The Land Is Divided

45 “‘When you divide the land for the Israelite tribes by throwing lots, you must give a part of the land to belong to the Lord. It will be ·about seven miles [^Ltwenty-five thousand cubits] long and ·about six miles [^Ltwenty thousand cubits] wide; all of this land will be holy. ² From this land, an area ·eight hundred seventy-five feet [^Lfive hundred cubits] square will be for the ·Temple [sanctuary]. There will be an open space around the Temple that is ·eighty-seven and one-half feet [^Lfifty cubits] wide. ³ In the holy area you will measure a part ·about seven miles [^Ltwenty-five thousand cubits] long and ·three miles wide [^Lten thousand cubits], and in it will be the sanctuary, the Most Holy Place. ⁴ This ·holy part [sacred portion] of the land will be for the priests who ·serve [minister] in the ·Temple [sanctuary], who come near to the Lord to ·serve [minister to] him. It will be a place for the priests’ houses and ·for the Temple [^La holy place for the sanctuary]. ⁵ Another area ·about seven miles [^Ltwenty-five thousand cubits] long and ·three miles wide [^Lten thousand cubits] will be for the Levites, who ·serve [minister] in the Temple area. It will belong to them so they will have cities in which to live.

⁶ “‘You must give the city an area that is ·about one and one-half miles [^Lfive thousand cubits] wide and ·about seven miles [^Ltwenty-five thousand cubits] long, along the side of the holy area. It will belong to all the ·people [^Lhouse] of Israel.

⁷ “‘The ·ruler [prince] will have land on both sides of the holy ·area [allotment; contribution] and the city. On the west of the holy area, his land will reach to the eastern border [^Capparently the Mediterranean Sea]. On the east of the holy area, his land will reach to the eastern border [^Cof the country]. It will be as long as the land given to each tribe. ⁸ Only this land will be the ruler’s ·property [possession] in Israel. So my rulers will not ·be cruel to [oppress] my people anymore [^Csuch a large portion would keep the king from wanting to seize land, as Ahab had done (1 Kin. 21); see v. 9], but they will let each tribe in the ·nation [^Lhouse] of Israel have its share of the land.

⁹ “‘This is what the Lord God says: ·You have gone far enough [Enough!], you ·rulers [princes] of Israel! Stop ·being cruel and hurting people [your violence and oppression], and do what is right and ·fair [just]. Stop ·forcing my people out of their homes [evicting my people], says the Lord God. ¹⁰ You must have ·honest [just] scales, an ·honest [just] ·dry measurement [^Lephah] and an ·honest [just] ·liquid measurement [^Lbath]. ¹¹ The dry measure [^Lephah] and the liquid measure [^Lbath] will be the same: The ·liquid measure [^Lbath] will always be a tenth of a homer [^C the Hebrew means “donkey-load,” and was about five bushels of dry measure and 55 gallons of liquid measure], and the dry measure [^Lephah] will always be a tenth of a homer. The ·measurement they follow [standard measure] will be the homer. ¹² The shekel [^Ccoin weighing about two-fifths of an ounce] will be worth twenty gerahs, and a mina will be worth ·sixty shekels [^Ltwenty shekels and twenty-five shekels and fifteen shekels].

Offerings and Holy Days

¹³ “‘This is the ·gift [offering] you should offer: a sixth of an ephah [v. 11] from every homer [v. 11] of wheat, and a sixth of an ephah from every homer of barley. ¹⁴ The amount of oil you are to offer is a tenth of a bath [v. 11] from each cor. (Ten baths make a homer and also make a cor.) ¹⁵ You should give one sheep from each flock of two hundred from the watering places of Israel. All these are to be offered for the ·grain [^Lgift; tribute] offerings [Lev. 2:1], burnt offerings [Lev. 1:1–17], and ·fellowship [or peace; well-being] offerings [Lev. 3:1] to ·remove the sins of [make atonement for] the people, says the Lord God. ¹⁶ All people in the land will give this special offering to the ·ruler [prince] of Israel. ¹⁷ It will be the ·ruler’s [prince’s] responsibility to supply the burnt offerings [Lev. 1:1–17], ·grain [^Lgift; tribute] offerings [Lev. 2:1], and drink offerings. These offerings will be given at the ·feasts [appointed festivals], at the New Moons, on the Sabbaths, and at all the other feasts of [^Lthe house of] Israel. He will supply the ·sin [or purification] offerings [Lev. 4:3], ·grain [^Lgift; tribute] offerings, and ·fellowship [or peace; well-being] offerings [Lev. 3:1] to pay for the sins of [^Lthe house of] Israel.

¹⁸ “‘This is what the Lord God says: On the first day of the first month take a young bull ·that has nothing wrong with it [without blemish/defect]. Use it to ·make the Temple pure and ready for God’s service [^Lpurify the sanctuary]. ¹⁹ The priest will take some of the blood from this ·sin [or purification] offering [Lev. 4:3] and put it on the doorposts of the ·Temple [^Lhouse], on the four corners of the ledge of the altar, and on the posts of the gate to the inner courtyard. ²⁰ You will do the same thing on the seventh day of the month for anyone who has sinned ·by accident [unintentionally] or ·without knowing it [through ignorance]. This is how you make ·the Temple pure and ready for God’s service [^Latonement for the house].

Passover Feast Offerings

²¹ “‘On the fourteenth day of the first month you will celebrate the Feast of Passover [Ex. 12:1–20; Lev. 23:4–8; Num. 28:16–25; Deut. 16:1–5]. It will be a feast of seven days when you eat ·bread made without yeast [unleavened bread]. ²² On that day the ·ruler [prince] ·must offer [will provide] a bull for himself and for all the people of the land as a ·sin [or purification] offering [Lev. 4:3]. ²³ During the seven days of the feast he ·must offer [will provide] seven bulls and seven ·male sheep [rams] ·that have nothing wrong with them [without blemish/defect]. They will be burnt offerings [Lev. 1:1–17] to the Lord, which the ruler will offer every day of the seven days of the feast. He must also offer a male goat every day as a ·sin [or purification] offering [Lev. 4:3]. ²⁴ The ruler ·must give [will provide] as a ·grain [^Lgift; tribute] offering [Lev. 2:1] ·one-half bushel [^Lan ephah; v. 11] for each bull and ·one-half bushel [^Lan ephah] for each sheep. He must give a ·gallon [^Lhin] of olive oil for each half bushel.

²⁵ “‘Beginning on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you celebrate the ·Feast of Shelters [^LFeast/Festival; Lev. 23:33–44; Num. 28:12–40], the ruler will supply the same ·things [provisions] for seven days: the ·sin [or purification] offerings [Lev. 4:3], burnt offerings [Lev. 1:1–17], ·grain [^Lgift; tribute] offerings [Lev. 2:1], and the olive oil.