1 Kings 7:24

24 All around the outer edge of the rim of the tank were two rows of bronze gourds, which had been cast all in one piece with the rest of the tank.

1 Kings 7:24 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 7:24

And under the brim of it round about there were knops
compassing it
Of an oval form, and therefore the Targum calls them figures of eggs; in ( 2 Chronicles 4:3 ) they are said to have the similitude of oxen, being like the heads of oxen, and the other parts oval; or these were in the form of gourds, as sometimes the word is rendered, ( 2 Kings 4:39 ) which had on them the figures of the heads of oxen, and might serve as cocks to let out the water:

ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about it;
and as the circumference was thirty cubits, there must be three hundred of these in the circuit:

the knops were cast in two rows when it was cast;
for these were cast together with the sea, and being in two rows, there must be in all six hundred of them.

1 Kings 7:24 In-Context

22 The lily-shaped bronze capitals were on top of the columns. And so the work on the columns was completed.

23 Huram made a round tank of bronze, 7 1/2 feet deep, 15 feet in diameter, and 45 feet in circumference.

24 All around the outer edge of the rim of the tank were two rows of bronze gourds, which had been cast all in one piece with the rest of the tank.

25 The tank rested on the backs of twelve bronze bulls that faced outward, three facing in each direction.

26 The sides of the tank were 3 inches thick. Its rim was like the rim of a cup, curving outward like the petals of a lily. The tank held about 10,000 gallons.

Footnotes

• [a]. [Probable text] All around . . . tank; [Hebrew unclear.]