The Pulpit Commentary — Ezekiel — Volume 2 — Section 397

tradiction to oh. xliv. 28, omit to notice first been included in the holy terumah of ver. l· tho.t Jebovnh required some place on which Nor does this concession follow, as will his sanctuary might be erected, and the appear, from ver. 7. priests some ground on which to build Ver. 2.-0t this district, either 0£ 25,000 houses for themselves: and secondly, tbe.t, X 10,000, or 25,000 X 20,000 reeds, accord- so far as the priests were concerned, tile land ing to the view ta.ken of ver. I, there should was given by the people, not to them, but be mea.sured off for the sa.nctuary fiva to Jehovah, and by him to them (comp. on hundred in length, with live hundred in oh. xliv. 28). The exact site of this terumah, brea.dth. The supplemeat here also, Keil, or "holy portion," is afterwards indicated Kliefoth, Plumptre, and othere consider to (eh. xlviii. 8): meanwhile its dimensions be " reeds," since obvious!!' the whole temple a.re recorded. The length shall be the with its precincts is intended (eh. xiii. 16- length of five e.nd twenty thousand reeds, 20), though Hengstenberg and Schroder and the breadth shall be tan thousand. prefer "cubits," holdiag the sanctu,ny to ,vhether "reeda" or "cubits" should be be the temple buildings enclosed within the supplied after "thousand" has divided ex- outer court wall (eh. xl.). The free space positors. Bottcher, Hitzig, Ewald, Heng- of fifty oubita round a.bout for the suburbs (or, stenberg, aud Smend decide for "cubits," open place,) thereof seems to indicate that principally on the grounds that "en bits" the larger area was that alluded to by the are mentioned in ver. 2; that•• cubits" have prophet. That the term ~:'JI? occurs more been the usual measure hitherto, even (as frequently in the so-ea.lied priest-code (Lev. they contend) in eh. xiii. 16; e.nd that other- xxv. 34; Numb. xxxv. 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 ; Josh. wise the dimensions of this sacred territory xiv. 4; xxi. 2, 3, 8, 11, 13, etc.) and in the must have been colossal, in fact, out of all Chronicles (1 Cbron. v. 16; vi. 35, 37; proportion to the Holy Le.nd, viz. about xiii. 2 ; 2 Chron. xi. 14 : x:xxi. 19) than in 720 square miles (25,000 reeds, or 42½ miles, Ezekiel (see eh. xxvii. 28; xlviii. 15, 17) is x 10,000 reeds, or 17 miles,= 722½ square a fact: but on this fact cannot be founded miles). Hii.vernick, Keil, Kliefoth, Cnrrey, an nrgument for the priority of Ezekiel, and Plumptre favour "reeds," chiefly for since it mther poiats to .J;;zekiel's acquaint- the reasons that in ver. 2 "cubits" a.re ance with such "suburbs" in connection specified, and are therefore to be rego.rd eel with priestly and Levitical oitiC's. as exceptional : that the oustomll.l'y meo.sur- Ver. 3.-And of this measure shalt thou ing instrument throughout has been a reed measure. As nbove expluined, if ]I?, "of," (see eh. xl. 5; xiii. 16): and that the dimen- be taken as equivalent to "from," i.e. de- sions, which Ezekiel designed should be ducted from, then the whole" me11sure" in colossal (comp. oh. xl. 2), correspond exactly ver. 1 must l1ave been 25,000 x 20,000 with the measurements afterwards given reeds ; but ff, as Ewo.ld trtmslates, it m11y in oh. xlviii., if these be in reeds, but not if signify "nfter," "o.ccording to," then the they be in cubits. As to the breadth of this text in ver. 1 will not ro<]uire to be 11ltered terumah from east to west, Hitzig, Keil, (see on ver. 1), and tho present verse will Smend, Schroder, o.nd Plumptre follow the be merely o. reitemtion of the statement in LXX. (~YKocr, x1~u£6e1s) in substituting 20,000 ver. 1 tbnt tho priests' portiou should bo for 10,000, considering that the spa.ea re- 25,000 x 10,000 reeds, prepo.rntory to the ferred to in ver. 3 o.ppenrs os if meo.nt to be additional notification tho.t in it should be taken from o.n already measured larger o.rea, the se.notuary o.nd the most holy pli\ce, or which could only be that of ver. I-the ro.ther, the sanctuary which is most holy portion in ver. 1 being the whole territory (Revised Version). The ex:act position of nssigned to the priests &nd Levites, and that in ver. 3 the ullotment for the priests. the so.nctunry in the priests' portion is nftcr- Kliefoth, however, contends thut no neces- wards stated to have been in the midsi (see sity exists for tamperiag with the text, and eh. xlviii. 8). ocrtninly if vers. 1--1 be regordcd os descrip- Ver. 4.-The holy portion of the land just defined (ver. 3) should be reserved for the tive of the priests' portion only, nnd JI? in the priests the ministers of the sanctuary, i.e. phrase, "of this measure" (nthCT MJt;i~7r;,1), of the inner court, who were privileged to in ver. 3 be rendered "according to "-a draw neo.r to Jehovah in altar minis tmtions so•1so it may have (see Gesenius, sub voce), ( comp. eh. xliv. 15: Exod. xxviii. 43; xu. the supposed difficulty disappeo.re. In this 20; Numb. xvi. 5, 40), ns distinguished onse the demonstrative this in the lo.et clause from the Levites, who were only " ministers will refer to the priests' portion exclusively: of the honso" (vcr. 5), i.e. guo.rdians of the in the former case, to the whole portion of temple nnd nssistnnts in its outer court the priests and Levites. Tho.t eh. xl viii. H services. As suoh this holy portion should deolo.res the Levites' portion to be "holy serve the twofold purpose of provitling for 'llllto the Lord" does not prove it ml18t have tho priests a plaoe for their holll8a in which 412 THE BOOK OF TltE PROPHET EZEKIEL. [oH, XLV. 1-2a.