4357. miklah

Lexical Summary

miklah: Completion, enclosure, or full measure.

Original Word: מִכְלָה
Part of Speech: Noun Feminine
Transliteration: miklah
Pronunciation: mik-LAH
Phonetic Spelling: (mik-law')
KJV: perfect
NASB: purest
Word Origin: [from H3615 (כָּלָה - finished)]

1. completion
2. (in plural concrete, adverbial) wholly

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

perfect

From kalah; completion (in plural concrete adverbial, wholly) -- perfect. Compare mikla'ah.

see HEBREW kalah

see HEBREW mikla'ah

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from kalah
Definition
completeness, perfection
NASB Translation
purest (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs

II. [מִכְלָה] noun [feminine] completeness, perfection; — only plural construct intensive מִכְלוֺת זָהָב2Chronicles 4:21 perfections of gold = purest gold. — I. מִכְלָה see below כלא.

Topical Lexicon

Biblical Context

The term מִכְלָה (miḵlâ) appears once in Scripture, describing part of the gold used for Solomon’s Temple furnishings (2 Chronicles 4:21). The verse records that the “flowers, lamps, and tongs” were fashioned “of purest gold”. The word signals that each article was made wholly—or solidly—of gold, not merely overlaid or plated. Its placement within the catalogue of Temple vessels underscores the care taken to ensure that even the supporting implements for the lampstands met the highest standard of holiness and beauty.

Material and Craftsmanship

Solomon commissioned Huram-Abi, a master craftsman, to produce objects “for the house of the Lord” (2 Chronicles 4:16). The miḵlâ quality of the gold points to:
• Integrity: every piece was complete in itself, without admixture or incompleteness.
• Permanence: solid gold resists corrosion, picturing the enduring nature of true worship.
• Density of value: a full-weight article testified to the covenant faithfulness of the king and the people who financed the work (1 Kings 7:51).

Because the lampstands illuminated the Holy Place day and night (Exodus 27:20-21), their accessories had to be as flawless as the light they served.

Theological Themes

1. Holiness. Pure gold parallels the Lord’s holiness (Exodus 25:11); miḵlâ stresses unalloyed purity in worship.
2. Light. Vessels for the lampstands support ongoing light, typifying divine revelation (Psalm 119:105; John 1:4-5). Solid gold accessories magnify the worth of that light.
3. Completion. The root idea of completeness foreshadows Christ’s finished work: “It is finished” (John 19:30). The Temple implements anticipate a perfected sacrifice and priesthood (Hebrews 9:11-12).

Intertextual Links

• Gold bowls of incense rise before God in Revelation 5:8, reflecting an unbroken line from Solomon’s miḵlâ vessels to heavenly worship.
• The repeated refrain “according to the pattern” (Exodus 25:40) finds its echo in the meticulous manufacture of each miḵlâ item.
• Other Hebrew terms for wholeness (such as תָּמִים tamim, “blameless”) appear with miḵlâ in 2 Chronicles 4:21, doubly emphasizing perfection.

Observations for Worship and Ministry

• Excellence honors God. The miḵlâ standard challenges congregations to pursue integrity in every detail of corporate worship, from music to maintenance.
• Stewardship is spiritual. Israel’s costly devotion models sacrificial giving for gospel advance (2 Corinthians 8:1-5).
• Light must be maintained. As the priests tended the golden lamps with miḵlâ utensils, believers are called to keep their witness bright (Matthew 5:16; Philippians 2:15).

Historical Significance

Archaeological parallels—such as solid metal cultic bowls from Late Bronze temples—confirm the feasibility of crafting full-weight gold articles in Solomon’s time. Yet the Chronicler singles out Israel’s Temple as uniquely ordered by divine revelation, not merely royal opulence. Miḵlâ thus becomes a historical marker of Israel’s covenant distinctiveness in the ancient Near East.

Conclusion

Though occurring only once, מִכְלָה enriches the biblical portrait of worship that is whole, unblemished, and God-centered. It calls every generation to ensure that what supports the light of God’s presence in the world is, like Solomon’s gold, complete in devotion and pure in substance.

Forms and Transliterations

מִכְל֥וֹת מכלות michLot miḵ·lō·wṯ miḵlōwṯ

Englishman's Concordance

2 Chronicles 4:21
HEB: זָהָ֑ב ה֖וּא מִכְל֥וֹת זָהָֽב׃
NAS: and the tongs of gold, of purest gold;
KJV: [made he of] gold, [and] that perfect gold;
INT: of gold he of purest gold

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 4357
1 Occurrence

miḵ·lō·wṯ — 1 Occ.