1 Kings 9:1 When Solomon finished building the temple of Yahveh, the royal palace, and all that Solomon desired to do,
1 Kings 9:2 Yahveh appeared to Solomon a second time just as he had appeared to him at Gibeon.
1 Kings 9:3 Yahveh said to him: I have heard your prayer and petition you have made before me. I have consecrated this temple you have built, to put my name there forever; my eyes and my heart will be always there.
1 Kings 9:4 As for you, if you walk before me as your father David walked, with a heart of integrity and in what is right, doing everything I have commanded you, and if you keep my statutes and ordinances,
1 Kings 9:5 I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised your father David: You will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.
1 Kings 9:6 If you or your sons turn away from following me and do not keep my commands — my statutes that I have set before you — and if you go and serve other gods and bow in worship to them,
1 Kings 9:7 I will cut off Israel from the land I gave them, and I will reject the temple I have sanctified for my name. Israel will become an object of scorn and ridicule among all the peoples.
1 Kings 9:8 Though this temple is now exalted, everyone who passes by will be appalled and will scoff. They will say: Why did Yahveh do this to this land and this temple?
1 Kings 9:9 Then they will say: Because they abandoned Yahveh their God who brought their ancestors out of the land of Egypt. They held strongly to other gods and bowed in worship to them and served them. Because of this, Yahveh brought all this ruin on them.
1 Kings 9:10 At the end of twenty years during which Solomon had built the two houses, Yahveh ‘s temple and the royal palace —
1 Kings 9:11 King Hiram of Tyre having supplied him with cedar and cypress logs and gold for his every wish — King Solomon gave Hiram twenty towns in the land of Galilee.
1 Kings 9:12 So Hiram went out from Tyre to look over the towns that Solomon had given him, but he was not pleased with them.
1 Kings 9:13 So he said, “What are these towns you’ve given me, my brother?” So, he called them the Land of Cabul, as they are still called today.
1 Kings 9:14 Now Hiram had sent the king nine thousand pounds of gold.
1 Kings 9:15 This is the account of the forced labor that King Solomon had imposed to build Yahveh ‘s temple, his own palace, the supporting terraces, the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer.
1 Kings 9:16 Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He then burned it, killed the Canaanites who lived in the city, and gave it as a dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife.
1 Kings 9:17 Then Solomon rebuilt Gezer, Lower Beth-horon,
1 Kings 9:18 Baalath, Tamar in the Wilderness of the land,
1 Kings 9:19 all the storage cities that belonged to Solomon, the chariot cities, the cavalry cities, and whatever Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, Lebanon, or anywhere else in the land of his dominion.
1 Kings 9:20 As for all the peoples who remained of the Amorites, Hethites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who were not Israelites —
1 Kings 9:21 their descendants who remained in the land after them, those whom the Israelites were unable to set apart for destruction[1] — Solomon imposed forced labor on them; it is still this way today.
1 Kings 9:22 But Solomon did not consign the Israelites to slavery; they were soldiers, his servants, his commanders, his captains, and commanders of his chariots and his cavalry.
1 Kings 9:23 These were the deputies who were over Solomon’s work: 550 who supervised the people doing the work.
1 Kings 9:24 Pharaoh’s daughter moved from the city of David to the house that Solomon had built for her; he then built the terraces.
1 Kings 9:25 Three times a year Solomon offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar he had built for Yahveh, and he burned incense with them in Yahveh ‘s presence. So, he completed the temple.
1 Kings 9:26 King Solomon put together a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber, which is near Eloth on the shore of the Red Sea in the land of Edom.
1 Kings 9:27 With the fleet, Hiram sent his servants, experienced seamen, along with Solomon’s servants.
1 Kings 9:28 They went to Ophir and acquired gold there — sixteen tons — and delivered it to Solomon.
[1] חָרָם = set apart for destruction. 1 Kings 9:21.
1 Kings 8:1 At that time Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, all the tribal heads and the ancestral leaders of the Israelites before him at Jerusalem to bring the ark of Yahveh ‘s covenant from the city of David, that is Zion.
1 Kings 8:2 So all the men of Israel were assembled in the presence of King Solomon in the month of Ethanim, which is the seventh month, at the festival.
1 Kings 8:3 All the elders of Israel came, and the priests lifted up the ark.
1 Kings 8:4 The priests and the Levites brought the ark of Yahveh, the tent of meeting, and the holy utensils that were in the tent.
1 Kings 8:5 King Solomon and the entire congregation of Israel, who had gathered around him and were with him in front of the ark, were sacrificing sheep, goats, and cattle that could not be counted or numbered, because there were so many.
1 Kings 8:6 The priests brought the ark of Yahveh’s covenant to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the temple, to the most holy place beneath the wings of the cherubim.
1 Kings 8:7 Because the cherubs were spreading their wings over the place of the ark, so that the cherubs covered the ark and its poles from above.
1 Kings 8:8 The poles were so long that their ends were seen from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they were not seen from outside the sanctuary; they are still there today.
1 Kings 8:9 Nothing was in the ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had put there at Horeb, where Yahveh made a covenant with the Israelites when they came out of the land of Egypt.
1 Kings 8:10 When the priests came out of the holy place, the cloud filled Yahveh’s temple,
1 Kings 8:11 and because of the cloud, the priests were not able to stay ministering, for the glory of Yahveh filled the temple.
1 Kings 8:12 Then Solomon said: Yahveh said that he would dwell in total darkness.
1 Kings 8:13 I have indeed built an exalted temple for you, a place for your dwelling forever.
1 Kings 8:14 The king turned around and blessed the entire congregation of Israel while they were standing.
1 Kings 8:15 He said: Blessed be Yahveh God of Israel! He spoke directly to my father David, and he has fulfilled the promise by his power. He said,
1 Kings 8:16 “Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city to build a temple in among any of the tribes of Israel, so that my name would be there. But I have chosen David to rule my people, Israel.”
1 Kings 8:17 My father David had his heart set on building a temple for the name of Yahveh, the God of Israel.
1 Kings 8:18 But Yahveh said to my father David, “Since your heart was set on building a temple for my name, you have done well to have this desire.
1 Kings 8:19 Yet you are not the one to build it; instead, your son, your own offspring, will build it for my name.”
1 Kings 8:20 Yahveh has fulfilled what he promised. I have taken the place of my father David, and I sit on the throne of Israel, as Yahveh promised. I have built the temple for the name of Yahveh, the God of Israel.
1 Kings 8:21 I have provided a place there for the ark, where Yahveh’s covenant is that he made with our ancestors when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.
1 Kings 8:22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of Yahveh in front of the entire congregation of Israel and spread out his hands toward the sky.[1]
1 Kings 8:23 He said: Lord God of Israel, there is no God like you in the sky above or on land below, who keeps the gracious covenant with your servants who walk before you with all their heart.
1 Kings 8:24 You have kept what you promised to your servant, my father David. You spoke directly to him and you fulfilled your promise by your power as it is today.
1 Kings 8:25 Therefore, Lord God of Israel, keep what you promised to your servant, my father David: You will never fail to have a man to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your sons take care to walk before me as you have walked before me.
1 Kings 8:26 Now God of Israel, please confirm what you promised to your servant, my father David.
1 Kings 8:27 But will God indeed live in the land? Even the sky, the highest sky, cannot contain you, much less this temple I have built.
1 Kings 8:28 Listen to your servant’s prayer and his petition, Yahveh my God, so that you may hear the cry and the prayer that your servant prays before you today,
1 Kings 8:29 so that your eyes may watch over this temple night and day, toward the place where you said, “My name will be there,” and so that you may hear the prayer that your servant prays toward this place.
1 Kings 8:30 Hear the petition of your servant and your people Israel, which they pray toward this place. May you hear in your dwelling place in the sky. May you hear and forgive.
1 Kings 8:31 When a man sins against his neighbor and is forced to take an oath, and he comes to take an oath before your altar in this temple,
1 Kings 8:32 may you hear in the sky and act. May you judge your servants, condemning the wicked man by bringing what he has done on his own head and providing justice for the righteous by rewarding him according to his righteousness.
1 Kings 8:33 When your people Israel are defeated before an enemy, because they have sinned against you, and they return to you and praise your name, and they pray and plead with you for mercy in this temple,
1 Kings 8:34 may you hear in the sky and forgive the sin of your people Israel. May you restore them to the land you gave their ancestors.
1 Kings 8:35 When the skies are shut and there is no rain, because they have sinned against you, and they pray toward this place and praise your name, and they turn from their sins because you are afflicting them,
1 Kings 8:36 may you hear in the sky and forgive the sin of your servants and your people Israel, so that you may teach them the good way they should walk in. May you send rain on your land that you gave your people for an inheritance.
1 Kings 8:37 When there is famine in the land, when there is pestilence, when there is blight or mildew, locust or grasshopper, when their enemy besieges them in the land and its cities, when there is any plague or illness,
1 Kings 8:38 every prayer or petition that any person or that all your people Israel may have — they each know their own affliction — as they spread out their hands toward this temple,
1 Kings 8:39 may you hear in the sky, your dwelling place, and may you forgive, act, and give to everyone according to all their ways, since you know each heart, for you alone know every human heart,
1 Kings 8:40 so that they may fear you all the days they live on the land you gave our ancestors.
1 Kings 8:41 Even for the foreigner who is not of your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your name —
1 Kings 8:42 for they will hear of your great name, strong hand, and outstretched arm, and will come and pray toward this temple —
1 Kings 8:43 may you hear in the sky, your dwelling place, and do according to all the foreigner asks. Then all peoples of the land will know your name, to fear you as your people Israel do and to know that this temple that I have built bears your name.
1 Kings 8:44 When your people go out to fight against their enemies, wherever you send them, and they pray to Yahveh in the direction of the city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your name,
1 Kings 8:45 may you hear their prayer and petition in the sky and uphold their cause.
1 Kings 8:46 When they sin against you — for there is no one who does not sin — and you are angry with them and hand them over to the enemy, and their captors deport them to the enemy’s country — whether distant or nearby —
1 Kings 8:47 and when they come to their senses in the land where they were deported and repent and petition you in their captors’ land: “We have sinned and done wrong; we have been wicked,”
1 Kings 8:48 and when they return to you with all their heart and all their throat in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and when they pray to you in the direction of their land that you gave their ancestors, the city you have chosen, and the temple I have built for your name,
1 Kings 8:49 may you hear in the sky, your dwelling place, their prayer and petition and uphold their cause.
1 Kings 8:50 May you forgive your people who sinned against you and all their rebellions against you, and may you grant them compassion before their captors, so that they may treat them compassionately.
1 Kings 8:51 For they are your people and your inheritance; you brought them out of Egypt, out of the middle of an iron furnace.
1 Kings 8:52 May your eyes be open to your servant’s petition and to the petition of your people Israel, listening to them whenever they call to you.
1 Kings 8:53 For you, Yahveh God, have set them apart as your inheritance from all peoples of the land, as you spoke through your servant Moses when you brought our ancestors out of Egypt.
1 Kings 8:54 When Solomon finished praying this entire prayer and petition to Yahveh, he got up from kneeling before the altar of Yahveh, with his hands spread out toward the sky,
1 Kings 8:55 and he stood and blessed the whole congregation of Israel with a loud voice:
1 Kings 8:56 “Blessed be Yahveh! He has given rest to his people Israel according to all he has said. Not one of all the good promises he made through his servant Moses has failed.
1 Kings 8:57 May Yahveh our God be with us as he was with our ancestors. May he not abandon us or leave us
1 Kings 8:58 so that he causes us to be devoted to him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commands, statutes, and ordinances, which he commanded our ancestors.
1 Kings 8:59 May my words with which I have made my petition before Yahveh be near Yahveh our God day and night. May he uphold his servant’s cause and the cause of his people Israel, as each day requires.
1 Kings 8:60 May all the peoples of the land know that Yahveh is God. There is no other!
1 Kings 8:61 Be wholeheartedly devoted to Yahveh our God to walk in his statutes and to keep his commands, as it is today.”
1 Kings 8:62 The king and all Israel with him were offering sacrifices in Yahveh’s presence.
1 Kings 8:63 Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to Yahveh: twenty-two thousand cattle and one hundred twenty thousand sheep and goats. In this manner the king and all the Israelites dedicated Yahveh’s temple.
1 Kings 8:64 On the same day, the king consecrated the middle of the courtyard that was in front of Yahveh’s temple because that was where he offered the burnt offering, the grain offering, and the fat of the fellowship offerings since the bronze altar before Yahveh was too small to accommodate the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat of the fellowship offerings.
1 Kings 8:65 Solomon and all Israel with him — a great assembly, from the entrance of Hamath to the Brook of Egypt — observed the festival at that time in the presence of Yahveh our God, seven days, and seven more days– fourteen days.
1 Kings 8:66 On the fifteenth day he sent the people away. So, they blessed the king and went to their homes rejoicing and with happy hearts for all the goodness that Yahveh had done for his servant David and for his people Israel.
1 Kings 7:1 Solomon completed his entire palace complex after thirteen years of construction.
1 Kings 7:2 He built the House of the Forest of Lebanon. It was a hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide, and thirty cubits high on four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams on top of the pillars.
1 Kings 7:3 It was covered above with cedar at the top of the chambers that rested on forty-five pillars, fifteen per row.
1 Kings 7:4 There were three rows of window frames, facing each other in three tiers.
1 Kings 7:5 All the doors and doorposts had rectangular frames, the openings facing each other in three tiers.
1 Kings 7:6 He made the hall of pillars fifty cubits long and thirty cubits wide. A portico was in front of the pillars, and a canopy with pillars was in front of them.
1 Kings 7:7 He made the Hall of the Throne where he would judge– the Hall of Judgment. It was covered with cedar from the floor to the rafters.
1 Kings 7:8 Solomon’s own palace where he would live, in the other courtyard behind the hall, was of similar construction. And he made a house like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, his wife.
1 Kings 7:9 All of these buildings were of costly stones, cut to size and sawed with saws on the inner and outer surfaces, from foundation to coping and from the outside to the great courtyard.
1 Kings 7:10 The foundation was made of large, costly stones twelve and fifteen feet long.
1 Kings 7:11 Above were also costly stones, cut to size, as well as cedar wood.
1 Kings 7:12 Around the great courtyard, as well as the inner courtyard of Yahveh ‘s temple and the portico of the temple, were three rows of dressed stone and a row of trimmed cedar beams.
1 Kings 7:13 King Solomon sent and took Hiram from Tyre.
1 Kings 7:14 He was a widow’s son from the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a bronze craftsman. Hiram had great skill, understanding, and knowledge to do every kind of bronze work. So, he came to King Solomon and carried out all his work.
1 Kings 7:15 He cast two bronze pillars, each 18 cubits high and 12 cubits in circumference.
1 Kings 7:16 He also made two capitals of cast bronze to set on top of the pillars; five cubits was the height of the first capital, and five cubits was also the height of the second capital.
1 Kings 7:17 The capitals on top of the pillars had gratings of latticework, wreaths made of chainwork– seven for the first capital and seven for the second.
1 Kings 7:18 He made the pillars with two encircling rows of pomegranates on the one grating to cover the capital on top; he did the same for the second capital.
1 Kings 7:19 And the capitals on top of the pillars in the portico were shaped like lilies, four cubits high.
1 Kings 7:20 The capitals on the two pillars were also immediately above the rounded surface next to the grating, and two hundred pomegranates were in rows encircling each capital.
1 Kings 7:21 He set up the pillars at the portico of the sanctuary: he set up the right pillar and named it Jachin; then he set up the left pillar and named it Boaz.
1 Kings 7:22 The tops of the pillars were shaped like lilies. Then the work of the pillars was completed.
1 Kings 7:23 He made the cast metal basin, ten cubits from brim to brim, perfectly round. It was five cubits high and 30 cubits in circumference.
1 Kings 7:24 Ornamental gourds encircled it below the brim, ten every cubit, completely encircling the basin. The gourds were cast in two rows when the basin was cast.
1 Kings 7:25 It stood on twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The basin was on top of them, and all their hindquarters were toward the center.
1 Kings 7:26 The basin was three inches thick, and its rim was fashioned like the brim of a cup or of a lily blossom. It held two thousand baths.
1 Kings 7:27 Then he made ten bronze water carts. Each water cart was 4 cubits long, 4 cubits wide, and 3 cubits high.
1 Kings 7:28 This was the design of the carts: They had frames; the frames were between the cross-pieces,
1 Kings 7:29 and on the frames between the cross-pieces were lions, oxen, and cherubim. On the cross-pieces there was a pedestal above, and below the lions and oxen were wreaths of hanging work.
1 Kings 7:30 Each cart had four bronze wheels with bronze axles. Underneath the four corners of the basin were cast supports, each next to a wreath.
1 Kings 7:31 And the water cart’s opening inside the crown on top was a cubit wide. The opening was round, made as a pedestal twenty-seven inches wide. On it were carvings, but their frames were square, not round.
1 Kings 7:32 There were four wheels under the frames, and the wheel axles were part of the water cart; each wheel was 1 ½ cubits tall.
1 Kings 7:33 The wheels’ design was like that of chariot wheels: their axles, rims, spokes, and hubs were all of cast metal.
1 Kings 7:34 Four supports were at the four corners of each water cart; each support was one piece with the water cart.
1 Kings 7:35 At the top of the cart was a band nine inches high encircling it; also, at the top of the cart, its braces and its frames were one piece with it.
1 Kings 7:36 He engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees on the plates of its braces and on its frames, wherever each had space, with encircling wreaths.
1 Kings 7:37 In this way he made the ten water carts using the same casting, dimensions, and shape for all of them.
1 Kings 7:38 Then he made ten bronze basins — each basin held 40 baths and each was six feet wide — one basin for each of the ten water carts.
1 Kings 7:39 He set five water carts on the right side of the temple and five on the left side. He put the basin near the right side of the temple toward the southeast.
1 Kings 7:40 Then Hiram made the basins, the shovels, and the sprinkling basins. So, Hiram finished all the work that he was doing for King Solomon on Yahveh ‘s temple:
1 Kings 7:41 two pillars; bowls for the capitals that were on top of the two pillars; the two gratings for covering both bowls of the capitals that were on top of the pillars;
1 Kings 7:42 the four hundred pomegranates for the two gratings (two rows of pomegranates for each grating covering both capitals’ bowls on top of the pillars);
1 Kings 7:43 the ten water carts; the ten basins on the water carts;
1 Kings 7:44 the basin; the twelve oxen underneath the basin;
1 Kings 7:45 and the pots, shovels, and sprinkling basins. All the utensils that Hiram made for King Solomon at Yahveh ‘s temple were made of burnished bronze.
1 Kings 7:46 The king had them cast in clay molds in the Jordan Valley between Succoth and Zarethan.
1 Kings 7:47 Solomon left all the utensils unweighed because there were so many; the weight of the bronze was not determined.
1 Kings 7:48 Solomon also made all the equipment in Yahveh’s temple: the gold altar; the gold table that the Bread of the Presence was placed on;
1 Kings 7:49 the pure gold lampstands in front of the inner sanctuary, five on the right and five on the left; the gold flowers, lamps, and tongs;
1 Kings 7:50 the pure gold ceremonial bowls, wick trimmers, sprinkling basins, ladles, and firepans; and the gold hinges for the doors of the inner temple (that is, the most holy place) and for the doors of the temple sanctuary.
1 Kings 7:51 So all the work King Solomon did in Yahveh’s temple was completed. Then Solomon brought in the consecrated things of his father David — the silver, the gold, and the utensils — and put them in the treasuries of Yahveh ‘s temple.
1 Kings 6:1 Solomon began to build the temple for Yahveh in the four hundred eightieth year after the Israelites came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of his reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month.
1 Kings 6:2 The temple that King Solomon built for Yahveh was sixty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and thirty cubits high.
1 Kings 6:3 The portico in front of the temple sanctuary was twenty cubits long extending across the temple’s width, and ten cubits deep in front of the temple.
1 Kings 6:4 He also made windows with recessed frames for the temple.
1 Kings 6:5 He then built a chambered structure along the temple wall, encircling the walls of the temple, that is, the sanctuary and the inner sanctuary. And he made side chambers all around.
1 Kings 6:6 The lowest chamber was five cubits wide, the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide. He also provided offset ledges for the temple all around the outside so that nothing would be inserted into the temple walls.
1 Kings 6:7 The temple’s construction used finished stones cut at the quarry so that no hammer, chisel, or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built.
1 Kings 6:8 The door for the lowest side chamber was on the right side of the temple. They went up a stairway to the middle chamber, and from the middle to the third.
1 Kings 6:9 When he finished building the temple, he covered it with boards and planks of cedar.
1 Kings 6:10 He built the chambers along the entire temple, joined to the temple with cedar beams; each story was five cubits high.
1 Kings 6:11 The word of Yahveh came to Solomon:
1 Kings 6:12 “As for this temple you are building– if you walk in my statutes, observe my ordinances, and keep all my commands by walking in them, I will fulfill my promise to you, which I made to your father David.
1 Kings 6:13 I will dwell among the Israelites and not abandon my people, Israel.”
1 Kings 6:14 When Solomon finished building the temple,
1 Kings 6:15 he covered the interior temple walls with cedar boards; from the temple floor to the surface of the ceiling he overlaid the interior with wood. He also overlaid the floor with cypress boards.
1 Kings 6:16 Then he lined twenty cubits of the rear of the temple with cedar boards from the floor to the surface of the ceiling, and he built the interior as an inner sanctuary, the most holy place.
1 Kings 6:17 The temple, that is, the sanctuary in front of the most holy place, was forty cubits long.
1 Kings 6:18 The cedar covering inside the temple was carved with ornamental gourds and flower blossoms. Everything was cedar; not a stone could be seen.
1 Kings 6:19 He prepared the inner sanctuary inside the temple to put the ark of Yahveh ‘s covenant there.
1 Kings 6:20 The interior of the sanctuary was twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high; he overlaid it with pure gold. He also overlaid the cedar altar.
1 Kings 6:21 Next, Solomon overlaid the interior of the temple with pure gold, and he hung gold chains across the front of the inner sanctuary and overlaid it with gold.
1 Kings 6:22 So he added the gold overlay to the entire temple until everything was finished, including the entire altar that belongs to the inner sanctuary.
1 Kings 6:23 In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim ten cubits high out of olive wood.
1 Kings 6:24 One wing of the first cherub was five cubits long, and the other wing was five cubits long. The wingspan was ten cubits from tip to tip.
1 Kings 6:25 The second cherub also was ten cubits; both cherubim had the same size and shape.
1 Kings 6:26 The first cherub’s height was ten cubits and so was the second cherub’s.
1 Kings 6:27 Then he put the cherubim inside the inner temple. Since their wings were spread out, the first one’s wing touched one wall while the second cherub’s wing touched the other wall, and in the middle of the temple their wings were touching wing to wing.
1 Kings 6:28 He also overlaid the cherubim with gold.
1 Kings 6:29 He carved all the surrounding temple walls with carved engravings– cherubim, palm trees, and flower blossoms– in the inner and outer sanctuaries.
1 Kings 6:30 He overlaid the temple floor with gold in both the inner and the outer sanctuaries.
1 Kings 6:31 For the entrance of the inner sanctuary, he made olive wood doors. The pillars of the doorposts were five-sided.
1 Kings 6:32 The two doors were made of olive wood. He carved cherubim, palm trees, and flower blossoms on them and overlaid them with gold, hammering gold over the cherubim and palm trees.
1 Kings 6:33 In the same way, he made four-sided olive wood doorposts for the sanctuary entrance.
1 Kings 6:34 The two doors were made of cypress wood; the first door had two folding sides, and the second door had two folding panels.
1 Kings 6:35 He carved cherubim, palm trees, and flower blossoms on them and overlaid them with gold applied evenly over the carving.
1 Kings 6:36 He built the inner courtyard with three rows of dressed stone and a row of trimmed cedar beams.
1 Kings 6:37 The foundation of Yahveh ‘s temple was laid in Solomon’s fourth year in the month of Ziv.
1 Kings 6:38 In his eleventh year in the month of Bul, which is the eighth month, the temple was completed in every detail and according to every specification. So, he built it in seven years.
18 As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee he saw two brothers, Simon (called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea (for they were fishermen). 19 He said to them, “Follow me, and I will turn you into fishers of people.” 20 They left their nets immediately and followed him. 21 Going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in a boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. Then he called them. 22 They immediately left the boat and their father and followed him.
Today’s passage introduces us to four ordinary fishermen going about their daily work along the Sea of Galilee. The scene is simple and familiar: two brothers in one boat, and two more in another boat with their father, Zebedee. You can almost smell the fish on their hands and see the sun on their faces. They are doing what they had done countless times — casting their nets, mending their nets, preparing for another day of labor.
But on this particular day, everything changed.
Into this ordinary moment stepped Jesus Christ, and His call transformed their lives forever. These men would no longer spend their days pulling fish from the water. Instead, they would begin learning how to draw people into the life and kingdom of God. What began as a routine morning on the lake became the doorway to a mission that would reshape the world.
There is something deeply comforting and deeply challenging about this scene. Jesus did not call these men while they were in the synagogue or engaged in religious duties. He called them in the middle of their workday, right where life felt most ordinary. And He still does the same today. Christ meets us in the routines we know so well and invites us into something greater — a life of purpose, discipleship, and kingdom influence.
As we look more closely at each of these four fishermen, may we listen for the same voice that called them. May we be ready to leave whatever holds us back and follow the One who still transforms ordinary people into His faithful servants.
The First Fisherman Is Simon, Aka Peter.
Peter, originally named Simon, was a fisherman from Bethsaida and later Capernaum, working alongside his brother Andrew on the Sea of Galilee. His life changed forever when Jesus called him to leave his nets and follow Him. Jesus renamed him Peter (Greek Petros, “rock”), signaling the foundational role he would play in the emerging community of believers.
Peter quickly became one of Jesus’ closest disciples. Bold, impulsive, and deeply loyal, he often acted as the spokesman for the Twelve. He was present at key moments: the Transfiguration, the raising of Jairus’s daughter, and Jesus’ agony in Gethsemane. His confession — “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” — marked a turning point in Jesus’ ministry. Yet Peter’s humanity was equally visible. Despite his confidence, he tried to convince Jesus not to go to the cross. He denied knowing Jesus three times during the trial, a failure that left him devastated. After the resurrection, Jesus restored him gently on the shores of Galilee, commissioning him to “feed my sheep,” a charge that shaped the rest of his life.
After Jesus’ ascension, Peter emerged as a central leader in the early church. On the Day of Pentecost, he preached the sermon that launched the Christian movement, leading thousands to faith. He performed miracles, confronted opposition from the Sanhedrin, and shepherded the growing community in Jerusalem. His encounter with Cornelius, a Roman centurion, marked a decisive moment in the church’s expansion, demonstrating that the gospel was for Gentiles as well as Jews.
Peter’s ministry eventually extended beyond Judea. Early Christian tradition places him in Antioch and later in Rome, where he continued preaching Christ in the heart of the empire. His two New Testament letters reflect a seasoned shepherd encouraging believers to endure suffering with hope, holiness, and steadfast faith.
According to ancient testimony, Peter was martyred in Rome during Nero’s persecution, likely in the mid‑60s AD. Tradition holds that he was crucified upside down, deeming himself unworthy to die in the same manner as his Lord.
Peter’s life is a portrait of transformation — from fisherman to apostle, from fearful denier to courageous witness. His story reminds believers that Christ forms ordinary people into instruments of extraordinary grace, grounding their hope not in their strength but in the life God alone can give.
The Second Fisherman Is Andrew, Peter’s Brother.
Andrew, one of the earliest followers of Jesus, was born in Bethsaida on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. A fisherman by trade, he worked alongside his brother Simon Peter, with whom he shared both a livelihood and a spiritual hunger. Before meeting Jesus, Andrew had been a disciple of John the Baptist, drawn to John’s call for repentance and readiness for the coming Messiah. It was John who first pointed Andrew to Jesus, declaring Him “the Lamb of God.” Andrew immediately followed Jesus and, after spending time with Him, became the first recorded disciple to bring another person to Christ — his own brother Peter.
This pattern of introducing others to Jesus became Andrew’s defining mark. While he never occupied the same public prominence as Peter, James, or John, Andrew consistently appears in Scripture as a quiet connector, someone who noticed people and brought them to the Lord. He brought the boy with the loaves and fish to Jesus before the feeding of the five thousand, and he helped facilitate the approach of Greek seekers who wished to meet Christ. Andrew’s instinct was always relational, always invitational.
Andrew was among the Twelve whom Jesus appointed as apostles, entrusted with preaching, healing, and casting out demons. He witnessed many of Jesus’ miracles and teachings, including the Discourse on the Mount of Olives, where Jesus spoke of the end of the age. After the resurrection and ascension, Andrew remained with the early believers in Jerusalem, praying and waiting for the promised Holy Spirit. Though the book of Acts focuses more on Peter and Paul, early Christian tradition preserves Andrew’s missionary legacy.
According to ancient accounts, Andrew traveled north and west, preaching the gospel in regions such as Scythia, Thrace, and Achaia. His ministry was marked by perseverance, humility, and a willingness to serve in places far from the centers of power. Tradition holds that Andrew was eventually martyred in the city of Patras, crucified on an X‑shaped cross — a form of execution he reportedly accepted with joy, considering himself unworthy to die in the same manner as his Lord.
Andrew’s life is a portrait of faithful, relational evangelism. He reminds believers that the kingdom of God often advances through quiet introductions, personal invitations, and the steady witness of those who simply bring people to Jesus.
The Third Fisherman Is A Man Named James, Son Of Zebedee.
James, the son of Zebedee and older brother of John, was one of the earliest disciples called by Jesus. A fisherman by trade, James worked with his family on the Sea of Galilee, likely in a prosperous business that partnered with Simon Peter. When Jesus walked by their boat and called them, James and John immediately left the nets they were mending and followed Him — a decisive act that reveals both their spiritual readiness and the compelling authority of Christ’s call.
James quickly became part of Jesus’ inner circle, along with Peter and John. These three witnessed moments of profound revelation that the other disciples did not. James was present when Jesus raised Jairus’s daughter, when He was transfigured on the mountain, and when He agonized in prayer in Gethsemane. These experiences shaped James into a man who understood both the glory and the suffering of the Messiah.
Jesus gave James and John the nickname “Boanerges,” meaning “Sons of Thunder.” The name likely reflected their passionate, fiery personalities. At one point, they asked Jesus if they should call down fire on a Samaritan village that rejected Him. On another occasion, they boldly requested seats at Jesus’ right and left hand in His kingdom. Though their zeal was sometimes misdirected, Jesus shaped it into courageous devotion.
After Jesus’ resurrection and ascension, James continued as a leader in the early Jerusalem church. His boldness and prominence made him a target of opposition. In Acts 12, King Herod Agrippa I arrested James and had him executed by the sword, making him the first apostle to be martyred. His death, occurring around AD 44, demonstrated the cost of discipleship and the seriousness with which the early church’s enemies viewed its leaders.
James left no written works. The Letter of James we have in the New Testament is written by another James, the brother of Jesus. But this James’ legacy is profound. He was a man of action, loyalty, and intensity — a disciple who followed Jesus immediately, served Him passionately, and sealed his testimony with his blood. His life reminds believers that following Christ is both glorious and costly, and that God uses even fiery, imperfect people to advance His kingdom.
James, son of Zebedee, stands as a model of courageous faith: a man who saw Christ’s glory, shared in His sufferings, and remained faithful to the end.
The Fourth Fisherman Is A Man Named John, Son Of Zebedee.
John, the son of Zebedee and younger brother of James, was a fisherman on the Sea of Galilee before Jesus called him to discipleship. Working in a family business that appears to have been relatively prosperous, John likely grew up with both responsibility and religious devotion. When Jesus called John and James from their nets, they immediately left everything to follow Him — a decisive act that marked the beginning of a lifelong relationship with the Messiah.
John quickly became part of Jesus’ inner circle, along with Peter and James. These three witnessed some of the most intimate and defining moments of Jesus’ ministry: the raising of Jairus’s daughter, the Transfiguration, and the agony of Gethsemane. John’s closeness to Jesus is further emphasized by his position at the Last Supper, where he reclined next to the Lord, earning him the title “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” This phrase reflects not favoritism but the depth of John’s personal experience of Christ’s love.
John’s temperament was passionate — Jesus nicknamed him and his brother “Boanerges,” or “Sons of Thunder.” Yet over time, John’s fiery zeal was transformed into a mature, steadfast love that permeates his writings. At the crucifixion, John was the only apostle recorded as remaining near the cross, where Jesus entrusted him with the care of His mother, Mary. After the resurrection, John was among the first to believe upon seeing the empty tomb.
In the early church, John emerged as a pillar of leadership in Jerusalem alongside Peter. Later tradition places him in Ephesus, where he shepherded the churches of Asia Minor. His writings — the Gospel of John, three Epistles, and the Book of Revelation — reveal a profound theological mind shaped by intimate knowledge of Christ. John emphasizes themes of life, love, truth, and the identity of Jesus as the eternal Word made flesh.
According to early Christian testimony, John was exiled to the island of Patmos during a period of persecution, where he received the visions recorded in Revelation. Unlike most of the apostles, John is believed to have died a natural death in old age, leaving behind a legacy of pastoral care, theological depth, and unwavering devotion to Christ.
John’s life stands as a witness to the transforming power of Jesus’ love — turning a Son of Thunder into an apostle of truth and love whose voice still shapes the church today.
Principles we learn from the Four Fishermen
As we look at the lives of these four fishermen whom Jesus called, several powerful principles rise to the surface — principles that still speak to us today.
First, each of these men was willing to follow Jesus Christ. They did not understand everything at first, but they recognized His voice and responded. Their obedience began with a simple step: leaving behind what was familiar in order to walk with the Lord.
Second, all four were willing to let the Lord use them. They offered Jesus their ordinary lives — their hands, their skills, their personalities — and He shaped them into instruments of His kingdom. None of them brought impressive résumés; they simply brought willing hearts.
Third, their time with Jesus changed them deeply. His teaching, His compassion, His holiness, and His patience transformed them from the inside out. They were not the same men at the end of the journey as they were at the beginning.
Fourth, none of them started as people of great influence, yet by following Christ they became leaders who shaped the world. Their greatness did not come from natural ability but from walking closely with the One who is truly great.
Fifth, none of them felt worthy of Christ, yet they still served Him. Their humility became the soil in which God grew boldness, faith, and perseverance.
Sixth, each man had a family, yet their commitment to Christ came first. They loved their families well, but they loved their Lord supremely.
Finally, these men were dramatically different from one another, yet Jesus welcomed them all and wove their differences into His mission.
Lord, make us just as willing, just as humble, and just as ready to be changed by You.
jeffersonvann 