Commentary - Ezekiel 42:1-9

Bird's-eye view

In this section of Ezekiel's grand temple vision, the prophet is led by his angelic guide to inspect a series of chambers designated for the priests. These are not just architectural details for some future, literal building; this is theology in stone and timber. What we are seeing is a blueprint for the life of the New Covenant people of God. The vision is meticulously detailed, full of measurements and spatial relationships, because God is a God of order, not of chaos. The structure of His house reflects the structure of His holiness and the ordered life of His people. The central theme here is the necessary distinction between the holy and the common, and the practical outworking of that distinction in the lives of those who minister before the Lord. These chambers are where the priests who draw near to God are to live, eat, and prepare for their service. In the New Covenant, all believers are a royal priesthood, and so these chambers teach us about the necessary spiritual disciplines and holy separation that must characterize the Church, which is the true temple of the living God.

This is not a vision to be flattened out by a wooden literalism, nor is it to be spiritualized away into a vague mist. It is a robust, typological picture of the Church of Jesus Christ. The specific locations, the dimensions, and the functions of these rooms all point to the greater reality of our life together in the Body of Christ. They are about proximity to God, preparation for service, and the joyful fellowship of the saints around the holy things of God. This is God showing us, in terms that a priest like Ezekiel would understand, what the life of the New Jerusalem, the Bride of Christ, is supposed to look like.

Outline

Context In Ezekiel

Ezekiel chapters 40-48 contain the prophet's final, glorious vision of a new temple, a new priesthood, and a new land. This comes after the Lord has pronounced judgment on faithless Israel (chapters 1-24), judged the surrounding nations (chapters 25-32), and promised a glorious restoration and regeneration for His people, famously pictured in the valley of dry bones (chapters 33-39). The temple vision is the climax of this promise of restoration. It is a picture of God returning to dwell with His people in a renewed and purified community. The glory of the Lord, which Ezekiel saw departing the old temple in chapter 10, will return to this new temple in chapter 43. The detailed measurements and regulations are not a step backward into a more rigid ceremonialism, but a forward-looking picture of the perfect holiness and order that will characterize the age of the Spirit. This section on the priests' chambers (chapter 42) is an integral part of that vision, detailing how the ministers of this new temple are to conduct themselves in the presence of a holy God.

Key Issues

Theology in Three Dimensions

We modern evangelicals tend to be suspicious of form, of architecture, of liturgy. We think spirituality is something that just happens in the ether between our ears. But the Bible is an intensely physical book, and God is a God who reveals Himself through created things. He gave Israel a tabernacle and a temple, not just a set of abstract doctrines. And here, at the climax of Ezekiel's prophecy, He gives us a detailed architectural tour.

Why? Because form follows function. The way a thing is built reveals its purpose. The structure of this visionary temple is meant to teach us. The measurements are not arbitrary. The layout is not accidental. Every cubit, every gateway, every chamber has a theological point to make. These chambers for the priests are set in a particular place for a reason. They are adjacent to the holy place, but accessible from the outer court. They provide a space for the priests to eat the holy offerings and to change their garments. This is all a picture of the Christian life. We are called out of the world (the outer court) to draw near to God (the inner court), and we need places of preparation, fellowship, and nourishment to sustain us in that calling. This is God teaching us about the shape of our lives, the shape of our churches, by giving us a blueprint of a building.

Verse by Verse Commentary

1 Then he brought me out into the outer court, the way toward the north; and he brought me to the chamber which was opposite the separate area and opposite the building toward the north.

The tour continues. The angelic guide leads Ezekiel from his vantage point, likely in the inner court where the temple proper was, back out into the outer court. This is the area accessible to the people. But the destination is a specific set of chambers located to the north. Notice their position: they are opposite the "separate area", that buffer zone of holiness around the temple itself, and also opposite another building to the north. This is prime real estate in the temple complex. These chambers are situated right at the intersection of the sacred and the common. They are in the outer court, but they face the inner realities. This is a picture of the church's ministry. We live in the world, but our focus, our orientation, must always be toward the holy presence of God.

2 Along the length, which was one hundred cubits, was the north door; the width was fifty cubits.

God is a God of precision. The measurements are given: a hundred cubits long by fifty cubits wide (roughly 150 by 75 feet). This is a significant structure. The main entrance is on the north side. Numbers and dimensions in Scripture are not just filler. They communicate stability, order, and substance. God's plan for His people is not a flimsy, thrown-together affair. It is a well-designed, solid, and spacious reality. There is plenty of room in these chambers, just as in our Father's house there are many mansions.

3 Opposite the twenty cubits which belonged to the inner court, and opposite the pavement which belonged to the outer court, was gallery corresponding to gallery in three stories.

Here the position is described with more detail. On one side, these chambers faced the twenty-cubit-wide space of the inner court. On the other side, they faced the paved area of the outer court. The structure itself was three stories high, with galleries, or balconies, on each level. This building is a bridge between two realms. The priests who occupy it live with a view of both the place of high worship and the place of the general assembly. This is the pastor's life, the elder's life, and in principle, the life of every mature believer. We must be engaged with the people of God in the outer court while maintaining our focus on the holiness of the inner court. The three stories speak of a fullness and a heavenly dimension, connecting us to the triune God.

4 Before the chambers was an inner walk ten cubits wide, a way of one hundred cubits; and their openings were on the north.

In front of the rooms themselves is a walkway, ten cubits wide and a hundred cubits long. This is a place for movement, for fellowship, for conversation. The priests are not isolated in solitary cells. They are part of a community. They have a shared space where they can walk together. Ministry is not a lone-wolf operation. It requires fellowship, mutual encouragement, and shared wisdom. The doors to the individual chambers opened onto this common walkway, all facing north. This is an image of an ordered community, living and working together in the service of their King.

5 Now the upper chambers were smaller because the galleries took more space away from them than from the lower and middle ones in the building.

This is a curious architectural detail. As the building went up, the galleries on each level took up some of the floor space, so the rooms on the top floor were the smallest. This is the opposite of how we might build a luxury condo today, where the penthouse is the largest. What does this teach? Perhaps it is a lesson in humility. The higher you go in service to God, the less room there is for self. The position of greatest honor and visibility requires the greatest self-denial. The view from the top is better, but the personal space is smaller. Elevation in God's kingdom means constriction of the self.

6 For they were in three stories and had no pillars like the pillars of the courts; therefore the upper chambers were set back from the ground upward, more than the lower and middle ones.

The reason for this tiered, set-back design is explained. Unlike the larger porticos in the main courts, this building did not have massive, ground-level pillars supporting the upper levels. The support was integral to the structure itself. This resulted in the upper floors being recessed. This could speak to the stability of the priestly community. It is not propped up by external supports, but its strength is found within its very design, ordered by God. The life of the church is not sustained by worldly structures or props, but by the way God has put us together, bone to bone and sinew to sinew.

7 As for the outer wall by the side of the chambers, toward the outer court facing the chambers, its length was fifty cubits.

There is a wall on the outer side of this block of chambers, running parallel to them. It is fifty cubits long, matching the width of the building. Walls in Scripture define and protect. This wall provides a clear boundary between the priestly area and the rest of the outer court. Holiness requires definition. It requires lines to be drawn. The church must be in the world, but it cannot be a boundary-less, amorphous blob. There must be a clear distinction between the church and the world, between the holy and the common.

8 For the length of the chambers which were in the outer court was fifty cubits; and behold, the length of those facing the temple was one hundred cubits.

A summary of the dimensions is given, perhaps for clarity. The width of the chamber block is fifty cubits, and its length, the side that runs parallel to the temple, is one hundred cubits. The repetition emphasizes the grandeur and deliberate design of the structure. But notice the contrast: the dimension facing the people is fifty cubits, while the dimension facing the temple is one hundred cubits. Our engagement with the world is important, but our orientation toward God must be doubly so. Our length must be toward Him.

9 Below these chambers was the entrance on the east side, as one enters them from the outer court.

Finally, we are told where the main entrance to this whole complex is. It is on the east side, at ground level. To get into these priestly quarters, you have to come in from the outer court, from the east. The east is the direction of the sunrise, the direction of new beginnings, the direction from which the glory of God returns to the temple (Ezekiel 43:2). Access to the priestly life is a gift of God's new day. You enter from where the people are, but you enter with your face toward the rising sun, toward the dawning of God's glory. This is how we all must come into the life of the church, leaving the world behind and entering into the place of preparation and fellowship, ready to serve the living God.

Application

It is easy to get lost in the cubits and galleries and dismiss this as irrelevant architectural trivia. But that would be a profound mistake. This is a picture of the church. We are the priests of the new and better temple, the body of Christ. And so, this passage has everything to do with us.

First, it teaches us that our lives must be rightly oriented. Like these chambers, we are to live in the world (the outer court) but be facing the "separate area," the holiness of God. Our ministry is to the world, but our focus must be on God. Second, it teaches the necessity of community. The priests had a common walkway. They were not isolated mystics. We need the fellowship of the saints, the shared life of the body, to sustain us in our calling. Ministry is corporate. Third, it teaches us about holiness. There are walls and boundaries for a reason. The church must maintain its distinctiveness from the world. We are called to be a holy nation, a peculiar people. Fourth, it teaches humility. The higher you go, the smaller your room gets. Leadership in the church is not about expanding your ego, but about the constriction of self for the sake of others. The way up is down. Finally, it teaches us that our access to this life is from the east, from the outer court. We don't begin as spiritual elites. We begin as common sinners in the outer court, and by grace, we are invited in through the one entrance, looking toward the rising sun, Jesus Christ, the glory of God.