4. And the glory of the lord came into the Temple through the east gateway.
5. Then the Spirit took me up and brought me into the inner courtyard, and the glory of the lord filled the Temple.
6. And I heard someone speaking to me from within the Temple, while the man who had been measuring stood beside me.
7. The lord said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of my throne and the place where I will rest my feet. I will live here forever among the people of Israel. They and their kings will not defile my holy name any longer by their adulterous worship of other gods or by honoring the relics of their kings who have died.
8. They put their idol altars right next to mine with only a wall between them and me. They defiled my holy name by such detestable sin, so I consumed them in my anger.
9. Now let them stop worshiping other gods and honoring the relics of their kings, and I will live among them forever.
10. “Son of man, describe to the people of Israel the Temple I have shown you, so they will be ashamed of all their sins. Let them study its plan,
11. and they will be ashamed of what they have done. Describe to them all the specifications of the Temple—including its entrances and exits—and everything else about it. Tell them about its decrees and laws. Write down all these specifications and decrees as they watch so they will be sure to remember and follow them.
12. And this is the basic law of the Temple: absolute holiness! The entire top of the mountain where the Temple is built is holy. Yes, this is the basic law of the Temple.
13. “These are the measurements of the altar: There is a gutter all around the altar 21 inches deep and 21 inches wide, with a curb 9 inches wide around its edge. And this is the height of the altar:
14. From the gutter the altar rises 31/2 feet to a lower ledge that surrounds the altar and is 21 inches wide. From the lower ledge the altar rises 7 feet to the upper ledge that is also 21 inches wide.
15. The top of the altar, the hearth, rises another 7 feet higher, with a horn rising up from each of the four corners.
16. The top of the altar is square, measuring 21 feet by 21 feet.
17. The upper ledge also forms a square, measuring 241/2 feet by 241/2 feet, with a 21-inch gutter and a 101/2-inch curb all around the edge. There are steps going up the east side of the altar.”
18. Then he said to me, “Son of man, this is what the Sovereign lord says: These will be the regulations for the burning of offerings and the sprinkling of blood when the altar is built.
19. At that time, the Levitical priests of the family of Zadok, who minister before me, are to be given a young bull for a sin offering, says the Sovereign lord.