Ezekiel 42

KJV · Chapter 42/48

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.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Ezekiel sees the sacred chambers set apart for the priests, where they would store their special garments and eat the most holy offerings, and the angel finishes measuring the entire outer perimeter of the temple complex.

Explanation

The specific chambers where priests would change clothes before going out into the public court (v.14) reveal a central concern of this temple: clearly separating what is holy from what is common, preventing the holiness of the priestly garments from 'contaminating' or confusing the common people through careless contact. This careful separation between sacred and common spaces reflects a larger principle of the book: God's holiness demands structural reverence, not just an inward feeling. The final measurement of the total perimeter, forming a perfect square of five hundred rods on each side, also conveys a sense of completeness and perfect order, in direct contrast to the chaos and destruction seen at the beginning of the book.

Fun facts

  • The practice of priests changing garments before interacting with the common public has a direct parallel in Leviticus 6:10-11, showing continuity between the original Mosaic law and this vision of restoration.
  • The perfect square shape of the entire temple complex (500 rods per side) is interpreted by commentators as a symbol of geometric perfection, visually reinforcing the idea of divinely restored order.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Ezekiel 42:1The guide takes Ezekiel back to the outer court to see a set of chambers on the north side, near the building described in the previous chapter.
  2. Ezekiel 42:2Measures the length and width of these chambers on the north side, following the same detailed pattern used throughout the vision.
  3. Ezekiel 42:3Describes how these chambers were arranged in three stories, with galleries facing both the inner and outer courts.
  4. Ezekiel 42:4Describes the access corridors to the chambers, with specific measurements for the walkway and the entrances on the north side.
  5. Ezekiel 42:5Notes that the upper stories were narrower than the lower ones, because of how the galleries were built — a practical detail of how the building tapered as it rose.
  6. Ezekiel 42:6Explains this feature: since they had no support columns like those in the court, the upper stories had to be narrower than the ones below.
  7. Ezekiel 42:7Measures the outer wall that stood in front of these chambers, on the side facing the outer court.
  8. Ezekiel 42:8Relates the length of these chambers, fifty cubits, to the total measurement of the area facing the temple, a hundred cubits, locating this structure within the larger complex.
  9. Ezekiel 42:9Locates the entrance to these chambers on the east side, showing how they were reached from the outer court.
  10. Ezekiel 42:10Describes another set of chambers, this time on the east side of the complex, mirroring the structure already described on the north side.
  11. Ezekiel 42:11Confirms that these chambers on the east side followed exactly the same pattern of measurements and layout as the chambers on the north side.
  12. Ezekiel 42:12Describes the access to the chambers on the south side, with a specific entrance lined up with the path coming from the east side.
  13. Ezekiel 42:13The rooms set aside for priests to change clothes before returning among the people show a practical concern in the text: the garments used in the most sacred service could not mix with the common environment; they were changed before any contact with the public.
  14. Ezekiel 42:14Explains the function of these chambers: priests changed clothes there before going out to the areas used by the common people, preserving the separation between the sacred and the everyday.
  15. Ezekiel 42:15After finishing the inner measurements, the guide takes Ezekiel outside, through the east gate, to now measure the outer perimeter of the whole complex.
  16. Ezekiel 42:16Measures the east side of the whole complex, using the measuring rod, coming to five hundred reeds in length.
  17. Ezekiel 42:17Measures the north side with the same measurement, keeping the symmetry already observed throughout the temple vision.
  18. Ezekiel 42:18Measures the south side of the complex, matching the same five-hundred-reed pattern seen on the other sides.
  19. Ezekiel 42:19Measures the west side, completing the full circuit around the whole temple complex.
  20. Ezekiel 42:20The wall separating “the sanctuary and the profane place” sums up the logic of the whole temple design: increasingly restricted zones of access, from the outer court to the innermost space, physically organizing different levels of holiness.

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