedar. No stone was visible.
- 2 Chronicles 4:16 (vv14, 45) Huram his father also made the pots, the shovels, the forks, and all its vessels for king Solomon, for Yahweh’s house, of bright bronze.
- Jeremiah 52:17 (vv23, 27) The Chaldeans broke the pillars of bronze that were in Yahweh’s house, and the bases and the bronze sea that were in Yahweh’s house in…
- Genesis 33:17 (v46) Jacob traveled to Succoth, built himself a house, and made shelters for his livestock. Therefore the name of the place is called Succoth.
- 1 Kings 6:3 (v21) The porch in front of the temple of the house had a length of twenty cubits, which was along the width of the house. Ten cubits was its…
- 1 Kings 7:21 (v15) He set up the pillars at the porch of the temple. He set up the right pillar, and called its name Jachin; and he set up the left pillar,…
- 1 Chronicles 22:14 (v47) Now, behold, in my affliction I have prepared for Yahweh’s house one hundred thousand talents of gold, one million talents of silver, and…
- 2 Chronicles 2:14 (v14) the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan; and his father was a man of Tyre, skillful to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, in iron, in…
- 2 Chronicles 3:15-17 (v15) Also he made before the house two pillars of thirty-five cubits height, and the capital that was on the top of each of them was five…
- 2 Chronicles 4:4-5 (v25) It stood on twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three…
- 2 Chronicles 4:5 (v26) It was a handbreadth thick; and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily. It received and held three thousand…
- 2 Chronicles 4:17 (v46) The king cast them in the plain of the Jordan, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zeredah.
- Exodus 31:2-6 (v14) “Behold, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in…
- Exodus 38:3 (v45) He made all the vessels of the altar: the pots, the shovels, the basins, the forks, and the fire pans. He made all its vessels of bronze.
- Joshua 13:27 (v46) and in the valley, Beth Haram, Beth Nimrah, Succoth, and Zaphon, the rest of the kingdom of Sihon king of Heshbon, the Jordan’s bank, to…
- 1 Kings 7:20 (v42) There were capitals above also on the two pillars, close by the belly which was beside the network. There were two hundred pomegranates in…
- 1 Kings 7:29 (v36) and on the panels that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and on the ledges there was a pedestal above; and beneath…
- 1 Chronicles 22:3 (v47) David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the couplings; and bronze in abundance without weight;
- 2 Chronicles 4:3 (v24) Under it was the likeness of oxen, which encircled it, for ten cubits, encircling the sea. The oxen were in two rows, cast when it was cast.
- 2 Chronicles 4:11-16 (v40) Huram made the pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Huram finished doing the work that he did for king Solomon in God’s house: the two…
- Ezekiel 1:16 (v33) The appearance of the wheels and their work was like a beryl. The four of them had one likeness. Their appearance and their work was as it…
- Ezekiel 1:18 (v33) As for their rims, they were high and dreadful; and the four of them had their rims full of eyes all around.
- 2 Kings 25:17 (vv17, 18, 20) The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and a capital of bronze was on it. The height of the capital was three cubits, with…
- Exodus 28:14 (vv17–18) and two chains of pure gold; you shall make them like cords of braided work. You shall put the braided chains on the settings.
- Exodus 28:22 (vv17–18) You shall make on the breastplate chains like cords, of braided work of pure gold.
- Exodus 28:24-25 (vv17–18) You shall put the two braided chains of gold in the two rings at the ends of the breastplate. The other two ends of the two braided chains…
- Exodus 38:8 (vv23, 38) He made the basin of bronze, and its base of bronze, out of the mirrors of the ministering women who ministered at the door of the Tent of…
- Exodus 39:15-18 (vv17–18) They made on the breastplate chains like cords, of braided work of pure gold. They made two settings of gold, and two gold rings, and put…
- 1 Kings 6:32 (vv26, 36) So he made two doors of olive wood; and he carved on them carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold.…
- 1 Kings 6:35 (vv26, 36) He carved cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers; and he overlaid them with gold fitted on the engraved work.
- 1 Kings 7:25 (vv29, 44) It stood on twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three…
- 1 Kings 7:38 (vv26–27) He made ten basins of bronze. One basin contained forty baths; and every basin was four cubits; and on every one of the ten bases one basin.
- Ezekiel 1:10 (vv25, 29) As for the likeness of their faces, they had the face of a man. The four of them had the face of a lion on the right side. The four of them…
- Revelation 4:6-7 (vv25, 29) Before the throne was something like a sea of glass, similar to crystal. In the middle of the throne, and around the throne were four…
- Genesis 3:24 (v29) So he drove out the man; and he placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the…
- Exodus 24:6 (v40) Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.
- Exodus 25:18 (v29) You shall make two cherubim of hammered gold. You shall make them at the two ends of the mercy seat.
- Exodus 25:31-36 (v24) “You shall make a lamp stand of pure gold. The lamp stand shall be made of hammered work. Its base, its shaft, its cups, its buds, and its…
- Exodus 30:17-21 (v38) Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “You shall also make a basin of bronze, and its base of bronze, in which to wash. You shall put it between…
- Exodus 30:18-21 (v23) “You shall also make a basin of bronze, and its base of bronze, in which to wash. You shall put it between the Tent of Meeting and the…
- Exodus 30:28 (v38) the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the basin with its base.
- Exodus 35:30–36:2 (v14) Moses said to the children of Israel, “Behold, Yahweh has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. He…
- Exodus 36:8 (v14) All the wise-hearted men among those who did the work made the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen, blue, purple, and…
- Exodus 36:38 (v16) and the five pillars of it with their hooks. He overlaid their capitals and their fillets with gold, and their five sockets were of bronze.
- Exodus 37:7 (v29) He made two cherubim of gold. He made them of beaten work, at the two ends of the mercy seat:
- Exodus 37:17-22 (v24) He made the lamp stand of pure gold. He made the lamp stand of beaten work. Its base, its shaft, its cups, its buds, and its flowers were…
- Exodus 38:17 (v16) The sockets for the pillars were of bronze. The hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of silver. Their capitals were overlaid with…
- Exodus 38:19 (v16) Their pillars were four, and their sockets four, of bronze; their hooks of silver, and the overlaying of their capitals, and their fillets,…
- Exodus 38:28 (v16) From the one thousand seven hundred seventy-five shekels he made hooks for the pillars, overlaid their capitals, and made fillets for them.
- Exodus 39:32-43 (v40) Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the Tent of Meeting was finished. The children of Israel did according to all that Yahweh commanded…
- Exodus 40:11-12 (v38) You shall anoint the basin and its base, and sanctify it. “You shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the Tent of Meeting, and shall…
- Leviticus 8:31 (v45) Moses said to Aaron and to his sons, “Boil the meat at the door of the Tent of Meeting, and there eat it and the bread that is in the…
- Ruth 4:21 (v21) and Salmon became the father of Boaz, and Boaz became the father of Obed,
- 1 Samuel 2:13-14 (v45) The custom of the priests with the people was that when anyone offered a sacrifice, the priest’s servant came while the meat was boiling,…
- 2 Samuel 7:12 (v21) When your days are fulfilled, and you sleep with your fathers, I will set up your offspring after you, who will proceed out of your body,…
- 1 Kings 4:12 (v46) Baana the son of Ahilud, in Taanach and Megiddo, and all Beth Shean which is beside Zarethan, beneath Jezreel, from Beth Shean to Abel…
- 1 Kings 6:27 (v29) He set the cherubim within the inner house. The wings of the cherubim were stretched out, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall,…
- 1 Kings 6:29 (v36) He carved all the walls of the house around with carved figures of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, inside and outside.
- 1 Kings 6:32-35 (v19) So he made two doors of olive wood; and he carved on them carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold.…
- 1 Kings 7:12 (v21) The great court around had three courses of cut stone, and a course of cedar beams; like the inner court of Yahweh’s house and the porch of…
- 1 Kings 7:15-22 (v41) For he fashioned the two pillars of bronze, eighteen cubits high apiece; and a line of twelve cubits encircled either of them. He made two…
- 1 Kings 7:19 (v26) The capitals that were on the top of the pillars in the porch were of lily work, four cubits.
- 1 Kings 7:22 (v19) On the top of the pillars was lily work: so the work of the pillars was finished.
- 1 Kings 7:23 (v44) He made the molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in shape. Its height was five cubits; and a line of thirty cubits encircled…
- 1 Kings 7:28 (v40) The work of the bases was like this: they had panels; and there were panels between the ledges;
- 1 Kings 7:41 (v15) the two pillars; the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals…
- 1 Kings 7:42 (v20) the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks; two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that…
- 2 Kings 25:14-15 (v40) They took away the pots, the shovels, the snuffers, the spoons, and all the vessels of bronze with which they ministered. The captain of…
- 2 Kings 25:16 (v27) The two pillars, the one sea, and the bases, which Solomon had made for Yahweh’s house, the bronze of all these vessels was not weighed.
- 2 Kings 25:16-17 (v15) The two pillars, the one sea, and the bases, which Solomon had made for Yahweh’s house, the bronze of all these vessels was not weighed.…
- 1 Chronicles 18:8 (v23) From Tibhath and from Cun, cities of Hadadezer, David took very much bronze, with which Solomon made the bronze sea, the pillars, and the…
- 1 Chronicles 22:16 (v47) of the gold, the silver, the bronze, and the iron, there is no number. Arise and be doing, and may Yahweh be with you.”
- 2 Chronicles 4:6 (v39) He also made ten basins, and put five on the right hand, and five on the left, to wash in them. The things that belonged to the burnt…
- 2 Chronicles 4:6-22 (v38) He also made ten basins, and put five on the right hand, and five on the left, to wash in them. The things that belonged to the burnt…
- 2 Chronicles 4:8 (v40) He made also ten tables, and placed them in the temple, five on the right side, and five on the left. He made one hundred basins of gold.
- 2 Chronicles 4:10 (v39) He set the sea on the right side of the house eastward, toward the south.
- 2 Chronicles 4:11 (v14) Huram made the pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Huram finished doing the work that he did for king Solomon in God’s house:
- 2 Chronicles 4:12 (v41) the two pillars, the bowls, the two capitals which were on the top of the pillars, the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals…
- 2 Chronicles 4:12-13 (v16) the two pillars, the bowls, the two capitals which were on the top of the pillars, the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals…
- 2 Chronicles 4:12-22 (v15) the two pillars, the bowls, the two capitals which were on the top of the pillars, the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals…
- 2 Chronicles 4:18 (v47) Thus Solomon made all these vessels in great abundance; for the weight of the bronze could not be determined.
- Isaiah 9:7 (v21) Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end, on David’s throne, and on his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold…
- Isaiah 28:26 (v14) For his God instructs him in right judgment and teaches him.
- Isaiah 45:24 (v21) They will say of me, ‘There is righteousness and strength only in Yahweh.’ ” Even to him will men come. All those who raged against him…
- Jeremiah 52:13 (v15) He burned Yahweh’s house, and the king’s house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, even every great house, he burned with fire.
- Jeremiah 52:18-19 (v40) They also took away the pots, the shovels, the snuffers, the basins, the spoons, and all the vessels of bronze with which they ministered.…
- Jeremiah 52:22-23 (v20) A capital of bronze was on it; and the height of the one capital was five cubits, with network and pomegranates on the capital all around,…
- Ezekiel 1:15-21 (v30) Now as I saw the living creatures, behold, there was one wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, for each of the four faces of it.…
- Ezekiel 3:13 (v30) I heard the noise of the wings of the living creatures as they touched one another, and the noise of the wheels beside them, even the noise…
- Ezekiel 10:10-13 (v30) As for their appearance, the four of them had one likeness, like a wheel within a wheel. When they went, they went in their four…
100 distinct cross-references across this passage (148 total citations).
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 23, 26, 30, 31, 33, 35, 38, 39, 45, 46 Thus when God will have his glory set forth,…
Thus when God will have his glory set forth, he raiseth up men, and giveth them excellent gifts for the accomplishment of the same, Exod. 31:2,3.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv14–47 1Ki 7:14 He [was] a widow’s son of the…
1Ki 7:14 He [was] a widow’s son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father [was] a man of Tyre, a worker in brass: and he was filled with wisdom, and understanding, and cunning to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his work.
Ver. 14. He was a widow’s son of the tribe of Naphtali.] His father was of that tribe, but his mother of the tribe of Dan, {2Ch 2:14} unless the king there mistook the one tribe for the other.
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And cunning to work all works.] Not in brass only, but in gold, silver, iron, stone, timber, purple, &c., {2Ch 4:16} so that Solomon, for respect’s sake, called him his father. {2Ch 4:16}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33, 34, 36, 38, 39, 45, 46, 47 A widow’s son of the tribe of Naphtali.
A widow’s son of the tribe of Naphtali.
Object. She was one of the daughters of Dan, 2Ch 2:14.
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Answ. So indeed Hiram king of Tyre there affirms; but he might easily mistake or be misinformed, especially being no Israelite, nor a careful observer of the distinction of tribes. Or she might be of Dan by her father, and of Naphtali by her mother, or by her husband, who was of that tribe, and therefore she was truly
a widow of Naphtali. His father was a man of Tyre; either by his descent, being a Tyrian by birth; or by education and habitation, he or his father being given to the study of these arts, and having planted themselves at Tyre for their improvement therein. However that was, it was a singular providence of God, that there was at that time so excellent a workman fit for so great and glorious works.
All works in brass, and of gold, and stone, and purple, and blue, &c., as is affirmed, 2Ch 2:14. But only his skill in brass is here mentioned, because he speaks only of the brazen things which he made.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 46, 47 For he cast two pillars of brass, eighteen cubits…
For he cast two pillars of brass, eighteen cubits high apiece,.... In Ch2 3:15 they are said to be thirty five cubits high, which must be understood of the length or height of them both; and whereas that would allow but seventeen cubits and a half to a pillar, either the round number of eighteen is used, or half a cubit in each may be allowed, either for the base or pedestal into which they were put; or the chapiter at the top of them, into which they might go such a length, and so only what was seen is described:
and a line of twelve cubits did compass either of them about; that was the circumference of them, and therefore their diameter must be four cubits. Eupolemus, an Heathen writer (n) speaks of these pillars, but he makes the circuit of them to be but ten cubits; and says they were equal in height with the temple, and stood on the right and left, and were made of brass, and covered with gold, the thickness of a finger.
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(n) Apud Euseb, Praepar. Evangel. l. 9. c. 34. p. 450.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33, 34, 36, 39, 45 In brass - And Of gold, and stone, and…
In brass - And Of gold, and stone, and purple, and blue, 2 Chron. ii, 14. But only his skill in brass is here mentioned, because he speaks only of the brasen things which he made.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv15, 21, 27, 38, 40, 46 Verse 15. He cast two pillars - eighteen cubits…
Verse 15. He cast two pillars - eighteen cubits high] That is, about thirty feet in English measure.
A line of twelve cubits] In circumference. It would be difficult even now to procure a founder who could cast such massive pillars, whether solid or hollow.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv15, 17, 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 27, 30, 31, 33, 38, 40, 45 1Ki 7:15-16. He cast two pillars of brass —…
1Ki 7:15-16. He cast two pillars of brass — Of which see 2Ki 25:16-17; Jer 52:21. Of eighteen cubits high apiece — It is said, 2Ch 3:15, that these pillars were thirty-five cubits high, which relates to the height of both of them together without their pedestals, whereas the height of each is given here with its pedestal. A line of twelve cubits did compass either of them — The diameter, therefore, was four cubits, which, considering the chapiter of five cubits, added to the height of each pillar, (2Ch 3:15,) was only in due proportion to the height. In 2Ki 25:17, indeed, it is said, that the height of the chapiter was only three cubits. But it must be observed, that the word chapiter may either be taken more largely for the whole, in which case, it was five cubits; or more strictly, either for the pommels, as they are called, 2Ch 4:12; or for the cornice or crown, and so it was but three cubits, to which the pomegranates being added, made it four cubits, as it is 1Ki 7:19, and the other work upon it took up one cubit more, which in all made five cubits.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30, 31, 32, 34, 35, 36, 38, 40, 46, 47 Hiram’s mother, while by birth of the tribe of…
Hiram’s mother, while by birth of the tribe of Dan, had had for her first husband a man of the tribe of Naphtali. (Compare this verse and margin reference.)
All his work - The work that he personally did for Solomon seems to have been limited to metal-work, and indeed to works in brass. (See below, 1Ki 7:45, and compare 2Ch 4:16.)
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 32, 36, 38, 39, 40, 41, 45, 46, 47 Nephthali: 2 Paralipomenon (ii. 14,) we read of Dan.…
Nephthali: 2 Paralipomenon (ii. 14,) we read of Dan. But the king of Tyre might be under a mistake, (Sanctius) or he may only insinuate that she lived at the city of that name, in the tribe of Nephthali. (Menochius) --- One of her husbands might be a Danite, (Grotius) though resident at Tyre. --- Father, may also denote a master or officer; in which sense we read in Paralipomenon, My father, Hiram. (Haydock) (St. Jerome, Trad.) (Menochius) --- If the woman married an idolater, it was contrary to the law: (Calmet) though Grotius maintains the contrary, when the free exercise of religion was granted.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 27, 40, 46 He was a widow's son of the tribe of…
He was a widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali--In Ch2 2:14 his mother is said to have been of the daughters of Dan. The apparent discrepancy may be reconciled thus: Hiram's mother, though belonging to the tribe of Dan, had been married to a Naphtalite, so that when married afterwards to a Tyrian, she might be described as a widow of the tribe of Naphtali. Or, if she was a native of the city Dan (Laish), she might be said to be of the daughters of Dan, as born in that place; and of the tribe of Naphtali, as really belonging to it.
a worker in brass--This refers particularly to the works described in this chapter. But in Ch2 2:13 his artistic skill is represented as extending to a great variety of departments. In fact, he was appointed, from his great natural talents and acquired skill, to superintend the execution of all the works of art in the temple.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 41, 45, 46 14. A widow’s son of the tribe of Naphtali…
14. A widow’s son of the tribe of Naphtali — According to 2Ch_2:14, she was of the daughters of Dan. But this need not be regarded as an error or mistake in either text, for she may have been by birth of the tribe of Dan, and by marriage connected with the tribe of Naphtali. So she would be a widow of Naphtali when Hiram’s father married her. Other explanations are also possible.
A man of Tyre — Probably a native Tyrian, and not, as some have supposed, an Israelite who had become a resident of Tyre.
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A worker in brass — This is in apposition with man of Tyre, that is, Hiram’s father. Hiram followed his father’s trade.
He was filled with wisdom — His skill and proficiency in working brass are described in nearly the same words as were used of Bezaleel, the divinely gifted artificer of the tabernacle. Exo_31:3; Exo_36:1.
Cunning to work all works in brass — In 2 Chronicles (2Ch_2:14) it is said that he was “skilful to work in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber; in purple, in blue, and in fine linen, and in crimson, also to grave any manner of graving, and to find out every device which shall be put to him.”
Wrought all his work — “Of course Hiram was only a foreman or leader of these different branches of art; and he certainly did not come alone, but brought several assistants with him, who carried out the different works under his superintendence.” — Keil.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 45, 46, 47 14. He was a widow’s son] The Hebrew says…
14. He was a widow’s son] The Hebrew says the son of a widow woman and there is no reason why the literal expression should be relegated to the margin, as in A. V.
of the tribe of Naphtali] In 2Ch_2:14 he is called ‘the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan.’ The two may be reconciled if we suppose the woman to have belonged to Dan, and her first husband to have been of the tribe of Naphtali.
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a worker in brass] This had been the trade of the father, which his son followed and in which he gained such distinction. There seems to have been a fitness in the circumstance that Hiram, by birth half an Israelite, should be employed on the work of Solomon’s temple.
and he was filled with wisdom] Compare the similar language used (Exo_31:3; Exo_36:1) about Bezaleel and Aholiab. Only in that place there is added to the qualifications ‘the spirit of God.’
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv15, 17, 20, 23, 27, 31, 39, 40, 46, 47 (15-22) With regard to the two pillars, Jachin (“He…
(15-22) With regard to the two pillars, Jachin (“He shall establish”) and Boaz (“In it is strength”), the text gives no account of their destination, except that they were set up in the porch of the Temple (1Ki_7:21). Mr. Fergusson considers that they were supports to the roof of the vestibule; and if this were thirty cubits high, the twenty-seven cubits of each pillar, allowing for the slope of the roof to the apex, would suit well enough. But the absence of all reference to their position as parts of the building, and the entire separation of the description of their fabrication from the account of the building itself, rather favoured the other supposition, that they were isolated pillars set up in front of the porch as symbolic monuments, conveying the idea of Psalms 46, “God is our hope and strength;” “God is in the midst of her, therefore shall she not be removed.” It is particularly noticed (2Ki_25:13-16; Jer_52:17; Jer_52:20-23) that they were broken up by the Chaldæans. on the capture of Jerusalem, and the brass carried away. The description is exceedingly elaborate, and, except in one or two parts, clear enough. The shaft of each pillar was twenty-seven feet high, and its diameter something less than six feet. Josephus says that it was hollow, but of considerable thickness. Above the shaft was a chapiter (or capital) of great proportionate size (seven and a half feet high), covered with a net-work and festoons of metal-work, and ornamented with two rows of pomegranates, a hundred in each row. Over these again was “lily-work” of six feet in height—probably some conventionalised foliage, technically known by that name, like the “honeysuckle ornament” in classical architecture, or the conventional “dog-tooth” or “ball-flower” of Gothic. The whole height, even if there were no base or plinth below, would be twenty-seven cubits, or forty feet and a half. In the Dict. of the Bible (TEMPLE) is given a drawing of a pillar at Persepolis, which bears a considerable resemblance to the general description here given, but, being executed in stone, is far less elaborate in ornamentation. The whole style of the narrative shows that these were regarded as monuments of the highest artistic skill, and well known to all, as from their position they would be constantly before the eyes both of priests and people. There was, so far as can be seen, nothing to correspond to them in the Tabernacle.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv14–47 He was a widow"s son of the tribe of…
He was a widow"s son of the tribe of Naphtali In 2Ch_2:14 he is described as the "son of a woman of the daughters of Daniel The discrepancy is only apparent. For in the first place it is not absolutely necessary to understand by Dan the tribe of that name. It may well refer to the town, formerly Leshem, (Jos_19:47) or Laish, Jud_1:18:7, 27) colonised by the Danites, and thenceforward bearing their name (ver. 29), which was situated within the borders of Naphtali. If, however, it is preferred to see in the "daughters of Dan" a tribal reference, we may suppose (with Keil, al. ) that the woman was originally a Danite, but became, through her first husband, "of the tribe of Naphtali." But the first explanation is the more simple and obvious, and his father was a man of Tyre i.e. , Hiram was the son (not stepson, or adopted son, as the Rabbins) of a mixed marriage. In earlier times Laish had but little intercourse with the Zidonians. (Jud_1:18:28) It is nowhere stated that the inhabitants were of Phoenician extraction; nor can it be justly inferred from this passage, a worker in brass or copper. Brass is a compound of copper and zinc; but tv,jn) originally and strictly signifies a pure metal (Deu_8:9 Deu_33:25, etc.; Job_28:2) There were copper mines in Palestine, and the art of working this metal was known at a very remote period (Gen_4:22, Hebrews, and see Wilkinson"s "Ancient Egypt," vol. 3. p. 243; and De Rougemont, "Age du Bronze," p. 180). In later times the word sometimes denoted brass (calkov), or copper-bronze Ca mixture of copper and tin). Cf. Jer_6:28. From 2Ch_2:14 we learn that Hiram was "skilful to work in gold and in silver in brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber," etc. From the mention of brass only in this passage, and in ver. 45, it has been somewhat hastily concluded that "the work that he personally did for Solomon" was "limited to works in brass" (Rawlinson). It is, perhaps, safer to say that brass only is mentioned here, because the following section treats exclusively of the brazen ornaments, etc., of the sanctuary (Keil). It would almost seem, however (see note on ver. 48), as if he was not employed to make the vessels of gold. Nor does this supposition really contradict the statement made below, viz., that he wrought all Solomon"s work): and he was filled with wisdom, and understanding, and cunning or knowledge, as the same word is rendered Exo_31:3, where similar language is used of Bezaleel. It is noticeable, however, that the words "filled with the spirit of God," used of the Hebrew, are not applied to the Tyrian workman to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon probably with a considerable number of assistants), and wrought all his work.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v22 Upon the top the pillars was lily-work.
1Ki_7:22
Upon the top the pillars was lily-work.
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Lily-work
1. Strength. These pillars were deemed of such importance as to deserve a name, a name for each. The one was called Jachin, which means He will establish; and the other was called Boaz, which means in strength. The two ideas are near akin, and together express stable strength. Why these names were given we are not told; whether to indicate the magnitude and fixedness of the pillars, or the stability of the religion which was to be represented in that temple, we cannot say. But we read--and probably in allusion to these pillars with their crowns of lily-work--strength and beauty are in His sanctuary. These pillars are symbolic, or may be considered as symbolic, of truth, not merely in the world of grace, but in the world of nature. The world in which we live may be justly regarded as a temple reared gradually and progressively through long ages under the ever-active hand of the Divine Architect. But look at the order. It did not begin with what we call beauty. No doubt every atom of it was beautiful to Him whose eye seeth all things, but relatively to us the beauty was not at the beginning. The strength and firmness came first. The world is established that it cannot be moved. The earth He hath established for ever. Here, indeed, you have the Jachin and Boaz of our text, the two kindred and complementary ideas of strength and stability. You have the firm, deep, compact rock, hidden for the most part beneath your feet, or piled in massive mountains. Then in due time come the living things, which could only live on firm foundations. Let the foundations be destroyed, and all the beauty will perish with them; as when an earthquake swallows in its devouring abyss gardens and orchards which were laden with the richest flowers and the sweetest perfumes. Now man is a temple, as the earth may be viewed as a temple. He is designed to be the temple of the Holy Ghost; and in this temple are meant to be strength and beauty, the pillars of Jachin and Boaz, and on their top lily-work. And the religion of Christ starts with the conceptions of strength and stability. Its very first notion and foundation-idea is that of a stone laid in Zion, a sure foundation-stone, a stone elect and precious. It is a rock on which God builds His Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Great pains are taken to set forth this as the first idea, on which all the others depend. The same idea in another form is found in the fact that the Gospel is called a kingdom and therefore a thing of power and strength. The Christian, therefore, is to be, and must be in proportion as he is a Christian, a man in whom strength and stability are to be found in conspicuous force and play. For he is in a world in which he cannot hold his ground without them. It is not an uncommon thing for men of the world to look on the Christian Church as if it were a refuge for the weaklings of the race. What is it that the Christian does which shows his weakness? He confesses his sins; but is that weakness or is it strength when a man is a sinner and brazens it out before the face of Almighty God? He asks for mercy; but is that weakness when to ask for mercy is to acknowledge the righteous claims of God? He seeks for Divine guidance; but is that a weakness in a world like this in which it is so easy to err and lose oneself, and in which it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps? And what are these robuster graces, these rocky principles of the Christian life? There must be truth, the lip that will not lie. There must be honour and justice, which will not swerve to the right hand or left from fear or for reward. These things there must be as the primary formation at the basis of a Christian life. The pillar of the Christian character must be upright whatever else it be, and sound in its structure from base to capital and from side to side. Jachin and Boaz were of this character.
2. Beauty. We have looked at the elements of strength, let us now glance at the elements of beauty as set forth in the lily-work which crowned and glorified the heads of the two columns. As we have seen, the world itself has grown up from strength to beauty. Hiram did not invent his decorations. They were furnished to his hand from another and more skilful hand. Behold the lilies of the field, how they grow, etc. He borrowed his art from nature, that is, from God, from whom, indeed, all the noblest and purest art has ever been borrowed, and must be to the end of time. The Greeks, pagan though they were, seem to have seized this secret with a firm hand, for their name for the world was Beauty. They saw beauty everywhere, and they saw it because it was there. They saw what God had seen before them, and had put there that it might be seen by them. Oh, what infinite beauty there must be in the Divine nature, seeing that all the beauty of the world comes from it as from a fountain, and still comes from year to year! And just as the world has grown from strength to beauty, and just as the pillars of Jachin and Boaz were not finished till their capitals bloomed, as it were, in lily-work, so must it be with a true human life and character. This is not completed without its capital, a capital which need not be of lily-work, but must be the reproduction of some Divine flower. It is a still more mournful imperfection and defect when men are dead to the sense of what is beautiful in the moral and religious life. And some are thus dead. They believe, and they do well to believe, in the sterner qualities of that life. They believe in the firm grit of character, granitic compactness and strength. They like the heroic nerve which never shakes, the eye which blenches at no danger, the tongue which can utter boldly unwelcome words to an age which needs them though it hates them, the valiant courage which dares not lie, but dares to die. These are the only forms of character for which they care. They have a touch about them of stern sublimity, like bold headlands that shatter the waves into spray, or mountains that challenge and defy the storms of heaven. Still it must be repeated that Christian character is very incomplete until it rises up to the efflorescence which crowns strength with beauty. It may be thought that the two are incompatible, that you may have your choice between men whose characteristics are those of strength or those of beauty, but you cannot have them both in one. But this is a mistake. We have them both in one, and in perfect union and harmony in Him who is the Son of man, and the type of that perfect humanity which by His redemptive work He came to create. The full, true man was Christ, and to become a perfect man in Christ is to become transformed into His image, and to re-embody in ourselves all the elements of His character. And what were these elements? Were they not strength and beauty? Now, the more tender, gracious, and softer aspects of the Christian life are to find their authority, inspiration, and nourishment in the example and work of our blessed Lord. And if you read the Epistles carefully, you will observe how deeply their writers had drunk into the spirit of their Lord. The strength is there, and also the beauty. We are not to lie, to defraud; we are to abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul; we are to endure hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ; we are to put on the whole armour of God, to watch, to stand in the evil day, and having done all to stand, These ideas form the pillar of the Christian life. But the lily-work is also set forth again and again. Be kind one to another, tender-hearted, forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, even as God in Christ hath forgiven you. Above all things, have fervent charity among yourselves, which is the bond of perfectness. Bear ye one anothers burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. Be courteous. Use hospitality one towards another without grudging. It is not enough to speak the truth, we must speak it in love. It is not enough to be just, the justice must be tempered with compassion. (E. Mellor, D. D.)
Lily-work
In the porch of this building were two pillars, strength and beauty. Even they, besides their immediate purpose, would suggest meanings to the reverent observer. Solomon was not what we should call a utilitarian. The pillars could and Should be made beautiful as well as useful. People might say, Why this waste? But he did not think it waste at all, and he was right. God has given to some men special genius for things of beauty, men like Aholiab and Bezaleel and Hiram. And such genius can hardly be better employed than in making Gods house beautiful. But the temple was used by prophets and by apostles as a type of the great spiritual church. And do not these pillars, divinely designed, in the material temple, bring home to ministers and all church officers, the pillars of our churches, some qualities which they also should possess?
I. Essential qualities.
1. Strength. The pillars had to uphold, to give security to the building. They must be strong enough to sustain the weight which is to rest upon them. So pillars of the church should be strong men, with a faith in God which makes them upright, reliable characters. They should be men who do not need propping and persuading, but with an independent and tenacious strength.
2. Soundness. Some hidden flaw in a pillar might one day be the cause of disaster to the whole edifice. The discovery of a serious flaw in the moral character of a leading man in a church has sometimes wrought irremediable mischief.
3. Suitable and staunch material. Any substance will not do for a pillar. Wood will not. It is not stern enough, and it is liable to catch fire. But it would be madness to use unseasoned wood for such a purpose. So all members are not made for pillars. There needs endurance and firmness. A pillar must always be there--should uphold his church in good report and evil report, should be present whenever possible, night as well as morning, week-night as well as Sunday. This steadiness and fidelity is an invaluable quality in a pillar. Between the pillars Hiram made five mouldings in imitation of pomegranates. There should be a connection of mutual trust and reciprocal courtesies between the officers of a church. Now on the top of the pillars was lily-work.
II. Non-essential but very desirable qualities. The lily-work did not add to the strength of the pillar. There have been very useful pillars of the church who had little enough lily-work about them. But these men would have been still more useful if their characters had been winsome too. A church is not like a prison. It needs to attract men. For this it should be beautiful as well as strong. (David Brook, M. A.)
Strength and beauty
I. God finds room for strength and beauty. Is it not by these that God makes the world what it is to us? The rugged rock affords a home for the soft mosses and the plumes of ferns as if these things paid for board and lodging by their adorning. The trees with roots thrust deep into the earth, with thick black branches, stretching into heaven--how are they decked with the leaves, and how are they now gay with blossoms and now rich with fruit, Strength and beauty. Is it not the very picture and the very perfection of the home? Here comes the man stained and soiled by his days toil; and here is she who keeps home sweet and clean, and makes his heart bless her as he sets foot within the place. Strength and beauty--yet more complete if possible as the toiling father and the busy mother bend over the little one that looks and laughs its music at them. So God blesses the world with strength and beauty.
II. First strength, then beauty. The constant emblem of our religion is the rock. The house built upon the rock, against which the winds blow and rains beat, but the house abides, for that its foundation standeth sure. The Church of God is built upon the rock, the Rock of Ages, that abideth for ever. Religion is not a matter of sentiment, of feeling, of changeful emotion. It is rooted and grounded in the everlasting Word of the living God. What triumphant strength is begotten within the soul when it can cry, I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day. That first, always and everywhere--strength. Is there anything in the world more miserable than religion without any bones, a thing that you can squeeze into any shape you like?--religious sentiment that can talk piously and yet is not exact in its sayings and doings, that can be particular about its creed, and yet slipshod in business? There are some people who affect to despise beauty, and consider it a weakness. Give me a brass pillar, say they, solid and substantial. I dont want any nonsensical lily-work about the top of it. Now such people may do much harm in the world--more harm than good. Strength and beauty--how shall we combine the two? In one way, and in one way only. Love is both. He that loveth hath the secret. For is there any strength like love? Is there any endurance like loves? Is there any defiance like the defiance of love? Love is strength and love is beauty. And love is ours as nothing else could make it ours but the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Here is love compelling love that sustains our strongest service and our tenderest thought. How graciously are these two combined in that word concerning Jesus Christ: As many as received Him to them gave He power to become the children of God. Authority and strength to become children, simple, trustful, loving, obedient. Strong that we may be made beautiful. Thus doth our God seek to make us pillars in His temple, strong with His strength, beautiful with the beauty of the Lord our God. (M. G. Pearse.)
Strength and beauty
I. The handiwork of God in the wide field of nature. The rocky steeps of the mountain are belted with pines; the rivers that fertilise the soft nourish the flowers which grow on their banks; the great wide sea is often surpassingly lovely on its surface, and there are beautiful-corals in its depths, brilliant shells on Its shores; on the broad, unmeasured plains and moors are the blue-bell and the purple heather. If this earth be a temple in which God manifests His presence, His wisdom, and His power, then are the mighty and massive objects upon it the pillars of that temple, and all exquisite and delicate things are the flowers His hand has fashioned upon them. We have it also in--
II. The Gospel of Jesus Christ. In the Gospel are many mighty and massive truths which may be said to be the very pillars of the sacred edifice: such as the leading truth that God Is a Spirit, etc.; but in close connection with these great and solid truths is that which is exquisite, delicate, beautiful. Such is the truth that the faintest whisper of prayer that comes from the lips of the little child may enter the ear and touch the hand of God, and bring down His benediction; or that the first sigh of the relenting human spirit is dearer to the Fathers heart than the finest anthems of the angels; or that the cherishing of a pure feeling of forgiveness or the doing one act of real peace-making brings us further into the likeness and childhood of God than would the accomplishment of the most brilliant intellectual achievement.
III. Christian character. We have in our churches strong men, helpful, influential, sustaining--men who are pillars. They may be strong in virtue of adventitious aids, or of natural endowments, or of acquired, powers, or of spiritual acquisition: and these pillars may be either as beams m a mine, rude, rough, unpolished; or they may be as the fluted columns of a cathedral, as these pillars of Solomons temple with lily-work on the top of them.
IV. Christian service. The worship of God, the service of Jesus Christ, is the power for good in human society; it upholds the goodness and the happiness of the world. Its strength and its beauty are determined partly by the stage to which we here come in our Christian course.
1. The strength of service in age is in submission, willingness to decline, to take the lower place, to be of diminishing account; and the beauty of submission is cheerfulness of spirit.
2. The strength of service in prime is in activity, in usefulness, in putting out our talents for the glory of Christ and the well-being of the world; and the beauty of activity is thoroughness, regularity, punctuality, heartiness, doing effectively and continuously what has been undertaken.
3. The strength of service in childhood and youth is obedience and self-denial; and the beauty of this is alacrity, promptness, rendering it not tardily and reluctantly, but readily and sweetly, with willing feet and cheerful voice. It is well to have strength and beauty in our Christian buildings; it is far better, in the estimate of Christ, to have these two harmoniously combined in the character we are forming and the life we are living. (W. Clarkson.)
Strength and beauty in character
In this divinely planned structure I know of nothing outside the Holy of Holies more impressive than the pillars built by Hiram. These were of the finest brass, of great height, splendid in symmetry and crowned with lilies. It is a law of art that the most perfect and enduring effects are produced by the combination of things unlike each other. A painter throws into his picture the darkest shadows that he may intensify his clearest lights. A sculptor carves for the top of his columns capitals of delicate design, An architect relieves the heavy masonry of his walls with items of exquisite device and forms of sculptured beauty. God Himself is our original teacher; for whilst He setteth fast the mountains, being girded with power, He hath woven around their summits tender vines and rooted in their crevices sweet scented flowers that warmly clasp and colour the cold grey cliffs. That widows son from Tyre was not a stranger to this alliance, and so wrought his pillars as to adorn the sanctuary of the Highest with both strength and beauty. Observe that the strength was first and the beauty of lilies afterward. We have here the uplifting of those two qualites which are worshipped by the soul of man the world over. Power and beauty alike win his homage, but not unfrequently he yields himself to that which is but the sham of strength, and renders service to that which has but the semblance of beauty; to power ungifted with love, and to beauty unadorned by holiness. It is the lie of the world, often uttered and often believed, that the righteous must needs be the weak and the pure the uncomely. God declares the right to be the only strong, and the good, the only beautiful. The power that enters human life to rule it within and without must be a power of conquest, having the inherent qualities of stability. Man is born in battle. His cradle is rocked by his own strugglings. His history is that of a shifting factor in a shifting world. He can neither command himself nor control his surroundings. Antagonisms swarm on his path. Struggling alone, he can have but one experience: the shame that comes of perpetual impotency and the confusion that arises from continued defeat. Sooner or later he learns this truth, that all power is of God, and that the strength that conquers for the spiritual--that takes hold of eternal things and abides, that elevates life into firmness of character and adorns it with real beauty, is possible only through the patient, helpful, regenerative ministry of Jesus Christ. (R. W. Davis.)
Strength and beauty
1. The Divinity of labour. Hiram, who wrought these pillars, was the son of a widow in Tyre. To him labour was a divinely ordered force, which a man took into his life and into his faculties, and which taught him that he was a workman, not simply for himself, or for some taskmaster, who was set over him to watch him; but that he was a workman for God, and that the fidelity of his toil must represent the purity of his worship. Whether he sculptured a column, carved lilies, drove a nail, or set the plough in the furrow, he believed he was doing a Divine thing. The curse of labour to-day is that men have lost God out of it. The highest conception of Christianity is the idea that Christianity can get itself down into the ordinary processes of life, can find a God there, and, grasping the details of things, can change them and beautify them as life goes on; that no matter what our work may be, it is worship, and if faithfully done, every day that comes and goes will leave behind it something in the reservoir of life, some deposit of character which, when all days are over, shall constitute our treasure laid up in heaven.
2. Beauty without strength. In our day there is a great desire for the lily work without the pillars, a vain longing for the graces of life and for the beauties of character without the supporting power of truth and duty. There are thousands of men who would like the virtues of the fathers, but who do not want the faith which made them virtuous. They would like to have reproduced in their life the qualities of soul which marked the early Christians, the Reformers, and the Puritans; but not their sturdy faith, nor their tenacity of conviction, not their majestic conscience or their tremendous hold on things unseen. They want the simplicity and affection of the Waldenses, but not their faith in God; the audacity and fearlessness of John Knox and Oliver Cromwell, without their vivid sense of the Divine Presence; the morality of John Robinson and Miles Standish, without their heroic creed; the integrity of Washington and Lincoln, without their trust in a sustaining and over-ruling God. Mothers are anxious that their daughters should shine in every social accomplishment; that their sons should be men of talent and of skill; that their homes should be beautiful with music and art and all kindly grace. But they are not so solicitous about the solid foundations of character. The spirit of the time is to dwell on the surface. To dig deep is to contradict the age. Glittering pinnacles on insecure foundations! Remember all skaters are not navigators. It is one thing to skim the surface of a pond, and quite another to sail upon the angry deep. The twittering sparrow has as many wings as the eagle, but he cannot dip them in the glory which burns just beneath the sun. A candle is not a comet. The keels of mighty ships are not built of mushrooms. Depth of character first, not ornament, is to be sought for. In house building digging must precede decoration. You do not begin with the painter and the gilder, but with the stone-layer. A pasteboard hut is not a castle, it will be borne away by the mocking winds. It is dangerous to reckon the virtues of a mans character by buttons on his coat, for some are all coat and no character. The looking-glass is the only book some people read. They are splendid advertisements for their tailor, but a sorry disgrace to their schoolmaster. Never mistake the mystery of an echo for the originality of a voice.
3. The foundation of faith. I tell you the quickest way to produce a sweet and beautiful life, either individual or national, is by placing underneath it a strong, unwavering faith. The Parthenon, which lifts toward the golden-tinted sky the whiteness of its untarnished front, must repose on the immovable Acropolis of truth and goodness. The modern professor of fine arts, who prefers form and finish to substance and thought, who, forgetting all that is greatest in architecture and sculpture, in painting and music and poetry, asserts that ethics and aesthetics have nothing in common, who prates about art for arts sake, who scorns the teaching of Schelling that the aesthetic lies in character, and of Dante that art is a descendant of God, is the apostle of the unwholesome, the tawdry, and the lustful, the art of literary fops and the disciples of what Carlyle called the gospel and the philosophy of dirt. But the highest art, which lifts us to the joy of elevated thoughts as in imagination we watch the hand that pencilled Madonna, or the greater--
Hand that rounded Peters dome,
And groined the aisles of Christian Rome,
is always found the friend and promoter of truth and goodness, of aspiration and of faith. The highest art, as Professor Blackie has said, is always the most religious. A scoffing Raphael or an irreverent Michael Angelo is not conceivable. We must have the strength first, and beauty afterward. It is disaster to reverse this order--to try to get beauty and then have strength. The magnificent Brooklyn Bridge, when viewed at a distance, is a beautiful poem. But the beauty is dependent on the strength of mighty abutments which reach down far below the river bed, and take hold of the foundations of the earth. In everything, both artistic and moral, strength is the stalk; beauty is the flower that blooms on it.
4. Divine deliberation. The Almighty shows great deliberation in all His works. Haste, a hurry, fussy activity is always an evidence of weakness. The six days of creation may have been six sunsets or six millenniums; but the days moved slowly and majestically forward toward man as a child of Gods infinite Spirit, and in that result the process finds its climax and its justification. If God pronounces each of these days of creation to be very good, it is because He beholds them in the unclouded light of that seventh glorious morning when He finds Himself not Creator merely, but, since He can commune with a spirit kindred to His own, finds Himself a Father of immortals. Study the bases of the mountains and the foundations of the everlasting hills. He who is girded with power has settled them in their sockets unchangingly. Then He gave the earth beauty, the forests and ferns, the waving grasses and the flowers. And the young woman who concentrates all her life on attitudes, effects, sensations, impressions, striving to get the ornamentation, oblivious to the sterling, splendid qualities that should be wrought into the womanly character--she asks only for lilies. But there are no lilies worth having that do not come out of columns. If you were to knock the pillars from under the globe, where would your flower-gardens be next morning? We have most excellent illustrations of strength and beauty in the study of two national characteristics--Hebraism and Hellenism. It is in the ultimate realisation of a union of the Hebraistic and Hellenistic elements that ultimate perfection is to be found; the son of Abraham is to join hands with the son of Hellas. The Hebrew furnished the indispensable basis of faith, of conduct, of self-control; the immovable foundation upon which alone the perfection aimed at by Greece was to come to bloom. The Hebrew Bible is not wanting in suggestions of the radiant beauty of Gods thoughts and works, but there the beauty is subordinate to morality, it is a blossom on the stalk of strength. As the indestructible azure in sea and sky, as the golden ghory of the sunshine, so this characteristic of beauty shines forth from strength all through the Bible, immortal in God.
5. Gods love of beauty. There are qualities aside from strength and truth and courage that every life ought to cultivate. We see that He who setteth fast the mountains also garnishes the heavens and the hills. Charles Kingsley used to say, Study matter as the countenance of God. Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary. And God wants beauty incorporated into religion. Strength and beauty have been divinely joined--what God hath joined together let no man put asunder.
6. The transforming power of beauty. Beauty dwells in and finds its basis in strength, as sunshine breaks into glory through the mist, as life beats and blushes in the flesh, as an impassioned thought breathes out of a thinkers face. There are numberless analogies in human life--if we could stop to consider them--of the way in in which one life can influence another by the impartation of strength or beauty. Here is a man who has been always stern, truthful, moral, cold--a human pillar. Some day he loves a noble woman, full of all womanly and lovely graces. That transforms and transfigures him. Under her influence his sternness flowers into grace. And Tennyson shows us how the ideal union will be that one where--
The man is more of woman, she of man;
He gain in sweetness and in moral height,
Nor lose the wrestling thews that throw the world;
Till at the last she set herself to man,
Like perfect music unto noble words.
With every man the real man is the woman he carries in his heart. He is her strength; she is his grace. He upholds; she adorns. The one is the complement of the other. History is full of the names of men who had strength; how few there are who had both strength and beauty. I shall never forget the lessons I learned at the tombs of two men born in almost the same year, men equally though differently famous--Napoleon Bonaparte and Walter Scott. Napoleon was born two years before Scott, in the same month and on the same day of the month, August 15. The years passed by. Both do their work and die. I have stood under the Column of Napoleon, built by himself from twelve hundred pieces of cannon taken from the Austrian and the Prussian, and crowned with a statue of the emperor in his imperial robes, and I could not help contrasting it with that noble monument in Edinburgh, not built by Scott to commemorate his own glory, but by the generosity and love of his fellow-countrymen to honour one they loved. And when I stood at the tomb of that great soldier, guarded by the stained flags of so many battlefields, arranged in his fated number of nine, I could but think how many burning cities had been laid waste, with suffering and starving populace, and all for one mans glory. How different from all this hollow mockery and fictitious grandeur is the hallowed peace of St. Marys ruined aisle in the Abbey of Dryburgh. In May 1871 the Column of Napoleon was hurled to the ground by his own infuriated countrymen, though since rebuilt. And in the same year Scotts magnificent monument at Edinburgh was wreathed with flowers. Napoleon had only strength, and lives mainly in the recollection of the ruin he wrought and his blasted ambitions. Scott had both strength and beauty. He did something good and lasting for mankind. His life was a real blessing to humanity. He never wrote an impure or hateful or revengeful word. Amid crushing financial disaster he kept his temper and his faith in God.
7. Goodness and grace. As all adornment of life finds its basis in truth, it is equally necessary that all truth should find expression in a noble life, that all the pillars should blossom at last in lily work. Nature is full of genuine reality as one true existence, yet manifested in the endless variety with which the earth teems. There is the solemn, stately mountain standing in its serene strength--but upon the mountain nature takes up endless incarnations of loveliness. The bird sings, the lily blossoms, the sunbeam dances, the brook flashes--and they are all one, while yet our eyes and ears and all our senses are tingling with the tidings of the difference which they always express. The mountain, the ocean, and the man--first strong each in its own way, and then each beautiful with the superadded things, great and gracious. That is what makes life so full of fascination to the man who has eyes--the eternal, undivided unity of strength, of permanence, of Divine stability, ever unfolding itself into one glory of the sun, and another glory of the stars, and all together fill the radiant sky. And when Paul comes to speak of the flowering of Christian character, he shows how healthy and rational he is when he says it is a change from glory to glory. (F. L. Goodspeed, A. B. , S. T. B.)
The lotus
The lily referred to as adorning the capitals of Solomons temple pillars was the lotus or water-lily. Graceful in form and delicately beautiful in colour, serenely floating on the surface of the rising Nile, the sacred Ganges, and inland lakes of the old world, apparently anchored to the soft yet rising and falling with the flood, and opening its peerlessly fair petals to the sun, the mystic ship-flower of the waters naturally found a place in the ornamental symbolism of every temple-building race. To the Egyptians it was a token of blessing because it appeared with the annual overflow of the Nile, a type of immortality, of the creation of the world, of the Deluge and the Ark, and other sacred mysteries. It adorned and finished the capitals of Jachin and Boaz in Jehovahs temple at Jerusalem. It was an emblem of purity. Over the gateway of the temple of Phocis was written, Let no one enter here whose hands are unclean. David says, I will wash my hands in innocency: so will I compass Thine altar, O Jehovah. Purity of heart and life was the lesson of the lily work over the pillars of God s house in Solomons day, as it is in ours. (W. Balgarnie.)
Simplicity in decoration
The character of sublimity is chaste and simple. In the arts dependent on design, if the artist aim at this character, he must disregard all trivial decorations, nor must the eye be distracted by a multiplicity of parts. In architecture there must be few divisions of the principal members of the building, and the parts must be large and of ample relief; there must be a modesty of decoration, contemning all minuteness of ornament, which distracts the eye that ought to be filled with the general mass and with the proportions of the greater parts to each other. In this respect the Doric is confessedly superior to all the other orders of architecture, as it unites strength and majesty with a becoming simplicity, and the utmost symmetry of proportions. (Tytlers History.)
Alliance of strength with beauty
Beauty is ever seen to best advantage in its natural alliance with strength. The lotus on the river, the dove in the cleft of the rock, the wife by her husbands side at church, the infant in the parents arms, the voices of young men and maidens . . . blended, in harmony in the praise of the sanctuary, the wrestling power and child-like pleading at the throne, the force and tenderness of the Gospel, are combinations in nature and grace that are doubtless intended to teach us how all forms of strength may become beautiful, and all that is beautiful may become strong. Is it not when our Lord is seen in the might of His Deity and the peerless beauty of His humanity that He becomes to us all our salvation and all our desire? God in Christ is Omnipotence become beautiful to us in its condescension and love; Christ in God is our security and strength. When at last the Bridegroom shall come to take his Bride to Himself, and the Church puts on her beautiful garments to receive Him, when they enter the Fathers house together, then strength and beauty in their completeness will be seen in the sanctuary. On the top of the pillars there will be lily work, and the work of the pillars will be finished. (W. Balgarnie.)
Sensitive to the beautiful
I am sorry for persons who always see the bad first, and the good last, or never. Whether it be in art, or whether it be the conduct of affairs, or whether it be in social life, one should know what is harmony and what is discord, what is straight and what is crooked, what is right and what is wrong. A man that is strongly sensitive to the beautiful, and true, and right, is in a healthy condition of mind--and health is the most beautiful thing in the world. In the plant, in its place; in the animal, in its place; in society, in its place; in all parts of the mental economy, a healthy, normal condition--that is the thing which is the most beautiful, and which ought to be the most attractive. (H. W. Beecher.)
Character attractive
Character is not determined by a single act, but by habitual conduct, says the Rev. Theodore L. Cuyler, D.D. It is a fabric made up of thousands of threads, and put together by uncounted stitches. Some characters are stoutly sewed, others are only basted. A Christian ought not only to have his spiritual garments well sewed, but kept clean--in fact, as a representative of Jesus Christ, he ought to present such an attractive apparel before the world that others should say to him: Where did you get this? I want one just like it.
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On v21 Jachin i.e. He shall establish.
Jachin i.e. He shall establish.
Boaz i.e. in it is strength.
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv15, 18, 20, 23, 25, 27, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 46 eighteen cubits ... twelve cubits ... five cubits
eighteen cubits ... twelve cubits ... five cubits
A cubit is about 46 centimeters. AT: "about 8.3 meters ... 5.5 meters ... 2.3 cubits" (See: Biblical Distance)
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in circumference
Circumference is the distance or measurement around a circular object or area.
two capitals
decorations on top of each of the two pillars
polished bronze
They polished the bronze so that it would reflect sunlight. "gleaming bronze"
Checker latticework and wreaths of chain work
"Crossed metal strips woven together and metal chains twisted together"
translationWords
column
bronze
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv15, 23, 27, 40, 46 7:15-22 The two bronze pillars were probably free-standing since…
7:15-22 The two bronze pillars were probably free-standing since the narrator describes them here rather than in the earlier discussion of the Temple structure (6:3-6).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.