The East Gate to the Outer Court

I saw a wall completely surrounding the temple area. The length of the measuring rod in the man’s hand was six long cubits,[a] each of which was a cubit and a handbreadth. He measured(A) the wall; it was one measuring rod thick and one rod high.

Then he went to the east gate.(B) He climbed its steps and measured the threshold of the gate; it was one rod deep. The alcoves(C) for the guards were one rod long and one rod wide, and the projecting walls between the alcoves were five cubits[b] thick. And the threshold of the gate next to the portico facing the temple was one rod deep.

Then he measured the portico of the gateway; it[c] was eight cubits[d] deep and its jambs were two cubits[e] thick. The portico of the gateway faced the temple.

10 Inside the east gate were three alcoves on each side; the three had the same measurements, and the faces of the projecting walls on each side had the same measurements. 11 Then he measured the width of the entrance of the gateway; it was ten cubits and its length was thirteen cubits.[f] 12 In front of each alcove was a wall one cubit high, and the alcoves were six cubits square. 13 Then he measured the gateway from the top of the rear wall of one alcove to the top of the opposite one; the distance was twenty-five cubits[g] from one parapet opening to the opposite one. 14 He measured along the faces of the projecting walls all around the inside of the gateway—sixty cubits.[h] The measurement was up to the portico[i] facing the courtyard.[j](D) 15 The distance from the entrance of the gateway to the far end of its portico was fifty cubits.[k] 16 The alcoves and the projecting walls inside the gateway were surmounted by narrow parapet openings all around, as was the portico; the openings all around faced inward. The faces of the projecting walls were decorated with palm trees.(E)

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 40:5 That is, about 11 feet or about 3.2 meters; also in verse 12. The long cubit of about 21 inches or about 53 centimeters is the basic unit of measurement of length throughout chapters 40–48.
  2. Ezekiel 40:7 That is, about 8 3/4 feet or about 2.7 meters; also in verse 48
  3. Ezekiel 40:9 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts gateway facing the temple; it was one rod deep. Then he measured the portico of the gateway; it
  4. Ezekiel 40:9 That is, about 14 feet or about 4.2 meters
  5. Ezekiel 40:9 That is, about 3 1/2 feet or about 1 meter
  6. Ezekiel 40:11 That is, about 18 feet wide and 23 feet long or about 5.3 meters wide and 6.9 meters long
  7. Ezekiel 40:13 That is, about 44 feet or about 13 meters; also in verses 21, 25, 29, 30, 33 and 36
  8. Ezekiel 40:14 That is, about 105 feet or about 32 meters
  9. Ezekiel 40:14 Septuagint; Hebrew projecting wall
  10. Ezekiel 40:14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this verse is uncertain.
  11. Ezekiel 40:15 That is, about 88 feet or about 27 meters; also in verses 21, 25, 29, 33 and 36

Measurements Relating to the Temple

And behold, there was a (A)wall on the outside of the [a]temple all around, and in the man’s hand was a measuring rod of six [b]cubits, [c]each of which was a [d]cubit and a hand width. So he measured the thickness of the [e]wall, one rod; and the height, one rod. Then he went to the gate which faced (B)east, went up its steps, and measured the threshold of the gate, one rod [f]in width; and the other threshold was one rod [g]in width. The (C)guardroom was one rod long and one rod wide; and there were five cubits between the guardrooms. And the threshold of the gate by the porch of the gate [h]facing inward was one rod. Then he measured the porch of the gate [i]facing inward, one rod. And he measured the porch of the gate, eight cubits; and its side pillars, two cubits. And the porch of the gate was [j]faced inward. 10 The guardrooms of the gate toward the east numbered three on each side; the three of them had the same measurement. The side pillars also had the same measurement on each side. 11 And he measured the width of the [k]gateway, ten cubits, and the length of the gate, thirteen cubits. 12 There was a [l]barrier wall one cubit wide in front of the guardrooms on each side; and the guardrooms were six cubits square on each side. 13 And he measured the gate from the roof of the one guardroom to the roof of the other, a width of twenty-five cubits, from one door to the door opposite. 14 He made the side pillars sixty cubits high; the gate extended all around to the side pillar of the (D)courtyard. 15 And from the front of the entrance gate to the front of the inner porch of the gate was fifty cubits. 16 And there were [m](E)shuttered windows looking toward the guardrooms, and toward their side pillars within the gate all around, and likewise for the porches. And there were windows all around inside; and on each side pillar were (F)palm tree decorations.

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 40:5 Lit house
  2. Ezekiel 40:5 I.e., “long” cubits, see note 4
  3. Ezekiel 40:5 Lit by the cubit and
  4. Ezekiel 40:5 A cubit and hand width equals about 21 in. or 53 cm
  5. Ezekiel 40:5 Lit building
  6. Ezekiel 40:6 Or in depth
  7. Ezekiel 40:6 Or in depth
  8. Ezekiel 40:7 Lit from the house
  9. Ezekiel 40:8 Lit from the house
  10. Ezekiel 40:9 Lit from the house
  11. Ezekiel 40:11 Lit entrance of the gate
  12. Ezekiel 40:12 Lit border
  13. Ezekiel 40:16 Or beveled inwards