2 Chronicles 3

2 Chronicles covers the reign of Solomon in chapters 1–9. Chapter 2 describes how timber and craftsmen were secured for building the temple. Chapter 3 continues with the construction of the temple building itself, and chapter 4 turns to the temple furnishings.

Outline

• Verses 1–2 Solomon began construction on Mount Moriah on the second day of the second month in the fourth year of his reign. The site was the threshing floor of Ornan, which David had designated.
• Verses 3–7 The foundation measured sixty cubits long and twenty cubits wide. The cubit is a unit based on the length of the forearm from the elbow to the fingertips. The height of the porch (the entrance hall at the front of the temple) is recorded as 120 cubits. The greater house was ceiled with fir, overlaid with fine gold, and adorned with precious stones, and cherubim were carved on the walls.
• Verses 8–14 The Most Holy Place measured twenty cubits on each side and was overlaid with six hundred talents of fine gold. Inside it two cherubim were set up, whose outstretched wings together spanned twenty cubits. A veil was then made of blue, purple, and crimson yarn and fine linen.
• Verses 15–17 Two pillars thirty-five cubits high were set up before the temple and decorated with chains and one hundred pomegranates. The pillar on the right was called Jachin, and the one on the left Boaz.

Key Verses

• 2 Chronicles 3:1 "Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD at Jerusalem in mount Moriah." This verse links the temple site both to the name of the place where Abraham offered Isaac and to the location of David's altar.
• 2 Chronicles 3:17 "And called the name of that on the right hand Jachin, and the name of that on the left Boaz." This verse gives the names of the two pillars, which are commonly interpreted to mean "he will establish" and "in him is strength."

People and Places

• Solomon: the king of Israel who built the temple.
• David: Solomon's father, who designated the temple site.
• Ornan: a Jebusite whose threshing floor David purchased in order to build an altar (1 Chronicles 21).
• Mount Moriah in Jerusalem: the site where the temple was built.

Points to Consider

• This chapter overlaps in content with 1 Kings 6 and 1 Kings 7, though the details differ. In 1 Kings 7:15 the pillars are eighteen cubits high. Some explain the difference by suggesting that the Chronicles figure represents the combined length of both pillars or includes their bases. Likewise, some ancient manuscripts and versions give the height of the porch as twenty cubits rather than 120.
• The identification of Mount Moriah with the "land of Moriah" in Genesis 22 derives from this verse.
• The New Testament reads the temple, the Most Holy Place, and the veil in connection with Christ (John 2; Hebrews 9).

In the Korean Church

This chapter is frequently cited as a temple-building text during church construction and at dedication services. At the same time, opinion within the Korean church is divided over the practice of calling a church building a "temple" (seongjeon). Some argue that the term should be avoided, since in the New Testament the temple refers to Christ and to believers.