1 Kings 6:15

“And he built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar, etc.] For as yet he had only built the stone walls of it without, but now he wainscotted it with cedar boards: and not only them, but both the floor of the house, and the walls of the ceiling; or from “the floor of the house unto the walls of the ceiling”; that is, from the floor, including that, to the walls on each side, reaching up to the ceiling, he covered [them] on the inside with wood: of one sort or another, cedar or fir, or both: particularly he covered the floor of the house with planks of fir: which Hiram sent him, (<110508>1 Kings 5:8,10); which is differently interpreted; by Josephus cypress; by others, as the…”

“THE CEILING AND ADORNING OF IT. (Kg1 6:15-22) he built the walls of the house within--The walls were wainscotted with cedar-wood; the floor, paved with cypress planks; the interior was divided (by a partition consisting of folding doors, which were opened and shut with golden chains) into two apartments--the back or inner room, that is, the most holy place, was twenty cubits long and broad; the front, or outer room, that is, the holy place, was forty cubits. The cedar-wood was beautifully embellished with figures in relievo, representing clusters of foliage, open flowers, cherubims, and palm trees. The whole interior was overlaid with gold, so that neither wood nor stone was seen; nothing…”

“The description of this verse applies to the main chamber of the temple, the holy place, only. The writer in 1 Kings 6:16 describes the holy of holies. The marginal rendering of this verse is right, and not the rendering in the text. Fir - Rather, “juniper.” See 1 Kings 5:6 note. return to 'Top of Page'”

“Walls - The name of a wall is not appropriated to stone or brick, because we read of a brazen wall, Jer 15:20, and a wall of iron, Eze 4:3. And that wall into which Saul smote his javelin, Sa1 19:10, seems more probably to be understood of wood, than of stone; especially, considering that it was the room where the king used to dine. By this periphrasis, from the floor of the house, unto the walls of the ceiling, he designs all the side - walls of the house. Them - The side - walls of the house. Wood - With other kind of wood, even with fir; as appears from Ch2 3:5, wherewith the floor is here said to be covered. Floor - This is spoken only concerning the floor, because there was nothing but…”

“6:15-18 paneled with wood: The interior walls were paneled with cedar from floor to ceiling so that no exterior stones could be seen. The effect was exquisitely beautiful, reflecting painstaking care and great expense.”

“he built: That is, he lined or wainscoted the walls with cedar, the floor being covered with planks of fir. the marginal reading in this verse is preferable, as it removes every difficulty and obscurity. both the floor of the house, and the walls: or, from the floor of the house, unto the walls, etc. and so Kg1 6:16 3 Kings (1 Kings) 6:16”