The Glory of the LORD Fills the Temple

1Then he led me to the gate, the gate facing east. 2And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory. 3And the vision I saw was just like the vision that I had seen when he43:3 Some Hebrew manuscripts and Vulgate; most Hebrew manuscripts when I came to destroy the city, and just like the vision that I had seen by the Chebar canal. And I fell on my face. 4As the glory of the LORD entered the temple by the gate facing east, 5the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the temple.

6While the man was standing beside me, I heard one speaking to me out of the temple, 7and he said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of my throne and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the people of Israel for ever. And the house of Israel shall no more defile my holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoring and by the dead bodies43:7 Or the monuments; also verse 9 of their kings at their high places,43:7 Or at their deaths 8by setting their threshold by my threshold and their doorposts beside my doorposts, with only a wall between me and them. They have defiled my holy name by their abominations that they have committed, so I have consumed them in my anger. 9Now let them put away their whoring and the dead bodies of their kings far from me, and I will dwell in their midst for ever.

10“As for you, son of man, describe to the house of Israel the temple, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and they shall measure the plan. 11And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the design of the temple, its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, that is, its whole design; and make known to them as well all its statutes and its whole design and all its laws, and write it down in their sight, so that they may observe all its laws and all its statutes and carry them out. 12This is the law of the temple: the whole territory on the top of the mountain all round shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the temple.

The Altar

13“These are the measurements of the altar by cubits (the cubit being a cubit and a handbreadth):43:13 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimetres; a handbreadth was about 3 inches or 7.5 centimetres its base shall be one cubit high43:13 Or its gutter shall be one cubit deep and one cubit broad, with a rim of one span43:13 A span was about 9 inches or 22 centimetres round its edge. And this shall be the height of the altar: 14from the base on the ground to the lower ledge, two cubits, with a breadth of one cubit; and from the smaller ledge to the larger ledge, four cubits, with a breadth of one cubit; 15and the altar hearth, four cubits; and from the altar hearth projecting upwards, four horns. 16The altar hearth shall be square, twelve cubits long by twelve broad. 17The ledge also shall be square, fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad, with a rim round it half a cubit broad, and its base one cubit all round. The steps of the altar shall face east.”

18And he said to me, “Son of man, thus says the Lord GOD: These are the ordinances for the altar: On the day when it is erected for offering burnt offerings upon it and for throwing blood against it, 19you shall give to the Levitical priests of the family of Zadok, who draw near to me to minister to me, declares the Lord GOD, a bull from the herd for a sin offering. 20And you shall take some of its blood and put it on the four horns of the altar and on the four corners of the ledge and upon the rim all round. Thus you shall purify the altar and make atonement for it. 21You shall also take the bull of the sin offering, and it shall be burned in the appointed place belonging to the temple, outside the sacred area. 22And on the second day you shall offer a male goat without blemish for a sin offering; and the altar shall be purified, as it was purified with the bull. 23When you have finished purifying it, you shall offer a bull from the herd without blemish and a ram from the flock without blemish. 24You shall present them before the LORD, and the priests shall sprinkle salt on them and offer them up as a burnt offering to the LORD. 25For seven days you shall provide daily a male goat for a sin offering; also, a bull from the herd and a ram from the flock, without blemish, shall be provided. 26Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and cleanse it, and so consecrate it.43:26 Hebrew fill its hand 27And when they have completed these days, then from the eighth day onward the priests shall offer on the altar your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, and I will accept you, declares the Lord GOD.”