Old/New Testament

The Priests’ Rooms

42 Then the man led me north out into the outer courtyard. He led me to the rooms across from the Temple courtyard. The outer wall was north of these rooms. ² The building on the north side was 175 feet long and 87½ feet wide. ³ There was 35 feet of the Temple courtyard between this building and the Temple. On the other side, this building faced the stone pavement of the outer courtyard. The building had rooms and balconies on three stories. ⁴ There was a hallway on the north side of the rooms. It was 17½ feet wide and 175 feet long. Doors led into the rooms from this hallway. ⁵ The top rooms were narrower. This was because the balconies took more space from them. The rooms on the first and second stories of the building were wider. ⁶ The rooms were on three stories. They did not have pillars like the pillars of the courtyards. So the top rooms were farther back than those on the first and second stories. ⁷ There was a wall outside parallel to the rooms and to the outer courtyard. It ran in front of the rooms for 87½ feet. ⁸ The row of rooms along the outer courtyard was 87½ feet long. The rooms that faced the Temple were about 175 feet long. ⁹ The lower rooms had an entrance on the east end of the building. This was so a person could enter them from the courtyard.

¹⁰ There were rooms on the south side, parallel to the wall of the outer courtyard. They faced the Temple courtyard. ¹¹ These rooms had a hallway in front of them. They were like the rooms on the north. They had the same length and width. And the doors were the same. ¹² The doors of the south rooms were like the doors of the north rooms. There was a door at the east end of a hall. This hall went to all the rooms.

¹³ The man said to me, “The north and south rooms across from the Temple courtyard are holy rooms. There the priests who go near the Lord will eat the most holy offerings. There they will put the most holy offerings: the grain offerings, sin offerings and the penalty offerings. ¹⁴ The priests who enter the Holy Place must leave their serving clothes there. Then they may go into the outer courtyard. This is because these clothes are holy. The priests must put on other clothes. Then they may go to the part of the Temple which is for the people.”

The Outside of the Temple

¹⁵ The man finished measuring inside the Temple. Then he brought me out through the east gate. He measured the area all around. ¹⁶ The man measured the east side with the measuring stick. It was 875 feet by the measuring stick. ¹⁷ He measured the north side. It was 875 feet by the measuring stick. ¹⁸ He measured the south side. It was 875 feet by the measuring stick. ¹⁹ He went around to the west side. And it measured 875 feet by the measuring stick. ²⁰ So he measured the Temple on all four sides. The Temple had a wall all around it. It was 875 feet long and 875 feet wide. It separated the holy from that which is not holy.

The Lord Among His People

43 The man led me to the outer east gate. ² And I saw the greatness of the God of Israel coming from the east. God’s voice was like the roar of rushing water. His greatness made the earth shine. ³ I saw a vision. It was like the vision I had seen when the Lord came to destroy the city. It was also like the vision I had seen by the Kebar River. I bowed facedown on the ground. ⁴ The greatness of the Lord came into the Temple through the east gate.

⁵ Then the Spirit picked me up. And he brought me into the inner courtyard. There the Lord’s greatness filled the Temple. ⁶ The man stood at my side. I heard someone speaking to me from inside the Temple. ⁷ The voice from the Temple said to me, “Human being, this is my throne. And this is the place my feet rest. I will live here among the Israelites forever. The people of Israel will not make my holy name unclean again. Neither the people nor their kings will make it unclean by their sexual sins. Nor will they make it unclean with the dead bodies of their kings. ⁸ They made my name unclean by putting their doorway next to my doorway. And they put their doorpost next to my doorpost. Only a wall separated me from them. When they did their acts that I hate, they made my holy name unclean. So I destroyed them in my anger. ⁹ Now let them stop their sexual sins. And let them take the dead bodies of their kings far away from me. Then I will live among them forever.

¹⁰ “Human being, tell the people of Israel about the Temple. Then they will be ashamed of their sins. Let them think about the plan of the Temple. ¹¹ Then they will be ashamed of all they have done. Let them know the design of the Temple. Let them know how it is built. Show them its exits and entrances. Show them all its designs, all its rules and all its teachings. And write the rules as they watch. Do this so they can obey all the Temple’s teachings and rules. ¹² This is the teaching of the Temple: All the area around the top of the mountain is most holy. This is the teaching of the Temple.

The Altar

¹³ “And these are the measurements of the altar, using the measuring stick. It is 21 inches long. The altar’s base is 21 inches high and 21 inches long. Its rim is about 9 inches around its edge. And the altar is this tall: ¹⁴ From the ground up to the lower ledge, it measures 3½ feet. It is 21 inches wide. It measures 7 feet from the smaller ledge to the larger ledge and is 21 inches wide. ¹⁵ The place where the sacrifice is burned on the altar is 7 feet high. The four corners are shaped like horns and reach up above it. ¹⁶ It is square. It is 21 feet long and 21 feet wide. ¹⁷ The upper ledge is also square, 24½ feet long and 24½ feet wide. The border around it is 10½ inches wide. Its base is 21 inches around. Its steps are on the east.”

¹⁸ Then the man said to me, “Human being, this is what the Lord God says: These are the rules for the altar. When it is built, use these rules to offer burnt offerings and sprinkle blood on it. ¹⁹ You must give a young bull as a sin offering to the priests. These priests are the Levites from the family of Zadok. They come near me to serve me, says the Lord God. ²⁰ Take some of the bull’s blood and put it on the altar’s four corners. Put it also on the four corners of the ledge. And put it on the border all around. This is how you will make the altar pure and ready for God’s service. ²¹ Then take the bull for the sin offering and burn it in the proper place in the Temple area. It will be outside the Holy Place.

²² “On the second day offer a male goat. It must have nothing wrong with it. It will be for a sin offering. The priests will make the altar pure and ready for God’s service. They will do it the same way they did with the young bull. ²³ When you finish making the altar pure and ready, offer a young bull and a male sheep from the flock. They must also have nothing wrong with them. ²⁴ You must offer them before the Lord. The priests will throw salt on them. Then they will offer them as a burnt offering to the Lord.

²⁵ “You must prepare a goat every day for seven days as a sin offering. Also, you must prepare a young bull and male sheep from the flock. They must have nothing wrong with them. ²⁶ For seven days the priests will make the altar pure and ready for God’s service. Then the priests will give the altar to God. ²⁷ After these seven days, on the eighth day, the priests must present your offerings. They must offer your burnt offerings and your fellowship offerings on the altar. Then I will accept you, says the Lord God.”

The Outer East Gate

44 Then the man brought me back to the outer east gate of the Temple area. The gate was shut. ² The Lord said to me, “This gate will stay shut. It will not be opened. No one may enter through it. This is because the Lord God of Israel has entered through it. So it must stay shut. ³ Only the ruler himself may sit in the gateway to eat bread before the Lord. He must enter through the porch of the gateway and go out the same way.”

⁴ Then the man brought me through the outer north gate. He brought me to the front of the Temple. I looked and saw the greatness of the Lord. It was filling the Temple of the Lord. I bowed facedown on the ground.

⁵ The Lord said to me, “Human being, pay attention. See this with your eyes. And hear this with your ears. See and hear everything I tell you about all the rules and teachings of the Temple of the Lord. Pay attention to the entrance to the Temple and to all the exits from the Temple area. ⁶ Then speak to those who refuse to obey. Say to the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord God says: Stop doing all your acts that I hate, Israel! ⁷ You brought foreigners into my Holy Place. They were not circumcised in the flesh. They had not given themselves to serving me. You dishonored my Temple when you offered me food, fat and blood. You broke my agreement by all your ways that I hate. ⁸ And you have not taken care of my holy things. You put foreigners in charge of my Temple. ⁹ This is what the Lord God says: Foreigners who are not circumcised in flesh and who do not give themselves to serving me may not enter my Temple. Even a foreigner living among the people of Israel may not enter.

¹⁰ “‘Some Levites stopped obeying me when Israel left me and followed their idols. These Levites must be punished for their sin. ¹¹ These Levites are to be servants in my Holy Place. They may guard the gates of the Temple. They may serve in the Temple. They may kill the animals for the burnt offering and the sacrifices for the people. They may stand before the people to serve them. ¹² But these Levites helped the people worship their idols and caused the people of Israel to fall. So I have made this promise: They will be punished for their sin, says the Lord God. ¹³ They will not come near me to serve as priests. They will not come near any of my holy things or the most holy offerings. But they will be ashamed of the things they did that I hate. ¹⁴ But I will make them take care of the Temple. They will take care of everything that must be done in it.

¹⁵ “‘But this is not true for priests who are Levites and descendants of Zadok. They took care of my Holy Place when Israel left me. They may come near to serve me. They may stand in my presence. They will offer me the fat and blood of the animals they sacrifice, says the Lord God. ¹⁶ They are the only ones who may enter my Holy Place. They may come near my table to serve me. They may take care of the things I gave them.

¹⁷ “‘When they enter the gates of the inner courtyard, they must wear linen robes. They must not wear wool to serve at the gates of the inner courtyard or in the Temple. ¹⁸ They will wear linen turbans on their heads and linen underclothes. They will not wear anything that makes them perspire. ¹⁹ At times they will go out into the outer courtyard to the people. But before they go, they must take off their serving clothes. They must put these clothes away in the holy rooms. And they must put on other clothes. Then they will not let their holy clothes hurt the people.

²⁰ “‘They must not shave their heads or let their hair grow long. They must keep the hair of their heads trimmed. ²¹ None of the priests may drink wine when they enter the inner courtyard. ²² The priests must not marry a widow or a divorced woman. They may marry only virgins from the people of Israel. Or they may marry a widow of a priest. ²³ They must teach my people the difference between what is holy and what is not holy. They must help my people know what is unclean and what is clean.

²⁴ “‘In court they will act as judges. When they judge, they will follow my teachings. They must obey my laws and my rules at all my special feasts. They must keep my Sabbaths holy.

²⁵ “‘They must not go near a dead person, making themselves unclean. But they are allowed to make themselves unclean if the dead person is a relative. It might be his father, mother, son, daughter, brother or a sister who has not married. ²⁶ After the priest has been made clean again, he must wait seven days. ²⁷ Then he may go into the inner courtyard to serve in the Temple. But he must offer a sin offering for himself, says the Lord God.

²⁸ “‘These are the rules about the priests and their property: They will have me instead of property. You will not give them any land to own in Israel. I am what they will own. ²⁹ They will eat the grain offerings, sin offerings and penalty offerings. Everything Israel offers will be theirs. ³⁰ And the best fruits of all the first harvests will be for the priests. And they will have all the special gifts offered to me. You will also give to the priests the first part of your grain that you grind. This will cause a blessing to come on your house. ³¹ The priests must not eat any bird or animal that died a natural death. And they must not eat one that has been torn by wild animals.

God Forgives Our Sins

We write to you about the Word^[a] that gives life. ² He who gives life was shown to us. We saw him, and we can give proof about it. And now we tell you that he has life that continues forever. The one who gives this life was with God the Father. God showed him to us. ³ Now we tell you what we have seen and heard because we want you to have fellowship with us. The fellowship we share together is with God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. ⁴ We write this to you so that we may be full of joy.^[b]

⁵ Here is the message we have heard from God and now tell to you: God is light,^[c] and in him there is no darkness at all. ⁶ So if we say that we have fellowship with God, but we continue living in darkness, then we are liars. We do not follow the truth. ⁷ God is in the light. We should live in the light, too. If we live in the light, we share fellowship with each other. And when we live in the light, the blood of the death of Jesus, God’s Son, is making us clean from every sin.

⁸ If we say that we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹ But if we confess our sins, he will forgive our sins. We can trust God. He does what is right. He will make us clean from all the wrongs we have done. ¹⁰ If we say that we have not sinned, then we make God a liar. We do not accept God’s true teaching.