וַיִּתֵּ֣ן דָּוִ֣יד לִשְׁלֹמֹ֣ה בְנ֡וֹ אֶת־תַּבְנִ֣ית הָאוּלָם֩ וְֽאֶת־בָּ֨תָּ֜יו וְגַנְזַכָּ֧יו וַעֲלִיֹּתָ֛יו וַחֲדָרָ֥יו הַפְּנִימִ֖ים וּבֵ֥ית הַכַּפֹּֽרֶת׃
Then David gave to Solomon his son the pattern of the porch [of the temple], and of the houses thereof, and of the treasuries thereof, and of the upper rooms thereof, and of the inner chambers thereof, and of the place of the ark-cover;
Guide for the Perplexed
IT might be thought that the Hebrew words temunah and tabnit have one and the same meaning, but this is not the case. Tabnit, derived from the verb banah (he built), signifies the build and construction of a thing—that is to say, its figure, whether square, round, triangular, or of any other shape. Comp. “the pattern (tabnit) of the Tabernacle and the pattern (tabnit) of all its vessels” (Exod. 25:9); “according to the pattern (tabnit) which thou wast shown upon the mount” (Exod. 25:40); “the form of any bird” (Deut. 4:17); “the form (tabnit) of a hand” (Ezek. 8:3); “the pattern (tabnit) of the porch” (1 Chron. 28:11). In all these quotations it is the shape which is referred to. Therefore the Hebrew language never employs the word tabnit in speaking of the qualities of God Almighty.