Old/New Testament
The Vision of Jerusalem
40 At the beginning of year 25 of our captivity, on the tenth day of the fourteenth year after the destruction of Jerusalem[a]—on that very day—the Lord grabbed me in his hand and took me there. 2 God brought me in a series of visions to the land of Israel and placed me on top of a very high mountain, where to the south there was something that looked like the outline of a city. 3 That’s where he took me. All of a sudden, there was a man whose appearance resembled glowing[b] bronze! He had a measuring reed and line in his hand as he stood in the city gate. 4 This is what the man told me: “Son of Man, watch carefully,[c] listen closely,[d] and remember[e] everything I’m going to be showing you, because you’ve been brought here to be shown what you’re about to see. Be sure that you tell the house of Israel everything that you observe.”
Measuring the Temple Grounds
5 All of a sudden, we were at the exterior wall that completely surrounded the Temple. The man whom I had observed held a measuring reed that was six cubits[f] long as measured in cubits that were a cubit and a handbreadth[g] long. As he measured the thickness of the wall, he measured out one reed.[h] Its height was also one reed.[i] 6 Then he went over to the gate that faced toward the east, ascended its steps, and measured its thresholds. One threshold measured one reed[j] and the other one measured one reed.[k] 7 Each guardhouse[l] measured one reed[m] long and one reed[n] wide, and the distance[o] between each guardhouse was five cubits.[p] The threshold of the gate near the vestibule facing away from the Temple entrance[q] measured one reed.[r]
8 Next, he measured the vestibule of the gate facing away from the Temple entrance at one reed.[s] 9 He measured the vestibule of the gate inside at eight cubits[t] and the doorjambs at two cubits.[u] (The vestibule at the gate faced away from the Temple.) 10 Gate guardhouses stood facing east, numbering three on each side,[v] each of them of equal size[w] to the door jamb; that is, having the same[x] measurement on each side.[y] 11 He measured the width of the gateway at ten cubits,[z] and the length of the gate at thirteen cubits.[aa]
12 The retaining[ab] wall in front of the guardhouses measured one cubit[ac] wide. It stood one cubit[ad] from the wall to the guardhouses, which were six cubits[ae] square.[af] 13 He measured the gate from the roof of the guardhouses to the roof of another[ag] at 25 cubits[ah] from doorway to opposite doorway. 14 Then he measured[ai] the open air porch[aj] at 60 cubits[ak] from the doorjamb of the courtyard that encompassed the gate. 15 The distance from the front entrance gate to the vestibule of the inner gate measured 50 cubits.[al] 16 Latticed windows faced the guardhouses, their side pillars within the gate all around, and also for the porches. Windows were placed all around inside, and the side pillars were engraved with palm trees.
The Outer Court
17 Next, he brought me into the outer court, where chambers and a paved area had been constructed all around the courtyard, with 30 chambers facing the pavement. 18 The pavement to the side[am] of the gates corresponded to the length of the gates. 19 He also measured the width from the front lower gate to the front of the exterior inner court at 100 cubits[an] to the east and to the north.
The North Facing Outer Court
20 Next, he measured the length and width of the outer north-facing gate to the courtyard. 21 It was equipped[ao] with three guardhouses on each side. Its side pillars and porches had measurements identical to the first gate: 50 cubits[ap] long and 25 cubits[aq] wide. 22 Its windows, porches, and palm tree ornaments had measurements identical to the east-facing gate. Reached by seven ascending[ar] steps, its porch lay[as] to the front of the steps. 23 From a gate that stood opposite the northern gate he measured 100 cubits,[at] as well as from the eastern gate.
The South Facing Gate
24 Then he led me toward the south, where there was a gate with side pillar and porch measurements identical to the others. 25 The gate and its porches contained windows all around, identical to the other windows. The length of the porch[au] was 50 cubits[av] and its width was 25 cubits.[aw] 26 Seven steps led up to it, with a porch in front of them. Palm tree ornaments were engraved on its side pillars, one on each side. 27 The inner court contained a south-facing gate measuring 100 cubits[ax] from gate to gate toward the south.
The Inner Southern Court
28 Next, he brought me to the inner courtyard by way of the south-facing gate. He measured the south-facing gate as having measurements identical to the others. 29 The measurements of its guardhouses, its side pillars, and its porches were identical to the others. The gate and its porches contained windows all around. The length of the porch[ay] was 50 cubits[az] and its width was 25 cubits.[ba] 30 Porches lay all around, measuring 25 cubits[bb] long and five cubits[bc] wide, 31 leading to the outer courtyard. Palm tree ornaments were engraved on its side pillars. The stairway leading to it contained eight steps.
The Inner Eastern Court
32 Then he brought me into the inner east-facing courtyard, where he measured the gate, identical to the others. 33 The measurement of its guardhouses, side pillars, and porches was identical to the others. The gate and its porches contained windows all around. The length of the porch[bd] was 50 cubits[be] and its width was 25 cubits,[bf] 34 leading to the outer courtyard. Palm tree ornaments were engraved on its side pillars. The stairway leading to it contained eight steps.
The North Facing Gate
35 Next, he brought me to the north-facing gate, where he measured the gate, identical to the others. 36 The measurement of its guardhouses, side pillars, and porches was identical to the others. The gate and its porches contained windows all around. The length of the porch[bg] was 50 cubits[bh] and its width was 25 cubits,[bi] 37 leading to the outer courtyard. Palm tree ornaments were engraved on its side pillars. The stairway leading to it contained eight steps. 38 There was a chamber with a doorway by the side pillars next to the gate where they prepare[bj] the burnt offerings.
39 In the porch leading in front of the gate there were two tables on either side for slaughtering burnt offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings, 40 and on the outer side, approaching the northern gateway, there were two tables, as well as two tables on the opposite side of the porch in front of the gate. 41 In that way, there were four tables on each side in front of the gate, for a total of eight tables for use in slaughtering the offerings.[bk]
42 There were four tables carved from stone for the burnt offering, each one and a half cubits[bl] long, one and a half cubits[bm] wide, and one cubit[bn] high, on which the instruments are laid for slaughtering burnt offerings and sacrifices. 43 Double hooks, a single handbreadth[bo] in length, were installed all around in this portion of[bp] the temple area.
The Inner Gate
44 From outside leading into the inner gate there were chambers for the choir. One was beside the north gate facing the south, and another was at the south gate facing the north. 45 The angel[bq] told me, “This south-facing chamber is for the priests who maintain the Temple, 46 and the north-facing chamber is for the priests who maintain the altar. These are Zadok’s descendants, who, as descendants of Levi approach the Lord to minister directly to him.” 47 He measured the court in the form of a square at 100 cubits[br] long and 100 cubits[bs] wide. The altar stood in front of the Temple.
The Temple Porch
48 Next, he brought me to the Temple porch and measured the side pillars at five cubits[bt] on each side. The width of the gate measured three cubits[bu] on each side. 49 The porch was 20 cubits[bv] long and eleven cubits[bw] wide. The stairway by which it was ascended was equipped with columns attached to its side pillars, one on each side.
The Vision of the Temple
41 Next he brought me to the Temple and measured its door jambs at six cubits[bx] wide on each side of the structure.[by] 2 The entrance was ten cubits[bz] wide and its door jambs were five cubits[ca] wide on each side. He measured the length of the nave at 40 cubits[cb] and its width at 20 cubits.[cc]
3 Then he went inside and measured the door jambs at two cubits[cd] wide and the doorway at six cubits[ce] high. The doorway was seven cubits[cf] wide. 4 He measured its length at 20 cubits,[cg] its width at 20 cubits[ch] in front of the structure,[ci] and then he told me, “This is the most holy area.”
5 Next, he measured the Temple walls at six cubits[cj] high and the width of the side chambers at four cubits[ck] around all four sides of the Temple. 6 The side chambers consisted of three stories, each above the other, with 30 chambers in each story. The side chambers extended out from the wall that faced the inside of the chambers where the chambers were fastened together, but the chamber walls were not fastened directly into the Temple walls themselves. 7 The side chambers surrounding the Temple were wider at each successive story, because the surrounding structure ascended by proportional increments as it rose, ascending to the highest story by going up successively from the lowest.
8 I observed a raised platform that surrounded the Temple, and the foundations of the side chambers were a full six cubits[cl] deep. 9 The outer wall of the side chambers was five cubits[cm] thick, and there was an empty space between the Temple’s side chambers 10 and its outer chambers 20 cubits[cn] in width, surrounding the Temple on each side. 11 The side chamber doorway facing the free space contained a single north-facing doorway and a second south-facing doorway. The width of the free space was five cubits[co] all around the perimeter.[cp] 12 The building that faced the west side of the courtyard was 70 cubits[cq] wide, and the building’s wall was five cubits[cr] thick all around. It was 90 cubits[cs] long.
The Temple
13 Then he measured the Temple. It was 100 cubits[ct] long, and the courtyard, its building, and its walls were 100 cubits[cu] long. 14 The front of the Temple and its east-facing courtyard were each[cv] 100 cubits[cw] long. 15 Next, he measured 100 cubits[cx] as the length of the structure toward the front of the courtyard that stood behind it, where it housed a gallery on each side of it. Then he measured the Temple and the inner porticos[cy] of the courtyard, 16 the thresholds, the shielded[cz] windows, and the surrounding three-storied galleries that stood opposite. From the ground to the shielded[da] windows, they were paneled with wood all around, 17 including up to the doorway, up to the Temple (both within and without) and all around both sides of the inner wall, according to his measurement. 18 There were carved cherubim and palm trees, alternating with a palm tree between a cherub, and each cherub had two faces, 19 with a human face looking[db] toward the palm tree on one side and a young lion’s face looking[dc] toward the palm tree on the other side. These carvings extended all the way around the Temple, 20 from the ground to above the doorway, as well as on the walls of the main sanctuary.
21 The door posts of the main sanctuary were square. Each door post was identical in appearance to the others. 22 The altar was made of wood, three cubits[dd] high and two cubits[de] long. Its corners, base, and sides were of wood. He told me, “This table stands in the Lord’s presence.”
23 The nave and the sanctuary each were equipped with double doors. 24 Each door had two sections mounted on hinges,[df] for a total of two sections for one door and two sections for the other. 25 The doors of the nave had carvings engraved on them, consisting of cherubim and palm trees identical to those on the walls. The front of the exterior porch was equipped with a wooden threshold. 26 Shielded windows and palm trees were visible[dg] on both sides; that is, on the sides of the porch, the side chambers of the Temple, and on its thresholds.
Be Ready for the Day of the Lord
3 Dear friends, this is now the second of two letters[a] I am writing to you, in which I have been trying to stimulate your pure minds by reminding you 2 to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the commandment of our Lord and Savior spoken[b] through your apostles.
3 First of all you must understand this: In the last days mockers will come and, following their own desires, will ridicule us[c] 4 by saying, “What happened to the Messiah’s[d] promise to return? Ever since our ancestors died,[e] everything continues as it did from the beginning of creation.” 5 But they deliberately ignore the fact that long ago the heavens existed and the earth was formed by God’s word out of water and with water, 6 by which the world at that time was deluged with water and destroyed. 7 Now by that same word, the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire and are being kept for the day when ungodly people will be judged and destroyed.
8 Don’t forget this fact, dear friends: With the Lord a single day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a single day. 9 The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some people understand slowness, but is being patient with you. He does not want anyone to perish, but everyone to find room for repentence. 10 But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief. On that day[f] the heavens will disappear with a roaring sound, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done on it will be exposed.
11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, think of the kind of holy and godly people you ought to be 12 as you look forward to and hasten the coming of the day of God, when the heavens will be set ablaze and dissolved and the elements will melt with fire. 13 But in keeping with his promise, we are looking forward to new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home.
14 So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to have the Lord[g] find you at peace and without spot or fault. 15 Think of our Lord’s patience as facilitating salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him. 16 He speaks about this subject in all his letters. Some things in them are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, leading to their own destruction, as they do the rest of the Scriptures.
17 And so, dear friends, since you already know these things, continuously be on your guard not to be carried away by the deception of lawless people. Otherwise, you may[h] fall from your secure position. 18 Instead, continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus, the Messiah.[i] Glory belongs to him both now and on that eternal day! Amen.[j]
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