CHAPTER 6 Aug. 11 
The Plan of the Temple
It happened in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of Yahweh. 2The house which king Solomon built for Yahweh, its length was sixty cubits, and its breadth twenty, and its height thirty cubits. 3The porch before the temple of the house, twenty cubits was its length, according to the breadth of the house. Ten cubits was its breadth before the house. 4He made windows of fixed lattice work for the house. 5Against the wall of the house he built storeys all around, against the walls of the house all around, both of the temple and of the oracle; and he made side rooms all around. 6The lowest storey was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house all around, so that the supporting beams should not should not be inserted into the walls of the house. 7The house, when it was in building, was built of stone prepared at the quarry; and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building. 8The door for the middle side rooms was in the right side of the house: and they went up by winding stairs into the middle storey, and out of the middle into the third. 9So he built the house, and finished it; and he covered the house with beams and planks of cedar. 10He built the storeys against the whole house, each five cubits high: and they were attached to the house by cedar beams. 11The word of Yahweh came to Solomon saying, 12Concerning this house which you are building, if you will walk in My statutes, and execute My ordinances, and keep all My commandments to walk in them; then will I establish My word with you, which I spoke to David your father. 13I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel. 14So Solomon built the house, and finished it. 15He built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar: from the floor of the house to the walls of the ceiling, he covered them on the inside with wood; and he covered the floor of the house with boards of fir. 16He built twenty cubits on the back part of the house with boards of cedar from the floor to the ceiling: he built them for it within, for an inner sanctuary, even for the most holy place. 17In front of the temple sanctuary was forty cubits. 18There was cedar on the house within, carved with buds and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen. 
The Inner Sanctuary
19He prepared an inner sanctuary in the midst of the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of Yahweh. 20Within the inner sanctuary was twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in its height; and he overlaid it with pure gold: and he covered the altar with cedar. 21So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold: and he drew chains of gold across before the inner sanctuary; and he overlaid it with gold. 22The whole house he overlaid with gold, until all the house was finished: also the whole altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary he overlaid with gold. 23In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits high. 24Five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub: from the uttermost part of the one wing to the uttermost part of the other were ten cubits. 25The other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubim were of one measure and one form. 26The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub. 27He set the cherubim within the inner house; and the wings of the cherubim were stretched forth, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house. 28He overlaid the cherubim with gold. 29He carved all the walls of the house around with carved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, inside and outside. 30The floor of the house he overlaid with gold, inside and outside. 31For the entrance of the inner sanctuary he made doors of olive wood: the lintel and door posts were a fifth part of the wall. 32So he made two doors of olive wood; and he carved on them carvings of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he spread the gold on the cherubim, and on the palm trees. 33In the same way he also made for the entrance of the temple door posts of olive wood, out of a fourth part of the wall; 34and two doors of fir wood: the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding. 35He carved cherubim and palm trees and open flowers; and he overlaid them with gold fitted on the engraved work. 36He built the inner court with three courses of cut stone, and a course of cedar beams. 37In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of Yahweh laid, in the month Ziv. 38In the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all its parts, and according to all its fashion. Thus he was seven years in building it.

Commentary

6:7 We are represented by these stones of the temple (1 Pet. 2:5); we are being quarried and shaped now by the hand of God in our lives, and will be assembled into the temple at Christ’s return. It will be too late then for corners to be knocked off; the shaping process is going on now. Stones need shaping so that they fit nicely with the other stones, in order to be a useful part of the entire house. Spiritual isolation isn’t therefore what God intends; the shaping process involves us in inter-personal relationships and getting along with others, rather than walking away every time there is awkward conflict. 
6:12 God saw the need to remind Solomon that he was still required to be obedient; the promises about him were always conditional upon this. Solomon was tempted to reason that because of his works and his outstanding effort in building the temple, he was thereby excused from practical obedience in other areas of his life. We too can face the same temptation; to serve God in one area of our lives and think that this excuses us from submitting our entire lives to His word.
6:13 Thanks to Solomon's prayer, and if he had been obedient, all Israel would have been blessed and experienced Yahweh dwelling amongst them. Our obedience or disobedience really can affect third parties.
6:19 Inner sanctuary- Translated in some Bibles as “oracle”, the Hebrew word thus translated also means ‘the word’, and can be interpreted as meaning ‘the speaking place’. God speaks to us today in His word; as we read His word and respond to it, we are in the most holy place, as God speaks to us and we respond- whether we read on the bus, hear it on our headphones or read in bed at night. Daily Bible reading is therefore so important in our personal relationship with God. 
6:38 He was seven years in building it- Perhaps prophetic of God’s 7000 year plan to build a spiritual temple for Him to dwell in. Throughout the temple there was the theme of God’s glory- the cherubim motif was throughout the building (:29). Our entire purpose both now and eternally is to give glory to God and not to ourselves.