1 Kings 7:48

A SUMMARY OF THE VESSELS OF GOLD

"And Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of Jehovah: the golden altar, and the table whereupon the showbread was, of gold; and the candlesticks, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the oracle, of pure gold; and the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs, of gold; and the cups, and the snuffers, and the basins, and the spoons, and the firepans, of pure gold: and the hinges, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the house, to wit, of the temple, of gold."

We have here another serious objection to Solomon's Temple. Why should the candlestick have had ten branches? God had specifically required that the sacred candlestick should have three branches on each side (Exodus 25:31,32). Where did Solomon get the idea that there should have been five on each side? He could not have been correct in that change, and, centuries later, when the Jews rebuilt the Temple, they changed some of Solomon's sinful innovations, notably returning to the veil for the Holy of Holies instead of the folding doors, and to the seven-branched candlestick instead of Solomon's ten branched candlestick. This writer has seen the Arch of Titus in Rome, where the looted treasures of the Second Temple are depicted in relief work upon the arch; and the candlestick, borne by several men, has seven branches.

In these drastic changes in the Second Temple from that of Solomon, one must read the repudiation by the post-exilic Jews of Solomon's unauthorized and sinful perversions in his Temple. However, even these repudiations were not sufficient, because the Second Temple, no less than the first, became, in time, as Jesus called it, "A den of thieves" (Matthew 21:13), and this writer finds it impossible to view that remark as a compliment!