How To Build A Palace
- Solomon's palace and other royal digs take 13 years to build. They're super fancy, and a lot bigger than the temple. Just sayin' (7:1-12).
- But the temple's not quite finished yet. It still needs some finishing touches, so Solomon brings Hiram from Tyre.
- No, not the king. This is a different Hiram, who's a really great bronze worker.
- Hiram makes about a million bronze things for the temple: two big "pillars [with] nets of chequer-work with wreaths of chain-work [and] lattice-work" (7:15-20); 400 bronze pomegranates (7:42); a huge, ten-cubit-in-diameter "cast sea", or big basin of water, which rested on 12 bronze oxen facing outward (7:23-25); 10 "stands" of bronze carved with lions, oxen, and cherubim (7:27-29); 10 smaller basins (7:38); and some pots and shovels (7:40).
- Woah. That's a lot of bronze stuff.
- Solomon doesn't stop with the bronze, though. He also has tons of gold stuff made: an altar, a table for ceremonial bread, lampstands, flowers, lamps, tongs, cups, candlesnuffers, basins, incense dishes, and the doors to the most holy place in the temple (7:48-50).
- Finally, everything's done and the temple is ready. Solomon puts a bunch of treasure that David collected inside it. Treasure, treasure everywhere.