10 “As for you, (A)son of man, (B)describe to the house of Israel the temple, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and they shall measure the plan. 11 And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, (C)make known to them the design of the temple, its arrangement, (D)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 (E)in their sight, so that they may observe all its laws and all its statutes and carry them out. 12 This is the law of the temple: the whole territory on the top of (F)the mountain (G)all around shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the temple.

The Altar

13 “These are the measurements of (H)the altar by cubits (the cubit being (I)a cubit and a handbreadth):[a] its base shall be one cubit high[b] and one cubit broad, with a rim of one span[c] around its edge. And this shall be the height of the altar: 14 from 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; 15 and the altar hearth, four cubits; and from the altar hearth projecting upward, (J)four horns. 16 The altar hearth shall be (K)square, twelve cubits long by twelve broad. 17 The ledge also shall be square, fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad, with a rim around it half a cubit broad, and its base one cubit all around. (L)The steps of the altar shall face east.”

18 And he said to me, (M)“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 (N)for throwing blood against it, 19 you shall give to (O)the Levitical priests (P)of the family of Zadok, who draw near to me to minister to me, declares the Lord God, (Q)a bull from the herd for a sin offering. 20 And (R)you shall take some of its blood and put it on (S)the four horns of the altar and on the four corners of the ledge and upon (T)the rim all around. (U)Thus you shall purify the altar and make atonement for it. 21 You shall also take the bull of the sin offering, and (V)it shall be burned in the appointed place belonging to the temple, outside the sacred area. 22 And 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. 23 When you have finished (W)purifying it, you shall offer a bull from the herd without blemish and (X)a ram from the flock without blemish. 24 You shall present them before the Lord, and the priests (Y)shall sprinkle salt on them and offer them up as a burnt offering to the Lord. 25 (Z)For 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. 26 Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and cleanse it, and so consecrate it.[d] 27 And when they have completed these days, then (AA)from the eighth day onward the priests shall offer on the altar your burnt offerings and your (AB)peace offerings, and (AC)I will accept you, declares the Lord God.”

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 43:13 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters; a handbreadth was about 3 inches or 7.5 centimeters
  2. Ezekiel 43:13 Or its gutter shall be one cubit deep
  3. Ezekiel 43:13 A span was about 9 inches or 22 centimeters
  4. Ezekiel 43:26 Hebrew fill its hand

10 “Son of man, describe the temple to the people of Israel, that they may be ashamed(A) of their sins. Let them consider its perfection, 11 and if they are ashamed of all they have done, make known to them the design of the temple—its arrangement, its exits and entrances—its whole design and all its regulations[a] and laws. Write these down before them so that they may be faithful to its design and follow all its regulations.(B)

12 “This is the law of the temple: All the surrounding area(C) on top of the mountain will be most holy.(D) Such is the law of the temple.

The Great Altar Restored

13 “These are the measurements of the altar(E) in long cubits,[b] that cubit being a cubit and a handbreadth: Its gutter is a cubit deep and a cubit wide, with a rim of one span[c] around the edge. And this is the height of the altar: 14 From the gutter on the ground up to the lower ledge that goes around the altar it is two cubits high, and the ledge is a cubit wide.[d] From this lower ledge to the upper ledge that goes around the altar it is four cubits high, and that ledge is also a cubit wide.[e] 15 Above that, the altar hearth(F) is four cubits high, and four horns(G) project upward from the hearth. 16 The altar hearth is square, twelve cubits[f] long and twelve cubits wide.(H) 17 The upper ledge(I) also is square, fourteen cubits[g] long and fourteen cubits wide. All around the altar is a gutter of one cubit with a rim of half a cubit.[h] The steps(J) of the altar face east.(K)

18 Then he said to me, “Son of man, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: These will be the regulations for sacrificing burnt offerings(L) and splashing blood(M) against the altar when it is built: 19 You are to give a young bull(N) as a sin offering[i] to the Levitical priests of the family of Zadok,(O) who come near(P) to minister before me, declares the Sovereign Lord. 20 You are to take some of its blood and put it on the four horns of the altar(Q) and on the four corners of the upper ledge(R) and all around the rim, and so purify the altar(S) and make atonement for it. 21 You are to take the bull for the sin offering and burn it in the designated part of the temple area outside the sanctuary.(T)

22 “On the second day you are to offer a male goat without defect for 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 and a ram from the flock, both without defect.(U) 24 You are to offer them before the Lord, and the priests are to sprinkle salt(V) on them and sacrifice them as a burnt offering to the Lord.

25 “For seven days(W) you are to provide a male goat daily for a sin offering; you are also to provide a young bull and a ram from the flock, both without defect.(X) 26 For seven days they are to make atonement for the altar and cleanse it; thus they will dedicate it. 27 At the end of these days, from the eighth day(Y) on, the priests are to present your burnt offerings(Z) and fellowship offerings(AA) on the altar. Then I will accept you, declares the Sovereign Lord.”

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 43:11 Some Hebrew manuscripts and Septuagint; most Hebrew manuscripts regulations and its whole design
  2. Ezekiel 43:13 That is, about 21 inches or about 53 centimeters; also in verses 14 and 17. The long cubit is the basic unit for linear measurement throughout Ezekiel 40–48.
  3. Ezekiel 43:13 That is, about 11 inches or about 27 centimeters
  4. Ezekiel 43:14 That is, about 3 1/2 feet high and 1 3/4 feet wide or about 105 centimeters high and 53 centimeters wide
  5. Ezekiel 43:14 That is, about 7 feet high and 1 3/4 feet wide or about 2.1 meters high and 53 centimeters wide
  6. Ezekiel 43:16 That is, about 21 feet or about 6.4 meters
  7. Ezekiel 43:17 That is, about 25 feet or about 7.4 meters
  8. Ezekiel 43:17 That is, about 11 inches or about 27 centimeters
  9. Ezekiel 43:19 Or purification offering; also in verses 21, 22 and 25