1Then he ¹²⁵brought me back to the derech sha'ar HaMikdash HaKhitzon, which looketh toward the east; and it was shut.

2Then said Hashem unto me: This sha'ar shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no ish shall enter in by it; because Hashem Elohei Yisroel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut.

3It is for the Nasi; the Nasi, ¹²⁶he only shall sit in it to eat lechem before Hashem; he shall enter by the derech ulam hasha'ar, and shall exit by its derech.

4Then he ¹²⁷brought me the derech sha'ar hatzafon to the front of the Beis; ¹²⁸and I looked, and, hinei, the Kavod Hashem filled the Beis Hashem; and I fell upon my face.

5And Hashem said unto me, Ben Adam, mark well, and behold with thine eyes, and hear with thine ears all that I say unto thee concerning all the chukkot Beis Hashem, and all the torot thereof; and mark well the entrances of the Beis, ¹²⁹with every exit of the Mikdash.

6And thou shalt say to the meri (rebellious), even to the Bais Yisroel, Thus saith Adonoi Hashem; O ye Bais Yisroel, let it suffice you of all your to'avot (abominations),

7In that ye have admitted into My Mikdash bnei nechor (foreigners), arelim in lev, and arelim in basar, to be in My Mikdash, to defile it, even My Beis, when ye offer My lechem, the chelev and the dahm, and they have broken My Brit (Covenant) because of all your to'avot (abominations).

8And ye have not been shomer over the mishmeret of Mine Kadashim; but ye have set as shomrim of My mishmeret in My Mikdash any for yourselves.

9Thus saith Adonoi Hashem: No ben nechor, arel lev, nor arel basar, shall enter into My Mikdash, of any ben nechor that is among the Bnei Yisroel.

10And the Levi'im that went far away from Me, when Yisroel went astray, which went astray away from Me after their gillulim (idols); they shall even bear their avon.

11Yet they shall be mesharetim (ministers) in My Mikdash, pekuddot (the ones who have charge) at the Sha'arei HaBeis ¹³⁰and mesharetim in HaBeis; ¹³¹they shall do the shochet slaughter of the olah (burnt offering) and the zevach for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister unto them.

12Because they ministered unto them before their gillulim, and caused Bais Yisroel a michshol avon; therefore have I lifted up Mine Yad against them, saith Adonoi Hashem, and nas'u (they shall bear) their avon.

13And they shall not come near unto Me, to do the office of a Kohen unto Me, nor to come near to any of My kadashim, in the Kodesh HaKodashim; but nas'u their shame, and their to'avot which they have committed.

14But I will make them Shomrei Meshmeret HaBeis, ¹³²for all the avodah thereof, and for all that shall be done therein.

15But the Kohanim the Levi'im, the Bnei Tzadok, that were shomer over the Mishmeret of My Mikdash when the Bnei Yisroel 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 chelev and the dahm, saith Adonoi Hashem;

16They shall enter into My Mikdash, and they shall come near to My Shulchan, to minister unto Me, and they shall be shomer over My mishmeret.

17And it shall come to pass, when they enter in at the Sha'arei HeKhatzer HaPenimit, they shall be clothed with linen; and no tzemer shall come upon them, while they minister at the Sha'arei HeKhatzer HaPenimit, within.

18They shall have linen turbans upon their rosh, and shall have linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with that ¹³³with which one perspires.

19And when they go forth into HaKhatzer HaKhitzonah, even into the Khatzer HaKhitzonah to HaAm, they shall take off their garments wherein they ministered, and lay them in the lishkhot hakodesh (holy chambers) and they shall put on begadim acharim; and they shall not set apart as kodesh HaAm with their begadim.

20Neither shall they shave their rosh, nor allow their hair to grow long; they shall keep trimmed their rosh.

21Neither shall any Kohen drink yayin, when they enter into the Khatzer HaPenimit.

22Neither shall they take for their nashim an almanah, nor a gerushah; but they shall take betulot of the zera Bais Yisroel, or an almanah who was almanah of a Kohen.

23And they shall teach My people the difference between the kodesh and chol, and cause them to discern between the tameh and the tahor.

24And in a riv they shall stand as shofet; and they shall judge it according to My mishpatim; and they shall adjudicate them in accordance with My torot and My chukkot in all Mine mo'adim; and they shall be shomer to keep My Shabbatot kodesh.

25And they shall come near no met adam to make themselves tameh; but for av, or for em, or for ben, or for bat, for ach, or for achot that hath had no ish, they may make themselves tameh.

26And after he is made tahor, they shall reckon unto him shivat yamim.

27And in the yom that he goeth into the Kodesh, unto the Khatzer HaPenimit, to minister in the Kodesh, he shall offer his chattat, saith Adonoi Hashem.

28And it shall be unto them for a nachalah; I am their nachalah; and ye shall give them no achuzzah in Yisroel; I am their achuzzah.

29They shall eat the minchah, and the chattat, and the asham; and kol cherem in Yisroel shall be theirs.

30And the reshit kol bikkurim of all things, and every terumah of all, of every sort of your terumot, shall belong to the Kohanim; ye shall also give unto the Kohen the reshit of your dough, that he may cause the brocha to rest on thine bais.

31The Kohanim shall not eat of any thing nevelah, or terefah, whether it be oph or behemah.