The holy of holies

1Then he brought me to the nave, and measured the jambs; on each side six cubits was the breadth of the jambs.41.1 Compare Gk: Heb tent 2And the breadth of the entrance was ten cubits; and the sidewalls of the entrance were five cubits on either side; and he measured the length of the nave forty cubits, and its breadth, twenty cubits. 3Then he went into the inner room and measured the jambs of the entrance, two cubits; and the breadth of the entrance, six cubits; and the sidewalls41.3 Gk: Heb breadth of the entrance, seven cubits. 4And he measured the length of the room, twenty cubits, and its breadth, twenty cubits, beyond the nave. And he said to me, “This is the most holy place.”

5Then he measured the wall of the temple, six cubits thick; and the breadth of the side chambers, four cubits, round about the temple. 6And the side chambers were in three stories, one over another, thirty in each story. There were offsets41.6 Gk Compare 1 Kings 6.6: Heb they entered all around the wall of the temple to serve as supports for the side chambers, so that they should not be supported by the wall of the temple. 7And the side chambers became broader as they rose41.7 Cn: Heb it was surrounded from story to story, corresponding to the enlargement of the offset41.7 Gk: Heb for the encompassing of the temple from story to story round about the temple; on the side of the temple a stairway led upward, and thus one went up from the lowest story to the top story through the middle story. 8I saw also that the temple had a raised platform round about; the foundations of the side chambers measured a full reed of six long cubits. 9The thickness of the outer wall of the side chambers was five cubits; and the part of the platform which was left free was five cubits.41.9 Syr: Heb lacks five cubits Between the platform41.9 Cn: Heb house of the side chambers of the temple and the 10chambers of the court was a breadth of twenty cubits round about the temple on every side. 11And the doors of the side chambers opened on the part of the platform that was left free, one door toward the north, and another door toward the south; and the breadth of the part that was left free was five cubits round about.

12The building that was facing the temple yard on the west side was seventy cubits broad; and the wall of the building was five cubits thick round about, and its length ninety cubits.

13Then he measured the temple, a hundred cubits long; and the yard and the building with its walls, a hundred cubits long; 14also the breadth of the east front of the temple and the yard, a hundred cubits.

Interior of the temple

15Then he measured the length of the building facing the yard which was at the west and its walls41.15 Cn: The meaning of the Hebrew term is unknown on either side, a hundred cubits.

The nave of the temple and the inner room and the outer41.15 Gk: Heb of the court vestibule 16were panelled41.16 Gk: Heb the thresholds and round about all three had windows with recessed41.16 Cn Compare Gk 1 Kings 6.4: The meaning of the Hebrew term is unknown frames. Over against the threshold the temple was panelled with wood round about, from the floor up to the windows (now the windows were covered), 17to the space above the door, even to the inner room, and on the outside. And on all the walls round about in the inner room and the nave were carved likenesses41.17 Cn: Heb measures and carved 18of cherubim and palm trees, a palm tree between cherub and cherub. Every cherub had two faces: 19the face of a man toward the palm tree on the one side, and the face of a young lion toward the palm tree on the other side. They were carved on the whole temple round about; 20from the floor to above the door cherubim and palm trees were carved on the wall.41.20 Cn Compare verse 25: Heb and the wall

21The doorposts of the nave were squared; and in front of the holy place was something resembling 22an altar of wood, three cubits high, two cubits long, and two cubits broad;41.22 Gk: Heb lacks two cubits broad its corners, its base,41.22 Gk: Heb length and its walls were of wood. He said to me, “This is the table which is before the LORD.” 23The nave and the holy place had each a double door. 24The doors had two leaves apiece, two swinging leaves for each door. 25And on the doors of the nave were carved cherubim and palm trees, such as were carved on the walls; and there was a canopy of wood in front of the vestibule outside. 26And there were recessed windows and palm trees on either side, on the sidewalls of the vestibule.41.26 Cn: Heb vestibule. And the side chambers of the temple and the canopies