Ezekiel 43

1Then he led me to the gate, the gate that faces east.

2There I saw the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east. His voice was like the roar of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory.

3The vision I saw was like the vision I had seen when I came to destroy the city, and like the vision I had seen by the Chebar River. I fell facedown.

4The glory of Yahweh entered the temple by the gate that faces east.

5Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and the glory of Yahweh filled the temple.

6I heard someone speaking to me from the temple, while a man was standing beside me.

7He said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of my throne and the place for the soles of my feet, where I will dwell among the Israelites forever. The house of Israel will never again defile my holy name, neither they nor their kings, by their prostitution and by the corpses of their kings at their high places.

8When they set their threshold by my threshold and their doorpost beside my doorpost, with only a wall between me and them, they defiled my holy name by the abominations they committed, so I consumed them in my anger.

9Now let them put their prostitution and the corpses of their kings far away from me, and I will dwell among them forever.

10As for you, son of man, describe the temple to the house of Israel, so that they may be ashamed of their iniquities, and let them measure its plan.

11If they are ashamed of all they have done, make known to them the design of the temple, its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, all its designs and all its statutes, all its designs and all its laws. Write it down in their sight, so that they may keep its whole design and all its statutes and carry them out.

12This is the law of the temple: all its territory all around on the top of the mountain will be most holy. Yes, this is the law of the temple.”

13These are the measurements of the altar in cubits, each cubit being a cubit and a handbreadth. Its base is a cubit high and a cubit wide, with a rim of one span around its edge. This is the height of the altar:

14From the base on the ground to the lower ledge is two cubits, and the ledge is one cubit wide. From the smaller ledge to the larger ledge is four cubits, and that ledge is one cubit wide.

15The altar hearth is four cubits high, and four horns project upward from the hearth.

16The altar hearth is square, twelve cubits long and twelve cubits wide, with four equal sides.

17The ledge is fourteen cubits long and fourteen cubits wide on all four sides, with a rim of half a cubit around it and a base of one cubit all around. Its steps face east.

18Then he said to me, “Son of man, this is what Lord Yahweh says: These are the regulations for the altar on the day it is built, so that burnt offerings may be offered on it and blood splashed on it.

19You are to give a young bull as a sin offering to the Levitical priests who are descended from Zadok, who come near to me to minister to me, declares Lord Yahweh.

20You are to take some of its blood and put it on the four horns of the altar, on the four corners of the ledge, and on the rim all around. In this way you will purify the altar and make atonement for it.

21Then you are to take the bull for the sin offering and burn it in the designated place belonging to the temple, outside the sanctuary.

22On the second day you are to offer a male goat without defect as a sin offering, and they are to purify the altar as they purified it with the bull.

23When you have finished purifying it, you are to offer a young bull without defect and a ram from the flock without defect.

24You are to present them before Yahweh, and the priests are to throw salt on them and offer them up as a burnt offering to Yahweh.

25For seven days you are to provide a goat each day as a sin offering. They are also to provide a young bull and a ram from the flock, both without defect.

26For seven days they are to make atonement for the altar and purify it, and so consecrate it.

27When they have completed these days, then from the eighth day on the priests are to offer your burnt offerings and your fellowship offerings on the altar, and I will accept you, declares Lord Yahweh.”