The Daily Audio Bible
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The Inside Open Space
28 Then he brought me to the inner open space by the south gate, and showed me that this gate had the same width as the others. 29 Its watchmen’s rooms, side pillars and porches were also the same as the others and had windows all around. It was as long as fifty cubits and as wide as twenty-five cubits. 30 (There were porches all around, as long as twenty-five cubits and five cubits wide) 31 and its porches were toward the outer open space. Pictures of palm trees were on its side pillars, and leading up to it were eight steps.
32 Then he brought me to the inner open space toward the east. He showed me that it was as wide as the others. 33 Its watchmen’s rooms, side pillars and porches were also the same as the others and, there were windows all around which were as long as fifty cubits and as wide as twenty-five cubits. 34 Its gateway was toward the outer open space. Pictures of palm trees were on its side pillars, on each side. And going up to it were eight steps.
35 Then he brought me to the north gate, and showed me that it was the same width as the others. 36 Its watchmen’s rooms, side pillars and porches were also the same as the others. There were windows all around and it was as long as fifty cubits and as wide as twenty-five cubits. 37 Its side pillars were toward the outer open space. Pictures of palm trees were on its side pillars, on each side. And going up to it were eight steps.
Where the Burnt Gifts Were Made Ready
38 There was a room with its door by the side pillars, where the burnt gifts were washed. 39 And there were two tables on each side of the porch. On these tables the animals were killed for the burnt gifts, the sin gifts, and the guilt gifts. 40 On the outer side of the gateway, by the north gate, were two tables. And there were two tables on the other side of the gate. 41 So there were four tables on each side of the gateway, eight tables in all, where they killed the animals for the altar. 42 There were four tables for the burnt gifts. They were made of cut stone, and were one-and-a-half cubits long, one-and-a-half cubits wide, and one cubit high. The objects used for killing the animals for the burnt gifts were kept on these stone tables. 43 Hooks as long as a man’s hand hung on the wall all around. The tables were for the meat of the burnt gifts.
44 Then he brought me from the outside into the inner open space and there were two rooms for the singers. One was at the side of the north gate which faced the south, and the other was at the side of the south gate which faced the north. 45 And he said to me, “This room which faces the south is for the religious leaders who take care of the Lord’s house. 46 The room which faces the north is for the religious leaders who take care of the altar. These are the sons of Zadok, who are the only Levites who may come near the Lord to do His work.”
The Inside Open Space and the House of God
47 He showed me that the inner open space was as long as 100 cubits and as wide as 100 cubits, the same on all four sides. And the altar was in front of the Lord’s house.
48 Then he brought me to the porch of the Lord’s house. He showed me that each side pillar of the porch was five cubits wide. And each side of the gate was three cubits wide. 49 The porch was as long as twenty cubits, and six steps wide. Ten steps led up to it, and there was one pillar on each side.
41 Then he brought me into the center room, and showed me the width of the side pillars. They were six cubits wide on each side. 2 The doorway was ten cubits wide, and the side walls on each side of it were five cubits wide. The center room was as long as forty cubits and as wide as twenty cubits. 3 Then he went into a smaller room. Each side pillar of the doorway was two cubits wide, and the doorway was six cubits high and seven cubits wide. 4 The room was as long as twenty cubits and as wide as twenty cubits, at the far end of the center room. He said to me, “This is the most holy place.”
5 Then he showed me that the wall of the Lord’s house was six cubits in width. And the side rooms all around the house on every side were four cubits wide. 6 The side rooms were on three floors, one above the other, and thirty on each floor. The outside wall on each floor was not as wide as the one below it, so the side rooms could sit upon the wall without being nailed to it. 7 The side rooms at the top were larger than the ones at the bottom, all around the Lord’s house. The house became wider as it went higher. There were steps leading up from the first floor all the way to the third floor. 8 I saw that the house had a raised base all around it, which made the base for the side rooms six cubits high. 9 The width of the outside wall of the side rooms was five cubits. But the open space between the side rooms 10 and the center rooms was as wide as twenty cubits all around the house on every side. 11 There were doorways to the side rooms from this open space, one on the north and another on the south. The width of this open space was five cubits wide all around.
12 The building in front of the open space of the Lord’s house, on the west side, was as wide as seventy cubits. The width of the building wall was five cubits, and it was as long as ninety cubits.
13 Then he showed me that the Lord’s house was as long as 100 cubits. The open space and the other building and its walls were also as long as 100 cubits. 14 And the front of the Lord’s house and its grounds on the east side were as wide as 100 cubits.
15 He showed me the length of the building to the west, with its walkways on each side. It was as long as 100 cubits.
The center room, the most holy place, and the outer porch, 16 all had roofs of wood. And all three had windows with wooden cross-pieces all around. The inside walls of the house were covered with wood from the floor up to the windows, and from the windows to the roof. 17 There was wood covering the wall above the door, and all the way to the most holy place, and all the walls both inside and out. 18 Pictures of cherubim and palm trees were cut into the wood. A palm tree was between every two cherubim, and each cherub had two faces. 19 The face of a man looked toward the palm tree on one side, and the face of a young lion looked toward the palm tree on the other side. These pictures were cut into the wood all around the Lord’s house. 20 There were cherubim and palm trees from the floor to above the door, and on the wall of the center room.
21 The pillars beside the door of the center room were the same width on all four sides, and they looked alike. 22 There was an altar of wood three cubits high and two cubits long. Its corners, base, and sides were made of wood. And he said to me, “This is the table that is before the Lord.” 23 The center room and the most holy place each had two doors. 24 And each of these doors had two parts that opened and closed. 25 Pictures of cherubim and palm trees were made on the doors of the center room, like the pictures on the walls. And there was a roof of wood over the front of the porch outside. 26 There were windows with wooden cross-pieces and palm trees cut on each side wall of the house porch. It was the same on the side rooms of the house and their roofs.
4 What starts wars and fights among you? Is it not because you want many things and are fighting to have them? 2 You want something you do not have, so you kill. You want something but cannot get it, so you fight for it. You do not get things because you do not ask for them. 3 Or if you do ask, you do not receive because your reasons for asking are wrong. You want these things only to please yourselves.
4 You are as wives and husbands who are not faithful in marriage and do sex sins. Do you not know that to love the sinful things of the world and to be a friend to them is to be against God? Yes, I say it again, if you are a friend of the world, you are against God. 5 Do you think the Holy Writings mean nothing when they said, “The Holy Spirit Whom God has given to live in us has a strong desire for us to be faithful to Him”?
6 But He gives us more loving-favor. For the Holy Writings say, “God works against the proud but gives loving-favor to those who have no pride.” (A) 7 So give yourselves to God. Stand against the devil and he will run away from you. 8 Come close to God and He will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners. Clean up your hearts, you who want to follow the sinful ways of the world and God at the same time. 9 Be sorry for your sins and cry because of them. Be sad and do not laugh. Let your joy be turned to sorrow. 10 Let yourself be brought low before the Lord. Then He will lift you up and help you.
Do Not Talk Against Each Other
11 Christian brothers, do not talk against anyone or speak bad things about each other. If a person says bad things about his brother, he is speaking against him. And he will be speaking against God’s Law. If you say the Law is wrong, and do not obey it, you are saying you are better than the Law. 12 Only God can say what is right or wrong. He made the Law. He can save or put to death. How can we say if our brother is right or wrong?
13 Listen! You who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this city and stay a year and make money.” 14 You do not know about tomorrow. What is your life? It is like fog. You see it and soon it is gone. 15 What you should say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.” 16 But instead you are proud. You talk loud and big about yourselves. All such pride is sin. 17 If you know what is right to do but you do not do it, you sin.
19 Open to me the gates of what is right and good. I will go through them and give thanks to the Lord. 20 This is the gate of the Lord. Those who are right with God will pass through it. 21 I will give thanks to You, for You have answered me. And You are the One Who saves me.
22 The stone that was put aside by the workmen has become the most important stone in the building. 23 The Lord has done this. We think it is great! 24 This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us be full of joy and be glad in it. 25 O Lord, we beg You to save us! O Lord, we ask that You let everything go well for us! 26 Great and honored is he who comes in the name of the Lord. We honor you from the house of the Lord. 27 The Lord is God. He has given us light. Tie the gift with rope to the horns of the altar on this special day. 28 You are my God and I will give You thanks. You are my God and I will praise You. 29 Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His loving-kindness lasts forever.
3 A poor man who makes it hard for the poor is like a heavy rain which leaves no food.
4 Those who turn away from the law praise the sinful, but those who keep the law fight against them.
5 Sinful men do not understand what is right and fair, but those who look to the Lord understand all things.
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