Jerusalem in the Time of Solomon (c. 970–930 b.c.)

David commanded his son Solomon to build a new temple. This work took seven years, followed by 13 years of building an adjacent royal complex (1 Kings 6:38; 7:1). As this quarter was located outside and north of the original city of David, new city walls must have been built to connect the two areas.Built atop Mount Moriah (2 Chron. 3:1), Solomon’s temple was Israel’s first permanent sanctuary. The royal complex immediately to the south of the temple (see also Solomon’s Temple and Palace Complex) consisted of Solomon’s own palace and a smaller house for his Egyptian wife (1 Kings 7:8), an armory called the “House of the Forest of Lebanon” (vv. 2–5), a Hall of Pillars (v. 6), and a Hall of the Throne (v. 7). A special “Ascent” connected this complex with the temple.The area between the temple complex and the city of David was called the Ophel.