Kings I 6:3

3 And they said, If ye send away the ark of the covenant of the Lord God of Israel, do not on any account send it away empty, but by all means render to it an offering for the plague; and then shall ye be healed, and an atonement shall be made for you: should not his hand be stayed from off you?

Kings I 6:3 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 6:3

And the porch before the temple of the house
Which stood at the east end of it:

twenty cubits [was] the length thereof, according to the breadth of the
house;
which was from north to south, and of the same dimension, so that they exactly answered each other:

[and] ten cubits [was] the breadth thereof before the house;
which being added to it, make the whole of the building, most holy place, holy place, and porch, seventy cubits; the height of the porch is not here given, but in ( 2 Chronicles 3:4 ) ; where it is said to be an hundred twenty cubits high, equal to the height of the house, with the chambers over it; but there the breadth of the porch is not given, as it is here; by these dimensions we may observe the difference between the tabernacle and the temple; the temple was twice as long, and as broad, and thrice as high as that, see ( Exodus 26:8 Exodus 26:16 ) . This fabric was an emblem of the church of God, sometimes called an holy temple, and the temple of the living God, ( 2 Corinthians 6:16 ) ( Ephesians 2:21 ) .

Kings I 6:3 In-Context

1 And the ark was seven months in the country of the Philistines, and their land brought forth swarms of mice.

2 And the Philistines call their priests, and their prophets, and their enchanters, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the Lord? teach us wherewith we shall send it away to its place.

3 And they said, If ye send away the ark of the covenant of the Lord God of Israel, do not on any account send it away empty, but by all means render to it an offering for the plague; and then shall ye be healed, and an atonement shall be made for you: should not his hand be stayed from off you?

4 And they say, What the offering for the plague we shall return to it? and they said,

5 According to the number of the lords of the Philistines, five golden emerods, for the plague was on you, and on your rulers, and on the people; and golden mice, the likeness of the mice that destroy your land: and ye shall give glory to the Lord, that he may lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.