“Then said the LORD unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter in by it; because the LORD, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut.”
Opened. No man perfectly understands the Scriptures but the Son of God, Matthew xi. 27. (St. Jerome) — This also insinuates, that Mary ever remained a pure virgin. (St. Augustine, &c.) (Worthington) — Shut, even for the prince. Some (Haydock) kings of Juda claimed the privilege of entering by it at any time, and passed through a part of the court assigned to the priests, 2 Paralipomenon vi. 12., and 4 Kings xvi. 18. This shall be no longer tolerated. The gate might be opened in the week days if the prince wished to offer sacrifice, but not else, except on the sabbaths, chap. xlvi. 1, 12. — Lord, in peace offerings and religious feasts. — Porch. Each had two doors, chap. xlvi. 2. (Calmet)
“Then brought he me the way of the north gate before the house: and I looked, and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD: and I fell upon my face.”
Face. This astonishment and attention (ver. 5.) intimate the mysteries of the Church, prefigured by the Jewish rites. (Worthington)
“And the LORD said unto me, Son of man, mark well, and behold with thine eyes, and hear with thine ears all that I say unto thee concerning all the ordinances of the house of the LORD, and all the laws thereof; and mark well the entering in of the house, with every going forth of the sanctuary. mark well: Heb. set thine heart mark well: Heb. set thine heart”
Ways, or “the going in,” and all that concerns the temple and sacrifices.
“In that ye have brought into my sanctuary strangers , uncircumcised in heart, and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to pollute it, even my house, when ye offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken my covenant because of all your abominations. strangers: Heb. children of a stranger”
Flesh. People of this description were not to enter the temple, which is here called the sanctuary, even though they adored God. In some cases pagans were admitted into any part, except the most holy. Epiphanes (Calmet) and Pompey forced their passage thither, to the great sorrow of the Jews. (Josephus, Jewish Wars i. 5.) See Ecclesiasticus lii., and Acts xxi. 28. — During the plundering of the city, the Chaldeans did the like; (Lamentations i. 10.; Haydock) and while idols were set up, all rules were neglected. — Doings. You observe the exterior, and not the spirit of religion.
“And ye have not kept the charge of mine holy things: but ye have set keepers of my charge in my sanctuary for yourselves. my charge: or, my ward, or, ordinance”
Yourselves, out of ambition, contrary to the regulations of David. (Calmet)
“And the Levites that are gone away far from me, when Israel went astray, which went astray away from me after their idols; they shall even bear their iniquity.”
Levites, or priests, (Haydock) who were seduced by Jeroboam, or offered victims on the high places, 4 Kings xxiii. 9. Such lost their privileges and were condemned to serve in the meanest offices. It seems the race of Ithamar was alone guilty, and the threat against his house was now put in execution, 1 Kings ii. 39., and iii. 14., and Leviticus xxi. 17., and 2 Esdras vii. 64. (Calmet)
“Yet they shall be ministers in my sanctuary, having charge at the gates of the house, and ministering to the house: they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister unto them.”
Slay. Levites might do this, but the priests poured the blood round the altar, ver. 15. They could not well slay all the victims.
“But the priests the Levites, the sons of Zadok, that kept the charge of my sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from me, they shall come near to me to minister unto me, and they shall stand before me to offer unto me the fat and the blood, saith the Lord GOD:”
And Levites, of the higher order. (Haydock) — No simple Levites were of this family. It enjoyed the high priesthood form the time of Solomon.
“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.”
Court; that is to do duty. — Linen. Wool might have been taken from a dead sheep, which would render the person unclean. (Calmet)
“They shall have linen bonnets upon their heads, and shall have linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with any thing that causeth sweat. with: or, in sweating places: Heb. in, or, with sweat”
Sweat, or so as to make them perspire. Septuagint, “girded violently.” (Haydock) — They must have liberty to move, (St. Jerome) and have the girdle about their breast. (Braun.)
“And when they go forth into the utter court, even into the utter court to the people, they shall put off their garments wherein they ministered, and lay them in the holy chambers, and they shall put on other garments; and they shall not sanctify the people with their garments.”
Sanctify, by exposing them to the danger of touching the sacred vestments, which none were to touch but they that were sanctified. (Challoner) — Sanctify here means to defile, Exodus xxx. 29., (Calmet) and xxix. 37. Holy things must be done in holy places. (Worthington) — Divine religion has different clothing for the ministry, from what is used in common life. (St. Jerome) (Exodus xxviii. 40.) (Calmet)
“Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they shall only poll their heads.”
Shave, like the priests of Isis. (Juvenal vi.)
“Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court.”
Wine. Leviticus x. 9. The priests on duty abstain from wine. (Josephus, Jewish Wars vi. 15.)
“Neither shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her that is put away: but they shall take maidens of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow that had a priest before. put: Heb. thrust forth that had: Heb. from a priest”
Widow. Moses laid this restraint upon the high priest, Leviticus xxi. 13. (Calmet)
“And they shall come at no dead person to defile themselves: but for father, or for mother, or for son, or for daughter, for brother, or for sister that hath had no husband, they may defile themselves.”
Unclean, attending the funeral, which inferior priests alone might do, Leviticus xxi. 10. (Menochius)
“And in the day that he goeth into the sanctuary, unto the inner court, to minister in the sanctuary, he shall offer his sin offering, saith the Lord GOD.”
Day, after the seven first, (Calmet) though this would be a new regulation. (Menochius)
“And it shall be unto them for an inheritance: I am their inheritance: and ye shall give them no possession in Israel: I am their possession.”
No. This is omitted in Hebrew, Septuagint, &c. God was their portion. (Calmet) — They had no land but what lay near their cities. (Haydock)