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1 Kings 7:25

in 1 Kings 7

The Sea stood on twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The Sea rested on them, with all their hindquarters toward the center.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; and the sea was set upon them above, and all their hinder parts were inward.

KJV

It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.

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This verse in 1 Kings 7

Commentary

6 notes on this verse
Josephus charged Solomon with a breach of the Commandment Exo 20:4-5, on account of the oxen here and the lions for his throne. The charge expresses the prohibition which some Jews have conceived the Commandment to urge against the arts of sculpture and painting.

This site's exposition

a molten sea

on 1 Kings 7:23-26

The tabernacle's laver has grown into a sea: ten cubits across, five high, two thousand baths, standing on twelve oxen facing the four quarters, with a brim wrought like a lily cup. The given round numbers, ten across and thirty about, are the old arithmetic question; the bench answers it from the text's own detail that the sea was an hand breadth thick, so the line and the diameter measure different edges, and the page needs no more than that sentence. Twelve oxen under the water carry the same all-Israel signature as Elijah's twelve stones.

This site's exposition

The Sea stood on twelve oxen

Josephus charged Solomon with breaking the second commandment by the twelve oxen under the Sea and the lions of his throne, and Albert Barnes reads that as a stricter view of carving. Ishodad says the oxen kept the Sea off the ground.

The record, by era

The Medieval Church1 voice

A commentator

Ishodad of Merv

BOOKS OF SESSIONS 1 KINGS 7:25 · Written before 850.

proposed

[The sea] is set on the oxen in order not to be defiled by the ground. The oxen allude to the perfect structure of the created world, because it was prescribed in the Law that this animal should be offered in sacrifice; at the same …

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

It stood upon twelve oxen,....

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

proposed

he made a molten sea--In the tabernacle was no such vessel; the laver served the double purpose of washing the hands and feet of the priests as well as the parts of the sacrifices.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase

The words behind it

23 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • עֹמֵ֞ד[it was] standing

    ʾomedH5975 →521 times

  • עַל־on

    ʾal-H5921 →5755 times

  • שְׁנֵ֧יtwo [plus]

    sheneiH8147 →768 times

  • עָשָׂ֣רten

    ʾasarH6240 →338 times

  • בָּקָ֗רox[en]

    bakarH1241 →183 times

  • שְׁלֹשָׁ֣הthree

    sheloshahH7969 →432 times

  • פֹנִ֣ים׀[were] turning

    fonimH6437 →135 times

  • צָפ֡וֹנָהnorth -ward

    tzafonahH6828 →

  • וּשְׁלֹשָׁה֩and three

    usheloshahH7969 →432 times

  • פֹנִ֨ים׀[were] turning

    fonimH6437 →135 times

  • יָ֜מָּהwest -ward

    yamahH3220 →396 times

  • וּשְׁלֹשָׁ֣ה׀and three

    usheloshahH7969 →432 times

  • פֹּנִ֣ים[were] turning

    ponimH6437 →135 times

  • נֶ֗גְבָּה[the] south towards

    negbahH5045 →

  • וּשְׁלֹשָׁה֙and three

    usheloshahH7969 →432 times

  • פֹּנִ֣ים[were] turning

    ponimH6437 →135 times

  • מִזְרָ֔חָהeast -ward

    mizrachahH4217 →

  • וְהַיָּ֥םand the sea

    vehaiyamH3220 →396 times

  • עֲלֵיהֶ֖ם[was] on them

    ʾaleihemH5921 →5755 times

  • מִלְמָ֑עְלָהfrom to above <towards>

    milmaelahH4605 →140 times

  • וְכָל־and all

    vekholH3605 →5413 times

  • אֲחֹֽרֵיהֶ֖םhindquarters their

    ʾachoreihemH268 →

  • בָּֽיְתָה׃[were] inside towards

    bayetahH1004 →2046 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

10 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Jeremiah 52:20As for the two pillars, the Sea, the twelve bronze bulls under it, and the movable stands that King Solomon had made for the house of the LORD, the weight of the bronze from all these articles was beyond measure.5 works2 Chronicles 4:4–5The Sea stood on twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The Sea rested on them, with all their hindquarters toward the center.4 worksEzekiel 1:10The form of their faces was that of a man, and each of the four had the face of a lion on the right side, the face of an ox on the left side, and also the face of an eagle.2 worksMark 16:15–16And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.2 worksMatthew 28:19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,2 worksRevelation 4:6–7And before the throne was something like a sea of glass, as clear as crystal. In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, covered with eyes in front and back.2 works
The other 4 cross-references, with their words ▾
1 Corinthians 9:9For it is written in the Law of Moses: “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” Is it about oxen that God is concerned?2 worksLuke 24:47and in His name repentance and forgiveness of sins will be proclaimed to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem.2 works1 Kings 7:29and on the panels between the uprights were lions, oxen, and cherubim. On the uprights was a pedestal above, and below the lions and oxen were wreaths of beveled work.2 works1 Kings 7:44the Sea; the twelve oxen underneath the Sea;2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Matthew 28:19

    Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,

    it leads to

    • Mark 16:15–16

      And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

    • Acts 2:38–39

      Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

    • Acts 1:8

      But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

    • Luke 24:47–48

      and in His name repentance and forgiveness of sins will be proclaimed to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem.

    • Acts 19:3–5

      “Into what, then, were you baptized?” Paul asked. “The baptism of John,” they replied.

  • Through

    Ezekiel 1:10

    The form of their faces was that of a man, and each of the four had the face of a lion on the right side, the face of an ox on the left side,…

    it leads to

    • Ezekiel 10:14

      Each of the cherubim had four faces: the first face was that of a cherub, the second that of a man, the third that of a lion, and the fourth that of an eagle.

    • Revelation 4:7

      The first living creature was like a lion, the second like a calf, the third had a face like a man, and the fourth was like an eagle in flight.

  • Through

    Jeremiah 52:20

    As for the two pillars, the Sea, the twelve bronze bulls under it, and the movable stands that King Solomon had made for the house of the LORD, the weight of the bronze from…

    it leads to

    • 1 Kings 7:47

      Solomon left all these articles unweighed, because there were so many. The weight of the bronze could not be determined.

About 1 Kings

The Judgment of Solomon, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
The Judgment of Solomon, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
1 Kings: the study guide →Read 1 Kings 7 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ishodad of Merv, BOOKS OF SESSIONS 1 KINGS 7:25; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).

Read on in 1 Kings 7 →