Ezekiel 40

Ezekiel 40 follows Ezekiel 39, which closes with the prophecy against Gog and the promise of Israel's restoration, and opens the vision of the new temple that occupies the book's final section, chapters 40–48. The vision is dated "in the five and twentieth year of our captivity," the fourteenth year after the fall of Jerusalem, commonly placed around 573 BC.

Outline

• Verses 1–4 The hand of the LORD brings Ezekiel to a very high mountain in the land of Israel. A man whose appearance shines like brass, holding a line of flax and a measuring reed, tells him to declare what he sees to the house of Israel.
• Verse 5 The outer wall is measured with a reed six cubits long. The wall is one reed thick and one reed high.
• Verses 6–16 The gate facing east is measured. It has three guard chambers on each side; the distance from the outer face of the gate to the porch of the inner gate is fifty cubits, and palm trees are carved on the gate posts.
• Verses 17–19 The outer court has a pavement (thinly dressed stone laid as flooring), with thirty chambers upon it.
• Verses 20–27 The north and south gates of the outer court have the same measurements as the east gate, and each is approached by seven steps.
• Verses 28–37 The south, east, and north gates of the inner court are measured. Each is fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide and is approached by eight steps.
• Verses 38–43 There is a chamber for washing the burnt offering, along with eight tables for slaying the sacrifices and four tables of hewn stone.
• Verses 44–46 The inner court contains two chambers. One is for the priests who keep charge of the house, and the other for the priests of the sons of Zadok, who keep charge of the altar.
• Verse 47 The inner court is a square of one hundred cubits on each side, and the altar stands before the house.
• Verses 48–49 The porch of the house is measured. Steps lead up to the porch, and a pillar stands on each side beside the posts.

Key Verses

• Ezekiel 40:4 "Declare all that thou seest to the house of Israel" — This indicates that the measuring vision that follows is not merely Ezekiel's personal experience but a message to be delivered to the exilic community.
• Ezekiel 40:46 "These are the sons of Zadok among the sons of Levi, which come near to the LORD to minister unto him" — This designates the priestly line that will serve at the altar in the new temple and leads into the priestly regulations of chapter 44.

People and Places

• Ezekiel: The prophet who received and recorded the visions during the Babylonian exile.
• The measuring man: With an appearance shining like brass and holding a line of flax and a measuring reed, he guides Ezekiel. The text does not identify who he is.
• Zadok: A priest in the time of David and Solomon. The text designates his descendants as the priests who will serve at the altar.
• The very high mountain: A mountain in the land of Israel, with the frame of a city visible to its south. The text does not name the mountain.

Points for Reflection

• The cubit is a unit of length that also appears in the regulations for Old Testament sacrifices. The cubit in this chapter is a long cubit, a handbreadth longer than the ordinary cubit, and one reed is often calculated at about 3 meters.
• The Second Temple, built after the return from exile, was not constructed according to this plan. As a result, views differ on how the vision should be understood.
• Those who follow dispensationalism read it as a temple that will actually be built during the millennial kingdom.
• Interpreters in the Reformed and covenant theology traditions regard it as a symbol of God's presence and restored worship, finding its fulfillment in Christ and the church and in the new heavens and new earth.
• Others see it as an ideal blueprint given to the returning community.
• In the New Testament, the measuring of the temple in Revelation 11:1 and the measuring of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21:15–17 are often read alongside the measuring scenes of this chapter.