The Sacred Rooms for the Priests
1-2 After the man and I left the temple and walked back to the outer courtyard, he showed me a set of rooms on the north side of the west building. This set of rooms was 50 meters long and 25 meters wide. 3 On one side of them was the 10 meters of open space that ran alongside the temple, and on the other side was the sidewalk that circled the outer courtyard. The rooms were arranged in three levels 4 with doors that opened toward the north, and in front of them was a walkway five meters wide and 50 meters long. 5 The rooms on the top level were narrower than those on the middle level, and the rooms on the middle level were narrower than those on the bottom level. 6 The rooms on the bottom level supported those on the two upper levels, and so these rooms did not have columns like other buildings in the courtyard. 7-8 To the north was a privacy wall 25 meters long, 9-10 and at the east end of this wall was the door leading from the courtyard to these rooms.
There was also a set of rooms on the south side of the west building. 11 These rooms were exactly like those on the north side, and they also had a walkway in front of them. 12 The door to these rooms was at the east end of the wall that stood in front of them.
13 The man then said to me:
These rooms on the north and south sides of the temple are the sacred rooms where the Lord's priests will eat the most holy offerings. These offerings include the grain sacrifices, the sacrifices for sin, and the sacrifices to make things right. 14 When the priests are ready to leave the temple, they must go through these rooms before they return to the outer courtyard. They must leave their sacred clothes in these rooms and put on regular clothes before going anywhere near other people.
The Size of the Temple Area
15 After the man had finished measuring the buildings inside the temple area, he took me back through the east gate and measured the wall around this area. 16 He used his measuring stick to measure the east side of this wall; it was 250 meters long. 17-19 Then he measured the north side, the south side, and the west side of the wall, and they were each 250 meters long, 20 and so the temple area was a perfect square. The wall around this area separated what was sacred from what was ordinary.
1 Then brought hee me into the vtter court by the way towarde the North, and he brought me into the chamber that was ouer against the separate place, and which was before the building toward the North. 2 Before ye length of an hundreth cubites, was the North doore, and it was fiftie cubites broad. 3 Ouer against the twentie cubites which were for the inner court, and ouer against the pauement, which was for the vtter court, was chamber against chamber in three rowes. 4 And before the chambers was a gallery of ten cubites wide, and within was a way of one cubite, and their doores towarde the North. 5 Nowe the chambers aboue were narower: for those chambers seemed to eate vp these, to wit, the lower, and those that were in the middes of the building. 6 For they were in three rowes, but had not pillars as the pillars of the court: therefore there was a difference from them beneath and from the middlemost, euen from the ground. 7 And the wall that was without ouer against the chambers, toward the vtter court on the forefront of the chambers, was fiftie cubites long. 8 For the length of the chambers that were in the vtter court, was fiftie cubites: and loe, before the Temple were an hundreth cubites. 9 And vnder these chambers was the entrie, on the East side, as one goeth into them from the outward court. 10 The chambers were in the thicknesse of the wall of the court towarde the East, ouer against the separate place, and ouer against the building. 11 And the way before them was after ye maner of the chambers, which were toward ye North, as long as they, and as broad as they: and all their entries were like, both according to their facions, and according to their doores. 12 And according to ye doores of ye chambers that were towarde the South, was a doore in the corner of the way, euen the way directly before the wall toward the East, as one entreth. 13 The said he vnto me, The North chambers and ye South chambers which are before ye separate place, they be holy chambers, wherein the Priests that approch vnto ye Lord, shall eat the most holy things: there shall they lay the most holy things, and the meate offering, and the sinne offering, and the trespasse offring: for the place is holy. 14 When the Priestes enter therein, they shall not go out of the holy place into the vtter court, but there they shall lay their garmentes wherein they minister: for they are holy, and shall put on other garmentes, and so shall approch to those things, which are for the people. 15 Nowe when he had made an ende of measuring the inner house, he brought mee forth toward the gate whose prospect is towarde the East, and measured it round about. 16 He measured the East side with the measuring rod, fiue hundreth reedes, euen with the measuring reede round about. 17 He measured also the Northside, fiue hundreth reedes, euen with the measuring reede rounde about. 18 And he measured the South side fiue hundreth reedes with the measuring reede. 19 He turned about also to the West side, and measured fiue hundreth reedes with the measuring reede. 20 He measured it by the foure sides: it had a wall round about, fiue hundreth reedes long, and fiue hundreth broade to make a separation betweene the Sanctuarie, and the prophane place.