The Vision of the New Temple

40 In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city was struck down, on that very day, the hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me there.^{(A) 2} He brought me, in visions of God, to the land of Israel and set me down upon a very high mountain on which was a structure like a city to the south.^{(B) 3} When he brought me there, a man was there whose appearance shone like bronze, with a linen cord and a measuring reed in his hand, and he was standing in the gateway.^{(C) 4} The man said to me, “Mortal, look closely and listen attentively, and set your mind on all that I shall show you, for you were brought here in order that I might show it to you; declare all that you see to the house of Israel.”^(D)

⁵ Now there was a wall all around the outside of the temple area. The length of the measuring reed in the man’s hand was six long cubits, each being a cubit and a handbreadth in length, so he measured the thickness of the wall, one reed, and the height, one reed. ⁶ Then he went into the gateway facing east, going up its steps, and measured the threshold of the gate, one reed deep.^[a] There were^{(E) 7} recesses, and each recess was one reed wide and one reed deep, and the space between the recesses, five cubits, and the threshold of the gate by the vestibule of the gate at the inner end was one reed deep.^{(F) 8} Then he measured the inner vestibule of the gateway, one reed. ⁹ Then he measured the vestibule of the gateway, eight cubits, and its posts, two cubits, and the vestibule of the gate was at the inner end. ¹⁰ There were three recesses on either side of the east gate; the three were of the same size, and the posts on either side were of the same size.^{(G) 11} Then he measured the width of the opening of the gateway, ten cubits, and the width of the gateway, thirteen cubits. ¹² There was a barrier before the recesses, one cubit on either side, and each recess was six cubits square. ¹³ Then he measured the gate from the back^[b] of the one recess to the back^[c] of the other, a width of twenty-five cubits from wall to wall.^{[d] 14} He measured^[e] the vestibule (sixty cubits) and the gate next to the post on every side of the court.^{[f](H) 15} From the front of the gate at the entrance to the end of the inner vestibule of the gate was fifty cubits. ¹⁶ The recesses and their posts had windows, with shutters^[g] on the inside of the gateway all around, and the vestibules also had windows on the inside all around, and on the posts were palm trees.^(I)

¹⁷ Then he brought me into the outer court; there were chambers there and a pavement all around the court; thirty chambers fronted on the pavement.^{(J) 18} The pavement ran along the side of the gates, corresponding to the length of the gates; this was the lower pavement. ¹⁹ Then he measured the distance from the inner front of^[h] the lower gate to the outer front of the inner court, one hundred cubits.^[i](K)

²⁰ Then he measured the gate of the outer court that faced north—its depth and width. ²¹ Its recesses, three on either side, and its posts and its vestibule were of the same size as those of the first gate; its depth was fifty cubits and its width twenty-five cubits.^{(L) 22} Its windows, its vestibule, and its palm trees were of the same size as those of the gate that faced toward the east. Seven steps led up to it, and its vestibule was on the inside.^{[j](M) 23} Opposite the gate on the north, as on the east, was a gate to the inner court; he measured from gate to gate, one hundred cubits.^(N)

²⁴ Then he led me toward the south, and there was a gate on the south, and he measured its posts and its vestibule; they had the same dimensions as the others.^{(O) 25} There were windows all around in it and in its vestibule, like the windows of the others; its depth was fifty cubits and its width twenty-five cubits.^{(P) 26} There were seven steps leading up to it; its vestibule was on the inside.^[k] It had palm trees on its posts, one on either side.^{(Q) 27} There was a gate on the south of the inner court, and he measured from gate to gate toward the south, one hundred cubits.^(R)

²⁸ Then he brought me to the inner court by the south gate, and he measured the south gate; it was of the same dimensions as the others.^{(S) 29} Its recesses, its posts, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others, and there were windows all around in it and in its vestibule; its depth was fifty cubits and its width twenty-five cubits.^{(T) 30} There were vestibules all around the inner court,^[l] twenty-five cubits deep and five cubits wide.^{(U) 31} Its vestibule faced the outer court, and palm trees were on its posts, and its stairway had eight steps.^(V)

³² Then he brought me to the inner court on the east side, and he measured the gate; it was of the same size as the others.^{(W) 33} Its recesses, its posts, and its vestibule were of the same dimensions as the others, and there were windows all around in it and in its vestibule; its depth was fifty cubits and its width twenty-five cubits.^{(X) 34} Its vestibule faced the outer court, and it had palm trees on its posts, on either side, and its stairway had eight steps.^(Y)

³⁵ Then he brought me to the north gate, and he measured it; it had the same dimensions as the others.^{(Z) 36} Its recesses, its posts, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others,^[m] and it had windows all around. Its depth was fifty cubits and its width twenty-five cubits.^{(AA) 37} Its vestibule^[n] faced the outer court, and it had palm trees on its posts, on either side, and its stairway had eight steps.^(AB)

³⁸ There was a chamber with its door in the vestibule of the gate^[o] where the burnt offering was to be washed.^{(AC) 39} And in the vestibule of the gate were two tables on either side on which the burnt offering and the purification offering and the guilt offering were to be slaughtered.^{(AD) 40} On the outside of the vestibule, where one goes up to the entrance of the north gate, were two tables, and on the other side of the vestibule of the gate were two tables. ⁴¹ Four tables were on one side and four tables on the other side of the gate, eight tables, on which the sacrifices were to be slaughtered. ⁴² There were also four tables of hewn stone for the burnt offering, a cubit and a half long, and one cubit and a half wide, and one cubit high, on which the instruments were to be laid with which the burnt offerings and the sacrifices were slaughtered.^{(AE) 43} There were pegs one handbreadth long fastened all around the inside. And on the tables the flesh of the offering was to be laid.

⁴⁴ On the outside of the inner gateway there were two chambers^[p] in the inner court, one^[q] at the side of the north gate facing south, the other at the side of the south^[r] gate facing north.^{(AF) 45} He said to me, “This chamber that faces south is for the priests who have charge of the temple,^{(AG) 46} and the chamber that faces north is for the priests who have charge of the altar; these are the descendants of Zadok, who alone among the descendants of Levi may come near to the Lord to minister to him.”^{(AH) 47} He measured the court, one hundred cubits deep and one hundred cubits wide, a square, and the altar was in front of the temple.^(AI)

The Temple

⁴⁸ Then he brought me to the vestibule of the temple and measured the posts of the vestibule, five cubits deep on either side, and the width of the gate between the posts^[s] was fourteen cubits, and the shoulders of the gate were three cubits wide on either side.^{[t] 49} The width of the vestibule was twenty cubits and the depth twelve^[u] cubits; ten steps led up^[v] to it, and there were pillars beside the posts on either side.^(AJ)

3 Therefore when we could bear it no longer, we decided to be left alone in Athens^{(A) 2} and sent Timothy, our brother and God’s coworker^[a] in the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you for the sake of your faith,^{(B) 3} so that no one would be shaken by these persecutions. Indeed, you yourselves know that this is what we are destined for.^{(C) 4} In fact, when we were with you, we told you beforehand that we were to suffer persecution; so it turned out, as you know. ⁵ For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith; I was afraid that somehow the tempter had tempted you and that our labor had been in vain.^(D)

Timothy’s Encouraging Report

⁶ But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought us the good news of your faith and love. He has told us also that you always remember us kindly and long to see us, just as we long to see you.^{(E) 7} For this reason, brothers and sisters, during all our distress and persecution we have been encouraged about you through your faith. ⁸ For we now live, if you continue to stand firm in the Lord. ⁹ How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy that we feel before our God because of you? ¹⁰ Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you face to face and restore whatever is lacking in your faith.^(F)

¹¹ Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you. ¹² And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we abound in love for you.^{(G) 13} And may he so strengthen your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.^[b](H)

A Life Pleasing to God

4 Finally, brothers and sisters, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus that, as you learned from us how you ought to live and to please God (as, in fact, you are doing), you should do so more and more.^{(I) 2} For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. ³ For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality;^{(J) 4} that each one of you know how to control your own body^[c] in holiness and honor, ⁵ not with lustful passion, like the gentiles who do not know God; ⁶ that no one wrong or exploit a brother or sister in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, just as we have already told you beforehand and solemnly warned you.^{(K) 7} For God did not call us to impurity but in holiness. ⁸ Therefore whoever rejects this rejects not human authority but God, who also gives his Holy Spirit to you.

⁹ Now concerning love of the brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anyone write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another,^{(L) 10} and indeed you do love all the brothers and sisters throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more, ¹¹ to aspire to live quietly, to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we directed you,^{(M) 12} so that you may behave properly toward outsiders and be dependent on no one.^(N)

The Coming of the Lord

¹³ But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died,^[d] so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. ¹⁴ For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died.^{[e](O) 15} For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have died.^{[f] 16} For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call and with the sound of God’s trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first.^{(P) 17} Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will be with the Lord forever.^{(Q) 18} Therefore encourage one another with these words.