And the king commanded them to quarry large, costly stones to lay the foundation of the temple with dressed stones.
Parallel translations
- WEB The king commanded, and they cut out large stones, costly stones, to lay the foundation of the house with worked stone.
- KJV And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house.
- NKJV And the king commanded them to quarry large stones, costly stones, and hewn stones, to lay the foundation of the temple.
- NASB Then the king issued orders, and they quarried large stones, valuable stones, to lay the foundation of the house with cut stones.
- NLT At the king’s command, they quarried large blocks of high-quality stone and shaped them to make the foundation of the Temple.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
At the king's command, large, costly stones were quarried and dressed for the temple foundation. The best stone was prepared for God's house.
Overview
Great worked stones formed a strong and worthy foundation for the temple. The care taken with costly, well-cut stone reflects the reverence due to the dwelling of God's name. This foundation imagery resonates with the New Testament, where Christ is the cornerstone and believers are living stones (1 Peter 2:5-6).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- 1 Kgs 6:7The 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.
- 1 Chr 22:2So David gave orders to gather the foreigners in the land of Israel, from whom he appointed stonecutters to prepare finished stones for building the house of God.
- 1 Kgs 7:9All these buildings were constructed with costly stones, cut to size and trimmed with saws inside and out from the foundation to the eaves, and from the outside to the great courtyard.
- 1 Cor 3:11–12For no one can lay a foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.
- Isa 28:16So this is what the Lord GOD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken.
- 1 Pet 2:6–7For it stands in Scripture: “See, I lay in Zion a stone, a chosen and precious cornerstone; and the one who believes in Him will never be put to shame.”
- Rev 21:14–21The wall of the city had twelve foundations bearing the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Solomon's glory, wisdom, and temple where God's presence dwells are a shadow of the greater Son of David — 'one greater than Solomon is here' — and of the true Temple, Christ himself.
How 1 Kings 5:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.