1 Kings 6:9
ESV
So he built the house and finished it, and he made the ceiling of the house of beams and planks of cedar.
NIV
So he built the temple and completed it, roofing it with beams and cedar planks.
NASB
So he built the house and finished it; and he covered the house with beams and planks of cedar.
CSB
When he finished building the temple, he paneled it with boards and planks of cedar.
NLT
After completing the Temple structure, Solomon put in a ceiling made of cedar beams and planks.
KJV
So he built the house, and finished it; and covered the house with beams and boards of cedar.
NKJV
So he built the temple and finished it, and he paneled the temple with beams and boards of cedar.
What does 1 Kings 6:9 mean?
When David wanted to build a temple, God sent Nathan the prophet a message. God said, "In all places where I have moved with all the people of Israel, did I speak a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, 'Why have you not built me a house of cedar?'" (2 Samuel 7:7). God told David that he couldn't build the temple because he was a man of war and blood. But his son, Solomon, would (1 Chronicles 22:8–10).David did what he could to prepare. He contracted cedar from Hiram, king of Tyre (1 Chronicles 22:2–5) and asked the Israelite leaders to follow his example by donating precious metals and stones (1 Chronicles 22:14–16; 29:2–9). When Solomon became king, he followed his father's example and contacted Hiram (1 Kings 5:6). Hiram was delighted to help (1 Kings 5:7–10).
The temple's structure isn't cedar; it's stone. Solomon begins by ordering his workers to dress limestone blocks at the quarry for the walls (1 Kings 6:7). Once they're in place, he brings in the first of the cedar for the roof and ceiling. More timbers join the exterior three-floor structure to the temple walls (1 Kings 6:10).
This verse and 1 Kings 6:14 form a kind of bracket, called an "inclusio," that both surrounds God's message to Solomon and transitions from the exterior construction to the interior finishes. A stone building with a cedar roof isn't grand enough. Solomon lines all the walls with cedar and cypress, carved with palms, flowers, and cherubim, until no stone is visible. Then, he coats all the wood with gold (1 Kings 6:14–22).
