Ezekiel 46:1-7

3. The sabbath and new moon (46:1-7)

TRANSLATION

(1) Thus says the Lord GOD: The gate of the inner court that looks toward the east shall be shut the six working days; but on the sabbath day it shall be opened, and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened. (2) And the prince shall enter by the way of the porch of the gate without and shall stand by the post of the gate; and the priests shall prepare his burnt-offering and his peace-offerings, and he shall worship at the threshold of the gate: then he shall go forth; but the gate shall not be shut until the evening. (3) And the people of the land shall worship at the door of that gate before the LORD on the sabbaths and on the new moons. (4) And the burnt-offering that the prince shall offer unto the LORD shall be on the sabbath day six lambs without blemish and a ram without blemish; (5) and the meal-offering shall be an ephah for the ram, and the meal-offering for the lambs as he is able to give, and a hin of oil to an ephah. (6) And on the day of the new moon it shall be a young bullock without blemish, and six lambs and a ram; they shall be without blemish: (7) and he shall prepare a meal-offering, an ephah for the bullock, and an ephah for the ram, and for the lambs according as he is able, and a hin of oil to an ephah.

COMMENTS

On the sabbath day and on the new moon (first day of the month) the eastern gate of the inner court was to be opened (Ezekiel 46:1).[535] on these occasions the prince would be allowed to enter the eastern gate. He was the official representative of the people who would present to the priests the sacrifices which were to be offered on behalf of the nation. From his vantage point at the post of the gate (i.e., the western end of the gateway) he would worship as the priests offered his sacrifices within his view upon the altar, Even after he departed from the Temple, the inner gate was to be left open until evening (Ezekiel 46:2). At the door of that open gate the people of the land would worship throughout those sacred sabbath days (Ezekiel 46:3).

[535] This gate is not to be confused with the eastern gate of the outer court which was never to be opened (Ezekiel 44:2).

The offerings prescribed for the sabbath and new moon of the new Temple age do not correspond with those prescribed in the Law of Moses (cf. Numbers 28:9; Numbers 28:11-15).[536] The prince is to offer each sabbath day six lambs and a ram (Ezekiel 46:4); an ephah of meal with the ram; an unspecified amount of meal for each lamb; and at least a hin of oil (Ezekiel 46:5). On the new moon the prince would offer the regular sabbath offerings but add to them an unblemished bullock and another ephah of meal (Ezekiel 46:6-7).

[536] To reconcile this account with the Pentateuch some Jewish scholars have proposed that these sacrifices are special, additional sacrifices required during the sabbaths of the dedication period for the new Temple.