42 Then he led me into the outer courtyard — the route went north — and brought me to the [block of] rooms opposite the separated yard and opposite the building to the north. ² The length of the front was 175 feet on the north side, where the door was; the width was eighty-seven-and-a-half feet. ³ It was located between the inner courtyard, which was thirty-five feet wide, and the flooring of the outer courtyard. It had galleries, one above the other, on three floors. ⁴ In front of the [block of] rooms was a walkway seventeen-and-a-half feet wide and a path twenty-one inches [wide]; their doors faced north.

⁵ The upper rooms were shorter, because the galleries took up some of their space, more than from the [rooms on the] lower and middle [floors] of the building. ⁶ For the rooms were on three floors, and they didn’t have columns like those in the courtyards; therefore space was taken away from the [rooms on the] lower and middle [floors], in comparison with the ground. ⁷ The length of the wall outside, next to the rooms, toward the outer courtyard in front of the rooms, was eighty-seven-and-a-half feet. ⁸ For the length of the rooms toward the outer courtyard was eighty-seven-and-a-half feet, whereas [the length of] the side facing the sanctuary was 175 feet. ⁹ Under these rooms was the entrance to the east side, leading in from the outer courtyard.

¹⁰ In the width of the courtyard wall on the east, facing the separated yard and facing the building, there were rooms, ¹¹ with a passageway in front of them, similar to the rooms on the north. They were the same length and width and had similarly made exits and entrances.

¹² By the entrances of the rooms on the south there was an entrance at the end of the passage, the passageway right in front of the wall, toward the eastern entrances.

¹³ Then he said to me, “The north and south [blocks of] rooms in front of the separated yard are the holy rooms where the cohanim who approach Adonai will eat the especially holy things. This is where they will put the especially holy things — the grain offerings, sin offerings and guilt offerings; for the place is holy. ¹⁴ When the cohanim come, they will not go out of the [Especially] Holy Place into the outer courtyard; rather, they will leave [in these rooms] the clothes they use when ministering, because they are holy. They will put on other clothes and only then approach the areas permitted to the people.”

¹⁵ After he had finished measuring the inner house, he brought me out by way of the gate facing east and measured the whole area. ¹⁶ He measured the east side with the measuring rod; it was 875 feet by the measuring rod. ¹⁷ He measured the north side; it was 875 feet by the measuring rod. ¹⁸ He measured the south side; it was 875 feet by the measuring rod. ¹⁹ He turned to the west side and measured 875 feet with the measuring rod. ²⁰ He measured its four sides; it had a wall around it; and it was 875 [feet] long and 875 [feet] wide. Thus a division was made between what was holy and what was common.