Ezekiel 43:16

16 And the altar of twelve cubits in length was four-cornered with even sides, by twelve cubits of breadth. (And the top of the altar was twelve cubits in length, by twelve cubits in breadth, that is, four-cornered with equal sides.)

Ezekiel 43:16 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 43:16

And the altar shall be twelve cubits long, twelve broad
The length of it, from east to west, was twelve cubits; and the breadth, from north to south, was the same; so that it was a proper foursquare, as follows: Christ the altar, or the doctrine of his sacrifice and satisfaction for the sins of men, is the doctrine of the twelve apostles of Christ, and embraced by the twelve times twelve, the 144,000 that belong unto him: square in the four squares thereof;
as the altar in the tabernacle, and Solomon's temple, were, ( Exodus 27:1 ) ( 2 Chronicles 4:1 ) , denoting the largeness of Christ's sacrifice, the perfection of it, and its stability and permanency, to take away the sin, of his people.

Ezekiel 43:16 In-Context

14 And from the bosom of the earth till to the last height were two cubits, and the breadth of one cubit; and from the less height (of the pedestal), till to the greater height (of the pedestal), were four cubits, and the breadth was of one cubit; (And from the top of the base on the ground, unto the top of the second base, was two cubits, set-in one cubit from the edge; and from the top of the second base, unto the top of the pedestal, was four cubits, set-in one cubit from the edge;)
15 forsooth that ariel, that is, the higher part of the altar, was of four cubits; and from the altar till to above were four horns. (and the altar was four cubits high; and at the corners all around the altar were four horns, each horn one cubit high.)
16 And the altar of twelve cubits in length was four-cornered with even sides, by twelve cubits of breadth. (And the top of the altar was twelve cubits in length, by twelve cubits in breadth, that is, four-cornered with equal sides.)
17 And the height of fourteen cubits of length was by fourteen cubits of breadth, in four corners thereof. And a crown of half a cubit was in the compass thereof, and the bosom thereof was of one cubit by compass; forsooth the degrees thereof were turned to the east. (And so the space for the altar was fourteen cubits in length, by fourteen cubits in breadth, unto its four corners. And a rim of half a cubit was all around it, and its bottom, or its base, was set-in one cubit all around; and its steps were turned toward the east.)
18 And he said to me, Thou, son of man, the Lord God saith these things, These be the customs of the altar, in whatever day it is made, that men offer on it burnt sacrifice, and blood be shed out. (And he said to me, Thou, son of man, the Lord God saith these things, These be the customs for the altar, or the way to consecrate it, once it is made, so that people can offer burnt sacrifice on it, and blood can be thrown against it.)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.