Ezekiel 43:13-27
English Standard Version

The Altar
13 “These are the measurements of the altar by cubits (the cubit being a cubit and a handbreadth): its base shall be one cubit high and one cubit broad, with a rim of one span around its edge. And this shall be the height of the altar: 14 from the base on the ground to the lower ledge, two cubits, with a breadth of one cubit; and from the smaller ledge to the larger ledge, four cubits, with a breadth of one cubit; 15 and the altar hearth, four cubits; and from the altar hearth projecting upward, four horns. 16 The altar hearth shall be square, twelve cubits long by twelve broad. 17 The ledge also shall be square, fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad, with a rim around it half a cubit broad, and its base one cubit all around. The steps of the altar shall face east.”

18 And he said to me, “Son of man, thus says the Lord GOD: These are the ordinances for the altar: On the day when it is erected for offering burnt offerings upon it and for throwing blood against it, 19 you shall give to the Levitical priests of the family of Zadok, who draw near to me to minister to me, declares the Lord GOD, a bull from the herd for a sin offering. 20 And you shall take some of its blood and put it on the four horns of the altar and on the four corners of the ledge and upon the rim all around. Thus you shall purify the altar and make atonement for it. 21 You shall also take the bull of the sin offering, and it shall be burned in the appointed place belonging to the temple, outside the sacred area. 22 And on the second day you shall offer a male goat without blemish for a sin offering; and the altar shall be purified, as it was purified with the bull. 23 When you have finished purifying it, you shall offer a bull from the herd without blemish and a ram from the flock without blemish. 24 You shall present them before the LORD, and the priests shall sprinkle salt on them and offer them up as a burnt offering to the LORD. 25 For seven days you shall provide daily a male goat for a sin offering; also, a bull from the herd and a ram from the flock, without blemish, shall be provided. 26 Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and cleanse it, and so consecrate it. 27 And when they have completed these days, then from the eighth day onward the priests shall offer on the altar your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, and I will accept you, declares the Lord GOD.”

I have to admit this was the most surprising thing to me to be found in the heavenly Temple, as I was always taught the Jesus's sacrifice was the sacrifice to end all other sacrifices.  So, you can imagine my surprise when I found that the eternal Temple not only has an altar as a reembrace of times past, but that there would be burn offerings and peace offerings offered on it.  There would be some offerings during the first week to consecrate it, but after that it would be regular order and the priests would accept the burnt offerings and peace offerings of the people (notice there are no sin offerings offered by the people because sin will be completely dealt with).

Images:  freebibleimages.org/illustrations/ezekiel-43-temple/
Video:

Ezekiel 43:1-12
English Standard Version

The Glory of the LORD Fills the Temple
43 Then he led me to the gate, the gate facing east. 2 And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory. 3 And the vision I saw was just like the vision that I had seen when he came to destroy the city, and just like the vision that I had seen by the Chebar canal. And I fell on my face. 4 As the glory of the LORD  entered the temple by the gate facing east, 5 the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the temple.

6 While the man was standing beside me, I heard one speaking to me out of the temple, 7 and he said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of my throne and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the people of Israel forever. And the house of Israel shall no more defile my holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoring and by the dead bodies of their kings at their high places, 8 by setting their threshold by my threshold and their doorposts beside my doorposts, with only a wall between me and them. They have defiled my holy name by their abominations that they have committed, so I have consumed them in my anger. 9 Now let them put away their whoring and the dead bodies of their kings far from me, and I will dwell in their midst forever.

10 “As for you, son of man, describe to the house of Israel the temple, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and they shall measure the plan. 11 And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the design of the temple, its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, that is, its whole design; and make known to them as well all its statutes and its whole design and all its laws, and write it down in their sight, so that they may observe all its laws and all its statutes and carry them out. 12 This is the law of the temple: the whole territory on the top of the mountain all around shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the temple.

I will break from the pattern of posting the images and video for this passage because I believe there is a bit here to discuss.  Remember in Ezekiel 10 that Ezekiel saw the Glory of the LORD depart the first Temple when the people went into Exile and the LORD went with them.  Now, the glory of the LORD returns to His Holy Temple from the east (not just the direction of the sunrise, but also the direction of the Babylonian Exile).  He once again says this is the same glory of the LORD that he saw in his vision of the LORD when the LORD commissioned him to be His prophet to the people in Exile.

If you go back and look, this follows a pattern from when other dwellings for the LORD were built.  The Tabernacle was completed and the glory of the LORD filled the Tabernacle so that no one could enter it.  The same is true for when Solomon built the Temple.  We do not see the glory of the LORD fill the second temple (Zerubbabel's temple, later called Herod's Temple) in the same way.  However, we do see Jesus come and call it His Father's House, exert ownership over the Temple and it was still closely connected the gospel-centered ministry of Jesus and His apostles.  Jesus referred to His body as the LORD's Temple, and certainly the fullness of the LORD's Glory resided within Him, and we are now the Temple of the Holy Spirit, and the fullness of the LORD's Glory should reside within us and we should hopefully experience a similar "filling" when we are genuinely saved.  The Holy Spirit will so completely fill us that it pushes everything else out for a time and we are made holy for the LORD and His purposes and our bodies become instruments of worship for the LORD and we become part of the royal priesthood of believers that are ministers of the gospel.

But what about this new Temple?  Why does it exist and why does the Glory of the LORD reside there?  That question is answered in verse 6.  This Temple is quite literally going to be heaven on earth.  This is the very throne room of God and it will come down from heaven (The New Jerusalem will include or will be this New Temple) and He will dwell among the people.  What we will not see in this New Temple is a veil of separation between the Courtyard and the Holy Place or between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place.  All those who are part of the LORD's eternal kingdom will have free access to Him all the time.  The LORD will do this to show that He is LORD over heaven and earth and there is no god that has any right to be worshiped anywhere by any people because He is LORD of all Creation.  His Holy Name will be high and lifted up among all peoples of all nations and no longer will His Land or His People be defiled by idols.

Ezekiel is to describe this Temple--this place where atonement was secured for the people--so they would be ashamed of their iniquities that drove them away from the first Temple and led to its destruction.  They would long for the return of the Temple and of the Glory of the LORD and desire for Him to once again fill the Temple and dwell among them, but that did not occur as they expected.  That is why John opens with "The Word became flesh and [tabernacled] among us."  John is pointing to the fact that Jesus is partially fulfilling this prophecy, but this is a real place with real dimensions that will really exist in the future and it will be Jesus who sits on the throne of the eternal Kingdom forever and ever--the same God who is called the LORD here is called Jesus, the Christ in the book of Revelation.

As to the purpose of the Temple, it will be what it has always been--a place for all the people of the world to come and be taught the Law of the LORD and to know about the atonement that He has provided for them.  There will be an altar for sacrifices that we will read about next, but they will be sacrifices of thanksgiving and freewill offerings.  They will not be blood sacrifices for the remission of sin, for the payment of debt, or the restoration of the people.  All that was accomplished by Jesus' death, burial and resurrection.  The purpose of teaching people the Law is that they might obey it.  So it is true what Jesus said in the gospels, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my Word (referring to the Law) will never pass away."  The Temple and the massive mountain that it will be on (see the book of Daniel where there is a vision of a mountain that fills the entire earth) will be declared holy.  I believe this to be quite literal that there will be some geological changes.  We went from the earth first being covered by water in the book of Genesis to the land and the sea being separated (this has symbolically been a symbol of division between the people of God and the other nations of the world with the people of God living on "land" and the people of the world being the unstable seas), and we will get to a point in the future where there is no more sea.  There will only be the people of God and all the Land will be the LORD's Land--the Holy Land.  We think of Mount Zion when we think of the mountain of the LORD where the LORD's Temple resides, but what if one day the LORD causes that mountain to grow and fill the entire earth and all of the places we currently think of as high places are brought low and there is no more sea?  What if this language isn't figurative, but literal?  We can't imagine such a place as the people of Noah's time could not imagine all the geological and atmospheric changes that were going to happen because of the Flood because it had not happened yet, but what if the earth of that day looks nothing like the earth of today? It instead will be the perfect place for God and His people to dwell together (like the Garden of Eden was supposed to be, but on a worldwide scale).  The Curse will be reversed and the need for animal sacrifice for atonement will be no more, but the need for the Temple will still be very real as all the people will desire to come together and have the LORD Himself teach them everything they are to know about Him and His Law and what pleases Him so they can be even more obedient to Him.  Because they love Him, they will love His Law and will desire to know it and obey it.   That is probably a very different view of "heaven" than you were ever taught, but it is a biblical view of heaven.

Ezekiel 42
English Standard Version

The Temple's Chambers
42 Then he led me out into the outer court, toward the north, and he brought me to the chambers that were opposite the separate yard and opposite the building on the north. 2 The length of the building whose door faced north was a hundred cubits, and the breadth fifty cubits. 3 Facing the twenty cubits that belonged to the inner court, and facing the pavement that belonged to the outer court, was gallery against gallery in three stories. 4 And before the chambers was a passage inward, ten cubits wide and a hundred cubits long, and their doors were on the north. 5 Now the upper chambers were narrower, for the galleries took more away from them than from the lower and middle chambers of the building. 6 For they were in three stories, and they had no pillars like the pillars of the courts. Thus the upper chambers were set back from the ground more than the lower and the middle ones. 7 And there was a wall outside parallel to the chambers, toward the outer court, opposite the chambers, fifty cubits long. 8 For the chambers on the outer court were fifty cubits long, while those opposite the nave were a hundred cubits long. 9 Below these chambers was an entrance on the east side, as one enters them from the outer court.

10 In the thickness of the wall of the court, on the south also, opposite the yard and opposite the building, there were chambers 11 with a passage in front of them. They were similar to the chambers on the north, of the same length and breadth, with the same exits and arrangements and doors, 12 as were the entrances of the chambers on the south. There was an entrance at the beginning of the passage, the passage before the corresponding wall on the east as one enters them.

13 Then he said to me, “The north chambers and the south chambers opposite the yard are the holy chambers, where the priests who approach the LORD shall eat the most holy offerings. There they shall put the most holy offerings—the grain offering, the sin offering, and the guilt offering—for the place is holy. 14 When the priests enter the Holy Place, they shall not go out of it into the outer court without laying there the garments in which they minister, for these are holy. They shall put on other garments before they go near to that which is for the people.”

15 Now when he had finished measuring the interior of the temple area, he led me out by the gate that faced east, and measured the temple area all around. 16 He measured the east side with the measuring reed, 500 cubits by the measuring reed all around. 17 He measured the north side, 500 cubits by the measuring reed all around. 18 He measured the south side, 500 cubits by the measuring reed. 19 Then he turned to the west side and measured, 500 cubits by the measuring reed. 20 He measured it on the four sides. It had a wall around it, 500 cubits long and 500 cubits broad, to make a separation between the holy and the common.

Like before, I'll post links to images and a video that will help you visualize this passage.
Image Gallery:  freebibleimages.org/illustrations/ezekiel-42-temple/
Video (note:  this video covers chapters 42 and 43, so I will use the same video for chapter 43):  

Ezekiel 41
English Standard Version

The Inner Temple
41 Then he brought me to the nave and measured the jambs. On each side six cubits was the breadth of the jambs. 2 And the breadth of the entrance was ten cubits, and the sidewalls of the entrance were five cubits on either side. And he measured the length of the nave, forty cubits, and its breadth, twenty cubits. 3 Then he went into the inner room and measured the jambs of the entrance, two cubits; and the entrance, six cubits; and the sidewalls on either side of the entrance, seven cubits. 4 And he measured the length of the room, twenty cubits, and its breadth, twenty cubits, across the nave. And he said to me, “This is the Most Holy Place.”

5 Then he measured the wall of the temple, six cubits thick, and the breadth of the side chambers, four cubits, all around the temple. 6 And the side chambers were in three stories, one over another, thirty in each story. There were offsets all around the wall of the temple to serve as supports for the side chambers, so that they should not be supported by the wall of the temple. 7 And it became broader as it wound upward to the side chambers, because the temple was enclosed upward all around the temple. Thus the temple had a broad area upward, and so one went up from the lowest story to the top story through the middle story. 8 I saw also that the temple had a raised platform all around; the foundations of the side chambers measured a full reed of six long cubits. 9 The thickness of the outer wall of the side chambers was five cubits. The free space between the side chambers of the temple 10 and the other chambers was a breadth of twenty cubits all around the temple on every side. 11 And the doors of the side chambers opened on the free space, one door toward the north, and another door toward the south. And the breadth of the free space was five cubits all around.

12 The building that was facing the separate yard on the west side was seventy cubits broad, and the wall of the building was five cubits thick all around, and its length ninety cubits.

13 Then he measured the temple, a hundred cubits long; and the yard and the building with its walls, a hundred cubits long; 14 also the breadth of the east front of the temple and the yard, a hundred cubits.

15 Then he measured the length of the building facing the yard that was at the back and its galleries on either side, a hundred cubits.

The inside of the nave and the vestibules of the court, 16 the thresholds and the narrow windows and the galleries all around the three of them, opposite the threshold, were paneled with wood all around, from the floor up to the windows (now the windows were covered), 17 to the space above the door, even to the inner room, and on the outside. And on all the walls all around, inside and outside, was a measured pattern. 18 It was carved of cherubim and palm trees, a palm tree between cherub and cherub. Every cherub had two faces: 19 a human face toward the palm tree on the one side, and the face of a young lion toward the palm tree on the other side. They were carved on the whole temple all around. 20 From the floor to above the door, cherubim and palm trees were carved; similarly the wall of the nave.

21 The doorposts of the nave were squared, and in front of the Holy Place was something resembling 22 an altar of wood, three cubits high, two cubits long, and two cubits broad. Its corners, its base, and its walls were of wood. He said to me, “This is the table that is before the LORD.” 23 The nave and the Holy Place had each a double door. 24 The double doors had two leaves apiece, two swinging leaves for each door. 25 And on the doors of the nave were carved cherubim and palm trees, such as were carved on the walls. And there was a canopy of wood in front of the vestibule outside. 26 And there were narrow windows and palm trees on either side, on the sidewalls of the vestibule, the side chambers of the temple, and the canopies.

Like I did with chapter 40, I want to provide you with images and a video to help you see what Ezekiel is describing.  Chapter 40 focused on the outer area of the Temple as you came in through the gates and made your way into the Courtyard to approach the Altar.  Chapter 41 describes the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place (The Holy of Holies).  It gives the dimensions and describes the doorways and describes the vestibules, chambers and windows.  The following chapters will describe the furniture the priests and the feasts that will be celebrated (much like the order of the end of the book of Exodus and the book of Leviticus).  Again, the biggest takeaway that I can give you is that there is a real, future Temple which the glory of the LORD will once again fill (see chapter 43).  This is not metaphor and it is not pointing back to something old.  This is something new and it seems to not be talking about Zerubbabel's Temple.  These dimensions don't match either the pre-Exilic Temple or the post-Exilic Temple (the later was destroyed in 70 A.D. by the Romans).  We know there is a Temple that will be built during the time of the Tribulation, but this seems to be a Temple that corresponds closely with the description of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21 and 22, meaning it is likely the heavenly Temple that all other Temples were based off of.  It is real, not just figurative or metaphorical.  People will once again gather together from every tribe, tongue and nation to worship the LORD together and He will dwell among His people once again.

Images:  freebibleimages.org/illustrations/ezekiel-41-temple/ 
Video:  

Ezekiel 40
English Standard Version
​
Vision of the New Temple
40 In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city was struck down, on that very day, the hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me to the city. 2 In visions of God he brought me to the land of Israel, and set me down on a very high mountain, on which was a structure like a city to the south. 3 When he brought me there, behold, there was a man whose appearance was like bronze, with a linen cord and a measuring reed in his hand. And he was standing in the gateway. 4 And the man said to me, “Son of man, look with your eyes, and hear with your ears, and set your heart upon all that I shall show you, for you were brought here in order that I might show it to you. Declare all that you see to the house of Israel.”

The East Gate to the Outer Court
5 And behold, there was a wall all around the outside of the temple area, and the length of the measuring reed in the man's hand was six long cubits, each being a cubit and a handbreadth in length. So he measured the thickness of the wall, one reed; and the height, one reed. 6 Then he went into the gateway facing east, going up its steps, and measured the threshold of the gate, one reed deep. 7 And the side rooms, one reed long and one reed broad; and the space between the side rooms, five cubits; and the threshold of the gate by the vestibule of the gate at the inner end, one reed. 8 Then he measured the vestibule of the gateway, on the inside, one reed. 9 Then he measured the vestibule of the gateway, eight cubits; and its jambs, two cubits; and the vestibule of the gate was at the inner end. 10 And there were three side rooms on either side of the east gate. The three were of the same size, and the jambs on either side were of the same size. 11 Then he measured the width of the opening of the gateway, ten cubits; and the length of the gateway, thirteen cubits. 12 There was a barrier before the side rooms, one cubit on either side. And the side rooms were six cubits on either side. 13 Then he measured the gate from the ceiling of the one side room to the ceiling of the other, a breadth of twenty-five cubits; the openings faced each other. 14 He measured also the vestibule, sixty cubits. And around the vestibule of the gateway was the court. 15 From the front of the gate at the entrance to the front of the inner vestibule of the gate was fifty cubits. 16 And the gateway had windows all around, narrowing inwards toward the side rooms and toward their jambs, and likewise the vestibule had windows all around inside, and on the jambs were palm trees.

The Outer Court
17 Then he brought me into the outer court. And behold, there were chambers and a pavement, all around the court. Thirty chambers faced the pavement. 18 And the pavement ran along the side of the gates, corresponding to the length of the gates. This was the lower pavement. 19 Then he measured the distance from the inner front of the lower gate to the outer front of the inner court, a hundred cubits on the east side and on the north side.

The North Gate
20 As for the gate that faced toward the north, belonging to the outer court, he measured its length and its breadth. 21 Its side rooms, three on either side, and its jambs and its vestibule were of the same size as those of the first gate. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 22 And its windows, its vestibule, and its palm trees were of the same size as those of the gate that faced toward the east. And by seven steps people would go up to it, and find its vestibule before them. 23 And opposite the gate on the north, as on the east, was a gate to the inner court. And he measured from gate to gate, a hundred cubits.

The South Gate
24 And he led me toward the south, and behold, there was a gate on the south. And he measured its jambs and its vestibule; they had the same size as the others. 25 Both it and its vestibule had windows all around, like the windows of the others. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 26 And there were seven steps leading up to it, and its vestibule was before them, and it had palm trees on its jambs, one on either side. 27 And there was a gate on the south of the inner court. And he measured from gate to gate toward the south, a hundred cubits.

The Inner Court
28 Then he brought me to the inner court through the south gate, and he measured the south gate. It was of the same size as the others. 29 Its side rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others, and both it and its vestibule had windows all around. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 30 And there were vestibules all around, twenty-five cubits long and five cubits broad. 31 Its vestibule faced the outer court, and palm trees were on its jambs, and its stairway had eight steps.

32 Then he brought me to the inner court on the east side, and he measured the gate. It was of the same size as the others. 33 Its side rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others, and both it and its vestibule had windows all around. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 34 Its vestibule faced the outer court, and it had palm trees on its jambs, on either side, and its stairway had eight steps.

35 Then he brought me to the north gate, and he measured it. It had the same size as the others. 36 Its side rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others, and it had windows all around. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 37 Its vestibule faced the outer court, and it had palm trees on its jambs, on either side, and its stairway had eight steps.

38 There was a chamber with its door in the vestibule of the gate, where the burnt offering was to be washed. 39 And in the vestibule of the gate were two tables on either side, on which the burnt offering and the sin offering and the guilt offering were to be slaughtered. 40 And off to the side, on the outside as one goes up to the entrance of the north gate, were two tables; and off to the other side of the vestibule of the gate were two tables. 41 Four tables were on either side of the gate, eight tables, on which to slaughter. 42 And there were four tables of hewn stone for the burnt offering, a cubit and a half long, and a cubit and a half broad, and one cubit high, on which the instruments were to be laid with which the burnt offerings and the sacrifices were slaughtered. 43 And hooks, a handbreadth long, were fastened all around within. And on the tables the flesh of the offering was to be laid.

Chambers for the Priests
44 On the outside of the inner gateway there were two chambers in the inner court, one at the side of the north gate facing south, the other at the side of the south gate facing north. 45 And he said to me, “This chamber that faces south is for the priests who have charge of the temple, 46 and the chamber that faces north is for the priests who have charge of the altar. These are the sons of Zadok, who alone among the sons of Levi may come near to the LORD to minister to him.” 47 And he measured the court, a hundred cubits long and a hundred cubits broad, a square. And the altar was in front of the temple.

The Vestibule of the Temple
48 Then he brought me to the vestibule of the temple and measured the jambs of the vestibule, five cubits on either side. And the breadth of the gate was fourteen cubits, and the sidewalls of the gate were three cubits on either side. 49 The length of the vestibule was twenty cubits, and the breadth twelve cubits, and people would go up to it by ten steps. And there were pillars beside the jambs, one on either side.

I'm going to do something different today, and instead of giving a text description of what the text already says, I will show you a video that summarizes the entire chapter and makes an engineering drawing/rendition of a scale model of what this heavenly Temple may look like.  If a picture is worth 1,000 words, then this video is probably worth 1,000 pictures.  It is interesting to me that this Temple still seems to be set up for the purpose of offering burnt offering and the Levites still stand guards and the priests still eat their portion of the offerings that are offered in the dining rooms that are there--them and their families.   I've decided to go back and repost some of the beginning sections of this chapter today so you can follow along as the video covers the entire chapter.

A few things I notices as I read the text for today.  There is still a special place for the sons of Aaron to minister in this temple, specifically the sons of Zadok, and all of the tribe of Levi still has a special role.  This tells me there is something that we lack in understanding the eternal role of the Temple and the priesthood.  Although Christ put an end to the need for all sacrifices for atonement, it would seem that there is still a place for the Temple and the Levitical priesthood in the kingdom of God.  I will not pretend to fully understand this, but this Temple is majestic and will be a place for all the nations of the world to gather together and worship the LORD and His ministers--the Levites and the priests--will lead the people of all the nations in that worship.  I hope this video helps you and I will try to provide additional videos in the coming chapters that will help you to see what it is that Ezekiel is trying to describe.

Ezekiel 40:17-19
English Standard Version

The Outer Court
17 Then he brought me into the outer court. And behold, there were chambers and a pavement, all around the court. Thirty chambers faced the pavement. 18 And the pavement ran along the side of the gates, corresponding to the length of the gates. This was the lower pavement. 19 Then he measured the distance from the inner front of the lower gate to the outer front of the inner court, a hundred cubits on the east side and on the north side.

This outer court was called "The Court of the Gentiles" in Jesus' day.  It was the place where the nations could come and hear the teachings of the Word of God and it was here, on Solomon's Porch, that Jesus and the Apostles taught the people from all nations at the times of the appointed feasts and festivals.  This is also the place that Jesus cleansed on two different occasions to drive the money-changers out and declared, "My house will be a house of prayer."  (Jesus claimed ownership over the Temple with this statement).

There were thirty additional chambers off of the courtyard for the priests and Levites. that faced the courtyard so the occupants of these chambers could keep an eye on the courtyard.  The courtyard measured 100 cubits (1800 feet or 600 yards) from the gates to the inner pavement.  See images 11 through 17 from the link I posted yesterday that I will repost here again.   FreeBibleimages :: Ezekiel's vision of the Temple: Part 1 :: Ezekiel's vision of a 'man with the appearance of bronze' (Ezekiel 40).  Hopefully you find these images helpful as you try to turn Ezekiel's descriptions into something more concrete like an architectural drawing.

Ezekiel 40:5-16
English Standard Version

The East Gate to the Outer Court
5 And behold, there was a wall all around the outside of the temple area, and the length of the measuring reed in the man's hand was six long cubits, each being a cubit and a handbreadth in length. So he measured the thickness of the wall, one reed; and the height, one reed. 6 Then he went into the gateway facing east, going up its steps, and measured the threshold of the gate, one reed deep. 7 And the side rooms, one reed long and one reed broad; and the space between the side rooms, five cubits; and the threshold of the gate by the vestibule of the gate at the inner end, one reed. 8 Then he measured the vestibule of the gateway, on the inside, one reed. 9 Then he measured the vestibule of the gateway, eight cubits; and its jambs, two cubits; and the vestibule of the gate was at the inner end. 10 And there were three side rooms on either side of the east gate. The three were of the same size, and the jambs on either side were of the same size. 11 Then he measured the width of the opening of the gateway, ten cubits; and the length of the gateway, thirteen cubits. 12 There was a barrier before the side rooms, one cubit on either side. And the side rooms were six cubits on either side. 13 Then he measured the gate from the ceiling of the one side room to the ceiling of the other, a breadth of twenty-five cubits; the openings faced each other. 14 He measured also the vestibule, sixty cubits. And around the vestibule of the gateway was the court. 15 From the front of the gate at the entrance to the front of the inner vestibule of the gate was fifty cubits. 16 And the gateway had windows all around, narrowing inwards toward the side rooms and toward their jambs, and likewise the vestibule had windows all around inside, and on the jambs were palm trees.

The Tabernacle was set up with only one door that faced the East, and the Bronze Altar was right in front of this door/gate.  This heavenly temple seems to have a gate on each side, but the Eastern Gate is still the main entrance, and seems to be the only way into the Outer Court where the Bronze Altar stood in the Tabernacle, Solomon's Temple, and Zerubbabel's/Herod's Temple.  The measurements are taken in units you may not be familiar with, so let's start there.  This "long cubit" is defined here as a standard cubit (about 18 inches) and a hand length (about 4 inches), so we'll call this "long cubit" about 22 inches in length.  It is approximately the length from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger.  The measuring rod was 6 long cubits, so it was approximately 132 inches or 11 feet long..  Where the text mentions a cubit and does not call it a long cubit or does not refer to the reed/rod for measuring, I would assume a standard cubit of 18 inches or 1.5 feet.  Since Ezekiel is meaning to "draw us a picture" with these descriptions (like we are looking at engineering drawings or blueprints), I found a site that will be helpful with not just this section, but all the future descriptions where a picture may be helpful.  The images don't even do it justice though because they are scale drawings without a person of standard height there for reference.  Suffice it to say that the structure is massive--not nearly as massive as the New Jerusalem will be, but still massive.


freebibleimages.org/illustrations/ezekiel-40-temple/.  Hopefully you find these images helpful as you read the descriptions of the entrance into the Temple.  Note that everything in this portion of text is all about the trip into the Courtyard.  This is the path everyone must walk to enter into the Temple.  The side rooms that are mentioned were used in the original temple to house the Levites that were on guard duty.  While there will probably be no need for Temple guards in this new kingdom without sin or the effects of the curse of sin, It is still something that will be part of the majesty of the Temple that will bring glory to God and it will be part of the good work that some of us will do, though our jobs will be easy.  David once said that he would give up being king to be a doorkeeper in the LORD's heavenly temple--this would be the job he was speaking of.  Imagine being the first person to meet those coming into the Temple to worship the LORD--people from every tribe, tongue and nation.  Wouldn't that be exciting!?  As you read this, imagine this is the place in which you would serve the LORD.  What would you feel standing in a place like that? What would it be like to see all the people willfully and joyfully coming to worship the LORD and experience His presence (we'll see later that the separation between the LORD and His people is no longer there like it used to be).  If this is the scale of the entryway, then the Temple itself must be massive, and rightfully so if people from all places and all times will be gathering together to worship the LORD together.