Then the man measured the inner courtyard, and it was a square, 175 feet wide and 175 feet across. The altar stood in the courtyard in front of the Temple.
Parallel translations
- WEB He measured the court, one hundred cubits long, and a hundred cubits wide, square; and the altar was before the house.
- KJV So he measured the court, an hundred cubits long, and an hundred cubits broad, foursquare; and the altar that was before the house.
- BSB Next he measured the court. It was square, a hundred cubits long and a hundred cubits wide. And the altar was in front of the temple.
- NKJV And he measured the court, one hundred cubits long and one hundred cubits wide, foursquare. The altar was in front of the temple.
- NASB He measured the courtyard, a perfect square, a hundred cubits long and a hundred cubits wide; and the altar was in front of the temple.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The inner court measured a perfect hundred-cubit square, with the altar standing before the house. The altar's central place shows that sacrifice stands at the heart of approaching God.
Overview
The court is measured as a precise square, a sign of completeness and order, with the altar at its center before the temple. Sacrifice is positioned as the way to God's dwelling. The centrality of the altar foreshadows the cross of Christ, the one altar through which sinners are reconciled to God (Hebrews 13:10).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Ezek 40:19Then he measured the width from the forefront of the lower gate to the forefront of the inner court outside, one hundred cubits, both on the east and on the north.
- Ezek 40:23There was a gate to the inner court facing the other gate, on the north and on the east; and he measured from gate to gate one hundred cubits.
- Ezek 40:27There was a gate to the inner court toward the south: and he measured from gate to gate toward the south a hundred cubits.
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Christ at the center
The promise of one Shepherd-King David, a new heart and new Spirit, and the river of life flowing from the temple all stream toward Christ, the good Shepherd who gives the Spirit.
How Ezekiel 40:47 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.