Ezekiel 40:48-49

D. The Sacred House 40:48-41:26

TRANSLATION

(48)Then he brought me to the porch of the house, and measured each post of the porch, five cubits on this side, and five cubits on that side, and the breadth of the gate was three cubits on this side, and three cubits on that side. (49) The length of the porch was twenty cubits, and the breadth eleven cubits; even by the steps whereby they went Up to it: and there were pillars by the posts, one on this side, and another on that side. (1) And he brought me to the temple, and measured the posts, six cubits broad on the one side, and six cubits broad on the other side, which was the breadth of the tabernacle. (2) And the breadth of the entrance was ten cubits; and the sides of the entrance were five cubits on the one side, and five cubits on the other side: and he measured the length thereof, forty cubits, and the breadth, twenty cubits. (3) Then went he inward, and measured each post of the entrance, two cubits; and the entrance, six cubits; and the breadth of the entrance, seven cubits. (4) And he measured the length thereof, twenty cubits, and the breadth, twenty cubits, before the temple: and he said unto me, This is the most holy place. (5) Then he measured the wall of the house, six cubits; and the breadth of every side-chamber, four cubits, round about the house on every side. (6) And the side-chambers were in three stories, one over another, and thirty in order; and they entered into the wall which belonged to the house for the side-chambers round about, that they might have hold therein, and not have hold in the wall of the house. (7) And the side-chambers were broader as they encompassed the house higher and higher; for the encompassing of the house went higher and higher round about the house: therefore the breadth of the house continued upward; and so one went up from the lowest chamber to the highest by the middle chamber. (8) I saw also that the house had a raised basement round about: the foundations of the side-chambers were a full reed of six great cubits. (9) The thickness of the wall, which was for the side-chambers on the outside, was five cubits: and that which was left was the place of the side-chambers, that belonged to the house. (10) And between the chambers was a breadth of twenty cubits round about the house on every side. (11) And the doors of the side-chambers were toward the place that was left, one door toward the north, and another door toward the south: and the breadth of the place that was left was five cubits round about. (12) And the building that was before the separate place at the side toward the west was seventy cubits broad; and the wall of the building was five cubits thick round about, and the length thereof ninety cubits. (13) So he measured the house, a hundred cubits long; and the separate place, and the building, with the walls thereof, a hundred cubits long; (14) also the breadth of the face of the house, and of the separate place toward the east, a hundred cubits. (15) And he measured the length of the building before the separate place which was at the back thereof, and the galleries thereof on the one side and on the other side, a hundred cubits; and the inner temple, and the porches of the court; (16) the thresholds, and the closed windows, and the galleries round about on their three stories, over against the threshold, ceiled with wood round about, and from the ground up to the windows, (now the windows were covered) (17) to the space above the door, even unto the inner house, and without, and by all the wall round about within and without, by measure. (18) And it was made with cherubim and palm-trees; and a palm-tree was between cherub and cherub, and every cherub had two faces; (19) so that there was the face of a man toward the palm-tree on the one side, and the face of a young lion toward the palm-tree on the other side: thus was it made through all the house round about. (20) From the ground unto above the door were cherubim and palm-trees made: thus was the wall of the temple. (21) As for the temple, the floorposts were squared; and as for the face of the sanctuary, the appearance thereof was as the appearance of the temple. (22) The altar was of wood, three cubits high, and the length thereof two cubits; and the corners thereof, and the walls thereof, were of wood: and he said unto me, This is the table that is before the LORD. (23) And the temple and the sanctuary had two doors. (24) And the doors had two leaves apiece, two turning leaves; two leaves for the one door, and two leaves for the other. (25) And there were made on them, on the doors of the temple, cherubim and palm-trees, like as were made upon the walls; and there was a threshold of wood upon the face of the porch with out. (26) And there were closed windows and palm-trees on the one side and on the other side, on the sides of the porch: thus were the side-chambers of the house, and the thresholds.

COMMENTS

1. The porch of the house (Ezekiel 40:48-49). Ten steps led up to the porch or vestibule of the house (Ezekiel 40:49) on the east front of the Temple. Pillars are mentioned in connection with the porch. They correspond to the famous pillars, Jachin and Boaz, which decorated the porch of Solomon's Temple (Ezekiel 40:49; cf. 1 Kings 7:21). The gate to the Temple proper was supported by two massive posts (Ezekiel 40:48).

2. The holy place of the house (Ezekiel 41:1-2). Walking westward through the porch Ezekiel came to the entrance of the holy place which is called the tabernacle or tent (Ezekiel 40:1) because the posts were shaped like an arch at the top like a tent.[505] The holy place that area between the porch and the holy of holies was forty cubits long and twenty cubits wide (Ezekiel 40:2).

[505] Fisch, SBB, p. 279.

3. The holy of holies (Ezekiel 41:3-4). Only the angel entered the holy of holies (Ezekiel 40:3). The entrance to the holy of holies was but seven cubits wide. The entrance ways became progressively more narrow as the prophet moved from the less to the more sacred precincts of the building (Ezekiel 40:2; cf. Ezekiel 40:48). The holy of holies was twenty cubits square (Ezekiel 40:4).

4. The side chambers (Ezekiel 41:5-12). Attached to the wall of the Temple on three sides were side-chambers in three stories. The chambers of the second story were slightly larger than those on the ground floor, while those of the third story were still larger. This was possible because of rebatements in the wall (Ezekiel 40:7). There were thirty-three side-chambers in all. Along the back or west wall there were three large chambers, one on each of the three levels. There were fifteen along the south wall, and fifteen along the north wall, five chambers on each tier. The wall of the Temple was six cubits thick at the base; but at two points it diminished as it ascended. These rebatements served as supports for the beams of the second and third stories (Ezekiel 40:6). The uppermost story was reached by a spiral staircase from the ground floor which passed through the middle tier (Ezekiel 40:7). A thick wall surrounded the chambers on the outside. Thus, the chambers were constructed between two massive walls (Ezekiel 40:9). Between these side-chambers and the chambers of the priests mentioned in Ezekiel 40:44-46 was a space of twenty cubits called in KJV the separate place and in the RSV the temple yard (Ezekiel 40:10). The side-chambers were entered from without through two doors, one in the north wall, the other in the south wall. These probably were located at the mid-point of the wall. Connecting doors made passage from one chamber to another possible (Ezekiel 40:11).

5. The hinder building (Ezekiel 41:12). At the rear of the Temple was a large separate building (70 by 90 cubits) which probably served as a storage area.

6. The total dimensions of the house (Ezekiel 41:13-15 a). The total length of the Temple from east to west, from the wall of the porch to the back western wall, was one hundred cubits[506] (Ezekiel 40:13 a). The pavement and building at the rear of the Temple extended westward another one hundred cubits[507] (Ezekiel 40:13 b). The front of the Temple along with its yard was one hundred cubits (Ezekiel 40:14).[508] The overall breadth of the building at the rear of the Temple was also one hundred cubits (Ezekiel 40:15).[509] Galleries or balconies were built along the outside of the wall (Ezekiel 40:15).

[506] Jamb 5 (Ezekiel 40:48) + vestibule 12 (Ezekiel 40:49) + jamb 6 (Ezekiel 41:1) + holy place 40 (Ezekiel 41:2) + jamb 2 (Ezekiel 41:3) + holy of holies 20 (Ezekiel 41:4) + wall 6 (Ezekiel 41:5) + side-chambers 4 (Ezekiel 41:5) + outer wall 5 (Ezekiel 41:9) = 103.

[507] Yard 20 (Ezekiel 41:10) + building 70 (Ezekiel 41:12) + two walls of building 10 (Ezekiel 41:12) = 100.

[508] The Temple yard to the north and south 40; the paved areas to north and south 10; the two outer walls of side-chambers 10; the two side-chambers 8, the north and south walls of the house 12 and the interior of the house 20 = 100.
[509] Interior breadth of the room, 90: two side walls, 10 = 100.

7. The interior of the Temple (Ezekiel 41:15 b - Ezekiel 41:26). The holy place, holy of holies and the porches of the court all had jambs, narrow windows and balconies (Ezekiel 40:15 b). The stone walls were covered with paneling from floor to ceiling (Ezekiel 40:16-17). As in Solomon's Temple (1 Kings 6:29), the wooden panels were decorated with carved figures of cherubim and palm-trees (Ezekiel 40:18) from floor to ceiling (Ezekiel 40:20). These cherubim had two faces that of a man and that of a lion which were turned in opposite directions. Each palm-tree was between the human face of one cherub and the lion's face of another cherub (Ezekiel 40:19). The jambs or doorposts of the Temple were square rather than round (Ezekiel 40:21).

Ezekiel 40:22 describes one of the pieces of furniture of the holy place. Opinions differ as to whether the altar of incense is being described metaphorically as a table,[510] or the table of showbread is being described metaphorically as an altar.[511]

[510] Fisch, .SBB, p. 285,

[511] Taylor, TOTC, p. 263,

The holy place and the holy of holies each had a double door (Ezekiel 40:23) and each door had two leaves which could be folded back independently (Ezekiel 40:24). It would be possible for a door to be opened only a quarter of the full width of the entrance. The doors, like the walls, were decorated with cherubim and palm trees (Ezekiel 40:25).

Beams[512] extended before the porch making a kind of overhang (Ezekiel 40:25).

[512] Meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain. RSV renders it canopy; KJV planks.