Ezekiel 40:47

47 He measured the inside courtyard: a hundred seventy-five feet square. The altar was in front of the Temple.

Ezekiel 40:47 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 40:47

So he measured the court
The inward court, where the prophet and his guide now were; and the gates leading to which he had been measuring, with the chambers, arches, and tables belonging thereunto: an hundred cubits long, and an hundred cubits broad, foursquare;
the floor, or area of this court, which was a hundred cubits in length and breadth; so that it was a perfect square, equilateral, east, west, north, and south, and above fifty yards each way; such a court as never was in any temple whatever: hence Kimchi observes, there was no such court in the second temple; no, nor in the first neither: in the second temple, the length of the court of Israel, according to Abarbinel, was a hundred and thirty five cubits, and the breadth eleven, but this was a hundred by a hundred; these things, says Lipman F21, are wonderful in my eyes: this denotes the large increase of the church, and of spiritual worshippers, in the latter day; and the foursquare of it signifies the order, perfection, and stability of it; see ( Revelation 21:16 ) : and the altar that was before the house;
the altar of burnt offering, which stood before the house or temple, in the midst of the inward court; so that it might be seen by all in the inward court and chambers; and even by all in the outward court, through the several gates, which directly opened and led to it. This was typical of Christ, the altar, we Christians have a right to eat of; which sanctifies every gift offered upon it, and which every worshipper should by faith look unto for the expiation of their sins. The dimensions of this altar were now taken, and are given in ( Ezekiel 43:13-17 ) .


FOOTNOTES:

F21 Tzurath Beth Hamikdash, sect. 27.

Ezekiel 40:47 In-Context

45 The man told me, "The room facing south is for the priests who are in charge of the Temple.
46 And the room facing north is for the priests who are in charge of the altar. These priests are the sons of Zadok, the only sons of Levi permitted to come near to God to serve him."
47 He measured the inside courtyard: a hundred seventy-five feet square. The altar was in front of the Temple.
48 He led me to the porch of the Temple and measured the gateposts of the porch: eight and three-quarters feet high on both sides.
49 The entrance to the gate complex was twenty-one feet wide and its connecting walls were four and a half feet thick. The vestibule itself was thirty-five feet wide and twenty-one feet deep. Ten steps led up to the porch. Columns flanked the gateposts.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.