Ezekiel 48
Division of the Land
2“Asher’s territory lies south of Dan’s and also extends from east to west. 3Naphtali’s land lies south of Asher’s, also extending from east to west. 4Then comes Manasseh south of Naphtali, and its territory also extends from east to west. 5South of Manasseh is Ephraim, 6and then Reuben, 7and then Judah, all of whose boundaries extend from east to west.
9“The area set aside for the Lord’s Temple will be 8-1/3 miles long and 6-2/3 miles wide. 10For the priests there will be a strip of land measuring 8-1/3 miles long by 3-1/3 miles wide, with the Lord’s Temple at the center. 11This area is set aside for the ordained priests, the descendants of Zadok who served me faithfully and did not go astray with the people of Israel and the rest of the Levites. 12It will be their special portion when the land is distributed, the most sacred land of all. Next to the priests’ territory will lie the land where the other Levites will live.
13“The land allotted to the Levites will be the same size and shape as that belonging to the priests—8-1/3 miles long and 3-1/3 miles wide. Together these portions of land will measure 8-1/3 miles long by 6-2/3 miles wide. 14None of this special land may ever be sold or traded or used by others, for it belongs to the Lord; it is set apart as holy.
15“An additional strip of land 8-1/3 miles long by 1-2/3 miles wide, south of the sacred Temple area, will be allotted for public use—homes, pasturelands, and common lands, with a city at the center. 16The city will measure 1-1/2 miles on each side—north, south, east, and west. 17Open lands will surround the city for 150 yards in every direction. 18Outside the city there will be a farming area that stretches 3-1/3 miles to the east and 3-1/3 miles to the west along the border of the sacred area. This farmland will produce food for the people working in the city. 19Those who come from the various tribes to work in the city may farm it. 20This entire area—including the sacred lands and the city—is a square that measures 8-1/3 miles on each side.
21“The areas that remain, to the east and to the west of the sacred lands and the city, will belong to the prince. Each of these areas will be 8-1/3 miles wide, extending in opposite directions to the eastern and western borders of Israel, with the sacred lands and the sanctuary of the Temple in the center. 22So the prince’s land will include everything between the territories allotted to Judah and Benjamin, except for the areas set aside for the sacred lands and the city.
23“These are the territories allotted to the rest of the tribes. Benjamin’s territory lies just south of the prince’s lands, and it extends across the entire land of Israel from east to west. 24South of Benjamin’s territory lies that of Simeon, also extending across the land from east to west. 25Next is the territory of Issachar with the same eastern and western boundaries.
26“Then comes the territory of Zebulun, which also extends across the land from east to west. 27The territory of Gad is just south of Zebulun with the same borders to the east and west. 28The southern border of Gad runs from Tamar to the waters of Meribah at Kadesh and then follows the Brook of Egypt to the Mediterranean.
The Gates of the City
30“These will be the exits to the city: On the north wall, which is 1-1/2 miles long, 31there will be three gates, each one named after a tribe of Israel. The first will be named for Reuben, the second for Judah, and the third for Levi. 32On the east wall, also 1-1/2 miles long, the gates will be named for Joseph, Benjamin, and Dan. 33The south wall, also 1-1/2 miles long, will have gates named for Simeon, Issachar, and Zebulun. 34And on the west wall, also 1-1/2 miles long, the gates will be named for Gad, Asher, and Naphtali.
Ezekiel 48 (NLT)
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Ezekiel
Chapter 48
48 of 48