1 And he made a brazen altar: its length was twenty cubits, and its breadth twenty cubits, and its height ten cubits.
The same day the king hallowed the middle of the court that was before the house of Jehovah; for there he offered the burnt-offerings, and the oblations, and the fat of the peace-offerings, because the brazen altar that was before Jehovah was too small to receive the burnt-offerings, and the oblations, and the fat of the peace-offerings.
And these are the measures of the altar in cubits: the cubit is a cubit and a hand breadth. The bottom was a cubit [in height] and the breadth a cubit, and its border on the edge thereof round about, one span: and this was the base of the altar. And from the bottom upon the ground to the lower settle was two cubits, and the breadth one cubit; and from the small settle to the great settle, four cubits, and the breadth a cubit. And the upper altar was four cubits; and from the hearth of ùGod and upward were four horns. And the hearth of ùGod was twelve [cubits] long, by twelve broad, square in the four sides thereof. And the settle was fourteen [cubits] long by fourteen broad in the four sides thereof; and the border about it, half a cubit; and the bottom thereof a cubit round about: and its steps looked toward the east.
And thou shalt make the altar of acacia-wood, five cubits the length, and five cubits the breadth; the altar shall be square; and the height thereof three cubits. And thou shalt make its horns at the four corners thereof; its horns shall be of itself; and thou shalt overlay it with copper. And thou shalt make its pots to cleanse it of the fat, its shovels, and its bowls, and its forks, and its firepans; for all the utensils thereof thou shalt employ copper. And thou shalt make for it a grating of network of copper; and on the net shalt thou make four copper rings at its four corners; and thou shalt put it under the ledge of the altar beneath, and the net shall be to the very middle of the altar. And thou shalt make staves for the altar, staves of acacia-wood, and overlay them with copper. And its staves shall be put into the rings, that the staves may be on both sides of the altar, when it is carried. Hollow with boards shalt thou make it: as it hath been shewn thee on the mountain, so shall they make [it].
And Solomon stood before the altar of Jehovah in the presence of the whole congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward the heavens.
And three times in the year did Solomon offer up burnt-offerings and peace-offerings upon the altar that he had built to Jehovah, and he burned incense upon that which was before Jehovah. So he finished the house.
And the brazen altar which was before Jehovah, he brought forward from the forefront of the house, from between [his] altar and the house of Jehovah, and put it by the side of [his] altar on the north. And king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest saying, Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt-offering, and the evening oblation, and the king's burnt-offering, and his oblation, and the burnt-offering of all the people of the land, and their oblation, and their drink-offerings; and sprinkle upon it all the blood of the burnt-offerings, and all the blood of the sacrifices; and the brazen altar shall be for me to inquire [by].
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » John Gill's Exposition of the Bible » Commentary on 2 Chronicles 4
Commentary on 2 Chronicles 4 John Gill's Exposition of the Bible
INTRODUCTION TO 2 CHRONICLES 3 & 4
These two chapters give an account of the building of the temple, of the materials, parts, and form of it, and of things belonging to it, and which agrees with 1 Kings 6:1 see the notes there; only here, 1 Chronicles 3:1, mention is made of the particular place where it was built, Mount Moriah; of which see the notes on Genesis 22:2. The dimensions of the house, as the Targum rightly explains, 2 Chronicles 3:3, are said to be after the first measure, either of that of the tabernacle by Moses, or rather of that of the pattern David gave to Solomon, 1 Chronicles 28:11, though some understand it of the greater cubit: the holy place is called the greater house, 2 Chronicles 3:5, being twice as long as the holy of holies; in 2 Chronicles 3:6, we are informed what the precious stones were for, which David and his princes gave for the temple, 1 Chronicles 29:2, that they were to decorate the house; and also what sort of gold was used in overlaying it, gold of Parvaim, which some interpret of PeruF8 , in America; but it is a question whether that was then known, or, if it was, must go by another name, since Peru is a late name given by the Spaniards, at their conquest of it. BochartF9 takes it to be Taprobane, an island in the Indian sea, as if it was Taph Parvan or Provan, the shore of Parvan. KircherF11 is of opinion it is the same with Javaim, the isles of Java in the same sea, from whence was gold, which is not very likely. WaserusF12 thinks Parvaim is the name of a town which is by PlinyF13 corruptly called Parbacia, which was in the land of Havilah, or the kingdom of the Charazenes, where was the best gold, Genesis 2:11 though others suppose it to be the same with Ophir, by removing the first letter of the word, to which PfeifferF14 inclines, and is as probable as any; and much more probable than what the JewsF15 say, that this gold was so called, because it was red like the blood of "parim", oxen: in 2 Chronicles 3:8, the quantity of gold, with which the most holy place was overlaid, is given, six hundred talents: of which See Gill on 1 Kings 6:21, In 2 Chronicles 3:9 we read of the nails with which the plates of gold were fastened to the boards, nowhere else mentioned, except in the Vulgate Latin version of 1 Kings 6:21, "he fastened the plates with golden nails"; which version perhaps is most correct; the weight of which were fifty shekels of gold; that is, according to the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin versions, each nail weighed so much, which amounted to seventy five pounds of our moneyF16 . Eupolemus, an Heathen writerF17 speaks of these nails, which he makes to be silver ones; and says they were of the weight of a talent, in the form of a woman's breast, and in number four, with which the plates of gold were fastened, which were of five cubits; I suppose he means there were four of these nails in every plate of five cubits: in 2 Chronicles 4:1 an account is given of an "altar of brass", made by Solomon, we have not elsewhere, only referred to 1 Kings 8:64 whether this was only covered with brass, as that made by Moses was, as someF18 think; or whether of massy brass, as Dr. LightfootF19 because not to be removed as that was, is not certain; the altar of the second temple was of stones unpolished, according to the MisnahF20 , with which agrees"46 And laid up the stones in the mountain of the temple in a convenient place, until there should come a prophet to shew what should be done with them. 47 Then they took whole stones according to the law, and built a new altar according to the former;' (1 Maccabees 4)and so PhiloF21 : "twenty cubits was the length thereof, and twenty cubits the breadth thereof, and ten cubits the height thereof"; it was four times as big in its square as that of Moses, and three times higher, and a cubit over, See Gill on Exodus 27:1. HecataeusF23 , an Heathen writer, speaks of this altar as four square, and made of whole and unpolished stones, each side of which was twenty cubits, but the height of it he makes to be twelve cubits, in which he mistakes. It weighed, according to Jacob LeonF24 7000 arobas of brass, each aroba containing twenty five pounds. The rest of the chapter agrees with the account in the book of Kings.F8 Erasm. Schmid. de America Orat. ad Calc. Pindar. p. 261. Montani Phaleg. in Calc. Jac. Capellus in loc.F9 Phaleg. l. 2. c. 27. & Canaan, l. 1. c. 46. col. 692. Braunius de Vest. Sacred. Heb. p. 221.F11 Prodrom. Copt. c. 4. p. 119.F12 De Antiqu. Num. Heb. l. 1. c. 6.F13 Nat. Hist l. 6. c. 28.F14 Difficil. Script. Sacr. cent. 3. loc. 16. p. 247.F15 T. Bab. Yoma, fol. 45. 1. Hieros. Yoma, fol. 41. 4. Shemot Rabba, sect. 39. fol. 136. 4.F16 Brerewood de Ponder. &c. c. 5.F17 Apud Euseb. Praepar. Evangel. l. 9. c. 34. p. 450.F18 Cunaeus de Rep. Heb. l. 2. c. 5.F19 Prospect of the Temple, ch. 34. p. 2029. So Villalpandus.F20 Middot, c. 3. sect. 4.F21 De Victimis, p. 850.F23 Apud Euseb. Evangel. Praepar. l. 9. c. 4. p. 408.F24 Relation of Memorable Things in the Temple, ch. 4. p. 20.
See Introduction to Chapter 4