Ezekiel 42

1 Then he brought me forth into the outer court, the way toward the north: and he brought me into the chamber that was opposite the separate place, and which was before the building toward the north.

[in the vision] the man led me out of the inner courtyard, through [the entrance on] the north side. We entered the outer courtyard and came to a building that was built against the north [of the inner courtyard].

2 Before the length of an hundred cubits was the north door, and the breadth was fifty cubits.

That building was (175 feet/53 meters) long and (87-1/2 feet/26.5 meters) wide. Its doorway faced north.

3 Opposite the twenty cubits which were for the inner court, and opposite the pavement which was for the outer court, was gallery against gallery in three stories.

In that building were two rows of rooms, built on three levels, that faced each other. One row of rooms was built against the wall of the inner courtyard, and the other row was built against the wall facing the outer courtyard. The building was 34 feet from the temple.

4 And before the chambers was a walk of ten cubits breadth inward, a way of one cubit; and their doors toward the north.

Between the [two] rows of rooms there was a walkway that was (17-1/2 feet/5.3 meters) wide and (175 feet/53 meters) long. All its doors were on the north side.

5 Now the upper chambers were narrower: for the galleries were higher than these, than the lower, and than the middle ones of the building.

Each of the upper rows of rooms was narrower than the row of rooms below them, [because the upper rows needed to have a walkway in front of them].

6 For they were in three stories, but had not pillars as the pillars of the courts: therefore the upper chambers were set back more than the lower and the middle ones from the ground.

The rooms on the upper levels had no pillars to support them like the ones in the courtyard. Instead, each of those row of rooms were supported by the walls of the row of rooms on the level below.

7 And the wall that was outside by the side of the chambers, toward the outer court on the forepart of the chambers, the length of it was fifty cubits.

The wall of the building extended (87-1/2 feet/26.5 meters) past the set of rooms built along the outer courtyard, separating all the rooms from the outer courtyard.

8 For the length of the chambers that were in the outer court was fifty cubits: and, lo, before the temple were an hundred cubits.

The row of rooms that were along the outer courtyard was (87-1/2 feet/26.5 meters) long, and the set of rooms that faced the temple was (175 feet/53 meters) long.

9 And from under these chambers was the entrance on the east side, as one goeth into them from the outer court.

The lowest row of rooms had an entrance from the outer courtyard, on the east side.

10 The chambers were in the thickness of the wall of the court toward the east, opposite the separate place, and opposite the building.

On the south [side], along the wall of the outer courtyard, next to the temple courtyard, was a [a building with two] rows of rooms,

11 And the way before them was like the appearance of the chambers which were toward the north, as long as they, and as broad as they: and all their exits were both according to their fashions, and according to their doors.

with a walkway between them. Those rooms were like the rooms on the north [side]: they were the same length and width, and had the same kind of entrances.

12 And according to the doors of the chambers that were toward the south was a door in the head of the way, even the way directly before the wall toward the east, as one entereth into them.

The doorways on the south side were similar to the doorways on the north side. There was an entrance in the wall that faced the doors of the set of rooms, and there was an entrance on the east side, at the end of the inside walkway.

13 Then said he to me, The north chambers and the south chambers, which are before the separate place, they are holy chambers, where the priests that approach to the LORD shall eat the most holy things: there shall they lay the most holy things, and the meat offering, and the sin offering, and the trespass offering; for the place is holy.

Then the man said to me, “These rooms that overlook the temple on the north and south sides are holy. Here the priests who offer sacrifices to Yahweh will [their portions of] the sacred offerings. Because these rooms are holy, they will be used to store the sacred offerings: [the grain for] the grain offerings, the offerings for the sins that people have committed, and offerings in order that people will no longer be guilty for having sinned.

14 When the priests enter in it, then shall they not go out of the holy place into the outer court, but there they shall lay their garments in which they minister; for they are holy; and shall put on other garments, and shall approach to those things which are for the people.

When the priests leave the temple, they will not be allowed to [immediately] enter the outer courtyard. First, they must remove the clothes that they had been wearing inside the temple, because those clothes are holy. They must put on other clothes before they enter the parts [of the temple area] where the [other] people [gather].”

15 Now when he had finished measuring the inner house, he brought me forth toward the gate whose prospect is toward the east, and measured it all around.

When the man had finished measuring the inside of the temple area, he led me out through the east entrance [of the outer courtyard] and measured all the way around the temple area.

16 He measured the east side with the measuring reed, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed on every side.

He measured the four sides of the area. There was a wall around the area that was (875 feet/265 meters) long on each side.

17 He measured the north side, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed on every side.

18 He measured the south side, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed.

19 He turned about to the west side, and measured five hundred reeds with the measuring reed.

20 He measured it by the four sides: it had a wall all around, five hundred reeds long, and five hundred broad, to make a separation between the sanctuary and the common place.

That wall separated the [area which was] sacred/holy from the [areas that were] not sacred.