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2 Chronicles 4

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The Bronze Altar and Molten Sea 1–5

1
Moreover he made an altar of brass, twenty cubits the length thereof, and twenty cubits the breadth thereof, and ten cubits the height thereof. ​
2
Also he made the molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in compass; and the height thereof was five cubits; and a line of thirty cubits compassed it round about. ​
3
And under it was the likeness of oxen, which did compass it round about, for ten cubits, compassing the sea round about. The oxen were in two rows, cast when it was cast. ​
4
It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set upon them above, and all their hinder parts were inward.
5
And it was a handbreadth thick; and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily: it received and held three thousand baths. ​

The Lavers, Candlesticks, and Tables 6–10

6
He made also ten lavers, and put five on the right hand, and five on the left, to wash in them; such things as belonged to the burnt-offering they washed in them; but the sea was for the priests to wash in. ​
7
And he made the ten candlesticks of gold according to the ordinance concerning them; and he set them in the temple, five on the right hand, and five on the left. ​
8
He made also ten tables, and placed them in the temple, five on the right side, and five on the left. And he made a hundred basins of gold.
9
Furthermore he made the court of the priests, and the great court, and doors for the court, and overlaid the doors of them with brass.
10
And he set the sea on the right side of the house eastward, toward the south.

Huram Completes the Bronze Vessels 11–18

11
And Huram made the pots, and the shovels, and the basins. So Huram made an end of doing the work that he wrought for king Solomon in the house of God:
12
the two pillars, and the bowls, and the two capitals which were on the top of the pillars, and the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars, ​
13
and the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks; two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were upon the pillars.
14
He made also the bases, and the lavers made he upon the bases;
15
one sea, and the twelve oxen under it.
16
The pots also, and the shovels, and the flesh-hooks, and all the vessels thereof, did Huram his father make for king Solomon, for the house of Jehovah, of bright brass. ​
17
In the plain of the Jordan did the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zeredah. ​
18
Thus Solomon made all these vessels in great abundance: for the weight of the brass could not be found out.

The Golden Furnishings 19–22

19
And Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of God, the golden altar also, and the tables whereon was the showbread; ​
20
and the candlesticks with their lamps, to burn according to the ordinance before the oracle, of pure gold; ​
21
and the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs, of gold, and that perfect gold;
22
and the snuffers, and the basins, and the spoons, and the firepans, of pure gold. And as for the entry of the house, the inner doors thereof for the most holy place, and the doors of the house, to wit, of the temple, were of gold. ​

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for 2 Chronicles 4

Verse 1

an altar of brass — Twenty cubits square and ten high, against the 'five cubits long, and five cubits broad… three cubits' of the altar Moses was given (Ex 27:1). Bezaleel's altar was 'before the tabernacle of the LORD' at Gibeon (2 Chr 1:3, 5), and Solomon later found the brasen altar 'too little' for the dedication offerings (1 Kgs 8:64).

Verse 2

a molten sea — 'Molten' is yatsaq, to pour out, the verb for casting metal: the basin was cast whole, ten cubits across and five high. v.6 gives its use, 'for the priests to wash in', as the brass laver of the tabernacle was, where Aaron and his sons washed 'that they die not' (Ex 30:18–21).

Verse 3

the similitude of oxen — Two rows of oxen were cast with the Sea 'when it was cast', ten to each cubit of its rim. They ringed the Sea under its brim, as 1 Kgs 7:24 says of the parallel ornaments, and are not the twelve oxen on which it stood (vv.4, 15).

Verse 5

three thousand baths — 1 Kgs 7:26 says the Sea 'contained two thousand baths'. Here it 'received and held' three thousand, and the two figures are commonly read as its ordinary filling and its full capacity. The brim, 'like the work of the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies', was a handbreadth thick.

Verse 6

ten lavers — Where the tabernacle had one laver (Ex 30:18), Solomon set ten, five on each side, each holding forty baths (1 Kgs 7:38). They were for 'such things as they offered for the burnt offering', washed as in Ezek 40:38, while the Sea served the priests, who washed their hands and feet at the tabernacle laver.

Verse 7

ten candlesticks of gold — The tabernacle had one lampstand 'of beaten work' (Ex 25:31), made 'after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount' (Ex 25:40). David gave Solomon the weight of gold 'for the candlesticks of gold' (1 Chr 28:15) and said the LORD made him understand the whole pattern 'in writing' (1 Chr 28:19). 'Form' is mishpat, the ordinance.

Verse 12

the two pillars — The pair named Jachin and Boaz, set 'one on the right hand, and the other on the left' of the house (2 Chr 3:15–17). The 'pommels' are the bowl-shaped parts of the capitals, which 1 Kgs 7:41 calls 'bowls', and the 'wreaths' (sebakah) are the networks laid over them.

Verse 16

Huram his father — The craftsman the king of Tyre sent, 'a cunning man… of Huram my father's', whose mother was of the daughters of Dan and whose father was a man of Tyre (2 Chr 2:13–14). He is 'Hiram' in 1 Kgs 7:13–14, 40. 'His father' is a title of honour, as Joseph was made 'a father to Pharaoh' (Gen 45:8).

Verse 17

the plain of Jordan — The valley of the river Jordan, which Lot once saw 'well watered every where' (Gen 13:10). The vessels were cast in 'the clay ground' near Succoth, where Jacob had 'made booths for his cattle' (Gen 33:17); 1 Kgs 7:46 gives the place as 'between Succoth and Zarthan'.

Verse 19

the golden altar — The altar of incense, made of wood and overlaid with 'pure gold' (Ex 30:1–3). 'Shewbread' is literally 'bread of the face' (lechem panim), set 'before the LORD' as twelve cakes on the table (Lev 24:5–6). David had given gold 'for the tables of shewbread, for every table' (1 Chr 28:16).

Verse 20

the candlesticks with their lamps — Their lamps were to burn 'after the manner' (mishpat, the ordinance) 'before the oracle', the inner sanctuary (debir). The law for the tabernacle required the lamps to burn 'continually' before the LORD, ordered by the priest from evening to morning (Lev 24:2–4).

Verse 22

snuffers… of pure gold — The snuffers, which trim the lamp wicks, were gold in the tabernacle too (Ex 37:23). The 'spoons' held incense (Num 7:14), and the 'censers' (machtah) are the vessels for burning coals (Lev 16:12). The entry doors, olive wood 'overlaid… with gold' in 1 Kgs 6:32, belong to the same gold house.