Old/New Testament
Rooms North of the Temple
42 Then he led me out into the outer courtyard which was north of the temple building, and he brought me to a set of rooms which bordered on the south side of the restricted area and was north of the structure of the temple building.[a] 2 This building north of the temple, which had doors facing north, was one hundred cubits long and fifty cubits wide.[b]
3 On each side of the north courtyard, across from the twenty cubits that belonged to the inner courtyard on the south side and across from the pavement that belonged to the outer courtyard on the north side, two sets of balconies faced each other.[c] Each was three stories high.[d] 4 In front of the rooms on the inside of the courtyard was a walkway[e] ten cubits wide and one hundred cubits long.[f] The entrances of the rooms faced north.[g]
5 The upper rooms were narrower, because the balconies took more space away from them than from the building’s bottom and middle floors. 6 These rooms were arranged in three stories and had no pillars like the pillars in the courtyards, so as you went up from ground level, the upper story had to be set back more than the lower and middle ones.[h]
7 There was a wall in the outer courtyard, which ran parallel to the rooms on the east side.[i] It was fifty cubits long. 8 The length of the set of rooms on the east side of the building facing toward the outer courtyard was fifty cubits, but the length of those on the north side was one hundred cubits long.[j] 9 On the bottom floor of these rooms on the east end of the building, there was an entrance, through which one could enter them from the outer courtyard.[k]
The Same Rooms on the South Side
10 At the head of the wall of the courtyard,[l] on the south[m] side of the temple, opposite the restricted area and opposite the building, there were rooms. 11 They also had a passageway in front of them. They looked just like the rooms on the north. They were the same length and also the same width, and they were the same in regard to all their exits, their designs, and their entrances. 12 Also identical were the entrances to the rooms on the south, at the head of the passageway, that is, the passageway opposite the corresponding wall, as one enters them from the east.
13 Then he said to me, “The northern and southern rooms in front of the restricted area are holy rooms where the priests who approach the Lord will eat the most holy offerings. There they will deposit the most holy offerings, the grain offering, the sin offering, and the restitution offering, for the place is holy. 14 When the priests go to enter these rooms, they must not go out from the holy place into the outer courtyard until they have put away their vestments in which they have ministered there, because the vestments are holy. They must put on other clothing before they approach the area that is for the people.”
15 In this way the man finished the measurements of the interior of the temple complex. Then he led me out through the gate on the east side of the temple complex and measured the temple area all the way around. 16 He measured the east side using the measuring rod. It measured five hundred cubits,[n] using canes, that is, the measuring rod. 17 Then he turned and measured the north side. It was five hundred cubits, using canes, that is, the measuring rod. 18 Then he turned and measured the south side. It was five hundred cubits, using canes, that is, the measuring rod. 19 He turned to the west side and measured again. It also was five hundred cubits, using canes, that is, the measuring rod. 20 Thus he measured the temple area on all four sides. It had a wall all the way around it. It was five hundred cubits long and five hundred cubits wide, in order to separate the holy from the common.
The Return of the Glory of the Lord
43 Then he led me to the gate, the gate that faces east. 2 Suddenly I saw that the Glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. His voice sounded like the roar of rushing water, and the earth was shining with his glory. 3 The appearance of the vision that I saw was like the vision I saw when he[o] came to destroy the city—visions like the vision I saw by the Kebar Canal, and I fell on my face. 4 The Glory of the Lord entered the temple through the gate facing east. 5 Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me to the inner court, and the Glory of the Lord filled the temple.
6 I heard someone speaking to me from the temple while the man was standing beside me. 7 The voice said to me:
Son of man, this is the place of my throne, and this is the place for the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the people of Israel forever. Never again will the house of Israel profane my holy name, neither they nor their kings, neither by their prostitution nor by the memorials[p] to their dead kings at their high places. 8 Whenever they placed their threshold next to my threshold and their doorpost beside my doorpost with only a wall between me and them, they would defile my holy name by their abominations that they did, so I exterminated them in my anger. 9 Now let them remove their prostitution and the memorials of their dead kings from my presence, and I will dwell among them forever.
10 But you, son of man, are to describe the temple to the house of Israel, so that they may be ashamed of their sins. Let them measure its perfect pattern. 11 If they are ashamed of everything they have done, teach them the design of the temple and its layout, its exits and its entrances, all its designs and all its ordinances, all its designs and all its regulations. Write them down in their sight so that they may keep its whole plan and all its ordinances and carry them out. 12 This is the law for the temple. On the top of the mountain, the whole territory of the temple and all the area surrounding its perimeter will be most holy. This is indeed the law for the temple.
The Great Altar in the Courtyard
13 These are the measurements of the altar in long cubits (a long cubit is an ordinary cubit plus a handbreadth). The gutter[q] at the base of the altar is one cubit deep and one cubit wide with a rim of one span[r] around its edge. The height of the altar is as follows: 14 From the gutter on the ground to the lower ledge is two cubits, and the width of the ledge is one cubit. From the lower ledge to the upper ledge is four cubits. The upper ledge has a width of one cubit. 15 The hearth is four cubits high, and four horns extend upward from the hearth.[s] 16 The hearth is twelve cubits by twelve cubits, a square with four equal sides. 17 The upper ledge is fourteen cubits by fourteen cubits, with four equal sides. The ridge[t] around it is half a cubit, and it has a gutter of one cubit all around.[u] Its ramp[v] faces east.
18 Then he said to me, “Son of man, this is what the Lord God says. These are the ceremonial requirements for the altar on the day when it is erected, to present burnt offerings on it and to splash blood on it. 19 You are to provide a young bull for a sin offering. Provide it to the levitical priests who are from the descendants of Zadok, who draw near to me to serve me, declares the Lord God. 20 You are to take some of its blood and put it on the altar’s four horns, on the four corners of the ledge, and on the ridge all around, and so you are to purify[w] it and make atonement for it. 21 Then you are to take the bull that is the sin offering, and the priest is to burn it at the appointed place in the temple area, outside the sanctuary.
22 “On the second day you are to offer a male goat without blemish as a sin offering, and the altar is to be purified as it was purified with the bull. 23 When you have finished purifying it, you are to offer a young bull without blemish and a ram without blemish. 24 You are to present them before the Lord, and the priests are to throw salt on them and offer them up as a burnt offering to the Lord. 25 For seven days you are to offer a goat for a sin offering each day, as well as a young bull and a ram from the flock. They must all be without blemish. 26 For seven days they are to make atonement for the altar, cleanse it, and, in this way, consecrate it. 27 When they have fulfilled those days, on the eighth day and thereafter, the priests are to offer on the altar your whole burnt offerings and your fellowship offerings, and I will accept you, declares the Lord God.”
The Prince
44 Then he brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary that faces east, but it was closed. 2 The Lord said to me, “This gate must remain closed and not be opened. No man may enter through it, because the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered through it. Therefore, it is to remain closed. 3 The prince, because he is the prince, may sit in it to eat food in the presence of the Lord. He must enter through the vestibule of the gateway, and he must go out the same way.”
The Purity of the Temple
4 Next, he brought me through the north gate to the front of the temple. I looked, and the Glory of the Lord had filled the temple of the Lord, and I fell on my face. 5 The Lord said this to me.
Son of man, pay attention. Watch carefully and listen carefully[x] to what I am telling you regarding all the regulations of the temple of the Lord and all the instructions concerning it. Pay attention to the entrance of the temple and to all the exits of the sanctuary.
6 Say this to the rebellion, that is, to the house of Israel. This is what the Lord God says. There has been more than enough of all your abominations, O house of Israel. 7 You even brought foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, into my sanctuary to desecrate it—into my own house!—even while you were offering my food, namely, the fat and the blood. In this way they broke my covenant in addition to all your abominations.
8 You have not faithfully guarded my holy things. Instead, you appointed others to be guards at my sanctuary in your place. 9 This is what the Lord God says. No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, may enter my sanctuary—no foreigner at all from those who are among the people of Israel.
The Purity of the Priests and Levites
10 What’s more, the Levites who went far from me when Israel strayed away, those who wandered away from me to follow their filthy idols, they must bear the consequences of their guilt. 11 Nevertheless, the Levites shall be in my sanctuary serving as guards over the gates of the temple and ministering in the temple. They shall slaughter the burnt offerings and the other sacrifices for the people. They shall stand before the people to serve them. 12 But because they formerly served them in front of their filthy idols and became a stumbling block that made the house of Israel guilty, therefore I have raised my hand in an oath against them, declares the Lord God, and they must bear the consequences of their guilt. 13 They may not approach me to serve as priests for me, nor may they approach any of my holy things or the most holy offerings. They must bear their shame and the consequences of the abominations that they committed. 14 Yet I will make them guardians of the ministry of the temple, in charge of all the duties of the temple and of everything that has to be done in it.
15 But the levitical priests who are the sons of Zadok, those who faithfully performed the duty of guarding the ministry of my sanctuary when the sons of Israel strayed away from me, they may approach me to serve me, and they may stand before me to offer the fat and the blood to me, declares the Lord God. 16 They alone may enter my sanctuary. They alone may approach my table to minister to me, and they shall perform the duty of guarding the ministry of the temple for me.
17 When they enter the gates of the inner court, they must wear linen clothing. No wool should be on them while they minister in the gates of the inner courtyard or inside the temple. 18 They are to have linen turbans on their heads and linen shorts on their hips. They should wear nothing that causes sweat. 19 When they go out into the outer courtyard[y] to the people, they must take off their vestments in which they have been ministering and leave them in the holy rooms. Then they must put on other clothing so that they do not transmit holiness to the people by their vestments.
20 They must not shave their heads or let their hair grow long and unkempt. They must keep the hair on their heads neatly trimmed. 21 No priest is to drink wine when he enters the inner courtyard. 22 The priests must not take a widow or a divorced woman for themselves as a wife, but only virgins who are seed from the house of Israel. But priests may marry a widow who is a widow of a priest. 23 They are to teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and make them knowledgeable in distinguishing the unclean from the clean.
24 In case of a dispute, they are to officiate as judges, and they must render their judgment concerning that case on the basis of the precedents in my judgments. They must observe my instructions and my regulations regarding all my appointed festivals, and they must keep my Sabbaths holy.
25 They must not go near a dead person and make themselves ceremonially unclean by doing so. Only in the case of father or mother, son or daughter, brother or unmarried sister may they make themselves unclean. 26 After a priest has been purified, seven days must be counted off for him. 27 On the day he enters into the sanctuary, into the inner courtyard to minister in the sanctuary, he must offer a sin offering for himself, declares the Lord God.
28 This will be their inheritance: I am their inheritance. You must not give them property in Israel. I am their property. 29 They may eat the grain offerings, the sin offerings, and the restitution offerings, and every devoted thing in Israel will belong to them. 30 The first from all firstfruits of all kinds and every special contribution of any kind from all your contributions will belong to the priests. The first of your ground grain[z] you must give to the priest in order that a blessing may rest on your house. 31 No animal that died naturally or was torn by wild animals, whether a bird or an animal, may be eaten by the priests.
The Word of Life
1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have observed and our hands have touched regarding the Word of Life— 2 the life appeared, and we have seen it. We testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We are proclaiming what we have seen and heard also to you, so that you may have fellowship with us. Our fellowship is with the Father and his Son Jesus Christ. 4 We write these things to you so that our[a] joy may be complete.
Walking in the Light
5 This is the message we heard from him and proclaim to you: God is light. In him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him but still walk in darkness, we are lying and do not put the truth into practice. 7 But if we walk in the light, just as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ,[b] his Son, cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar, and his Word[c] is not in us.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.