Ezekiel 43:13–46:24

The Altar

¹³“These are the measurements of the altar ^ain units of length (each unit being the standard length plus three inches ^b): ^cthe gutter is 21 inches ^ddeep and 21 inches wide, with a rim of nine inches ^earound its edge. This is the base ^fof the altar. ¹⁴The distance from the gutter on the ground to the lower ledge is 3½ feet, ^gand the width of the ledge is 21 inches. ^hThere are seven feet ⁱfrom the small ledge to the large ledge, whose width is also 21 inches. ¹⁵The altar hearth ^jis seven feet ^khigh, and four horns ^lproject upward from the hearth. ¹⁶The hearth is square, 21 feet ^mlong by 21 feet wide. ⁿ¹⁷The ledge is 24½ feet ^olong by 24½ feet wide, with four equal sides. ^pThe rim all around it is 10½ inches, ^qand its gutter is 21 inches ^rall around it. The altar’s steps face east.” ^s

¹⁸Then He said to me: “Son of man, ^tthis is what the Lord God says: These are the statutes for the altar on the day it is constructed, so that burnt offerings ^umay be sacrificed on it and blood may be sprinkled on it: ^v19You are to give a bull from the herd ^was a sin offering ^xto the Levitical priests who are from the offspring of Zadok, ^ywho approach Me in order to serve Me.” ^zThis is the declaration of the Lord God. ²⁰“You must take some of its blood and apply it to the four horns ^aof the altar, the four corners of the ledge, and all around the rim. In this way you will purify the altar and make atonement for it. ^b21Then you must take away the bull for the sin offering, and it must be burned outside the sanctuary in the place appointed for the temple. ^c

²²“On the second day you are to present an unblemished male goat as a sin offering. They will purify the altar just as they did with the bull. ²³When you have finished the purification, you are to present a young, unblemished bull ^dand an unblemished ram from the flock. ^e24You must present them before the Lord; the priests will throw salt on them and sacrifice them as a burnt offering to the Lord. ^f25You will offer a goat for a sin offering each day for seven days. ^gA young bull and a ram from the flock, both unblemished, must also be offered. ²⁶For seven days the priests are to make atonement for the altar and cleanse it. In this way they will consecrate it ^h27and complete the days of purification. Then on the eighth day ⁱand afterward, the priests will offer your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar, and I will accept you.” ^jThis is the declaration of the Lord God.

The Prince’s Privilege

44The man then brought me back toward the sanctuary’s outer gate that faced east, and it was closed. ²The Lord said to me: “This gate will remain closed. It will not be opened, and no one will enter through it, because the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered through it. ^kTherefore it will remain closed. ³The prince himself will sit in the gateway to eat a meal before the Lord. ^lHe must enter by way of the portico ^mof the gate and go out the same way.”

⁴Then the man brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple. I looked, and the glory of the Lord filled His temple. ⁿAnd I fell facedown. ^o5The Lord said to me: “Son of man, pay attention; ^plook with your eyes and listen with your ears to everything I tell you about all the statutes and laws of the Lord’s temple. ^qTake careful note of the entrance of the temple along with all the exits of the sanctuary.

The Levites’ Duties and Privileges

⁶“Say to the rebellious people, ^rthe house of Israel: This is what the Lord God says: I have had enough ^sof all your detestable practices, house of Israel. ⁷When you brought in foreigners, ^tuncircumcised in both heart and flesh, ^uto occupy My sanctuary, you defiled My temple while you offered My food—the fat and the blood. You ^vbroke My covenant by all your detestable practices. ⁸You have not kept charge of My holy things ^wbut have appointed others to keep charge of My sanctuary for you.

⁹“This is what the Lord God says: No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart and flesh, may enter My sanctuary, not even a foreigner who is among the Israelites. ¹⁰Surely the Levites who wandered away from Me when Israel went astray, and who strayed from Me after their idols, ^xwill bear the consequences of their sin. ^y11Yet they will occupy My sanctuary, serving as guards at the temple gates ^zand ministering at the temple. They will slaughter the burnt offerings ^aand other sacrifices for the people and will stand before them to serve them. ^b12Because they ministered to the house of Israel before their idols and became a sinful stumbling block to them, therefore I swore an oath ^cagainst them” ^d—this is the declaration of the Lord God—“that they would bear the consequences of their sin. ¹³They must not approach Me to serve Me as priests ^eor come near any of My holy things or the most holy things. They will bear their disgrace and the consequences of the detestable acts they committed. ¹⁴Yet I will make them responsible for the duties of the temple ^f—for all its work and everything done in it.

The Priests’ Duties and Privileges

¹⁵“But the Levitical priests descended from Zadok, ^gwho kept charge of My sanctuary when the Israelites went astray from Me, will approach Me to serve Me. They will stand before Me to offer Me fat and blood.” This is the declaration of the Lord God. ¹⁶“They are the ones who may enter My sanctuary ^hand draw near to My table to serve Me. ⁱThey will keep My mandate. ¹⁷When they enter the gates of the inner court they must wear linen garments; ^jthey must not have on them anything made of wool when they minister at the gates of the inner court and within it. ¹⁸They must wear linen turbans on their heads and linen undergarments around their waists. ^kThey are not to put on anything that makes them sweat. ¹⁹Before they go out to the outer court, ^lto the people, they must take off the clothes they have been ministering in, leave them in the holy chambers, and dress in other clothes ^mso that they do not transmit holiness to the people through their clothes. ⁿ

²⁰“They may not shave their heads ^oor let their hair grow long, ^pbut must carefully trim their hair. ²¹No priest may drink wine before he enters the inner court. ^q22He is not to marry a widow or a divorced woman, but must marry a virgin from the offspring of the house of Israel, ^ror a widow who is the widow of a priest. ²³They must teach My people the difference between the holy and the common, and explain to them the difference between the clean and the unclean. ^s

²⁴“In a dispute, they will officiate as judges and decide the case according to My ordinances. ^tThey must observe My laws and statutes regarding all My appointed festivals, and keep My Sabbaths holy. ^u25A priest may not come near a dead person so that he becomes defiled. ^vHowever, he may defile himself for a father, a mother, a son, a daughter, a brother, or an unmarried sister. ²⁶After he is cleansed, he is to count off seven days for himself. ^w27On the day he goes into the sanctuary, into the inner court ^xto minister in the sanctuary, he must present his sin offering.” This is the declaration of the Lord God.

²⁸“This will be their inheritance: I am their inheritance. ^yYou are to give them no possession in Israel: I am their possession. ²⁹They will eat the grain offering, the sin offering, ^zand the restitution offering. Everything in Israel that is permanently dedicated to the Lord will belong to them. ^a30The best of all the firstfruits of every kind and contribution of every kind from all your gifts will belong to the priests. ^bYou are to give your first batch of dough to the priest ^cso that a blessing may rest on your homes. ^d31The priests may not eat any bird or animal that died naturally or was mauled by wild beasts. ^e

The Sacred Portion of the Land

45“When you divide the land by lot as an inheritance, ^fyou must set aside a donation to the Lord, a holy portion of the land, ^g8⅓ miles ^hlong and 6⅔ miles ⁱwide. This entire tract of land will be holy. ²In this area there will be a square section ^jfor the sanctuary, 875 by 875 feet, ^klwith 87½ feet ^mof open space all around it. ³From this holy portion, ⁿyou will measure off an area 8⅓ miles ^olong and 3⅓ miles ^pwide, in which the sanctuary, the most holy place, ^qwill stand. ^r4It will be a holy area of the land to be used by the priests who minister in the sanctuary, who draw near to serve the Lord. ^sIt will be a place for their houses, as well as a holy area for the sanctuary. ⁵There will be another area 8⅓ miles ^tlong and 3⅓ miles ^uwide for the Levites who minister in the temple; ^vit will be their possession for towns to live in. ^w

⁶“As the property of the city, you must set aside an area 1⅔ of a mile ^xwide and 8⅓ miles ^ylong, adjacent to the holy donation of land. ^zIt will be for the whole house of Israel. ⁷And the prince will have the area on each side of the holy donation of land and the city’s property, adjacent to the holy donation and the city’s property, stretching to the west on the west side and to the east on the east side. ^aIts length will correspond to one of the tribal portions from the western boundary to the eastern boundary. ⁸This will be his land as a possession in Israel. My princes will no longer oppress My people ^bbut give the rest of the land to the house of Israel according to their tribes.

⁹“This is what the Lord God says: You have gone too far, ^cdprinces of Israel! Put away violence and oppression and do what is just and right. ^ePut an end to your evictions of My people.” This is the declaration of the Lord God. ¹⁰“You must have honest scales, an honest dry measure, ^fand an honest liquid measure. ^gh11The dry measure ⁱand the liquid measure ^jwill be uniform, with the liquid measure containing 5½ gallons ^kand the dry measure holding half a bushel. ^lTheir measurement will be a tenth of the standard larger capacity measure. ^m12The shekel will weigh 20 gerahs. ⁿYour mina will equal 60 shekels.

The People’s Contribution to the Sacrifices

¹³“This is the…