Bible Strands
Ezekiel 45:5
An adjacent area 25,000 cubits long and 10,000 cubits wide shall belong to the Levites who minister in the temple; it will be their possession for towns in which to live.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Ezekiel records a prophetic vision detailing the division of the future holy land. The text specifies the allocation of a measured territory for temple ministers.
The words — The Hebrew terms אֹ֔רֶךְ (orekh, length) and רֹ֑חַב (rochav, breadth) define the exact boundaries of the plot. The verb וְֽ/הָיָ֡ה (ve./ha.yah) establishes that the land will legally belong to the Levites.
The thread — This allocation parallels the description in Ezekiel 48:13 and connects to the broader Levitical provisions in 1 Chronicles 9:26 and Nehemiah 10:38. The text places this Levitical portion directly between the priests' holy district and the city's adjacent area.
Why it lands — The passage assigns a fixed, divinely measured territory for Levitical residence and temple service. It requires the reader to acknowledge the structured, non-negotiable provision for those who minister in the sanctuary.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And the five and twenty thousand of length, and the ten thousand of breadth, shall also the Levites, the ministers of the house, have for themselves, for a possession for twenty chambers.
Cross-references
- Ezekiel 48:13 Bordering the territory of the priests, the Levites shall have an area 25,000 cubits long and 10,000 cubits wide. The whole length will be 25,000 cubits, and the width 10,000 cubits.
- 1 Chronicles 9:26 But the four chief gatekeepers, who were Levites, were entrusted with the rooms and the treasuries of the house of God.
- Nehemiah 10:38 A priest of Aaron’s line is to accompany the Levites when they collect the tenth, and the Levites are to bring a tenth of these tithes to the storerooms of the treasury in the house of our God.
- Ezekiel 40:17 Then he brought me into the outer court, and there were chambers and a pavement laid out all around the court. Thirty chambers faced the pavement,
- Ezekiel 48:10 This will be the holy portion for the priests. It will be 25,000 cubits long on the north side, 10,000 cubits wide on the west side, 10,000 cubits wide on the east side, and 25,000 cubits long on the south side. In the center will be the sanctuary of the LORD.
- Ezekiel 48:20 The entire portion will be a square, 25,000 cubits by 25,000 cubits. You are to set apart the holy portion, along with the city property.
- 1 Corinthians 9:13 Do you not know that those who work in the temple eat of its food, and those who serve at the altar partake of its offerings?