the Week of Proper 19 / Ordinary 24
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September 19 - Straight Thru the Bible
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Ezekiel 38:10-40:49
Chapter 38
10 "This is what the Lord God says: On that day, thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will devise an evil plan. 11 You will say, ‘I will go up against a land of open villages; I will come against a tranquil people who are living securely,(i) all of them living without walls and without bars or gates(j)— 12 in order to seize spoil and carry off plunder,(k) to turn your hand against ruins now inhabited and against a people gathered from the nations, who have been acquiring cattle and possessions and who live at the center of the world.' 13 Sheba(l) and Dedan(m) and the merchants of Tarshish(n) with all its rulers[c] will ask you, ‘Have you come to seize spoil? Have you assembled your hordes to carry off plunder, to make off with silver and gold, to take cattle and possessions, to seize great spoil?'
14 "Therefore prophesy, son of man, and say to Gog: This is what the Lord God says: On that day when My people Israel are dwelling securely,(o) will you not know this 15 and come from your place in the remotest parts of the north(p)—you and many peoples with you, who are all riding horses—a mighty horde, a huge army? 16 You will advance against My people Israel like a cloud covering the land. It will happen in the last days, Gog, that I will bring you against My land so that the nations may know Me, when I show Myself holy through you in their sight.(q)
17 "This is what the Lord God says: Are you the one I spoke about in former times through My servants, the prophets of Israel, who for years prophesied in those times that I would bring you against them? 18 Now on that day, the day when Gog comes against the land of Israel"—this is the declaration of the Lord God —"My wrath will flare up.[d] 19 I swear in My zeal and fiery rage:(r) On that day there will be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. 20 The fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the animals of the field, every creature that crawls on the ground, and every human being on the face of the earth will tremble before Me. The mountains will be thrown down, the cliffs will collapse, and every wall will fall to the ground. 21 I will call for a sword against him on all My mountains"—the declaration of the Lord God —"and every man's sword will be against his brother.(s) 22 I will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed. I will pour out torrential rain, hailstones, fire, and brimstone on him, as well as his troops and the many peoples who are with him.(t) 23 I will display My greatness and holiness, and will reveal Myself in the sight of many nations.(u) Then they will know that I am Yahweh.
Chapter 39
The Disposal of Gog
1 "As for you, son of man, prophesy against Gog and say: This is what the Lord God says: Look, I am against you, Gog, chief prince of[a] Meshech and Tubal.(a) 2 I will turn you around, drive you on,(b) and lead you up from the remotest parts of the north. I will bring you against the mountains of Israel. 3 Then I will knock your bow from your left hand and make your arrows drop from your right hand. 4 You, all your troops, and the peoples who are with you will fall on the mountains of Israel. I will give you as food to every kind of predatory bird and to the wild animals. 5 You will fall on the open field,(c) for I have spoken." This is the declaration of the Lord God .
6 "I will send fire against Magog(d) and those who live securely on the coasts and islands. Then they will know that I am Yahweh. 7 So I will make My holy name known among My people Israel and will no longer allow it to be profaned. Then the nations will know that I am Yahweh, the Holy One in Israel.(e) 8 Yes, it is coming, and it will happen." This is the declaration of the Lord God . "This is the day I have spoken about.
9 "Then the inhabitants of Israel's cities will go out, kindle fires, and burn the weapons—the bucklers and shields, the bows and arrows, the clubs and spears. For seven years they will use them to make fires. 10 They will not gather wood from the countryside or cut it down from the forests, for they will use the weapons to make fires. They will take the loot from those who looted them and plunder those who plundered them."(f) This is the declaration of the Lord God .
11 "Now on that day I will give Gog a burial place there in Israel—the Valley of the Travelers[b] east of the Sea. It will block those who travel through, for Gog and all his hordes will be buried there. So it will be called the Valley of Hamon-gog.[c] 12 The house of Israel will spend seven months burying them in order to cleanse the land.(g) 13 All the people of the land will bury them and their fame will spread(h) on the day I display My glory."(i) This is the declaration of the Lord God .
14 "They will appoint men on a full-time basis to pass through the land and bury the invaders[d] who remain on the surface of the ground, in order to cleanse it. They will make their search at the end of the seven months. 15 When they pass through the land and one of them sees a human bone, he will set up a marker next to it until the buriers have buried it in the Valley of Hamon-gog. 16 There will even be a city named Hamonah[e] there. So they will cleanse the land.
17 "Son of man, this is what the Lord God says: Tell every kind of bird and all the wild animals: Assemble and come! Gather from all around to My sacrificial feast that I am slaughtering for you, a great feast on the mountains of Israel;(j) you will eat flesh and drink blood. 18 You will eat the flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the earth's princes: rams, lambs, male goats, and all the fattened bulls of Bashan. 19 You will eat fat until you are satisfied(k) and drink blood until you are drunk, at My sacrificial feast that I have prepared for you. 20 At My table you will eat your fill of horses and riders, of mighty men and all the warriors." This is the declaration of the Lord God .
Israel's Restoration to God
21 "I will display My glory among the nations,(l) and all the nations will see the judgment I have executed and the hand I have laid on them. 22 From that day forward the house of Israel will know that I am Yahweh their God. 23 And the nations will know that the house of Israel went into exile on account of their iniquity, because they dealt unfaithfully with Me.(m) Therefore, I hid My face from them and handed them over to their enemies, so that they all fell by the sword. 24 I dealt with them according to their uncleanness and transgressions, and I hid My face from them.
25 "So this is what the Lord God says: Now I will restore the fortunes of Jacob(n) and have compassion on the whole house of Israel,(o) and I will be jealous for My holy name. 26 They will feel remorse for[f][g] their disgrace(p) and all the unfaithfulness they committed against Me, when they live securely in their land with no one to frighten them. 27 When I bring them back from the peoples and gather them from the countries of their enemies, I will demonstrate My holiness through them in the sight of many nations.(q) 28 They will know that I am Yahweh their God when I regather them to their own land after having exiled them among the nations. I will leave none of them behind.[h] 29 I will no longer hide My face from them, for I will pour out My Spirit on the house of Israel."(r) This is the declaration of the Lord God .
Chapter 40
The New Temple
1 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 Jerusalem had been captured,(a) on that very day the Lord 's hand was on me,(b) and He brought me there. 2 In visions of God(c) He took me to the land of Israel and set me down on a very high mountain.(d) On its southern slope was a structure resembling a city. 3 He brought me there, and I saw a man whose appearance was like bronze,(e) with a linen cord and a measuring rod in his hand.(f) He was standing by the gate. 4 He spoke to me: "Son of man, look with your eyes, listen with your ears,(g) and pay attention to everything I am going to show you, for you have been brought here so that I might show it to you. Report everything you see to the house of Israel."(h)
The Wall and Outer Gates
5 Now there was a wall surrounding the outside of the temple.(i) The measuring rod in the man's hand was six units of 21 inches;[a] each unit was the standard length plus three inches.[b] He measured the thickness of the wall structure; it was about 10 feet,[c] and its height was the same.[d] 6 Then he came to the gate that faced east and climbed its steps.(j) He measured the threshold of the gate; it was 10 feet deep—the first threshold was 10 feet deep. 7 Each recess was about 10 feet[e] long and 10 feet[f] deep, and there was a space of 8¾ feet[g] between the recesses. The inner threshold of the gate on the temple side next to the gate's portico was about 10 feet.[h] 8 Next he measured the portico of the gate; 9 it[i] was 14 feet,[j] and its pilasters were 3½ feet.[k] The portico of the gate was on the temple side.
10 There were three recesses on each side of the east gate, each with the same measurements, and the pilasters on either side also had the same measurements. 11 Then he measured the width of the gate's entrance; it was 17½ feet,[l] while the width[m] of the gateway was 22¾ feet.[n] 12 There was a barrier of 21 inches[o] in front of the recesses on both sides, and the recesses on each side were 10½ feet[p] square. 13 Then he measured the gateway from the roof of one recess to the roof of the opposite one; the distance was 43¾ feet.[q] The openings of the recesses faced each other. 14 Next, he measured the pilasters—105 feet.[r] The gate extended around to the pilaster of the court.[s] 15 The distance from the front of the gate at the entrance to the front of the gate's portico on the inside was 87½ feet.[t] 16 The recesses and their pilasters had beveled windows all around the inside of the gateway.(k) The porticoes also had windows all around on the inside. Each pilaster was decorated with palm trees.(l)
17 Then he brought me into the outer court,(m) and there were chambers and a paved surface laid out all around the court.(n) Thirty chambers faced the pavement, 18 which flanked the gates and corresponded to the length of the gates; this was the lower pavement. 19 Then he measured the distance from the front of the lower gate to the exterior front of the inner court; it was 175 feet.[u] This was the east; next the north is described.
20 He measured the gate of the outer court facing north, both its length and width. 21 Its three recesses on each side, its pilasters, and its portico had the same measurements as the first gate: 87½ feet[v] long and 43¾ feet[w] wide. 22 Its windows, portico, and palm trees had the same measurements as those of the gate that faced east. Seven steps led up to the gate, and its portico was ahead of them. 23 The inner court had a gate facing the north gate, like the one on the east. He measured the distance from gate to gate; it was 175 feet.[x]
24 He brought me to the south side, and there was also a gate on the south. He measured its pilasters and portico; they had the same measurements as the others. 25 Both the gate and its portico had windows all around, like the other windows. It was 87½ feet[y] long and 43¾ feet[z] wide. 26 Its stairway had seven steps, and its portico was ahead of them. It had palm trees on its pilasters, one on each side. 27 The inner court had a gate on the south. He measured from gate to gate on the south; it was 175 feet.[aa]
The Inner Gates
28 Then he brought me to the inner court through the south gate. When he measured the south gate, it had the same measurements as the others. 29 Its recesses, pilasters, and portico had the same measurements as the others. Both it and its portico had windows all around. It was 87½ feet[ab] long and 43¾ feet[ac] wide. 30 (There were porticoes all around, 43¾ feet long and 8¾ feet[ad] wide.[ae]) 31 Its portico faced the outer court, and its pilasters were decorated with palm trees. Its stairway had eight steps.
32 Then he brought me to the inner court on the east side. When he measured the gate, it had the same measurements as the others. 33 Its recesses, pilasters, and portico had the same measurements as the others. Both it and its portico had windows all around. It was 87½ feet[af] long and 43¾ feet[ag] wide. 34 Its portico faced the outer court, and its pilasters were decorated with palm trees on each side. Its stairway had eight steps.
35 Then he brought me to the north gate.(o) When he measured it, it had the same measurements as the others, 36 as did its recesses, pilasters, and portico. It also had windows all around. It was 87½ feet[ah] long and 43¾ feet[ai] wide. 37 Its portico[aj] faced the outer court, and its pilasters were decorated with palm trees on each side. Its stairway had eight steps.
Rooms for Preparing Sacrifices
38 There was a chamber whose door opened into the portico of the gate.[ak] The burnt offering was to be washed there.(p) 39 Inside the portico of the gate there were two tables on each side, on which to slaughter the burnt offering, sin offering,(q) and restitution offering.(r) 40 Outside, as one approaches the entrance of the north gate, there were two tables on one side and two more tables on the other side of the gate's portico. 41 So there were four tables inside the gate and four outside, eight tables in all on which the slaughtering was to be done. 42 There were also four tables of cut stone for the burnt offering,(s) each 31½ inches[al] long, 31½ inches wide, and 21 inches[am] high. The utensils used to slaughter the burnt offerings and other sacrifices were placed on them. 43 There were three-inch[an] hooks[ao] fastened all around the inside of the room, and the flesh of the offering was to be laid on the tables.
Rooms for Singers and Priests
44 Outside the inner gate, within the inner court, there were chambers for the singers:[ap](t) one[aq] beside the north gate, facing south, and another beside the south[ar] gate, facing north. 45 Then the man said to me: "This chamber that faces south is for the priests who keep charge of the temple.(u) 46 The chamber that faces north is for the priests who keep charge of the altar. These are the sons of Zadok,(v) the ones from the sons of Levi who may approach the Lord to serve Him."(w) 47 Next he measured the court. It was square, 175 feet[as] long and 175 feet wide. The altar(x) was in front of the temple.
48 Then he brought me to the portico of the temple and measured the pilasters of the portico; they were 8¾ feet[at] thick on each side. The width of the gateway was 24½ feet,[au] and the side walls of the gate were[av] 5¼ feet[aw] wide on each side. 49 The portico was 35 feet[ax] across and 21[ay] feet[az] deep, and 10 steps led[ba] up to it.(y) There were pillars by the pilasters, one on each side.(z)
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