God’s Word Translation
Ezekiel 44:16
16They may enter my holy place, come near my table to serve me, and take care of everything I gave them.
Ezekiel 44:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to minister unto me, and they shall keep my charge.
- New International Version (NIV)They alone are to enter my sanctuary; they alone are to come near my table to minister before me and serve me as guards.
- English Standard Version (ESV)They shall enter my sanctuary, and they shall approach my table, to minister to me, and they shall keep my charge.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“They shall enter My sanctuary, and they shall come near My table to minister to Me, and they shall keep My charge.
Context of Ezekiel 44:16
14I will assign them all of the less important work in the temple. 15“ ‘But the priests who are Levites and descendants of Zadok took care of my holy place when the Israelites wandered away from me. They may come near me and serve me, and they may stand in my presence. They may bring fat and blood to me, declares the Almighty Lord. They may enter my holy place, come near my table to serve me, and take care of everything I gave them. 17When they enter the gateways to the inner courtyard, they must wear linen clothes. They must have no wool on them while they serve in the gateways to the inner courtyard and in the temple. 18They must wear linen turbans on their heads and linen undergarments. They must not wear anything that makes them sweat.
Read all of Ezekiel 44Ezekiel 44:16 word by word
הֵ֜מָּה יָבֹ֣אוּ אֶל־מִקְדָּשִׁ֗י וְהֵ֛מָּה יִקְרְב֥וּ אֶל־שֻׁלְחָנִ֖י לְשָׁרְתֵ֑נִי וְשָׁמְר֖וּ אֶת־מִשְׁמַרְתִּֽי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- They shall enterבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- into my sanctuaryמִקְדָּשׁmiqdâsh miqqedâsh · sanctuaryH4720
- and they shall come nearקָרַבqârab · to present: comeH7126
- to my tableשֻׁלְחָןshûlchân · tableH7979
- to ministerשָׁרַתshârath · to ministerH8334
- unto me, and they shall keepשָׁמַרshâmar · to keep: obeyH8104
- my chargeמִשְׁמֶ֫רֶתmishmereth · chargeH4931
Cross-references for Ezekiel 44:16
- Revelation 1:6and has made us a kingdom, priests for God his Father. Amen.
- Ezekiel 41:22There was a wooden altar, 5 feet high and 3½ feet wide. Its corners, its base, and its sides were made of wood. Then the man told me, “This is the table that is in the presence of the Lord.”
- Malachi 1:7“You offer contaminated food on my altar. “But you ask, ‘Then how have we contaminated you?’ “When you say that the Lord’s table may be despised.
- Numbers 18:7Only you and your sons may do the work of priests—everything done at the altar and under the canopy. This is my gift to you: You may serve me as priests. Anyone else who comes near ⌞the holy place to do this work⌟ must die.”
- Deuteronomy 33:8About the tribe of Levi he said, “Your Thummim and Urim belong to your faithful people. You tested your people at Massah. You quarreled with them at the oasis of Meribah.
Commentaries on Ezekiel 44:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Come near to my table - To place the shew-bread there, and to burn incense on the golden altar in the holy of holies.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4-16Verses 4-16 Admonition to the ministering priests, grounded upon former neglect. Ezekiel 44:4 The north gate before the house - The north gate of the inner court. God expostulates with His people in the seat of their former idolatries Ezekiel 8:3. Ezekiel 44:5 Mark well - The careful arrangements made had all been intended to keep the temple and its surroundings from profanation. Hence, attention to these particulars is enjoined. Ezekiel 44:7 Strangers…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15-16Unlike the Levites and others who turned to idols, the Levitical priests from Zadok's family stayed loyal to the Lord. Zadok was the high priest during Solomon's time. His family was rewarded with access to the inner courtyard to perform important sacrifices closer to God. These chapters often highlight that those who were faithful in the past would be rewarded with closer access to God and more privileges, while the unfaithful would remain farther away.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-312. shut ... not be opened--(Job 12:14; Is 22:22; Re 3:7). "Shut" to the people (Ex 19:21, 22), but open to "the prince" (Eze 44:3), he holding the place of God in political concerns, as the priests do in spiritual. As a mark of respect to an Eastern monarch, the gate by which he enters is thenceforth shut to all other persons (compare Ex 19:24).Read the comment
In the dictionaries
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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
Commentaries