Afterward he brought me to the gate, even the gate that looks toward the east;
verse value 2327
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 30 letters. Verse gematria: 2327 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "gate" (שַׁ֕עַר, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·he·led·me" (וַיּוֹלִכֵ֖נִי, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "turning" (פֹּנֶ֖ה). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "to·the·gate" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "way" (root דרך, 105x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·gate', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַיּוֹלִכֵ֖נִי [and·he·led·me] (132) + אֶל־הַשָּׁ֑עַר [to·the·gate] (606) + שַׁ֕עַר [gate] (570) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [that] (501) + פֹּנֶ֖ה [turning] (135) + דֶּ֥רֶךְ [way] (224) + הַקָּדִֽים [east] (159) = 2327.
Rashi
“And he brought me.” He returned and brought me into the East Gate, and I saw the Glory descending to the Temple Court.
Radak
"And He brought me." After the winds had been measured outside my sight, He brought me to the gate from which He had taken me out.
Metzudat David
"To the gate"—this refers to the gate of the Temple Mount.
Malbim
“And He brought me” — from the west wind He led him to the known gate, which is the gate through which he entered the first time; and it explains [that it is] the gate that faces the way of the east, for one who exits from it has his face toward the east.
and, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east; and His voice was like the sound of many waters; and the earth did shine with His glory.
verse value 2352
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 59 letters. The shortest word is "went·in" (בָּ֖א, 2 letters) and the longest is "Israel" (יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל, 5 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·his·voice" (וְקוֹל֗וֹ), "shone" (הֵאִ֥ירָה), "from·his·glory" (מִכְּבֹדֽוֹ). The root כבוד appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·the·land" (root ארץ, 176x in Ezekiel); "went·in" (root בוא, 175x in Ezekiel); "Israel" (root ישראל, 154x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'east', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְהִנֵּ֗ה [and·behold] (66) + כְּבוֹד֙ [glory] (32) + אֱלֹהֵ֣י [God·of] (46) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל [Israel] (541) + בָּ֖א [went·in] (3) + מִדֶּ֣רֶךְ [from·way·of] (264) + הַקָּדִ֑ים [east] (159) + וְקוֹל֗וֹ [and·his·voice] (148) + כְּקוֹל֙ [like·voice·of] (156) + מַ֣יִם [water] (90) + רַבִּ֔ים [many] (252) + וְהָאָ֖רֶץ [and·the·land] (302) + הֵאִ֥ירָה [shone] (221) + מִכְּבֹדֽוֹ [from·his·glory] (72) = 2352.
Radak
And behold, he comes from the east. He enters through the gate from the east:
“And His voice is like the voice of many waters.” This is similar to what is stated at the beginning of the book, except that there He added “like the voice of the Almighty.” The meaning of “and His voice” is “and the voice of the Glory.” Jonathan’s Targum translates it as “and the voice of those who bless His Name.”
And the earth was illuminated by His glory. The verb is an intransitive verb from the nifal conjugation, whereas the remaining forms derived from this binyan appear in the active voice, such as "He illuminated the world with His lightning" and "to illuminate the earth."
“From His glory.” From the glory of the God of Israel, and it is the matter of splendor and radiance, as we have explained.
Metzudat David
"As the voice of many waters." It compares the voice of the Divine Presence to the sound of waters in order to explain it to the ear, as it is accustomed.
"And the land was illuminated by His glory." The land was filled with light from the radiance of the Divine Presence.
Metzudat Zion
It shone. From the word for light:
Malbim
And behold, the Glory of the God of Israel—this refers to the revelation of the Lord in His Glory, specifically in His capacity as the God of Israel. This name indicates the connection He has with Israel and the particular providence that clings to them, guiding them through miraculous governance. That is to say, He saw that His Divine Presence would return to them and He would raise a banner for those who fear Him. The Ra’ya Vehaya writes that this comes from the principle of precedence, for the eastern aspect conveys speech and words concerning the power and might of the Lord. This is due to the eastern motion by which the daily sphere drives all the heavenly hosts from east to west, contrary to their intrinsic motion from west to east. And as our Sages of blessed memory stated: “Were it not for the voice of the sphere of the sun, the voice of the multitude of a city would be heard, for the voice of the sphere silences the voice of the multitude of the city who deny the existence of the Lord,” thereby refuting the existence of the Lord, as stated in Akeidat Yitzchak. And “His voice” means that then His providence was revealed to all: whether by the ear, for His voice is like the voice of many waters—that is, all the waters of existence which make a sound, for the Lord is mighty in the heavens; or by the eye, for the earth shone with His Glory through the revelation of the Divine Presence and the Glory of the Lord to the seers and prophets.
And the appearance of the vision which I saw was like the vision that I saw when I came to destroy the city; and the visions were like the vision that I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell upon my face.
verse value 7309
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 82 letters. The shortest word is "which" (אֲשֶׁ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "that·I·saw" (אֲשֶׁר־רָאִ֙יתִי֙, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 621: I·have·seen, I·have·seen. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·as·sight·of" (וּכְמַרְאֵ֨ה), "that·I·saw" (אֲשֶׁר־רָאִ֙יתִי֙), "when·I·came" (בְּבֹאִי֙). The root מראה appears 5 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "to·river·Chebar" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "when·I·came" (root בוא, 175x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·river·Chebar', dividing the verse into phrases of 14 and 2 words.
Rashi
"And as the appearance of the appearance." Nine "appearances" are written in this verse, and from them the prophets would see, except for Moses our teacher, who would see through a single "appearance." Therefore, his mirror was clear and saw directly. This is what the paytan established (there, in the selikhah): "From the polished visions, in nine visions."
"When I came to destroy the city." In the passage of "And you shall mark a mark" (above, chapter 9), where it is stated there, "Approach, you officers of the city," and there he explained the likeness of the Chariot.
Radak
"And as the appearance of the appearance." And within the general scope of that glory that shone forth, I saw what appeared like the vision that I had seen when I came to destroy the city, for I saw the Chariot; and likewise, as the appearance that I saw by the Kebar River—all those visions I saw now.
“By the river Chebar.” Just as it says “on” (and there are many instances like it), and what is stated, “When I came to destroy the city,” whereas he did not come to destroy the city, but rather the six men—this means, “When I came, just as the men came to destroy the city.” And Jonathan [ben Uzziel] translated it: “In my visions, to devastate the city.” And the repetition of the term “vision” several times pertains to the visions that change regarding the chariot. And our Sages of blessed memory said: “Nine visions in this verse,” to teach that all the prophets saw only through nine mirrors, whereas Moses, our teacher, peace be upon him, saw through one mirror, as it is stated, “In a vision I will make Myself known to him,” meaning he saw through the illuminated mirror. And what is stated, “nine,” is an allusion to the nine screens and their bands, and the tenth shall be holy.
“To My face.” This is like the phrase “upon My face.”
Metzudat David
“And as the appearance of the appearance, etc.”: “As the appearance, etc.” means: Just as the appearance of the vision that I saw now was so, so was the appearance that I saw when I came to prophesy concerning the destruction of the city, which is what is stated: “The officers of the city have drawn near, etc.” (above 9:1), for then he saw the vision of the Divine Presence, as stated there in that context.
"Visions." Likewise, I have now seen visions, like the vision that I saw by the river Chebar; it is the vision mentioned at the beginning of the book.
"And I will fall upon my face." To prostrate oneself before the Lord.
Metzudat Zion
"And as the appearance, etc." – The phrase "as the appearance of two" indicates a complete likeness; similarly, "as a people, so a priest" (Isaiah 24:2).
"To a river." On the river:
Malbim
And as the appearance of the appearance: Behold, Ezekiel saw the Chariot in three types of visions corresponding to three types of Divine governance:
1. The visions of the Chariot that he saw upon his coming to destroy the city, when [God] went out in anger to desolate and devastate.
2. The visions of the Chariot that he saw the first time by the river Chebar, where he saw Him going forth from His place to go with the exiles to the four corners of the heavens. And although this is done from His mercies and kindnesses, in that He will guard them so that they not perish during their exile, nevertheless, throughout all the days of the exile, He will govern through the ministers of above, in that the Divine Presence is clothed in the flesh of the nation under which Israel is placed.
3. The Chariot that he saw in that vision in which He showed him the construction of the future Temple, where he saw the governance of the Lord at the time He will return His Presence to Zion, when He will conduct a governance that is high, wondrous, and excellent.
And he relates that now, upon his coming again to the east gate, he saw the Chariot in these three visions which interchange, for it was made known to him that after the Temple will be built in the Second Temple period, He will return again to destroy it due to the sins of Israel, and from this aspect he saw the vision that he saw upon his coming to devastate the city. And furthermore, it was shown to him that afterwards Israel will be exiled again and scattered to the four corners of the heavens, and the Lord will go out with them in His Chariot into the exile to guard them, and regarding this he saw the visions of the Chariot that he saw by the river Chebar. Furthermore, it was shown to him that afterwards He will return to the Third Temple, in which He will dwell for all the days of eternity, and he saw the pattern of the Chariot in the vision of wondrous governance.
And I have already explained (chapter 41, verse 21) what is written, “And the face of the Kodesh, the appearance was as the appearance,” namely, that the face of the Kodesh appeared to him then as the visions of the host, in which that vision was engraved like in a mirror and a reflective glass. And he explained the matter, that the revelation of the Chariot of the Lord in the small Temple is likened to the revelation of the Chariot of the Lord and His governance in the great Temple, which is the world that He created, which is the form of His Glory. And likewise, the Chariot of the Lord in the great world is likened to the Chariot of the Lord which will dwell in the small world, which is man, made in His image, after His likeness. For the relationship that exists between the Divinity dwelling in man in the Temple of the heart, spirit, and soul, within the garment of the body, is itself the same relationship and proportion in which the Divinity dwells in the great Temple, which is the great man, which is the totality of existence that He created for His Glory.
And the Temple that Ezekiel saw built on the mountain of the Lord is the vision and the mirror in which these two great forms were reflected: the form of the great world and the small world, and the Divine Presence clothed in the world and in the soul. And just as one who gazes into a mirror sees the form of his face, so too he gazed into the mirror of the Temple at the form of the Chariot dwelling in the great world, and the Chariot of the Lord dwelling in his soul, which he saw in the vision.
And regarding the Chariot that he saw before the Kodesh, he said, “And as the appearance which I saw,” meaning that which I saw now in the Third Temple, which is the third Chariot that he saw in the vision. And he said, “As the appearance of the appearance,” meaning as the appearance that he saw in the mirror (Spiegel), namely, in the visions of the host, which is the face of the Kodesh, where he saw the Chariot in a manner in which the Divinity is revealed with a sublime power and a great dominion. And likewise, “I saw as the appearance which I saw when I came to devastate the city,” when the Chariot appeared in a manner indicating devastation, and this is a sign of the destruction of the Second Temple. And also, “I saw other visions” indicating the movement and the exile of the Divine Presence with Israel, which indicates the final exile, “as the appearance which I saw by the river Chebar.”
And I have already explained above that in the first vision of the Chariot, he attained the governance through the Living Creatures and the world of angels; and in the second vision, he attained the governance through the Seraphim and the world of the Throne; and in the third vision, in which he saw the future, he attained the governance through the Divinity in the world of Atzilut (Emanation). and he fell on his face, for from this he saw and understood that after the Temple will be built in the Second Temple period, it will return and be destroyed again, and Israel will be exiled again.
And the glory of Hashem came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east.
verse value 2339
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 38 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "went·in" (בָּ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·the·house" (אֶל־הַבָּ֑יִת, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 224: way, way. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "to·the·house" (אֶל־הַבָּ֑יִת). The root דרך appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "whose" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "to·the·house" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·house', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 6 words. Full calculation: וּכְב֥וֹד [and·glory·of] (38) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + בָּ֣א [went·in] (3) + אֶל־הַבָּ֑יִת [to·the·house] (448) + דֶּ֣רֶךְ [way] (224) + שַׁ֔עַר [gate] (570) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [whose] (501) + פָּנָ֖יו [his·face] (146) + דֶּ֥רֶךְ [way] (224) + הַקָּדִֽים [east] (159) = 2339.
Radak
"And the glory of the Lord came into the House" – into the Sanctuary.
Metzudat David
"And the glory of the Lord." After this, the Divine Presence entered the Temple through the Eastern Gate of the Temple Mount.
Malbim
“And the glory of the Lord came into the house” — at that time, he saw the glory of the Lord coming into the third Temple, which will be built (as stated in Bava Batra), and it entered through the eastern gate. And I have already explained (in Isaiah 43:5 and there in 59:19) that the glory of the Lord will first be revealed upon the exiles of the east, who are the Ten Tribes, as it is stated: “And they shall look from the west for the name of the Lord, and from the rising of the sun for His glory,” for His glory will come from the east together with the exiles of the east, and in the west the glory will not be revealed first, but rather they will hear His name from afar. Therefore, he saw that the glory of the Lord came from the direction of the east.
And a spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court; and, behold, the glory of Hashem filled the house.
verse value 2591
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "spirit" (ר֔וּחַ, 3 letters) and the longest is "glory·of·Hashem" (כְבוֹד־יְהֹוָ֖ה, 8 letters). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·the·court" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "the·house" (root בית, 159x in Ezekiel); "and·lifted·me" (root נשא, 76x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'inner', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַתִּשָּׂאֵ֣נִי [and·lifted·me] (767) + ר֔וּחַ [spirit] (214) + וַתְּבִאֵ֕נִי [and·she·brought·me] (469) + אֶל־הֶחָצֵ֖ר [to·the·court] (334) + הַפְּנִימִ֑י [inner] (195) + וְהִנֵּ֛ה [and·behold] (66) + מָלֵ֥א [filled] (71) + כְבוֹד־יְהֹוָ֖ה [glory·of·Hashem] (58) + הַבָּֽיִת [the·house] (417) = 2591.
Radak
“And the spirit lifted me up.” Until now, it said, “He brought me,” “He took me out,” and “He led me,” referring to the man whom he saw as appearing like bronze; but now that the Glory appeared to him together with the chariot, it says, “And the spirit lifted me up,” just as it said regarding the first chariot.
Metzudat David
"And the spirit lifted me up." From the place where I was standing, at the gate of the Temple Mount:
Metzudat Zion
“And He took me.” The meaning is “taking,” and similarly, “and houses, and they took” (Micah 2:2).
Malbim
"And it lifted me" – then the spirit of prophecy lifted him and brought him to the inner courtyard, and he saw that the Glory of the Lord filled the house.
And I heard one speaking to me out of the house; and a man stood by me.
verse value 1743
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 31 letters. The shortest word is "to·me" (אֵלַ֖י, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·I·heard" (וָאֶשְׁמַ֛ע, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "beside·me" (אֶצְלִֽי). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "was" (root היה, 335x in Ezekiel); "to·me" (root אל, 204x in Ezekiel); "from·the·house" (root בית, 159x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·the·house', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וָאֶשְׁמַ֛ע [and·I·heard] (417) + מִדַּבֵּ֥ר [from·speaking] (246) + אֵלַ֖י [to·me] (41) + מֵהַבָּ֑יִת [from·the·house] (457) + וְאִ֕ישׁ [and·man] (317) + הָיָ֥ה [was] (20) + עֹמֵ֖ד [standing] (114) + אֶצְלִֽי [beside·me] (131) = 1743.
Rashi
“Speaking to me.” “Conversing with me.” It is an honor to say that He speaks above, like one who converses, meaning that He speaks between Himself and His Glory, and the voice comes to me.
Radak
"And I heard Him speaking to me from the House." The word "speaking" is conjugated in the hitpa'el stem, and the tav is absorbed into a dagesh.
“From the house.” The voice emanated from the house where the Divine Presence resided.
“To me.” That I was in the inner courtyard:
And a man was standing by me. It is possible that it was the same one he saw at the beginning of the prophecy, whose appearance was like the appearance of copper, or it was another angel.
Metzudat David
"And I heard." In the inner courtyard, I heard a voice speaking in the Temple, and from there the voice came to my ears.
And a man. He is the angel who spoke with me:
Malbim
"And I heard" — until now, he received the flow of prophecy through the angel, who held the measure (as stated in Chapter 4, Part 3, Section 4); but now, he heard the Voice speaking to him from the House, as it is written: "And I heard the Voice speaking to me from between the two cherubim," and "a man was standing beside me," indicating that the angel did not enter the Holy of Holies, the place of the Divine Presence, but rather stood beside him, and both of them received the utterance equally from the Shekhinah.
And He said to me: ‘Son of man, this is the place of My throne, and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever; and the house of Israel shall no more defile My holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their harlotry, and by the carcasses of their kings in their high places;
verse value 8364
Insights
Verse structure: 25 words, 122 letters. The shortest word is "name·of" (שֵׁ֣ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "sons·of·Israel" (בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל, 8 letters). 9 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "the·place·of" (אֶת־מְק֣וֹם), "throne" (כִּסְאִ֗י), "and·the·place·of" (וְאֶת־מְקוֹם֙). The root מקום appears 2 times in this verse. 23 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 362x in Ezekiel); "where" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "and·not" (root לא, 213x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·ever', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 12 words.
Rashi
"And in the corpses of their kings." This means that their houses were adjacent (to the cemetery), as we find in the case of kings, with regard to Solomon and Athaliah. And at times they would bury them within their house, as is explicitly stated. And it says, "When they set their threshold, My threshold," I have found.
Radak
And He said, “The place of My throne and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell there.” It is as if He said, “This is the place where I will dwell,” and He said “the place of My throne,” because the Holy Temple is aligned opposite the Throne of Glory.
“Place of the soles of the feet.” This is in the manner of the verse, “And the earth is the footstool of My feet.” And the opinion of our Sages of blessed memory is that the Temple is called a “throne,” just as the heavens are, as it is written, “The throne of Your glory, from of old, is the place of our sanctuary.” And in the book of Jeremiah we explained this matter well. And the Targum of Jonathan rendered it: “This place is the house of My glorious throne, and this place is the house of My dwelling.”
“Because of their harlotry.” This refers to their harlotry after other gods, and the making of their idols in their houses, which were adjacent to the House of the Lord.
“And in the corpses of their kings.” Just as we saw with Manasseh and Amon, who were buried in the garden of their house.
"Bamotam." [It means] "their high places" — the altars they used to build in their houses. Alternatively, its meaning is that they built altars at the gravesites of their kings.
Metzudat David
And He said to me. This means that the speaking voice came to my ears, as if it were speaking to me.
“Behold, I have shown you the place of My throne.” Because he saw the vision that he saw in the river Kebar, and there it is stated that he saw the throne, and he also saw the Temple, therefore it says: “Behold, I have shown you the place of My throne which is in the heavens above, and the Temple, which is the place of the soles of My feet.” And he grasped the parable of a person sitting on a throne, with his feet descending to rest on the footstool that is beneath the throne.
Forever. For it shall not be desolate again.
"And they shall not defile": For they shall no longer defile My holy name, neither they nor their kings, by the defilement they have caused since then through their harlotry after idolatry, and by the defilement they have caused through the corpses of their kings. And it returns to explain "their high places," meaning by the fact that they set up high places for idolatry in the place of the kings' tombs.
Metzudat Zion
"Kafot raglayim" (the palms of the feet). Just as the flat part of the hand is called "kaf" (palm), so too is the flat part of the foot called "kaf."
"ובפגרי" – Thus is the body of the dead called.
"Their high places." Like "in their high places" (in the plural form), and it is from the language of "bamah" (high place) and "mizbeach" (altar).
Malbim
And He said to me, “The place of My throne”: behold, it will be explained below (in section 48) that Jerusalem of the future will be forty-five miles distant from the Temple, and the surroundings of the Temple will be the possession of the priests and the Levites. However, the king and the people of Jerusalem will dwell in a city that will be built forty-five miles distant from the Temple. He explained to him the reason for this: that in the future, the matter will change from what it was in the former Temple. In the previous era, the primary abode of the Divine Presence was in the heavens, as it is stated, “The heavens are My throne, and the earth is the footstool of My feet.” This means that the primary governance was according to nature and the cosmic order, only that He circled the system according to the will of the providence that was in the Temple and in the Land, where His feet and their surroundings were, and the ultimate purpose of His governance was in the Land. According to this ultimate purpose, by which He watched over raising the horn of Israel, He drew the wheel of the cosmic order to revolve and guide it for the benefit of Israel, and to fill the House of the Lord with life and blessing. Therefore, the Temple was called the footstool of His feet, as it is stated, “And the footstool of His feet did not shine on the day of His anger,” and it says, “And its skirts filled the Temple.” But in the future, even the throne will be below, in the Temple, where the permanent Divine Presence will dwell, and the governance of the cosmic order will cease entirely, as it is stated, “The sun will no longer be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine upon you,” etc., for “the Lord of Hosts will be king on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem.” And this is what it says: “Your place of My throne, and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell in a permanent Divine Presence, will be among the children of Israel, for the throne will also be below.” And He also said that the primary abode of the Divine Presence will not be in the Temple alone, but among the children of Israel who will gather there. Therefore, this will be forever, for the Third Temple will never be destroyed again. Therefore, I will need to distance the city from the Temple, for according to the magnitude of its holiness and the permanent establishment of the Divine Presence within it, a greater distancing will be required so that the House of Israel will no longer defile there the holy ones and their kings, as they defiled it until now by dwelling in a city that was close to the Temple and blemishing the holiness of the Temple. And he explains in what way they defiled it until now, they and their kings: they defiled it through their sexual immorality, in that they committed adultery with idolatry, and their kings defiled it through the corpses of their kings upon their death. This will be explained if understood literally, because they buried the kings within the city (as it is stated in the Tosefta of Bava Batra: “A grave that the city surrounded, etc. Less than this, one moves it, except for the grave of a king and the grave of a prophet. Rabbi Akiva says: Even the grave of a king and the grave of a prophet one moves. They said to him: But were not the graves of the house of David and the grave of Hulda in Jerusalem? And similarly in the Tosefta of Kelim: “In towns surrounded by a wall, they make a path for a corpse into them, etc. One does not return it.” And as it is stated, “And Uzziah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the field of burial that belonged to the kings, for they said, ‘He is a leper.’” And all of this indicates according to the opinion of Maimonides (Chapter 7 of the Laws of the Chosen House) that if seven prominent men of the city wish, they bury within towns surrounded by a wall, if they do not go outside. And the opinion of the Raavad and the Rash is not so. And see Responsa Maharit, Part Yoreh Deah, Section 37, what he wrote concerning the grave of the prophetess Hulda. And even according to the opinion of the Raavad, one can say that they buried without the consent of the Sages). And this is what it says that they defiled the place with the corpses of their kings. And one can also interpret that He called them corpses even in their lifetime, for just as the body is a dead corpse if the vital, sensing soul departs from it, so too, even while their animal soul is still within them, they are called dead and corpses if their divine, spiritual soul has departed from them, for then they are dead in terms of what is called a speaking, understanding human being, for the life of the intellectual soul is only as long as they maintain their spiritual form, and when this spirituality departs from them, they are beasts in the form of humans, and the human being within them has died and gone.
in their setting of their threshold by My threshold, and their door-post beside My door-post, and there was but the wall between Me and them; and they have defiled My holy name by their abominations which they have committed; wherefore I have consumed them in Mine anger.
verse value 6797
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 82 letters. The shortest word is "their·threshold" (סִפָּ֜ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "in·their·abominations" (בְּתֽוֹעֲבוֹתָם֙, 8 letters). 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "in·their·placing" (בְּתִתָּ֨ם), "their·threshold" (סִפָּ֜ם), "beside·My·threshold" (אֶת־סִפִּ֗י). The root מזוזה appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "they·did" (root עשה, 214x in Ezekiel); "in·their·placing" (root נתן, 207x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·between', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 9 words.
Rashi
"And I shall consume." Like "And I will eat and consume."
Radak
In the phrase “bat-tam safam et safi” [“when they gave their threshold to My threshold”], the interpretation is that the King’s House was adjacent to the Temple, and there was a wall between them, as we have seen in the account of Solomon’s construction: when he built his house, it is stated, “and his burnt-offering which he would offer up in the House of the Lord.” And it is said in the Book of Kings regarding Joash: “And they brought down the king from the House of the Lord, and he came through the Upper Gate into the King’s House.”
“And their doorposts by My doorposts.” The repetition of the matter in different words is in accordance with the custom, for the mezuzah is the threshold. And the Targum translates it as “in their doorposts, their thresholds, to correspond to the thresholds of My Sanctuary, and their buildings on the side of My Court and the wall of My Sanctuary, between Me and them.”
"Va-akhal (And I destroyed them)." With the omission of the heh — the third radical (lamed ha-po'al) — as is customary; and it is like "va-akhalleh" (I will destroy), from the doubled [Piel] conjugation.
Metzudat David
“בתתם” – This means: And with what were they building? They built the threshold of their house adjacent to the threshold of my house, and likewise they positioned their doorposts next to the doorposts of my house; only the construction of the wall served as a partition between my house and their houses.
And they defiled. And with this they defiled My holy name with their abominations, which they did in their houses adjacent to My House; for Menasheh and Amon were buried in the garden of their house, and there they erected high places for idolatrous worship.
“And I consumed.” And therefore I consumed them in My anger:
Metzudat Zion
Sefam. So too is the threshold called "lips," as in the case of the mezuzot, and similarly, "her hands upon the threshold" (Judges 19:27):
"And he shall eat." From the language of destruction and ruin.
Malbim
“בתתם ספם” (When they set their threshold): This means that until now, the royal house was close to the House of the Lord, and the threshold of their house was near the threshold of My house, with only the wall of the Temple separating between Me and them. And through this, they defiled My holy name with their abominations, which they committed. For according to the measure of the sanctity of the place, the sin and impurity are magnified; for a light impurity that does not render impure in the domain of the profane will render impure in the domain of the holy. Just as the third-degree impurity invalidates terumah (heave-offering) and the fourth-degree invalidates kodashim (sacred offerings), even though they do not render ordinary food impure, so too will a minor sin committed near the Temple cause blemish. And thereby, “I will consume them in My anger.” Therefore, the dwelling place of the strangers shall be removed from the Temple, and the priests and Levites shall dwell around it, as was the case with the Tabernacle in the wilderness, where the Levites camped around the Tabernacle, and any stranger who approached was put to death. And this is what it says: “Now let them remove their prostitution and the corpses of their kings from Me, and the city shall be distant from the Temple.” And through this, “I will dwell among them forever.”
Furthermore, this matter can be understood allegorically, that the primary dwelling of the Divine Presence is within the children of Israel, for a person who serves the Lord is the sanctuary for the Divine Presence of His might. But in this present time, when the King of Glory comes to dwell among them in holiness, He will find a wall separating between Him and them. This wall is the body and its impurity, which separates between the soul and its God of might (as stated by the Midrash on Song of Songs on the verse “Open to me, my sister”). And also, although the Lord is close to them, and the threshold of His house is near the threshold of the house of their body, the wall of impurity and sins separates between them and their God. Therefore, it is commanded that they remove their prostitution and the corpses of their kings, for they are like the dead, and the High Priest cannot enter their house due to impurity. And then He will dwell among them; upon their souls, the Divine Presence of God will rest in holiness.
Now let them put away their harlotry, and the carcasses of their kings, far from Me, and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever.
verse value 3717
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "now" (עַתָּ֞ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "their·harlotry" (אֶת־זְנוּתָ֛ם, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "let·them·put·away" (יְרַחֲק֧וּ), "their·harlotry" (אֶת־זְנוּתָ֛ם), "and·carcasses·of" (וּפִגְרֵ֥י). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·their·midst" (root תוך, 111x in Ezekiel); "from·me" (root מן, 47x in Ezekiel); "their·kings" (root מלך, 32x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·me', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: עַתָּ֞ה [now] (475) + יְרַחֲק֧וּ [let·them·put·away] (324) + אֶת־זְנוּתָ֛ם [their·harlotry] (904) + וּפִגְרֵ֥י [and·carcasses·of] (299) + מַלְכֵיהֶ֖ם [their·kings] (145) + מִמֶּ֑נִּי [from·me] (140) + וְשָׁכַנְתִּ֥י [that·I·may·dwell] (786) + בְתוֹכָ֖ם [in·their·midst] (468) + לְעוֹלָֽם [to·ever] (176) = 3717.
Rashi
"Now. They are compelled to distance themselves from their immorality, for which I have established a great boundary surrounding it:"
Radak
"Now they shall be removed. For they shall have a new heart to fear Me:"
And the corpses of their kings from Me. Likewise, their kings will not be buried in their homes, for the honor of My House.
From Me. From the place of My sanctuary:
Metzudat David
"Now let them remove..." Let them remove idolatrous prostitution from their hearts, and let them no longer set up high places on the tombs of the kings. Moreover, even the location of the kings' tombs they shall remove from My house, for they conduct themselves with extra sanctity there. Therefore, I will dwell among them forever, and My Divine Presence will not depart from among them.
Metzudat Zion
“From Me.” This means: from the place where My Divine Presence dwells.
You, son of man, show the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure accurately.
verse value 4767
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 54 letters. The shortest word is "you" (אַתָּ֣ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·house·of·Israel" (אֶת־בֵּֽית־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙, 10 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·let·them·be·confounded" (וְיִכָּלְמ֖וּ), "from·their·iniquities" (מֵעֲוֺנֽוֹתֵיהֶ֑ם), "the·pattern" (אֶת־תׇּכְנִֽית). The root בית appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·house·of·Israel" (root בית, 159x in Ezekiel); "son·of·man" (root בין, 145x in Ezekiel); "you" (root אתה, 62x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·their·iniquities', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 2 words. Full calculation: אַתָּ֣ה [you] (406) + בֶן־אָדָ֗ם [son·of·man] (97) + הַגֵּ֤ד [declare] (12) + אֶת־בֵּֽית־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ [the·house·of·Israel] (1354) + אֶת־הַבַּ֔יִת [the·house] (818) + וְיִכָּלְמ֖וּ [and·let·them·be·confounded] (112) + מֵעֲוֺנֽוֹתֵיהֶ֑ם [from·their·iniquities] (627) + וּמָדְד֖וּ [and·they·shall·measure] (60) + אֶת־תׇּכְנִֽית [the·pattern] (1281) = 4767.
Rashi
"You, son of man, declare to the house of Israel the house, and they shall be ashamed of their iniquities. In showing them My kindness, that I do not reject them despite their sin, I found:"
"And they measured the plan." And they measured by your hand, meaning that you indicate the contents of the building's account.
Radak
You, son of man, declare to the house of Israel, to the house. The children of exile:
“And they shall be ashamed of their iniquities.” Because of them this Temple was destroyed, and He showed them the future Temple that it will never be destroyed, because they will not sin, as it is said: “Let them remove their prostitution from before Me, and I will dwell in their midst forever.”
"And they measured the plan." The plan is the shape of the Temple that was shown to them; they measured it and prepared it as a sign, for they will do so again in the future when the Redeemer comes and the dead are revived. They prepared it as a sign, so that those who see this shape will be alive in the future for the building of the Temple, and this is proof for the resurrection of the dead.
Metzudat David
"Et ha-bayit." This refers to the account of the building of the Temple that you saw:
"And they shall be ashamed of their iniquities." In order that there may be shame for them regarding the sins they committed, for when the construction of the future Temple is recounted to them, they will recall the first Temple, which was destroyed due to their iniquity, and they will be ashamed because of this.
"And they measured out the plan." This means: they calculated in their hearts the measurements of the building that was ready and properly prepared.
Metzudat Zion
Plan. From the root meaning preparation and rectification:
Malbim
“Son of man, proclaim to the House of Israel, to the House” — He commanded him to proclaim to them that he had seen the Temple built, perfected, and standing firmly before the Lord, only that their sins are delaying it. Therefore, they should be ashamed of their sins and hasten to repent, and then the future Temple will appear in its glory, and then they will measure the plan of the Temple. And that is to say, that in the structure of the Temple and in the details of its matters there are spiritual allusions hinting at the wondrous, miraculous providence of the Lord, which does not depend on the natural order of the world, but only on the governance of the inner “Temple of the soul,” to build it and perfect it like the great Temple, and to perform in it the service arranged in the Temple of the soul—namely, the observance of the Torah and its commandments—like the service arranged in the great Temple, and to elevate the soul of life to God, so that He may dwell among them in holiness. According to this, the building of the Temple depends on the building of the Temple of their souls, according to the form of the Temple, and according to the measures of the Torah and its form. This is what is meant by “proclaim to the House of Israel,” whereas it should have said “proclaim to the House of Israel,” since after the verb “proclaim” the preposition “to” (el) always comes? Rather, it means that you should proclaim to them: “To the House of Israel, to the House”—that the House of Israel themselves are the House, and the House depends on them. And all the matters of the plan of the Temple indicate the guidance of the people according to the Torah and its statutes. Through this they will be ashamed of their sins, and “they measured the plan,” meaning to align the measures of the soul according to the measures of the Temple.
And if they be ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the goings out thereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof, and write it in their sight; that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them.
verse value 11656
Insights
Verse structure: 22 words, 132 letters. The shortest word is "from·all" (מִכֹּ֣ל, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·all·its·ordinances" (וְאֶת־כׇּל־חֻקֹּתָ֖יו, 10 letters). Words sharing gematria 758: and·all·his·forms, all·form. 11 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·if·they·are·ashamed" (וְאִֽם־נִכְלְמ֞וּ), "that·they·have·done" (אֲשֶׁר־עָשׂ֗וּ), "form" (צוּרַ֣ת). The root צורה appears 4 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that·they·have·done" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "and·they·shall·do" (root עשה, 214x in Ezekiel); "the·house" (root בית, 159x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root צורה ("form") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'eye', dividing the verse into phrases of 17 and 5 words.
Rashi
“And if they are put to shame.” That they shall be ashamed and cover their faces from all that they have done; then I shall make known to them what I am destined to do to them.
The form of the house. And the boundary of the building: how is it? From its front to its rear, they are arranged according to its four cardinal directions.
And its plan: the calculation of its cells and chambers.
"And all its forms": Cherubim, palm-figures, pilasters (eilim), and porches (eilammim). Thus I have found.
And all its forms are in the second position. It is not explained:
“And they shall keep.” They shall learn the matters of the measurements from your mouth, so that they may know how to observe them at the end of days. I have found that the second coming of Ezra was worthy to have occurred with power and miracles, like the first coming of Joshua, as we expound: “Until it passes over.” And this building was fitting for them from the time they went up from the exile, for the ultimate redemption. However, sin caused that their repentance was not proper, in that it was not with the resolve not to sin again. Therefore, they went up by the permission of Cyrus, and they built for themselves. And there are those who say that in Babylonia they stumbled over foreign women.
Radak
"And if they are ashamed." If they are ashamed of all that they have done, inform them of the structure and form of the Temple, and write it before their eyes, and they will see the building of the Temple in the future and will build it; if not, they will not.
“And they shall keep all its form and all its ordinances, and they shall do them.” They shall keep them in their hearts and believe that thus it shall be, and they shall construct the buildings and the forms and the teachings in the future. And if they do not keep them in their hearts and do not believe, they shall not construct them. For such is the measure of the Holy One, blessed be He: He repays a person measure for measure. Whoever believes in the coming of the Redeemer merits redemption, and if one does not believe, one does not merit it. Likewise, if one believes in the resurrection of the dead, one merits resurrection, and if one does not believe, one does not merit it. And we cannot interpret “and they shall do them” as referring to the Second Temple, which was built by the exiles who returned from Babylonia, for there are many things in this construction that were not so in the Second Temple. Therefore, necessarily, this construction is destined for the future. And He said this, “and they shall do it,” as a great proof for the resurrection of the dead.
The shape of the Temple. What is included within the general area inside the walls of the Temple Mount:
"and its structure." The structure of its construction in chambers and cells:
And its exits and its entrances. In the gates mentioned:
"And all its forms." The form of each house is considered separately.
"And all its statutes." [This refers to] that which is fit to be used in houses, on tables, and in chambers:
"And all its forms." The form of the cherubim and the palm trees:
“And all its laws.” The division of the azarot [courtyards] is for the priests, for the Israelites, and for the women.
Metzudat David
“And if they are ashamed…”: This means that at the beginning of the discourse, one should observe their faces to see whether, at that moment, when they recall the First Temple which was destroyed due to their sins, they feel shame over all the evil deeds they committed. If so, inform them of the form of the Temple, etc. But if their faces become hardened like stone and they do not know shame, do not add any further words on this matter.
The shape of the house. This refers to the form as a whole, as if you were to say that it should contain a sanctuary and a porch from the House of the Holy of Holies, and courtyards, chambers, side-rooms, and cells.
And its structure. The place of standing of each one, as if you were to say: the House of the Holy of Holies in the west, and after it the Temple, etc., and the chambers and the side-rooms on this side and on that side, and so forth.
“and their exits and their entrances.” The measure of the doorways through which one goes out and comes in.
"And all its forms." The form of each and every chamber:
"And all its statutes." [This teaches us that] what is fitting to be used in every room and chamber:
“And all its forms.” The form of the carvings on the walls, which are the palm trees and the cherubim:
"And all its teachings." [This refers to] the place where the priests and the people stand.
“And it shall be written before their eyes.” All these things are written before their eyes, so that they may learn from it.
"And they shall keep." And they shall keep in their hearts the entire form of the House in its entirety, and all its ordinances, what is fitting to be used in each chamber; and then they will merit to stand in the resurrection, and they will make them in the future.
Malbim
And if they shall be ashamed of all that they have done, meaning: inasmuch as the Temple will be built according to the measurements and forms that Ezekiel saw, its time will not arrive until the time of rectification comes, when they will purify themselves from their sins. Therefore, this notification is conditional upon whether they will be ashamed of all that they have done and return with complete repentance, according to the general principle that one who commits a transgression and is ashamed of it is forgiven for all his sins. And then the form of the Temple was shown to them, for only then will this Temple be built. And here He said three times “the form of the Temple,” for He intended to bring three forms:
1. The form that is mandatory in every Temple built for the Lord, and it is impossible without it. It was identical in the Tabernacle, the First Temple, the Second Temple, and the Third Temple. Namely, that it contain the Court, the Holy Place, and the Holy of Holies, and likewise the vessels that are mandatory in all of them: the Altar of Burnt Offerings, the Altar of Incense, the Ark, the Table, the Menorah, and the like.
2. Matters that are not mandatory and can change according to the time, as matters changed in the Temple from the Tabernacle, and in the Second Temple from the First Temple.
3. Matters that are unique only to the Third Temple, when the time of rectification arrives, and they could not make it like this in the days of Ezra, even though they knew from the words of Ezekiel, because they knew that the time of rectification had not yet arrived. Only some matters that they received from the mouth of the prophets, which they could make in its likeness, as the Rambam wrote in the Laws of the Chosen House. Regarding the first, He said “the form of the Temple, its foundations, its exits, and its entrances,” meaning the form that is mandatory in every Temple, and the chambers and gates that are mandatory in all of them. Regarding the building that is unique only for the future, and they cannot make it like this in this world because its matters are hidden statutes that will not be revealed until the future time, He said “and all its forms, and all its statutes,” for the statutes are the matters whose reasons are hidden. And regarding the matters that are intermediate between the first building and the third building, which they could have made in the days of the Second Temple, which they built like the First Temple and like matters similar to the future, as the Rambam wrote, because those matters are not hidden statutes but rather teachings whose reasons are known, He said “and all its forms, and all its teachings, I will make known to them.” And He wrote before their eyes, commanding that they write the form of the future building in a book for preservation for the last generation. And they shall keep it, meaning: if they keep all its forms and all its statutes, to conduct themselves according to them in holiness and purity and in the improvement of deeds, so that they will be prepared for these forms, guarded in cleaving to the Lord and His Divine Presence in the Holy Place forever, then “and they shall do them.” Then they will perform the forms and build the Third Temple with the Spirit of the Lord upon them.
This is the law of the house: upon the top of the mountain the whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the house.
verse value 5630
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 55 letters. The shortest word is "this" (זֹ֖את, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·border" (כׇּל־גְּבֻל֞וֹ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 1006: law, law. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "hill" (הָ֠הָ֠ר), "all·border" (כׇּל־גְּבֻל֞וֹ), "behold·this" (הִנֵּה־זֹ֖את). The root זאת appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·house" (root בית, 159x in Ezekiel); "round·about" (root סביב, 112x in Ezekiel); "holiness·of" (root קדש, 70x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·house', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 10 words. Full calculation: זֹ֖את [this] (408) + תּוֹרַ֣ת [law] (1006) + הַבָּ֑יִת [the·house] (417) + עַל־רֹ֣אשׁ [upon·top·of] (601) + הָ֠הָ֠ר [hill] (210) + כׇּל־גְּבֻל֞וֹ [all·border] (91) + סָבִ֤יב [round·about] (74) + סָבִיב֙ [round·about] (74) + קֹ֣דֶשׁ [holiness·of] (404) + קׇדָשִׁ֔ים [sanctity] (454) + הִנֵּה־זֹ֖את [behold·this] (468) + תּוֹרַ֥ת [law] (1006) + הַבָּֽיִת [the·house] (417) = 5630.
Radak
“This is the law of the house.” This refers to that which was mentioned above:
"Upon the top of the mountain." The Temple Mount, which is the Sanctuary, will be on the top of the mountain, as it is written in this matter:
“Every border of it all around.” Every border of the mountain all around is Holy of Holies, corresponding to Jerusalem, for all of Jerusalem is holy, as it is stated, “And the city shall be holy.” But the mountain is Holy of Holies. And on the mountain itself, the place of the Sanctuary, the Altar, and the Devir—these are Holy of Holies, as written above.
Behold, this is the law of the house, mentioned above in detail and in this verse in general.
Metzudat David
"This is the law of the house." This means that what was mentioned in the preceding verse, "this," refers to the subject matter of the study of the house.
“On the top of the mountain.” This means that this is the structure standing on the summit of the mountain, and its entire boundary all around is considered the Holy of Holies. It is called “the Temple Mount” because the entire domain of the priests and Levites is termed “Holy,” as it is stated below (48:10), “And the offering of the Holy.” And “the Temple Mount” is called so in contrast to the Holy of Holies, just as the Holy of Holies is called “the Holy of Holies” in contrast to all the other buildings of the Temple.
Behold, this is the law of the House. This is the study of the House, to know that the location of the Temple Mount is the Holy of Holies opposite the portion of the priests and the Levites.
Malbim
"This is the law of the house" teaches that by these criteria the Third Temple will be distinguished from the previous Temples: First, that it will be situated on the summit of the mountain. This includes two aspects: First, that the mountain itself upon which the Temple will be built will be established at the head of the mountains, as it is stated in Isaiah 2:2, "until the mountain will be at the head of all of them." Second, whereas the previous Temples were located on the shoulder of the mountain—as our Sages of blessed memory stated, "He intended to build it in Ein Eitam, which is very high, and between its shoulders"—this one will be on the summit of the mountain, not on its shoulder, indicating its elevation above all. Second, that its entire boundary all around will be holy of holies, for the city will be distant from the Temple by a great distance, and the entire area of twenty-five thousand cubits in which the Sanctuary of the Lord stands will be holy and a heave-offering to the Lord for the priests (as will be explained below in laws 45 and 48). And the verse concludes, "Behold, this is the law of the house," meaning that those who desire the Temple to be built must conduct themselves according to this Torah.
And these are the measures of the altar by cubits—the cubit is a cubit and a handbreadth: the bottom shall be a cubit, and the breadth a cubit, and the border thereof by the edge thereof round about a span; and this shall be the base of the altar.
verse value 3287
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 76 letters. Notable word values: "one" (הָאֶחָ֔ד) = 18, chai, 'life'. The shortest word is "convex surface" (גַּ֥ב, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·cubit·breadth" (וְאַמָּה־רֹ֗חַב, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 62: altar, altar. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "by·cubits" (בָּאַמּ֔וֹת), "and·bosom·of" (וְחֵ֨יק), "and·cubit·breadth" (וְאַמָּה־רֹ֗חַב). The root אמה appears 4 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·its·lip" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "round·about" (root סביב, 112x in Ezekiel); "one" (root אחד, 104x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root חיק ("and·bosom·of") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·hand's·breadth', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 11 words.
Rashi
And these are the dimensions of the altar, as it is explained below: fourteen cubits in length by fourteen cubits in width.
"By cubits, a cubit, a cubit, and a handbreadth." This refers to a cubit of six [handbreadths], which is [equivalent to] a cubit and a handbreadth [when measured by] a cubit of five [handbreadths].
And the hollow of the cubit. But the base was not measured with the common cubit, which is five handbreadths; the term "chikuy" [from the root of "chik," meaning firmness or stability] refers to the base. The cubit was a common cubit, and not a cubit and a handbreadth, which is a cubit of six [handbreadths]. And so we learned in Menachot that the base, the surrounding ledge, and the horns are measured with a cubit of five [handbreadths].
And the hollow of the cubit. This is the foundation:
"And a cubit in breadth" – this refers to the surrounding [wall].
"And it shall be bounded to its edge all around, a handbreadth." These are the horns: they measured from the center of each horn a handbreadth in every direction, making it a cubit by a cubit.
And this is the rim of the altar. With this cubit the rim of the golden altar was measured: a cubit in length and a cubit in width, forming a square. This is explicitly stated in Eruvin, and it is explained more fully in Menachot (97a) according to the calculation: the height of the cubit of the rim was one cubit, and its width was one cubit. The recession of the surrounding ledge was a cubit of five [handbreadths], but its ascent, which we learned as “it ascended five and entered a cubit,” was not measured with a cubit of five [handbreadths].
"And a boundary to its lip." The horns, whether in their width or in their height, are measured in a cubit of five [handbreadths].
Radak
These are the dimensions of the altar. Our Sages of blessed memory interpreted the verse thus: “The hollow of the cubit” refers to the base; “a cubit its breadth” refers to the ledge; “and its border all around it, a span” refers to the horns; and “this is the top of the altar” refers to the golden altar. And Jonathan rendered it in the Targum: “And these are the measurements of the altar in cubits, in a cubit which is a cubit, and it is spread out and made equal, a cubit and a cubit are open, and its side surrounds it along its edge all around, one handbreadth, and this is the top of the altar.”
And in the Mishnah Middot we learned: The altar was thirty-two cubits by thirty-two cubits. It rose one cubit and receded one cubit; this is the base. Thus it remained thirty by thirty. It rose five cubits and receded one cubit; this is the ledge. Thus it remained twenty-eight by twenty-eight. It rose three cubits and receded one cubit; this is the space for the horns, one cubit from here and one cubit from there. Thus it remained twenty-six by twenty-six, the space for the walking of the priests’ feet, one cubit from here and one cubit from there. Thus it remained twenty-four by twenty-four; this is the space of the hearth. Rabbi Yose said: Initially it was twenty-eight by twenty-eight, and it receded and rose according to this measurement, until the space of the hearth was found to be twenty by twenty. And when the exiles returned, they added four cubits to it from the north and four cubits from the west, like a pit, as it is said: “And Ariel, twelve in length, by twelve in breadth, square.” One might think that it is only twelve by twelve. When it states “on its four quarters,” it teaches that from the center he measures twelve cubits in every direction. Behold, you see that our Sages of blessed memory interpreted that the dimensions of the altar are the dimensions of the altar of the Second Temple. And the opinion of Jonathan is not like their opinion, as you will see. And we can interpret that another measurement applies to the Altar of Testimony. And he said, “These are the dimensions of the altar,” just as he continues saying until “And He said to me, Son of man.” And the interpretation of “in cubits” is in the cubits known in this prophecy, where every one of their cubits is a cubit and a handbreadth, which are six handbreadths, for a standard cubit is five handbreadths, and this measurement was six handbreadths. And likewise he said at the beginning of this prophecy: “Six cubits to a cubit and a handbreadth,” as we have explained. And “the hollow of the cubit, a cubit its breadth” means that in the middle of the altar, the height was a cubit and the breadth was a cubit, and this is the space of the hearth.
"And its border shall be a span around its rim." The border of the altar was one span high, and the meaning of "and its border" is a frame, as Jonathan translated: "g'danfa."
And this is the back of the altar. This is the one that is described as the back of the altar, which is the place of the arrangement [of the wood], which was elevated above the altar by a cubit; therefore, it is called the "back."
Metzudat David
“And these are the dimensions of the altar.” This is the altar of the burnt-offering that was shown to him.
“With cubits, a cubit, a cubit, and a handbreadth.” This means: with the large cubits, in each of which there is one common cubit, which is five handbreadths, plus one additional handbreadth.
And the hollow of the cubit. But the height of the ascent of the foundation was in the measure of the simple cubit of the commoner, which is five handbreadths (and the two missing handbreadths were surplus in the measure of the height of the surrounding wall and the roof, and since they did not constitute a full cubit, they were not counted):
"And a cubit of breadth." And similarly, the cubit of the breadth of the entrance of the surrounding [structure] was the cubit of five [handbreadths] (and the missing handbreadth was surplus in the measurement of the width of the roof, and he did not scrutinize [this discrepancy]). And similarly, the corners that were at its boundary all around, in the four corners, which were one span from their center in every direction—and thus they were a cubit by a cubit—were also the cubit of five [handbreadths] (and the missing handbreadths were surplus in the measurement of the space of the altar, and he did not scrutinize [this discrepancy]).
"This is the ridge of the altar." With this simple cubit, which is five handbreadths, he measured the area of the golden altar, which was one cubit by one cubit. Thus our Sages of blessed memory expounded (Menachot 97a):
Metzudat Zion
And "chik." The word is from the root of "chak" (to engrave or fix), and the fixing of the chaos is the foundation. Thus our Sages of blessed memory said (Menachot 97a):
"And its border." These are the horns that are at the boundary of the altar; and to add clarification, He said, "to its edge."
Zereth. It is half an amah, and likewise, "a zereth in length" (Exodus 28:16).
Gav. The area of the height, and likewise, “And you shall build for yourself a gav” (above 10:1):
Malbim
These are the dimensions of the altar, according to the opinion of our Sages of blessed memory, that the builders of the Second Temple constructed the altar in this pattern (and there was only a small change in the ascent of the base). Therefore, the Book of Acts [Sifrei] discusses the matter of the altar separately, because the form of the Temple is unique only for the future, but the dimensions of the altar can be made even in this present time. Now, the height of the altar was ten cubits, and it was divided in this manner: the height of the base in the Third Temple will be two cubits (and in the Second Temple it was one cubit), and this is called the lap. Its width was thirty-two cubits. After the height of two cubits, the altar was narrowed by a cubit on every side, and its width was only thirty cubits. This entrance is called by the name of the Lower Court or the Small Court, because the place beneath it was small, only two cubits. From there, it rose four cubits in width, thirty by thirty, and this area is called the Surrounding (because the width of the base did not surround on every side, and it extended only on the north and west, and one cubit on the east and one cubit on the south, but the width of the Surrounding surrounded on every side). Then it was narrowed a second time by a cubit on every side, and it became twenty-eight cubits by twenty-eight cubits. This entrance, which narrowed by a cubit, is called by the name of the Great Court. From there, it rose another four cubits to the top of the horns, and it is called by the name of the Altar Top, and with this we come to the explanation.
He said that the dimensions of the altar were in cubits, meaning that in its measurement there were two kinds of cubits: some were in a cubit of five [handbreadths] and some in a cubit of six. And this is what it says: "a cubit, a cubit and a handbreadth," meaning that some were a plain cubit of five, and some were six-cubit cubits that hold a five-cubit cubit and an additional handbreadth. And he explains, "and the lap of the cubit," meaning that the lap, which is the ascent of the base, its width was in a plain cubit of five. And likewise, the cubit of width that the base had over the Surrounding was also a cubit in a five-cubit cubit (and this is according to the opinion of Maimonides, and the opinion of Rashi in the first chapter of Eruvin, that what our Sages of blessed memory said regarding the cubits of the base in the Small Court does not apply to the entrance of the base; and yet, in the altar of the future, the verse indicates that it will be according to the opinion of Maimonides).
And its border on its rim all around, the one span: it appears that this border is in the middle of the altar, for in the Tabernacle it is written, "You shall make a grating of network work." And in the Second Temple, there was the crimson cord to distinguish between the upper bloods and the lower bloods. And in the Third building, there will be a protrusion from the altar, a structure of the measure of a span, and it is called a border, because it demarcates between the upper bloods and the lower bloods, which is the boundary between the upper half and the lower half. And the rim of this marker had a width of a span.
And this is the back of the altar. Now he begins to explain the height of the altar.
And from the bottom upon the ground to the lower settle shall be two cubits, and the breadth one cubit; and from the lesser settle to the greater settle shall be four cubits, and the breadth a cubit.
verse value 5466
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 82 letters. The shortest word is "cubits" (אַמָּ֣ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "until·the·enclosure" (עַד־הָעֲזָרָ֤ה, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 447: cubits, cubits. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·from·bosom·of" (וּמֵחֵ֨יק), "and·from·the·court" (וּמֵהָעֲזָרָ֨ה). The root אמה appears 4 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·land" (root ארץ, 176x in Ezekiel); "one" (root אחד, 104x in Ezekiel); "cubits" (root אמה, 85x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root עזרה ("until·the·enclosure") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'one', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 8 words.
Rashi
And the hollow of the earth. From the foundation, the bedrock of the earth:
Until the lower courtyard. Until the back of the first stone:
"Two cubits." And this was not the case in the Eternal House, for there we learned: "One brings a square stone, thirty-two [cubits] by thirty-two [cubits], and its height is one cubit," whereas here its height is two [cubits].
“And it was one cubit broad.” When he placed the second stone upon it, the second stone was thirty by thirty, resulting in a recession all around it that was one cubit wide. And this is the foundation. Thus, it rose two cubits and receded one cubit, and this is the foundation. And the Targum renders it as “a paved court,” a term denoting a floor, which he filled the stone with pebbles, asphalt, lime, and sand, and he mixed it, poured it, and made its surface smooth, and thus it was like a kind of pavement.
From the small Azarah to the great Azarah, four cubits. From the roof of the lower square to the roof of the square above it, four cubits in height.
"And the breadth of the cubit." This refers to the recession of the surrounding structure. It ascends four [cubits] and recedes one cubit; this is the surrounding part. The lower section is called "small" because its height is only two [cubits], whereas the upper section has a height of four [cubits].
Radak
“And the hollow of the earth.” From the middle of the earth and from the level place between the upper Azarah and the lower Azarah, where the Altar was in the middle. The place where the Priests who offered sacrifices on the Altar stood is called Azarah, just as he also called the place where Israel stood Azarah. The upper one is from the Altar toward the Heichal (Holy Place), and the lower one is from the Altar toward the east. He said that from the middle of the earth, which is the place of the Altar, to the lower Azarah, it is two cubits, meaning one cubit in length and one cubit in width. And from the small Azarah to the large Azarah it is four cubits. And we do not know which of the Azarot he calls small—the upper or the lower—and which of them he calls large. In any case, he said that from one to the other there were four cubits. This is the place of the Altar, about which it is written: “The Ariel, four cubits.” Behold, this is the area of the Altar below, on the ground: four cubits in length and four cubits in width, and likewise in height. This is what is called Harel, meaning “House of God,” because they used to worship other gods on the high mountains, and this Harel was not high, but only four cubits. Therefore, he said “four cubits” generally, including both its area and its height. At the end of the four cubits in height, the Altar widened, and the stones of the Altar protruded outward. That place is called Ariel. And our Sages of blessed memory said that the Altar is called Ariel because the holy fire descending from heaven would rest upon it like a lion. This place called Ariel was twelve cubits long by twelve cubits wide, square in its four corners. From it and upward were the four horns, and the measure of the place of the arrangement is mentioned above.
Metzudat David
"And the hollow of the earth." From the beginning of the foundation, which is opposite the ground, up to the end of the height of that lower mold made for the foundation, it was two cubits.
"And the breadth" – this means that he left a space of one cubit in width all around, in order to insert the mold upon it; and this is the recess of the foundation.
From the small Azarah. From the roof of the first mold, the small one, because it was only two cubits high, and from its roof to the roof of the large mold was four cubits, which is the surrounding ledge.
"And the breadth of the cubit." He left all around a space the width of the simple cubit, which is five handbreadths, in order to insert within it the mold upon which [the structure rests], and this is the recess of the surrounding ledge.
Metzudat Zion
The Azarah. The printed layout of the construction of the Altar is called by the name Azarah:
Malbim
And the "chik ha'aretz" (the earth's hem) refers to from the beginning of the foundation, which is in the earth, up to the lower Azarah (Court), namely the lower entrance. The altar projected one cubit, and the surrounding platform began at two cubits [height]; the height of the foundation was two cubits, and its width was one cubit. For the "chik" (hem), meaning the foundation, was one cubit wider than the surrounding platform. And from the small Azarah to the large Azarah, namely from the lower entrance to the upper entrance, where it again projected one cubit above the surrounding platform, the height of the surrounding platform was four cubits and its width one cubit. For there too it was one cubit wider than that which was above, where it projected one cubit.
And the hearth shall be four cubits; and from the hearth and upward there shall be four horns.
verse value 2768
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "four" (אַרְבַּ֣ע, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·from·the·hearth" (וּמֵהָאֲרִיאֵ֣ל, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 273: four, four. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·altar" (וְהַהַרְאֵ֖ל), "and·from·the·hearth" (וּמֵהָאֲרִיאֵ֣ל), "the·horns" (הַקְּרָנ֖וֹת). The root ארבע appears 2 times in this verse. 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "cubits" (root אמה, 85x in Ezekiel); "four" (root ארבע, 59x in Ezekiel); "and·upward" (root מעל, 28x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'cubits', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 5 words.
Rashi
And the Hara’al. It is the height of the altar’s roof from the surrounding area and upward, and in the Temple of Eternity it was only three [cubits], and the Targum [says] even it, and the altar [was] four cubits:
Radak
And the word "וההראל" is clear from "והאראיל," and likewise "והאראיל" is written with a yod between the aleph and the lamed, and the yod is vocalized between the resh and the aleph, and the meaning is one.
Metzudat David
And the *Hara"l*: It is the height of the altar's roof, from the surrounding [ledge] and upward.
Four cubits. Our Sages of blessed memory stated in the chapter "Which is its Place" regarding the exposition of the "horns": Four [horns] is what is being said. That is to say, the bloods that were given at the horns of the altar, their domain was from the top of the altar and downward, four cubits, and this extends until the completion of the upper cubit of the surrounding ledge, for up to there it is called "above." For when the four [cubits] from the top are completed, the measuring line of the Sikra, which is in the middle of the altar, [is reached]. For the horns are one [cubit], and the top is three [cubits], and the upper cubit of the surrounding ledge—this makes five. And likewise, the three remaining [cubits] of the surrounding ledge and two of the base make five.
"And from the Ari'el and upward." Above the roof of the altar were four horns at the four corners:
Metzudat Zion
And "Ha'arel" is like "Ha'ari'el," where the heh comes in place of the aleph, and the yod is omitted. And so is the altar called, as in "and it shall be to Me like Ariel" (Isaiah 29:2). It is called so because the fire descended upon it from God from heaven and crouched upon it like a lion.
Malbim
And the Har-el, the place of the wood arrangement (Ma'arachah) which was at the top of the altar, is called Har-el. And the meaning is that the place from the great Azarah, which is the entrance of the Soav, up to the top of the altar was four cubits. And even though up to the Ma'arachah there were not three cubits, we explain that from the Har-el and upward emerged the four corners, which also had a height of one cubit. And with the corners, the Har-el was four cubits. And with this, the ten cubits of the height of the altar were completed. And Chazal (in the chapter Eizehu Mekoman) explained that what is stated, “And the Har-el [is] four,” and not “up to the Har-el,” is that in passing, they inform us that we count four [cubits] from the Har-el, which is the place of the Ma'arachah, and downward. Regarding the domain of the blood: from the Chatzitzah of the Soav up to the place of the corners, the upper bloods are placed; and below them, the lower bloods are placed. And this reaches down to one cubit below the Soav, which is four cubits from the Har-el, which is the place of the Ma'arachah. However, this calculation is valid only in the Second Temple, where the ascent of the Yesod was only one cubit. For the ascent of the Yesod was truly five handbreadths, and likewise, the true height of the corners was five handbreadths. And what remained below the corners and above the Yesod was four cubits above and four cubits below, truly six handbreadths. But in the Third Temple, where the height of the Yesod will be two cubits, truly five handbreadths, then the middle of the altar is half a handbreadth after the four cubits of the place of the corners. It can be said that in the future, the boundary of the width of a finger will be in that handbreadth which is after the four cubits, and this boundary will divide between the upper and the lower, and the Har-el will be four cubits up to this boundary.
And the hearth shall be twelve cubits long by twelve broad, square in the four sides thereof.
verse value 4859
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 53 letters. The shortest word is "to" (אֶ֖ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·hearth" (וְהָאֲרִיאֵ֗ל, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 575: ten, ten. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·hearth" (וְהָאֲרִיאֵ֗ל), "in·two" (בִּשְׁתֵּ֥ים), "square" (רָב֕וּעַ). The root שנים appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to" (root אל, 204x in Ezekiel); "four" (root ארבע, 59x in Ezekiel); "breadth" (root רחב, 58x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'breadth', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words.
Rashi
And Ariel was twelve cubits in length. The place of the arrangement [of the wood] was twenty-four by twenty-four, and this is twelve by twelve.
"to its four quarters." Since he measures twelve cubits from its center in each direction, this makes twenty-four by twenty-four. This is explicitly stated in the tractate Zevachim, and likewise we learned in the tractate Middot: "The altar was thirty-two cubits by thirty-two cubits. It rose one cubit and receded one cubit; this is the foundation. Thus, it was thirty cubits by thirty cubits. It rose five cubits and receded one cubit; this is the surrounding ledge. Thus, it was twenty-eight cubits by twenty-eight cubits. The space for the horns was one cubit on this side and one cubit on that side. Thus, it was twenty-six cubits by twenty-six cubits. The space for the walking of the priests' feet was one cubit on this side and one cubit on that side. Thus, it was twenty-four cubits by twenty-four cubits, the place of the altar top."
Metzudat David
And Ariel. The surface of the altar, which is the place of the arrangement, was twelve cubits by twelve cubits, and this was from its center to each direction; thus, it was twenty-four by twenty-four.
A square. It was square on all four of its sides:
Metzudat Zion
Square. "square":
“Riv’avo.” Its sides. And similarly, “on their four quarters” (above 1a). It is derived from the word “reva” (quarter), for each side constitutes a quarter, since there are four sides.
Malbim
And Ariel explained that the area of the altar’s top surface was twelve cubits long by twelve cubits wide. He explained in the Mishnah of Middot that this measurement is taken from the center of the altar, meaning that from the center of the altar’s top surface, there are twelve cubits in every direction. And this is what he means by “to its four corners,” and from side to side it was twenty-four cubits. For at the altar’s top surface, the altar was reduced by an additional two cubits on each side: one cubit for the space of the horns and one cubit for the space for the priests’ feet to walk.
And the settle shall be fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad in the four sides thereof; and the border about it shall be half a cubit; and the bottom thereof shall be a cubit about; and the steps thereof shall look toward the east.’
verse value 5641
Insights
Verse structure: 21 words, 91 letters. The shortest word is "to" (אֶ֖ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·the·bottom·to·it" (וְהַחֵֽיק־לָ֤הּ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 575: ten, ten. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·the·court" (וְהָעֲזָרָ֞ה), "its·sides" (רְבָעֶ֑יהָ), "and·the·border" (וְהַגְּבוּל֩). The root ארבע appears 3 times in this verse. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to" (root אל, 204x in Ezekiel); "round·about" (root סביב, 112x in Ezekiel); "the·cubit" (root אמה, 85x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'its·sides', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 11 words.
Rashi
And the Azarah is fourteen [cubits] in length. The roof of the altar, together with the space of the horns and the space for the feet of the priests, is twenty-eight by twenty-eight. The fourteen mentioned here are measured from its midpoint, as is explained regarding its four quarters.
"And the border all around it." The Targum [renders it] "and its border/frame," and our Sages interpreted it as referring to the horns.
"Half a cubit." He measures from its midpoint; thus, it is found to be one cubit by one cubit.
“And the hollow was a cubit for it.” This refers to the recession of the foundation.
"And its steps faced east." The ramp upon which one ascended was located in the south, so that the one ascending upon it would face east, for all the corners were to the right. And when you place the ramp in the south, the one ascending upon it and turning to the right faces east.
Radak
"And the Court was fourteen cubits in length." We do not know to which Court he is referring: to the large one or to the small one?
"Ve-hagabol." As we explained regarding "masgeret," and as the Targum Yonatan renders it: "gadanpa."
Half a cubit. Half a cubit was the height of the frame that the Court had around it.
"And the hollow of it was a cubit all around." We do not know what this hollow served for in the Temple Court.
"And its steps faced eastward." The steps by which they ascended to the altar were oriented toward the east. The form "its steps" (ma'lotav) is analogous to "and his steps" (u-ma'lotav), and similarly, the phrase "place of his strength" (makom gevuro) is analogous to "his mighty ones" (gevarav).
Panot. Its root is [panah]. And behold, it is written, “You shall not go up by steps to My altar” (Exodus 20:23). Perhaps this implies that the steps were made in the manner of a ramp, or its meaning is that one ascended via them outside the Temple Court. The view of Jonathan ben Uzziel is that one ascended to the Temple Court, as he translated [in the Targum]: “And its steps, which lead up to the inner precinct of the sanctuary.” And Targum Jonathan renders every occurrence of the word “chayik” in this passage as “tshuvita,” meaning a level place. And he translated “the Temple Court” as “mismata.” I have not found a cognate for this word. According to the interpretation of our Sages of blessed memory, the meaning of “the Temple Court” is the structure of the altar itself. He calls it “from the square stones” [melavanim] of the Temple Court, because the altar was made of square stones, as they said: Levi taught: How do they build the altar? One brings a square frame that is thirty-two cubits by thirty-two cubits, and its height is one cubit. One brings moist pebbles, both large and small. One brings lime, pitch, and kuniya [a type of mortar], and he spreads and pours it. This is the foundation. Then he again brings a square frame that is thirty cubits by thirty cubits, and its height is five cubits. One brings moist pebbles, both large and small. One brings lime, pitch, and kuniya, and he spreads and pours it. This is the surrounding base. Then he again brings a square frame that is twenty-eight cubits by twenty-eight cubits, and its height is three cubits. One brings moist pebbles, both large and small. One brings lime, pitch, and kuniya, and he spreads and pours it. This is the place of the arrangement [of the wood]. Then he again brings a square frame that is one cubit by one cubit, and its height is one cubit. One brings moist pebbles, both large and small. One brings lime, pitch, and kuniya, and he spreads and pours it. This is the horn. And so it is for each and every horn. And the meaning of “mefulamot” is moist, like fish that are mefulamot [moist/slimy].
Metzudat David
And the ledge (Azarah). It is the pattern of the roof of the Altar, the place of the arrangement [of the wood] together with the place for the walking of the priests' feet, together with the place of the horns. It was fourteen cubits by fourteen cubits; thus, from its center to all four of its sides, and it was therefore twenty-eight [cubits] by twenty-eight [cubits].
And the border. The horns that were at its border, surrounding it in the four corners, were half a cubit from its center in each direction, and thus they were a cubit by a cubit.
"And the hollow belonging to it." The hollow that belongs to it is the base of the altar, which projected one cubit all around. (And it is possible that the verse comes to teach this because from that time on, the base did not project all around, for in the area that was the inheritance of Judah there was no base, as our Sages of blessed memory stated (Middot 3:8). Therefore, it says that in the future the base will be all around, for then the site of the Temple and the altar will not be assigned to any particular tribe, as can be seen from the map of the division of the land.)
And its ramp. This does not mean that there were steps in it, for the Torah states, “You shall not ascend by steps to My altar” (Exodus 20:23). Rather, the phrase “and he raised it up” is in the plural form, because there were three [elements]: one was the large ramp, one was the corner for the foundation, and one was the corner for the surrounding ledge. Thus stated our Sages of blessed memory (Zevachim 62b). And they stated that the corners faced east, meaning they were positioned on the side such that one ascending upon them would turn toward the altar, for all turning is done to the right. Thus, for one coming from the south, his right is toward the east. Therefore, when the ramps were in the south, one ascending upon them would turn toward the east. So too did our Sages of blessed memory state (ibid.). And so was the construction of the altar: the lower base was thirty-two cubits by thirty-two cubits, and its height was two cubits. Upon it they placed a base of thirty by thirty, and its height was four cubits. Thus, it would be set back one cubit on every side, and this is the recess of the foundation. Upon it they placed a base of twenty-eight by twenty-eight, and its height was three cubits. Thus, it would be set back one cubit on every side, and this is the recess of the surrounding ledge. In the four corners they placed a base of one cubit by one cubit, at a height of one cubit, and these were the corners. They filled all the bases with stones, earth, and lime, so that the entire structure was made as a single solid mass. Then they removed the boards of the bases, and between the corners there was space for the priests to walk. Additionally, one cubit inward, the place of the arrangement [of the wood] was found to be twenty-four by twenty-four. See the commentary on the construction of the House.
Metzudat Zion
"and its ascent." The ramps that were at the altar.
"פנות" – the word is derived from the root meaning "to turn aside" or "to divert."
Malbim
And the Great Court (as stated above, verse 13) is fourteen cubits in length by fourteen cubits in width, measured from the middle of the altar, as stated above.
And the border surrounding that half-cubit is the border mentioned in verse 13, which states, “And its border to its edge shall be a handbreadth,” implying that a protruding structure of a handbreadth, which is half a cubit, serves as a boundary between the upper bloods and the lower bloods. This border was one cubit below the beginning of the surrounding enclosure. Since this protrusion extended only for a width of a handbreadth, the text comes to clarify that we should not err and say that the reason the base was one cubit wider than the surrounding enclosure (as stated, “And the hollow of the cubit and a cubit wide”) was that it was one cubit wide from the border, thereby excluding half a cubit, which would mean the width of the base was one and a half cubits. Therefore, it states that although the border surrounding the protrusion was half a cubit, the hollow, which is the base, was only one cubit around and no more, because the protrusion of the border is not counted, as it extended only for a width of a handbreadth.
“His corners faced east” means that the ramp, by which one ascends to the altar, was in the south, so that one ascending on it turns to the right, toward the east, as stated, “He came to the southeast corner,” etc., meaning that all your turns should be only to the right. Know that what is stated in the Mishnah in Middot to explain that what is written, “And the Ariel was ten cubits,” means that he measured from the center of the altar, and that the width of the place of the arrangement from side to side was twenty-four cubits, from which he derived that the altar below was thirty-two cubits, as explained above—this cannot be accepted according to Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov, since the anonymous Mishnah in Middot follows his opinion. For he holds that the entire altar stood in the south, and the altar together with the ramp were sixty-two cubits. How could it stand in the south, when the entire southern side of the Temple building is only fifty cubits, since the inner courtyard is one hundred by one hundred? However, this Mishnah is not anonymous; rather, it is stated by Rabbi Yosi. And Rabbi Yosi, according to his approach, holds that the entire altar stood in the north, and the place of the altar was in the north, while in the south there was room for the ramp. And similarly, even for those who say that half was in the north and half in the south, we can explain it thus: then the altar occupied sixteen cubits in the south, and the ramp thirty cubits, making forty-six, leaving four cubits remaining until the wall. But according to Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov, this is impossible. Therefore, it must be said that he would explain what is written, “And the Ariel was twelve,” as meaning from side to side, not from its center. And he holds that the width of the Ariel was twelve cubits, including the place of the corners and the walking space for the priests’ feet. According to this, its width and length below, at the place of the base, were sixteen cubits, and it could stand with the ramp in the south.
I saw in the commentary of the Gaon, Rabbi Eliyahu Vilna, that he explained the verses here as meaning that the width of the altar was only twelve cubits from side to side. And it is not known who led him to interpret in opposition to an explicit Mishnah that explains that he measured from its center. And according to what is stated, he holds as the Ra’avad wrote (Chapter 3 of the Laws of the Service of Yom Kippur), that the opinion of the Rambam is like Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, that the entire altar stood in the south. And just as the anonymous Mishnah agrees, so too does Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi in Yoma (page 37). And it is impossible to interpret according to the explanation of the Mishnah that stated Rabbi Yosi according to his approach.
And He said to me: ‘Son of man, thus says the Lord Hashem: These are the ordinances of the altar in the day when they shall make it, to offer burnt-offerings thereon, and to dash blood against it.
verse value 3480
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 73 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יֱהֹוִ֔ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "thus" (כֹּ֤ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "its·being·made" (הֵעָשׂוֹת֑וֹ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 116: upon·it, upon·it. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "its·being·made" (הֵעָשׂוֹת֑וֹ), "and·to·scatter" (וְלִזְרֹ֥ק). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "and·said" (root אמר, 362x in Ezekiel); "upon·it" (root על, 272x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'its·being·made', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 6 words.
Radak
And He said to me, "Son of man, thus says the Lord GOD: These are the ordinances of the altar on the day that they make it." On the day that its construction is completed, this offering shall be brought upon it, just as they did in the Tabernacle on the eighth day of the consecration.
"And to sprinkle upon it blood." The Targum: "And to sprinkle upon it blood, the sacrifice of the holy things."
Metzudat David
"These are the statutes of the altar." These are the ordinances of the altar for its consecration, to sanctify it on the day of the completion of its construction, so that it may be fit and worthy to offer upon it a burnt-offering and to sprinkle upon it blood.
Malbim
"These are the statutes of the altar on the day it is made": He informed him how the inauguration of the altar would be in the future. And even though a new altar is not inaugurated except with the morning daily offering, as our Sages of blessed memory stated, here, however, the inauguration would be a general one for all the vessels of the Sanctuary. There was also an inauguration in the days of Ezra, which was a temporary ruling and was done in a different manner, because they already knew that this was not the future Temple about which Ezekiel prophesied, for God had already promised him that at the time of the inauguration of the future Temple, Ezekiel, who was a priest, would be resurrected, and he himself would perform the service of the inauguration. Therefore, they performed a different inauguration according to the instruction of the prophets at that time. And just as in the Tabernacle, the inauguration was with offerings that were practiced only for that time, so too is it stated here: "On the day it is made, you shall perform the inauguration to consecrate it," so that it will be fit to offer upon it the limbs of the burnt offering, and to sprinkle upon it the blood of the burnt offering, the most holy offerings, and the lesser holy offerings.
You shall give to the priests the Levites that are of the seed of Zadok, who are near to Me, to minister to Me, says the Lord Hashem, a young bullock for a sin-offering.
verse value 4828
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 69 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יֱהֹוִ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "abundance" (הֵם֩, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·the·priests" (אֶל־הַכֹּהֲנִ֣ים, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 91: the·Levites, utterance. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "who" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "to·the·priests" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·minister·to·me', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 3 words.
Rashi
The priests, the Levites: those from the tribe of Levi.
“Of the seed of Zadok.” Since he was the High Priest who served first in the Temple in the days of Solomon, they were called by his name.
Radak
"And you shall give." Ezekiel says that he is a priest, and that he will provide the offering to the priests so that they may offer it, and he will sprinkle the blood and make atonement upon the altar, for in the future he will be the High Priest. Even though Aaron will be there, or he will be his deputy, this verse also indicates the resurrection of the dead in the future. According to the words of our Sages of blessed memory, who said that this altar is the one built in the Second Temple, it is possible that Ezekiel was among the exiles who returned from Babylon, except that they say in tradition that he was buried in the land of Babylonia. Furthermore, the order of the offerings performed by the exiles who returned is not like this order, for they built the altar before the Temple.
“Of the seed of Zadok.” We have already explained above why Zadok is mentioned:
"A bull of the herd for a sin-offering." And likewise with the consecration offerings that Moses performed:
Metzudat David
"And you shall give..." – He was informed that he would arise in the resurrection, and the dedication would be accomplished through him, for he was a priest.
To the priests, the Levites. To the priests who come from the tribe of Levi:
“Who are of the seed of Zadok, etc.” For they will be chosen in the future to perform the service of the altar, as it is stated: “And the priests the Levites, the sons of Zadok, etc., they shall approach Me to serve Me” (below 44).
"To serve Me." This refers to those who are close to Me:
"A bull of the herd." It refers back to "and you shall place," etc.
Malbim
"And you shall give to the priests from the seed of Zadok," as will be explained (in section 44), that only the sons of Zadok will be fit for the service at that time, because they are close to the Lord, having not served idolatry. And the Lord informed him that he will arise in the resurrection at that time, and he will hand over the bull of the sin-offering to the priests.
And you shall take of the blood thereof, and put it on the four horns of it, and on the four corners of the settle, and upon the border round about; thus shall you purify it and make atonement for it.
verse value 5478
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 70 letters. The shortest word is "from·his·blood" (מִדָּמ֗וֹ, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·to·the·border" (וְאֶֽל־הַגְּב֖וּל, 8 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "from·his·blood" (מִדָּמ֗וֹ), "its·horns" (קַרְנֹתָיו֙), "and·to·the·border" (וְאֶֽל־הַגְּב֖וּל). The root ארבע appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·will·give" (root נתן, 207x in Ezekiel); "round·about" (root סביב, 112x in Ezekiel); "and·you·will·take" (root לקח, 65x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'round·about', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְלָקַחְתָּ֣ [and·you·will·take] (544) + מִדָּמ֗וֹ [from·his·blood] (90) + וְנָ֨תַתָּ֜ה [and·you·will·give] (861) + עַל־אַרְבַּ֤ע [on·four] (373) + קַרְנֹתָיו֙ [its·horns] (766) + וְאֶל־אַרְבַּע֙ [and·to·four] (310) + פִּנּ֣וֹת [corners·of] (536) + הָעֲזָרָ֔ה [the·court] (287) + וְאֶֽל־הַגְּב֖וּל [and·to·the·border] (83) + סָבִ֑יב [round·about] (74) + וְחִטֵּאתָ֥ [and·purge] (424) + אוֹת֖וֹ [it] (413) + וְכִפַּרְתָּֽהוּ [and·you·shall·atone·for·it] (717) = 5478.
Rashi
“On its four horns.” The horns of the altar:
The corners of the Azarah. The roof of the altar:
“And it shall make atonement for him.” It shall cleanse him from the mundane path in which he was, in order to bring him into holiness, so that he shall be worthy of having atonement made by it from this point onward.
Radak
"And you shall take." The Azarah is the one mentioned, which was in front of the altar, and this is explicitly stated above: "The corners of the Azarah facing the altar."
“And to the boundary.” To the boundary of the Azarah mentioned above:
"And you shall purify it, and you shall make atonement for it." As its Targum [renders it]: "And you shall purify it, and you shall make atonement for it."
Metzudat David
"And you shall give..." – He shall place the blood upon the four horns of the altar, and upon the four corners of the structure of the altar's roof.
"And unto the border round about." It is possible that this was said regarding the foundation, that it is at the boundary of the altar.
"And the sin-offering..." – By this you shall purify the altar, and you shall wipe it, in order to remove from it the status of profane, so as to bring it into holiness.
Metzudat Zion
"Panot." The term is derived from the root *panah*, meaning "to turn," and refers to the corners.
And the sin-offering. The Targum translates: “and she shall be purified,” which is a matter of purification.
"And it shall make atonement for him." This refers to the matter of wiping. And according to this, the sprinkling vessel is called a "kafor," because the priest who sprinkles wipes his finger of the blood on the rim of the sprinkling vessel. And in the words of our Sages of blessed memory: "He asked to wipe his hands with that man" (Gittin 57a).
Malbim
“And you shall take some of its blood”—and He also informed him that he himself would take and sprinkle the blood. The taking refers to receiving it into a vessel, for from the point of reception onward, it constitutes a priestly commandment; and the placing refers to the application to the horns. “And you shall put some of its blood upon the four horns of the altar,” and “upon the four corners of the Court”—that is, the surrounding area known as the Great Court (as stated above in verse 14); and “upon the border”—that is, the projection that jutted outward from the altar, which is called the border (as it is written, “and its border to its rim all around”). The upper half-handbreadth belonged to the upper part, as stated above.
Regarding the sin-offering: concerning the application of the blood with the finger and its atonement, and the pouring out of the remainder at the base—behold, the Lord informed him through this of several precious aspects regarding the Resurrection:
1. That the Resurrection will already begin during the seven days of the consecration of the Sanctuary, for He assured Ezekiel that he would be found at that time and would consecrate the Sanctuary.
2. That the Resurrection will be both of the body and of the soul, and that he will rise in the Resurrection clothed in flesh, sinews, and bones, and that he will be complete in his body, having no blemish, for an angel is not fit for service. And if he were not complete in his body like any other human being, he would be considered a blemished person.
3. That he will then be obligated in commandments like other human beings; otherwise, how could he fulfill the commandment of wearing the priestly garments and all the commandments of the sacrifices? This is conceivable only if he rises in the Resurrection like any other human being.
You shall also take the bullock of the sin-offering, and it shall be burnt in the appointed place of the house, without the sanctuary.
verse value 3506
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 38 letters. The shortest word is "the·young·bull" (הַפָּ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·you·will·take" (וְלָ֣קַחְתָּ֔, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "in·muster·of" (בְּמִפְקַ֣ד). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·house" (root בית, 159x in Ezekiel); "and·you·will·take" (root לקח, 65x in Ezekiel); "for·the·sanctuary" (root מקדש, 29x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·purgation·offering', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 5 words.
Rashi
“Bemifkad habayit” (In the place of the house’s inspection). Targum Jonathan renders it: “be-itar da-chazi le-bayta,” meaning: in a holy place. And the phrase “bemifkad habayit” denotes a place where the house is complete, as it is said (Numbers 31:49): “lo nifkad mimenu ish” (no man was lacking from among them). This refers to the bull of the consecration offerings, just as they did in the Tabernacle, and that bull was burned and not eaten. And likewise our Sages expounded in the tractate Menachot: “The consecration offerings were brought in the days of Ezra, just as they were brought in the days of Moses.”
Radak
"And you shall take the bull of the sin-offering." It is attached with the definite article "the," like "the copper altar" and its like.
“And they burned it in the appointed place of the house.” “And they burned it” — the one who burned it did so in the appointed place of the house. And Targum Jonathan translates: “In the place that was seen in the house.” It did not specify in which part of the house, but it said “outside the Temple,” meaning outside the Azarah [Court], but within the walls of the Temple Mount. And the phrase “in the appointed place” is like “in the commandment,” as in “And He commanded me concerning the appointed place” (referring to Hezekiah). This means in the place in the house where the priests are commanded to burn the burnt bulls and the burnt goats. And likewise, the bull that Moses offered during the consecration was burned there, and likewise the sin-offering calf that Aaron offered on the eighth day of the consecration was burned there.
Metzudat David
And he shall burn it. The one to whom you hand it over - he shall burn it.
“At the utmost extent of the house.” At the utmost extent of the house, the place where the house ends. And to add clarification, he said: outside the Temple.
Metzudat Zion
"bimpekad." The matter is one of destruction and deficiency, as it is stated, "and not a man was missed from among them" (Numbers 31:49).
Malbim
"And you shall take and burn it" — it should be compared to the bull of the inauguration of the Tabernacle, whose blood Moses placed on the horns of the altar, and whose carcass was burned outside the camp; and this is what is meant by "outside the Sanctuary," referring to a designated place for the burning of those things that are to be burned. And this is what is stated in the verse: "at the designated place of the house."
And on the second day you shall offer a he-goat without blemish for a sin-offering; and they shall purify the altar, as they did purify it with the bullock.
verse value 4106
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 54 letters. The shortest word is "in·the·bull" (בַּפָּֽר, 3 letters) and the longest is "he-goat" (שְׂעִיר־עִזִּ֥ים, 8 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "he-goat" (שְׂעִיר־עִזִּ֥ים), "and·they·shall·purify" (וְחִטְּאוּ֙), "in·the·bull" (בַּפָּֽר). The root חטא appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "as" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "and·in·the·day" (root יום, 112x in Ezekiel); "to·purgation·offering" (root חטאה, 22x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·purgation·offering', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: וּבַיּוֹם֙ [and·in·the·day] (64) + הַשֵּׁנִ֔י [second] (365) + תַּקְרִ֛יב [you·shall·offer] (712) + שְׂעִיר־עִזִּ֥ים [he-goat] (707) + תָּמִ֖ים [complete] (490) + לְחַטָּ֑את [to·purgation·offering] (448) + וְחִטְּאוּ֙ [and·they·shall·purify] (30) + אֶת־הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ [the·altar] (463) + כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר [as] (521) + חִטְּא֖וּ [they·purified] (24) + בַּפָּֽר [in·the·bull] (282) = 4106.
Rashi
"You shall bring a male goat." This was not the case in the Tabernacle, nor will it be in the future consecration rites; rather, they are as stated in the divine utterance:
Radak
"And on the second day." It is explained:
Metzudat David
"And they shall sin." The ones who sprinkle the blood shall purify the altar by sprinkling the blood of the goat, just as they purified it on the first day by sprinkling the blood of the bull.
When you have made an end of purifying it, you shall offer a young bullock without blemish, and a ram out of the flock without blemish.
verse value 3145
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 40 letters. The shortest word is "bull" (פַּ֣ר, 2 letters) and the longest is "in·your·finishing" (בְּכַלּוֹתְךָ֖, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 490: complete, complete. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "in·your·finishing" (בְּכַלּוֹתְךָ֖), "from·purifying" (מֵחַטֵּ֑א). The root תמים appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·ram" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "a·young·bullock" (root בין, 145x in Ezekiel); "from·the·flock" (root צאן, 26x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·purifying', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 7 words. Full calculation: בְּכַלּוֹתְךָ֖ [in·your·finishing] (478) + מֵחַטֵּ֑א [from·purifying] (58) + תַּקְרִיב֙ [you·shall·offer] (712) + פַּ֣ר [bull] (280) + בֶּן־בָּקָ֣ר [a·young·bullock] (354) + תָּמִ֔ים [complete] (490) + וְאַ֥יִל [and·ram] (47) + מִן־הַצֹּ֖אן [from·the·flock] (236) + תָּמִֽים [complete] (490) = 3145.
Rashi
“Mechatte” (purging) — [meaning] purifying:
Radak
"When you have finished from sin." The meaning is clear from the letter bet:
Metzudat David
"When you have finished from the sin-offering." When you complete the purification of the altar by sprinkling the blood of the goat:
"You shall bring near." This refers to the act of bringing [the sacrifice] into the Azarah (the Temple courtyard):
"Perfect." Without blemish:
Metzudat Zion
"בכלותך" – the matter of completion and finalization.
Malbim
When you have finished the sin-offering, this too is on the second day, for after the sprinkling of the blood of the goat of the sin-offering, he shall offer a bull and a ram as a burnt-offering.
And you shall present them before Hashem, and the priests shall cast salt upon them, and they shall offer them up for a burnt-offering to Hashem.
verse value 2414
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 53 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֑ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "salt" (מֶ֔לַח, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·you·shall·present·them" (וְהִקְרַבְתָּ֖ם, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·you·shall·present·them" (וְהִקְרַבְתָּ֖ם), "and·they·shall·cast" (וְהִשְׁלִ֨יכוּ), "salt" (מֶ֔לַח). The root יהוה appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "upon·them" (root על, 272x in Ezekiel); "to·face·of" (root פנים, 150x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Hashem', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 8 words. Full calculation: וְהִקְרַבְתָּ֖ם [and·you·shall·present·them] (753) + לִפְנֵ֣י [to·face·of] (170) + יְהֹוָ֑ה [Hashem] (26) + וְהִשְׁלִ֨יכוּ [and·they·shall·cast] (377) + הַכֹּהֲנִ֤ים [the·priests] (130) + עֲלֵיהֶם֙ [upon·them] (155) + מֶ֔לַח [salt] (78) + וְהֶעֱל֥וּ [and·they·shall·offer·up] (117) + אוֹתָ֛ם [them] (447) + עֹלָ֖ה [burnt-offering] (105) + לַיהֹוָֽה [to·Hashem] (56) = 2414.
Radak
"And you shall bring near," and the priests shall throw salt upon them. As it is written in the Torah: "On all your offerings you shall offer salt."
Metzudat David
"And you shall bring near." This is the burning on the altar.
"And they shall cast upon it," etc. Salt, as it is stated, "Upon all your offerings you shall offer salt" (Leviticus 2:13).
"A burnt offering to the Lord" – that they be entirely burnt offerings.
Seven days shall you prepare every day a goat for a sin-offering; they shall also prepare a young bullock, and a ram out of the flock, without blemish.
verse value 4580
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 52 letters. Notable word values: "to·the·day" (לַיּ֑וֹם) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "and·bull" (וּפַ֧ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "goat·of·sin-offering" (שְׂעִיר־חַטָּ֖את, 8 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "goat·of·sin-offering" (שְׂעִיר־חַטָּ֖את), "and·bull" (וּפַ֧ר), "complete" (תְּמִימִ֥ים). The root יום appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·ram" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "you·will·do" (root עשה, 214x in Ezekiel); "a·young·bullock" (root בין, 145x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·day', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 6 words. Full calculation: שִׁבְעַ֣ת [seven] (772) + יָמִ֔ים [days] (100) + תַּעֲשֶׂ֥ה [you·will·do] (775) + שְׂעִיר־חַטָּ֖את [goat·of·sin-offering] (998) + לַיּ֑וֹם [to·the·day] (86) + וּפַ֧ר [and·bull] (286) + בֶּן־בָּקָ֛ר [a·young·bullock] (354) + וְאַ֥יִל [and·ram] (47) + מִן־הַצֹּ֖אן [from·the·flock] (236) + תְּמִימִ֥ים [complete] (540) + יַֽעֲשֽׂוּ [they·will·do] (386) = 4580.
Rashi
"They shall offer them unblemished." For a burnt-offering:
Radak
“Seven days you shall make a sin-offering for the day.” There were no days of consecration like those of Moses, nor did we see that the exiles who returned offered such a sacrifice when they built the altar. And even though our Sages of blessed memory stated that the consecration sacrifices were offered in the days of Ezra in the manner in which they were offered in the days of Moses, according to this order they were not [offered]. Therefore, inevitably, there will be a novelty in the order of the sacrifices in the future.
Metzudat David
“Seven days.” Just as they did on the second day, so shall they do until the completion of the seven days: a he-goat for a sin-offering, and a bull and a ram for burnt-offerings.
Malbim
“Seven days”: This implies that what is stated regarding the second day, namely that he shall offer a he-goat as a sin-offering and a bull and a ram as a burnt-offering, shall continue for seven days, excluding the first day on which they offered a bull.
Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and cleanse it; so shall they consecrate it.
verse value 2387
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 36 letters. The shortest word is "it" (אֹת֑וֹ, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·altar" (אֶת־הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "they·shall·atone·for" (יְכַפְּרוּ֙). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "days" (root יום, 112x in Ezekiel); "his·hands" (root יד, 75x in Ezekiel); "and·fill" (root מלא, 37x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'it', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 2 words. Full calculation: שִׁבְעַ֣ת [seven] (772) + יָמִ֗ים [days] (100) + יְכַפְּרוּ֙ [they·shall·atone·for] (316) + אֶת־הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ [the·altar] (463) + וְטִהֲר֖וּ [and·they·shall·cleanse] (226) + אֹת֑וֹ [it] (407) + וּמִלְא֖וּ [and·fill] (83) + יָדָֽו [his·hands] (20) = 2387.
Radak
“Seven days they shall make atonement.” Both the ketiv and the qere are "yekhapperu," with a yod, and the sense is one. The only difference is that in the written form, the accent of “seven days” is attached to the preceding word.
"And they shall purify him." Because he had become impure through the hands of the nations of the land.
"Yimal'u yado" (they shall fill his hand). It is written without a yod, but read with a yod, and there are many like it: words missing the yod in the written text, yet the meaning is not lacking because of this. The explanation is that "umel'u yadav" (and they filled his hands) is a metonymy for the altar, and its meaning is as in the Targum: "veyakarvon karbanehon" (and they shall bring their offerings). In this manner, Onkelos translates "umilata yad Aharon veyad banav" (and you shall fill the hand of Aaron and the hand of his sons) and similar verses. And one may explain that the metonymy of "his hands" refers to the priest who offers the sacrifice, that he shall fill his hands with the portions of the offering.
Metzudat David
"יכפרו" – They shall cleanse him, to remove from him the path of profaneness and to bring him into holiness.
"And they filled his hands." With this they consecrate the altar:
Metzudat Zion
"And they shall fill his hands." Thus is the term for consecration expressed in the language of the Bible, as it is written: "And you shall fill the hands of Aaron" (Exodus 29:9). The meaning of consecration is the commencement of the matter in that which will endure forever.
Malbim
“Seven days”: This means that during these seven days, when they offer the goat, the bull, and the ram, they shall atone for the altar with the blood of the goat, purify it, and perform the ordination (filling of the hands) through the offering of the burnt offering. For on the first day, when they offered the bull, they did not perform the ordination, since that bull was burned outside the camp.
And when they have accomplished the days, it shall be that upon the eighth day, and forward, the priests shall make your burnt-offerings upon the altar, and your peace-offerings; and I will accept you, says the Lord Hashem.’
verse value 4982
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 88 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָה֩) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "utterance" (נְאֻ֖ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "your·burnt-offerings" (אֶת־עוֹלֽוֹתֵיכֶם֙, 10 letters). Words sharing gematria 26: and·it·shall·be, Hashem. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·when·they·complete" (וִֽיכַלּ֖וּ), "the·days" (אֶת־הַיָּמִ֑ים), "eighth" (הַשְּׁמִינִ֜י). The root יום appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 335x in Ezekiel); "my·lord" (root אדון, 222x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·days', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 14 words.
Rashi
"And I will accept you." – This is the language of desire.
Radak
“And they completed the days” – the priests completed seven days in this manner:
"And it shall be on the eighth day and onward." The explanation is that on the eighth day, and from that day onward, they shall offer burnt offerings and sacrifices, as it is written; and included among them are the daily offerings, the vow offerings, the freewill offerings, and the additional offerings.
“And I will accept you.” It is written with an aleph in place of a yod. Similarly, “And I will heal Babylon” (Jeremiah 51:9). The meaning is: “And I will be pleased with you through your sacrifices, and it will be a pleasing aroma before Me, for your deeds will be pleasing before Me.” And Jonathan [ben Uzziel] translated: “And your sacrifices will be accepted with favor before Me.” Says the Lord.
Metzudat David
"And they were completed." When they complete the seven days, he is initiated into the service of the sacrifices, and on the eighth day, and from then on, the priests shall perform upon the altar your burnt offerings, etc., and I will be favorably disposed toward you through these sacrifices.
Metzudat Zion
And onward. And below, until the end of time:
“And I will be pleased.” From the root of “desire” (ratson):
Malbim
"And it shall be on the eighth day": from the day that the consecration began on the first day, which is the seventh day from the second day, they will be able to bring upon it burnt offerings and peace offerings. And it will be explained below (section 45) that the first day will be on the 23rd of Adar, and its eighth day will be on the new moon of Nisan, just as it was in the days of Moses, when the consecration began on the 23rd of Adar and the eighth day of the consecration was on the new moon of Nisan; see there.
Rashi
Radak
Metzudat David
Malbim