INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 41 In this chapter the divine and illustrious Person, the prophet's guide, brings him to the temple itself, and gives the dimensions of the posts and doors, both of the holy and the most holy place, Ezekiel 41:1, then of the wall of the house, its side chambers, the winding... [ Continue Reading ]
AFTERWARD HE BROUGHT ME TO THE TEMPLE,.... Having measured the porch into it, its posts, and gate. This is the body of the building, which was the "frame" of a city first shown, the principal fabric; for hitherto he had been only measuring the outward and inner courts, and their gates, and what were... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE BREADTH OF THE DOOR WAS TEN CUBITS,.... The temple door: great care is taken to observe and give the dimensions of the doors and gates of various places; to put us in mind of Christ the door and gate into the church, and into fellowship with God: this was as broad again as the door of Solomo... [ Continue Reading ]
THEN WENT HE INWARD,.... Through the temple or holy place he had measured, to the holy of holies: AND MEASURED THE POST OF THE DOOR TWO CUBITS; this was the door into the most holy place; there was one in Solomon's temple; but in the second temple there was none; but two rails instead of it, which... [ Continue Reading ]
SO HE MEASURED THE LENGTH THEREOF TWENTY CUBITS,.... That is, of the most holy place, from east to west; which was the measure of it in Solomon's temple, 1 Kings 6:20: AND THE BREADTH TWENTY CUBITS BEFORE THE TEMPLE: that is answerable or according to the breadth of the temple or holy place; which... [ Continue Reading ]
AFTER HE MEASURED THE WALL OF THE HOUSE SIX CUBITS,.... Or a reed, three yards and a half thick: this was the wall of the holy of holies, or which divided that from the holy place, and was not in the second temple; or rather the wall of the temple, the whole house or building, both of the holy place... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE SIDE CHAMBERS WERE THREE, ONE OVER ANOTHER, AND THIRTY IN ORDER,.... There were three stories of them, and thirty in every storey, in all ninety; there were such chambers round about Solomon's temple, and so many stories of them, though their number is not expressed, 1 Kings 6:5, but Josephu... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THERE WAS AN ENLARGING, AND A WINDING ABOUT STILL UPWARD TO THE SIDE CHAMBERS,.... These chambers, as they rose up in stories one above another, were larger and larger; those in the middlemost storey were larger than those in the lower storey by a cubit; so much being taken out of the thickness... [ Continue Reading ]
I SAW ALSO THE HEIGHT OF THE HOUSE ROUND ABOUT,.... Not of the temple itself, but of the chambers, and the three stories of them, which went round about it; and particularly the height of the highest storey, which yet is not given: it could not be so high as the temple itself; for then there would h... [ Continue Reading ]
THE THICKNESS OF THE WALL, WHICH WAS FOR THE SIDE CHAMBERS WITHOUT, WAS FIVE CUBITS,.... This is the outward wall of the chambers, north and south, which was five cubits thick, made of stone; Ezekiel 41:5, AND THAT WHICH WAS LEFT WAS THE PLACE OF THE SIDE CHAMBERS THAT WERE WITHIN; this was a void... [ Continue Reading ]
AND BETWEEN THE CHAMBERS WAS THE WIDENESS OF TWENTY CUBITS,.... Not the side chambers before mentioned, as if there was the space of twenty cubits between each chamber; for another word is used; more probably the meaning is, that between the side chambers, or the void space before them of five cubit... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE DOORS OF THE SIDE CHAMBERS WERE TOWARDS THE PLACE THAT WAS LEFT,.... These opened to the void space before them; that is, those of the lower storey; the others must open to the winding staircase that led down to it: ONE DOOR TOWARD THE NORTH, AND ANOTHER DOOR TOWARD THE SOUTH; which is not... [ Continue Reading ]
NOW THE BUILDING THAT WAS BEFORE THE SEPARATE PLACE,.... The "separate place" is the holy of holies, which was separated by a vail under the second temple, and by a wall as in this, and the first from the holy place: "before or over against" which was a building, as it is rendered, Ezekiel 41:15, a... [ Continue Reading ]
SO HE MEASURED THE HOUSE, AN HUNDRED CUBITS LONG,.... The whole temple, the parts of which he had measured; and this is the sum total: AND THE SEPARATE PLACE, AND THE BUILDING, WITH THE WALLS THEREOF, AN HUNDRED CUBITS LONG; these are the several parts of the house or temple: the "separate place",... [ Continue Reading ]
ALSO THE BREADTH OF THE FACE OF THE HOUSE, AND THE SEPARATE PLACE TOWARD THE EAST,.... The whole front of the temple, the holy and most holy place, which looked to the east: and was measured from north to south, AN HUNDRED CUBITS: which some reckon thus; the breadth of the temple twenty cubits; the... [ Continue Reading ]
AND HE MEASURED THE LENGTH OF THE BUILDING OVER AGAINST THE SEPARATE PLACE,.... Which was ninety cubits, as appears from Ezekiel 41:12, when measured by itself: WHICH WAS BEHIND IT; that is, behind the separate place, or holiest of all, at the back of it, at the west end. Noldius g renders the wor... [ Continue Reading ]
THE DOOR POSTS AND THE NARROW WINDOWS,.... Of the inner temple or holy of holies; for this is what is last mentioned; of the door posts of it, see Ezekiel 41:3, in the holy of holies, both in Moses's tabernacle, and Solomon's temple, were no windows; Jehovah dwelt in thick darkness, 1 Kings 8:12, bu... [ Continue Reading ]
TO THAT ABOVE THE DOOR, EVEN UNTO THE INNER HOUSE,.... The meaning is, either there were such windows as before described above the door of the eastern gate, that led into the holiest of all, and even unto the inner house, or holy of holies: and without; and to all the side, chambers that were built... [ Continue Reading ]
AND IT WAS MADE WITH CHERUBIM AND PALM TREES,.... That is, all the wall of the house round about was ornamented with these, even both of the holy and of the most holy place; with these the curtains of Moses's tabernacle, and the vail that divided between the holy and the most holy place, were decora... [ Continue Reading ]
SO THAT THE FACE OF A MAN WAS TOWARD THE PALM TREE ON THE ONE SIDE,.... The cherubim in this verse are the same with the living creatures this prophet saw by the river Chebar, and which he knew to be the cherubim, Ezekiel 10:20 and the same with John's four beasts or living creatures in Revelation 4... [ Continue Reading ]
FROM THE GROUND UNTO ABOVE THE DOOR,.... From the floor of the holy of holies to above the door of it to the east, where was the entrance into it; or from thence to the cieling, as the Septuagint version: "were cherubim and palm trees made"; either in rows one above another, quite up to the place me... [ Continue Reading ]
THE POSTS OF THE TEMPLE WERE SQUARED,.... Or, were "foursquare" n; the two posts on each side the door, the lintel and the threshold, made a square; the posts themselves were not round, as pillars, but flat and square; and the upper part was not arched, as in some buildings, but square. Jarchi says... [ Continue Reading ]
THE ALTAR OF WOOD WAS THREE CUBITS HIGH, AND THE LENGTH THEREOF TWO CUBITS,.... This was the altar of incense, and was typical of Christ in his intercession and mediation. It was made of "wood"; that in the tabernacle of Moses was of shittim wood, a kind of cedar; and that in Solomon's temple was of... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE TEMPLE AND THE SANCTUARY HAD TWO DOORS. Or the house of propitiatory, as the Targum; that is, the most holy place; not two doors apiece, but each had one door, which made two; the door of the temple was ten cubits broad, and the door of the most holy place six cubits, Ezekiel 41:2 showing th... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE DOORS HAD TWO LEAVES APIECE, TWO TURNING LEAVES,.... Each of these doors had two leaves, which met in a middle post, and might be opened either singly or together, as occasion required; Ezekiel 40:48: TWO LEAVES FOR THE ONE DOOR, AND TWO LEAVES FOR THE OTHER DOOR; two for the door of the t... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THERE WERE MADE ON THEM, ON THE DOORS OF THE TEMPLE,.... Both of the holy, and the most holy place: CHERUBIM AND PALM TREES, LIKE AS WERE MADE ON THE WALLS; the doors of both places had the same decorations as the walls of each; Ezekiel 41:18; Ezekiel 41:19; Ezekiel 41:20; and so it was in S... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THERE WERE NARROW WINDOWS,.... See Ezekiel 41:16: AND PALM TREES ON THE ONE SIDE AND ON THE OTHER SIDE, ON THE SIDES OF THE PORCH; upon the posts that were on each side the porch, north and south; Ezekiel 40:16: AND UPON THE SIDE CHAMBERS OF THE HOUSE, AND THICK PLANKS; that is, there were pal... [ Continue Reading ]