The Manner of Worship

46 ‘Thus says the Lord God: “The gateway of the inner court that faces toward the east shall be shut the six (A)working days; but on the Sabbath it shall be opened, and on the day of the New Moon it shall be opened. (B)The prince shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway from the outside, and stand by the gatepost. The priests shall prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings. He shall worship at the threshold of the gate. Then he shall go out, but the gate shall not be shut until evening. Likewise the people of the land shall worship at the entrance to this gateway before the Lord on the Sabbaths and the New Moons. The burnt offering that (C)the prince offers to the Lord on the (D)Sabbath day shall be six lambs without blemish, and a ram without blemish; (E)and the grain offering shall be one ephah for a ram, and the grain offering for the lambs, [a]as much as he wants to give, as well as a hin of oil with every ephah. On the day of the New Moon it shall be a young bull without blemish, six lambs, and a ram; they shall be without blemish. He shall prepare a grain offering of an ephah for a bull, an ephah for a ram, [b]as much as he wants to give for the lambs, and a hin of oil with every ephah. (F)When the prince enters, he shall go in by way of the vestibule of the gateway, and go out the same way.

“But when the people of the land (G)come before the Lord on the appointed feast days, whoever enters by way of the north (H)gate to worship shall go out by way of the south gate; and whoever enters by way of the south gate shall go out by way of the north gate. He shall not return by way of the gate through which he came, but shall go out through the opposite gate. 10 The prince shall then be in their midst. When they go in, he shall go in; and when they go out, he shall go out. 11 At the festivals and the appointed feast days (I)the grain offering shall be an ephah for a bull, an ephah for a ram, as much as he wants to give for the lambs, and a hin of oil with every ephah.

12 “Now when the prince makes a voluntary burnt offering or voluntary peace offering to the Lord, the gate that faces toward the east (J)shall then be opened for him; and he shall prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings as he did on the Sabbath day. Then he shall go out, and after he goes out the gate shall be shut.

13 (K)“You shall daily make a burnt offering to the Lord of a lamb of the first year without blemish; you shall prepare it [c]every morning. 14 And you shall prepare a grain offering with it every morning, a sixth of an ephah, and a third of a hin of oil to moisten the fine flour. This grain offering is a perpetual ordinance, to be made regularly to the Lord. 15 Thus they shall prepare the lamb, the grain offering, and the oil, as a (L)regular burnt offering every morning.”

The Prince and Inheritance Laws

16 ‘Thus says the Lord God: “If the prince gives a gift of some of his inheritance to any of his sons, it shall belong to his sons; it is their possession by inheritance. 17 But if he gives a gift of some of his inheritance to one of his servants, it shall be his until (M)the year of liberty, after which it shall return to the prince. But his inheritance shall belong to his sons; it shall become theirs. 18 Moreover (N)the prince shall not take any of the people’s inheritance by evicting them from their property; he shall provide an inheritance for his sons from his own property, so that none of My people may be scattered from his property.” ’ ”

How the Offerings Were Prepared

19 Now he brought me through the entrance, which was at the side of the gate, into the holy (O)chambers of the priests which face toward the north; and there a place was situated at their extreme western end. 20 And he said to me, “This is the place where the priests shall (P)boil the trespass offering and the sin offering, and where they shall (Q)bake the grain offering, so that they do not bring them out into the outer court (R)to sanctify the people.”

21 Then he brought me out into the outer court and caused me to pass by the four corners of the court; and in fact, in every corner of the court there was another court. 22 In the four corners of the court were enclosed courts, forty cubits long and thirty wide; all four corners were the same size. 23 There was a row of building stones all around in them, all around the four of them; and [d]cooking hearths were made under the rows of stones all around. 24 And he said to me, “These are the [e]kitchens where the ministers of the [f]temple shall (S)boil the sacrifices of the people.”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 46:5 Lit. the gift of his hand
  2. Ezekiel 46:7 Lit. as much as his hand can reach
  3. Ezekiel 46:13 Lit. morning by morning
  4. Ezekiel 46:23 Lit. boiling places
  5. Ezekiel 46:24 Lit. house of those who boil
  6. Ezekiel 46:24 Lit. house

46 Thus saith Adonoi Hashem: The Sha’ar HeKhatzer HaPenimit that looketh toward the east shall be shut during the sheshet yemei hama’aseh (the six days of labor); but on Shabbos it shall be opened, and in the yom of the Rosh Chodesh it shall be opened.

And the Nasi shall enter by the derech ulam haSha’ar from without, and shall stand by the mezuzat HaSha’ar, and the Kohanim shall prepare his Olah (burnt offering) and his Shelamim, and he shall worship at the threshold of the Sha’ar; then he shall go out; but the Sha’ar shall not be shut until the erev.

Likewise the Am HaAretz shall worship at the Petach HaSha’ar before Hashem in the Shabbatot and in Rosh Chodesh.

And the Olah that the Nasi shall offer unto Hashem in the Yom HaShabbos shall be six kevasim temimim, and a ram without blemish.

And the minchah shall be an ephah for a ram, and the minchah for the kevasim whatever his hand gives, and a hin of shemen to an ephah.

And in the yom of the Rosh Chodesh it shall be a young bull temimim, and six kevasim, and a ram; they shall be without blemish.

And he shall prepare a minchah, an ephah for a bull, and an ephah for a ram, and for the kevasim as much as he wishes, and a hin of shemen to an ephah.

And when the Nasi shall enter, he shall go in by the derech ulam HaSha’ar and he shall go out by the derech thereof.

But when the Am HaAretz shall come before Hashem in the Mo’adim, he that entereth in by the derech Sha’ar Tzafon to worship shall exit by the derech Sha’ar Negev; and he that entereth by the derech Sha’ar Negev shall go out by derech Sha’ar Tzafonah; he shall not return by the derech HaSha’ar whereby he came in, but shall go out opposite it.

10 And the Nasi in the midst of them, when they go in, shall go in; and when they go out, shall go out.

11 And in the Chagim and in the Mo’adim the minchah shall be an ephah to a bull, and an ephah to a ram, and to the kevasim as much as one wishes to give, and a hin of shemen to an ephah.

12 Now when the Nasi shall prepare a nedavah olah or shelamim nedavah unto Hashem, one shall then open for him the Sha’ar that looketh toward the east, and he shall prepare his Olah and his Shelamim, as he did on the Yom HaShabbos; then he shall go out; and after his going out one shall shut the Sha’ar.

13 Thou shalt daily prepare an Olah unto Hashem of a keves of the first year tamim (without blemish); thou shalt prepare it baboker baboker.

14 And thou shalt prepare a Minchah for it baboker baboker, the sixth part of an ephah, and the third part of a hin of shemen, to moisten with the fine flour; a minchah chukkot olam tamid unto Hashem.

15 Thus shall they prepare the keves, and the minchah, and the shemen, baboker baboker for an olat tamid.

16 Thus saith Adonoi Hashem: If the Nasi give a mattanah (gift) unto any of his banim, the nachalah thereof shall belong to his banim; it shall be their achuzzah by nachalah.

17 But if he give a mattanah of his nachalah to one of his avadim, then it shall be his to the Shenat HaDeror [Jubilee Year]; then it shall return to the Nasi; but his nachalah shall belong only to his banim [see Isa 53:10].

18 Moreover the Nasi shall not take of the nachalah HaAm by oppression, to thrust them out of their achuzzah; but he shall give his banim nachalah out of his own achuzzah; that My people be not scattered each man from his achuzzah.

19 After he [the angelic being] brought me through the entrance, which was at the side of the Sha’ar, into the lishkhot hakodesh of the Kohanim, which looked toward the tzafonah; and, hinei, there was a place at its western sides.

20 Then said he [the angelic being] unto me, This is the place where the Kohanim shall cook the asham (trespass offering) and the chattat, where they shall bake the minchah; that they bear them not out into the Khatzer HaKhitzonah and so set apart as kodesh HaAm.

21 Then he [the angelic being] brought me forth into the Khatzer HaKhitzonah, and caused me to pass by the four corners of the Khatzer; and, hinei, in the Khatzer I saw in every corner of the Khatzer there was a Khatzer.

22 In the four corners of the Khatzer there were enclosed Khatzerot forty cubits long and thirty wide; these four corners were of one measure.

23 And there was a row of masonry saviv (around) inside them, round about these four, and it was made with hearths at the bottom of the rows round about.

24 Then said he [the angelic being] unto me, These are the Bais HaMevashelim, where the Mesharetim of the Bais shall cook the zevach HaAm.