Ordered Worship in the Restored Temple

46:1 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: The gate of the inner court that faces east will be closed six working days, but on the Sabbath day it will be opened and on the day of the new moon it will be opened. 46:2 The prince will enter by way of the porch of the gate from the outside, and will stand by the doorpost of the gate. The priests will provide his burnt offering and his peace offerings, and he will bow down at the threshold of the gate and then go out. But the gate will not be closed until evening. 46:3 The people of the land will bow down at the entrance of that gate before the Lord on the Sabbaths and on the new moons. 46:4 The burnt offering which the prince will offer to the Lord on the Sabbath day will be six unblemished lambs and one unblemished ram. 46:5 The grain offering will be an ephah with the ram, and the grain offering with the lambs will be as much as he is able to give, and a gallon of olive oil with an ephah. 46:6 On the day of the new moon he will offer an unblemished young bull, and six lambs and a ram, all without blemish. 46:7 He will provide a grain offering: an ephah with the bull and an ephah with the ram, and with the lambs as much as he wishes, and a gallon of olive oil with each ephah of grain. 46:8 When the prince enters, he will come by way of the porch of the gate and will go out the same way. 46:9 “‘When the people of the land come before the Lord at the appointed feasts, whoever enters by way of the north gate to worship will go out by way of the south gate; whoever enters by way of the south gate will go out by way of the north gate. No one will return by way of the gate they entered but will go out straight ahead. 46:10 When they come in, the prince will come in with them, and when they go out, he will go out. 46:11 “‘At the festivals and at the appointed feasts the grain offering will be an ephah with the bull and an ephah with the ram, and with the lambs as much as one is able, and a gallon of olive oil with each ephah of grain. 46:12 When the prince provides a freewill offering, a burnt offering, or peace offerings as a voluntary offering to the Lord, the gate facing east will be opened for him, and he will provide his burnt offering and his peace offerings just as he did on the Sabbath. Then he will go out, and the gate will be closed after he goes out. 46:13 “‘You will provide a lamb a year old without blemish for a burnt offering daily to the Lord; morning by morning he will provide it. 46:14 And you will provide a grain offering with it morning by morning, a sixth of an ephah, and a third of a gallon of olive oil to moisten the choice flour, as a grain offering to the Lord; this is a perpetual statute. 46:15 Thus they will provide the lamb, the grain offering, and the olive oil morning by morning, as a perpetual burnt offering. 46:16 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: If the prince should give a gift to one of his sons as his inheritance, it will belong to his sons, it is their property by inheritance. 46:17 But if he gives a gift from his inheritance to one of his servants, it will be his until the year of liberty; then it will revert to the prince. His inheritance will only remain with his sons. 46:18 The prince will not take away any of the people’s inheritance by oppressively removing them from their property. He will give his sons an inheritance from his own possessions so that my people will not be scattered, each from his own property.’” 46:19 Then he brought me through the entrance, which was at the side of the gate, into the holy chambers for the priests which faced north. There I saw a place at the extreme western end. 46:20 He said to me, “This is the place where the priests will boil the guilt offering and the sin offering, and where they will bake the grain offering, so that they do not bring them out to the outer court to transmit holiness to the people.” 46:21 Then he brought me out to the outer court and led me past the four corners of the court, and I noticed that in every corner of the court there was a court. 46:22 In the four corners of the court were small courts, 70 feet in length and 52½ feet in width; the four were all the same size. 46:23 There was a row of masonry around each of the four courts, and places for boiling offerings were made under the rows all around. 46:24 Then he said to me, “These are the houses for boiling, where the ministers of the temple boil the sacrifices of the people.”

Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible®, copyright ©1996, 2019 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Ezekiel 46 shows that God’s worship is holy, ordered, and not casual. The prince leads in worship, but priests still do the priestly work. The people come at appointed times, and the prince must not abuse his power over land or worship.

This chapter gives laws for worship in the restored temple. The east gate is open only on the Sabbath and the new moon. The prince comes to worship through the gate, but the priests bring the offerings. He bows before the Lord, showing honor and submission.

The people also worship in an orderly way. When they enter for the appointed feasts, they do not turn back the same way. The movement through the gates shows care and reverence, not casual use of holy space.

The chapter also repeats the daily offering. Morning by morning, a lamb and grain offering are to be given. This shows steady worship, not worship only at special times.

God also limits the prince’s power. He may give land to his sons, but he must not take away the people’s inheritance. He is not to act like an oppressive ruler. The people’s land must be protected.

The final section describes the priests’ chambers and cooking places. Sacred offerings are handled in the right place so holiness is not carried into the outer court. The whole chapter teaches that the Lord is holy, and his people must approach him in the way he commands.

• God decides how he is to be worshiped.
• Holy things must be handled with reverence and care.
• Leaders must serve under God’s authority, not abuse their power.
• The people’s inheritance must be protected.
• Regular worship trains God’s people to live before him continually.

• The gate is opened on the Sabbath and the new moon, not at all times.
• The prince may not overstep his place or take the people’s land.
• Worshipers must come and go in an orderly way at the feasts.
• The daily burnt offering is to be given morning by morning.
• Priests must keep sacred offerings in the proper holy place.

This chapter belongs to Ezekiel’s restoration hope after judgment and exile. It shows God giving his people a renewed order of worship, priestly service, and land life. It also points forward to the fuller holiness, mediation, and dwelling with God that the rest of Scripture develops, without collapsing this passage into a direct picture of the church.

God still cares about reverent worship and obedient leadership. His people should not treat holy things lightly. Leaders should use authority to protect others, not to enrich themselves. The chapter also reminds readers that regular worship and steady obedience matter, because God is holy and worthy of honor.

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