40 Vision of the New Temple

40:1 In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city was struck down, on that very day, the hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me to the city.[1] ²In visions of God he brought me to the land of Israel, and set me down on a very high mountain, on which was a structure like a city to the south. ³When he brought me there, behold, there was a man whose appearance was like bronze, with a linen cord and a measuring reed in his hand. And he was standing in the gateway. ⁴And the man said to me, “Son of man, look with your eyes, and hear with your ears, and set your heart upon all that I shall show you, for you were brought here in order that I might show it to you. Declare all that you see to the house of Israel.”

The East Gate to the Outer Court

⁵And behold, there was a wall all around the outside of the temple area, and the length of the measuring reed in the man’s hand was six long cubits, each being a cubit and a handbreadth[2] in length. So he measured the thickness of the wall, one reed; and the height, one reed. ⁶Then he went into the gateway facing east, going up its steps, and measured the threshold of the gate, one reed deep.[3] ⁷And the side rooms, one reed long and one reed broad; and the space between the side rooms, five cubits; and the threshold of the gate by the vestibule of the gate at the inner end, one reed. ⁸Then he measured the vestibule of the gateway, on the inside, one reed. ⁹Then he measured the vestibule of the gateway, eight cubits; and its jambs, two cubits; and the vestibule of the gate was at the inner end. ¹⁰And there were three side rooms on either side of the east gate. The three were of the same size, and the jambs on either side were of the same size. ¹¹Then he measured the width of the opening of the gateway, ten cubits; and the length of the gateway, thirteen cubits. ¹²There was a barrier before the side rooms, one cubit on either side. And the side rooms were six cubits on either side. ¹³Then he measured the gate from the ceiling of the one side room to the ceiling of the other, a breadth of twenty-five cubits; the openings faced each other. ¹⁴He measured also the vestibule, twenty cubits. And around the vestibule of the gateway was the court.[4] ¹⁵From the front of the gate at the entrance to the front of the inner vestibule of the gate was fifty cubits. ¹⁶And the gateway had windows all around, narrowing inwards toward the side rooms and toward their jambs, and likewise the vestibule had windows all around inside, and on the jambs were palm trees.

The Outer Court

¹⁷Then he brought me into the outer court. And behold, there were chambers and a pavement, all around the court. Thirty chambers faced the pavement. ¹⁸And the pavement ran along the side of the gates, corresponding to the length of the gates. This was the lower pavement. ¹⁹Then he measured the distance from the inner front of the lower gate to the outer front of the inner court,[5] a hundred cubits on the east side and on the north side.[6]

The North Gate

²⁰As for the gate that faced toward the north, belonging to the outer court, he measured its length and its breadth. ²¹Its side rooms, three on either side, and its jambs and its vestibule were of the same size as those of the first gate. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. ²²And its windows, its vestibule, and its palm trees were of the same size as those of the gate that faced toward the east. And by seven steps people would go up to it, and find its vestibule before them. ²³And opposite the gate on the north, as on the east, was a gate to the inner court. And he measured from gate to gate, a hundred cubits.

The South Gate

²⁴And he led me toward the south, and behold, there was a gate on the south. And he measured its jambs and its vestibule; they had the same size as the others. ²⁵Both it and its vestibule had windows all around, like the windows of the others. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. ²⁶And there were seven steps leading up to it, and its vestibule was before them, and it had palm trees on its jambs, one on either side. ²⁷And there was a gate on the south of the inner court. And he measured from gate to gate toward the south, a hundred cubits.

The Inner Court

²⁸Then he brought me to the inner court through the south gate, and he measured the south gate. It was of the same size as the others. ²⁹Its side rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others, and both it and its vestibule had windows all around. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. ³⁰And there were vestibules all around, twenty-five cubits long and five cubits broad. ³¹Its vestibule faced the outer court, and palm trees were on its jambs, and its stairway had eight steps.

³²Then he brought me to the inner court on the east side, and he measured the gate. It was of the same size as the others. ³³Its side rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others, and both it and its vestibule had windows all around. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. ³⁴Its vestibule faced the outer court, and it had palm trees on its jambs, on either side, and its stairway had eight steps.

³⁵Then he brought me to the north gate, and he measured it. It had the same size as the others. ³⁶Its side rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others,[7] and it had windows all around. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. ³⁷Its vestibule[8] faced the outer court, and it had palm trees on its jambs, on either side, and its stairway had eight steps.

³⁸There was a chamber with its door in the vestibule of the gate,[9] where the burnt offering was to be washed. ³⁹And in the vestibule of the gate were two tables on either side, on which the burnt offering and the sin offering and the guilt offering were to be slaughtered. ⁴⁰And off to the side, on the outside as one goes up to the entrance of the north gate, were two tables; and off to the other side of the vestibule of the gate were two tables. ⁴¹Four tables were on either side of the gate, eight tables, on which to slaughter. ⁴²And there were four tables of hewn stone for the burnt offering, a cubit and a half long, and a cubit and a half broad, and one cubit high, on which the instruments were to be laid with which the burnt offerings and the sacrifices were slaughtered. ⁴³And hooks,[10] a handbreadth long, were fastened all around within. And on the tables the flesh of the offering was to be laid.

Chambers for the Priests

⁴⁴On the outside of the inner gateway there were two chambers[11] in the inner court, one[12] at the side of the north gate facing south, the other at the side of the south[13] gate facing north. ⁴⁵And he said to me, This chamber that faces south is for the priests who have charge of the temple, ⁴⁶and the chamber that faces north is for the priests who have charge of the altar. These are the sons of Zadok, who alone[14] among the sons of Levi may come near to the Lord to minister to him. ⁴⁷And he measured the court, a hundred cubits long and a hundred cubits broad, a square. And the altar was in front of the temple.

The Vestibule of the Temple

⁴⁸Then he brought me to the vestibule of the temple and measured the jambs of the vestibule, five cubits on either side. And the breadth of the gate was fourteen cubits, and the sidewalls of the gate[15] were three cubits on either side. ⁴⁹The length of the vestibule was twenty cubits, and the breadth twelve[16] cubits, and people would go up to it by ten steps.[17] And there were pillars beside the jambs, one on either side.

[1] Hebrew brought me there [2] A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters; a handbreadth was about 3 inches or 7.5 centimeters [3] Hebrew deep, and one threshold, one reed deep [4] Text uncertain; Hebrew And he made the jambs sixty cubits, and to the jamb of the court was the gateway all around [5] Hebrew distance from before the low gate before the inner court to the outside [6] Or cubits. So far the eastern gate; now to the northern gate. [7] One manuscript (compare verses 29 and 33); most manuscripts lack were of the same size as the others [8] Septuagint, Vulgate (compare verses 26, 31, 34); Hebrew jambs [9] Hebrew at the jambs, the gates [10] Or shelves [11] Septuagint; Hebrew were chambers for singers [12] Hebrew lacks one [13] Septuagint; Hebrew east [14] Hebrew lacks alone [15] Septuagint; Hebrew lacks was fourteen cubits, and the sidewalls of the gate [16] Septuagint; Hebrew eleven [17] Septuagint; Hebrew and by steps that would go up to it [18] A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters

41The Inner Temple

41:1 Then he brought me to the nave and measured the jambs. On each side six cubits[18] was the breadth of the jambs.[19] ²And the breadth of the entrance was ten cubits, and the sidewalls of the entrance were five cubits on either side. And he measured the length of the nave,[20] forty cubits, and its breadth, twenty cubits. ³Then he went into the inner room and measured the jambs of the entrance, two cubits; and the entrance, six cubits; and the sidewalls on either side[21] of the entrance, seven cubits. ⁴And he measured the length of the room, twenty cubits, and its breadth, twenty cubits, across the nave. And he said to me, “This is the Most Holy Place.”

⁵Then he measured the wall of the temple, six cubits thick, and the breadth of the side chambers, four cubits, all around the temple. ⁶And the side chambers were in three stories, one over another, thirty in each story. There were offsets[22] all around the wall of the temple to serve as supports for the side chambers, so that they should not be supported by the wall of the temple. ⁷And it became broader as it wound upward to the side chambers, because the temple was enclosed upward all around the temple. Thus the temple had a broad area upward, and so one went up from the lowest story to the top story through the middle story. ⁸I saw also that the temple had a raised platform all around; the foundations of the side chambers measured a full reed of six long cubits. ⁹The thickness of the outer wall of the side chambers was five cubits. The free space between the side chambers of the temple and the ¹⁰other chambers was a breadth of twenty cubits all around the temple on every side. ¹¹And the doors of the side chambers opened on the free space, one door toward the north, and another door toward the south. And the breadth of the free space was five cubits all around.

¹²The building that was facing the separate yard on the west side was seventy cubits broad, and the wall of the building was five cubits thick all around, and its length ninety cubits.

¹³Then he measured the temple, a hundred cubits long; and the yard and the building with its walls, a hundred cubits long; ¹⁴also the breadth of the east front of the temple and the yard, a hundred cubits.

¹⁵Then he measured the length of the building facing the yard that was at the back and its galleries[23] on either side, a hundred cubits.

The inside of the nave and the vestibules of the court, ¹⁶the thresholds and the narrow windows and the galleries all around the three of them, opposite the threshold, were paneled with wood all around, from the floor up to the windows (now the windows were covered), ¹⁷to the space above the door, even to the inner room, and on the outside. And on all the walls all around, inside and outside, was a measured pattern.[24]¹⁸It was carved of cherubim and palm trees, a palm tree between cherub and cherub. Every cherub had two faces: ¹⁹a human face toward the palm tree on the one side, and the face of a young lion toward the palm tree on the other side. They were carved on the whole temple all around. ²⁰From the floor to above the door, cherubim and palm trees were carved; similarly the wall of the nave.

²¹The doorposts of the nave were squared, and in front of the Holy Place was something resembling ²²an altar of wood, three cubits high, two cubits long, and two cubits broad.[25] Its corners, its base,[26] and its walls were of wood. He said to me, “This is the table that is before the Lord.” ²³The nave and the Holy Place had each a double door. ²⁴The double doors had two leaves apiece, two swinging leaves for each door. ²⁵And on the doors of the nave were carved cherubim and palm trees, such as were carved on the walls. And there was a canopy[27] of wood in front of the vestibule outside. ²⁶And there were narrow windows and palm trees on either side, on the sidewalls of the vestibule, the side chambers of the temple, and the canopies.

[19] Compare Septuagint; Hebrew tent [20] Hebrew its length [21] Septuagint; Hebrew and the breadth [22] Septuagint, compare 1 Kings 6:6; the meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain [23] The meaning of the Hebrew term is unknown; also verse 16 [24] Hebrew were measurements [25] Septuagint; Hebrew lacks two cubits broad [26] Septuagint; Hebrew length [27] The meaning of the Hebrew word is unknown; also verse 26