The Skeptics Annotated Bible (660 page)

10 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.

(44.10)
“When Israel went astray, which went astray away from me after their idols; they shall even bear their iniquity.”

11 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.

(44.11)
“They shall slay the burnt offering.”

12
Because they ministered unto them before their idols
, and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity; therefore have
I lifted up mine hand against them, saith the Lord GOD, and they shall bear their iniquity
.

(44.12)
“Because they ministered unto them before their idols … I lifted up mine hand against them, saith the Lord GOD, and they shall bear their iniquity.”

13 And they shall not come near unto me, to do the office of a priest unto me, nor to come near to any of my holy things, in the most holy place: but they shall bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed.

14 But I will make them keepers of the charge of the house, for all the service thereof, and for all that shall be done therein.

(44.15) “They shall stand before me to offer unto me the fat and the blood, saith the Lord.”

15 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:

16 They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to minister unto me, and they shall keep my charge.

(44.17-18) Priests must wear linen when they are in the sanctuary. No wool is permitted. And whatever they wear, it must not cause them to sweat. God hates sweat!

17 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.

(44.17)
“They shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them.”

18
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.

(44.18) “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.”

19 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.

20 Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they shall only poll their heads.

21 Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court.

22 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.

23 And they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.

24 And in controversy they shall stand in judgment; and they shall judge it according to my judgments: and they shall keep my laws and my statutes in all mine assemblies; and they shall hallow my sabbaths.

25 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.

26 And after he is cleansed, they shall reckon unto him seven days.

27 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.

28 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.

29 They shall eat the meat offering, and the sin offering, and the trespass offering; and every dedicated thing in Israel shall be their’s.

30 And the first of all the firstfruits of all things, and every oblation of all, of every sort of your oblations, shall be the priest’s: ye shall also give unto the priest the first of your dough, that he may cause the blessing to rest in thine house.

31 The priests shall not eat of any thing that is dead of itself, or torn, whether it be fowl or beast.

(45.1-6) More of God’s holy dimensions

45
Moreover, when ye shall divide by lot the land for inheritance, ye shall offer an oblation unto the LORD,
an holy portion of the land: the length shall be the length of five and twenty thousand reeds, and the breadth shall be ten thousand
. This shall be holy in all the borders thereof round about.

(45.1)
“An holy portion of the land: the length shall be the length of five and twenty thousand reeds, and the breadth shall be ten thousand.”

2 Of this there shall be for
the sanctuary five hundred in length, with five hundred in breadth, square round about; and fifty cubits round about for the suburbs thereof.

(45.2) “The sanctuary five hundred in length, with five hundred in breadth, square round about; and fifty cubits round about for the suburbs thereof.”

3 And
of this measure shalt thou measure the length of five and twenty thousand, and the breadth of ten thousand
: and in it shall be the sanctuary and the most holy place.

(45.3)
“Of this measure shalt thou measure the length of five and twenty thousand, and the breadth of ten thousand.”

4 The holy portion of the land shall be for the priests the ministers of the sanctuary, which shall come near to minister unto the LORD: and it shall be a place for their houses, and an holy place for the sanctuary.

5 And the
five and twenty thousand of length, and the ten thousand of breadth, shall also the Levites, the ministers of the house, have for themselves, for a possession for twenty chambers.

(45.5) “Five and twenty thousand of length, and the ten thousand of breadth shall also the Levites, the ministers of the house, have for themselves, for a possession for twenty chambers.”

6 And
ye shall appoint the possession of the city five thousand broad, and five and twenty thousand long
, over against the oblation of the holy portion: it shall be for the whole house of Israel.

(45.6)
“Ye shall appoint the possession of the city five thousand broad, and five and twenty thousand long.”

7 And a portion shall be for the prince on the one side and on the other side of the oblation of the holy portion, and of the possession of the city, before the oblation of the holy portion, and before the possession of the city, from the west side westward, and from the east side eastward: and the length shall be over against one of the portions, from the west border unto the east border.

8 In the land shall be his possession in Israel: and my princes shall no more oppress my people; and the rest of the land shall they give to the house of Israel according to their tribes.

(45.9-10) The only good verses in Ezekiel

9 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Let it suffice you, O princes of Israel:
remove violence and spoil, and execute judgment and justice, take away your exactions
from my people, saith the Lord GOD.

(45.9)
“Remove violence and spoil, and execute judgment and justice, take away your exactions.”

10
Ye shall have just balances
, and a just ephah, and a just bath.

(45.10)
“Ye shall have just balances.”

(45.11-14) God hates the metric system.

11
The ephah and the bath shall be of one measure, that the bath may contain the tenth part of an homer, and the ephah the tenth part of an homer: the measure thereof shall be after the homer.

(45.11)
“The ephah and the bath shall be of one measure, that the bath may contain the tenth part of an homer, and the ephah the tenth part of an homer: the measure thereof shall be after the homer.”

12 And
the shekel shall be twenty gerahs: twenty shekels, five and twenty shekels, fifteen shekels, shall be your maneh.

(45.12) “The shekel shall be twenty gerahs: twenty shekels, five and twenty shekels, fifteen shekels, shall be your maneh.”

13
This is the oblation that ye shall offer; the sixth part of an ephah of an homer of wheat, and ye shall give the sixth part of an ephah of an homer of barley
:

(45.13)
“This is the oblation that ye shall offer; the sixth part of an ephah of an homer of wheat, and ye shall give the sixth part of an ephah of an homer of barley.”

14 Concerning the ordinance of oil, the bath of oil,
ye shall offer the tenth part of a bath out of the cor, which is an homer of ten baths; for ten baths are an homer:

(45.14)
“Ye shall offer the tenth part of a bath out of the cor, which is an homer of ten baths; for ten baths are an homer.”

(45.15-25) How to kill animals for God