In The Word
Read: 1 Kings 7:13-8:11
Hiram’s Work in the Temple
13 Now King Solomon sent word and had Hiram brought from Tyre. 14 He was a widow’s son from the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, an artisan in bronze; and he was filled with wisdom, skill, and knowledge for doing any work in bronze. So he came to King Solomon and performed all his work.
15 He fashioned the two pillars of bronze; eighteen cubits was the height of each pillar, and a line of twelve cubits measured the circumference of both. 16 He also made two capitals of cast bronze to put 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.17 There were lattices of latticework and wreaths of chainwork for the capitals which were on the top of the pillars; seven for the one capital and seven for the other capital. 18 So he made the pillars, and two rows around on the one lattice to cover the capitals which were on the top of the pomegranates; and so he did for the other capital. 19 The capitals which were on the tops of the pillars in the porch were of lily design, four cubits. 20 So there were capitals on the two pillars, also above and close to the rounded projection which was beside the lattice; and the pomegranates totaled two hundred in rows around both capitals. 21 And he set up the pillars at the porch of the main room: he set up the right pillar and named it Jachin, and he set up the left pillar and named it Boaz. 22 On the top of the pillars was the lily design. So the work of the pillars was finished.
23 He also he made the Sea of cast metal ten cubits from brim to brim, circular in shape, and its height was five cubits, and it was thirty cubits in circumference.24 Under its brim gourds went around encircling it ten to a cubit, completely surrounding the Sea; the gourds were in two rows, cast with the rest. 25 It was standing on twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east; and the Sea was set on top of them, and all their rear parts turned inward. 26 And it was a hand width thick, and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like a lily blossom; it could hold two thousand baths.
27 Then he made the ten stands of bronze; the length of each stand was four cubits, its width four cubits, and its height was three cubits. 28 This was the design of the stands: they had borders, that is, borders between the crossbars, 29 and on the borders which were between the crossbars were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and on the crossbars there was a pedestal above, and beneath the lions and oxen were wreaths of hanging work. 30 Now each stand had four bronze wheels with bronze axles, and its four feet had supports; beneath the basin were cast supports with wreaths at each side. 31 And its opening inside the crown at the top was a cubit, and its opening was round like the design of a pedestal, a cubit and a half; and on its opening also there were engravings, and their borders were square, not round. 32 The four wheels were underneath the borders, and the axles of the wheels were on the stand. And the height of a wheel was a cubit and a half. 33 The workmanship of the wheels was like the workmanship of a chariot wheel. Their axles, their rims, their spokes, and their hubs were all cast. 34 Now there were four supports at the four corners of each stand; its supports were part of the stand itself. 35 And on the top of the stand there was a circular form half a cubit high, and on the top of the stand its stays and its borders were part of it. 36 And he engraved on the plates of its stays and on its borders cherubim, lions, and palm trees, as there was clear space on each, with wreaths all around. 37 He made the ten stands like this: all of them had the same casting, same measure, and same form.
38 And he made ten basins of bronze, each holding forty baths; each basin wasfour cubits, and on each of the ten stands was one basin. 39 Then he placed the stands, five on the right side of the house and five on the left side of the house; and he set the Sea of cast metal on the right side of the house eastward toward the south.
40 Now Hiram made the basins and the shovels and the bowls. So Hiram finished doing all the work which he performed for King Solomon in the house of the Lord:41 the two pillars and the two bowls of the capitals which were on the top of the two pillars, and the two lattices to cover the two bowls of the capitals which wereon the top of the pillars; 42 and the four hundred pomegranates for the two lattices, two rows of pomegranates for each lattice to cover the two bowls of the capitals which were on the tops of the pillars; 43 and the ten stands with the ten basins on the stands; 44 and the one Sea and the twelve oxen under the Sea;45 and the buckets, the shovels, and the bowls; indeed, all these utensils which Hiram made for King Solomon in the house of the Lord were of polished bronze.46 The king had them cast in the plain of the Jordan, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan. 47 However, Solomon left all the utensils unweighed, because they were too many; the weight of the bronze could not be determined.
48 Solomon also made all the furniture that was in the house of the Lord: the golden altar and the golden table on which was set the bread of the Presence;49 and the lampstands of pure gold, five on the right side and five on the left, in front of the inner sanctuary; and the flowers, the lamps, and the tongs, of gold;50 also the cups, the shears, the bowls, the ladles, and the firepans, 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, that is, for the main room, of gold.
51 So all the work that King Solomon performed in the house of the Lord was finished. And Solomon brought in the offerings vowed by his father David, the silver and the gold and the utensils, and he put them in the treasuries of the house of the Lord.
The Ark Brought into the Temple
8 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the fathers’ households of the sons of Israel, to King Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the city of David, that is, Zion. 2 So all the men of Israel assembled themselves before King Solomon at the feast, in the month Ethanim, that is, the seventh month. 3 Then all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark. 4 And they brought up the ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting, and all the holy utensils which were in the tent; the priests and the Levites brought them up. 5 And King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, who were gathered together to him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and oxen that they could not be counted or numbered. 6 Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the house, to the Most Holy Place, under the wings of the cherubim. 7 For the cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubim made a covering over the ark and its carrying poles from above. 8 But the poles were so long that the ends of the poles could be seen from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen outside; they are there to this day. 9 There was nothing in the ark except the two tablets of stone which Moses put there at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the sons of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. 10 And it happened that when the priests came from the holy place, the cloud filled the house of the Lord,11 so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
When we consider the men of the Bible, we always think of those with great faith. We think of spiritual giants like Moses, Isaiah, Jesus, and Paul. In Chapter 7, we are introduced to Hiram who was a craftsman. He was a man filled with wisdom, understanding, and skill (7:14). Would those words ever be spoken of you at work? Do you just do enough to get by, or are you always striving for more knowledge, and to be the very best at what you do? I am often amazed at some of the attitudes I find in Christians in the work place. Many are not dependable. They take advantage of the system, and they do not strive for excellence at whatever they do. Proverbs 22:29 says, “Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will stand before kings; He will not stand before obscure men.”
We are to take pride in our work because we represent the Lord Jesus Christ. Many Christians look at their job and do not consider it a place of ministry. For many of your coworkers, you could be the only Christian influence in their lives. Do you take that opportunity to show them godly work ethics, or do you work haphazardly, talk negatively about the boss, and waste resources…even stealing them at times? 2 Thessalonians 3:7-13 gives us a great example of how a Christian should behave on the job. We should be a good example, disciplined and hardworking. We should not spread gossip, but be a diligent worker. If that is not you, start today!