Ezekiel 48
Good News Translation
The Division of the Land among the Tribes
48 1-7 The northern boundary of the land runs eastward from the Mediterranean Sea to the city of Hethlon, to Hamath Pass, to Enon City, to the boundary between the kingdoms of Damascus and Hamath. Each tribe is to receive one section of land extending from the eastern boundary west to the Mediterranean Sea,[a] in the following order from north to south:
Dan
Asher
Naphtali
Manasseh
Ephraim
Reuben
Judah
The Special Section in the Center of the Land
8 The next section of the land is to be set apart for special use. It is to be 10 miles wide from north to south, and the same length from east to west as the sections given to the tribes. The Temple will be located within this section.
9 In the center of this section, a special area 10 miles by 8 miles[b] is to be dedicated to the Lord. 10 The priests are to have a portion of this holy area. From east to west their portion is to measure 10 miles, and from north to south, 4 miles. The Temple of the Lord is to be located in the middle of this area. 11 This holy area is to be for the priests who are descendants of Zadok. They served me faithfully and did not join the rest of the Israelites in doing wrong, as the other members of the tribe of Levi did. 12 So they are to have a special area next to the area belonging to the Levites, and it will be the holiest of all. 13 The Levites also are to have a special area, south of that of the priests. It too is to be 10 miles from east to west, by 4 miles from north to south. 14 The area dedicated to the Lord is the best part of all the land, and none of it may be sold or exchanged or transferred to anyone else. It is holy and belongs to the Lord.
15 The part of the special area that is left, 10 miles by 2 miles, is not holy, but is for the general use of the people. They may live there and use the land. The city is to be in the center of it, 16 and it will be a square, 2,520 yards on each side. 17 All around the city on each side there will be an open space 140 yards across. 18 The land that is left after the city has been built in the area immediately to the south of the holy area—4 miles by 2 miles on the east and 4 miles by 2 miles on the west—is to be used as farmland by the people who live in the city. 19 Anyone who lives in the city, no matter which tribe he comes from, may farm that land.
20 And so the total area in the center of the section which was set apart will be a square measuring 10 miles on each side, and it will include the area occupied by the city.
21-22 To the east and to the west of this area which contains the Temple, the priests' land, the Levites' land, and the city, the remaining land belongs to the ruling prince. It reaches east to the eastern boundary and west to the Mediterranean Sea, and is bounded on the north by the section belonging to Judah and on the south by the one belonging to Benjamin.
Land for the Other Tribes
23-27 South of this special section, each of the remaining tribes is to receive one section of land running from the eastern boundary west to the Mediterranean Sea, in the following order from north to south:
Benjamin
Simeon
Issachar
Zebulun
Gad
28 On the south side of the portion given to the tribe of Gad, the boundary runs southwest from Tamar to the oasis of Kadesh, and then northwest along the Egyptian border to the Mediterranean Sea.
29 The Sovereign Lord said, “That is the way the land is to be divided into sections for the tribes of Israel to possess.”
The Gates of Jerusalem
30-34 (A)There are twelve entrances to the city of Jerusalem. Each of the four walls measures 2,520 yards and has three gates in it, each named for one of the tribes. The gates in the north wall are named for Reuben, Judah, and Levi; those in the east wall, for Joseph, Benjamin, and Dan; those in the south wall, for Simeon, Issachar, and Zebulun; and those in the west wall are named for Gad, Asher, and Naphtali. 35 The total length of the wall on all four sides of the city is 10,080 yards. The name of the city from now on will be “The-Lord-Is-Here!”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 48:1 One ancient translation extending … Sea; Hebrew having an eastern boundary and a western boundary.
- Ezekiel 48:9 Probable text (see 45.1) 8 miles; Hebrew 4 miles.
Ezekiel 48
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Tribal Portions
48 These are the names of the tribes: Beginning at the northern border, on the Hethlon road,[a] to Lebo-hamath, as far as Hazar-enon (which is on the border of Damascus, with Hamath to the north), and[b] extending from the east side to the west,[c] Dan, one portion.(A) 2 Adjoining the territory of Dan, from the east side to the west, Asher, one portion.(B) 3 Adjoining the territory of Asher, from the east side to the west, Naphtali, one portion. 4 Adjoining the territory of Naphtali, from the east side to the west, Manasseh, one portion.(C) 5 Adjoining the territory of Manasseh, from the east side to the west, Ephraim, one portion.(D) 6 Adjoining the territory of Ephraim, from the east side to the west, Reuben, one portion.(E) 7 Adjoining the territory of Reuben, from the east side to the west, Judah, one portion.(F)
8 Adjoining the territory of Judah, from the east side to the west, shall be the portion that you shall set apart, twenty-five thousand cubits in width, and in length equal to one of the tribal portions, from the east side to the west, with the sanctuary in the middle of it.(G) 9 The portion that you shall set apart for the Lord shall be twenty-five thousand cubits in length and twenty[d] thousand in width. 10 These shall be the allotments of the holy portion: the priests shall have an allotment measuring twenty-five thousand cubits on the northern side, ten thousand cubits in width on the western side, ten thousand in width on the eastern side, and twenty-five thousand in length on the southern side, with the sanctuary of the Lord in the middle of it.(H) 11 As for the consecrated priests, the descendants[e] of Zadok who kept my charge, who did not go astray when the people of Israel went astray, as the Levites did,(I) 12 they shall have a special portion from the holy portion of the land, a most holy place, adjoining the territory of the Levites.(J) 13 Alongside the territory of the priests, the Levites shall have an allotment twenty-five thousand cubits in length and ten thousand in width. The whole length shall be twenty-five thousand cubits and the width twenty[f] thousand.(K) 14 They shall not sell or exchange any of it; they shall not transfer this choice portion of the land, for it is holy to the Lord.(L)
15 The remainder, five thousand cubits in width and twenty-five thousand in length, shall be for ordinary use for the city, for dwellings and for pasturelands. In the middle of it shall be the city,(M) 16 and these shall be its dimensions: the north side four thousand five hundred cubits, the south side four thousand five hundred, the east side four thousand five hundred, and the west side four thousand five hundred.(N) 17 The city shall have pasturelands: on the north two hundred fifty cubits, on the south two hundred fifty, on the east two hundred fifty, on the west two hundred fifty.(O) 18 The remainder of the length alongside the holy portion shall be ten thousand cubits to the east and ten thousand to the west, and it shall be alongside the holy portion. Its produce shall be food for the workers of the city.(P) 19 The workers of the city, from all the tribes of Israel, shall cultivate it.(Q) 20 The whole portion that you shall set apart shall be twenty-five thousand cubits square, that is, the holy portion together with the property of the city.(R)
21 What remains on both sides of the holy portion and of the property of the city shall belong to the prince. Extending from the twenty-five thousand cubits of the holy portion to the east border and westward from the twenty-five thousand cubits to the west border, parallel to the tribal portions, it shall belong to the prince. The holy portion with the sanctuary of the temple in the middle of it,(S) 22 and the property of the Levites and of the city, shall be in the middle of that which belongs to the prince. The portion of the prince shall lie between the territory of Judah and the territory of Benjamin.
23 As for the rest of the tribes: from the east side to the west, Benjamin, one portion.(T) 24 Adjoining the territory of Benjamin, from the east side to the west, Simeon, one portion.(U) 25 Adjoining the territory of Simeon, from the east side to the west, Issachar, one portion.(V) 26 Adjoining the territory of Issachar, from the east side to the west, Zebulun, one portion.(W) 27 Adjoining the territory of Zebulun, from the east side to the west, Gad, one portion.(X) 28 And adjoining the territory of Gad to the south, the boundary shall run from Tamar to the waters of Meribath-kadesh, from there along the Wadi of Egypt[g] to the Great Sea.(Y) 29 This is the land that you shall allot as an inheritance among the tribes of Israel, and these are their portions, says the Lord God.(Z)
30 These shall be the exits of the city: On the north side, which is to be four thousand five hundred cubits by measure,(AA) 31 three gates: the gate of Reuben, the gate of Judah, and the gate of Levi, the gates of the city being named after the tribes of Israel.(AB) 32 On the east side, which is to be four thousand five hundred cubits, three gates: the gate of Joseph, the gate of Benjamin, and the gate of Dan. 33 On the south side, which is to be four thousand five hundred cubits by measure, three gates: the gate of Simeon, the gate of Issachar, and the gate of Zebulun. 34 On the west side, which is to be four thousand five hundred cubits, three gates:[h] the gate of Gad, the gate of Asher, and the gate of Naphtali. 35 The circumference of the city shall be eighteen thousand cubits. And the name of the city from that time on shall be, The Lord Is There.(AC)
Ezekiel 48
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
48 And these are the names of the tribes from the borders of the north, by the way of Hethalon, as they go to Emath, the court of Enan the border of Damascus northward, by the way of Emath. And from the east side thereof to the sea, shall be one portion for Dan.
2 And by the border of Dan, from the east side even to the side of the sea, one portion for Aser:
3 And by the border of Aser, from the east side even to the side of the sea, one portion for Nephthali.
4 And by the border of Nephthali, from the east side even to the side of the sea, one portion for Manasses.
5 And by the border of Manasses, from the east side even to the side of the sea, one portion for Ephraim.
6 And by the border of Ephraim, from the east side even to the side of the sea, one portion for Ruben.
7 And by the border of Ruben, from the east side even to the side of the sea, one portion for Juda.
8 And by the border of Juda, from the east side even to the side of the sea, shall be the firstfruits which you shall set apart, five and twenty thousand in breadth, and in length, as every one of the portions from the east side to the side of the sea: and the sanctuary shall be in the midst thereof.
9 The firstfruits which you shall set apart for the Lord: shall be the length of five and twenty thousand, and the breadth of ten thousand.
10 And these shall be the firstfruits of the sanctuary for the priests: toward the north five and twenty thousand in length, and toward the sea ten thousand in breadth, and toward the east also ten thousand in breadth, and toward the south five and twenty thousand in length: and the sanctuary of the Lord shall be in the midst thereof.
11 The sanctuary shall be for the priests of the sons of Sadoc, who kept my ceremonies, and went not astray when the children of Israel went astray, as the Levites also went astray.
12 And for them shall be the firstfruits of the firstfruits of the land holy of holies, by the border of the Levites.
13 And the Levites in like manner shall have by the borders of the priests five and twenty thousand in length, and ten thousand in breadth. All the length shall be five and twenty thousand, and the breadth ten thousand.
14 And they shall not sell thereof, nor exchange, neither shall the firstfruits of the land be alienated, because they are sanctified to the Lord.
15 But the five thousand that remain in the breadth over against the five and twenty thousand, shall be a profane place for the city for dwelling, and for suburbs: and the city shall be in the midst thereof.
16 And these are the measures thereof: on the north side four thousand and five hundred: and on the south side four thousand and five hundred: and on the east side four thousand and five hundred: and on the west side four thousand and five hundred.
17 And the suburbs of the city shall be to the north two hundred and fifty, and to the south two hundred and fifty, and to the east two hundred and fifty, and to the sea two hundred and fifty.
18 And the residue in length by the firstfruits of the sanctuary, ten thousand toward the east, and ten thousand toward the west, shall be as the firstfruits of the sanctuary: and the fruits thereof shall be for bread to them that serve the city.
19 And they that serve the city, shall serve it out of all the tribes of Israel.
20 All the firstfruits, of five and twenty thousand, by five and twenty thousand foursquare, shall be set apart for the firstfruits of the sanctuary, and for the possession of the city.
21 And the residue shall be for the prince on every side of the firstfruits of the sanctuary, and of the possession of the city over against the five and twenty thousand of the firstfruits unto the east border: toward the sea also over against the five and twenty thousand, unto the border of the sea, shall likewise be the portion of the prince: and the firstfruits of the sanctuary, and the sanctuary of the temple shall be in the midst thereof.
22 And from the possession of the Levites, and from the possession of the city which are in the midst of the prince's portions: what shall be to the border of Juda, and to the border of Benjamin, shall also belong to the prince.
23 And for the rest of the tribes: from the east side to the west side, one portion for Benjamin.
24 And over against the border of Benjamin, from the east side to the west side, one portion for Simeon.
25 And by the border of Simeon, from the east side to the west side, one portion for Issachar.
26 And by the border of Issachar, from the east side to the west side, one portion for Zabulon.
27 And by the border of Zabulon, from the east side to the side of the sea, one portion for Gad.
28 And by the border of Gad, the south side southward: and the border shall be from Thamar, even to the waters of contradiction of Cades, the inheritance over against the great sea.
29 This is the land which you shall divide by lot to the tribes of Israel: and these are the portions of them, saith the Lord God.
30 And these are the goings out of the city: on the north side thou shalt measure four thousand and five hundred.
31 And the gates of the city according to the names of the tribes of Israel, three gates on the north side, the gate of Ruben one, the gate of Juda one, the gate of Levi one.
32 And at the east side, four thousand and five hundred: and three gates, the gate of Joseph one, the gate of Benjamin one, the gate of Dan one.
33 And at the south side, thou shalt measure four thousand and five hundred: and three gates, the gate of Simeon one, the gate of Issachar one, the gate of Zabulon one.
34 And at the west side, four thousand and five hundred, and their three gates, the gate of Gad one, the gate of Aser one, the gate of Nephthali one.
35 Its circumference was eighteen thousand: and the name of the city from that day, The Lord is there.
Ezekiel 48
The Message
The Sanctuary of God at the Center
48 “These are the tribes:
“Dan: one portion, along the northern boundary, following the Hethlon road that turns off to the entrance of Hamath as far as Hazor-enon so that the territory of Damascus lies to the north alongside Hamath, the northern border stretching from east to west.
2 “Asher: one portion, bordering Dan from east to west.
3 “Naphtali: one portion, bordering Asher from east to west.
4 “Manasseh: one portion, bordering Naphtali from east to west.
5 “Ephraim: one portion, bordering Manasseh from east to west.
6 “Reuben: one portion, bordering Ephraim from east to west.
7 “Judah: one portion, bordering Reuben from east to west.
8-9 “Bordering Judah from east to west is the consecrated area that you will set aside as holy: a square approximately seven by seven miles, with the Sanctuary set at the center. The consecrated area reserved for God is to be seven miles long and a little less than three miles wide.
10-12 “This is how it will be parceled out. The priest will get the area measuring seven miles on the north and south boundaries, with a width of a little more than three miles at the east and west boundaries. The Sanctuary of God will be at the center. This is for the consecrated priests, the Zadokites who stayed true in their service to me and didn’t get off track as the Levites did when Israel wandered off the main road. This is their special gift, a gift from the land itself, most holy ground, bordering the section of the Levites.
13-14 “The Levites get a section equal in size to that of the priests, roughly seven by three miles. They are not permitted to sell or trade any of it. It’s the choice part of the land, to say nothing of being holy to God.
15-19 “What’s left of the ‘sacred square’—each side measures out at seven miles by a mile and a half—is for ordinary use: the city and its buildings with open country around it, but the city at the center. The north, south, east, and west sides of the city are each about a mile and a half in length. A strip of pasture, one hundred twenty-five yards wide, will border the city on all sides. The remainder of this portion, three miles of countryside to the east and to the west of the sacred precinct, is for farming. It will supply food for the city. Workers from all the tribes of Israel will serve as field hands to farm the land.
20 “This dedicated area, set apart for holy purposes, will be a square, seven miles by seven miles, a ‘holy square,’ which includes the part set aside for the city.
21-22 “The rest of this land, the country stretching east to the Jordan and west to the Mediterranean from the seven-mile sides of the ‘holy square,’ belongs to the prince. His land is sandwiched between the tribal portions north and south, and goes out both east and west from the ‘sacred square’ with its Temple at the center. The land set aside for the Levites on one side and the city on the other is in the middle of the territory assigned to the prince. The ‘sacred square’ is flanked east and west by the prince’s land and bordered on the north and south by the territories of Judah and Benjamin, respectively.
23 “And then the rest of the tribes:
“Benjamin: one portion, stretching from the eastern to the western boundary.
24 “Simeon: one portion, bordering Benjamin from east to west.
25 “Issachar: one portion, bordering Simeon from east to west.
26 “Zebulun: one portion, bordering Issachar from east to west.
27 “Gad: one portion, bordering Zebulun from east to west.
28 “The southern boundary of Gad will run south from Tamar to the waters of Meribah-kadesh, along the Brook of Egypt and then out to the Great Mediterranean Sea.
29 “This is the land that you are to divide up among the tribes of Israel as their inheritance. These are their portions.” Decree of God, the Master.
* * *
30-31 “These are the gates of the city. On the north side, which is 2,250 yards long (the gates of the city are named after the tribes of Israel), three gates: the gate of Reuben, the gate of Judah, the gate of Levi.
32 “On the east side, measuring 2,250 yards, three gates: the gate of Joseph, the gate of Benjamin, the gate of Dan.
33 “On the south side, measuring 2,250 yards, three gates: the gate of Simeon, the gate of Issachar, the gate of Zebulun.
34 “On the west side, measuring 2,250 yards, three gates: the gate of Gad, the gate of Asher, the gate of Naphtali.
35 “The four sides of the city measure to a total of nearly six miles.
“From now on the name of the city will be Yahweh-Shammah:
“God-Is-There.”
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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