Ezekiel 41:15

Ezekiel 41:15-17 . And he measured the length, &c. — Noldius translates this sentence more clearly thus: And he measured the length of the building which was before the separate place, [and] that which was behind it, or opposite to it; by which he understands the north and south porch, the east and west sides having been measured before, Ezekiel 41:12 ; Ezekiel 41:14 . And the galleries thereof on one side, &c., a hundred cubits, with [or and ] the inner temple, and the porches thereof — As the temple, and the area wherein it stood, made a square of a hundred cubits; so the courts and buildings thereto belonging were of the same dimensions. By the galleries are meant the side-chambers, described Ezekiel 41:6-7 . Within the inner temple — Called the inner house, Ezekiel 41:17 , Ezekiel 42:15 , to distinguish it from the courts and buildings which were about it. The door- posts and the narrow windows, &c. — He measured also the thickness of the walls on each side of the porch, and the thickness of the door-cases at the entrance into the temple; as also the narrow windows belonging to the three stories of chambers, which were placed on the outside of the temple. From the ground up to the windows — He measured from the ground up to the windows which were placed above the side-chambers. And the windows were covered — With lattices or curtains, or both.

(15) And he measured. —The rest of the chapter consists of an enumeration of various details, for the most part not before mentioned, and this is introduced by a summary of the measurements already made. This clause is therefore to be understood as equivalent to “So he measured,” or, “And he had measured.” The dimensions of each of the principal parts is then repeated: the building to the west of the Temple, the Temple itself, and the porches of the court. The only new point introduced is “the galleries thereof.” It seems certain that this must refer to the building beyond “the separate place;” but the word for galleries occurs only here and in Ezekiel 41:16 , and Ezekiel 42:3 ; Ezekiel 42:5 , and its derivation is quite unknown. The translation, galleries, is probably correct; and as there was a space of 10 cubits on each side of the building in question, there may very well have been galleries covering and protecting its entrances, although they are not located with sufficient definiteness to be drawn on the plan.

Verse 15. - With this verse begins a summary of measurements of which some have been already given, while others are new. Starting from the gizrah, or separate place, this summary mentions that the "man" measured (1) the whole length of the erection; (2) the length of its "galleries" on the north and south sides; and (3) the inner temple with the porches of the court. The length of the separate place is not stated, that having been already done (ver. 13). The length of the galleries is specified as a hundred cubits, which shows they extended along the whole side of the building. As for the nature of these "galleries," or אַתִּקִים , nothing can be ascertained from the derivation of the word. The LXX. renders it in this verse by ἀπόλοιπα ("things left over"), in Ezekiel 42:3 and 5 by περίσυλα and στοαί : the Vulgate has here ethecas , the Hebrew Latinized, and in Ezekiel 42 . portions . The ethekim were most likely passages or perches running along both (north and south) sides of the building, and supported either by pillars or ledges in the wall. The inner temple, which was measured, was the "house" which stood between the gizrah and the inner court; the porches of the court were the gate buildings in the inner and outer courts. Of all these the dimensions have already been reported, and are not again rehearsed. Ezekiel 41:15

15 . The “length” here is reckoned from N. to S. which was behind it ] Rather: behind which it was. The building, while lying “over against” the “separate place,” was behind it, i.e. to the W. of it. If this construction be not adopted the meaning is, which (building) was behind it (the separate place)—an independent clause. The length of the building as it lay along the “separate place” N. to S. was 100 cubits, i.e. 90 (interior, Ezekiel 41:12 ) + 5 + 5 (side walls, Ezekiel 41:12 ) = 100, Fig. 3, rs . The term rendered “galleries” is of uncertain meaning. It occurs only Ezekiel 41:15-16 and Ezekiel 42:3 ; Ezekiel 42:5 . If the reading be right here it can mean nothing else but walls, or something equivalent to walls and occupying the same space, according to Ezekiel 41:12 . Syriac uses a term by which it also renders the “walls” of the altar, Ezekiel 41:22 .—The verse should end at the word cubits . 15 b seq . Description of the inside of the house, with its ornamentation The details of measurement were exhausted in Ezekiel 41:15 a . The prophet proceeds now to describe the interior of the house in two particular points: (1) the woodwork with which the house in its walls, &c., was covered, 15 b –16 a ; and (2) the ornamentation of this woodwork, 16 b seq .

The text is in some disorder, and the unknown term rendered “galleries” causes perplexity, though two general statements are plainly made, viz. that the whole interior of the house was covered with wood, and that this woodwork from floor to roof was ornamented in the holy place and in the holiest with cherubs and palms (in the porch perhaps with palms only). With no more changes than are absolutely necessary Ezekiel 41:15 b –16 a might read: “and the temple (i.e. holy place), and the inner house (holiest), and the porch of the court (more probably, and its outer porch), 16 and the thresholds, and the closed windows and the galleries round about the three of them, opposite the threshold (i.e. towards the interior) were veneered with wood (or, were polished wood) round about.” This would state generally that the whole interior was wainscotted. But the jump from “thresholds” (A.V. door-posts) to “closed windows” in Ezekiel 41:16 is unnatural. It is probable that “thresholds” should be read with LXX. cieled (or, wainscotted). It is certainly probable that the roofing is described; the word read by LXX. (saphan) is always used of the roof-work in the description of Solomon’s temple ( 1 Kings 6:7 ., unless Ezekiel 7:7 be an exception, a clause wanting in LXX.); and LXX. understood it so here ( Ezekiel 41:20 ). Further the mention of the closed windows, which must have been toward the roof, in immediate connexion, is in favour of the roof-work. What the “galleries” were is obscure.

The description of certain details is introduced by a summary statement of what had been already done. Galleries - On either side of the eastern front of the building on the separate place was a gallery of ten feet, under which was an approach to the building, by which the refuse was to be carried in by openings in the north and south, and then carried out by a western postern.

The building, possibly that of Ezekiel 41:12,13 , or else the buildings of this court next to the temple, or else the west buildings behind the oracle, or the buildings of the utter court, of which in Ezekiel 42:1,3,7,8 . The separate place: see Ezekiel 41:12 . Which was behind it; the buildings that were behind on the west side of that supposed range, of buildings, or else behind the temple. Galleries; either chambers, or porches, or balconies, places supported by pilasters, made for beauty and delight. With the inner temple; according to the measures of the temple, and its appendant buildings.