The Chambers for the Priests

42 Then he ^(A)brought me out into the outer court, by the way toward the ^(B)north; and he brought me into ^(C)the 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 ^(D)pavement of the outer court, was ^(E)gallery 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 ^[a]shortened 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 ^(F)hundred 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 (G)There 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 ^(H)shall eat the most holy offerings. There they shall lay the most holy offerings—^(I)the grain offering, the sin offering, and the trespass offering—for the place is holy. ^14 (J)When 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 ^[b]temple, he brought me out through the gateway that faces toward the ^(K)east, and measured it all around. ¹⁶ He measured the east side with the ^[c]measuring 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; ^(L)it had a wall all around, ^(M)five hundred cubits long and five hundred wide, to separate the holy areas from the ^[d]common.

The Temple, the Lord’s Dwelling Place

43 Afterward he brought me to the gate, the gate ^(N)that faces toward the east. ^2 (O)And behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east. ^(P)His voice was like the sound of many waters; ^(Q)and the earth shone with His glory. ³ It was ^(R)like the appearance of the vision which I saw—like the vision which I saw when ^[e]I came ^(S)to destroy the city. The visions were like the vision which I saw ^(T)by the River Chebar; and I fell on my face. ^4 (U)And the glory of the Lord came into the ^[f]temple by way of the gate which faces toward the east. ^5 (V)The Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, ^(W)the glory of the Lord filled the ^[g]temple.

⁶ Then I heard Him speaking to me from the temple, while ^(X)a man stood beside me. ⁷ And He said to me, “Son of man, this is ^(Y)the place of My throne and ^(Z)the place of the soles of My feet, ^(AA)where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever. ^(AB)No more shall the house of Israel defile My holy name, they nor their kings, by their ^[h]harlotry or with ^(AC)the carcasses of their kings on their high places. ^8 (AD)When 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, ^(AE)describe the ^[i]temple 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 ^[j]temple and its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, its entire design and all its ^(AF)ordinances, 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 ^(AG)perform them. ¹² This is the law of the ^[k]temple: The whole area surrounding ^(AH)the mountaintop is most holy. Behold, this is the law of the temple.

Dimensions of the Altar

¹³ “These are the measurements of the ^(AI)altar in cubits ^(AJ)(the ^[l]cubit 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 ^(AK)horns extending upward from the ^[m]hearth. ¹⁶ The altar hearth is twelve cubits long, twelve wide, ^(AL)square 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 ^(AM)its 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 ^(AN)burnt offerings on it, and for ^(AO)sprinkling blood on it. ¹⁹ You shall give ^(AP)a young bull for a sin offering to ^(AQ)the priests, the Levites, who are of the seed of ^(AR)Zadok, 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 ^(AS)burn it in the appointed place of the ^[n]temple, ^(AT)outside 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, ^(AU)the priests shall throw salt on them, and they will offer them up as a burnt offering to the Lord. ²⁵ Every day for ^(AV)seven 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 ^[o]consecrate ^[p]it. ^27 (AW)When 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 ^(AX)accept you,’ says the Lord God.”

Praising the Lord in His House at Night

A Song of Ascents.

Our Inheritance Through Christ’s Blood

2 Therefore, ^(A)laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, ^2 (B)as newborn babes, desire the pure ^(C)milk of the word, that you may grow ^[a]thereby, ³ if indeed you have ^(D)tasted that the Lord is gracious.

The Chosen Stone and His Chosen People^(E)

⁴ Coming to Him as to a living stone, ^(F)rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, ⁵ you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. ⁶ Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture,

⁷ Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who ^[b]are disobedient,

⁸ and

^(J)They stumble, being disobedient to the word, ^(K)to which they also were appointed.

⁹ But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of ^(L)darkness into His marvelous light; ^10 (M)who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

Living Before the World

¹¹ Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts ^(N)which war against the soul, ^12 (O)having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, ^(P)they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

Submission to Government^(Q)

^13 (R)Therefore submit yourselves to every ^[c]ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, ¹⁴ or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. ¹⁵ For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— ^16 (S)as free, yet not ^(T)using liberty as a cloak for ^[d]vice, but as bondservants of God. ¹⁷ Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear ^(U)God. Honor the king.

Submission to Masters^(V)

^18 (W)Servants, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. ¹⁹ For this is ^(X)commendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. ²⁰ For ^(Y)what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. ²¹ For ^(Z)to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for ^[e]us, ^(AA)leaving ^[f]us an example, that you should follow His steps:

^23 (AC)who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but ^(AD)committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; ^24 (AE)who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, ^(AF)that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—^(AG)by whose ^[g]stripes you were healed. ²⁵ For ^(AH)you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned ^(AI)to the Shepherd and ^[h]Overseer of your souls.