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The Prophets · Old Testament

Ezekiel 42

Ezekiel 42: the priests' chambers and the five hundred reeds

General context

The man brings the prophet into the utter court toward the north, into the chamber over against the separate place. Its north door stands before a length of a hundred cubits, the breadth fifty. Gallery stands against gallery in three storeys, over against the inner court and the pavement, with a walk ten cubits broad before the chambers, their doors toward the north. The upper chambers are shorter, because the galleries were higher than these, than the lower and than the middlemost; they have no pillars like those of the courts, so the building is straitened from the ground. The wall without, toward the utter court, is fifty cubits long, the chambers in the utter court fifty, before the temple a hundred, with an entry on the east side under the chambers. Chambers stand in the thickness of the east wall, and the way before them is like the chambers toward the north, as long and as broad, with the same goings out and doors. The man then calls the north and south chambers before the separate place holy chambers, where the priests that approach unto the Lord eat the most holy things and lay the meat, sin and trespass offerings. The priests are not to go out into the utter court until they leave their holy ministering garments there and put on other garments to approach what is for the people. Having ended the measuring of the inner house, the man brings the prophet to the east gate: east, north, south and west sides, five hundred reeds each. A wall five hundred reeds long and five hundred broad surrounds it "to make a separation between the sanctuary and the profane place".

Cited passages: Ezekiel 42:1, Ezekiel 42:2, Ezekiel 42:3, Ezekiel 42:4, Ezekiel 42:5, Ezekiel 42:6, Ezekiel 42:7, Ezekiel 42:8, Ezekiel 42:9, Ezekiel 42:10, Ezekiel 42:11, Ezekiel 42:12, Ezekiel 42:13, Ezekiel 42:14, Ezekiel 42:15, Ezekiel 42:16, Ezekiel 42:17, Ezekiel 42:18, Ezekiel 42:19, Ezekiel 42:20

Ezekiel 42 (KJV)

1Then he brought me forth into the utter court, the way toward the north: and he brought me into the chamber that was over against the separate place, and which was before the building toward the north.

2Before the length of an hundred cubits was the north door, and the breadth was fifty cubits.

3Over against the twenty cubits which were for the inner court, and over against the pavement which was for the utter court, was gallery against gallery in three stories.

4And before the chambers was a walk of ten cubits breadth inward, a way of one cubit; and their doors toward the north.

5Now the upper chambers were shorter: for the galleries were higher than these, than the lower, and than the middlemost of the building.

6For they were in three stories, but had not pillars as the pillars of the courts: therefore the building was straitened more than the lowest and the middlemost from the ground.

7And the wall that was without over against the chambers, toward the utter court on the forepart of the chambers, the length thereof was fifty cubits.

8For the length of the chambers that were in the utter court was fifty cubits: and, lo, before the temple were an hundred cubits.

9And from under these chambers was the entry on the east side, as one goeth into them from the utter court.

10The chambers were in the thickness of the wall of the court toward the east, over against the separate place, and over against the building.

11And the way before them was like the appearance of the chambers which were toward the north, as long as they, and as broad as they: and all their goings out were both according to their fashions, and according to their doors.

12And according to the doors of the chambers that were toward the south was a door in the head of the way, even the way directly before the wall toward the east, as one entereth into them.

13Then said he unto me, The north chambers and the south chambers, which are before the separate place, they be holy chambers, where the priests that approach unto the Lord shall eat the most holy things: there shall they lay the most holy things, and the meat offering, and the sin offering, and the trespass offering; for the place is holy.

14When the priests enter therein, then shall they not go out of the holy place into the utter court, but there they shall lay their garments wherein they minister; for they are holy; and shall put on other garments, and shall approach to those things which are for the people.

15Now when he had made an end of measuring the inner house, he brought me forth toward the gate whose prospect is toward the east, and measured it round about.

16He measured the east side with the measuring reed, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed round about.

17He measured the north side, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed round about.

18He measured the south side, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed.

19He turned about to the west side, and measured five hundred reeds with the measuring reed.

20He measured it by the four sides: it had a wall round about, five hundred reeds long, and five hundred broad, to make a separation between the sanctuary and the profane place.

This page shows the King James Version. In the app, reading opens in the Berean Standard Bible unless you have chosen another translation. The reader includes five translations: the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), the King James Version (KJV), the World English Bible (WEB), the Bible in Basic English (BBE), and the American Standard Version (ASV). Search covers three of them: Berean Standard, King James, and World English. Basic English and American Standard readers search the King James words.

Historical context

The chapter has no date and continues the tour of chapters 40 and 41 with the same unnamed guide. "Utter court" is the KJV's term for the outer court, set against "the inner court" in verse 3. The purpose of the chambers is given in the man's own words, and it is the only explanation in the chapter: the priests eat the most holy things there and leave their ministering garments there before going out to the people. The priests are described only as "the priests that approach unto the Lord"; the earlier chamber assignment named "the sons of Zadok". The perimeter is measured in reeds, not cubits, and the text does not convert; the reed was defined in 40:5 as six cubits by the cubit and a hand breadth. Several verses describing the galleries, the shortened upper chambers and the eastern chambers are hard to reconstruct exactly from the printed words, and the text does not resolve them. The closing wall is given a stated function, separation between sanctuary and profane, but no builder or time.

Cited passages: Ezekiel 42:1, Ezekiel 42:3, Ezekiel 42:13, Ezekiel 42:14, Ezekiel 40:46, Ezekiel 42:16, Ezekiel 40:5, Ezekiel 42:5, Ezekiel 42:20

Literary context

The chapter falls into two parts, a description of chambers and a measurement of the whole enclosure. The first part is the hardest reading in the vision, layered with galleries, storeys, walls and ways; then the guide's speech in verses 13 and 14 gives the rooms a use, as the note about the tables and priests' chambers did in chapter 40. The word holy governs that speech: "holy chambers", "the most holy things", "the holy place", garments that "are holy". The second part is the plainest writing in the vision. Four sentences with the same shape, one for each side, each carrying "five hundred reeds" and "the measuring reed", walk the reader round the outside, and the fifth sentence states the sum and its purpose. The tour that began at an outer wall in 40:5 ends at an outer wall here, so the measuring is closed off before the next chapter changes register. The final clause names the reason for all the walls and gates at once: "a separation between the sanctuary and the profane place".

Cited passages: Ezekiel 42:3, Ezekiel 42:13, Ezekiel 42:14, Ezekiel 40:45, Ezekiel 42:16, Ezekiel 42:19, Ezekiel 42:20, Ezekiel 40:5, Ezekiel 42:15

Key moments

  1. Chambers toward the north (Ezekiel 42:1). The man leads the prophet into the outer court and the chamber facing the separate place.
  2. Galleries in three storeys (Ezekiel 42:3). Gallery stands against gallery in three storeys between the inner court and the pavement.
  3. Holy chambers for the priests (Ezekiel 42:13). The man says the north and south chambers are where the priests eat the most holy things.
  4. Garments left behind (Ezekiel 42:14). Priests must lay down their holy ministering garments before going out to the people.
  5. Five hundred reeds on the east (Ezekiel 42:16). The man measures the east side of the enclosure at five hundred reeds.
  6. Sanctuary set apart from profane (Ezekiel 42:20). A wall five hundred reeds square separates the sanctuary from the profane place.

For reflection

The priests are told to leave the garments they minister in behind before they go out to the people, because the garments are holy. What is the text guarding by keeping the two sets of clothes, and the two spaces, apart?