Ezekiel 44
Christian Standard Bible
The Prince’s Privilege
44 The man then brought me back toward the sanctuary’s outer gate that faced east, and it was closed. 2 The 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.(A) Therefore it will remain closed. 3 The prince himself will sit in the gate to eat a meal before the Lord.(B) He is to enter by way of the portico(C) of the gate and go out the same way.”
4 Then 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.(D) And I fell facedown.(E) 5 The Lord said to me, “Son of man, pay attention;(F) look with your eyes and listen with your ears to everything I tell you about all the statutes and laws of the Lord’s temple.(G) Take 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,(H) the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord God says: I have had enough(I) of all your detestable practices, house of Israel. 7 When you brought in foreigners,(J) uncircumcised in both heart and flesh,(K) to occupy my sanctuary, you defiled my temple while you offered my food—the fat and the blood. You[a] broke my covenant by all your detestable practices. 8 You have not kept charge of my holy things(L) but 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. 10 Surely the Levites who wandered away from me when Israel went astray, and who strayed from me after their idols,(M) will bear the consequences of their iniquity.(N) 11 Yet they will occupy my sanctuary, serving as guards at the temple gates(O) and ministering at the temple. They will slaughter the burnt offerings(P) and other sacrifices for the people and will stand before them to serve them.(Q) 12 Because they ministered to the house of Israel before their idols and became a sinful stumbling block to them, therefore I swore an oath[b] against them”(R)—this is the declaration of the Lord God—“that they would bear the consequences of their iniquity. 13 They must not approach me to serve me as priests(S) or 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. 14 Yet I will make them responsible for the duties of the temple(T)—for all its work and everything done in it.
The Priests’ Duties and Privileges
15 “But the Levitical priests descended from Zadok,(U) who 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(V) and approach my table to serve me.(W) They will keep my mandate. 17 When they enter the gates of the inner court they are to wear linen garments;(X) they must not have on them anything made of wool when they minister at the gates of the inner court and within it. 18 They are to wear linen turbans on their heads and linen undergarments around their waists.(Y) They are not to put on anything that makes them sweat. 19 Before they go out to the outer court,[c] to the people, they must take off the clothes they have been ministering in, leave them in the holy chambers, and dress in other clothes(Z) so that they do not transmit holiness to the people through their clothes.(AA)
20 “They may not shave their heads(AB) or let their hair grow long,(AC) but are to carefully trim their hair. 21 No priest may drink wine before he enters the inner court.(AD) 22 He is not to marry a widow or a divorced woman, but may marry only a virgin from the offspring of the house of Israel,(AE) or a widow who is the widow of a priest. 23 They are to teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and explain to them the difference between the clean and the unclean.(AF)
24 “In a dispute, they will officiate as judges and decide the case according to my ordinances.(AG) They are to observe my laws and statutes regarding all my appointed festivals, and keep my Sabbaths holy.(AH) 25 A priest may not come near a dead person so that he becomes defiled.(AI) However, he may defile himself for a father, a mother, a son, a daughter, a brother, or an unmarried sister. 26 After he is cleansed, he is to count off seven days for himself.(AJ) 27 On the day he goes into the sanctuary, into the inner court(AK) to minister in the sanctuary, he is to present his sin offering.” This is the declaration of the Lord God.
28 “This will be their inheritance: I am their inheritance.(AL) You are to give them no possession in Israel: I am their possession. 29 They will eat the grain offering, the sin offering,(AM) and the guilt offering. Everything in Israel that is permanently dedicated to the Lord will belong to them.(AN) 30 The best of all the firstfruits of every kind and contribution of every kind from all your gifts will belong to the priests.(AO) You are to give your first batch of dough to the priest(AP) so that a blessing may rest on your homes.(AQ) 31 The priests may not eat any bird or animal that died naturally or was mauled by wild beasts.(AR)
Ezekiel 44
New King James Version
The East Gate and the Prince
44 Then He brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary (A)which 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, (B)because the Lord God of Israel has entered by it; therefore it shall be shut. 3 As for the (C)prince, because he is the prince, he may sit in it to (D)eat 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 [a]temple; so I looked, and (E)behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord; (F)and I fell on my face. 5 And the Lord said to me, (G)“Son of man, [b]mark well, see with your eyes and hear with your ears, all that I say to you concerning all the (H)ordinances 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 (I)rebellious, to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “O house of Israel, (J)let Us have no more of all your abominations. 7 (K)When you brought in (L)foreigners, (M)uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in My sanctuary to defile it—My house—and when you offered (N)My food, (O)the fat and the blood, then they broke My covenant because of all your abominations. 8 And you have not (P)kept 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, (S)as gatekeepers of the house and ministers of the house; (T)they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and (U)they shall stand before them to minister to them. 12 Because they ministered to them before their idols and (V)caused[c] the house of Israel to fall into iniquity, therefore I have (W)raised My hand in an oath against them,” says the Lord God, “that they shall bear their iniquity. 13 (X)And they shall not come near Me to minister to Me as priest, nor come near any of My holy things, nor into the Most Holy Place; but they shall (Y)bear their shame and their abominations which they have committed. 14 Nevertheless I will make them (Z)keep charge of the temple, for all its work, and for all that has to be done in it.
15 (AA)“But the priests, the Levites, (AB)the sons of Zadok, who kept charge of My sanctuary (AC)when the children of Israel went astray from Me, they shall come near Me to minister to Me; and they (AD)shall stand before Me to offer to Me the (AE)fat and the blood,” says the Lord God. 16 “They shall (AF)enter My sanctuary, and they shall come near (AG)My table to minister to Me, and they shall keep My charge. 17 And it shall be, whenever they enter the gates of the inner court, that (AH)they shall put on linen garments; no wool shall come upon them while they minister within the gates of the inner court or within the house. 18 (AI)They shall have linen turbans on their heads and linen trousers on their bodies; they shall not clothe themselves with anything that causes sweat. 19 When they go out to the outer court, to the outer court to the people, (AJ)they shall take off their garments in which they have ministered, leave them in the holy chambers, and put on other garments; and in their holy garments they shall (AK)not sanctify the people.
20 (AL)“They shall neither shave their heads nor let their hair grow (AM)long, but they shall keep their hair well trimmed. 21 (AN)No priest shall drink wine when he enters the inner court. 22 They shall not take as wife a (AO)widow or a divorced woman, but take virgins of the descendants of the house of Israel, or widows of priests.
23 “And (AP)they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and the unholy, and cause them to (AQ)discern between the unclean and the clean. 24 (AR)In controversy they shall stand as judges, and judge it according to My judgments. They shall keep My laws and My statutes in all My appointed meetings, (AS)and they shall hallow My Sabbaths.
25 “They shall not defile themselves by coming near a dead person. Only for father or mother, for son or daughter, for brother or unmarried sister may they defile themselves. 26 (AT)After he is cleansed, they shall count seven days for him. 27 And on the day that he goes to the sanctuary to minister in the sanctuary, (AU)he must offer his sin offering (AV)in the inner court,” says the Lord God.
28 “It shall be, in regard to their inheritance, that I (AW)am their inheritance. You shall give them no (AX)possession in Israel, for I am their possession. 29 (AY)They shall eat the grain offering, the sin offering, and the trespass offering; (AZ)every dedicated thing in Israel shall be theirs. 30 The (BA)best[d] of all firstfruits of any kind, and every sacrifice of any kind from all your sacrifices, shall be the priest’s; also you (BB)shall give to the priest the first of your ground meal, (BC)to cause a blessing to rest on your house. 31 The priests shall not eat anything, bird or beast, that (BD)died naturally or was torn by wild beasts.
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 44:4 Lit. house
- Ezekiel 44:5 Lit. set your heart
- Ezekiel 44:12 Lit. became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel
- Ezekiel 44:30 Lit. first
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
