The author of 1 Kings does not reveal the precise location where the temple was constructed, but the author of 2 Chronicles tells us that the temple was constructed on Mount Moriah (2 Chronicles 3:1). This is the same mountain where Abraham went to sacrifice Isaac and where Jesus would later be crucified (on another part of the hill).
Now the house which King Solomon built for the Lord, its length was sixty cubits, its width twenty, and its height thirty cubits. (1 Kings 6:2)
When compared to other ancient temples, this one was not very enormous; yet, the grandeur of Israel's temple was not in its size.
And the temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built. (1 Kings 6:7)
The manner in which the Temple was built has always fascinated me. According to I Kings 6:7, the Temple is built in another location and then brought to Jerusalem to be assembled. This indicates that there are a variety of work locations spread out over the neighbouring areas, some of which even extend beyond the boundaries into other countries.
Construction takes place outside of Jerusalem, where it is not possible to hear hammering, and enormous blocks of stone are not dressed on the construction site. Only after the stone parts have been cut, sanded, and polished do they get shipped to Jerusalem, where workers put them together like a massive jigsaw puzzle using the stones as building blocks.
This vast construction undertaking is being carried out without the use of chisels, hammers, saws, or nails. It is usually uncommon for large construction sites to be accompanied by a cacophony of noise. However, if you were to walk by the work site on Temple Mount, you would not hear any of these sounds. Instead, the only sound is that of large stones being painstakingly assembled in Jerusalem after they were brought there from different locations.
Likewise, the challenging task of sanctification is done away from the actual location. When we are in the middle of church, on a retreat, or at a spiritual conference centre when we are at the pinnacle of our spiritual experience, we do not often sanctify ourselves. Instead, the difficult process of sanctification takes place during the times in our lives that test us to the very depths of our being.
The sound of a hammer and chisel can frequently be heard throughout these encounters, which typically take place away from the construction site. The sawing and scraping happen outside of church and during our quiet times. However, it is at these locations that the great stones (you and I) are dressed, smoothed, equipped, and hammered into the shapes that will eventually and perfectly fit together with other stones, making us into the Temple where God Himself resides.
Another reason why no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was used signifying that the house of God was a place of rest and not of work.
3 Even the sparrow has found a home,
And the swallow a nest for herself,
Where she may lay her young—
Even Your altars, O Lord of hosts,
My King and my God.
4 Blessed are those who dwell in Your house;
They will still be praising You. Selah (Psalm 84:3-4)
“And if you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stone; for if you use your tool on it, you have profaned it.” (Exodus 20:25)
This is also symbolic that it was built by grace and not by works.
Now the house which King Solomon built for the Lord, its length was sixty cubits, its width twenty, and its height thirty cubits. (1 Kings 6:2)
When compared to other ancient temples, this one was not very enormous; yet, the grandeur of Israel's temple was not in its size.
And the temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built. (1 Kings 6:7)
The manner in which the Temple was built has always fascinated me. According to I Kings 6:7, the Temple is built in another location and then brought to Jerusalem to be assembled. This indicates that there are a variety of work locations spread out over the neighbouring areas, some of which even extend beyond the boundaries into other countries.
Construction takes place outside of Jerusalem, where it is not possible to hear hammering, and enormous blocks of stone are not dressed on the construction site. Only after the stone parts have been cut, sanded, and polished do they get shipped to Jerusalem, where workers put them together like a massive jigsaw puzzle using the stones as building blocks.
This vast construction undertaking is being carried out without the use of chisels, hammers, saws, or nails. It is usually uncommon for large construction sites to be accompanied by a cacophony of noise. However, if you were to walk by the work site on Temple Mount, you would not hear any of these sounds. Instead, the only sound is that of large stones being painstakingly assembled in Jerusalem after they were brought there from different locations.
Likewise, the challenging task of sanctification is done away from the actual location. When we are in the middle of church, on a retreat, or at a spiritual conference centre when we are at the pinnacle of our spiritual experience, we do not often sanctify ourselves. Instead, the difficult process of sanctification takes place during the times in our lives that test us to the very depths of our being.
The sound of a hammer and chisel can frequently be heard throughout these encounters, which typically take place away from the construction site. The sawing and scraping happen outside of church and during our quiet times. However, it is at these locations that the great stones (you and I) are dressed, smoothed, equipped, and hammered into the shapes that will eventually and perfectly fit together with other stones, making us into the Temple where God Himself resides.
Another reason why no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was used signifying that the house of God was a place of rest and not of work.
3 Even the sparrow has found a home,
And the swallow a nest for herself,
Where she may lay her young—
Even Your altars, O Lord of hosts,
My King and my God.
4 Blessed are those who dwell in Your house;
They will still be praising You. Selah (Psalm 84:3-4)
“And if you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stone; for if you use your tool on it, you have profaned it.” (Exodus 20:25)
This is also symbolic that it was built by grace and not by works.
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