Ezekiel 42

Ezekiel 42:1

THen brought he me forth into the utter court] This is not to be understood of the utter spacious Court described at large in Chap. 40. or the first Court that you were to come into, when you went into the Temple: but this is a Court that was on the outside of the buildings, that stood facing those buildings that joyned to the Temple, which indeed was in the inner Court properly so called; yet was it an outer Court in comparison of that which lay along between those buildings, Chap. 41. 10.

the way toward the North] From the Temple the Angel and the Prophet marched downward along toward the East gate of the inner Court, in the spacious and stately way that lay along between the buildings, till they came to a fair & spacious crossing walk that was at the furthest end of them Eastward, and ran from North to South an hundred cubits long, and fifty broad, and so farre broad between the end of the buildings and the East gate: when they therefore came to the end or point of the buildings on the North side even into this walk they turned off upon the left hand, and went behind those buildings where was, as it were, an outer Court within the great inner Court wall.

and he brought me into the chamber, &c.] Chamber, for Chambers, one number being put for another, which is most usuall and common in the Hebrew Tongue. Now by these chambers he meaneth that row of buildings which stood on the North side of the house, not joyning to the house, but at twenty cubits distance from the buildings that did joyne to it. That space is called the separate place, and the Temple is called the building in the clauses next following in this verse.

the separate place] Chap. 41. 12.

Ezekiel 42:2

Before the length of an hundred cubits, &c.] This is to be understood on the North side of these buildings Northward, and that as there was a space between them and the Temple inward, which was an hundred cubits long, and twenty broad, so was there a like space betwixt them and the North wall of the inner Court an hundred cubits long, and fifty broad: And the doore that went into the buildings, was not on their South side toward the Temple, but on the North side of them toward the Court wall.

Ezekiel 42:3

Over against the twenty cubits, &c.] Thus stood the chambers betwixt two faire open spaces: and not onely so, but also between two galleries joyning to them, on either side one: For thus are we to conceive of this row of buildings on the North side, and accordingly on the South: The buildings as they were a great length, so were they a great thicknesse: and if you went and stood at the East end of them, and looked upon them, they were of this composure. In the middle were the chambers, and on either side a gallerie, the one into the separate place toward the Temple, on the South side of the chambers, and the other into the space betwixt the buildings and the inner Court wall, or on the North side: which space was paved.

gallery was against gallery in three stories] These galleries may be very fitly resembled to the rowes in Westchester that lie between the houses and the street, where they can walke drie in the greatest raine; and in some places is one row or gallerie above another: even so was it with these to three stories high. Now by gallery against gallery, is not to be understood that they stood fronting, or facing one another, but one backing another, and the chambers between.

Ezekiel 42:4

And before the chambers was a walk of ten cubits breadth inward] That is, within the gallery on either side, and so the galleries took up twentie cubits of the thicknesse of the building: and on the outside of either gallery was a way of a cubit broad, much like the flagged way before the houses in Cheapside, or in Covent garden.

and their doores toward the north] Though it had been neer to the Temple or Altar, to have had the doores toward the separate place, yet was it not so fitting in regard of the reverence of the place: therefore he that would goe into those chambers must goe on the backside of these buildings, or to their North.

Ezekiel 42:5

Now the upper chambers were shorter] Heb. cut off, or abridged. For the higher gallery ever grew more large then that below it; and the reason seemeth to be, that the people at the solemn festivals when the multitudes were so great, upon these galleries might behold the sacrifices, and heare the service of the Temple: and the higher they were the better they might see, and therefore the higher galleries were made the larger for that purpose: and both the lower and the higher did straiten, or as the Hebrew phrase includeth, did eate up some thing of the chambers, for the more commodiousnesse to that end.

were higher then these] Or, did eat of these.

then the lower and then the middlemost] Or, and the building consisted of the lower and the middlemost.

Ezekiel 42:6

For they were in three stories] As the galleries were in three heights one above another, so were the chambers between them, and the light that they received was through the galleries on either side.

But had not pillars] Neither chambers nor galleries stood upon pillars, as some other buildings in the holy virge did, for then the galleries in the second and third story might have been enlarged, by jutting out towards the courts, and not have trenched upon the breadth of the chambers; but they were all built up with an even wall, only some large openings there were all along the galleries, for the more aire and the better sight.

Ezekiel 42:7

And the wall that was without, &c.] That is, that stood betwixt these buildings and the outer court.

the length thereof fiftie cubits] Both the chambers and the wall that stood before them were but fiftie cubits long, though the court or open space on either side the buildings, were an hundred cubits long, as vers. 8. for at either end, viz. East and West, the building pointed upon crosse walks, and buildings such a breadth and at such a distance from them, as to make the inner and outer court on the North and South sides of them to extend so long.

Ezekiel 42:9-10

These two verses then may be rendred thus: And below these chambers, at the entrance from the East, as one cometh to them from the outer court; In the breadth of the fence of the court toward the East before the separate place and before the building, were chambers.

Ezekiel 42:11

And the way before them, &c.] The fabrick, contrivall, front, way of a cubit breadth, before them were in every point so like those spoken of before, that they need no further illustration.

Ezekiel 42:12

a doore in the head of the way] He speaketh now only of the buildings on the South side of the Temple and of those other on the South side of the East gate: and relateth that just against the point of the way of a cubit broad that ran along under the wals of the galleries, there was a doore in the very front of the building at the East: There is not the like mentioned of the buildings on the North side of the gate, for on the North side of the altar which stood before these, there was more to doe then on the South, and so was there not so facil accesse to a doore if it had been made.

Ezekiel 42:13-14

Then said he unto me, &c.] After he had described the fabrick and fashion of the chambers, he now setteth down the use of them, that they were for the Priests garments, and eating of the holy things, &c. This he speaketh of the North and South chambers, but those that stood crossing them at the lower end of the court he mentioneth not: for there was some difference in their use: those on the North and South laid up the things of the greatest holinesse, as the Priests garments, and some offerings, as the meat-offering, and sin-offering, and trespasse-offering for the people: but those on the East were for things of an inferiour sanctitie, as tithes and offerings of particular men.

shall eat] Leviticus 6:16. 26.

meat-offering] Leviticus 2:3. 10. & 6. 17.

sinne-offering] Leviticus 6:25. 29.

trespasse-offering] Leviticus 7:1.

Ezekiel 42:15

Now when he had made an end, &c.] When he had thus measured all the particular buildings, he cometh now to measure the circumference of the whole holy place, or the holy mountaine: which lay walled in an equilaterall square, and of such a compasse as was spoken of before on Chap. 40. in the notes there. And now that the structure, fabrick and proportion of the buildings have been thus platformed, measured and viewed, it will not be impertinent, a little to look at the scope and intention of the description, or the substance shadowed under these figures.

First, therefore it is to be observed that there was never any Temple built of these dimensions and composure, for the measure of the circumference of the bounding wall or that which separateth betwixt the holy and profane utterly denieth it, being a measure that exceedeth, or at least equalleth the full compasse of all Jerusalem, Temple, and all, as was said before, yea though the cubit be understood of the shortest size; And so the portion of the Levites allotted to them, as the virge of the Temple, amounteth to a space bigger then all the land of Canaan. Chap. 48. These things therefore are spiritually to be understood: and howsoever the description of this house and land were a prophetick assurance of the peoples returne out of Babylon (where Ezekiel wrote these things) yet doe they chiefly aime at Christ, and his coming among them after their return, and gathering the numerous congregation of the Gentiles, and framing the spacious Temple and Citie of the Christian Church under the Gospel. And therefore this can no way countenance a temporall kingdome of the Messias yet to come, as the Jews imagine, nor a new Temple or Citie to be built: since that the Temple here described is bigger then the Citie, and the holy ground of the Temple bigger then all Canaan.

Secondly, it is observable that as Ezekiel measureth the Temple and the Citie here, so doth John a new Temple also, Revel. 11. 1, 2. and a new Jerusalem, Revel. 21. Now though these three agreed in this, that they all aimed at the spirituall Temple and Citie, the Church under the Gospel: yet in this they differed, that they had respect to different times: and aimed at times and seasons in succession one after another. This platforme and description of Ezekiel, relateth to the Church under the Gospel, betwixt their returne out of captivitie, and the destruction of Jerusalem, when the Gentiles first came in, and they and the Jewes made one people. That in Revel. 21. pointeth at the new Jerusalem which should be after the old one was destroyed, the Church under the Gospel, after the rejection of the Jewes, and destruction of their Citie, which hath now taken up about one thousand five hundred and seventie yeares: and therefore that Jerusalem is farre larger then this in Ezekiel, that being described to be sixe thousand miles about. In that there is no Temple mentioned, nay there was no Temple at all as the Text expresly, Revelation 21:22. uttereth: for where there is mention of a Temple, there is something to doe with Jewes; but the Church of this space that we are speaking of consisteth onely of Gentiles, the Jews being all the while under obduration. Now the eleventh of the Revelation speaketh of a Temple measured as the case is here, for as this place speaketh of the Church of the Jews when the Gentiles were called in and joyned to them at Christs first coming, so that place speaketh of the Church of the Jews, when they shall be called in and joyned to the Church of the Gentiles, which is yet to be before Christs second coming.

And it is observable that in both these places there is no mention of a Court for the Gentiles, as there was in the materiall Temple indeed, but all Jerusalem must be supposed for that. For Ezekiel mentioneth but two Courts properly so called, though the inner Court indeed was subdivided. And these two Courts were, the Court of the Priests, and the Court of the people; but for the Gentiles there is no Court at all, bounded or immured for them because of the boundlesse dilating of the Gospel: and so Revel. 11. there is onely one Court mentioned, the Court of the Priests, or that where the Altar stood; but the outer Court is not measured, but cast out without any bounds, because it is given to the Gentiles to * tread in the worship of God, and to come into with the Jews: for when they shall be called, the Gentiles and they shall joyne together to serve the Lord, and to tread his Court.

• It is not 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, to tread under foot in scorn and despite: but 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, to tread as we doe the Churches when we goe to serve the Lord, as Isaiah 1:12.