Mr. Fergusson, estimating the cubit rather lower than in
the text, makes the porch 30 by 15; the pronaos, or Holy Place, 60 by
30; the Holy of Holies, 30; the height 45 feet. Mr. Fergusson, following
Josephus, supposes that the whole Temple had an upper story of wood, a
talar, as appears in other Eastern edifices. I doubt the authority of
Josephus as to the older Temple, though, as Mr. Fergusson observes, the
discrepancies between the measurements in Kings and in Chronicles may be
partially reconciled on this supposition. Mr. Fergusson makes the height
of the eastern tower only 90 feet. The text followed 2 Chron., iii., 4,
reckoning the cubit at 1 foot 9 inches.]

Josephus carries the whole building up to the height of the porch; but
this is out of all credible proportion, making the height twice the
length and six times the width. Along each side, and perhaps at the back
of the main building, ran an aisle, divided into three stories of small
chambers: the wall of the Temple being thicker at the bottom, left a
rest to support the beams of these chambers, which were not let into the
wall. These aisles, the chambers of which were appropriated as
vestiaries, treasuries, and for other sacred purposes, seem to have
reached about half way up the main wall of what we may call the nave and
choir: the windows into the latter were probably above them; these were
narrow, but widened inward.

If the dimensions of the Temple appear by no means imposing, it must be
remembered that but a small part of the religious ceremonies took place
within the walls. The Holy of Holies was entered only once a year, and
that by the High-priest alone. It was the secret and unapproachable
shrine of the Divinity. The Holy Place, the body of the Temple, admitted
only the officiating priests. The courts, called in popular language the
Temple, or rather the inner quadrangle, were in fact the great place of
divine worship. Here, under the open air, were celebrated the great
public and national rites, the processions, the offerings, the
sacrifices; here stood the great tank for ablution, and the high altar
for burnt-offerings.

But the costliness of the materials, the richness and variety of the
details, amply compensated for the moderate dimensions of the building.
It was such a sacred edifice as a traveller might have expected to find
in El Dorado. The walls were of hewn stone, faced within with cedar
which was richly carved with knosps and flowers; th