Ezekiel 43:17
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The ledge shall also be square, fourteen cubits long and fourteen cubits wide, with a rim of half a cubit and a gutter of a cubit all around it. The steps of the altar shall face east.”
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
The prophet, having given us a view of the mystical temple, the gospel-church, as he received it from the Lord, that it might appear not to be erected in vain, comes to describe, in this and the next chapter, the worship that should be performed in it, but under the type of the Old Testament services. In this chapter we have, I. Possession taken of this temple, by the glory of God filling it (Eze 43:1-6). II. A promise given of the continuance of God's presence with his people upon condition of their return to, and continuance in, the instituted way of worship, and their abandoning idols and idolatry (Eze 43:7-12). III. A description of the altar of burnt-offerings (Eze 43:13-17). IV. Directions given for the consecration of that altar (Eze 43:18-27). Ezekiel seems here to stand between God and Israel, as Moses the servant of the Lord did when the sanctuary was first set up.
Open source ↗43:17 This altar was approached by steps going up the east side. This reversal of the normal ancient Near Eastern practice of having the steps approach from the west was possibly to avoid any hint of sun worship (see 8:16).
Open source ↗Cross-references
Other passages the community most often connects to this one. Tap to read.
And you must not go up to My altar on steps, lest your nakedness be exposed on it.’
Then he came to the gate facing east and climbed its steps. He measured the threshold of the gate to be one rod deep.
And make a rim around it a handbreadth wide and put a gold molding on the rim.
The entrance to the bottom floor was on the south side of the temple. A stairway led up to the middle level, and from there to the third floor.
And with the stones, Elijah built an altar in the name of the LORD. Then he dug a trench around the altar large enough to hold two seahs of seed.
Overlay with pure gold the top and all the sides and horns, and make a molding of gold around it.
So He brought me to the inner court of the house of the LORD, and there at the entrance to the temple of the LORD, between the portico and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs to the temple of the LORD and their faces toward the east; and they were bowing to the east in worship of the sun.
And the Levites—Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani—stood on the raised platform and cried out in a loud voice to the LORD their God.