44 Then
he brought me back the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary which
looketh toward the east; and it was shut. 2 Then
said the LORD unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened,
and no man shall enter in by it; because the LORD, the God of Israel,
hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut. 3 It
is for the prince; the prince, he shall sit in it to eat bread before
the LORD; he shall enter by the way of the porch of that gate, and shall
go out by the way of the same. 4 Then
brought he me the way of the north gate before the house: and I looked,
and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD: and I
fell upon my face. 5 And
the LORD said unto me, Son of man, mark well, and behold with thine eyes,
and hear with thine ears all that I say unto thee concerning all the ordinances
of the house of the LORD, and all the laws thereof; and mark well the
entering in of the house, with every going forth of the sanctuary. 6 And
thou shalt say to the rebellious, even to the house of Israel, Thus saith
the Lord GOD; O ye house of Israel, let it suffice you of all your abominations, 7 In
that ye have brought into my sanctuary strangers, uncircumcised in heart,
and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to pollute it, even
my house, when ye offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have
broken my covenant because of all your abominations. 8 And
ye have not kept the charge of mine holy things: but ye have set keepers
of my charge in my sanctuary for yourselves. 9 Thus
saith the Lord GOD; No stranger, uncircumcised in heart, nor uncircumcised
in flesh, shall enter into my sanctuary, of any stranger that is among
the children of Israel. 10 And
the Levites that are gone away far from me, when Israel went astray, which
went astray away from me after their idols; they shall even bear their
iniquity. 11 Yet
they shall be ministers in my sanctuary, having charge at the gates of
the house, and ministering to the house: they shall slay the burnt offering
and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to
minister unto them. 12 Because
they ministered unto them before their idols, and caused the house of
Israel to fall into iniquity; therefore have I lifted up mine hand against
them, saith the Lord GOD, and they shall bear their iniquity. 13 And
they shall not come near unto me, to do the office of a priest unto me,
nor to come near to any of my holy things, in the most holy place: but
they shall bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed. 14 But
I will make them keepers of the charge of the house, for all the service
thereof, and for all that shall be done therein.
15
But the priests the Levites, the sons of Zadok, that kept the charge of
my sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from me, they shall
come near to me to minister unto me, and they shall stand before me to offer
unto me the fat and the blood, saith the Lord GOD: 16 They
shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to
minister unto me, and they shall keep my charge. 17 And
it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner
court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come
upon them, whiles they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within. 18 They
shall have linen bonnets upon their heads, and shall have linen breeches
upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with any thing that causeth
sweat. 19 And
when they go forth into the utter court, even into the utter court to the
people, they shall put off their garments wherein they ministered, and lay
them in the holy chambers, and they shall put on other garments; and they
shall not sanctify the people with their garments. 20 Neither
shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they
shall only poll their heads. 21 Neither
shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court. 22 Neither
shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her that is put away: but they
shall take maidens of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow that had
a priest before. 23 And
they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane,
and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. 24 And
in controversy they shall stand in judgment; and they shall judge it according
to my judgments: and they shall keep my laws and my statutes in all mine
assemblies; and they shall hallow my sabbaths. 25 And
they shall come at no dead person to defile themselves: but for father,
or for mother, or for son, or for daughter, for brother, or for sister that
hath had no husband, they may defile themselves. 26 And
after he is cleansed, they shall reckon unto him seven days. 27 And
in the day that he goeth into the sanctuary, unto the inner court, to minister
in the sanctuary, he shall offer his sin offering, saith the Lord GOD. 28 And
it shall be unto them for an inheritance: I am their inheritance: and ye
shall give them no possession in Israel: I am their possession. 29 They
shall eat the meat offering, and the sin offering, and the trespass offering:
and every dedicated thing in Israel shall be theirs. 30 And
the first of all the firstfruits of all things, and every oblation of all,
of every sort of your oblations, shall be the priest's: ye shall also give
unto the priest the first of your dough, that he may cause the blessing
to rest in thine house. 31 The
priests shall not eat of any thing that is dead of itself, or torn, whether
it be fowl or beast.