series of tables to bear the sacred shew-bread. Mention is made also of an altar of gold, and of ten candlesticks of pure gold set in front of the entrance to the Oracle, five on either side; furthermore there were tongs of gold, bowls and snuffers, basins and spoons. The Oracle was prepared for the reception of the Ark of the Covenant, and to overshadow that holy vessel there were prepared the two great cherubim, each ten cubits high; these were of olive wood overlaid with gold.
The Temple stood within walled enclosures, generally spoken of as outer and inner courts respectively. The wall of the inner court is described as consisting of three courses of hewn stone, in which was set a course of cedar beams. This corresponded to the single enclosure of the ancient Tabernacle. Inasmuch as all the specified measurements show the Temple to have been double the size of the Tabernacle, this court may have been of corresponding proportion; it is therefore generally believed to have extended one hundred cubits north and south and two hundred cubits east and west.[1]
Within the court, "before the porch of the Lord" stood the altar of sacrifice. This was of brass twenty cubits square and ten cubits high. To the service of the altar belonged many of the utensils such as basins, pots, and shovels, specially made under the direction of the master craftsman, Hiram of Tyre. Another prominent object within the court was the molten sea, called also the brazen sea.[2] This great font measured thirty cubits in circumference and stood five cubits high, and was richly
- ↑ For specifications as to the courts, see I Kings 6:36; compare 7:12; see also II Kings 23:12; II Chron. 4:9: 33:5.
- ↑ I Kings 7:23-26; II Chron. 4:2; see also II Kings 25:13; compare Jeremiah 52:17.
