Ezekiel 8:5

8:5 He said to me, “Son of man, look up toward ¹  the north.” So I looked up toward the north, and I noticed to the north of the altar gate was this statue of jealousy at the entrance.

Ezekiel 8:16

8:16 Then he brought me to the inner court of the Lord’s house. Right there ²  at the entrance to the Lord’s temple, between the porch and the altar, ³  were about twenty-five ⁴  men with their backs to the Lord’s temple, ⁵  facing east – they were worshiping the sun ⁶  toward the east!

Ezekiel 41:22

41:22 The altar was of wood, 5¼ feet ⁷  high, with its length 3½ feet; ⁸  its corners, its length, ⁹  and its walls were of wood. He said to me, “This is the table that is before the Lord.”

Ezekiel 43:18

43:18 Then he said to me: “Son of man, this is what the sovereign Lord says: These are the statutes of the altar: On the day it is built to offer up burnt offerings on it and to sprinkle blood on it, ¹⁰ 

Ezekiel 43:27

43:27 When the prescribed period is over, ¹¹  on the eighth day and thereafter the priests will offer up on the altar your burnt offerings and your peace offerings; ¹²  I will accept you, declares the sovereign Lord.”

¹ tn Heb “lift your eyes (to) the way of.”

² tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) indicates becoming aware of something.

³ sn The priests prayed to God between the porch and the altar on fast days (Joel 2:17). This is the location where Zechariah was murdered (Matt 23:35).

⁴ tc The LXX reads “twenty” instead of twenty-five, perhaps because of the association of the number twenty with the Mesopotamian sun god Shamash.

⁵ sn The temple faced east.

⁶ tn Or “the sun god.”

³ tn Heb “three cubits” (i.e., 1.575 meters).

⁴ tn Heb “two cubits” (i.e., 1.05 meters).

⁵ tc So the Masoretic text. The LXX reads “base.”

⁴ sn For the “sprinkling of blood,” see Lev 1:5, 11; 8:19; 9:12.

⁵ tn Heb “and they will complete the days.”

⁶ sn The people also could partake of the food of the peace offering (Lev 3).