The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Kings — Section 107

In f11vour of understanding the cubit here entire front, or east end of the temple) a.nd mentioned RB me11suring 18 inches. Fer- ten cubits wa.s the breadth [i.e., depth] gusson (Diet. Bib. iii. 1451) considers this to thereof before the house. [The height of be beyond question. It is certainly note- the porch, of which no mention is me.de worthy that the mensurements of Kings 11nd here, is stated in 2 Chron. iii. 4 e.s 120 Chronicles, of Ezra. and Ezekiel, of Jose- cubits (say 180 feet), but there is BUrely phus and the Talmud, all agree, and we some m1ste.ke in the figures. For (1) This know tho.t Josephus always uses the Greek is "unlike anything we know of in ancient cubit of 18 inches. Mr. Conder, however, architecture" (Fergusson). (2). A porch of maintains that the Hebrew cubit a.mounts such dimensions would surely have been to no more than sixteen inches. He says, called ~'.;!?t;, not C~~~ (Thenins, Keil). (3) It 11 Maimonides tells us that the temple cubit wo.s of 48 barleycorns, and any one who will is doubtful whether e.n erection of so great take the trouble to measu1·e barleycorns, will e. height, with such e. slender basis, would find that three go to the inch "-which gives stand. It would certainly be out of all pro- 16 inches.for the cubit. To this argument, portion. Towers are generally built about which is not perhaps of much weight, he three times the height of the adjoining nave, adds, what is of much greater moment, but this would be six times as high, and that II the GaJ..ilean synagogues, measured moreover the porch did not ta.per to a point by it, give round numbers" (pp. 187-8)] like e. Gothic spire. It is much more and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, probable, therefore, that there is a. corrup- and the height thereof thirty cubits. [It tion of the text of Chronicles (see on 2 Chron. thus appears that the temple was but a iii. 4)-errors in numbers are by no means smo.11-compared with many churches, e. infrequent-than the.t such a. column could fJery small-building. But its purpose and be erected to serve as a porch, or if erected- object must be considered. It was not for and this consideration appears to me to be assemblies of the people. The congregation decisive-could he.ve been passed over by never met within it, but the worship was our author without notice. It is impossible, offered towards it. It we.a e. place for the however, to say positively what the height Holy Presence, and for the priests who of the poroh was. Probably 30 cubits, the ministered before it.] height of the hon.se. Stanley character- istice.lly puts it down as " more than 200 Ver. 3.-And the porch [Cl)~~. forepe.rt, feet." It may be remarked here that Fer- projection (Vorhalle, Gesenius): The porch gusson, following Josephns and the Talmud, was not e. colonnade-that is ce.lled e. contends that the temple had another build- "porch of pillars" (oh. vii. 6), but was formed ing of the same height above it. See Diet. by simply prolonging the side we.Ila, and Bib. iii. p. 1456, and note on ver. 20.] possibly the roof (see below). Bahr holds Ver. 4.-A.nd for the house he made win- that it had only side we.lls and cieling, e.nd dows of narrow lights. [There he.a been was entirely open in front; e.nd the fact that much disputation over these words. The no mention is me.de of any door or opening, older expositors genere.lly follow (as does though the doors of the other pa.rte of the the marg.) the Che.Idea and Rabbins: "win- edifice are o.11 referred to (vers. 8, 31, 33), dows broad within and narrow without ; " certainly favours this view, e.s also does the windows, i.e., somewhat like the loopholes position of the pillars of eh. vii. 21] before of ancient castles. The windows of the the temple of the house [The house, or me.in temple would then have resembled those of building (var. 2), had two parts. (1) "The Egyptian saored buildings. (It is not im- temple of the hou,se" (); 1l':I = " spacious," plied that there was any consmons imitation of Egypt, though Fer~nsson surely forgets hence "magnificent building," "po.lace," e.s the affinity with Pharaoh (eh. iii. I), the trade in Prov. xxx. 28; Dan. i. 4. Gesen., Thea. with Egypt (oh. x. 28), e.nd the favour with i. 375). The same word is used of the taber- which some Egyptian fashions were re- nacle (1 Sam. i 9), of the royal po.lace (1 garded (Cant. i. 9), when he contends that Kingexxi.1; 2 Kings xx. 18; Pee.. xiv. 8, 15), the chosen people would never take tha and of heaven (2 Sam. xxii. 7, &o.) This was buildings of their ancestral enemy for o the vaor; par ezcellence, and is ce.lled " the model.) But this meaning is I\ot supported great house," because of its superior size and by the original (C't;,t;?~ Cl•_Q~~), the literal height, in 2 Ohr. iii. 6. (2) The oracle (i 1.';1;') interpretation of which is "closed beams" see on ver. 6. The two bore e. rough resem· (of. ohap. vii. 4, 5), and which tlie most blance to the nave and chancel of a Gothic competent scholars now understand to mean ehurch], twenty cubits was the length "closed or feed. lattices, i.e., the lattices or thereof according to the breadth of the the temple windows were not movable, as house [The porch, i.e., extended 11oroes the in domestic architecture (2 Kings i. 2; xiii.  THE FIRST BOOK OF KINGS. [oH, VI, 1-88.