Day 333 of 730

¹Then he brought me back by the way of the outer gate of the sanctuary, which looks toward the east; and it was shut.

²The Lord said to me, "This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, neither shall any man enter in by it; for the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered in by it; therefore it shall be shut.

³As for the prince, he shall sit therein as prince to eat bread before the Lord; he shall enter by the way of the porch of the gate, and shall go out by the way of the same."

⁴Then he brought me by the way of the north gate before the house; and I looked, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord: and I fell on my face.

⁵The Lord said to me, "Son of man, mark well, and see with your eyes, and hear with your ears all that I tell you concerning all the ordinances of the house of the Lord, and all its laws; and mark well the entrance of the house, with every exit of the sanctuary.

⁶You shall tell the rebellious, even to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the Lord God: you house of Israel, let it suffice you of all your abominations,

⁷in that you have brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to profane it, even my house, when you offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken my covenant, to add to all your abominations.

⁸You have not performed the duty of my holy things; but you have set performers of my duty in my sanctuary for yourselves.'

⁹"Thus says the Lord God, 'No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into my sanctuary, of any foreigners who are among the children of Israel.

¹⁰But the Levites who went far from me, when Israel went astray, who went astray from me after their idols, they shall bear their iniquity.

¹¹Yet they shall be ministers in my sanctuary, having oversight at the gates of the house, and ministering in the house: they shall kill the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister to them.

¹²Because they ministered to them before their idols, and became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel; therefore have I lifted up my hand against them, says the Lord God, and they shall bear their iniquity.

¹³They shall not come near to me, to execute the office of priest to me, nor to come near to any of my holy things, to the things that are most holy; but they shall bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed.

¹⁴Yet will I make them performers of the duty of the house, for all its service, and for all that shall be done therein.

¹⁵"'But the Levitical priests, the sons of Zadok, who performed the duty of my sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from me, they shall come near to me to minister to me; and they shall stand before me to offer to me the fat and the blood, says the Lord God:

¹⁶they shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to minister to me, and they shall keep my instruction.

¹⁷"'It shall be that, when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come on them, while they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.

¹⁸They shall have linen turbans on their heads, and shall have linen breeches on their waists; they shall not clothe themselves with anything that causes sweat.

¹⁹When they go forth into the outer court, even into the outer court to the people, they shall put off their garments in which they minister, and lay them in the holy rooms; and they shall put on other garments, that they not sanctify the people with their garments.

²⁰"'Neither shall they shave their heads, nor allow their locks to grow long; they shall only cut off the hair of their heads.

²¹Neither shall any of the priests drink wine, when they enter into the inner court.

²²Neither shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her who is put away; but they shall take virgins of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow who is the widow of a priest.

²³They shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.

²⁴"'In a controversy they shall stand to judge; according to my ordinances shall they judge it: and they shall keep my laws and my statutes in all my appointed feasts; and they shall make my Sabbaths holy.

²⁵"'They shall go in to no dead person to defile themselves; but for father, or for mother, or for son, or for daughter, for brother, or for sister who has had no husband, they may defile themselves.

²⁶After he is cleansed, they shall reckon to him seven days.

²⁷In the day that he goes into the sanctuary, into the inner court, to minister in the sanctuary, he shall offer his sin offering, says the Lord God.

²⁸"'They shall have an inheritance: I am their inheritance; and you shall give them no possession in Israel; I am their possession.

²⁹They shall eat the meal offering, and the sin offering, and the trespass offering; and every devoted thing in Israel shall be theirs.

³⁰The first of all the first fruits of every thing, and every offering of everything, of all your offerings, shall be for the priest: you shall also give to the priests the first of your dough, to cause a blessing to rest on your house.

³¹The priests shall not eat of anything that dies of itself, or is torn, whether it be bird or animal.

¹"'Moreover, when you shall divide by lot the land for inheritance, you shall offer an offering to the Lord, a holy portion of the land; the length shall be the length of twenty-five thousand reeds, and the breadth shall be ten thousand: it shall be holy in all its border all around.

²Of this there shall be for the holy place five hundred in length by five hundred in breadth, square all around; and fifty cubits for its suburbs all around.

³Of this measure you shall measure a length of twenty-five thousand, and a breadth of ten thousand: and in it shall be the sanctuary, which is most holy.

⁴It is a holy portion of the land; it shall be for the priests, the ministers of the sanctuary, who come near to minister to the Lord; and it shall be a place for their houses, and a holy place for the sanctuary.

⁵Twenty-five thousand in length, and ten thousand in breadth, shall be to the Levites, the ministers of the house, for a possession to themselves, for twenty rooms.

⁶"'You shall appoint the possession of the city five thousand broad, and twenty-five thousand long, side by side with the offering of the holy portion: it shall be for the whole house of Israel.

⁷"'Whatever is for the prince shall be on the one side and on the other side of the holy offering and of the possession of the city, in front of the holy offering and in front of the possession of the city, on the west side westward, and on the east side eastward; and in length answerable to one of the portions, from the west border to the east border.

⁸In the land it shall be to him for a possession in Israel: and my princes shall no more oppress my people; but they shall give the land to the house of Israel according to their tribes.'

⁹"Thus says the Lord God: 'Let it suffice you, princes of Israel: remove violence and spoil, and execute justice and righteousness; dispossessing my people, says the Lord God.

¹⁰You shall have just balances, and a just ephah, and a just bath.

¹¹The ephah and the bath shall be of one measure, that the bath may contain the tenth part of a homer, and the ephah the tenth part of a homer: its measure shall be after the homer.

¹²The shekel shall be twenty gerahs. Twenty shekels plus twenty-five shekels plus fifteen shekels shall be your mina.

¹³"'This is the offering that you shall offer: the sixth part of an ephah from a homer of wheat; and you shall give the sixth part of an ephah from a homer of barley;

¹⁴and the set portion of oil, of the bath of oil, the tenth part of a bath out of the cor, which is ten baths, even a homer; (for ten baths are a homer;)

¹⁵and one lamb of the flock, out of two hundred, from the well-watered pastures of Israel-for a meal offering, and for a burnt offering, and for peace offerings, to make atonement for them, says the Lord God.

¹⁶All the people of the land shall give to this offering for the prince in Israel.

¹⁷It shall be the prince's part to give the burnt offerings, and the meal offerings, and the drink offerings, in the feasts, and on the new moons, and on the Sabbaths, in all the appointed feasts of the house of Israel: he shall prepare the sin offering, and the meal offering, and the burnt offering, and the peace offerings, to make atonement for the house of Israel.

¹⁸"'Thus says the Lord God: In the first month, in the first day of the month, you shall take a young bull without blemish; and you shall cleanse the sanctuary.

¹⁹The priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering, and put it on the door posts of the house, and on the four corners of the ledge of the altar, and on the posts of the gate of the inner court.

²⁰So you shall do on the seventh day of the month for everyone who errs, and for him who is simple: so you shall make atonement for the house.

²¹"'In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, you shall have the Passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten.

²²On that day shall the prince prepare for himself and for all the people of the land a bull for a sin offering.

²³The seven days of the feast he shall prepare a burnt offering to the Lord, seven bulls and seven rams without blemish daily the seven days; and a male goat daily for a sin offering.

²⁴He shall prepare a meal offering, an ephah for a bull, and an ephah for a ram, and a hin of oil to an ephah.

²⁵In the seventh month, in the fifteenth day of the month, in the feast, shall he do the like the seven days; according to the sin offering, according to the burnt offering, and according to the meal offering, and according to the oil.'

¹Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous! Praise is fitting for the upright.

²Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre. Sing praises to him with the harp of ten strings.

³Sing to him a new song. Play skillfully with a shout of joy!

⁴For the word of the Lord is right. All his work is done in faithfulness.

⁵He loves righteousness and justice. The earth is full of the loving kindness of the Lord.

⁶By the Lord's word, the heavens were made; all their army by the breath of his mouth.

⁷He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap. He lays up the deeps in storehouses.

⁸Let all the earth fear the Lord. Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.

⁹For he spoke, and it was done. He commanded, and it stood firm.

¹⁰The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing. He makes the thoughts of the peoples to be of no effect.

¹¹The counsel of the Lord stands fast forever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.

¹²Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen for his own inheritance.

¹³The Lord looks from heaven. He sees all the sons of men.

¹⁴From the place of his habitation he looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth,

¹⁵he who fashions all of their hearts; and he considers all of their works.

¹⁶There is no king saved by the multitude of an army. A mighty man is not delivered by great strength.

¹⁷A horse is a vain thing for safety, neither does he deliver any by his great power.

¹⁸Behold, the Lord's eye is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his loving kindness;

¹⁹to deliver their soul from death, to keep them alive in famine.

²⁰Our soul has waited for the Lord. He is our help and our shield.

²¹For our heart rejoices in him, because we have trusted in his holy name.

²²Let your loving kindness be on us, Lord, since we have hoped in you.

¹When you sit to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before you;

²put a knife to your throat, if you are a man given to appetite.

³Do not be desirous of his dainties, seeing they are deceitful food.

⁴Do not weary yourself to be rich. In your wisdom, show restraint.

⁵Why do you set your eyes on that which is not? For it certainly sprouts wings like an eagle and flies in the sky.

⁶Do not eat the food of him who has a stingy eye, and do not crave his delicacies:

⁷for as he thinks about the cost, so he is. "Eat and drink!" he says to you, but his heart is not with you.

⁸The morsel which you have eaten you shall vomit up, and lose your good words.

⁹Do not speak in the ears of a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words.

¹⁰Do not move the ancient boundary stone. Do not encroach on the fields of the fatherless:

¹¹for their Defender is strong. He will plead their case against you.

¹²Apply your heart to instruction, and your ears to the words of knowledge.

¹³Do not withhold correction from a child. If you punish him with the rod, he will not die.

¹⁴Punish him with the rod, and save his soul from Sheol.

¹⁵My son, if your heart is wise, then my heart will be glad, even mine:

¹⁶yes, my heart will rejoice, when your lips speak what is right.

¹⁷Do not let your heart envy sinners; but rather fear the Lord all the day long.

¹⁸Indeed surely there is a future hope, and your hope will not be cut off.

¹⁹Listen, my son, and be wise, and keep your heart on the right path!

²⁰Do not be among ones drinking too much wine, or those who gorge themselves on meat:

²¹for the drunkard and the glutton shall become poor; and drowsiness clothes them in rags.

²²Listen to your father who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old.

²³Buy the truth, and do not sell it. Get wisdom, discipline, and understanding.

²⁴The father of the righteous has great joy. Whoever fathers a wise child delights in him.

²⁵Let your father and your mother be glad! Let her who bore you rejoice!

²⁶My son, give me your heart; and let your eyes keep in my ways.

²⁷For a prostitute is a deep pit; and a wayward wife is a narrow well.

²⁸Yes, she lies in wait like a robber, and increases the unfaithful among men.

²⁹Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?

³⁰Those who stay long at the wine; those who go to seek out mixed wine.

³¹Do not look at the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly.

³²In the end, it bites like a snake, and poisons like a viper.

³³Your eyes will see strange things, and your mind will imagine confusing things.

³⁴Yes, you will be as he who lies down in the midst of the sea, or as he who lies on top of the rigging:

³⁵"They hit me, and I was not hurt! They beat me, and I do not feel it! When will I wake up? I can do it again. I can find another."