Description
06-Design of the Gates
This section of our schematics titled Geometry begins with the design of the south and north gateways (40:40) of the Temple which are the first two pictures. These gateways are 100 cubits in length and 10 cubits in width passageways of the south and north inner court gates through the south and north walls of the Inner Court. One of the interesting properties of the Temple is that its walls often contain complex architectural structures. We learn from Ezekiel 42:3 that the walls of the Inner Court extend as far west as the length of the separate areas separating the Inner Temple from the outer chambers (Ezekiel 40:14, 41:9-10). This length includes the utensil areas on the east of both gateways (E1/south and F/north) and the singers’ chambers on the west of both gateways. On the south side of the Temple there are the southern porches (cafeteria) of Ezekiel 40:30 and its utensil area labeled E, and on the north side there is the chamber of Ezekiel 40:38 which is the butcher’s chamber. For a complete description of the structures of the first two pictures please purchase this section of schematics and take the ”Introduction and Approach to the Temple” and “Temple Tour” teachings in the Millennial Temple Expedition.
The best pictures of the southern porches which compose the cafeteria for the Zadokian priests include 13, 19, 20, 21, and 48 in our 3-D Gallery section. The only 3-D picture of a utensil area is picture 22. There are three utensil areas. Picture 22 shows the one next to the cafeteria located on the south side of the Temple.
Picture 27 of the Gallery shows the doorway of 40:38 in 3-D that opens into the butcher’s chamber from the north gateway. Picture 29 shows the inside of the butcher’s chamber where the priests rinse the burnt offering.
Further to the west of both Gateways the walls of the Inner Court contain a significant portion of the Zadokian chambers which are the chambers facing the Nave or Main Room (2020 NASB translation) of 42:8. Note that the measurement of 40:19 from the front of the lower gate to the exterior wall of the Inner Court of 100 cubits on the east and on the north is satisfied, the lower gate being the passageway through the 6-cubits wide wall of 40:5. Remember, since the gates of the outer court face inward toward the Inner Temple, the fronts of the lower gates (which is also the entrance gate of 40:15) begin at the rears of the inner thresholds of the outer court gates labeled A, which begin at the inside wall of the wall of 40:5.
Finally, the value of our Logo can be appreciated in these two pictures and all the remaining pictures in our Geometry Section. Notice within the Logo the red rectangles. They outline the geometric structures we are examining in relation to the Modular Temple as a whole.
It is beyond our scope in these brief descriptions to provide in complete detail the reasoning behind the design of the gates, but we will discuss a few of the important design features that all the gates in this section have in common. All the gates of the Temple in this section of schematics are located on the outer court. The outer court gates are located on the lower pavement of the outer court. The inner court gates are located on the upper pavement of the outer court. Their descriptions begin at Ezekiel 40:5 and run through Ezekiel 40:46.
The gates of the outer court that are located on the lower pavement face inward which means that the front of each gate is nearest the Inner Temple and the rear of each gate is furthest away. The gates of the Inner Court face outward away from the Inner Temple which means that the beginning of each gate which is its rear is closest to the Inner Temple and its front is furthest away. Since our gates are 50 cubits long, if we take our gate-to-gate measurements from the rears of the outer court gates on the lower pavement to the rears of the inner court gates on the upper pavement, we get 100 cubits. This satisfies the gate-to-gate measurements of 40:23 and 40:27 of 100 cubits.
We are sure that you have noticed by now that our outer court gates kiss our inner court gates and that they are mirror images of each other. Although this is an incredibly beautiful and elegant design, there is an important functional reason for this. The public will have no access to the Temple other than on the sabbaths, new moons, and feasts. Their traffic pattern for entering and exiting the Temple is outlined in Ezekiel 46:8-11 and each person will have only about four minutes of worship time at the doorway of the east inner court gate before exiting the Temple. This traffic pattern is outlined above in the final picture of the Temple Layout of 04. The public will always be under the watchful eyes of the ministers of the Temple occupying the guardrooms, who will never allow them to stray from the prescribed traffic pattern. Primarily, the Temple is a private residence and private property. It is the House of the Lord Jesus Christ where He will rule as King and High Priest over the whole earth for one thousand years, i.e., the Millennium.
The next picture is that of the East Inner Court Gate and East Outer Court Gate. We included the wall of 40:5 and the stone wall of 42:10 in this picture. Strictly speaking, these walls are not a part of the gate, but we nevertheless thought it would be good to include the outer wall of the Temple in one of the gates and also the stone part of the wall of the east inner court gate. The passageway through the outer wall is labeled P in the schematic. It is the entrance gate of 40:15 and the lower gate of 40:19. The width of this wall is 6-cubits (10.5 feet). All the measurements and features of this gate can be seen in the layout. Jesus will make His grand entrance into His House through this gate. Its outer door will then be permanently closed, although we assume that He could open it whenever He wants to. King David will have meals with Jesus in its 8-cubits wide (14 feet), 6-cubits long (10.5 feet) porch labeled B located on the lower pavement throughout the Millennium. It will function as a private dining room. To see this gate in 3-dimensions please examine the 3-dimensional pictures of it in our Gallery section. Pictures 15, 16, 23, 25, 26, 48, and 60 are the best.
The next picture shows the South Inner Court Gate and South Outer Court Gate. It is the gate through which all the visitors and dignitaries visiting the House will enter by. They will be housed and entertained in the Guest Quarters of the House located immediately behind and to the west of the Inner Temple. To see this gate in 3-dimensions please examine the 3-dimensional pictures of it in our Gallery section. Pictures 28 and 48 are the best.
The final picture (fifth picture) of this section shows the North Inner Court Gate and North Outer Court Gate. It contains the eight tables of sacrifice whose description begins at Ezekiel 40:38 and ends at 40:43. The tables of sacrifice are located within the north inner court gate. The tables for slaughtering the small animals occupy the porch of the gate which is 6 x 8 cubits or 10.5 x 14 feet, L x W. There are four of them. The tables for slaughtering the large animals occupy the 13 x 10 cubits (22.75 x 17.5 feet, L x W) gateway identical to the dimensions of the gateway of the east outer court gate that is described in 40:11. There are four of them. In order to see all the dimensions of these tables and exactly how they fit into the porch and gateway of this gate please purchase this section of the schematics. To see this gate in 3-dimensions please examine the 3-dimensional pictures of it in our Gallery section. Pictures 17, 18, 24, and 27 are the best.