Ezekiel 41

1 Then the man [the angelic guide] brought me into the outer [external, outermost] sanctuary [the temple, a sacred place] and measured [to stretch or extend, to determine the size] the side pillars [the posts, upright supports] to be six cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] wide on each side [on both sides, equally spaced]. word study 2 The width [breadth, measuring across] of the entrance [doorway, gateway] was ten cubits, and the sides [shoulders, upper parts] of the entrance were five cubits on each side [one side and the other]. He also measured [stretched out, extended] the length [distance, span] of the outer sanctuary to be forty cubits, and the width [breadth, expanse] to be twenty cubits. word study 3 And he went [inward, to the innermost part] into the inner sanctuary [the most holy place] and measured [to stretch or extend, to determine the size] the side pillars [upright posts, doorposts] at the entrance [the pethach, doorway or gate] to be two [a pair or dual] cubits [amot, the length of a forearm] wide. The entrance [the doorway, gate] was six cubits wide, and the walls [the sides or barriers] on each side [the surrounding areas] were seven cubits wide. word study 4 Then he measured [stretched or extended] the room [chamber, inner sanctuary] adjacent to the inner sanctuary [most holy place, sacred area] to be twenty [a multiple of ten] cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] long and twenty cubits wide [in breadth, spacious]. And he said to me, “This [this specific place, namely] is the Most Holy Place [the holy of holies, sacred and set-apart area].” word study 5 Next he measured [took the dimensions of] the wall [structure, barrier] of the temple [place of worship, holy dwelling] to be six cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] thick, and the width [breadth, extent] of each side room [chamber, cell] around [surrounding, encompassing] the temple was four cubits. word study 6 The side [rib, architectural support] rooms were arranged one above another in three levels of thirty [a multiple of ten] rooms each. There were ledges [supports, projections] all around the wall [a barrier, a divider] of the temple [a sacred dwelling place] to serve as supports [holds, graspers] for the side rooms, so that the supports [holds, graspers] would not be fastened [attached, joined] into the wall [a barrier, a divider] of the temple [a sacred dwelling place] itself. word study 7 The side rooms [chambers, inner chambers] surrounding the temple [the house of God, a dwelling place] widened [enlarged, became broader] at each successive level [story, floor], because the structure [the building, the walls] surrounding the temple [the house] ascended [rose, went up] by stages [in a spiral manner, winding about] corresponding to the narrowing [the lessening, the decrease] of the temple wall [the side of the house] as it rose upward [higher and higher, above]. And so [thus, in this way] a stairway [a set of stairs, a winding staircase] went up from the lowest [the bottom, the lower] story [floor, level] to the highest [the top, the upper], through the middle [the central, the midst] one. word study 8 I saw that the temple [house of worship, sanctuary] had a raised base [platform, foundation] all around it, forming the foundation [basis, support] of the side rooms [chambers, compartments]. It was the full length [extent, measurement] of a rod [reed, measuring stick], six long cubits [units of measurement, about the length of a forearm]. word study 9 The outer wall [thickness, breadth] of the side rooms [chambers, ribs] was five [a quantity of five, a specific measurement] cubits [a unit of length, about the length of a forearm] thick, and the open area [free space, place of rest] between the side rooms [chambers, ribs] of the temple [house, dwelling place] word study 10 and the outer chambers [between the rooms, a row of rooms] was twenty [a score, two tens] cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] wide [broad, having a certain breadth] all around [encompassing, surrounding] the temple [house, a dwelling place, the Lord’s house]. word study 11 The side rooms [chambers, inner rooms] opened into this area [open space, place that was left], with one entrance [door, gateway] on the north [Zaphon, the northern direction] and another [one, a single] on the south [the southern direction, toward the south wind]. The open area [place that was left, free space] was five [a small number, a few] cubits [a unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] wide [broad, having a large extent] all around [surrounding, encompassing]. word study 12 Now the building [structure, edifice] that faced [stood before, was in front of] the temple courtyard [separate place, sacred area] on the west [toward the sea, in the direction of the Mediterranean] was seventy [a large number, numerous] cubits [units of measurement, about the length of a forearm] wide, and the wall [barrier, partition] of the building was five [a small number, a few] cubits thick [broad, having a certain width] all around [surrounding, encompassing], with a length [distance, extent] of ninety [a large quantity, numerous] cubits. word study 13 Then he measured [stretched or extended] the temple [house, dwelling place] to be a hundred [numerical value, multitude] cubits [unit of measurement, about the length of a forearm] long, and the temple courtyard [separate place, area of separation] and the building [structure, edifice] with its walls [barrier, enclosure] were also a hundred cubits long. word study 14 The width [breadth, expanse] of the temple courtyard [separate place, sacred area] on the east [direction, facing the rising sun], including [with, together with] the front [face, presence] of the temple [house, dwelling place], was a hundred [one hundred, numerous] cubits [units of measurement, forearm lengths]. word study 15 Next he measured [stretched out, extended] the length [distance, extent] of the building [structure, edifice] facing [towards, in the direction of] the temple [God’s dwelling place, holy sanctuary] courtyard [open area, enclosure] at the rear [back, hind part] of the temple, including [with, together with] its galleries [porches, ledges] on each side; it was a hundred [one hundred, numerous] cubits [units of measurement, forearm lengths]. The outer [external, outermost] sanctuary [holy place, set apart area], the inner [interior, most holy] sanctuary [sacred space, divine dwelling], and the porticoes [covered areas, entrance halls] facing [towards, in the direction of] the court [open area, enclosure], word study 16 as well as the thresholds [door sills, gate posts] and the beveled windows [narrow windows, closed windows] and the galleries [ledges, porches] all around with their three [triple, thrice] levels opposite the threshold [door sill, gate post], were overlaid with wood [tree, wooden plank] on all sides [encompassing, surrounding]. They were paneled [wainscotted, covered with wood] from the ground [land, earth] to the windows [holes in the wall], and the windows [openings, apertures] were covered [shut, blocked]. word study 17 In the space [over] above the outside [exterior, outer area] of the entrance [doorway, gate] to the inner [interior, internal] sanctuary [holy place, temple] on all [every, the entire] the walls [barriers, partitions], spaced [arranged, positioned] evenly [uniformly, in order] around [surrounding, encompassing] the inner [interior, internal] and outer [external, exterior] sanctuary [holy place, temple], word study 18 were alternating [decorated with, made with] carved cherubim [angelic beings, heavenly guardians] and palm trees. Each cherub [heavenly creature, divine messenger] had two [a pair, dual] faces [visible expressions, countenances]: word study 19 the face [presence, countenance] of a man [human, Adam] was toward [facing, directed to] the palm tree on one side, and the face [presence, countenance] of a young lion [youthful strength] was toward [facing, directed to] the palm tree on the other side. They were carved [made, fashioned] all the way [completely, throughout] around [encompassing, surrounding] the temple [house, dwelling place]. word study 20 Cherubim [angelic beings, heavenly guardians] and palm trees were carved on the wall [a barrier, a divider] of the outer sanctuary [a holy place, a temple] from the floor [the ground, the foundation] to the space [the area, the region] above the entrance [the doorway, the gate]. word study 21 The outer sanctuary [the Holy Place, set apart for God’s presence] had a rectangular [squared, foursquare] doorframe, and the doorframe [post, side post] of the sanctuary [the temple, a sacred dwelling place] was similar [in appearance, having the same sight]. word study 22 There was an altar [of sacrifice, a place of offering] of wood [tree, a strong and firm object] three cubits [about 5.2 feet, a unit of measurement] high and two cubits [about 3.5 feet, a standard length] square. Its corners [angles, a structural joint], base [foundation, a supporting part], and sides [walls, a surrounding structure] were of wood [made from trees, a natural material]. And the man told me, “This is the table [a shulchan, a place of communion] that is before [in the presence of, facing] the LORD [Yehovah, the supreme God].” word study 23 Both the outer [holy place, sacred area] sanctuary and the inner [very holy, set-apart] sanctuary had double [two, paired] doors [swinging gates, entrances], word study 24 and each door [having two leaves, swinging panels] had two [a pair, dual] swinging panels [turning leaves, that opened and closed]. There were two [a pair, dual] panels for one [single, unique] door [entrance, access point] and two [a pair, dual] for the other [next, following]. word study 25 Cherubim [angelic beings, heavenly guardians] and palm trees like those on the walls were carved on the doors [entrances, gateways] of the outer sanctuary [the temple, a sacred place], and there was a wooden [made of tree, a natural material] canopy [a covering, a roof] outside [in the open air, beyond the walls], on the front [the face, the exterior] of the portico [a covered area, a vestibule]. word study 26 There were beveled [narrow, closed] windows and palm trees [decorative columns shaped like palms] on the sidewalls [sides, ribs] of the portico [covered area, porch]. The side rooms [chambers, inner rooms] of the temple also had canopies [roofs, thick planks]. word study