Ezekiel 44

1 And he turned me back, toward the way of the gate of the outer sanctuary, which looked toward the east. And it was closed.

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

2 And the Lord said to me: “This gate will be closed; it will not be opened. And man shall not cross through it. For the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered through it, and it shall be closed

The LORD said to me, "This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, neither shall any man enter in by it; for the LORD, the God of Israel, has entered in by it; therefore it shall be shut.

3 to the prince. The prince himself will sit at it, so that he may eat bread before the Lord; he will enter by the way of the vestibule of the gate, and he will depart by the same way.”

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 by the way of the same."

4 And he led me in, along the way of the north gate, in the sight of the house. And I saw, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord. And I fell upon my face.

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

5 And the Lord said to me: “Son of man, set within your heart, and see with your eyes, and hear with your ears all that I am speaking to you about all the ceremonies of the house of the Lord and about all its laws. And set your heart upon the ways of the temple, along all the exits of the sanctuary.

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 house of the LORD, and all its laws; and mark well the entrance of the house, with every exit of the sanctuary.

6 And you shall say to the house of Israel, which provokes me: Thus says the Lord God: Let all your wicked deeds be sufficient for you, O house of Israel.

You shall tell the rebellious, even to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the LORD: you house of Israel, let it suffice you of all your abominations,

7 For you bring in foreign sons, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, so that they may be in my sanctuary and may defile my house. And you offer my bread, the fat, and the blood, yet you have broken my covenant by all your wicked deeds.

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 you have broken my covenant, to add to all your abominations.

8 And you have not observed the precepts of my sanctuary, yet you have stationed observers of my vigil in my sanctuary for yourselves.

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

9 Thus says the Lord God: Any foreigner, any foreign son who is in the midst of the sons of Israel, who is uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, shall not enter into my sanctuary.

"Thus says the LORD, 'No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into my sanctuary, of any foreigners who are among the children of Israel.

10 And as for the Levites, they have withdrawn far away from me, in the errors of the sons of Israel, and they have gone astray from me after their idols, and they have borne their iniquity.

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

11 They will be caretakers in my sanctuary, and doorkeepers at the gates of the house, and ministers to the house. They will slay the holocausts and the victims of the people. And they will stand before them, so that they may minister to them.

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.

12 But because they ministered to them in the sight their idols, and they became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel, for this reason, I have lifted up my hand against them, says the Lord God, and they will bear their iniquity.

Because they ministered to them before their idols, and became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel; therefore have I lifted up my hand against them, says the LORD, and they shall bear their iniquity.

13 And they shall not draw near to me, so as to exercise the priesthood for me, and they shall not approach to any of my holy things, which are near the Holy of Holies. Instead, they will bear their shame and their wicked deeds, which they committed.

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 shall bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed.

14 And I will make them doorkeepers of the house, for all its ministries and for all that will be done within it.

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

15 But the priests and the Levites who are the sons of Zadok, who observed the ceremonies of my sanctuary when the sons of Israel went astray from me, these shall draw near to me, so that they may minister for me. And they shall stand in my sight, so that they may offer to me the fat and the blood, says the Lord God.

"'But the Levitical priests, the sons of Zadok, who performed the duty of my sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from me, they shall come near to me to minister to me; and they shall stand before me to offer to me the fat and the blood, says the LORD:

16 They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall draw near to my table, so that they may minister for me, and so that they may observe my ceremonies.

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

17 And when they enter the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments. Neither shall anything woolen be placed over them, when they minister within the gates of the inner and the outer court.

"'It shall be that, when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come on them, while they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.

18 They shall have linen bands on their heads, and linen undergarments over their loins, and they shall not be girded so as to sweat.

They shall have linen turbans on their heads, and shall have linen breeches on their waists; they shall not clothe themselves with anything that causes sweat.

19 And when they go forth to the outer court to the people, they shall strip off their vestments, in which they ministered, and they shall place them in the storeroom of the sanctuary, and they shall clothe themselves with other garments. And they shall not sanctify the people in their vestments.

When they go forth 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; and they shall put on other garments, that they not sanctify the people with their garments.

20 Now they shall not shave their heads, and they shall not grow long hair. Instead, they shall trim the hair of their heads.

"'Neither shall they shave their heads, nor allow their locks to grow long; they shall only cut off the hair of their heads.

21 And no priest shall drink wine, when he will be entering into the inner court.

Neither shall any of the priests drink wine, when they enter into the inner court.

22 And they shall not take as wife a widow or one who has been divorced. Instead, they shall take virgins from the offspring of the house of Israel. But they may also take a widow, if she is the widow of a priest.

Neither shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her who is put away; but they shall take virgins of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow who is the widow of a priest.

23 And they shall teach my people the difference between holy and defiled, and they shall distinguish for them between clean and unclean.

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

24 And when there has been a controversy, they shall stand in my judgments, and they shall judge. They shall observe my laws and my precepts, in all my solemnities, and they shall sanctify my Sabbaths.

"'In a controversy they shall stand to judge; according to my ordinances shall they judge it: and they shall keep my laws and my statutes in all my appointed feasts; and they shall make my Sabbaths holy.

25 And they shall not enter to a dead person, lest they be defiled, except to father or mother, or son or daughter, or brother, or to a sister who does not have another man. By these, they may become unclean.

"'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.

26 And after he will have been cleansed, they shall number for him seven days.

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

27 And on the day when he enters into the sanctuary, to the inner court, so that he may minister to me in the sanctuary, he shall make an offering because of his offense, says the Lord God.

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.

28 And there shall be no inheritance for them. I am their inheritance. And you shall not give them any possession in Israel. For I am their possession.

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

29 They shall eat the victim both for sin and for offenses. And every vowed offering in Israel shall be theirs.

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

30 And the first-fruits of all the firstborn, and all the libations out of all that is offered, shall belong to the priests. And you shall give the first-fruits of your foods to the priest, so that he may return a blessing to your house.

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.

31 The priests shall not consume anything which has died on its own, or which was seized by a beast, whether from the fowl or the cattle.”

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