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44 Then he [the angelic being] brought me back the derech sha’ar HaMikdash HaKhitzon, which looketh toward the east; and it was shut.

Then said Hashem unto me: This sha’ar shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no ish shall enter in by it; because Hashem Elohei Yisroel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut.

It is for the Nasi; the Nasi [see 34:23-24; 37:24-25, a "Dovid" or Messianic figure], he only shall sit in it to eat lechem before Hashem; he shall enter by the derech ulam hasha’ar, and shall exit by its derech.

Then he [the angelic being] brought me the derech sha’ar hatzafon to the front of the Beis {HaMikdash]; and I looked, and, hinei, the Kavod Hashem filled the Beis Hashem; and I fell upon my face.

And Hashem said unto me, Ben Adam, mark well, and behold with thine eyes, and hear with thine ears all that I say unto thee concerning all the chukkot Beis Hashem, and all the torot thereof; and mark well the entrances of the Beis [HaMikdash], with every exit of the Mikdash.

And thou shalt say to the meri (rebellious), even to the Bais Yisroel, Thus saith Adonoi Hashem; O ye Bais Yisroel, let it suffice you of all your to’avot (abominations),

In that ye have admitted into My Mikdash bnei nechor (foreigners), arelim in lev, and arelim in basar, to be in My Mikdash, to defile it, even My Beis, when ye offer My lechem, the chelev and the dahm, and they have broken My Brit (Covenant) because of all your to’avot (abominations).

And ye have not been shomer over the mishmeret of Mine Kadashim; but ye have set as shomrim of My mishmeret in My Mikdash any for yourselves.

Thus saith Adonoi Hashem: No ben nechor, arel lev, nor arel basar, shall enter into My Mikdash, of any ben nechor that is among the Bnei Yisroel.

10 And the Levi’im that went far away from Me, when Yisroel went astray, which went astray away from Me after their gillulim (idols); they shall even bear their avon.

11 Yet they shall be mesharetim (ministers) in My Mikdash, pekuddot (the ones who have charge) at the Sha’arei HaBeis [HaMikdash] and mesharetim in HaBeis [HaMikdash]; they shall do the shochet slaughter of the olah (burnt offering) and the zevach for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister unto them.

12 Because they ministered unto them before their gillulim, and caused Bais Yisroel a michshol avon; therefore have I lifted up Mine Yad against them, saith Adonoi Hashem, and nas’u (they shall bear) their avon.

13 And they shall not come near unto Me, to do the office of a Kohen unto Me, nor to come near to any of My kadashim, in the Kodesh HaKodashim; but nas’u their shame, and their to’avot which they have committed.

14 But I will make them Shomrei Meshmeret HaBeis [HaMikdash], for all the avodah thereof, and for all that shall be done therein.

15 But the Kohanim the Levi’im, the Bnei Tzadok, that were shomer over the Mishmeret of My Mikdash when the Bnei Yisroel went astray from Me, they shall come near to Me to minister unto Me, and they shall stand before Me to offer unto Me the chelev and the dahm, saith Adonoi Hashem;

16 They shall enter into My Mikdash, and they shall come near to My Shulchan, to minister unto Me, and they shall be shomer over My mishmeret.

17 And it shall come to pass, when they enter in at the Sha’arei HeKhatzer HaPenimit, they shall be clothed with linen; and no tzemer shall come upon them, while they minister at the Sha’arei HeKhatzer HaPenimit, within.

18 They shall have linen turbans upon their rosh, and shall have linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with that [clothing] with which one perspires.

19 And when they go forth into HaKhatzer HaKhitzonah, even into the Khatzer HaKhitzonah to HaAm, they shall take off their garments wherein they ministered, and lay them in the lishkhot hakodesh (holy chambers) and they shall put on begadim acharim; and they shall not set apart as kodesh HaAm with their begadim.

20 Neither shall they shave their rosh, nor allow their hair to grow long; they shall keep trimmed their rosh.

21 Neither shall any Kohen drink yayin, when they enter into the Khatzer HaPenimit.

22 Neither shall they take for their nashim an almanah, nor a gerushah; but they shall take betulot of the zera Bais Yisroel, or an almanah who was almanah of a Kohen.

23 And they shall teach My people the difference between the kodesh and chol, and cause them to discern between the tameh and the tahor.

24 And in a riv they shall stand as shofet; and they shall judge it according to My mishpatim; and they shall adjudicate them in accordance with My torot and My chukkot in all Mine mo’adim; and they shall be shomer to keep My Shabbatot kodesh.

25 And they shall come near no met adam to make themselves tameh; but for av, or for em, or for ben, or for bat, for ach, or for achot that hath had no ish, they may make themselves tameh.

26 And after he is made tahor, they shall reckon unto him shivat yamim.

27 And in the yom that he goeth into the Kodesh, unto the Khatzer HaPenimit, to minister in the Kodesh, he shall offer his chattat, saith Adonoi Hashem.

28 And it shall be unto them for a nachalah; I am their nachalah; and ye shall give them no achuzzah in Yisroel; I am their achuzzah.

29 They shall eat the minchah, and the chattat, and the asham; and kol cherem in Yisroel shall be theirs.

30 And the reshit kol bikkurim of all things, and every terumah of all, of every sort of your terumot, shall belong to the Kohanim; ye shall also give unto the Kohen the reshit of your dough, that he may cause the brocha to rest on thine bais.

31 The Kohanim shall not eat of any thing nevelah, or terefah, whether it be oph or behemah.

The Priesthood Restored

44 Then the man brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, the one facing east,(A) and it was shut. The Lord said to me, “This gate is to remain shut. It must not be opened; no one may enter through it.(B) It is to remain shut because the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered through it. The prince himself is the only one who may sit inside the gateway to eat in the presence(C) of the Lord. He is to enter by way of the portico of the gateway and go out the same way.(D)

Then the man brought me by way of the north gate(E) to the front of the temple. I looked and saw the glory of the Lord filling the temple(F) of the Lord, and I fell facedown.(G)

The Lord said to me, “Son of man, look carefully, listen closely and give attention to everything I tell you concerning all the regulations and instructions regarding the temple of the Lord. Give attention to the entrance(H) to the temple and all the exits of the sanctuary.(I) Say to rebellious Israel,(J) ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Enough of your detestable practices, people of Israel! In addition to all your other detestable practices, you brought foreigners uncircumcised in heart(K) and flesh into my sanctuary, desecrating my temple while you offered me food, fat and blood, and you broke my covenant.(L) Instead of carrying out your duty in regard to my holy things, you put others in charge of my sanctuary.(M) This is what the Sovereign Lord says: No foreigner uncircumcised in heart and flesh is to enter my sanctuary, not even the foreigners who live among the Israelites.(N)

10 “‘The Levites who went far from me when Israel went astray(O) and who wandered from me after their idols must bear the consequences of their sin.(P) 11 They may serve in my sanctuary, having charge of the gates of the temple and serving in it; they may slaughter the burnt offerings(Q) and sacrifices for the people and stand before the people and serve them.(R) 12 But because they served them in the presence of their idols and made the people of Israel fall(S) into sin, therefore I have sworn with uplifted hand(T) that they must bear the consequences of their sin, declares the Sovereign Lord.(U) 13 They are not to come near to serve me as priests or come near any of my holy things or my most holy offerings; they must bear the shame(V) of their detestable practices.(W) 14 And I will appoint them to guard the temple for all the work that is to be done in it.(X)

15 “‘But the Levitical priests, who are descendants of Zadok(Y) and who guarded my sanctuary when the Israelites went astray from me, are to come near to minister before me; they are to stand before me to offer sacrifices of fat(Z) and blood, declares the Sovereign Lord.(AA) 16 They alone are to enter my sanctuary; they alone are to come near my table(AB) to minister before me and serve me as guards.(AC)

17 “‘When they enter the gates of the inner court, they are to wear linen clothes;(AD) they must not wear any woolen garment while ministering at the gates of the inner court or inside the temple. 18 They are to wear linen turbans(AE) on their heads and linen undergarments(AF) around their waists. They must not wear anything that makes them perspire.(AG) 19 When they go out into the outer court where the people are, they are to take off the clothes they have been ministering in and are to leave them in the sacred rooms, and put on other clothes, so that the people are not consecrated(AH) through contact with their garments.(AI)

20 “‘They must not shave(AJ) their heads or let their hair grow long, but they are to keep the hair of their heads trimmed.(AK) 21 No priest is to drink wine when he enters the inner court.(AL) 22 They must not marry widows or divorced women; they may marry only virgins of Israelite descent or widows of priests.(AM) 23 They are to teach my people the difference between the holy and the common(AN) and show them how to distinguish between the unclean and the clean.(AO)

24 “‘In any dispute, the priests are to serve as judges(AP) and decide it according to my ordinances. They are to keep my laws and my decrees for all my appointed festivals,(AQ) and they are to keep my Sabbaths holy.(AR)

25 “‘A priest must not defile himself by going near a dead person; however, if the dead person was his father or mother, son or daughter, brother or unmarried sister, then he may defile himself.(AS) 26 After he is cleansed, he must wait seven days.(AT) 27 On the day he goes into the inner court of the sanctuary(AU) to minister in the sanctuary, he is to offer a sin offering[a](AV) for himself, declares the Sovereign Lord.

28 “‘I am to be the only inheritance(AW) the priests have. You are to give them no possession in Israel; I will be their possession. 29 They will eat(AX) the grain offerings, the sin offerings and the guilt offerings; and everything in Israel devoted[b] to the Lord(AY) will belong to them.(AZ) 30 The best of all the firstfruits(BA) and of all your special gifts will belong to the priests. You are to give them the first portion of your ground meal(BB) so that a blessing(BC) may rest on your household.(BD) 31 The priests must not eat anything, whether bird or animal, found dead(BE) or torn by wild animals.(BF)

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 44:27 Or purification offering; also in verse 29
  2. Ezekiel 44:29 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord.