Worship and the Sabbath

1“‘Lord YHWH says: “The gate of the inner court that faces the east is to be shut on the six working days, but it will be opened on the Sabbath day, and opened on the day of the new moon. 2The prince is to enter by the way of the porch on the gate outside and stand by the post of the gate. Then the priests are to prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings, and he is to worship at the threshold of the gate and go out. But the gate will not be closed until evening. 3The people of the land are to worship at the door of that gate before YHWH on the Sabbaths and on the new moons. 4The burnt offering that the prince offers to YHWH on the Sabbath day is to be six lambs without defect and a ram without defect. 5The meal offering is to be an ephah for the ram, and the meal offering for the lambs as he is able to give, and a hin+46:5 A hin is about 6.5 liters or 1.7 gallons. of oil to an ephah.+46:5 1 ephah is about 22 liters or about 2/3 of a bushel 6On the day of the new moon, he is to offer a young bull without defect, six lambs, and a ram, all without defect. 7He is to provide a meal offering: an ephah for the bull, an ephah for the ram, for the lambs as he must as he is able, and a hin of oil to an ephah. 8When the prince enters, he is to enter through the way of the porch of the gate, and he is to leave the same way.

9“‘“But when the people of the land come before YHWH in the appointed feasts, the one who enters by the way of the north gate to worship is to go out by the way of the south gate. And whoever enters by the way of the south gate must go out by the way of the north gate. No one may return through the gate they came in, but must go out straight out. 10The prince is to go in with them when they go in. When they leave, he will leave.

11“‘“In the feasts and in the appointed holidays, the meal offering are to be an ephah+46:11 1 ephah is about 22 liters or about 2/3 of a bushel for a bull, an ephah for a ram, and for the lambs as much as he is able to give, and a hin of oil to an ephah. 12When the prince prepares a free will offering, a burnt offering or peace offerings as a free will offering to YHWH, the east gate is to be opened for him. He is to provide his burnt offering and peace offerings, like he does on the Sabbath day. Then he is to leave, and after he leaves, the gate is to be closed.

13“‘“Every day, you are to provide a year old lamb without defect for a burnt offering to YHWH. Morning by morning you are to prepare it. 14You are to prepare a meal offering with it morning by morning, a sixth of an ephah,+46:14 1 ephah is about 22 liters or about 2/3 of a bushel and the third of a hin of oil to moisten the fine flour. This meal offering to YHWH is a permanent ordinance. 15Thus they are to prepare the lamb, the meal offering, and the oil, morning by morning, for a continual burnt offering.”

16“‘Lord YHWH says: “If the prince gives a gift to any of his sons, it is his inheritance. It will belong to his sons. It is their possession by inheritance. 17But if he gives a gift from his inheritance to one of his servants, it will be his until the year of freedom; then it will return to the prince. His inheritance will be for his sons. 18Moreover the prince must not take from the people’s inheritance, evicting them from their property. He is to give inheritance to his sons from of his own possession, so that my people will not be scattered from their property.”’”

19Then he brought me through the entry, which was at the side of the gate, into the holy rooms for the priests, which looked toward the north. I saw a place on the back part westward. 20He said to me, “This is the place where the priests is to boil the guilt offering and the sin offering and bake the meal offering, so that they do not bring them into the outer court and sanctify the people.”

21Then he brought me out into the outer court and caused me to pass by the four corners of the court. There was a court in each corner of the court. 22In the four corners of the court there were courts enclosed, forty cubits+46:22 A cubit is the length from the tip of the middle finger to the elbow on a man’s arm, or about 18 inches or 46 centimeters. long and thirty wide. These four in the corners were the same size. 23There was a wall around in them, around the four, and boiling places were made under the walls all around. 24Then he said to me, “These are the boiling houses, where the ministers of the house are to boil the sacrifice of the people.”