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a gateway, which is called Ailam in the Hebrew language, had a length equal to the breadth of the temple, and a width of ten cubits. And the temple had light-openings, wide on the inside, but very narrow on the outside, and covered with perforated stones. For this is what is meant by, "He made for the house latticed, hidden windows." And he calls the small rooms built around the temple "melathra" [beams/chambers]; and let no one be surprised if the ground-floor ones were five cubits, the second-story ones six cubits, and the third-story ones seven cubits. For the walls were wider below, so as to bear the weight of the structure. But as the width was partially reduced, one cubit was added to the second-story rooms, and two to the third-story rooms. And the historian also taught this, that he made a gap in the wall around the house, so that they might not take hold of the walls of the house. Josephus, however, says that the temple itself was two-storied, and that the entire height was one hundred and twenty cubits. The book of Chronicles also teaches this. QUES. 24. How is this to be understood: "Hammer and axe, and every iron tool was not heard while it was being built?" And I have already said that he built the temple from unhewn stones; but the hewn stones, with which he constructed the enclosure of the temple, he commanded to be dressed on the mountain and fitted to one another, so that they might need no further work. And here the author hinted that the temple had upper rooms. "For," he says, "the ascent to the middle was winding, and from the middle to the third story." For since the wall was very wide, it had a spiral ascent; for this is what he called "winding." And he covered it all with cedar planks; and again he covered the planks with gold. And he called the straps "bindings." And he said that these were made of cedar, 80.688 and every five cubits of stone; with these the whole building was bound together. That the temple was sixty cubits, it is easy to learn from this. For having already said that the length was forty cubits, after this he added again: "And he built the twenty cubits, from the end of the wall, the one side, from the floor to the beams, and he made the wall as far as the Dabir for the Holy of holies. And the temple itself in front of the Dabir was forty cubits; in the middle of the house within, to place there the ark of the covenant of the Lord. Twenty cubits its length, and twenty cubits its breadth, and twenty cubits its height, and he overlaid it with enclosed gold." Therefore, the so-called Holy Place was forty cubits; and the Holy of holies twenty. And this was also named Dabir. One might see this more clearly in what follows. "For," he says, "he made an altar before the Dabir." For the altar of incense lay before the veil, having the table on one side, and the lampstand on the other. Then again he taught us that he calls the Holy of holies Dabir. "For," he says, "he made for the Dabir two Cherubim." And each of these was ten cubits, so that one of their wings approached the walls, and the tips of the other wings joined each other, and covered the ark; everything, however, was covered with gold; both the ceiling, and the floor, and the Cherubim, and the walls, and the doors; so that no other material could be seen inside. And just as the interior was divided in two, so also was the exterior. For some of these parts were accessible to all the people, and others to the priests and the Levites. A low coping separated the latter from the former, so that even those excluded from the inside could watch the sacred rite of the sacrifices from outside. And he also constructed two pillars of bronze material, having a remarkable appearance and size. For the height, without the capitals, was eighteen cubits, and the circumference was fourteen. To these he also added capitals of the same material, and very large lilies on the capitals, and a certain net-like ornament having pomegranates hanging down. And these adorned the gateway, supporting a beam made of the same material. And he has called "melathron" what is now by some called an "epistylon" [architrave]

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προπύλαιον, ὅπερ Αἰ λὰμ ὠνόμασται τῇ Ἑβραίων φωνῇ, ἰσόμετρον μὲν εἶχε τῷ πλάτει τοῦ ναοῦ τὸ μῆκος, δέκα δὲ πήχεων τὸ εὖρος. Φωταγωγοὺς δὲ ὁ ναὸς εἶχεν, ἔνδοθεν μὲν εὐρείας, ἔξωθεν δὲ στενὰς ἄγαν, διατρήτοις δὲ λίθοις κεκαλυμμένας. Τοῦτο γὰρ δηλοῖ τὸ, "Ἐποίησε τῷ οἴκῳ θυρίδας δικτυωτὰς κρυπτάς." Μέλαθρα δὲ καλεῖ, τοὺς ἐν κύκλῳ τοῦ ναοῦ δεδομημένους οἰκίσκους· θαυμαζέτω δὲ μηδεὶς, εἰ πενταπήχεις μὲν οἱ ἐπίπεδοι ἦσαν, ἑξαπήχεις δὲ οἱ διώροφοι, ἑπταπήχεις δὲ οἱ τριώροφοι. Οἱ τοῖχοι γὰρ ἦσαν εὐ ρύτεροι κάτω, ὥστε φέρειν τῆς οἰκοδομίας τὸ βάρος. Ἀφαιρουμένου δὲ κατὰ μέρος τοῦ εὔρους, προσετέθη τοῖς μὲν διωρόφοις ὁ πῆχυς, τοῖς δὲ τριωρόφοις οἱ δύο. Τοῦτο δὲ καὶ ὁ ἱστοριογράφος ἐδίδαξεν, ὅτι διά στημα ἔδωκε τῷ τοίχῳ κύκλοθεν τοῦ οἴκου, ὅπως μὴ ἐπιλάβωνται τῶν τοίχων τοῦ οἴκου. Ἰώσηπος μέντοι φησὶ, καὶ αὐτὸν τὸν ναὸν διώροφον γεγε νῆσθαι, καὶ πᾶν τὸ ὕψος ἑκατὸν εἴκοσι πήχεις εἶναι. Τοῦτο δὲ καὶ τῶν Παραλειπομένων ἡ βίβλος διδά σκει. ΕΡΩΤ. Κ∆ʹ. Πῶς νοητέον τὸ, "Σφύρα καὶ πέλυξ, καὶ πᾶν σκεῦος σιδηροῦν οὐκ ἠκούσθη ἐν τῷ οἰκοδο μεῖσθαι αὐτόν;" Καὶ ἤδη ἔφην, ὅτι τὸν ναὸν ἐξ αὐτοφυῶν ᾠκοδό μησε λίθων· τοὺς δέ γε τμητοὺς λίθους, δι' ὧν τοῦ ναοῦ τὸν περίβολον κατεσκεύασεν, ἐν τῷ ὄρει ξεσθῆ ναι καὶ ἀλλήλοις συναρμοθῆναι προσέταξεν, ἵνα μηδεμίας λοιπὸν ἐργασίας προσδεηθῶσι. Καὶ ἐνταῦθα δὲ ὁ συγγραφεὺς ᾐνίξατο, ὡς ὑπερῷα εἶχεν ὁ ναός. "Εἱλικτὴ γὰρ, φησὶν, ἦν ἡ ἀνάβασις εἰς τὴν μέσην, καὶ ἐκ τῆς μέσης ἐπὶ τὰ τριώροφα." Εὐρύ τατος γὰρ ὁ τοῖχος ὢν κοχλιώδη τὴν ἀνάβασιν εἶχε· τοῦτο γὰρ εἶπεν εἱλικτήν. Σανίσι δὲ αὐτὸν κεδρίναις συνεκάλυψεν ἅπαντα· καὶ πάλιν χρυσῷ τὰς σανίδας κατέκρυψεν. Ἐνδέσμους δὲ τὰς ἱμαντίας ἐκάλεσεν. Ἔφη δὲ ταύτας ἐκ κέδρου κατεσκευά 80.688 σθαι, καὶ κατὰ πέντε λίθων πήχεις· ταύταις ἅπασαν τὴν οἰκοδομίαν δεθῆναι. Ὅτι δὲ ἑξήκοντα πήχεων ἦν ὁ ναὸς, ἐντεῦθεν καταμαθεῖν εὐπετές. Εἰρηκὼς γὰρ ἤδη, ὅτι τεσσαράκοντα πήχεων ἦν τὸ μῆκος, μετὰ ταῦτα πάλιν ἐπήγαγε· "Καὶ ᾠκοδό μησε τοὺς εἴκοσι πήχεις, ἀπ' ἄκρου τοῦ τοίχου τὸ πλευρὸν τὸ ἓν, ἀπὸ ἐδάφους ἕως τῶν δοκῶν, καὶ ἐποίησεν ἕως τοῦ ∆αβεὶρ τὸν τοῖχον εἰς τὰ Ἅγια τῶν ἁγίων. Καὶ τεσσαράκοντα πήχεων ἦν αὐτὸς ὁ ναὸς ὁ καταπρόσωπον τοῦ ∆αβείρ· ἐν μέσῳ τοῦ οἴκου ἔσωθεν, τοῦ δοῦναι ἐκεῖ τὴν κιβωτὸν τῆς διαθήκης Κυρίου. Εἴκοσι πήχεων τὸ μῆκος, καὶ εἴκοσι πήχεων τὸ πλάτος, καὶ εἴκοσι πήχεων τὸ ὕψος αὐτοῦ, καὶ περιέσχεν αὐτὸ χρυσίῳ συγκεκλεισμένον." Οὐκοῦν τεσσαράκοντα μὲν πήχεων ἦν τὰ λεγόμενα Ἅγια· εἴκοσι δὲ τὰ Ἅγια τῶν ἁγίων. Ταῦτα δὲ καὶ ∆αβεὶρ ὠνόμαστο. Τοῦτο καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἑξῆς σαφέ στερον ἴδοι τις ἄν. "Ἐποίησε γὰρ, φησὶ, θυσιαστή ριον κατὰ πρόσωπον τοῦ ∆αβείρ." Τὸ γὰρ θυσιαστή ριον τοῦ θυμιάματος πρὸ τοῦ καταπετάσματος ἔκει το, ἔνθεν μὲν ἔχον τὴν τράπεζαν, ἔνθεν δὲ τὴν λυ χνίαν. Εἶτα πάλιν ἐδίδαξεν ἡμᾶς, ὡς ∆αβεὶρ τὰ Ἅγια τῶν ἁγίων καλεῖ. "Ἐποίησε γὰρ, φησὶ, τῷ ∆αβεὶρ δύο Χερουβίμ." Τούτων δὲ ἕκαστος δεκά πηχυς ἦν, ὥστε θάτερον μὲν τῶν πτερῶν τοῖς τοί χοις πελάζειν, τὰς δὲ τῶν ἑτέρων ἀρχὰς ἀλλήλοις συνάπτεσθαι, καὶ συγκαλύπτειν τὴν κιβωτόν· πάν τα μέντοι χρυσῷ συνεκεκάλυπτο· καὶ ὁ ὄροφος, καὶ τὸ ἔδαφος, καὶ τὰ Χερουβὶμ, καὶ οἱ τοῖχοι, καὶ αἱ θύραι· ὥστε μηδεμίαν ἑτέραν ἔνδον ὕλην ὁρᾶσθαι. Ὥσπερ δὲ τὰ ἔνδον διχῆ διῄρητο· οὕτω δὴ καὶ τὰ ὕπαιθρα. Τούτων γὰρ τὰ μὲν ἦν βατὰ παντὶ τῷ λαῷ, τὰ δὲ τοῖς ἱερεῦσι καὶ τοῖς Λευΐταις. ∆ιεῖργε δὲ τούτους ἀπ' ἐκείνων θριγκίον οὐχ ὑψηλὸν, ὥστε καὶ τοὺς ἀπεσχοινισμένους τῶν ἔνδον, ἔξωθεν θεωρεῖν τὴν τῶν θυσιῶν ἱερουργίαν. Κατεσκεύασε δὲ καὶ δύο στύλους ἐξ ὕλης χαλκοῦ, ἀξιοθέατον καὶ εἶδος καὶ μέγεθος ἔχοντας. Τὸ μὲν γὰρ ὕψος, δίχα τῶν κεφα λίδων, ὀκτωκαίδεκα πήχεων ἦν, τεσσαρεσκαίδεκα δὲ εἶχεν ὁ κύκλος. Τούτοις καὶ κεφαλίδας ἐκ τῆς αὐτῆς ὕλης ἐπέθηκε, καὶ κρίνα μέγιστα ταῖς κεφαλίσι, καὶ δικτυοειδῆ τινα κόσμον ῥόας ἐξηρτημένας ἔχοντα. Ἐκόσμουν δὲ τὸ προπύλαιον οὗτοι, μέλαθρον φέ ροντες ἐκ τῆς αὐτῆς ὕλης πεποιημένον. Μέλαθρον δὲ κέκληκε τὸ νῦν παρά τινων ἐπίστυλον