Ezekiel 44:1-45:12

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)

The Sacred Portion of the Land

45 “When you divide the land by lot as an inheritance,^(AS) set aside a donation to the Lord, a holy portion of the land,^(AT) 8⅓ miles^[d] long and 6⅔ miles^[e] wide. This entire region will be holy. ² In this area there will be a square section^[f] for the sanctuary, 875 by 875 feet,^[g](AU) with 87½ feet^[h] of open space all around it. ³ From this holy portion,^[i] you will measure off an area 8⅓ miles long and 3⅓ miles^[j] wide, in which the sanctuary, the most holy place,^(AV) will stand.^{[k] 4} It will be a holy area of the land to be used by the priests who minister in the sanctuary, who approach to serve the Lord.^(AW) It will be a place for their houses, as well as a holy area for the sanctuary. ⁵ There will be another area 8⅓ miles long and 3⅓ miles wide for the Levites who minister in the temple;^(AX) it will be their possession for towns to live in.^[l]

⁶ “As the property of the city, set aside an area 1⅔ miles^[m] wide and 8⅓ miles long, adjacent to the holy donation of land.^(AY) It will be for the whole house of Israel. ⁷ And the prince will have the area on each side of the holy donation of land and the city’s property, adjacent to the holy donation and the city’s property, stretching to the west on the west side and to the east on the east side.^(AZ) Its length will correspond to one of the tribal portions from the western boundary to the eastern boundary. ⁸ This will be his land as a possession in Israel. My princes will no longer oppress my people^(BA) but give the rest of the land to the house of Israel according to their tribes.

⁹ “This is what the Lord God says: You have gone too far,^[n](BB) princes of Israel! Put away violence and oppression and do what is just and right.^(BC) Put an end to your evictions of my people.” This is the declaration of the Lord God. ¹⁰ “You are to have honest scales, an honest dry measure,^[o] and an honest liquid measure.^{[p](BD) 11} The dry measure^[q] and the liquid measure^[r] will be uniform, with the liquid measure containing 5½ gallons^[s] and the dry measure holding half a bushel.^[t] Their measurement will be a tenth of the standard larger capacity measure.^{[u] 12} The shekel^[v] will weigh twenty gerahs.^(BE) Your mina will equal sixty shekels.