Ezekiel 44:3

Ezekiel 44:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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.
• New International Version (NIV)The prince himself is the only one who may sit inside the gateway to eat in the presence of the Lord. He is to enter by way of the portico of the gateway and go out the same way.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Only the prince may sit in it to eat bread before the Lord. He shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gate, and shall go out by the same way."
• New King James Version (NKJV)As for the prince, because he is the prince, he may sit in it to eat bread before the Lord; he shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway, and go out the same way.”

Context of Ezekiel 44:3

1Then He brought me back by the way of the outer gate of the sanctuary, which faces the east; and it was shut. 2Then the Lord said to me, “This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it, for the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered by it; therefore it shall be shut. As for the prince, he shall sit in it as prince to eat bread before the Lord; he shall enter by way of the porch (portico) of the gate and shall go out the same way.” 4Then He brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the house; I looked, and behold, the glory and brilliance of the Lord filled the house of the Lord, and I fell face downward. 5The Lord said to me, “Son of man, pay careful attention, see with your eyes and hear with your ears all that I say to you concerning all the statutes of the house of the Lord and all its laws; and pay careful attention to the entering of the house [by people], with all the departures from the sanctuary [of people, those who are allowed to enter the temple and all those who are excluded from the sanctuary].

Ezekiel 44:3 word by word

אֶֽת־הַנָּשִׂ֗יא נָ֥שִׂיא ה֛וּא יֵֽשֶׁב־בּ֥וֹ לֶאֱכָל לֶ֖חֶם לִפְנֵ֣י יְהוָ֑ה מִדֶּ֨רֶךְ אֻלָ֤ם הַשַּׁ֙עַר֙ יָב֔וֹא וּמִדַּרְכּ֖וֹ יֵצֵֽא׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• for the princeנָשִׂיאnâώîy' nâώi' · leaderH5387
• he shall sitיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
• in it to eatאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
• breadלֶ֫חֶםlechem · food: breadH3899
• beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• he shall enterבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• by the wayדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: roadH1870
• of the porchאוּלָם'ûlâm 'ûlâm · PorticoH197
• gateשַׁ֫עַרsha‛ar · gateH8179
• and shall go outיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318

Cross-references for Ezekiel 44:3

• Ezekiel 46:2The prince shall enter by the porch (portico) of the gate from outside and stand by the post of the gate. The priests shall prepare and provide his burnt offering and his peace offerings, and he shall worship at the threshold of the gate and then go out; but the gate shall not be shut until evening.
• 2 Chronicles 23:13She looked, and there was the [young] king, standing by his pillar at the entrance, and the captains and the trumpeters were beside him. And all the people of the land were rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and the singers with their musical instruments were directing the [singing of] praise. Then Athaliah tore her clothes and cried, “Treason! Treason!”
• 2 Chronicles 34:31Then the king stood in his place and made a covenant before the Lord—to walk after (obey) the Lord, and to keep His commandments, His testimonies, and His statutes with all his heart and with all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant written in this book.
• Ezekiel 45:22On that day the prince shall provide for himself and for all the people of the land a bull for a sin offering.
• Ezekiel 45:8This shall be his land for a possession in Israel; so My princes shall no longer oppress My people, but they shall give the rest of the land to the house of Israel according to their tribes.”
• Ezekiel 46:18Moreover, the prince shall not take from the people’s inheritance by oppression and by evicting them from their property; he shall give his sons an inheritance from his own possession, so that My people will not be scattered, anyone from his possession.” ’ ”
• Ezekiel 34:24And I the Lord will be their God, and My servant David will be a prince among them; I the Lord have spoken.
• Ezekiel 37:25They will live in the land where your fathers lived, [the land] that I gave to My servant Jacob, and they will live there, they and their children and their children’s children, forever; and My servant David will be their leader forever.
• Zechariah 6:12Then say to Joshua, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Behold (look, keep in sight, watch), a Man (Messiah) whose name is Branch, for He shall branch out from His place (Israel, the Davidic line); and He shall build the [ultimate] temple of the Lord.
• Genesis 31:54Then Jacob offered a sacrifice [to the Lord] on the mountain, and called his relatives to the meal; and they ate food and spent the night on the mountain.
• Exodus 24:9Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up [the mountainside],
• Deuteronomy 12:7And there you and your households shall eat before the Lord your God, and rejoice in all to which you put your hand, in which the Lord your God has blessed you.
• Isaiah 23:18But her commercial gain and her prostitute’s wages will be dedicated to the Lord; it will not be treasured or stored up, but her commercial gain will become sufficient food and stately clothing for those who dwell (minister) in the presence of the Lord.
• Isaiah 62:9But they who have harvested it will eat it and praise the Lord, And they who have gathered it will drink it [at the feasts celebrated] in the courtyards of My sanctuary.
• 1 Corinthians 10:18Consider the people of Israel; are those who eat the sacrifices not partners of the altar [united in their worship of the same God]? [Indeed they are.]
• Revelation 3:20Behold, I stand at the door [of the church] and continually knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him (restore him), and he with Me.

Commentaries on Ezekiel 44:3

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3The prince - Foretold under the name of David Ezekiel 34:24. The rabbis understood this to be the Messiah. To eat bread - See Leviticus 2:3; Leviticus 24:9; according to the old Law these feasts belonged only to the priests; none of the rest of the congregation, not even the king, might partake of them. The new system gives to the “prince” a privilege which he did not before possess; the prince, as the representative of the Messiah, standing in a higher…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3The prince had the special privilege of being the only one allowed to feast in the Lord’s presence inside the east outer gateway. However, he could only enter and leave the portico from the outer court. He was not to enter from outside the temple complex through the gate, as the Lord had. The earthly ruler is a man, not God, and he must submit to God. The prince must also remember that the temple is God’s palace, not his own private chapel.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. the prince--not King Messiah, as He never would offer a burnt offering for Himself, as the prince is to do (Eze 46:4). The prince must mean the civil ruler under Messiah. His connection with the east gate (by which the Lord had returned to His temple) implies, that, as ruling under God, he is to stand in a place of peculiar nearness to God. He represents Messiah, who entered heaven, the true sanctuary, by a way that none other could, namely, by His own…Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• Atonement, Day of
• Criticism
• Desire of All Nations
• Ezekiel
• Leviticus
• Priests and Levites
• Temple

Commentaries on Ezekiel 44

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings