The firepans and bowls mentioned in this verse are distinguished from the instruments in the previous verse by the fact that these were made of gold and silver instead of bronze. So it is not advisable to follow Contemporary English Version here, which says that they were made of bronze.

For the meaning of the Hebrew term rendered firepans, see 1 Kgs 7.50; compare also Exo 25.38, where it is translated “trays” by Revised Standard Version. Because these trays or pans were used to carry live coals, New American Bible calls them “fire-holders.”

The bowls were used in ceremonial ritual as the objects from which the sacrificial blood was sprinkled. The Hebrew word rendered bowls is translated “basins” in 1 Kgs 7.40, 45, 50, and occurs elsewhere in 1–2 Kings only in 2 Kgs 12.13, where the word “basins” is also used. It should be translated the same way here as in those verses. New Revised Standard Version, unlike Revised Standard Version, does this. Since the root meaning of the Hebrew verb on which this noun is based is “to toss,” “to throw,” or “to scatter,” Gray is probably correct in translating “sprinkling-basins” (similarly Bible en français courant, em>Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente, Peregrino).

The expressions what was of gold and what was of silver refer to objects that were made of these two precious metals. Some may prefer to say “whatever was made of gold or silver” was taken away by the Babylonian officer.

It is not clear why the author added the words as gold and as silver. The Septuagint omits this second occurrence of the two nouns, probably because they were considered redundant. However, the author probably added these words to explain that the objects listed in this verse were taken, not because the Babylonians considered them to have any value as sacred objects, but because they were valuable for their gold and silver. New Revised Standard Version renders the last part of this verse better than Revised Standard Version by saying “What was made of gold the captain of the guard took away for the gold, and what was made of silver, for the silver.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .