Ezekiel 44:17
in Ezekiel 44When they enter the gates of the inner court, they are to wear linen garments; they must not wear anything made of wool when they minister at the gates of the inner court or inside the temple.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And it shall be that, when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, while they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.
KJV
And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, whiles they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.
⋯
This verse in Ezekiel 44
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Regulations as to the priests’ services. The garments of the priests are defined and various rules prescribed in the Law are repeated with some additions in order to denote additional care to avoid uncleanness. Eze 44:18 The material of which the four vestments of the ordinary priest were made was “linen,” or, more accurately, “byssus,” the cotton stuff of Egypt. The two special qualities of the byssus - white and shining - are characteristic, and on them part of the symbolic meaning depended. Compare Rev 19:
This site's exposition
they are to wear linen garments
on Ezekiel 44:17-19
The priests who minister in the inner court wear linen, with no wool or anything “that makes them perspire.” Before going out to the people they leave their garments “in the holy chambers.” The aim is “so that they do not transmit holiness to the people with their garments.”
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verses 17 onwards) And when they enter the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments (or robes); they shall not wear anything made of wool (or they shall not wear garments made of wool) when they minister at the gates of the inner court and inside. Linen turbans shall be on their heads (or they shall have linen turbans on their heads) and linen undergarments shall be around their waists, and they shall not be bound in sweat (or forced).
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And they must dress themselves clean and sweet, and avoid every thing that was sweaty and filthy, to signify the purity of mind with which the service of God is to be attended to. Sweat came in with sin and was part of the curse.
And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
No wool shall come upon them - The reason is plain; wool is more apt than linen to contract dirt and breed insects; linen breeds none; besides, this is a vegetable, and the other an animal substance. It was an ancient maxim, that whatever was taken from a dead body was impure in matters of religion, and should not be permitted to enter into the temple. The Egyptian priests always wore linen on their bodies, and shoes of matting or rushes on their feet. The Mohammedans never write the Koran upon vellum or skin of any kind, as they would consider that as a defilement.
The words behind it
18 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְהָיָ֗ה | vehayah | and it will be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| בְּבוֹאָם֙ | bevoam | when come they | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אֶֽל־ | ʾel- | into | H413 → | 5510 times |
| שַׁעֲרֵי֙ | shaarei | [the] gates of | H8179 → | 374 times |
| הֶחָצֵ֣ר | hechatzer | the courtyard | H2691 → | 191 times |
| הַפְּנִימִ֔ית | hapenimit | <the> inner | H6442 → | 32 times |
| בִּגְדֵ֥י | bigdei | clothes of | H899 → | 217 times |
| פִשְׁתִּ֖ים | fishtim | linen<s> | H6593 → | 16 times |
| יִלְבָּ֑שׁוּ | yilbashu | they will be clothed | H3847 → | 110 times |
| וְלֹֽא־ | velo'- | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יַעֲלֶ֤ה | yaaleh | it will go up | H5927 → | 890 times |
| עֲלֵיהֶם֙ | ʾaleihem | on them | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| צֶ֔מֶר | tzemer | wool | H6785 → | 16 times |
| בְּשָֽׁרְתָ֗ם | besharetam | when serve they | H8334 → | 97 times |
| בְּשַׁעֲרֵ֛י | beshaarei | at [the] gates of | H8179 → | 374 times |
| הֶחָצֵ֥ר | hechatzer | the courtyard | H2691 → | 191 times |
| הַפְּנִימִ֖ית | hapenimit | <the> inner | H6442 → | 32 times |
| וָבָֽיְתָה׃ | vavayetah | and [the] inside towards | H1004 → | 2046 times |
וְהָיָ֗הand it will be
vehayahH1961 →3559 times
בְּבוֹאָם֙when come they
bevoamH935 →2568 times
אֶֽל־into
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
שַׁעֲרֵי֙[the] gates of
shaareiH8179 →374 times
הֶחָצֵ֣רthe courtyard
hechatzerH2691 →191 times
הַפְּנִימִ֔ית<the> inner
hapenimitH6442 →32 times
בִּגְדֵ֥יclothes of
bigdeiH899 →217 times
פִשְׁתִּ֖יםlinen<s>
fishtimH6593 →16 times
יִלְבָּ֑שׁוּthey will be clothed
yilbashuH3847 →110 times
וְלֹֽא־and not
velo'-H3808 →5168 times
יַעֲלֶ֤הit will go up
yaalehH5927 →890 times
עֲלֵיהֶם֙on them
ʾaleihemH5921 →5755 times
צֶ֔מֶרwool
tzemerH6785 →16 times
בְּשָֽׁרְתָ֗םwhen serve they
besharetamH8334 →97 times
בְּשַׁעֲרֵ֛יat [the] gates of
beshaareiH8179 →374 times
הֶחָצֵ֥רthe courtyard
hechatzerH2691 →191 times
הַפְּנִימִ֖ית<the> inner
hapenimitH6442 →32 times
וָבָֽיְתָה׃and [the] inside towards
vavayetahH1004 →2046 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Revelation 19:8She was given clothing of fine linen, bright and pure.” For the fine linen she wears is the righteous acts of the saints.
it leads to
- Isaiah 61:10
I will rejoice greatly in the LORD, my soul will exult in my God; for He has clothed me with garments of salvation and wrapped me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom…
- Revelation 7:13–14
Then one of the elders addressed me: “These in white robes,” he asked, “who are they, and where have they come from?”
- Psalms 132:9
May Your priests be clothed with righteousness, and Your saints shout for joy.
- Ephesians 5:26–27
to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,
- Mark 9:3
His clothes became radiantly white, brighter than any launderer on earth could bleach them.
- Isaiah 61:10
Through
Revelation 4:4Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and on these thrones sat twenty-four elders dressed in white, with golden crowns on their heads.
it leads to
- Matthew 19:28
Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, in the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on His glorious throne, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve…
- Revelation 11:16
And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God,
- Revelation 4:10
the twenty-four elders fall down before the One seated on the throne, and they worship Him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying:
- Matthew 19:28
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Ezekiel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Ezekiel; Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.