The Prophet Ezekiel

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- Kapitel 44 -

Then the man brought me back to the outer sanctuary gate that faced east; it was closed tightly.

Yahweh said to me, “This gate has been sealed shut; it will not be opened. No man will go through it, for Yahweh, the God of Israel, has come through it, so it has been closed tightly.

The ruler of Israel will sit in it to eat food before Yahweh. He will enter by way of the gate’s portico and go out the same way.”

Next he brought me by way of the northern gate that faces the house. So I looked and behold, the glory of Yahweh filled the house of Yahweh, and I fell on my face.

Then Yahweh said to me, “Son of man, set your heart and look with your eyes and listen with your ears to all that I am declaring to you, to all the statutes of the house of Yahweh and all its regulations. Think about the house’s entrance and exits.

Reproof of the Levites

Then say to the rebellious ones, the house of Israel, ’Lord Yahweh says this: Let all of your disgusting actions be enough for you, house of Israel-

that you brought foreigners with uncircumcised hearts and uncircumcised flesh to be in my sanctuary, profaning my house, while you were offering me food, fat and blood-you have broken my covenant by all your disgusting actions.

You have not carried out your duties regarding my holy things, but you appointed others to take up your duties, and you assigned them to care for my holy place.

Lord Yahweh says this: No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart and flesh, from any of those who live among the people of Israel, may enter my holy place.

Yet the Levites went far from me-they wandered away from me, going after their idols-but they will pay for their sin.

They are servants in my sanctuary, watching the gates of the house and serving in the house and they slaughter the burnt offerings and the people’s sacrifices, and they will stand before the people and serve them.

But because they performed the sacrifices before their idols, they became stumbling blocks for sin for the house of Israel. Therefore, I will lift up my hand to swear an oath against them-this is Lord Yahweh’s declaration-they will bear their punishment.

They will not come near me to act as my priests or to approach any of my holy things, the most holy things. Instead, they will bear their reproach and their guilt for the disgusting actions that they have done.

But I will place them as keepers of the work in the house, for all of its duties and everything that is done in it.

The Duties of the Priests

Then the Levitical priests, those sons of Zadok who fulfilled the duties of my sanctuary when the people of Israel were wandering away from me-they will come near me to worship me. They will stand before me to offer me the fat and the blood-this is Lord Yahweh’s declaration.

They will come to my sanctuary; they will approach my table to worship me and to fulfill their duties to me.

So it will be that when they come to the gates of the inner courtyard, they will have to dress in linen clothes, for they must not come in wool inside the gates of the inner court and its house.

There should be linen turbans on their heads and linen underclothes on their hips. They must not dress in clothes that make them sweat.

When they go out to the outer courtyard, to the outer courtyard in order to go to the people, they must take off the clothes they wore when they served; they must take them off and lay them down in a holy room, so they do not make other people holy by contact with their special clothing.

Also they must neither shave their heads nor allow their hair to hang loosely, but they must trim the hair of their heads.

No priest may drink wine when he comes to the inner court,

nor take a widow or a divorced woman as a wife for himself, but only a virgin from the line of the house of Israel or a widow who was previously married to a priest.

For they will teach my people the difference between the holy and the profane; they will make them know the unclean from the clean.

In a dispute they will stand to judge with my decrees; they must be just. They will keep my law and my statutes in every feast, and they will celebrate my holy Sabbaths.

They will not go to a dead person so as to become unclean, unless it is their father or mother, son or daughter, brother or a sister who has not slept with a man; otherwise, they will become unclean.

After a priest has become unclean, people will count seven days for him.

Before the day he comes to the holy place, to the inner courtyard to serve in the holy place, he must bring a sin offering for himself-this is Lord Yahweh’s declaration.

This will be their inheritance: I am their inheritance, and you must give them no property in Israel; I will be their property!

They will eat the food offerings, the sin offerings, the guilt offerings, and everything devoted to Yahweh in Israel, will be theirs.

The best of the firstfruits of all things and every contribution, anything from all of your contributions will belong to the priests, and you will give the best of your meal offerings to the priests so that blessing may rest on your house.

The priests will not eat any carcass or animal torn by a beast, whether bird or beast.

Then he brought me back by the way of the outer gate of the sanctuary, which looks toward the east; and it was shut.

The LORD said to me, “This gate shall be shut. It shall not be opened, no man shall enter in by it; for the LORD, the God of Israel, has entered in by it. Therefore it shall be shut.

As for the prince, he shall sit in it as prince to eat bread before the LORD. He shall enter by the way of the porch of the gate, and shall go out the same way.”

Then he brought me by the way of the north gate before the house; and I looked, and behold, the LORD’s glory filled the LORD’s house; so I fell on my face.

The LORD said to me, “Son of man, mark well, and see with your eyes, and hear with your ears all that I tell you concerning all the ordinances of the LORD’s house and all its laws; and mark well the entrance of the house, with every exit of the sanctuary.

Reproof of the Levites

You shall tell the rebellious, even the house of Israel, ‘The Lord GOD says: “You house of Israel, let that be enough of all your abominations,

in that you have brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to profane it, even my house, when you offer my bread, the fat and the blood; and they have broken my covenant, to add to all your abominations.

You have not performed the duty of my holy things; but you have set performers of my duty in my sanctuary for yourselves.”

The Lord GOD says, “No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into my sanctuary, of any foreigners who are among the children of Israel.

“‘“But the Levites who went far from me when Israel went astray, who went astray from me after their idols, they will bear their iniquity.

Yet they shall be ministers in my sanctuary, having oversight at the gates of the house, and ministering in the house. They shall kill the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister to them.

Because they ministered to them before their idols, and became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel, therefore I have lifted up my hand against them,” says the Lord GOD, “and they will bear their iniquity.

They shall not come near to me, to execute the office of priest to me, nor to come near to any of my holy things, to the things that are most holy; but they will bear their shame and their abominations which they have committed.

Yet I will make them performers of the duty of the house, for all its service and for all that will be done therein.

The Duties of the Priests

“‘“But the Levitical priests, the sons of Zadok, who performed the duty of my sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from me, shall come near to me to minister to me. They shall stand before me to offer to me the fat and the blood,” says the Lord GOD.

“They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to minister to me, and they shall keep my instruction.

“‘“It will be that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments. No wool shall come on them while they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.

They shall have linen turbans on their heads, and shall have linen trousers on their waists. They shall not clothe themselves with anything that makes them sweat.

When they go out into the outer court, even into the outer court to the people, they shall put off their garments in which they minister and lay them in the holy rooms. They shall put on other garments, that they not sanctify the people with their garments.

“‘“They shall not shave their heads, or allow their locks to grow long. They shall only cut off the hair of their heads.

None of the priests shall drink wine when they enter into the inner court.

They shall not take for their wives a widow, or her who is put away; but they shall take virgins of the offspring of the house of Israel, or a widow who is the widow of a priest.

They shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.

“‘“In a controversy they shall stand to judge. They shall judge it according to my ordinances. They shall keep my laws and my statutes in all my appointed feasts. They shall make my Sabbaths holy.

“‘“They shall go in to no dead person to defile themselves; but for father, or for mother, or for son, or for daughter, for brother, or for sister who has had no husband, they may defile themselves.

After he is cleansed, they shall reckon to him seven days.

In the day that he goes into the sanctuary, into the inner court, to minister in the sanctuary, he shall offer his sin offering,” says the Lord GOD.

“‘They shall have an inheritance: I am their inheritance; and you shall give them no possession in Israel. I am their possession.

They shall eat the meal offering, and the sin offering, and the trespass offering; and every devoted thing in Israel shall be theirs.

The first of all the first fruits of every thing, and every offering of everything, of all your offerings, shall be for the priest. You shall also give to the priests the first of your dough, to cause a blessing to rest on your house.

The priests shall not eat of anything that dies of itself or is torn, whether it is bird or animal.