1 Kings 6:6
New International Version
The lowest floor was five cubits wide, the middle floor six cubits and the third floor seven. He made offset ledges around the outside of the temple so that nothing would be inserted into the temple walls.

New Living Translation
The complex was three stories high, the bottom floor being 7 1 / 2 feet wide, the second floor 9 feet wide, and the top floor 10 1 / 2 feet wide. The rooms were connected to the walls of the Temple by beams resting on ledges built out from the wall. So the beams were not inserted into the walls themselves.

English Standard Version
The lowest story was five cubits broad, the middle one was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad. For around the outside of the house he made offsets on the wall in order that the supporting beams should not be inserted into the walls of the house.

Berean Standard Bible
The bottom floor was five cubits wide, the middle floor six cubits, and the third floor seven cubits. He also placed offset ledges around the outside of the temple, so that nothing would be inserted into its walls.

King James Bible
The nethermost chamber was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad: for without in the wall of the house he made narrowed rests round about, that the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house.

New King James Version
The lowest chamber was five cubits wide, the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for he made narrow ledges around the outside of the temple, so that the support beams would not be fastened into the walls of the temple.

New American Standard Bible
The lowest story was five cubits wide, the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house all around so that the beams would not be inserted into the walls of the house.

NASB 1995
The lowest story was five cubits wide, and the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house all around in order that the beams would not be inserted in the walls of the house.

NASB 1977
The lowest story was five cubits wide, and the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house all around in order that the beams should not be inserted in the walls of the house.

Legacy Standard Bible
The lowest story was five cubits wide, and the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house all around in order that the beams would not be inserted in the walls of the house.

Amplified Bible
The lowest story was five cubits wide, the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for he made offsets (niches) in the walls all around on the outside of the house so that the supporting beams would not be inserted into the walls of the house.

Christian Standard Bible
The lowest chamber was 7 1 /2 feet wide, the middle was 9 feet wide, and the third was 10 1 /2 feet wide. He also provided offset ledges for the temple all around the outside so that nothing would be inserted into the temple walls.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
The lowest chamber was 7 1/2 feet wide, the middle was nine feet wide, and the third was 10 1/2 feet wide. He also provided offset ledges for the temple all around the outside so that nothing would be inserted into the temple walls.

American Standard Version
The nethermost story was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house round about, that the beams should not have hold in the walls of the house.

English Revised Version
The nethermost story was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad: for on the outside he made rebatements in the wall of the house round about, that the beams should not have hold in the walls of the house.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The [interior of] the lowest story of the annex was 7 1/2 feet wide, the second story was 9 feet wide, and the third story was 10 1/2 feet wide. Solomon made ledges all around the temple so that this annex would not be fastened to the walls of the temple.

Good News Translation
Each room in the lowest story was 7½ feet wide, in the middle story 9 feet wide, and in the top story 10½ feet wide. The Temple wall on each floor was thinner than on the floor below, so that the rooms could rest on the wall without having their beams built into it.

International Standard Version
The lower structures were five cubits wide, the middle structures were six cubits wide and the third structures were seven cubits wide. Offsets were placed all around the Temple so that beams would not protrude through the walls of the Temple.

Majority Standard Bible
The bottom floor was five cubits wide, the middle floor six cubits, and the third floor seven cubits. He also placed offset ledges around the outside of the temple, so that nothing would be inserted into its walls.

NET Bible
The bottom floor of the extension was seven and a half feet wide, the middle floor nine feet wide, and the third floor ten and a half feet wide. He made ledges on the temple's outer walls so the beams would not have to be inserted into the walls.

New Heart English Bible
The lowest story was eight feet and seven inches broad, and the middle was ten feet and four inches broad, and the third was twelve feet and one inch broad; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house all around, that the beams should not have hold in the walls of the house.

Webster's Bible Translation
The nethermost chamber was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad: for without in the wall of the house he made narrowed rests round about, that the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house.

World English Bible
The lowest floor was five cubits wide, and the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house all around, that the beams should not be inserted into the walls of the house.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
The lowest couch, its breadth [is] five by the cubit; and the middle, its breadth [is] six by the cubit; and the third, its breadth [is] seven by the cubit, for he has put withdrawings of the house all around outside—not to lay hold on the walls of the house.

Young's Literal Translation
The lowest couch, five by the cubit is its breadth; and the middle, six by the cubit is its breadth; and the third, seven by the cubit is its breadth, for withdrawings he hath put to the house round about, without -- not to lay hold on the walls of the house.

Smith's Literal Translation
The floor the lower part, five by the cubit its breadth, and the middle, six by the cubit its breadth, and the third, seven by the cubit its breadth: for he gave offsets to the house round about without, so that it laid not hold upon the walls of the house.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
The floor that was underneath, was five cubits in breadth, and the middle floor was six cubits in breadth, and the third door was seven cubits in breadth. And he put beams in the house round about on the outside, that they might not be fastened in the walls of the temple.

Catholic Public Domain Version
The flooring on the bottom level held five cubits in width, and the middle floor was six cubits in width, and the third floor held seven cubits in width. Then he positioned beams on the house all around the outside, in such a way that they would not be fastened to the walls of the temple.

New American Bible
The lowest story was five cubits wide, the middle one six cubits wide, the third seven cubits wide, because he put recesses along the outside of the house to avoid fastening anything into the walls of the house.

New Revised Standard Version
The lowest story was five cubits wide, the middle one was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for around the outside of the house he made offsets on the wall in order that the supporting beams should not be inserted into the walls of the house.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
The lowest chamber was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for outside in the wall of the house he made narrowed copings round about in order that the walls should be fastened together.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And he made a lower circular corridor five cubits in its width, and a middle one six cubits in its width, and a third, seven cubits in its width, because a jutting out part was made for the house as a circle from outside that would shut the walls within walls.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
the nethermost story of the side-structure was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for on the outside he made rebatements in the wall of the house round about, that the beams should not have hold in the walls of the house.--

Brenton Septuagint Translation
The under side was five cubits broad, and the middle part six, and the third was seven cubits broad; for he formed an interval to the house round about without the house, that they might not touch the walls of the house.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Chambers
5Against the walls of the temple and the inner sanctuary, Solomon built a chambered structure around the temple, in which he constructed the side rooms. 6The bottom floor was five cubits wide, the middle floor six cubits, and the third floor seven cubits. He also placed offset ledges around the outside of the temple, so that nothing would be inserted into its walls. 7The temple was constructed using finished stones cut at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any other iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built.…

Cross References
1 Kings 6:10
He built chambers all along the temple, each five cubits high and attached to the temple with beams of cedar.

1 Kings 7:3-6
The house was roofed with cedar above the beams that rested on the pillars—forty-five beams, fifteen per row. / There were three rows of high windows facing one another in three tiers. / All the doorways had rectangular frames, with the openings facing one another in three tiers. ...

1 Kings 7:12
The great courtyard was surrounded by three rows of dressed stone and a row of trimmed cedar beams, as were the inner courtyard and portico of the house of the LORD.

2 Chronicles 3:9
The weight of the nails was fifty shekels of gold. He also overlaid the upper rooms with gold.

2 Chronicles 3:11-12
The total wingspan of the cherubim was twenty cubits. One wing of the first cherub was five cubits long and touched the wall of the temple, and its other wing was five cubits long and touched the wing of the other cherub. / The wing of the second cherub also measured five cubits and touched the wall of the temple, while its other wing measured five cubits and touched the wing of the first cherub.

2 Chronicles 4:4-5
The Sea stood on twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The Sea rested on them, with all their hindquarters toward the center. / It was a handbreadth thick, and its rim was fashioned like the brim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It could hold three thousand baths.

Ezekiel 41:6-7
The side rooms were arranged one above another in three levels of thirty rooms each. There were ledges all around the wall of the temple to serve as supports for the side rooms, so that the supports would not be fastened into the wall of the temple itself. / The side rooms surrounding the temple widened at each successive level, because the structure surrounding the temple ascended by stages corresponding to the narrowing of the temple wall as it rose upward. And so a stairway went up from the lowest story to the highest, through the middle one.

Ezekiel 41:9-11
The outer wall of the side rooms was five cubits thick, and the open area between the side rooms of the temple / and the outer chambers was twenty cubits wide all around the temple. / The side rooms opened into this area, with one entrance on the north and another on the south. The open area was five cubits wide all around.

Exodus 26:30
So you are to set up the tabernacle according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.

Exodus 36:20-30
Next, he constructed upright frames of acacia wood for the tabernacle. / Each frame was ten cubits long and a cubit and a half wide. / Two tenons were connected to each other for each frame. He made all the frames of the tabernacle in this way. ...

Exodus 36:31-34
He also made five crossbars of acacia wood for the frames on one side of the tabernacle, / five for those on the other side, and five for those on the rear side of the tabernacle, to the west. / He made the central crossbar to run through the center of the frames, from one end to the other. ...

Hebrews 8:5
The place where they serve is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: “See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.”

Hebrews 9:2-5
A tabernacle was prepared. In its first room were the lampstand, the table, and the consecrated bread. This was called the Holy Place. / Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, / containing the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. Inside the ark were the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. ...

Hebrews 9:23-24
So it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. / For Christ did not enter a man-made copy of the true sanctuary, but He entered heaven itself, now to appear on our behalf in the presence of God.

Acts 7:44-47
Our fathers had the tabernacle of the Testimony with them in the wilderness. It was constructed exactly as God had directed Moses, according to the pattern he had seen. / And our fathers who received it brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations God drove out before them. It remained until the time of David, / who found favor in the sight of God and asked to provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. ...


Treasury of Scripture

The nethermost chamber was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad: for without in the wall of the house he made narrowed rests round about, that the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house.

narrowed rests.

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Beams Broad Chamber Cubits Fastened Five Hold House Lowest Middle Nethermost Offsets Outside Rests Round Seven Side-Structure Six Story Third Wall Walls Wide
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Beams Broad Chamber Cubits Fastened Five Hold House Lowest Middle Nethermost Offsets Outside Rests Round Seven Side-Structure Six Story Third Wall Walls Wide
1 Kings 6
1. The building of Solomon's temple
5. The chambers thereof
11. God's promise unto it
15. The ceiling and adorning of it
23. The cherubim
31. The doors
36. The court
37. The time of building it














The lowest floor
The Hebrew term for "lowest" is "תַּחְתּוֹן" (taḥtôn), which signifies something that is beneath or lower in position. In the context of Solomon's Temple, this refers to the foundational level of the structure. Theologically, the lowest floor can symbolize the foundational truths of faith upon which believers build their spiritual lives. Just as the temple's lowest floor was essential for the stability of the entire structure, so too are the foundational doctrines of Christianity crucial for a stable faith.

was five cubits wide
A cubit is an ancient measurement roughly equivalent to 18 inches or 45 centimeters. The specific width of five cubits for the lowest floor indicates a deliberate architectural design. Biblically, the number five often symbolizes grace. The width of the lowest floor being five cubits could be seen as a reminder of God's grace as the foundation of His dwelling place among His people.

the middle floor six cubits
The middle floor, being six cubits wide, shows a progression in the temple's design. The number six in the Bible often represents human effort or imperfection, as it falls short of the divine number seven. This could symbolize the human element in the construction and maintenance of the temple, reminding us that while God's grace is foundational, human responsibility and effort are also part of the spiritual journey.

and the third floor seven cubits
The third floor, at seven cubits wide, reaches the number of completion and perfection in biblical numerology. Seven is often associated with God's divine order and perfection. This progression from five to six to seven cubits in the temple's design can be seen as a metaphor for spiritual growth, moving from grace through human effort to divine completion.

He also placed offset ledges
The Hebrew word for "offset ledges" is "יָצוּעַ" (yāṣûa‘), which refers to projections or offsets. These architectural features were practical, allowing for the support of the upper floors without penetrating the temple's sacred walls. Spiritually, this can be seen as a metaphor for how God supports and sustains His people without compromising His holiness.

around the outside of the temple
The temple's exterior design, including these ledges, was not just functional but also symbolic. The temple was a visible representation of God's presence among His people. The care taken in its construction reflects the reverence and awe due to God, reminding believers to honor God in all aspects of life, both internal and external.

so that nothing would be inserted into its walls
This phrase highlights the sanctity and integrity of the temple's walls. The walls were to remain untouched by foreign materials, symbolizing purity and holiness. In a spiritual sense, this can be seen as a call for believers to maintain the purity of their faith and not allow worldly influences to compromise their spiritual integrity.

Verse 6. - The nethermost chamber [Heb. floor; cf. Ezekiel 41:6] was five cubits broad [It must be remembered that all the measurements are those of the interior], and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad: for [Explanation how these differences of size arose] without [i.e., on the outside] in the wall of [Heb. omits] the house [main building - nave, and chancel] he made [Heb. put] narrowed rests [marg. "narrowings or rebatements," The word מִגְרָעות means lessenings, deductions; Absatze, Gesen. (Thesaurus, 1:804), Bahr.

PICTURE OF CHAMBER The outside of the temple wall took the shape of three (or four) steps, and presented three ledges for the beams to rest upon. See below] round about [same word as in ver. 5. The recesses in the wall ran round the north, west, and south sides of the building; they were co-extensive, i.e., with the flats or side chambers], that the beams should not be fastened [Heb. that no fastening] into the walls of the house. [The meaning is perfectly clear, viz., that the timbers should not be let into the walls, ("they had not hold in the wall of the house," Ezekiel 41:6); but why this was forbidden is not quite so certain. According to Bahr, it was in order to preserve the great and costly stones of the temple intact; but others, with greater probability, hold that it was because it appeared unseemly to have the side chambers, which were for semi-secular purposes (cubicles, perhaps), made an actual part of the sacred edifice. Anyhow, it is clear that the beams rested on ledges made in the walls; but whether in the temple wall only, or in the outer wall of the side structure also, is uncertain. The preceding sketch will not only illustrate the difference, but will help the reader to understand the description preceding. In drawing (1) rebatements are showed only in the temple or inner wall, In (2) they are showed in both walls. In (1) the edifice is represented with a fiat; in (2) with a span roof. Keil decides in favour of the first arrangement (1), and Bahr says somewhat positively, "The outer wall of the structure had no rests." In fact, he suggests that the whole of this side building may have been of wood. It must be admitted that we do know that there were rebatements in the wall A, whereas nothing is said as to the outer wall B. It may also be reasonably alleged that the considerations of fitness and sacredness which forbade the insertion of the beams into the sanctuary wall would not apply to the outer wall, which was a part of the side structure only. Against this view, however, may be urged the extreme thickness of wall which this method of building would necessitate. For unless we suppose that the floor of the ground story rested on the rock, and so was quite detached from the building, we must suppose four rebatements, so that if the wall at the top were two cubits wide, it would be no less than six cubits (or nine feet) at the bottom. It is true that the walls of ancient buildings were of extraordinary thickness, but it must also be remembered that the temple was not fifty feet high. However, Ezekiel 41:9 suggests that the outside wall (B) may have been five cubits in thickness, and, if so, the inner wall would hardly be less. Fergusson, therefore, has some justification for putting each wall down as five cubits wide; but on the whole, perhaps, the plan represented in (1) appears the more probable. The historian here digresses for a moment to speak of the remarkable and, indeed, unprecedented way in which the temple was built, The stories were shaped and prepared beforehand in the quarry, so that there was nothing to do on their arrival in the temple area but to fit them into their place in the building.]

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
The bottom
הַתַּחְתֹּנָ֜ה (hat·taḥ·tō·nāh)
Article | Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 8481: Lower, lowest

floor [was]
הַיָּצִ֨יעַ (hay·yā·ṣî·a‘)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3326: Spread, a bed, an extension, wing, lean-to

five
חָמֵ֧שׁ (ḥā·mêš)
Number - feminine singular
Strong's 2568: Five

cubits
בָּאַמָּ֣ה (bā·’am·māh)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 520: A mother, a cubit, a door-base

wide,
רָחְבָּ֗הּ (rā·ḥə·bāh)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person feminine singular
Strong's 7341: Breadth, width

the middle floor
וְהַתִּֽיכֹנָה֙ (wə·hat·tî·ḵō·nāh)
Conjunctive waw, Article | Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 8484: Central

six
שֵׁ֤שׁ (šêš)
Number - feminine singular
Strong's 8337: Six (a cardinal number)

cubits,
בָּֽאַמָּה֙ (bā·’am·māh)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 520: A mother, a cubit, a door-base

and the third [floor]
וְהַ֨שְּׁלִישִׁ֔ית (wə·haš·šə·lî·šîṯ)
Conjunctive waw, Article | Number - ordinal feminine singular
Strong's 7992: Third, feminine a, third, a third, a third-story cell)

seven
שֶׁ֥בַע (še·ḇa‘)
Number - feminine singular
Strong's 7651: Seven, seven times, a week, an indefinite number

cubits.
בָּאַמָּ֖ה (bā·’am·māh)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 520: A mother, a cubit, a door-base

He also placed
נָתַ֨ן (nā·ṯan)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5414: To give, put, set

offset ledges
מִגְרָעוֹת֩ (miḡ·rā·‘ō·wṯ)
Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 4052: A ledge, offset

all around
סָבִיב֙ (sā·ḇîḇ)
Adverb
Strong's 5439: A circle, neighbour, environs, around

the outside
ח֔וּצָה (ḥū·ṣāh)
Noun - masculine singular | third person feminine singular
Strong's 2351: Separate by a, wall, outside, outdoors

of the temple,
לַבַּ֤יִת (lab·ba·yiṯ)
Preposition-l, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1004: A house

so that nothing
לְבִלְתִּ֖י (lə·ḇil·tî)
Preposition-l
Strong's 1115: A failure of, not, except, without, unless, besides, because not, until

would be inserted
אֲחֹ֥ז (’ă·ḥōz)
Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 270: To grasp, take hold, take possession

into [its]
הַבָּֽיִת׃ (hab·bā·yiṯ)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1004: A house

walls.
בְּקִֽירוֹת־ (bə·qî·rō·wṯ-)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 7023: A wall


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OT History: 1 Kings 6:6 The nethermost story was five cubits broad (1Ki iKi i Ki 1 Kg 1kg)
1 Kings 6:5
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