Solomon Builds the Temple
1 Four hundred and eighty years after the people of Israel left Egypt, during the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the second month, the month of Ziv, Solomon began work on the Temple. 2 Inside it was 90 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 45 feet high. 3 The entrance room was 15 feet deep and 30 feet wide, as wide as the sanctuary itself. 4 The walls of the Temple had openings in them, narrower on the outside than on the inside. 5 Against the outside walls, on the sides and the back of the Temple, a three-storied annex was built, each story 7½ feet high. 6 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.
7 The stones with which the Temple was built had been prepared at the quarry, so that there was no noise made by hammers, axes, or any other iron tools as the Temple was being built.
8 The entrance to the lowest story of the annex was on the south side of the Temple, with stairs leading up to the second and third stories. 9 So King Solomon finished building the Temple. He put in a ceiling made of beams and boards of cedar. 10 The three-storied annex, each story 7½ feet high, was built against the outside walls of the Temple, and was joined to them by cedar beams.
11 The Lord said to Solomon, 12 “If you obey all my laws and commands, I will do for you what I promised your father David. 13 I will live among my people Israel in this Temple that you are building, and I will never abandon them.”
14 So Solomon finished building the Temple.
The Interior Furnishings of the Temple
(2 Chronicles 3.8-14)15 The inside walls were covered with cedar panels from the floor to the ceiling, and the floor was made of pine. 16 An inner room, called the Most Holy Place, was built in the rear of the Temple. It was 30 feet long and was partitioned off by cedar boards reaching from the floor to the ceiling. 17 The room in front of the Most Holy Place was 60 feet long. 18 The cedar panels were decorated with carvings of gourds and flowers; the whole interior was covered with cedar, so that the stones of the walls could not be seen.
19 In the rear of the Temple an inner room was built, where the Lord's Covenant Box was to be placed. 20 This inner room was 30 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 30 feet high, all covered with pure gold. The altar was covered with cedar panels. 21 The inside of the Temple was covered with gold, and gold chains were placed across the entrance of the inner room, which was also covered with gold. 22 The whole interior of the Temple was covered with gold, as well as the altar in the Most Holy Place.
23 Two winged creatures were made of olive wood and placed in the Most Holy Place, each one 15 feet tall. 24-26 Both were of the same size and shape. Each had two wings, each wing 7½ feet long, so that the distance from one wing tip to the other was 15 feet. 27 They were placed side by side in the Most Holy Place, so that two of their outstretched wings touched each other in the middle of the room, and the other two wings touched the walls. 28 The two winged creatures were covered with gold.
29 The walls of the main room and of the inner room were all decorated with carved figures of winged creatures, palm trees, and flowers. 30 Even the floor was covered with gold.
31 A double door made of olive wood was set in place at the entrance of the Most Holy Place; the top of the doorway was a pointed arch. 32 The doors were decorated with carved figures of winged creatures, palm trees, and flowers. The doors, the winged creatures, and the palm trees were covered with gold. 33 For the entrance to the main room a rectangular doorframe of olive wood was made. 34 There were two folding doors made of pine 35 and decorated with carved figures of winged creatures, palm trees, and flowers, which were evenly covered with gold.
36 An inner court was built in front of the Temple, enclosed with walls which had one layer of cedar beams for every three layers of stone.
37 The foundation of the Temple was laid in the second month, the month of Ziv, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign. 38 In the eighth month, the month of Bul, in the eleventh year of Solomon's reign, the Temple was completely finished exactly as it had been planned. It had taken Solomon seven years to build it.
Solomoni unobaka Ng'umba ye Ndzimu
1 Shule kwe makole ali mazana ali manna ana makumi ali zhanakadzi (480) Baiziraela babhuda mu shango ye Egipiti, mu gole le bunna le mbuso wa Solomoni mu Iziraela, mu mwedzi we Zivi uli mwedzi we bubili mu gole, Solomoni katangisa kubaka Ng'umba ya Yahwe. 2 Solomoni wakabaka Ng'umba ya Yahwe ili bulefu gwe thambo dzili makumi mabili ana kutendeka (27), bupabi guli thambo dzili zhanalume, kudwa pasi kuyenda pezhugwi ili thambo dzili gumi lina kutatu kuna gaswa (13.5). 3 Ng'umba ye kutanga usathu ukangina ku bugalo gwakayengemala yakabe ili thambo dzili nna dzina gaswa (4.5) kuyenda pasi, ili bupabi gwe thambo dzili zhanalume gulizana ne bupabi gwe bugalo gwakayengemala. 4 Kathama Ng'umba ye Ndzimu ina mafesitere matetjanana kuzhe, mukati ali mapabi. 5 Kabaka zwing'umbana zwakatathikana zwakabhatana ne guma le Ng'umba ye Ndzimu kuipoteleka ne kupoteleka bugalo gwakayengemala. 6 Budzilo gwa pasi gwakabe guli bupabi gwe thambo dzili mbili dzina zwipithu zwibili (2.2), budzilo gupakati gwakabe guli bupabi gwe thambo dzili mbili dzina zwipithu zwili kutendeka (2.7), budzilo gwe butatu, gwakabe guli bupabi gwe thambo dzili thatu dzina ipithu (3.1). Kupoteleka tjakuzhe kathama mathudzi e guma kuitila kuti makwasayile asipubuligwe mu guma le ng'umba.
7 Mabgwe akabe ebaka Ng'umba ye Ndzimu akabe ebezhegwa kunokobolegwa mabgwe, kuti ha Ng'umba ye Ndzimu ibakiwa kusihwike nsindo we hamuli kene we shathu kene uli we gumwe butale.
8 Nkoba we Ng'umba ye Ndzimu ku budzilo gupakati wakabe wakalinga ku burwa, ngono kuna matathilo kuyenda ku budzilo gwe bubili kudwa pasi kuyenda pezhugwi ne kudwa muna gwe bubili kuyenda pezhugwi kuna gwe bupelo. 9 Solomoni wakabaka Ng'umba ye Ndzimu kaipedza, kathama denga nge thungo ne mapulanka e sida. 10 Wakabaka dzimwe ng'umba kupoteleka Ng'umba ye Ndzimu yose. Bulefu gwe imwe ne imwe yadzo kudwa pasi kuyenda pezhugwi gwakabe guli thambo dzili mbili dzina ipithu tje bubili mu gumi (2.2), dzakabe dzakabhatshanyiwa ne Ng'umba ye Ndzimu nge mapango e sida.
11 Dama la Yahwe likazha kuna Solomoni liti, 12 “Ngekwe Ng'umba yaunobaka, ha utobela milayo yangu yose, ndowoshingikadza dama langu mukuli, landakaleba na Dafite tate babo. 13 Ndowogala pakati kwe Baiziraela, andingalashe bathu bangu Baiziraela.”
14 Solomoni wakabaka Ng'umba ye Ndzimu kaipedza.
Zwija zwimukati kwe Ng'umba ye Ndzimu
(2 Zwiyitikalo 3:8-14)15 Kazwimba guma le ng'umba tjamukati nge mapulanka e sida, kudwa pasi kunoswika ku thungo. Ngono budzilo kaguthama nge mapulanka e misipuri. 16 Tjamukati kabaka ng'umba nge mapango e sida ili bugalo gwakayengemala gwakabe gudang'wa Bugalo gwakayengemala kupindisa edwa pasi enoti ku thungo. Bulefu gwayo kudwa pasi yakabe ili thambo dzili zhanalume. 17 Ng'umba yakabe ili mbeli kwe Bugalo gwakayengemala kupindisa yakabe ili bulefu gwe thambo dzili gumi lina zhanakadzi (18). 18 Mapango e miti ye sida akabe ali tjamukati kwe ng'umba akabe akakobolegwa zwifano zwe zwiteme ne maluba. Kuboneka mapango e sida koga, kusina bgwe linoboneka.
19 Wakalulwamisa bugalo gwakayengemala gutjamukati gumukati kwe Ng'umba ye Ndzimu, kuti kubigwe Bhokisi le Tjidumano tja Yahwe. 20 Bugalo gwakayengemala gutjamukati gwakabe guli bulefu gwe thambo dzili zhanalume ne bupabi gwe thambo dzili zhanalume kudwa pasi kuyenda pezhugwi thambo dzili zhanalume, guma le ng'umba lakabe lakadzulugwa nge golide lose. Tjibeso tje zwibhayilo tjakabe tjakabakwa nge mapango e sida. 21 Solomoni kadzulula Ng'umba ye Ndzimu nge golide yakatjena mukati. Katjinjika ketani dze golide mbeli kwe bugalo gwakayengemala gutjamukati, kagudzulula nge golide. 22 Mukati kose kwakabe kwakadzulugwa nge golide. Wakadzululabo tjibeso tjinopisigwa zwibhayilo tje bugalo gwakayengemala gutjamukati nge golide.
23 Mukati kwe bugalo gwakayengemala gutjamukati kabiga dzikherubhu mbili dzakabezhiwa nge lukuni gwe ntoba, imwe ne imwe ili bulefu gwe thambo dzili nna dzina zwipithu zwinna (4.4). 24 Bhapilo le kherubhu lakabe lili bulefu gwe thambo dzili mbili dzina zwipithu zwibili (2.2), limwe bhapiro lili bulefu gwe thambo dzili mbili dzina zwipithu zwibili (2.2). Ndizo bulefu gwe kudwa ku theswi ye limwe bhapilo kunoti ku theswi ye limwe dzakabe dzili thambo dzili nna dzina zwipithu zwinna (4.4). 25 Kherubhu imwe yakabe ilizana thambo dzili nna bo dzina zwipithu zwinna (4.4), bubili gwadzo dzakabe dzifanana kakale dzilizana. 26 Bulefu gwe kherubhu dzose bubili gwakabe guli thambo dzili nna dzina zwipithu zwinna (4.4) imwe ne imwe yadzo. 27 Wakabiga dzikherubhu dzakabapa mukatikati kwe Ng'umba ye Ndzimu dzakazhula mapapilo adzo kuti bhapilo le imwe kherubhu likuthe guma ku ndzibo mmwe likuthe guma ku ndzibo mmwe, mamwe mapapilo ekuthana pakati kwe ng'umba. 28 Ngono kakuyunga dzikherubhu nge golide.
29 Kakobolela zwifano zwe dzikherubhu ne zwe miti ye milala ne maluba mu makuma wose tjamukati na kuzhe. 30 Budzilo gwe ng'umba kagudzila nge golide mukati na kuzhe. 31 Nkoba we bugalo gwakayengemala gutjamukati kaguthamila matendele e mapango e mitoba. Pezhugwi kwe makoko ne makwasayile e nkoba kukabe midzibo ili mishanu. 32 Kanakisa matendele mabili e mapango e ntoba nge dzikherubhu ne miti ye milala ne maluba kwakakobolegwa. Kadzulula dzikherubhu ne miti ye milala nge golide. 33 Nkoba unonginila ku bugalo gwakayengemala kauthama nge makwasayile e ntoba midzibo ili minna. 34 Ne matendele mabili anopetiwa e mapango e misipuri. 35 Mu matendele kakobolela dzikherubhu ne miti ye milala ne maluba akazhuka, kati akobolela zwithu izwezwi kazwidzulula nge golide. 36 Kabaka nsha wa mukati mitiliyane ili mitatu ye mabgwe akabezhiwa akawaligwa nge mapango e sida ntiliyane mmwe ne mmwe.
37 Mu gole le bunna thiwa dze Ng'umba ya Yahwe dzakawagwa mu mwedzi unoyi Zivi. 38 Mu mwedzi we buzhanakadzi unoyi Bhulu, mu gole le bugumi lina gole ling'ompela Solomoni ebusa, Ng'umba ye NdzimuNg'umba ye Ndzimu ikapela bakwa sekwa yakabe yakafanila bakwa ndiko. Solomoni wakatola makole ali kutendeka eibaka.