Daily Tanach Monday Sefer Melachim 1 – Chapter 6: The Heichal

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1.      The Heichal:

  • The hallway surrounding the Heichal: On the outside wall of the Heichal, surrounding both the Heichal and Devir [i.e. holy of holies[1]] a wall was built thus forming a hallway surrounding the Heichal [with the exception to the eastern side which was the front of the Heichal and did not contain an external wall]. There were three layers of shelves by the walls that surrounded the Heichal, [thus forming three floors in the area surrounding the walls of the Heichal]. The lower shelf was five cubits wide while the middle shelf was six cubits wide, while the third top shelf was seven cubits wide. This was done being that the external wall of the Heichal was built in a slant in order not to have the shelves need to be supported within actual holes in the wall of the Heichal.[2]
  • The excavation of the stones and lack of use of iron: The building was built with complete stones that were brought from the mountain. The sound of an ax or of any other iron vessel was not heard in the area of where the temple was built [as none of the stones were excavated using iron and it was rather done using the special Shamir worm[3]].
  • The entrance to the Heichal: The entrance to the Heichal was from the right side of the Heichal. The shelves each contained a hole from which a person was able to go from the lower shelf to the higher shelf, from the bottom shelf to the middle shelf and the middle shelf to the top shelf.
  • The roof of the temple: The building of the temple was completed, and its roof was covered with two layers of roofing, one with the material called Geivim, and the second was made from cedarwood.
  • The height of each of the three floors that surrounded the Heichal: Each one of the floors/shelves that surrounded the Heichal was five cubits tall [for a total of 15 cubits[4]]. The top floor was covered with cedarwood to serve as its roof and was attached to the roof of the Heichal.

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[1] Metzudos Tziyon 6:5

[2] See Mefarshim on 6:6 for a detailed explanation behind these statements

[3] See Rashi 6:7

[4] Rashi 6:10

About The Author

Rabbi Yaakov Goldstein is a 6th generation descendent of the famous Chief Rabbi of Izhmir, Rav Yehoshua Avraham Krispin, who authored a number of Sefarim, and was a colleague of Rav Chaim Falagi, and father in-law of the Pesach Hadvir. He currently lives with his wife Shayna, and twelve children K”H, in Tzfas, Israel. Rabbi Goldstein received Semicha from Rabbi Schneur Zalman Labkowski of the Tomchei Temimim headquarters in 2005 and served as a chaplain in the Lotar/Kalatz and K9 unit of the IDF from years 2005-2008. He is also a certified Shochet, and has performed Hashgacha work in slaughterhouses. Rabbi Goldstein is the director of Shulchanaruchharav.com, the world’s leading web-based Halacha database, and is the director of the Home Study Semicha Program, a self-study web-based Semicha program. He is a prolific author of over 50 Sefarim studied by a wide range of readers throughout the world, which is used regularly in Semicha programs around the globe. He is a world renowned Posek, answering questions to a web-based market, and serves as a local Posek, Rav, and Lecturer, in the Tzemach Tzedek community Shul in Tzefas, Israel. His many classes can be heard both from his website, Vimeo and YouTube channel. Students can join live to classes given in the Tzemach Tzedek Shul, through the “בית חבד צפת Chabad Tsfat” YouTube channel.

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