The Precious Things of Solomon’s Temple – Part I

“And I, Nephi, did build a temple; and I did construct it after the manner of the temple of Solomon save it were not built of so many precious things; for they were not to be found upon the land, wherefore, it could not be built like unto Solomon's temple. But the manner of the construction was like unto the temple of Solomon; and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine” (2 Nephi 5:16).
    Many critics and even members question the ability of the early Nephites having the time and manpower to build a temple like unto Solomon’s Temple. In fact, his temple was so outstanding as to be the crowning achievement of his reign, was the erection of the magnificent Temple, referred to as Beit haMikdash (The Sanctified House) in Jerusalem—the only Jewish temple so called. His father, King David, had wanted to build the great Temple a generation earlier, as a permanent resting place for the Ark of the Covenant, which contained the Ten Commandments. A divine edict, however, had forbidden him from doing so: "You will not build a house for My name," God said to David, "for you are a man of battles and have shed blood" (1 Chronicles 28:3).
(Image A – King David was not allowed to build the First Temple, it was left to David’s son, Solomon

Thus, the job was left to Solomon to build it, and it was completed in the mid-10^th century BC. The Bible's description of Solomon's Temple (also called The First Temple) suggests that the inside ceiling was 180 feet long, 90 feet wide, and 50 feet high. The highest point on the Temple that King Solomon built was actually 207 feet tall, about 18 stories).
    According to the Tanakh (2 Chronicles), the length by cubits after the ancient measure was 90 feet, and the breadth 30 feet. The porch that was before the house, the length of it, according to the breadth of the house, was thirty feet, and the height 180 feet—and all within it was overlaid with pure gold.
    Solomon spared no expense for the building's creation. He ordered vast quantities of cedar wood from King Hiram of Tyre, had huge blocks of the choicest stone quarried, and commanded that the building's foundation be laid with hewn stone. To complete the massive project, Solomon imposed forced labor on all his subjects, drafting people for work shifts that sometimes lasted a month at a time. Some 3,300 officials were appointed to oversee the Temple's erection. Solomon assumed such heavy debts in building the Temple that he was forced to pay off King Hiram by handing over twenty towns in Galilee.
    When the Temple was completed, Solomon inaugurated it with prayer and sacrifice, and even invited non-­Jews to come and pray there. He urged God to pay particular heed to their prayers: "Thus all the peoples of the earth will know Your name and revere You, as does Your people Israel; and they will recognize that Your name is attached to this House that I have built" (1 Kings 8:43).
    This is the temple Lehi knew, as did Nephi, Sam and Zoram. As to what extent Laman and Lemuel knew of it is still unclear. While Solomon’s temple took 7 years to build, 20 years when including the royal palace, though he had a very large workforce for the task.

Solomon;’s temple had many “precious things” within its walls that could not be duplicated by the Nepihites

 

Some critics of the Church claim that Nephi’s temple was built "similar in splendor" to Solomon's Temple, directly contradicting Nephi's description. Nephi stated that "could not be built like unto Solomon’s temple" because many of the precious things contained in Solomon's temple "were not to be found upon the land." Therefore, Nephi himself confirms that his temple was not "similar in splendor" to Solomon's temple.
    This is a good example of the critics reading the text in the most naive, most ill-informed way possible. One should also consider that smaller population would not have needed a massive complex like the temple at Jerusalem anyway. This, by the way, should suggest that Nephi’s temple was not as large and not as massive of a complex, for it would not have been needed.
    While Solomon spared no expense for the building’s creation, commanding that they bring great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house (1 Kings 5:17), no such effort would have been needed for a temple for the Nephites, they being small in number at the time. On the other hand, the Nephite temple was like Solomon’s temple in its function for religious activity, obviously having a “holy of holies” (Kodesh Kodashim), where the Nephite precious things were held, which would have been far less in quantity than that of Jerusalem.
    Solomon ordered vast quantities of cedar wood from King Hiram of Tyre (1 Kings 5:8). To complete the massive project, Solomon imposed forced labor on all his subjects, drafting people for work shifts that sometimes lasted a month at a time. Some 3,300 officials were appointed to oversee the Temple's erection (1 Kings 5:15). Solomon assumed such heavy debts in building the Temple that he was forced to pay off King Hiram by handing over twenty towns in the Galilee (1 Kings 9:11). 
    Many people in the world today are unaware of the splendor and wealth of ancient Israel. It should also be noted that the Temple Mount in Jerusalem contains many subterranean chambers now filled with debris.

Tunnels beneath the Temple in Jerusalem

Archaeologists and Bible students have asked if it is possible that temple treasures may have been hidden beneath the rock prior to the times of invasion and destruction of Jerusalem by foreign invaders. The principle reference on this subject is the Bible since few other historical records or trustworthy traditional accounts remain.
    Although the exact date of the Jewish exodus from Egypt is still in dispute, the books of Exodus and Numbers indicate that approximately 600,000 able-bodied men over age 20 (plus women and children) made the 40-year journey from the Nile Delta, then finally up the East side of the Jordan. During their wilderness wanderings the people of Israel received the Ten Commandments and detailed laws, regulations and instructions delivered to Moses on Mount Sinai. Moses was also instructed to construct a large portable tabernacle, or tent, entrusted to the care of the priests of Aaron. A detailed description of this tabernacle is given in Exodus 25-30. The Tabernacle was built by free-will offerings donated by the people in such generous amounts that more than enough materials were available (Exodus 35:27-29).
    The materials assembled for the tabernacle are described in detail in Exodus 35-38 and summarized in Exodus 38:21-30. The total quantity of gold collected was approximately one ton; of silver, 3¾ tons; and of bronze, 2½  tons. At today's prices gold is approximately $500 per troy ounce, or $6000 per pound, or $12,000,000 per ton. Silver currently is priced around $12 per troy ounce, or $144 per pound, which is $288,000 per ton. Hence, the gold and silver used in the Tabernacle of Moses would be worth over $13 million today. Exodus 12:35 states that the Jews were given gold, silver, and ornaments by the Egyptians at the time of the departure from Egypt. The golden lampstand in the tabernacle weighed a talent and would today be worth a half million dollars for its gold alone.
    The point is, the Jewish people who built the temple of Solomon were a wealthy people, and had been for some time. When they built the temple, no coast was spared. As an example, the walls were made of hewn, cut and dressed stone, then covered with wood paneling from the trees of Lebanon, which in turn was covered with sheets of gold. In fact, during the reign of Solomon "silver was as common as stone" in Jerusalem (I Kings 10:27).

Solomon greets Queen of Sheba in Jerusalem

Solomon made 200 massive shields each 300 shekels in weight to hang on the walls of his palace. His ivory throne was overlaid with gold. "So King Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom" (II Kings 10:23). The splendor of Solomon's kingdom brought him recognition and fame that attracted much foreign attention. For example, during her visit "to test Solomon with hard questions," the Queen of Sheba brought Solomon 120 talents of gold, ($54,000,000), "and a very great store of spices and precious stones," (I Kings 10; II Chronicles 9).
    Obviously, the Nephite Land of Promise did not have, at least known in Nephi’s time, to have such wealth that was displayed within and upon Solomon’s temple. Thus, Nephi’s temple was constructed “after the manner of the temple of Solomon save it were not built of so many precious tings; for they were not to be found upon the land” (2 Nephi 5:16, emphasis added).
(See the next post, “The Precious Things of Solomon’s Temple – Part II,” for more on the wealth of Israel and Solomon’s Temple compared to circumstances in Lehi’s Land of Promise)