December 3rd, 2022

Greeting

Simeon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ:

To those who have received a faith equal to ours through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ.

May grace and peace be multiplied to you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

Growth in the Faith

His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. By these he has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may share in the divine nature, escaping the corruption that is in the world because of evil desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with goodness, goodness with knowledge, knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with godliness, godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being useless or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. The person who lacks these things is blind and shortsighted and has forgotten the cleansing from his past sins. Therefore, brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election, because if you do these things you will never stumble. For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you.

Therefore I will always remind you about these things, even though you know them and are established in the truth you now have. I think it is right, as long as I am in this bodily tent, to wake you up with a reminder, since I know that I will soon lay aside my tent, as our Lord Jesus Christ has indeed made clear to me. And I will also make every effort so that you are able to recall these things at any time after my departure.

The Trustworthy Prophetic Word

For we did not follow cleverly contrived myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ; instead, we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased!" We ourselves heard this voice when it came from heaven while we were with him on the holy mountain. We also have the prophetic word strongly confirmed, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you know this: No prophecy of Scripture comes from the prophet's own interpretation, because no prophecy ever came by the will of man; instead, men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

Scripture quotations have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Scripture quotations have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Then he brought me into the outer court, and there were chambers and a paved surface laid out all around the court. Thirty chambers faced the pavement, which flanked the courtyard's gates and corresponded to the length of the gates; this was the lower pavement. Then he measured the distance from the front of the lower gate to the exterior front of the inner court; it was 175 feet. This was the east; next the north is described.

He measured the gate of the outer court facing north, both its length and width. Its three recesses on each side, its jambs, and its portico had the same measurements as the first gate: 87½ feet long and 43¾ feet wide. Its windows, portico, and palm trees had the same measurements as those of the gate that faced east. Seven steps led up to the gate, and its portico was ahead of them. The inner court had a gate facing the north gate, like the one on the east. He measured the distance from gate to gate; it was 175 feet.

He brought me to the south side, and there was also a gate on the south. He measured its jambs and portico; they had the same measurements as the others. Both the gate and its portico had windows all around, like the other windows. It was 87½ feet long and 43¾ feet wide. Its stairway had seven steps, and its portico was ahead of them. It had palm trees on its jambs, one on each side. The inner court had a gate on the south. He measured from gate to gate on the south; it was 175 feet.

The Inner Gates

Then he brought me to the inner court through the south gate. When he measured the south gate, it had the same measurements as the others. Its recesses, jambs, and portico had the same measurements as the others. Both it and its portico had windows all around. It was 87½ feet long and 43¾ feet wide. (There were porticoes all around, 43¾ feet long and 8¾ feet wide.) Its portico faced the outer court, and its jambs were decorated with palm trees. Its stairway had eight steps.

Then he brought me to the inner court on the east side. When he measured the gate, it had the same measurements as the others. Its recesses, jambs, and portico had the same measurements as the others. Both it and its portico had windows all around. It was 87½ feet long and 43¾ feet wide. Its portico faced the outer court, and its jambs were decorated with palm trees on each side. Its stairway had eight steps.

Then he brought me to the north gate. When he measured it, it had the same measurements as the others, as did its recesses, jambs, and portico. It also had windows all around. It was 87½ feet long and 43¾ feet wide. Its portico faced the outer court, and its jambs were decorated with palm trees on each side. Its stairway had eight steps.

Rooms for Preparing Sacrifices

There was a chamber whose door opened into the gate's portico. The burnt offering was to be washed there. Inside the gate's portico there were two tables on each side, on which to slaughter the burnt offering, sin offering, and guilt offering. Outside, as one approaches the entrance of the north gate, there were two tables on one side and two more tables on the other side of the gate's portico. So there were four tables inside the gate and four outside, eight tables in all on which the slaughtering was to be done. There were also four tables of cut stone for the burnt offering, each 31½ inches long, 31½ inches wide, and 21 inches high. The utensils used to slaughter the burnt offerings and other sacrifices were placed on them. There were three-inch hooks fastened all around the inside of the room, and the flesh of the offering was to be laid on the tables.

Rooms for Singers and Priests

Outside the inner gate, within the inner court, there were chambers for the singers: one beside the north gate, facing south, and another beside the south gate, facing north. Then the man said to me, "This chamber that faces south is for the priests who keep charge of the temple. The chamber that faces north is for the priests who keep charge of the altar. These are the sons of Zadok, the ones from the sons of Levi who may approach the Lord to serve him." Next he measured the court. It was square, 175 feet long and 175 feet wide. The altar was in front of the temple.

Then he brought me to the portico of the temple and measured the jambs of the portico; they were 8¾ feet thick on each side. The width of the gate was 24½ feet, and the side walls of the gate were 5¼ feet wide on each side. The portico was 35 feet across and 21 feet deep, and 10 steps led up to it. There were pillars by the jambs, one on each side.

Inside the Temple

Next he brought me into the great hall and measured the jambs; on each side the width of the jamb was 10½ feet. The width of the entrance was 17½ feet, and the side walls of the entrance were 8¾ feet wide on each side. He also measured the length of the great hall, 70 feet, and the width, 35 feet. He went inside the next room and measured the jambs at the entrance; they were 3½ feet wide. The entrance was 10½ feet wide, and the width of the entrance's side walls on each side was 12¼ feet. He then measured the length of the room adjacent to the great hall, 35 feet, and the width, 35 feet. And he said to me, "This is the most holy place."

Outside the Temple

Then he measured the wall of the temple; it was 10½ feet thick. The width of the side rooms all around the temple was 7 feet. The side rooms were arranged one above another in three stories of thirty rooms each. There were ledges on the wall of the temple all around to serve as supports for the side rooms, so that the supports would not be in the temple wall itself. The side rooms surrounding the temple widened at each successive story, for the structure surrounding the temple went up by stages. This was the reason for the temple's broadness as it rose. And so, one would go up from the lowest story to the highest by means of the middle one.

I saw that the temple had a raised platform surrounding it; this foundation for the side rooms was 10½ feet high. The thickness of the outer wall of the side rooms was 8¾ feet. The free space between the side rooms of the temple and the outer chambers was 35 feet wide all around the temple. The side rooms opened into the free space, one entrance toward the north and another to the south. The area of free space was 8¾ feet wide all around.

Now the building that faced the temple yard toward the west was 122½ feet wide. The wall of the building was 8¾ feet thick on all sides, and the building's length was 157½ feet.

Then the man measured the temple; it was 175 feet long. In addition, the temple yard and the building, including its walls, were 175 feet long. The width of the front of the temple along with the temple yard to the east was 175 feet. Next he measured the length of the building facing the temple yard to the west, with its galleries on each side; it was 175 feet.

Interior Wooden Structures

The interior of the great hall and the porticoes of the court— the thresholds, the beveled windows, and the balconies all around with their three levels opposite the threshold—were overlaid with wood on all sides. They were paneled from the ground to the windows (but the windows were covered), reaching to the top of the entrance, and as far as the inner temple and on the outside. On every wall all around, on the inside and outside, was a pattern carved with cherubim and palm trees. There was a palm tree between each pair of cherubim. Each cherub had two faces: a human face turned toward the palm tree on one side, and a lion's face turned toward it on the other. They were carved throughout the temple on all sides. Cherubim and palm trees were carved from the ground to the top of the entrance and on the wall of the great hall.

The doorposts of the great hall were square, and the front of the sanctuary had the same appearance. The altar was made of wood, 5¼ feet high and 3½ feet long. It had corners, and its length and sides were of wood. The man told me, "This is the table that stands before the Lord."

The great hall and the sanctuary each had a double door, and each of the doors had two swinging panels. There were two panels for one door and two for the other. Cherubim and palm trees were carved on the doors of the great hall like those carved on the walls. There was a wooden canopy outside, in front of the portico. There were beveled windows and palm trees on both sides, on the side walls of the portico, the side rooms of the temple, and the canopies.

Scripture quotations have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.