Ezekiel 43

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The Inner Temple

41 Then he brought me to mthe nave and measured the njambs. On each side six cubits1 was the breadth of the jambs.2 And the breadth of the entrance was ten cubits, and the sidewalls of the entrance were five cubits on either side. And he measured the length of the nave,3 oforty cubits, and its breadth, ptwenty cubits. Then he went qinto the inner room and measured the jambs of the entrance, two cubits; and the entrance, six cubits; and the sidewalls on either side4 of the entrance, seven cubits. And he measured rthe length of the room, twenty cubits, and its breadth, twenty cubits, across sthe nave. And he said to me, This is tthe Most Holy Place.

Then he measured the wall of the temple, six cubits thick, and the breadth of uthe side chambers, four cubits, uall around the temple. And the side chambers were in three stories, one over another, vthirty in each story. There were offsets5 all around the wall of the temple to serve as supports for the side chambers, wso that they should not be supported by the wall of the temple. And it became broader as it wound upward to the side chambers, because the temple was enclosed upward all around the temple. Thus the temple had a broad area upward, and xso one went up from the lowest story to the top story through the middle story. I saw also that the temple had a raised platform all around; the foundations of the side chambers measured a full reed of ysix long cubits. The thickness of the outer wall of the side chambers was five cubits. zThe free space between the side chambers of the temple and the 10 aother chambers was a breadth of btwenty cubits all around the temple on every side. 11 And the doors of the cside chambers opened on dthe free space, one door toward the north, and another door toward the south. And the breadth of the free space was five cubits all around.

12 The building that was facing ethe separate yard on the west side was seventy cubits broad, and the wall of the building was five cubits thick all around, and its length ninety cubits.

13 Then he measured the temple, fa hundred cubits long; and the yard and the building with its walls, a hundred cubits long; 14 also the breadth of the east front of the temple and the yard, a hundred cubits.

15 Then he measured the length of gthe building facing the yard that was at the back and hits galleries6 on either side, a hundred cubits.

The inside of the nave and the vestibules of the court, 16 ithe thresholds and jthe narrow windows and the galleries all around the three of them, opposite the threshold, were paneled with wood all around, from the floor up to the windows (now the windows were covered), 17 to the space above the door, even to the inner room, and on the outside. And on all the walls all around, inside and outside, was a measured pattern.7 18 It was carved of kcherubim and lpalm trees, a palm tree between cherub and cherub. Every cherub had two faces: 19 ma human face toward the palm tree on the one side, and the face of a young lion toward the palm tree on the other side. They were carved on the whole temple all around. 20 From the floor to above the door, cherubim and palm trees were carved; similarly the wall of the nave.

21 The doorposts of nthe nave were squared, and in front of othe Holy Place was something resembling 22 pan altar of wood, three cubits high, two cubits long, and two cubits broad.8 Its corners, its base,9 and its walls were of wood. He said to me, This is qthe table that is before the Lord. 23 The nave and the Holy Place had each ra double door. 24 The double doors had two leaves apiece, stwo swinging leaves for each door. 25 And on the doors of the nave were carved cherubim and palm trees, tsuch as were carved on the walls. And there was ua canopy10 of wood in front of vthe vestibule outside. 26 And there were jnarrow windows and palm trees on either side, on the sidewalls of the vestibule, wthe side chambers of the temple, and the ucanopies.

The Temple’s Chambers

42 Then he led me out into xthe outer court, ytoward the north, and he brought me to xthe chambers that were opposite zthe separate yard and opposite athe building on the north. The length of the building whose door faced north was ba hundred cubits,1 and cthe breadth fifty cubits. Facing dthe twenty cubits that belonged to the inner court, and facing ethe pavement that belonged to the outer court, was fgallery2 against gallery in three stories. And gbefore the chambers was a passage inward, ten cubits wide and ha hundred cubits long,3 and gtheir doors were on the north. Now the upper chambers were narrower, for the galleries took more away from them than from the lower and middle chambers of the building. For they were in three stories, and they had no pillars like the pillars of the courts. Thus the upper chambers were set back from the ground more than the lower and the middle ones. And ithere was a wall outside parallel to the chambers, toward the outer court, opposite the chambers, jfifty cubits long. For the chambers on the outer court were fifty cubits long, while those opposite kthe nave4 were la hundred cubits long. Below these chambers was man entrance on the east side, as one enters them from the outer court.

10 In the thickness of nthe wall of the court, on the south5 also, opposite othe yard and opposite othe building, there were pchambers 11 with qa passage in front of them. They were similar to the chambers on the north, of the same length and breadth, with the same exits6 and arrangements and qdoors, 12 as were the entrances of the chambers on the south. There was an entrance at the beginning of the passage, the passage before nthe corresponding wall on the east as one enters them.7

13 Then he said to me, The north chambers and the south chambers opposite othe yard are the holy chambers, rwhere the priests who approach the Lord sshall eat the tmost holy offerings. There they shall put the most holy offeringstthe grain offering, uthe sin offering, and uthe guilt offeringfor the place is holy. 14 When the priests enter the Holy Place, they shall not go out of it into the outer court vwithout laying there the garments in which they minister, for these are holy. vThey shall put on other garments before they go near to that which is for the people.

15 Now when he had finished measuring the interior of the temple area, he led me out by wthe gate that faced east, and measured the temple area all around. 16 He measured the east side with xthe measuring reed, 500 cubits by the measuring reed all around. 17 He measured the north side, 500 cubits by the measuring reed all around. 18 He measured the south side, 500 cubits by the measuring reed. 19 Then he turned to the west side and measured, 500 cubits by the measuring reed. 20 He measured it on the four sides. It had ya wall around it, z500 cubits long and z500 cubits broad, ato make a separation between the holy and the common.

The Glory of the Lord Fills the Temple

43 Then he led me to bthe gate, the gate facing east. And behold, cthe glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And dthe sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and ethe earth shone with his glory. And fthe vision I saw was just like the vision that I had seen gwhen he1 came to destroy the city, and just like hthe vision that I had seen iby the Chebar canal. And jI fell on my face. As cthe glory of the Lord kentered the temple by the gate facing east, lthe Spirit lifted me up and brought me into mthe inner court; and behold, nthe glory of the Lord filled the temple.

oWhile the man was standing beside me, pI heard one speaking to me out of the temple, and he said to me, qSon of man, this is rthe place of my throne and sthe place of the soles of my feet, twhere I will dwell in the midst of the people of Israel forever. And the house of Israel shall no more udefile my holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoring and by the dead bodies2 of their kings at their high places,3 by setting their threshold by my threshold and their doorposts beside my doorposts, with vonly a wall between me and them. They have wdefiled my holy name by their abominations that they have committed, so I have consumed them in my anger. Now let them put away their whoring and the dead bodies of their kings far from me, tand I will dwell in their midst forever.

10 As for you, qson of man, xdescribe to the house of Israel the temple, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and they shall measure the plan. 11 And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, xmake known to them the design of the temple, its arrangement, yits exits and its entrances, that is, its whole design; and make known to them as well all its statutes and its whole design and all its laws, and write it down zin their sight, so that they may observe all its laws and all its statutes and carry them out. 12 This is the law of the temple: the whole territory on the top of athe mountain ball around shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the temple.

The Altar

13 These are the measurements of cthe altar by cubits (the cubit being da cubit and a handbreadth):4 its base shall be one cubit high5 and one cubit broad, with a rim of one span6 around its edge. And this shall be the height of the altar: 14 from the base on the ground to the lower ledge, two cubits, with a breadth of one cubit; and from the smaller ledge to the larger ledge, four cubits, with a breadth of one cubit; 15 and the altar hearth, four cubits; and from the altar hearth projecting upward, efour horns. 16 The altar hearth shall be fsquare, twelve cubits long by twelve broad. 17 The ledge also shall be square, fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad, with a rim around it half a cubit broad, and its base one cubit all around. gThe steps of the altar shall face east.

18 And he said to me, hSon of man, thus says the Lord God: These are the ordinances for the altar: On the day when it is erected for offering burnt offerings upon it and ifor throwing blood against it, 19 you shall give to jthe Levitical priests kof the family of Zadok, who draw near to me to minister to me, declares the Lord God, la bull from the herd for a sin offering. 20 And myou shall take some of its blood and put it on ethe four horns of the altar and on the four corners of the ledge and upon nthe rim all around. oThus you shall purify the altar and make atonement for it. 21 You shall also take the bull of the sin offering, and pit shall be burned in the appointed place belonging to the temple, outside the sacred area. 22 And on the second day you shall offer a male goat without blemish for a sin offering; and the altar shall be purified, as it was purified with the bull. 23 When you have finished opurifying it, you shall offer a bull from the herd without blemish and qa ram from the flock without blemish. 24 You shall present them before the Lord, and the priests rshall sprinkle salt on them and offer them up as a burnt offering to the Lord. 25 sFor seven days you shall provide daily a male goat for a sin offering; also, a bull from the herd and a ram from the flock, without blemish, shall be provided. 26 Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and cleanse it, and so consecrate it.7 27 And when they have completed these days, then tfrom the eighth day onward the priests shall offer on the altar your burnt offerings and your upeace offerings, and vI will accept you, declares the Lord God.

The Gate for the Prince

44 Then he brought me wback to the outer gate of the sanctuary, xwhich faces east. And it was shut. And the Lord said to me, This gate shall remain shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it, for ythe Lord, the God of Israel, has entered by it. Therefore it shall remain shut. Only zthe prince may sit in it ato eat bread before the Lord. He bshall enter by way of the vestibule of the gate, and shall go out by the same way.

Then he brought me by way of cthe north gate to the front of the temple, and I looked, and behold, dthe glory of the Lord filled the temple of the Lord. And eI fell on my face. And the Lord said to me, fSon of man, mark well, gsee with your eyes, gand hear with your ears all that I shall tell you concerning hall the statutes of the temple of the Lord and all its laws. And mark well hthe entrance to the temple and all the exits from the sanctuary. And say to ithe rebellious house,1 to the jhouse of Israel, Thus says the Lord God: O house of Israel, kenough of all your abominations, in ladmitting foreigners, muncircumcised in heart and flesh, to be in my sanctuary, nprofaning my temple, when you offer to me my food, the fat and the blood. You2 have broken my covenant, in addition to all your abominations. And oyou have not kept charge of my holy things, but you have set others to keep my charge for you in my sanctuary.

Thus says the Lord God: pNo foreigner, uncircumcised in heart and flesh, of all the foreigners who are among the people of Israel, shall enter my sanctuary. 10 But qthe Levites who went far from me, going astray from me after their idols rwhen Israel went astray, sshall bear their punishment.3 11 They shall be tministers in my sanctuary, having oversight uat the gates of the temple and ministering in the temple. They shall slaughter the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and vthey shall stand before the people, to minister to them. 12 Because they ministered to them before their idols and became wa stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel, therefore I have xsworn concerning them, declares the Lord God, and they shall bear their punishment. 13 They yshall not come near to me, to serve me as priest, nor come near any of my holy things and the things that are most holy, but zthey shall bear their shame and the abominations that they have committed. 14 Yet I will appoint them to keep acharge of the temple, bto do all its service and all that is to be done in it.

Rules for Levitical Priests

15 But cthe Levitical priests, cthe sons of Zadok, who kept athe charge of my sanctuary rwhen the people of Israel went astray from me, shall come near to me dto minister to me. And they shall stand before me to offer me ethe fat and the blood, declares the Lord God. 16 They shall enter my sanctuary, and they shall approach fmy table, to minister to me, and they shall keep my charge. 17 When they enter the gates of the inner court, they shall wear glinen garments. They shall have nothing of wool on them, while they minister at the gates of the inner court, and within. 18 They shall have linen turbans on their heads, and linen undergarments around their waists. They shall not bind themselves with anything that causes sweat. 19 And when they go out into the outer court to the people, they shall put off the garments in which they have been ministering hand lay them in the holy chambers. And ithey shall put on other garments, jlest they transmit holiness to the people with their garments. 20 kThey shall not shave their heads or llet their locks grow long; they shall surely trim the hair of their heads. 21 mNo priest shall drink wine when he enters the inner court. 22 nThey shall not marry a widow or a divorced woman, but only virgins of the offspring of the house of Israel, or a widow who is the widow of a priest. 23 oThey shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and oshow them how to distinguish between the unclean and the clean. 24 pIn a dispute, they shall act as judges, and they shall judge it according to my judgments. They shall keep my laws and my statutes in all my appointed feasts, and qthey shall keep my Sabbaths holy. 25 rThey shall not defile themselves by going near to a dead person. However, for father or mother, for son or daughter, for brother or unmarried sister they may defile themselves. 26 sAfter he4 has become clean, they shall count seven days for him. 27 And on the day that he goes into the Holy Place, tinto the inner court, to minister in the Holy Place, uhe shall offer his sin offering, declares the Lord God.

28 vThis shall be their inheritance: I am their inheritance: and wyou shall give them no possession in Israel; I am their possession. 29 xThey shall eat the grain offering, the sin offering, and the guilt offering, and yevery devoted thing in Israel shall be theirs. 30 zAnd the first of all the firstfruits of all kinds, and every offering of all kinds from all your offerings, shall belong to the priests. aYou shall also give to the priests the first of your dough, bthat a blessing may rest on your house. 31 cThe priests shall not eat of danything, whether bird or beast, that has died of itself or is torn by wild animals.

The Holy District

45 When eyou allot the land as an inheritance, fyou shall set apart for the Lord a portion of the land as a holy district, 25,000 cubits1 long and 20,0002 cubits broad. It shall be holy throughout its whole extent. gOf this a square plot of 500 by 500 cubits shall be for the sanctuary, with fifty cubits for han open space around it. And ifrom this measured district you shall measure off a section 25,000 cubits long and 10,000 broad, jin which shall be the sanctuary, kthe Most Holy Place. lIt shall be the holy portion of the land. It shall be for the priests, who minister in the sanctuary and approach the Lord to minister to him, and it shall be a place for their houses and a holy place for the sanctuary. mAnother section, 25,000 cubits long and 10,000 cubits broad, shall be for the Levites who minister at the temple, as their possession for cities to live in.3

Alongside the portion set apart as the holy district nyou shall assign for the property of the city an area 5,000 cubits broad and 25,000 cubits long. oIt shall belong to the whole house of Israel.

The Portion for the Prince

pAnd to qthe prince shall belong the land on both sides of the holy district and the property of the city, alongside the holy district and the property of the city, on the west and on the east, corresponding in length to one of the tribal portions, and extending from the western to the eastern boundary of the land. It is to be his property in Israel. And rmy princes shall no more oppress my people, but sthey shall let the house of Israel have the land according to their tribes.

Thus says the Lord God: tEnough, O princes of Israel! Put away violence and oppression, and execute justice and righteousness. Cease uyour evictions of my people, declares the Lord God.

10 vYou shall have just balances, a just ephah, and a just bath.4 11 The ephah and the bath shall be wof the same measure, xthe bath containing one tenth of a homer,5 and the ephah one tenth of a homer; the homer shall be the standard measure. 12 yThe shekel shall be twenty gerahs;6 twenty shekels plus twenty-five shekels plus fifteen shekels shall be your mina.7

13 zThis is the offering that you shall make: one sixth of an ephah from each homer of wheat, and one sixth of an ephah from each homer of barley, 14 and as the fixed portion of oil, measured in baths, one tenth of a bath from each cor8 (the cor, like the homer, contains aten baths).9 15 And one sheep from every flock of two hundred, from the watering places of Israel for grain offering, burnt offering, and peace offerings, bto make atonement for them, declares the Lord God. 16 All the people of the land shall be obliged to give this offering to the prince in Israel. 17 cIt shall be the prince’s duty to furnish the burnt offerings, grain offerings, and drink offerings, at the feasts, the new moons, and the Sabbaths, all the appointed feasts of the house of Israel: he shall provide the sin offerings, grain offerings, burnt offerings, and peace offerings, to make atonement on behalf of the house of Israel.

18 Thus says the Lord God: In the first month, don the first day of the month, you shall take a bull from the herd without blemish, and epurify the sanctuary. 19 fThe priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering and put it gon the doorposts of the temple, the four corners of the ledge of the altar, and the posts of the gate of the inner court. 20 You shall do the same on the seventh day of the month for anyone who has sinned through error or ignorance; so you shall make atonement for the temple.

21 hIn the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, you shall celebrate the Feast of the Passover, and for seven days unleavened bread shall be eaten. 22 On that day the prince ishall provide for himself and all the people of the land a young bull for a sin offering. 23 And on jthe seven days of the festival he shall provide as a burnt offering to the Lord seven young bulls and seven rams without blemish, on each of the seven days; and ka male goat daily for a sin offering. 24 And lhe shall provide as ma grain offering an ephah for each bull, an ephah for each ram, and a hin10 of oil to each ephah. 25 nIn the seventh month, on the fifteenth day of the month and for the seven days of the feast, ohe shall make the same provision for sin offerings, burnt offerings, and grain offerings, and for the oil.