Ezekiel 42:1–44:31

The Chambers for the Priests

42 Then he abrought me out into the outer court, by the way toward the bnorth; and he brought me into cthe chamber which was opposite the separating courtyard, and which was opposite the building toward the north. 2 Facing the length, which was one hundred cubits (the width was fifty cubits), was the north door. 3 Opposite the inner court of twenty cubits, and opposite the dpavement of the outer court, was egallery against gallery in three stories. 4 In front of the chambers, toward the inside, was a walk ten cubits wide, at a distance of one cubit; and their doors faced north. 5 Now the upper chambers were shorter, because the galleries took away space from them more than from the lower and middle stories of the building. 6 For they were in three stories and did not have pillars like the pillars of the courts; therefore the upper level was 1shortened more than the lower and middle levels from the ground up. 7 And a wall which was outside ran parallel to the chambers, at the front of the chambers, toward the outer court; its length was fifty cubits. 8 The length of the chambers toward the outer court was fifty cubits, whereas that facing the temple was one fhundred cubits. 9 At the lower chambers was the entrance on the east side, as one goes into them from the outer court.

10 Also there were chambers in the thickness of the wall of the court toward the east, opposite the separating courtyard and opposite the building. 11 gThere was a walk in front of them also, and their appearance was like the chambers which were toward the north; they were as long and as wide as the others, and all their exits and entrances were according to plan. 12 And corresponding to the doors of the chambers that were facing south, as one enters them, there was a door in front of the walk, the way directly in front of the wall toward the east.

13 Then he said to me, “The north chambers and the south chambers, which are opposite the separating courtyard, are the holy chambers where the priests who approach the Lord hshall eat the most holy offerings. There they shall lay the most holy offerings—ithe grain offering, the sin offering, and the trespass offering—for the place is holy. 14 jWhen the priests enter them, they shall not go out of the holy chamber into the outer court; but there they shall leave their garments in which they minister, for they are holy. They shall put on other garments; then they may approach that which is for the people.”

Outer Dimensions of the Temple

15 Now when he had finished measuring the inner 2temple, he brought me out through the gateway that faces toward the keast, and measured it all around. 16 He measured the east side with the 3measuring rod, five hundred rods by the measuring rod all around. 17 He measured the north side, five hundred rods by the measuring rod all around. 18 He measured the south side, five hundred rods by the measuring rod. 19 He came around to the west side and measured five hundred rods by the measuring rod. 20 He measured it on the four sides; lit had a wall all around, mfive hundred cubits long and five hundred wide, to separate the holy areas from the 4common.

The Temple, the Lord’s Dwelling Place

43 Afterward he brought me to the gate, the gate athat faces toward the east. 2 bAnd behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east. cHis voice was like the sound of many waters; dand the earth shone with His glory. 3 It was elike the appearance of the vision which I saw—like the vision which I saw when 1I came fto destroy the city. The visions were like the vision which I saw gby the River Chebar; and I fell on my face. 4 hAnd the glory of the Lord came into the 2temple by way of the gate which faces toward the east. 5 iThe Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, jthe glory of the Lord filled the 3temple.

6 Then I heard Him speaking to me from the temple, while ka man stood beside me. 7 And He said to me, “Son of man, this is lthe place of My throne and mthe place of the soles of My feet, nwhere I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever. oNo more shall the house of Israel defile My holy name, they nor their kings, by their 4harlotry or with pthe carcasses of their kings on their high places. 8 qWhen they set their threshold by My threshold, and their doorpost by My doorpost, with a wall between them and Me, they defiled My holy name by the abominations which they committed; therefore I have consumed them in My anger. 9 Now let them put their harlotry and the carcasses of their kings far away from Me, and I will dwell in their midst forever.

10 “Son of man, rdescribe the 5temple to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure the pattern. 11 And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the design of the 6temple and its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, its entire design and all its sordinances, all its forms and all its laws. Write it down in their sight, so that they may keep its whole design and all its ordinances, and tperform them. 12 This is the law of the 7temple: The whole area surrounding uthe mountaintop is most holy. Behold, this is the law of the temple.

Dimensions of the Altar

13 “These are the measurements of the valtar in cubits w(the 8cubit is one cubit and a handbreadth): the base one cubit high and one cubit wide, with a rim all around its edge of one span. This is the height of the altar: 14 from the base on the ground to the lower ledge, two cubits; the width of the ledge, one cubit; from the smaller ledge to the larger ledge, four cubits; and the width of the ledge, one cubit. 15 The altar hearth is four cubits high, with four xhorns extending upward from the 9hearth. 16 The altar hearth is twelve cubits long, twelve wide, ysquare at its four corners; 17 the ledge, fourteen cubits long and fourteen wide on its four sides, with a rim of half a cubit around it; its base, one cubit all around; and zits steps face toward the east.”

Consecrating the Altar

18 And He said to me, “Son of man, thus says the Lord God: ‘These are the ordinances for the altar on the day when it is made, for sacrificing aburnt offerings on it, and for bsprinkling blood on it. 19 You shall give ca young bull for a sin offering to dthe priests, the Levites, who are of the seed of eZadok, who approach Me to minister to Me,’ says the Lord God. 20 You shall take some of its blood and put it on the four horns of the altar, on the four corners of the ledge, and on the rim around it; thus you shall cleanse it and make atonement for it. 21 Then you shall also take the bull of the sin offering, and fburn it in the appointed place of the 1temple, goutside the sanctuary. 22 On the second day you shall offer a kid of the goats without blemish for a sin offering; and they shall cleanse the altar, as they cleansed it with the bull. 23 When you have finished cleansing it, you shall offer a young bull without blemish, and a ram from the flock without blemish. 24 When you offer them before the Lord, hthe priests shall throw salt on them, and they will offer them up as a burnt offering to the Lord. 25 Every day for iseven days you shall prepare a goat for a sin offering; they shall also prepare a young bull and a ram from the flock, both without blemish. 26 Seven days they shall make atonement for the altar and purify it, and so 2consecrate 3it. 27 jWhen these days are over it shall be, on the eighth day and thereafter, that the priests shall offer your burnt offerings and your peace offerings on the altar; and I will kaccept you,’ says the Lord God.”

The East Gate and the Prince

44 Then He brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary awhich faces toward the east, but it was shut. 2 And the Lord said to me, “This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter by it, bbecause the Lord God of Israel has entered by it; therefore it shall be shut. 3 As for the cprince, because he is the prince, he may sit in it to deat bread before the Lord; he shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway, and go out the same way.”

Those Admitted to the Temple

4 Also He brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the 1temple; so I looked, and ebehold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord; fand I fell on my face. 5 And the Lord said to me, g“Son of man, 2mark well, see with your eyes and hear with your ears, all that I say to you concerning all the hordinances of the house of the Lord and all its laws. Mark well who may enter the house and all who go out from the sanctuary.

6 “Now say to the irebellious, to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “O house of Israel, jlet Us have no more of all your abominations. 7 kWhen you brought in lforeigners, muncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in My sanctuary to defile it—My house—and when you offered nMy food, othe fat and the blood, then they broke My covenant because of all your abominations. 8 And you have not pkept charge of My holy things, but you have set others to keep charge of My sanctuary for you.” 9 Thus says the Lord God: q“No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart or uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter My sanctuary, including any foreigner who is among the children of Israel.

Laws Governing Priests

10 r“And the Levites who went far from Me, when Israel went astray, who strayed away from Me after their idols, they shall bear their iniquity. 11 Yet they shall be ministers in My sanctuary, sas gatekeepers of the house and ministers of the house; tthey shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and uthey shall stand before them to minister to them. 12 Because they ministered to them before their idols and vcaused 3the house of Israel to fall into iniquity, therefore I have wraised My hand in an oath against them,” says the Lord God, “that they shall bear their iniquity. 13 xAnd they shall not come near Me to minister to Me as priest, …