The glory of God returns to the new temple. The Israelites shall no more profane God’s name by idolatry: the prophet is commanded to shew them the dimensions, and form of the temple, and of the altar, with the sacrifices to be offered thereon.
The glorie of God returneth to the new temple, 7. The prophet heareth, that the Israelites wil no more pollute Gods name with idolatrie: 10. is commanded to shew them the measure, and forme of the temple, 13. and of the altar: 18. with sacrifices to be offered seuen dayes.
1And he brought me to the gate that looked towards the east.Mi condusse alla porta, che guardava l'oriente.AND he brought me to the gate that looked to the way of the East.Et duxit me ad portam quæ respiciebat ad viam orientalem. 2And behold the glory of the God of Israel came in by the way of the east: and his voice was like the noise of many waters, and the earth shone with his majesty.Ed ecco la gloria del Dio d'Israele entrava dalla parte d'oriente, e il romore, che veniva da essa, era come romore di gran massa d'acque, e della maestà di lei risplendeva la terra,And behold the glorie of the God of Israel went by the East gate: and he had a voice as the voice of manie waters, & the earth shined at his maiestie.Et ecce gloria Dei Israël ingrediebatur per viam orientalem: et vox erat ei quasi vox aquarum multarum, et terra splendebat a majestate ejus. 3And I saw the vision according to the appearance which I had seen when he came to destroy the city: and the appearance was according to the vision which I had seen by the river Chobar: and I fell upon my face.E vidi una visione simile a quella, che io avea veduta, quando egli venne per rovinar la città, ed egli era quale io avea veduto presso il fiume Chobar: e io caddi boccone.And I saw a vision according to the forme which I had seene, when he came to destroy the citie: and the shape according to the sight, which I had seene by the riuer Chobar: and I fel vpon my face.Et vidi visionem secundum speciem quam videram quando venit ut disperderet civitatem, et species secundum aspectum quem videram juxta fluvium Chobar: et cecidi super faciem meam. 4And the majesty of the Lord went into the temple by the way of the gate that looked to the east.E la maestà del Signore entrò nel tempio per la porta, che guardava l'oriente.And the maiestie of our Lord went into the temple by the way of the gate that looked to the East.Et majestas Domini ingressa est templum per viam portæ quæ respiciebat ad orientem. 5And the spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court: and behold the house was filled with the glory of the Lord.E lo spirito levommi in alto, e mi condusse nell'atrio interiore; e vidi la casa ripiena della gloria del Signore.And the spirite lifted me vp, and brought me into the inner court: and behold the house was filled with the glorie of our Lord.Et elevavit me spiritus, et introduxit me in atrium interius: et ecce repleta erat gloria Domini domus. 6And I heard one speaking to me out of the house, and the man that stood by me,E lo udii parlare a me della casa, e l'uomo, che stavami accanto,And I heard one speaking to me out of the house, & a man stood by me,Et audivi loquentem ad me de domo: et vir qui stabat juxta me 7Said to me: Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever: and the house of Israel shall no more profane my holy name, they and their kings by their fornications, and by the carcasses of their kings, and by the high places.Mi disse: Figliuolo dell'uomo, ecco il luogo del mio trono, e il luogo ove posano i miei piedi, e dov'io fo dimora in mezzo a' figliuoli d'Israele in eterno. La casa d'Israele non profanerà più il nome mio santo né ella, né i suoi regi colle loro fornicazioni, e co' cadaveri de' loro regi, e co' luoghi loro eccelsi.said to me: Sonne of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the steppes of my feete, where I dwel in the middes of the children of Israel for euer: and the house of Israel shal no more pollute my holie name, they, and their kinges in their fornications, and in the ruines of their kinges, and in the excelses.dixit ad me: Fili hominis, locus solii mei, et locus vestigiorum pedum meorum, ubi habito in medio filiorum Israël in æternum: et non polluent ultra domus Israël nomen sanctum meum, ipsi et reges eorum, in fornicationibus suis, et in ruinis regum suorum, et in excelsis.
8They who have set their threshold by my threshold, and their posts by my posts: and there was but a wall between me, and them: and they profaned my holy name by the abominations which they committed: for which reason I consumed them in my wrath.Eglino hanno edificato la loro porta presso alla mia porta, e la loro facciata vicino alla mia facciata: e sol un muro era tra me, ed essi, e profanarono il mio nome colle abbominazioni, che commisero: per la qual cosa nell'ira mia gli sterminai.Who haue built their threshold by my threshold, and their posts by my posts: and there was a wal betwen me and them: and they polluted my holie name in the abominations, which they did: for the which thing I consumed them in my wrath.Qui fabricati sunt limen suum juxta limen meum, et postes suos juxta postes meos, et murus erat inter me et eos: et polluerunt nomen sanctum meum in abominationibus quas fecerunt: propter quod consumpsi eos in ira mea. 9Now therefore let them put away their fornications, and the carcasses of their kings far from me: and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever.Ora adunque tengan lungi da me la loro fornicazione, e i cadaveri dei loro re: ed io farò mia dimora in mezzo ad essi per sempre.Now therfore let them repel their fornication, and ruins of their kinges far from me: and I wil dwel in the middes of them alwayes.Nunc ergo repellant procul fornicationem suam et ruinas regum suorum a me, et habitabo in medio eorum semper. 10But thou, son of man, shew to the house of Israel the temple, and let them be ashamed of their iniquities, and let them measure the building:Ma tu, figliuolo dell'uomo, mostra alla casa d'Israele il tempio, e si confondano delle loro iniquità, e misurino la fabbrica,But thou sonne of man, shew to the house of Israel the temple, and let them be confounded at their iniquities, and let them measure the frame:Tu autem, fili hominis, ostende domui Israël templum, et confundantur ab iniquitatibus suis, et metiantur fabricam, 11And be ashamed of all that they have done. Shew them the form of the house, and of the fashion thereof, the goings out and the comings in, and the whole plan thereof, and all its ordinances, and all its order, and all its laws, and thou shalt write it in their sight: that they may keep the whole form thereof, and its ordinances, and do them.E si vergognino di tutto quel, che han fatto: (mostra loro) la figura della casa, le uscite, e gl'ingressi, e tutto il suo disegno, e tutte le sue cerimonie, e l'ordine da osservarsi in essa, e tutte le leggi fatte per essa, falle loro vedere, e scrivile sotto de' loro occhi, affinchè osservino tutto il disegno dato di essa, e le cerimonie di essa, e le mettano in esecuzione.and be ashamed of al thinges that they haue done. The figure of the house, and of the frame therof, the goings out, & the comings in, and al the description therof, and al the precepts therof, and al the order therof, and al the lawes therof shew to them, and thou shalt write in their eyes: that they may keepe al the descriptions therof, and the preceptes therof, and let them doe them.et erubescant ex omnibus quæ fecerunt. Figuram domus, et fabricæ ejus, exitus et introitus, et omnem descriptionem ejus, et universa præcepta ejus, cunctumque ordinem ejus, et omnes leges ejus ostende eis, et scribes in oculis eorum, ut custodiant omnes descriptiones ejus, et præcepta illius, et faciant ea.
12This is the law of the house upon the top of the mountain: All its border round about is most holy: this then is the law of the house.Questa è la legge riguardo alla casa (che sarà) sulla cima del monte. Tutto intiero il suo recinto è sacro santo. Tale è adunque la legge riguardo a questa casa. ,This is the law of the house in the toppe of the mount: Al the border therof round about is holie of holies: this then is the law of the house.Ista est lex domus in summitate montis: omnis finis ejus in circuitu, Sanctum sanctorum est. Hæc est ergo lex domus. 13And these are the measures of the altar by the truest cubit, which is a cubit and a handbreadth: the bottom thereof was a cubit, and the breadth a cubit: and the border thereof unto its edge, and round about, one handbreadth: and this was the trench of the altar.Dell'altare poi tali son le misure a' cubiti perfetti, che aveano un cubito, ed un palmo. Il seno di lui avea un cubito, ed era largo un cubito, e la corona dello stesso seno, che si alzava sul suo margine tutt'all'intorno, era un palmo. Tale adunque era la fossa dell'altare.And these are the measures of the altar by the most true cubite, which had a cubite and a palme: in the bosome therof was a cubit, & a cubite in bredth: and the limite therof euen to the brimme therof, and round about, one palme this also was the trench of the altar.Istæ autem mensuræ altaris in cubito verissimo, qui habebat cubitum et palmum: in sinu ejus erat cubitus, et cubitus in latitudine: et definitio ejus usque ad labium ejus, et in circuitu palmus unus: hæc quoque erat fossa altaris. 14And from the bottom of the ground to the lowest brim two cubits, and the breadth of one cubit: and from the lesser brim to the greater brim four cubits, and the breadth of one cubit.E dal seno, che era in terra fino alla base ultima due cubiti, ed un cubito di larghezza: e dalla base minore fino alla maggiore, quattro cubiti, ed un cubito di larghezza.And from the bosome of the ground to the lowest brimme two cubits, and the bredth of one cubite: & from the lesser brimme vnto the greater brimme foure cubits, and the bredth of one cubite.Et de sinu terræ usque ad crepidinem novissimam duo cubiti, et latitudo cubiti unius: et a crepidine minore usque ad crepidinem majorem quatuor cubiti, et latitudo cubiti unius. 15And the Ariel itself was four cubits: and from the Ariel upward were four horns.E lo stesso Ariel era (alto) quattro cubiti; e da Ariel si alzavano in su quattro corna.And Ariel it self of foure cubits: and from Ariel vpward foure hornes.Ipse autem ariel quatuor cubitorum, et ab ariel usque ad sursum cornua quatuor.
16And the Ariel was twelve cubits long, and twelve cubits broad, foursquare, with equal sides.E Ariel avea dodici cubiti di lunghezza, e dodici cubiti di larghezza: un quadrangolo di lati eguali.And Ariel of twelue cubits in length by twelue cubits of bredth, four square with equal sides.Et ariel duodecim cubitorum in longitudine per duodecim cubitos latitudinis, quadrangulatum æquis lateribus. 17And the brim was fourteen cubits long, and fourteen cubits broad in the four corners thereof: and the crown round about it was half a cubit, and the bottom of it one cubit round about: and its steps turned toward the east.E la base avea di lunghezza quattordici cubiti, e quattordici di larghezza a' quattro suoi angoli: e intorno ad esso una sponda, che giravagli intorno, di un mezzo cubito; e il suo seno è di mezzo cubito all'intorno: e i suoi gradini eran volti a oriente.And the brimme of fourtene cubits of length by fourtene cubits of bredth in the foure corners therof: and the crowne round about it of halfe a cubite, and the bosome therof of one cubite round about: and the steppes therof turned to the East.Et crepido quatuordecim cubitorum longitudinis per quatuordecim cubitos latitudinis in quatuor angulis ejus: et corona in circuitu ejus dimidii cubiti, et sinus ejus unius cubiti per circuitum: gradus autem ejus versi ad orientem. 18And he said to me: Son of man, thus saith the Lord God: These are the ceremonies of the altar, in what day soever it shall be made: that holocausts may be offered upon it, and blood poured out.E quegli mi disse: Figliuolo dell'uomo, queste cose dice il Signore Dio: Queste sono le cerimonie riguardanti l'altare, allora quando sarà edificato, affinchè sopra di esse offeriscasi olocausto, e spargasi il sangue.And he said to me: Sonne of man, thus saith our Lord God: These are the rites of the altar, in what day soeuer it shal be made: that holocaust may be offered vpon it, and bloud powred out.Et dixit ad me: Fili hominis, hæc dicit Dominus Deus: Hi sunt ritus altaris, in quacumque die fuerit fabricatum, ut offeratur super illud holocaustum, et effundatur sanguis. 19And thou shalt give to the priests, and the Levites, that are of the race of Sadoc, who approach to me, saith the Lord God, to offer to me a calf of the herd for sin.E tu le insegnerai ai sacerdoti, e ai Leviti, che sono della stirpe di Sadoc, e si accostano a me, dice il Signore Dio, per offerirmi un vitello di mandra per il peccato.And thou shalt geue to the Priestes, and Leuites, that are of the seede of Sadoc, that approch to me, saith our Lord God, that they offer to me a calfe of the heard for sinne.Et dabis sacerdotibus et Levitis qui sunt de semine Sadoc, qui accedunt ad me, ait Dominus Deus, ut offerant mihi vitulum de armento pro peccato.
20And thou shalt take of his blood, and shalt put it upon the four horns thereof, and upon the four corners of the brim, and upon the crown round about: and thou shalt cleanse, and expiate it.Tu prenderai del sangue di esso, e ne getterai sulle quattro corna dell'altare, e sopra i quattro angoli della base, e sopra la sponda all'intorno, e purificherai, ed espierai l'altare.And taking of his bloud, thou shalt put it vpon the foure hornes therof, and vpon the foure corners of the brimme, and vpon the crowne round about: and thou shalt clense, and expiate it.Et assumens de sanguine ejus, pones super quatuor cornua ejus, et super quatuor angulos crepidinis, et super coronam in circuitu: et mundabis illud et expiabis. 21And thou shalt take the calf, that is offered for sin: and thou shalt burn him in a separate place of the house without the sanctuary.E prenderai quel vitello offerto per lo peccato, e lo brucerai in un luogo appartato della casa fuori del santuario.And thou shalt take the calfe, that is offered for sinne: and thou shalt burne him in a seperate place of the house without the sanctuarie.Et tolles vitulum qui oblatus fuerit pro peccato, et combures eum in separato loco domus, extra sanctuarium. 22And in the second day thou shalt offer a he goat without blemish for sin: and they shall expiate the altar, as they expiated it with the calf.E il secondo giorno offerirai un capro senza macchia per il peccato, e si espierà l'altare, come si espiò col vitello.And in the second day thou shalt offer a bucke of goates vnspotted for sinne: and they shal expiate the altar, as they did expiate in the calfe.Et in die secunda offeres hircum caprarum immaculatum pro peccato: et expiabunt altare sicut expiaverunt in vitulo. 23And when thou shalt have made an end of the expiation thereof, thou shalt offer a calf of the herd without blemish, and a ram of the flock without blemish.E quando avrai finita l'espiazione di esso, offerirai un vitello di mandra senza macchia, e un ariete del gregge senza macchia.And when thou shalt haue accomplished expiating it, thou shalt offer a calfe of the heard vnspotted, and a ramme of the flocke vnspotted.Cumque compleveris expians illud, offeres vitulum de armento immaculatum, et arietem de grege immaculatum. 24And thou shalt offer them in the sight of the Lord, and the priests shall put salt upon them, and shall offer them a holocaust to the Lord.E gli offerirai nel cospetto del Signore; e i sacerdoti spargeranno del sale sopra di essi, e gli offriranno in olocausto al Signore.And thou shalt offer them in the sight of our Lord: and the priests shal cast salt vpon them, and shal offer them an holocaust to our Lord.Et offeres eos in conspectu Domini: et mittent sacerdotes super eos sal, et offerent eos holocaustum Domino.
25Seven days shalt thou offer a he goat for sin daily: they shall offer also a calf of the herd, and a ram of the flock without blemish.Per sette giorni offerirai un capro ogni di per il peccato; e un vitello dell'armento, e un ariete del gregge gli offeriranno scevri di macchia.Seuen dayes shalt thou make a bucke goate for sinne dayly: and a calfe of the heard, and a ramme of the cattel vnspotted shal they offer.Septem diebus facies hircum pro peccato quotidie: et vitulum de armento, et arietem de pecoribus immaculatos offerent. 26Seven days shall they expiate the altar, and shall cleanse it: and they shall consecrate it.Per sette di espieranno l'altare, e lo purificheranno, e lo consagreranno.Seuen dayes shal they expiate the altar, and shal clense it: and they shal fil his hand.Septem diebus expiabunt altare et mundabunt illud, et implebunt manum ejus. 27And the days being expired, on the eighth day and thenceforward, the priests shall offer your holocausts upon the altar, and the peace offerings: and I will be pacified towards you, saith the Lord God.E finiti que' giorni, l'ottavo di, e in appresso i sacerdoti immoleranno sopra l'altare i vostri olocausti, e quello, che si offerisce per la pace, ed io placherommi con voi, dice il Signore Dio.And the dayes being expired, in the eight day & so forth, the priests shal make your holocausts vpon the altar, and those which they offer for peace: and I wil be pacified toward you, saith our Lord God.Expletis autem diebus, in die octava et ultra, facient sacerdotes super altare holocausta vestra, et quæ pro pace offerunt: et placatus ero vobis, ait Dominus Deus.
43:2
St. Jerome
Majesty. The world is enlightened by the preaching of the gospel; and the Church triumphant shall shine in perfection, when that which is sown in corruption shall put on incorruption, 1 Corinthians xv. (St. Jerome)
Worthington
The blessed Virgin [Mary] conceiving Jesus Christ may be insinuated. (St. Thomas Aquinas, [Summa Theologiae] p. 3. q. 27. a. 3.) (Worthington)
43:3
Calmet
He came. Hebrew, "I came to destroy (Septuagint, to anoint) the city," marking such as should be spared, Ezechiel 9. The glorious chariot entered by the eastern gate, and the prophet followed to the court of the priests, ver. 5, 13. (Calmet)
43:7
Haydock
Said. The Lord spoke, (Chaldean; Theodoret) or the angel, (St. Jerome) in human shape. (Haydock)
He addresses the prophet, ver. 12 to Ezechiel 44:5., though what follows immediately seems to belong to the Lord, (Calmet) in whose name he speaks.
Haydock
Name. God hath abandoned the synagogue, but will remain with his Church unto the end, Matthew 23:38., and 28:20. Yet the perfect Church, without spot, is the [Church] triumphant [in heaven]; (Ephesians 5:27.; Worthington) though the Catholic Church, on earth, is ever holy and "the communion of saints." (Haydock)
Calmet
Carcasses. Idols, according to some; or rather by the kings being buried on Sion. This is nowhere else reprehended; neither is their building too near the temple, which the prophet here condemns, ver. 8. (Calmet)
Haydock
It seems, however, that if these things had been blameable, such a number of pious and wise kings would not have acted thus, nor the prophets have neglected to admonish them of their duty. The carcasses and houses here specified may have been vestiges of idolatry; or, in future, the tombs and palaces were to be at a more respectful distance. (Haydock)
43:8
Josephus
Wall. The kings of Juda had a door communicating with the temple, by which they entered on the west. It was guarded by Levites, 1 Paralipomenon 26:16. Ezechiel places no door on that side. Yet in Herod's temple we find one leading to the adjacent palace, and three others into the town. (Josephus, Antiquities 15:14.)
43:9
Haydock
Carcasses. Literally, "ruins." (Haydock)
Calmet
The remains of the dead were probably not disturbed; but no more, that we know of, were placed on Sion. (Calmet)
Haydock
Kings may signify idols, Moloc, etc., which they had worshipped, and which some had even placed in the holy place, to the nation's ruin. (Haydock)
43:10
Haydock
Measure, that they may be convinced of their ingratitude, (Menochius) which has deprived them of so noble a structure, and put them under the necessity of beginning so great a work again. It required all the exertions of the prophets to make them go forward with it, Aggeus 1. (Haydock)
43:11
In the whole fabric, (Menochius) as thou hast described it, (Haydock) or received from the angel, with all the ceremonies to be observed.
43:12
Border. Nothing but the temple shall be on this mountain. It shall be wholly consecrated to the Lord. This was ill observed. The Asmonean princes erected the famous tower Antonia, at the north side. (Josephus) See ver. 8. The Jews assert that it was unlawful to spit on this ground, etc., but no such thing is specified in Josephus or in Scripture, only we find that none were to go out by the same door at which they had entered, (chap. 46:9.; Calmet) except the king.
43:13
By. Hebrew, "by cubits." This cubit is a common cubit, etc. The Babylonian, (Haydock) or sacred one, was a palm longer. (Worthington) (Chap. 40:5.)
Breadth. It was the same as the depth, being designed to convey the blood by a conduit to the torrent Cedron.
Haydock
Trench, or bottom aforesaid. Septuagint, "the height." (Haydock)
Chaldean, "disposition of the altar," which seems best.
43:14
Calmet
Cubit. They were each a cubit broad, but this greater means higher up. Some assert that the priests stood on this base to avoid treading on the altar, when they placed the wood or victims. But it would be too low; and steps were made for that purpose. The altar was ten, or rather twelve cubits high, and as many broad. Solomon's was ten high and twenty broad. Herod's was a square of forty cubits, raised fifteen from the ground. (Calmet)
43:15
Challoner
The ariel. That is, the altar itself, or rather the highest part of it, upon which the burnt-offerings were laid. In the Hebrew it is harel, that is, the mountain of God; but in the following verse haariel, that is, the lion of God; a figure, from its consuming, and as it were devouring the sacrifices as a lion devours its prey. (Challoner)
Worthington
Fire descending sometimes from heaven. (St. Jerome) (Worthington)
Calmet
It also appeared like a little mountain in the court. See Isaias 29:1. The altar was probably made of brass, like Solomon's. Josephus and Philo say that rough stones were used after the captivity: but it seems little attention was paid to the dimensions of the temple, etc., given by Ezechiel. (Calmet)
Haydock
Yet the prophets were present to see the laws of God executed, and never complain of their infringement in these particulars, which were attended with no great difficulty, Ezechiel 40:1. (Haydock)
It is certain the Jews never thought themselves bound to make their altars of a determinate size.
43:17
Crown, which was usually placed round altars and tables, that nothing might fall down.
Bottom of the altar, or base, mentioned [in] ver. 13.
Steps, boarded on each side, Exodus 20:26.
43:19
Calmet
Levites. Hebrew, "of the race of Levi, of the family of Sadoc." He had obtained the dignity under Saul, (Calmet) and after the deposition of Abiathar, under Solomon, (3 Kings 2:26.; Haydock) his posterity always preserved it. (Calmet, Diss.)
Haydock
Calf. Thou shalt give it, or make known these rites to the priests. (Haydock)
People are often said to do what they only command, as [in] ver. 20, etc.
43:21
Sanctuary, out of the precincts of the temple, but on the mountain, Leviticus 4:3., and 6:11.
43:22
Calmet
He-goat. Septuagint add, "of the goats," (hircum caprarum. Haydock) denoting a young kid, (Menochius) or one selected (Haydock) rather from the flock. (Calmet)
43:26
Calmet
Consecrate it. Literally, "fill his hand;" that is, dedicate and apply it to holy service, (Challoner) as the Hebrew, etc., speak of the altar. Septuagint, "they shall fill their hands," seems more natural, (Exodus 28:41.) and is adopted by Pagnin, Vatable, etc. (Calmet)
43:15
The Ariel.... That is, the altar itself, or rather the highest part of it, upon which the burnt offerings were laid. In the Hebrew it is Harel, that is, the mountain of God: but in the following verse Haariel, that is, the lion of God; a figure, from its consuming, and as it were devouring the sacrifices, as a lion devours its prey.
43:26
Consecrate it.... Literally, fill its hand, that is, dedicate and apply it to holy service.
43:2
Al the world is lightned by the preaching of Christs Apostles, and their successors: and the triumphant Church shal perfectly shine vvhen that vvhich is so vvne i• corruption shal •••e in incorruption •• c. 1. Cor. 1•. S. Ierom. S. Thomas also exponndeth this place of the •. virgin conceiuing the Sonne of God p 3. q. 27. a 3.
43:3
ch. 9.
43:4
ch. 1.
43:7
God hath left the house of the Ievves desolate. •a•. 23. v. 38 but remaineth vvith the Church of Christ al dayes to the end of the vvorld. Mat 28 v. 2•.
43:11
And the perfect impolluted Church, vvithout spot or vv••ncle (Eph 5 v. 27.) is only the 〈…〉hant Church.
43:13
The sacred cubite or cubite vsed in sacred thinges was longer then the common cubite by one palme.
43:15
The altar is called Ariel. the lion of God. because fire sometimes descending from God vpon the altar consumed the sacrifice. as a lion consumeth his praye S. Ierom.
43:13
Pope St Gregory I the Great † AD 604 The Book of Pastoral Rule 3.9
… Since, then, when patience is relinquished, all other good things also that have been done are overthrown, it is rightly enjoined on Ezekiel that in the altar of God a trench be made; to wit, that in it the whole burnt-offerings laid on the altar might be preserved (
43:19
St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 Letters of St. Augustin 55.11
… for such are borrowed from every created thing. Nor is there any reason for our incurring the sentence of condemnation which is pronounced by the apostle on some who worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. We do not adore sheep or cattle, although Christ is called both a Lamb, and by the prophet a young bullock;
43:1
1. And He led me (from the outer enclosure, which in the preceding chapter He had measured before me) to the gate of the temple, that is of the outer court (for in verse 5, from it He leads the Prophet into the inner court), which first presented itself looking toward the East: because this guide is the Sun of Justice, whose name is the Orient, Zechariah III, 8; and because through the Eastern gate one went straight into the Holy of Holies, where His seat and throne were. Thus Maldonatus.
43:2
2. The glory of God, namely the chariot of the Cherubim representing the glory of God, which he describes in chapter I, 8 and chapter X, and he called the glory of God. And the voice was to it as the voice of many waters. "To it," not to God, but to the glory of God, namely to the Cherubim, as if to say: the Cherubim, when they bore this glorious chariot of God and God Himself sitting in it, by the beating of their wings produced a sound similar to the sound of waters overflowing, which, when they rush against each other and against shores and rocks, seem to roar, indeed to thunder. Something similar is in Apocalypse I, 15. And the earth shone from his majesty. He calls majesty the light or splendor of the chariot of the Cherubim, or of the glory of God. Mystically, St. Thomas, III part, Question XXVII, article 3 in the body, teaches that the Blessed Virgin was sanctified in a particular way at the time when she conceived the Son of God in her womb: "And this," he says, "is signified in Ezekiel XLIII, where it is said: Behold the glory of God of Israel entered by the way of the East, that is, by the Blessed Virgin; and the earth, that is, her flesh, shone from his majesty, namely of Christ." For he thinks that then in the Blessed Virgin the tinder of concupiscence was completely extinguished by the Word incarnate in her, which before was only bound. But that this tinder was extinguished in her when she was first conceived, and thus that she was then preserved from original sin, and consequently from its tinder, appears far more true: and this is the common sense of the faithful, as Suarez, Barradius, Carisius and others teach. For this complete purity befitted the Mother of God; for who would believe that the Mother of God was ever a servant of sin, and a daughter of the devil? She therefore in her conception received complete holiness, but in the incarnation a great increase of holiness, from the majesty of her Christ. And this is signified by the word "shone," for which the Septuagint translates: ἐξέλαμπε δὲ φέγγος — it shone forth like a flash of lightning (the Complutensian translators render it: like a flash of lightning), as if to say: the Blessed Virgin, conceiving Christ, received another illustrious splendor and flash of holiness, she who in the first moment of her conception had received the same brightness, so that now she shone with a wonderful splendor, she flashed with one flash, she who before was already shining and glowing.
43:3
3. And I saw the vision according to the appearance which I had seen (chapter I and chapter X) when He came to destroy the city. Hence it is clear that the chariot of the Cherubim was as it were a war chariot and triumphal chariot of God, by which God, angry and armed, went forth as it were into battle, so that He might destroy the impious Jews with the land through the Chaldeans, as I said in chapter I. And I fell, nearly lifeless from the flash and terror of the glory of the Lord.
43:5
5. He brought me (from the outer court, namely of the laity, of which verse 1 speaks) into the inner court of the priests. For Ezekiel was a priest. Thus Vatablus.
43:6
6. And I heard (God) speaking to me from the house, that is, from the Holy Place, says Vatablus, or rather from the Holy of Holies: for here was the seat of God, above the ark and the Cherubim. Thus Maldonatus. 6 and 7. And the man (an Angel) who stood beside me (in Hebrew: And a man was standing beside me) said to me, in Hebrew: And he said to me; whence it is clear that the following words: "The place of my throne," etc., are spoken by God speaking from the temple. But, since Ezekiel was struck by the crash of this voice and perceived it less clearly, the Angel standing by him repeated it in a moderated voice, so that Ezekiel might perceive it. For it is certain that "The place of my throne" are properly the words of God, not of the Angel, except as the words of God spoken by a legate or interpreter.
43:7
7. The place of my throne (supply, this is in the temple, namely in the mercy seat), and the place (namely this is) of the footsteps of my feet. In Hebrew כפות רגלי cappot raglai, that is, of the soles of my feet, as if to say: Here my feet, my soles I have fixed, as if I were about to dwell here perpetually: and, as Maldonatus says, as if to say: This place shall be to me a house, like heaven and earth: "For heaven is my seat: and the earth my footstool," Isaiah LXVI, 1. Where I dwell. In Hebrew אשכן escan, that is, I will dwell, where I have decreed to remain and dwell perpetually in the midst of the children of Israel. And the house of Israel shall no more defile my holy name, etc., in their fornications, because after their return from Babylon the Jews no longer worshipped idols. For this worship is called fornication by the prophets, namely spiritual and mystical. Wherefore Maldonatus, relying on St. Jerome, does not rightly contend from this place that these things are to be referred not to the temple of Jerusalem, but to the heavenly one, because the temple of Jerusalem was often afterwards defiled and abandoned by God, both under Antiochus, and under Pompey, Titus and the Romans. I confess, however, that these things pertain more to the spiritual temple, that is, the Church both militant and triumphant. For the Jewish temple was the type of this: whence the Prophet sometimes leaps and springs from the type to the antitype in the usual manner, as I said on Canticles IV and V. In the ruins (in Hebrew בפגרי bepigre, that is, in the corpses) of their kings. For the temple and sacred places were defiled by contact with corpses. He alludes to Amon and Manasseh, kings who were buried in their gardens near the temple, IV Kings XXI, 18; for the royal palace was next to the temple. Thus the Hebrews, Vatablus and Maldonatus. Our author calls corpses ruins; for corpses are named from falling and ruin. Thus it is said in Psalm CIX, 6: "He shall judge among nations, he shall fill up the ruins," as if to say: Christ shall give great slaughter of enemies, so as to fill the streets with ruins, that is, with corpses. Let these women (says St. Jerome) (nuns, clerics and monks) burdened with sins, hear that they provoke the mercy of God by a mind joined to God, not by proximity to churches and dwelling near them: rather the indignation of the Lord is stirred up, because in places consecrated to God an unworthy inhabitant is present. For God chose not the nation for the place, but the place for the nation.
43:8
8. Who have built their threshold beside my threshold. He gives the reason why the kings defiled the temple: namely because, since they had a palace adjoining the temple, so that they seemed to be separated from it only by a single threshold and intervening wall, the crimes which they perpetrated in the palace seemed to be perpetrated in the temple. Thus Vatablus, Maldonatus and others. To this St. Jerome adds, explaining thus, as if to say: Since the kings dwelt in the vicinity of the temple, they were not therefore purer and holier than others, but rather more wicked, defiling my holy name, and therefore "I consumed them" through the Chaldeans "in my wrath."
43:9
9. From me, from my temple and my throne in which I sit and dwell.
43:10
10. Show the house of Israel the temple, that is, the idea of the temple soon to be restored, and its figure and dimensions, and cause them to measure it with their own hands, so that when they see its magnitude, they may be ashamed, that on account of their crimes so magnificent a basilica of God has been destroyed.
43:11
11. And (in Hebrew אם im, that is, and if) let them be ashamed, as if to say: If, after the magnificent idea of the temple has been shown and hope given that it will be rebuilt, they wish to repent, explain to them individually each part and their measurements, so that when the time comes they may build it according to that form, says Maldonatus, who here seems to concede that Ezekiel describes literally the temple to be restored by Zerubbabel, although he denies this elsewhere. The exits and entrances, that is, the whole figure, plan and order of the structure. It is a Hebraism, as I said on chapter XLII, 11. Its precepts, the rites and laws of sacrifices: for the Hebrew חקות chuko signifies ceremonial precepts concerning the rite of sacrifice, which were sanctioned and prescribed by God in Leviticus, and which again he describes here in verse 18, so that, since they were almost obliterated in captivity, he may refresh their knowledge and memory.
43:12
12. This is the law of the house, this is the description of the temple, this is the idea designated and prescribed to me for you, so that you may build according to it. Thus the Hebrew, Vatablus and others. All its ends in a circuit, that is to say, These are the ends and boundary and enclosure of the temple, which I measured in chapter XLII, 16 and seq., which surrounded the summit of Mount Sion, indeed also the spaces adjacent to the mountain, as Vatablus translated from the Hebrew. It is the Holy of Holies, that is to say, This place is most holy: for it is the temple of God, and its courts and enclosures, which are all sacred to God. Hence Jeremiah XVII, 12 it is said: "The throne of glory, high from the beginning, the place of our sanctification," that is, in our temple, and in the place of our sanctification the highest elevation is present, the highest majesty, that is, the sanctity of the temple is greatest and most exalted. For the temple was the house of God, the throne of God, the delight of God. Psalm XXVI, 4: "One thing have I asked of the Lord, this will I seek," namely, "that I may see the delight of the Lord, that is, that I may visit his temple." Hence the temple is called by the Latins from tuendo, because God guards it as his own house continually, that is, he looks upon it, regards it, protects and keeps it. Wherefore the temple is an image of heaven, indeed of the whole world: for the world is the primordial house, and the temple of God, as Philo says.
43:13
13. These measurements of the altar (of burnt offerings; for he measured the altar of incense in chapter XLI, 22) in the most true cubit, that is, the most perfect. Thus often is "true" taken for perfect, as when the Apostle says in I Timothy VI, 10: "That they may lay hold on true life," true, that is, perfect. See what is said there. In Hebrew it is: "And these are the measurements of the altar by cubits;" for the cubit is said both in the masculine and in the neuter. He who had a cubit and a palm, that is to say, The cubit of which I speak is a sacred cubit, which exceeds the profane by a palm. For this cubit is a common, or profane cubit, and moreover a palm, as he said in chapter XL, 5. In its bosom was a cubit. By the bosom R. David understands the cavity which was in the altar above, one cubit deep, to receive the pile of wood by which the victims were to be burned. Better Vilalpandus page 389: The bosom, he says, is a cavity cut out in the marble pavement surrounding the altar, one cubit high and another wide, into which the blood of the victims was poured, and through underground channels was led into the torrent, of which chapter XLVII, 5. The Chaldean signifies the place of this ditch. Maldonatus and others, while they interpret the bosom as the foundation: for this bosom was at the bottom, not at the top of the altar. For at the bottom the blood of the victims was poured, as Vilalpandus beautifully represents in the figure of the altar in the place cited. For from the base and foundation, the Prophet begins the description of this altar. And its definition. In Hebrew גבולו gebula, that is, its boundary or limit, as Aquila, Symmachus and Theodotion translate; but the Septuagint translates it, without, of which word St. Jerome says he does not know the meaning. Up to its lip, and round about, one palm, that is, the base of the altar besides the width of one cubit, had a lip of one palm round about for the sake of elegance, says Maldonatus. So also Vatablus; for he translates the border, that is, the crown or enclosure of the altar, "which was at its extremity round about, was one palm; or four finger-breadths high." So also Vilalpandus, who translates more clearly, the crown of the bosom (or cavity and ditch for receiving the blood of the victims already mentioned) running along the lip of the ditch round about, was one palm wide. So also the Chaldean. Note: this palm is not less than four finger-breadths across, as Vatablus wishes, but is greater, containing three smaller palms; namely twelve fingers, that is, a half-cubit. For this is signified by the Hebrew זרת zereth, and the Greek σπιθαμή. The purpose of making this crown was twofold: the first, that priests approaching the altar incautiously might not fall into the pit; the second, that the ditch sacred with the blood of victims might not be held as common and open. This also was the ditch of the altar, of which I have already spoken. For it is a recapitulation of what has been said, that is to say, Such then was the ditch of the altar, namely of a semicylinder excavated: for it had no angles in the lower part, but was defined by a semicircle, lest blood should stick in the angles, says Vilalpandus. Aristæas describes the use and manner of this ditch in History 70 of the Interpreters: "There are," he says, "at the base of the altar frequent openings, unknown indeed to all except those who minister (for they were in the lower ditch), by the inflow and force of which all the blood from the multitude of victims is purged." Otherwise the Septuagint: and the height of the altar, namely that which follows, namely two cubits; and Vatablus, and this is the back or eminence of the altar. So also Maldonatus. For they read גב gab, that is, eminence, height, prominent back. But our text reads גב geb, that is, ditch, cavity, pit. Note: when he says: "And its definition up to its lip, and round about one palm," this palm should be taken as the greater, as Vatablus translates, which contained three smaller ones, namely twelve finger-breadths. For this measurement is signified by the Hebrew זרת zereth, and the Greek σπιθαμή, as the Septuagint translates. Wherefore this error crept into the Commentary of St. Jerome, as Vilalpandus rightly observed, vol. II page 473. For it has: "Which definition, or gyrus round about, of one palm, or παλαιστής, extended in width." Where for σπιθαμής, παλαιστής crept in, which had preceded a little before in the text at the beginning of this verse, where it is said: "These measurements of the altar in the most true cubit, which had a cubit and a palm." For there the smaller palm is understood, which the Greeks call παλαιστή, as the Septuagint translates. For there in the Hebrew it is not zereth, but טפח topach, which is a measure of four finger-breadths across, namely the smaller palm.
43:14
14. And from the bosom of the earth unto the edge of the last cubit two cubits. In Hebrew it is עזרה azara, which elsewhere signifies a court. But the Hebrews and Vatablus err, when they teach that here is described the court of the priests divided into three parts, namely into a lower court, an upper court and a middle court, in which was the altar. For here we are dealing with the altar, not with a court: for he dealt with courts in chapters XL and XLII. Secondly, Maldonatus: The Prophet signifies, he says, that upon the foundation of the altar there were two contractions, which he calls עזרות azaroth, that is, courts: because they were two spaces in which the priests could walk about and go around the altar: which St. Jerome rightly called edges. Thirdly and most excellently Vilalpandus: An edge, he says, is called in Hebrew עזרה azara, from the root עזר azar, that is, to help, to support, to sustain: hence azara signifies a podium, or a support, upon which a house or altar (as here) rests, and by which it is sustained. The Vulgate translated it as edge, because an edge, called from discrepando, signifies a part of the structure standing out where the rule breaks off, namely a step running inward and wider than the width of the structure, such as was this support of the altar. Whence he notably said: "From the bosom of the earth:" because the bosom already mentioned, or trench, was not outside the pavement, but was sunk into the earth, so that through it the blood of the victims might be poured: from the upper lip therefore of this bosom unto the edge, he counts two cubits of height. Furthermore the edge of the altar was twofold, one upper, the other lower: of the lower it is said that it was high two cubits; for that is called here the last, that is, as it is in Hebrew, the lower. For thus last often signifies following, posterior, lower. And the width of one cubit. This edge was high two cubits from the pavement of the temple, where it was narrowed, and made a step wide one cubit. And from the lesser edge unto the greater edge four cubits (of height) and the width of one cubit. He calls the "greater edge" the upper, not because it was wider (for it was narrower) than the lower, but because it was higher; for it was high four cubits, whereas the lower was high only two, and is therefore also called the lesser. Thus Maldonatus and Vilalpandus, who graphically depicts both edges, as well as the trench, the crown, etc., of the altar in an image.
43:15
15. And the Ariel itself four cubits. "Ariel" signifies the third and highest part of the altar, resting upon each of the two bases already mentioned, as if upon a twofold foundation, which was properly the altar itself, in which victims were burned: he therefore asserts this to have been elevated upon the bases on high, to four cubits. The altar is called הראל harel, that is, the mountain of God, because on Mount Sion, namely in the court of the priests, it stood out like a little hill. Again, it is soon called האריאל haariel, that is, the lion of God; because, as R. David says, the holy fire, which from heaven in the time of Aaron, and in the time of Solomon fell upon it, continually kept watch over it like a lion, of God or rather because it was perpetually wet with the blood of victims, like a lion tearing apart its prey. Vilalpandus adds that the altar, equally as other parts of the temple, was marked on all sides by the sides with sculptures of Cherubim, and consequently of the lion also. Moreover, it presented and expressed in itself the form of a lion (as the Hebrews commonly hand down), and it had leonine legs for feet, whence it appears to have come about that in ancient altars the feet and claws of lions were fashioned, and this for this reason, that those about to sacrifice, approaching the altar, might remember that God, to be worshipped at the altar, is similar to a lion, who tears apart the proud, spares the humble and those who beseech. This is what the Apostle admonishes in Hebrews XII, at the end: "Let us serve, pleasing God with fear and reverence. For our God is a consuming fire." He alludes to Isaiah XXIX, 1: "Woe, Ariel, Ariel, the city which David took by assault." Where although the Chaldean renders: Woe, altar, altar, which was built in the city in which David dwelt; nevertheless all others everywhere understand by Ariel Jerusalem. This is called Ariel, that is, the lion of God, because it was most strong, and in it David the most mighty king, and his other descendants reigned, of whom Jacob had foretold, Genesis XLIX, 9: "The whelp of a lion, Juda: to the prey, my son, thou art gone up: resting thou hast couched as a lion, and as a lioness, who shall rouse him up?" Moreover, from the city the altar itself was called Ariel, because the altar was properly dedicated to God and represented God; it was therefore Ariel, that is, the lion of God: for God, dwelling as it were in the altar, kept watch like a lion for the protection of his city and people, and as a lion from his altar leaped upon the infidel Philistines and other enemies of his people and Church, so long as Jerusalem stood in the faith and religion of her God, and worshipped him piously and holily in this altar of his. This appears to be the true origin, this the etymology of Ariel. Let therefore both the faithful and heretics learn here that altars and temples and true religion itself and the worship of God are the foundations of the commonwealth, and that it should be protected and defended like a lion. For this reason Isaiah says in chapter XXXI, 9: "The Lord said, whose fire is in Sion, and his furnace in Jerusalem." See the things said there. Thirdly, Ariel is the same as the ram of curse; because on the altar rams were offered for curse, that is, for sin. Fourthly, St. Jerome thinks Ariel is called as it were Uriel, that is, light, or the illumination of God, which is represented in the altar by flame. Allegorically all these things are fitting for Christ, who is our altar, that is, the mountain, lion, light, ram of God, and was made a curse for us, and he himself communicates all these same things to his faithful, because he communicates himself, especially in the Eucharist. "Wherefore as lions breathing fire let us depart from that table, made terrible to the devil, and turning over in our mind our head, and the charity which he showed us," says St. Chrysostom, homily 61 to the People. And Augustine, book X of the City of God, chapter IV: "When our heart is lifted up to God," he says, "it is God's altar: we slay bloody victims to him, when we contend even unto blood for the truth." St. Gregory Nazianzen, Oration at the funeral of his father, calls constant patience in adversities a rational holocaust, consumed notably in the body of each one. Clement of Alexandria, book VII of the Stromata, calls the body an altar, in which, he says, "God's holocaust is made, when one destroys himself, namely the old man, because he is corrupted through desires, removing him from the midst; but raises up the new from the old conversation of death." Again, allegorically the altar is the cross of Christ: for in this he offered himself to the Father. Whence the Church sings: "Whose most holy body on the altar of the cross burned." The four horns of the altar are the four horns of the cross. And from Ariel upward four horns. The altar had at the top in four corners four beams standing out, or 4 small pyramids in the manner of horns. The altar therefore by its feet represented a lion, by its horns a bull, so that it presented in part the image of the Cherubim. These horns were as it were trophies of prey. For on solemn feasts bulls and young cattle were slain to God, and cast to Ariel, or the sacred lion, to be devoured. For this reason the ancients appear to have adorned the fronts of sacred buildings with zoophori of bulls, that is, with skulls, as if with trophies and insignia of sacrifices, says Vilalpandus.
43:16
16. And Ariel twelve cubits in length by twelve cubits in width, that is, the altar (which I said was four cubits high above the bases, or two bases) was twelve cubits long and as many wide. It was therefore square and equal on all four of its sides.
43:17
17. And the base fourteen cubits, etc., as if to say: The base of the altar was likewise square, but exceeded the Ariel itself by two cubits, that is, the altar placed upon it. For it had not 12 as the altar, but 14 cubits both in length and in width. The reason for this was that the base, or upper base of the altar, protruded on each side by single cubits beyond the Ariel itself. Therefore if the Ariel had 12 cubits on all sides: it was necessary that the base, or upper base, extend 14 cubits on all sides; and by the same reasoning the lower base, which protruded beyond the upper one on all sides by single cubits, extended 16 cubits both in length and in width. Thus Vilalpandus. For the altar was wider at the bottom, and ascending upward it was gradually narrowed: it therefore had two recesses of two cubits each, one in the upper base, the other in the Ariel itself. Otherwise Maldonatus measures these things. And a crown around it of half a cubit. He calls crown a cornice, or border like a crown surrounding it, not the lower base, as Maldonatus wishes, or the foundation of the altar, for he spoke of this in verse 13; but its upper surface and its four horns. For thus we still see many altars in Rome adorned and crowned at the top with such a cornice, which therefore in Hebrew is called gebul, that is, boundary, limit, a thing defining and circumscribing; whence Our author, in verse 13, translates it as definition. He asserts this to have been half a cubit. The entire altar therefore was ten cubits high, which you should reckon thus: the lowest base was two cubits high, the second four, the Ariel itself four, which all collected make ten. The lowest base both in length and in width had 16 cubits; the second 14, the Ariel itself 12. This altar was therefore smaller than the altar which Solomon made, II Paralipomenon cap. IV, verse 1; for that one was twenty cubits long, as many wide, ten high, as is said there. And its cavity of one cubit around. He calls cavity the basin, or blood pit, of which he spoke in verse 13. For he repeats what he said there. And its steps turned toward the East, as if to say: By steps from the East toward the West, one ascended to the altar. Vilalpandus gives the reason, namely that God wished to turn the Jews away from the idolatry of the gentiles, who worshipped the rising sun: he therefore wished to give the Jews their backs to the East, and to worship the true God toward the West, as I said in cap. VIII, 16. See St. Thomas, I II, Question CII, article 4 to 5, and Athanasius of Nicaea, Question XVIII in Holy Scripture, and Pineada in Job XXXI, 26.
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18. These are the rites of the altar, as if to say: You shall observe these rites in sacrificing upon the altar, so that you may expiate it, consecrate it and sanctify it. He prescribes these rites in what follows, and repeats them from Leviticus. Here therefore he properly establishes the rite to be observed in the consecration of the altar.
43:19
19. And thou shalt give, hand on these rites received from me to the priests and Levites, or rather thou shalt give a calf, and thou shalt sacrifice it, so that thou mayest show them in deed how they ought to sacrifice: for in so long a Babylonian captivity they had forgotten this. Whence he adds in verse 20: "And taking of its blood, thou shalt put it upon the four horns thereof." It appears therefore that Ezechiel actually sacrificed, and taught the priests ignorant of the rite how to sacrifice. Thus Maldonatus. Who are of the seed of Sadoc. For in Sadoc, Abiathar being removed, Solomon transferred the priesthood and pontificate to him and his descendants, as I said in cap. XL, 46. Sadoc in Hebrew is the same as just, says St. Jerome. Who approach unto me, who approach unto the altar to minister unto me.
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20. Upon the four horns thereof, for God had commanded that each horn of this altar be stained with the blood of the victim, Exodus XXIX, 12, and Leviticus XVI, 18.
43:21
21. And thou shalt burn. In Hebrew serephu, that is, they shall burn, namely the priests designated by you for this. For Ezechiel alone could not perform all these things by himself. In a separate place. For "of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest for sin, the bodies are burned outside the camp," Hebrews XIII, 11; Leviticus IV, 12; and cap. VI, 30, and XVI, 27: see what is said there. For this was a public expiation and consecration of the altar and of the place defiled and profaned by the Chaldeans, by means of the victim of the calf, in which this rite is prescribed, Leviticus XVI, 27. Outside the sanctuary, outside the court of the priests, which is called the Sanctuary, because it was sanctified and consecrated by the blood of the slain calf, says Vatablus.
43:22
22. A he-goat of the goats, that is, a he-goat not aged, but young, so that it still follows its mother goat, and thereupon suckles. For when the Hebrews add to an animal the name of its mother, they signify that it is tender, and still follows its mother. Thus Daniel, chapter VIII, 5, calls Alexander a he-goat of the goats because he was young. The Septuagint translates: "And on the second day they shall take two he-goats without blemish for sin." Mystically, these two he-goats, immolated shortly after the passion of the Lord, are St. James the brother of St. John, and St. Stephen: "For these are the firstfruits of the martyrs, whom the confession of Christ crowned," says St. Jerome. This was the second expiatory and consecrating victim of the altar, namely the he-goat: for the former was the calf. For the he-goat, on account of its stench, is a symbol of sin, which was to be expiated at this altar through the victims subsequently immolated upon it. Without blemish, lacking a blemish, not of color but of health and integrity, that is, not maimed, not mutilated, but sound and whole, as I said in Leviticus XXII, 19, 20 and 21.
43:25
25. Thou shalt make (that is, thou shalt sacrifice) the he-goat. Thus the Poet said: "When I shall make a calf," that is, when I shall sacrifice a calf, "for the fruits, come thou thyself."
43:26
26. And they shall fill the hand thereof. "Hand," that is, side, that is, sides, "thereof," namely of the altar, as if to say: For seven days they shall fill the sides of the altar with victims, and with the blood of victims. Whence the Chaldean translates: They shall offer its oblation. For the matter concerns the consecration of the altar; and to fill the hand, for the Hebrews is the same as to consecrate, as I showed in Exodus XXIX, 9 and 35. Thus Maldonatus. Others, such as Vatablus, understand hand not of the altar, but of the priest, as if to say: The priests shall fill with the flesh of the victim the hands of the sacrificing priest for seven days, that is, they shall give to him daily as many victims as he shall be able to immolate through seven days.
43:27
27. They shall make (that is, they shall immolate, as I said verse 25) the priests upon the altar your holocausts, and those which they offer for peace, that is, the victims of peace, which they shall offer for peace, that is, for the welfare of the house, either future and to be obtained; or past, and obtained in thanksgiving (whence Vatablus translates, eucharistia) they shall offer.
Machine translation from the Latin, not reviewed.
43:10
… ethico-spiritual parenesis; the t. of the sage, to which the t. that parents give to their children can be connected, is the instruction-education of the inexperienced, and to the t. of "wisdom" relating to practical life and the crafts there seems to be connected Ez. 43, 10-15, where t. (well translated by the Septuagint as ἡ διαγραφή) is "the plan of the temple."
43:13
… The common Hebrew cubit ('ammhili) was 6 palms and 24 fingers (458 mm.), but for sacred buildings the large cubit of 7 palms was used, equal to the royal Egyptian cubit, from which it perhaps derives, which corresponded to 525-30 mm. (Ez. 40:5; 43:13).
43:20
A particularity of the Hebrew altar are the "horns" or projections (Ex. 27:2; 37:25; I Reg. 1:50; Ez. 43:20), at the four upper corners. …
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · Vulgata Clementina · original Douay-Rheims (Douay 1609-10), transcription by EEBO-TCP (CC0) · La Sacra Bibbia, tradotta dalla Volgata da Antonio Martini (1769-1781) (LaParola (laparola.net), Martini OSIS text, Public domain (LaParola's electronic edition marks it 'Dominio pubblico')). Public domain.