Ezekiel 41 meticulously details the measurements and architectural features of the visionary temple's inner structure. The prophet is guided through the temple, where the dimensions of the holy place and the most holy place are precisely recorded. Surrounding the main edifice are three stories of side chambers, and the interior is adorned with carvings of cherubims and palm trees, along with a wooden altar.
He brought me to the sanctuary and measured at ten-and-a-half feet the thickness of the walls on either side of its entrance, which was [also] the thickness of [the walls surrounding] the "tent" [that is, the sanctuary together with the Especially Holy Place].
The width of the entrance was seventeen-and-a-half feet. The sides of the entrance were eight-and-three-quarters feet on the one side and the same on the other. He measured its length at seventy feet and its width at thirty-five feet.
Next, he went farther in [to the entranceway leading to the Especially Holy Place] and measured at three-and-a-half feet [the thickness of] each entrance support. He measured at ten-and-a-half feet the total thickness of the walls on either side of the entrance; and he measured at twelve-and-a-quarter feet the width of the entrance.
[Continuing into the inner room,] he said to me, "This is the Especially Holy Place." He measured its length at thirty-five feet and its width at thirty-five feet along the wall nearest the sanctuary.
[On his way out,] he measured the thickness of the wall of the house at ten-and-a-half feet [at ground level], and the width of all the side-rooms surrounding the house, seven feet [at ground level].
There were three floors of side-rooms, thirty on each floor; and the wall around the house was terraced, so that the side-rooms rested on the terraces and were not supported on [the vertical parts of] the wall.
The higher side-rooms surrounding the house were wider than the lower ones, as were the passageways next to the side-rooms on each floor; thus the width of the side-rooms plus that of the passageways increased as one went up from floor to floor. The ascent from the lowest floor to the highest was [by a ramp] through the middle floor.
I saw that the house had a raised pavement all around it which extended outward a full rod of ten-and-a-half feet from where the foundations of the side-rooms joined it.
The outer wall of the side-rooms was eight-and-three-quarters feet thick [at ground level], likewise the empty space left [between] the structure containing the side-rooms [and the house itself also measured eight-and-three quarters feet wide].
The doors of the side-rooms opened toward an empty space, one door facing north and the other facing south; the empty space was eight-and-three-quarters feet [wide] all around.
The building on the west facing the separated yard had a[n interior] width of 1221/2 feet, a[n interior] length of 1571/2 feet and exterior walls eight-and-three-quarters feet thick all the way around.
He measured the length of the house at 175 feet; then a distance that included [the width of] the separated yard, [the interior width of] the building and [the thickness of] its [front and back exterior] walls, at 175 feet.
He measured the length of the building facing the separated yard behind [the house], together with its galleries on both sides, at 175 feet. The sanctuary, the inner place and the vestibules [leading from the house] to the courtyard,
as well as the thresholds, narrow windows and galleries around these three, had wood panelling around them as far as the thresholds and from the ground up to the windows; and the windows were covered.
From the area above the entrance to the interior of the house, as well as outside, and on the entire wall all the way around, both inside and outside, was a pattern
so that there was the face of a man toward the palm tree on its one side and the face of a young lion toward the palm tree on its other side - this was the pattern all the way around the house.
As for the sanctuary, the door-frames were squared, and the appearance of the [Especially] Holy Place was like the appearance [I saw at the K'var River].
The altar was of wood, five-and-a-quarter feet high and three-and-a-half feet long; its length and walls were also of wood. He said to me, "This is the table which is in the presence of ADONAI."
On them, that is, on the doors of the sanctuary, were carved k'ruvim and palm trees like those on the walls; and on the exterior facade of the outside entrance were thick beams of wood.
There were narrow windows flanked by palm trees on both sides of the entrance; the side-rooms of the house and the thick beams also [had palm trees].
Study Notes for Ezekiel 41
Verse 1
The vision now moves inside the Temple (Hekal) proper. The detailed measurements emphasize the reality and precision of God’s plan, though the structure remains purely visionary.
Verse 4
The dimensions of the inner chamber (20 cubits square) match the dimensions of the Most Holy Place (Holy of Holies) in Solomon’s Temple (1 Kings 6:20), signifying continuity in the dwelling place of God.
Verse 5
These side chambers (Hebrew: *tzela'ot*) were rooms built around the exterior of the Temple walls, used by the priests for storage, changing clothes, or lodging (cf. Ezek. 42:13).
Verse 6
The chambers were built into the wall structure by resting on ledges or offsets, ensuring that the inner sacred wall of the Temple proper was not pierced or violated by the support beams.
Verse 8
The use of a 'full reed of six great cubits' (meaning six cubits plus a handbreadth, cf. Ezek. 40:5) stresses the monumental and precise nature of the measurements being recorded.
Verse 12
This describes a large, separate structure to the west, situated in the 'separate place' (*gizarah*). Its purpose is unstated, but it likely served as a utility, storage, or treasury building for the sanctuary complex.
Verse 15
This verse summarizes the overall length of the inner complex, confirming that the entire area from the front of the Temple to the back of the western building measured 100 cubits.
Verse 16
The description shifts from pure dimensions to internal features, noting the narrow windows and the extensive use of wood paneling, characteristic of ancient sacred architecture.
Verse 18
The walls were decorated with alternating cherubim and palm trees. This motif, echoing the decoration of Solomon’s Temple, symbolizes the presence of divine guardians and the paradisiacal purity of God’s dwelling.
Verse 19
The cherubim here are described with two faces (man and lion), a variation on the four-faced cherubim seen in Ezekiel’s initial vision (Ezek. 1:10), showing symbolic flexibility in representing divine beings.
Verse 22
The wooden structure described is identified by the guide as 'the table that is before the LORD,' likely the Table of Showbread (cf. Exod. 25:23), emphasizing communion and covenant sustenance within the inner sanctuary.
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