1 Kings 6:7-36

7The temple was constructed using finished stones cut at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any other iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built.

8The entrance to the bottom1 floor was on the south side of the temple. A stairway led up to the middle level, and from there to the third floor.

9So Solomon built the temple and finished it, roofing it with beams and planks of cedar. 10He built chambers all along the temple, each five cubits high and attached to the temple with beams of cedar.

11Then the word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying: 12“As for this temple you are building, if you walk in My statutes, carry out My ordinances, and keep all My commandments by walking in them, I will fulfill through you the promise I made to your father David. 13And I will dwell among the Israelites and will not abandon My people Israel.”

14So Solomon built the temple and finished it. 15He lined the interior walls with cedar paneling from the floor of the temple to the ceiling, and he covered the floor with cypress2 boards.

16He partitioned off the twenty cubits at the rear of the temple with cedar boards from floor to ceiling to form within the temple an inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place.3 17And the main hall in front of this room was forty cubits long.4

18The cedar paneling inside the temple was carved with gourds and open flowers. Everything was cedar; not a stone could be seen.

19Solomon also prepared the inner sanctuary within the temple to set the ark of the covenant of the LORD there. 20The inner sanctuary was twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high. He overlaid the inside with pure gold, and he also overlaid the altar of cedar.5

21So Solomon overlaid the inside of the temple with pure gold, and he extended gold chains6 across the front of the inner sanctuary, which was overlaid with gold. 22So he overlaid with gold the whole interior of the temple, until everything was completely finished. He also overlaid with gold the entire altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary.

23In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim, each ten cubits high, out of olive wood. 24One wing of the first cherub was five cubits long, and the other wing was five cubits long as well. So the full wingspan was ten cubits. 25The second cherub also measured ten cubits; both cherubim had the same size and shape, 26and the height of each cherub was ten cubits.

27And he placed the cherubim inside the innermost room of the temple. Since their wings were spread out, the wing of the first cherub touched one wall, while the wing of the second cherub touched the other wall, and in the middle of the room their wingtips touched. 28He also overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29Then he carved the walls all around the temple, in both the inner and outer sanctuaries, with carved engravings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. 30And he overlaid the temple floor with gold in both the inner and outer sanctuaries.

31For the entrance to the inner sanctuary, Solomon constructed doors of olive wood with five-sided doorposts. 32The double doors were made of olive wood, and he carved into them cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers and overlaid the cherubim and palm trees with hammered gold.

33In the same way he made four-sided doorposts of olive wood for the sanctuary entrance. 34The two doors were made of cypress wood, and each had two folding panels. 35He carved into them cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, and he overlaid them with gold hammered evenly over the carvings.

36Solomon built the inner courtyard with three rows of dressed stone and one row of trimmed cedar beams.