What Does 1 Kings 6:26 Mean?
The height of the one cherub was ten forearms, and so was it of the other cherub.
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub.THE KEY
The two guardians stand at the same height, so neither is raised above the other.
THE MEANING
The two cherubim share one measure: each stands ten cubits high. They remain distinct figures, yet the sanctuary gives them equal stature.
THE ROOT
קוֹמַת
qomat
GROWS FROM
קום
To rise, stand, or be established.
Qomah, “height” or “stature,” grows from the word for rising or standing. The verse repeats the same measure for both cherubim: each is equally raised, and neither stands higher than the other.
ALSO GROWS
qûm: Rise; stand.
קוּם
This is the verb beneath “height,” bringing the sense of standing or rising into the shared stature of the two cherubim.
maqom: Place; location.
מָקוֹם
This related word for “place” shares the root of standing, adding the sense of where something stands to the verse’s image of equal stature.
heqim: Raise; establish.
הֵקִים
This form shows the same root expressing the act of raising or setting something in place, echoing the cherubim’s equal elevation.
THE PATTERN
The sanctuary’s paired cherubim share equal measure and span the space between them.
And within the innermost room he made two cherubim of olive tree, each ten forearms high.And five forearms was the one wing of the cherub, and five forearms the other wing of the cherub; from the edge of the one wing to the edge of the other were ten forearms.And the cherubim spread their wings upward, shading the covering with their wings, each face turned toward its brother; toward the covering the faces of the cherubim look.THE THREAD
And he set the cherubim within the innermost room; and they spread the wings of the cherubim, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house.Verse 26 gives both cherubim the same ten-cubit height; this verse shows their wings reaching to opposite walls and touching in the middle. Their equal stature belongs to a paired design that spans the room.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us