2 Chronicles / Chapter 3

2 Chronicles 3

17 verses • Westminster Leningrad Codex

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

Solomon begins building the house of the LORD on Mount Moriah. The chapter provides the Temple's foundational dimensions — sixty cubits long and twenty cubits wide — and describes its major architectural features: the entrance portico, the main hall overlaid with gold and decorated with palm trees and chain-work, the inner sanctuary (the Holy of Holies) overlaid with six hundred talents of fine gold, and the two great cherubim of olive wood overlaid with gold, their combined wingspan stretching twenty cubits across the inner sanctuary. The chapter concludes with the two freestanding bronze pillars at the Temple entrance, named Jachin ('He establishes') and Boaz ('In Him is strength'), each eighteen cubits tall and topped with elaborate capitals of chain-work, pomegranates, and lily-work.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

The Chronicler's Temple description is more compressed than 1 Kings 6 but introduces unique details. The measurement system uses 'cubits of the old standard' (v. 3), an archival note indicating awareness that measurement standards had changed between Solomon's time and the Chronicler's era. The gold overlay of the inner sanctuary uses 600 talents of gold — an almost inconceivable quantity (roughly 20 metric tons). The nails alone weighed fifty shekels of gold (v. 9). Every surface the worshiper or priest could see was covered in gold: walls, floors, beams, doors, cherubim. The visual effect was total luminosity — a room designed to reflect any light source infinitely. The naming of the pillars Jachin and Boaz transforms architectural elements into theological declarations: the Temple entrance announces that God 'establishes' and that 'in Him is strength' before anyone enters.

Translation Friction

The dimensions given here differ in some details from 1 Kings 6. The portico height of 120 cubits (v. 4) is considered by many scholars to be a textual corruption — 120 cubits (approximately 180 feet) would make the portico a tower far taller than the Temple itself. The Septuagint reads 20 cubits, which is architecturally proportional. We render the Hebrew text as it stands while noting the problem. The 'old standard' cubit (v. 3) is itself debated: some identify it as the Egyptian royal cubit (approximately 52.5 cm) versus the common cubit (approximately 44.5 cm), while others see it as simply the pre-exilic standard versus a post-exilic measurement.

Connections

The Temple dimensions echo the tabernacle proportions — the Holy of Holies is a perfect cube of 20 cubits, just as the tabernacle's inner sanctum was a cube of 10 cubits. Solomon's Temple is the tabernacle doubled in every dimension. The cherubim in the inner sanctuary reprise the cherubim on the ark's mercy seat (Exodus 25:18-20) but at vastly larger scale — from handbreadth-sized figures to room-spanning sculptures. The pillars Jachin and Boaz stand at the threshold between the profane world and sacred space, their names forming a theological gatehouse: 'He establishes — in Him is strength.' Ezekiel's visionary Temple (Ezekiel 40-48) will later reimagine these proportions, and the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21 will be a perfect cube — the Holy of Holies expanded to cosmic scale.

2 Chronicles 3:1

וַיָּ֣חֶל שְׁלֹמֹ֗ה לִבְנ֤וֹת אֶת־בֵּית־יְהוָה֙ בִּיר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔ם בְּהַ֣ר הַמּוֹרִיָּ֗ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר נִרְאָ֛ה לְדָוִ֥יד אָבִ֖יהוּ אֲשֶׁ֣ר הֵכִ֑ין בִּמְק֣וֹם דָּוִ֔יד בְּגֹ֖רֶן אׇרְנָ֥ן הַיְבוּסִֽי׃

Solomon began to build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the LORD had appeared to David his father, at the site David had prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

KJV Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD at Jerusalem in mount Moriah, where the LORD appeared unto David his father, in the place that David had prepared in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. This verse repeats 2:18 (Hebrew versification), serving as the formal opening of the construction narrative. The triple location markers — Jerusalem, Mount Moriah, Ornan's threshing floor — anchor the Temple in geographical, theological, and historical space simultaneously.
2 Chronicles 3:2

וַיָּ֣חֶל לִבְנ֗וֹת בַּחֹ֙דֶשׁ֙ הַשֵּׁנִ֔י בַּשֵּׁנִ֖י בִּשְׁנַ֥ת אַרְבַּ֖ע לְמַלְכוּתֽוֹ׃

Construction began on the second day of the second month in the fourth year of his reign.

KJV And he began to build in the second day of the second month, in the fourth year of his reign.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The date — second day of the second month of Solomon's fourth year — corresponds to the spring month of Ziv (Iyyar). The parallel in 1 Kings 6:1 gives the month but not the day. The Chronicler's precision about the day suggests access to archival records or a tradition that preserved the exact construction date. The fourth year places the building start after three years of preparation — gathering materials, organizing labor, and diplomatic arrangements with Tyre.
2 Chronicles 3:3

וְאֵ֙לֶּה֙ הוּסַ֣ד שְׁלֹמֹ֔ה לִבְנ֖וֹת אֶת־בֵּ֣ית הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים הָאֹ֗רֶךְ אַמּ֛וֹת בַּמִּדָּ֥ה הָרִאשׁוֹנָ֖ה אַמּ֥וֹת שִׁשִּֽׁים וְרֹ֖חַב אַמּ֥וֹת עֶשְׂרִֽים׃

These are Solomon's foundations for building the house of God: the length, in cubits of the old standard, was sixty cubits, and the width was twenty cubits.

KJV Now these are the things wherein Solomon was instructed for the building of the house of God. The length by cubits after the first measure was threescore cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The phrase ba-middah ha-ri'shonah ('by the first/former measure') indicates the Chronicler is aware that cubit standards changed over time. The 'old standard' cubit was likely the longer royal cubit of approximately 52.5 centimeters (about 20.7 inches), making the Temple roughly 31.5 meters (103 feet) long and 10.5 meters (34 feet) wide. These are modest dimensions by modern standards but represented the largest stone building in Israel's history.
2 Chronicles 3:4

וְהָאוּלָ֡ם אֲשֶׁר֩ עַל־פְּנֵ֨י הָאֹ֜רֶךְ עַל־פְּנֵ֤י רֹֽחַב־הַבַּ֙יִת֙ אַמּ֣וֹת עֶשְׂרִ֔ים וְהַגֹּ֖בַהּ מֵאָ֣ה וְעֶשְׂרִ֑ים וַיְצַפֵּ֥הוּ מִפְּנִ֖ימָה זָהָ֥ב טָהֽוֹר׃

The portico across the front of the house matched the width of the house — twenty cubits — and the height was a hundred and twenty cubits. He overlaid the interior with pure gold.

KJV And the porch that was in the front of the house, the length of it was according to the breadth of the house, twenty cubits, and the height was an hundred and twenty: and he overlaid it within with pure gold.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The portico (ulam) stood at the Temple's eastern entrance. Its width of 20 cubits matched the building's width. The stated height of 120 cubits (approximately 63 meters or 207 feet) is almost certainly a textual corruption — this would make the portico a tower six times taller than the Temple's main hall (30 cubits, per 1 Kings 6:2). The Septuagint and some manuscripts read 20 cubits, which is architecturally coherent. The gold overlay of the interior (zahav tahor, 'pure gold') begins the theme of total golden coverage that dominates the chapter.
2 Chronicles 3:5

וְאֵ֣ת ׀ הַבַּ֣יִת הַגָּד֗וֹל חִפָּה֙ עֵ֣ץ בְּרוֹשִׁ֔ים וַיְחַפֵּ֖הוּ זָהָ֣ב ט֑וֹב וַיַּ֧עַל עָלָ֛יו תִּמֹרִ֖ים וְשַׁרְשְׁרֽוֹת׃

The main hall he paneled with cypress wood, then overlaid it with fine gold, and decorated it with palm trees and chain-work.

KJV And the greater house he cieled with fir tree, which he overlaid with fine gold, and set thereon palm trees and chains.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The ha-bayit ha-gadol ('the great house') is the main hall (heikhal), the larger room between the portico and the inner sanctuary. The construction is layered: stone walls, cypress paneling, gold overlay, decorative relief. The timorim ('palm trees') are stylized palm tree carvings — a common ancient Near Eastern motif symbolizing life and fertility. The sharshrot ('chains') are decorative chain patterns, possibly garland-like festoons connecting the palm motifs.
2 Chronicles 3:6

וַיְצַ֧ף אֶת־הַבַּ֛יִת אֶ֥בֶן יְקָרָ֖ה לְתִפְאָ֑רֶת וְהַזָּהָ֖ב זְהַ֥ב פַּרְוָֽיִם׃

He adorned the house with precious stones for splendor, and the gold was gold of Parvaim.

KJV And he garnished the house with precious stones for beauty: and the gold was gold of Parvaim.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The even yeqarah ('precious stone') inlaid into the walls added color and brilliance to the gold surfaces. The source of the gold — Parvaim (parvayim) — is unknown; it may refer to a region in Arabia, eastern Africa, or even India. Its specificity suggests it was a well-known gold source in the ancient world, now lost to identification. The term le-tif'aret ('for splendor, glory, beauty') indicates the stones served an aesthetic and theological purpose — the house was designed to embody visible beauty as a reflection of divine glory.
2 Chronicles 3:7

וַיְחַ֨ף אֶת־הַבַּ֜יִת הַקֹּר֧וֹת הַסִּפִּ֛ים וְקִירוֹתָ֥יו וְדַלְתוֹתָ֖יו זָהָ֑ב וּפִתַּ֥ח כְּרוּבִ֖ים עַל־הַקִּירֽוֹת׃

He overlaid the house — its beams, its thresholds, its walls, and its doors — with gold, and carved cherubim on the walls.

KJV He overlaid also the house, the beams, the posts, and the walls thereof, and the doors thereof, with gold; and graved cherubims on the walls.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Every structural element receives gold overlay: beams (qorot), thresholds (sippim), walls (qirot), and doors (daletot). The carved cherubim on the walls extended the guardian motif from the inner sanctuary outward into the main hall. The worshiper approaching the inner sanctuary would see cherubim on every surface — wall carvings, door carvings, and finally the massive freestanding cherubim in the Holy of Holies.
2 Chronicles 3:8

וַיַּ֙עַשׂ֙ אֶת־בֵּ֣ית קֹ֣דֶשׁ הַקֳּדָשִׁ֔ים אׇרְכּ֗וֹ עַל־פְּנֵ֤י רֹֽחַב־הַבַּ֙יִת֙ אַמּ֣וֹת עֶשְׂרִ֔ים וְרׇחְבּ֖וֹ אַמּ֣וֹת עֶשְׂרִ֑ים וַיְחַפֵּ֙הוּ֙ זָהָ֣ב ט֔וֹב לְכִכָּרִ֖ים שֵׁ֥שׁ מֵאֽוֹת׃

He constructed the Holy of Holies. Its length, matching the width of the house, was twenty cubits, and its width was twenty cubits. He overlaid it with fine gold — six hundred talents.

KJV And he made the most holy house, the length whereof was according to the breadth of the house, twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits: and he overlaid it with fine gold, amounting to six hundred talents.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

קֹדֶשׁ הַקֳּדָשִׁים qodesh ha-qodashim
"Holy of Holies" — holy of holies, most holy place, innermost sanctuary

qodesh ha-qodashim is the Hebrew superlative formed by construct chain — literally 'the holy place of the holy places,' meaning the holiest possible space. This is the room where the ark rests beneath the cherubim, the single point on earth where heaven and earth intersect. No one enters except the high priest, once a year, on the Day of Atonement.

Translator Notes

  1. Six hundred talents of gold (approximately 20,000 kilograms) is an almost inconceivable quantity for a single room. For comparison, the entire annual gold production of the ancient world has been estimated at roughly 1 metric ton. Either the number is hyperbolic, or Solomon had access to gold reserves far beyond what modern scholarship typically estimates for an Iron Age kingdom. The theological point is clear regardless: the inner sanctuary demanded resources without limit.
2 Chronicles 3:9

וּמִשְׁקָ֥ל לְמִסְמְר֖וֹת זָהָ֣ב שְׁקָלִ֣ים חֲמִשִּׁ֑ים וְהָעֲלִיּ֖וֹת חִפָּ֥ה זָהָֽב׃

The gold nails weighed fifty shekels. He also overlaid the upper chambers with gold.

KJV And the weight of the nails was fifty shekels of gold. And he overlaid the upper chambers with gold.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Even the mismerot ('nails, fasteners') were made of gold — fifty shekels' worth (approximately 575 grams or 1.3 pounds). This detail reveals the totality of the golden vision: not just visible surfaces but structural fasteners were gold. The aliyyot ('upper chambers') above the main hall also received gold overlay, extending the coverage to spaces above the worshiper's line of sight. Nothing was left uncovered.
2 Chronicles 3:10

וַיַּ֜עַשׂ בְּבֵית־קֹ֧דֶשׁ הַקֳּדָשִׁ֛ים כְּרוּבִ֥ים שְׁנַ֖יִם מַעֲשֵׂ֣ה צַעֲצֻעִ֑ים וַיְצַפּ֥וּ אֹתָ֖ם זָהָֽב׃

In the Holy of Holies he made two cherubim of sculptured work and overlaid them with gold.

KJV And in the most holy house he made two cherubims of image work, and overlaid them with gold.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The ma'aseh tza'atzu'im ('work of sculptures' or 'image-work') indicates that the cherubim were carved three-dimensional figures, not flat reliefs. The root tz-'-tz-' may relate to toys or molded forms, suggesting shaped, possibly jointed craftsmanship. These are the massive guardian figures that will shelter the ark, distinct from the smaller cherubim on the ark's mercy seat.
2 Chronicles 3:11

וְכַנְפֵי֙ הַכְּרוּבִ֔ים אׇרְכָּ֖ם אַמּ֣וֹת עֶשְׂרִ֑ים כְּנַ֨ף הָאֶחָ֜ד אַמּ֣וֹת חָמֵ֗שׁ מַגַּ֙עַת֙ לְקִ֣יר הַבַּ֔יִת וְהַכָּנָ֤ף הָאַחֶ֙רֶת֙ אַמּ֣וֹת חָמֵ֔שׁ מַגִּ֕יעַ לִכְנַ֖ף הַכְּר֥וּב הָאַחֵֽר׃

The wings of the cherubim had a combined span of twenty cubits. One wing of the first cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house, and the other wing was five cubits, reaching to the wing of the second cherub.

KJV And the wings of the cherubims were twenty cubits long: one wing of the one cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house: and the other wing was likewise five cubits, reaching to the wing of the other cherub.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The geometry is precise: each cherub has a wingspan of ten cubits (two wings of five cubits each). The first cherub's outer wing touches the south wall; its inner wing extends to meet the inner wing of the second cherub. The second cherub's inner wing meets the first, and its outer wing touches the north wall. Together they span the entire twenty-cubit width of the Holy of Holies, forming a continuous canopy of wings over the ark below.
2 Chronicles 3:12

וּכְנַ֨ף הַכְּר֤וּב הָאֶחָד֙ אַמּ֣וֹת חָמֵ֔שׁ מַגִּ֖יעַ לְקִ֣יר הַבָּ֑יִת וְהַכָּנָ֤ף הָאַחֶ֙רֶת֙ אַמּ֣וֹת חָמֵ֔שׁ דְּבֵקָ֕ה לִכְנַ֖ף הַכְּר֥וּב הָאַחֵֽר׃

One wing of the second cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house, and the other wing was five cubits, joined to the wing of the first cherub.

KJV And one wing of the other cherub was five cubits, reaching to the wall of the house: and the other wing was five cubits also, joining to the wing of the other cherub.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The verb deveqah ('joined, clinging') describes the point where the two inner wings meet — they touch but do not overlap. The ark of the covenant sits beneath this junction point, sheltered by the wings from above. The verb d-v-q is the same used for a man 'clinging' to his wife in Genesis 2:24, suggesting intimate connection.
2 Chronicles 3:13

כַּנְפֵ֞י הַכְּרוּבִ֤ים הָאֵ֙לֶּה֙ פֹּרְשִׂ֣ים אַמּ֣וֹת עֶשְׂרִ֔ים וְהֵ֛ם עֹמְדִ֥ים עַל־רַגְלֵיהֶ֖ם וּפְנֵיהֶ֥ם לַבָּֽיִת׃

The wings of these cherubim spread out twenty cubits. They stood on their feet, and their faces were turned toward the main hall.

KJV The wings of these cherubims spread themselves forth twenty cubits: and they stood on their feet, and their faces were inward.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Two details distinguish these cherubim from the ark-top cherubim: they stand on their feet (not kneel or crouch) and their faces are directed la-bayit ('toward the house,' meaning toward the main hall, facing outward from the inner sanctuary). The ark-top cherubim faced each other over the mercy seat (Exodus 25:20); these room-scale cherubim face outward, as if guarding the threshold between the Holy of Holies and the main hall.
2 Chronicles 3:14

וַיַּ֙עַשׂ֙ אֶת־הַפָּרֹ֔כֶת תְּכֵ֥לֶת וְאַרְגָּמָ֖ן וְכַרְמִ֣יל וּב֑וּץ וַיַּ֥עַל עָלָ֖יו כְּרוּבִֽים׃

He made the curtain of blue, purple, and crimson yarn and fine linen, and worked cherubim into it.

KJV And he made the vail of blue, and purple, and crimson, and fine linen, and wrought cherubims thereon.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The parokhet ('curtain, veil') separated the Holy of Holies from the main hall. Its fabric composition — tekhelet (blue, from murex snail dye), argaman (purple, also from murex), karmil (crimson, from the kermes insect), and butz (fine linen) — matches the tabernacle curtain of Exodus 26:31. Cherubim were woven into the fabric itself, multiplying the guardian motif: carved cherubim on the walls, sculptured cherubim in the room, woven cherubim on the curtain. This is the same curtain that will be torn from top to bottom at the crucifixion (Matthew 27:51).
2 Chronicles 3:15

וַיַּ֜עַשׂ לִפְנֵ֣י הַבַּ֗יִת עַמּוּדִ֤ים שְׁנַ֙יִם֙ אַמּ֕וֹת שְׁלֹשִׁ֥ים וְחָמֵ֖שׁ אֹ֑רֶךְ וְהַצֶּ֥פֶת אֲשֶׁר־עַל־רֹאשׁ֖וֹ אַמּ֥וֹת חָמֵֽשׁ׃

In front of the house he made two pillars, thirty-five cubits tall, with a capital of five cubits on top of each.

KJV Also he made before the house two pillars of thirty and five cubits high, and the chapiter that was on the top of each of them was five cubits.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The pillar height of 35 cubits differs from 1 Kings 7:15 (18 cubits each). The Chronicler may be giving the combined height of both pillars (2 x 18 = 36, approximately 35), or the measurement may include the base and capital together (18 cubit shaft + 5 cubit capital + base = approximately 35 cubits total). The capitals (tsefet, an unusual word possibly related to 'crowning') added five cubits of ornamental work atop each shaft.
2 Chronicles 3:16

וַיַּ֤עַשׂ שַׁרְשְׁרוֹת֙ בַּדְּבִ֔יר וַיִּתֵּ֖ן עַל־רֹ֣אשׁ הָעַמּוּדִ֑ים וַיַּ֣עַשׂ רִמּוֹנִ֣ים מֵאָ֔ה וַיִּתֵּ֖ן בַּשַׁרְשְׁרֽוֹת׃

He made chain-work as in the inner sanctuary and placed it on the tops of the pillars. He also made a hundred pomegranates and set them in the chains.

KJV And he made chains, as in the oracle, and put them on the heads of the pillars; and made an hundred pomegranates, and put them on the chains.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The sharshrot ('chains') on the pillar capitals echoed the chain-work decorating the inner sanctuary, creating visual continuity between the entrance and the holiest space. The rimmonim ('pomegranates') — one hundred of them — were decorative fruits hung in the chain-work. Pomegranates, with their many seeds, symbolized fertility and abundance in ancient Near Eastern art. They also decorated the hem of the high priest's robe (Exodus 28:33-34), connecting the pillars' ornamentation to the priestly vestments.
2 Chronicles 3:17

וַיָּ֤קֶם אֶת־הָֽעַמּוּדִים֙ עַל־פְּנֵ֣י הַהֵיכָ֔ל אֶחָ֥ד מִיָּמִ֖ין וְאֶחָ֣ד מֵהַשְּׂמֹ֑אול וַיִּקְרָ֨א שֵׁם־הַיְמָנִ֤י יָכִין֙ וְשֵׁ֥ם הַשְּׂמָאלִ֖י בֹּֽעַז׃

He set up the pillars in front of the temple hall, one on the right and one on the left. He named the one on the right Jachin and the one on the left Boaz.

KJV And he reared 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 Jachin, and the name of that on the left Boaz.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

הֵיכָל heikhal
"temple hall" — temple, palace, great hall, main chamber

heikhal (borrowed from Sumerian via Akkadian egallu, 'great house') refers to the main chamber of the Temple — the large room between the entrance portico and the inner sanctuary. It housed the golden altar of incense, the table of showbread, and the lampstands. The same word can mean 'palace,' reflecting the Temple's dual identity as God's royal residence.

Translator Notes

  1. The heikhal ('temple hall') is the main chamber, the larger room where the daily liturgy took place. The pillars stood in front of it — not supporting it structurally but framing its entrance symbolically. Whether the names Jachin and Boaz are the opening words of inscriptions, the names of donors, or theological declarations remains debated. The rendering takes them as theological statements based on their Hebrew etymologies.
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