Question 1

What is being measured in this vision of the altar?

Accepted Answer

This passage describes the detailed measurements of the altar in Ezekiel’s temple vision. It starts with the size of the cubit, then gives the height and width of the base, the levels called settles where priests would stand, the total height of the altar, the four horns at the top, and the length and width of the upper part. The focus is on how the altar is built in careful order, showing that coming to God by sacrifice is not casual, but follows his way and his design.

Question 2

What does it mean that the cubit is a cubit and a hand breadth?

Accepted Answer

When the passage says the cubit is a cubit and a hand breadth, it explains that the measuring unit used here is longer than the usual cubit. A cubit was roughly the length from a man’s elbow to the tip of his fingers. Adding a hand breadth makes it larger by about the width of a hand. This reminds us that God set a specific measure for his house and altar. The size is not guessed or left to human taste, but fixed by what God shows in the vision.

Question 3

Why are there different settles or levels on the altar?

Accepted Answer

The text speaks of a lower and a greater settle, which are like ledges or levels around the altar. These were higher than the ground and wide enough for priests to stand and walk on as they served. The lower level was two cubits above the ground, and the next was four cubits above that. This design allowed the priests to handle the sacrifices in an ordered way. It pictures that serving God at the altar involves steps, care, and shared work, not confusion or disorder.

Question 4

What is the meaning of the four horns on the altar?

Accepted Answer

The altar has four horns at its top corners. Horns in Scripture often picture strength and help. At other times, blood from offerings was put on the horns as part of cleansing and atonement. In this vision, the horns show that the altar is a place of strong help and safety for sinners who come God’s way. They also point to the power of the sacrifice offered there. Many readers see in this a picture of Christ, strong to save and able to receive all who come to God through him.

Question 5

Why is the altar described as twelve cubits square?

Accepted Answer

The passage says the altar is twelve cubits long and twelve cubits broad, a perfect square. This matches other altars in Scripture that are also square. A square shape suggests stability and balance. The number twelve often reminds readers of God’s people. Together, this shows a firm, steady place where sacrifice is offered on behalf of the people. It hints that the sacrifice connected to this altar is complete and balanced, fully able to deal with sin for those it represents.

Question 6

What is the settle that is fourteen cubits long and broad?

Accepted Answer

The settle that is fourteen cubits long and fourteen broad seems to be the upper platform or hearth area of the altar, including the space with the horns and where the priests’ feet could stand. The twelve-cubit square is likely the central altar, and the two extra cubits each way come from a border or ledge around it. This wider top, with a raised edge and a base below, kept the fire and sacrifices in place and gave room for the priests to move safely as they served at the altar.

Question 7

Why do the altar’s stairs face toward the east?

Accepted Answer

The passage closes by saying the altar’s stairs look toward the east. That means anyone going up the steps would be walking westward, toward the inner house where God’s glory dwells, and turning their back on the rising sun. In earlier times some people bowed to the sun in the east. Here, the design points worship away from created things and toward the Lord himself. The steps also show that there is a clear, God-given way to come up to the altar, not any path we choose.

Question 8

How does this altar point to Christ and his sacrifice?

Accepted Answer

This altar, with its ordered size, levels, horns, and square shape, points beyond itself to a greater reality. The altar is where sin offerings and burnt offerings are given, and where blood is shed so that people can be accepted. In the New Testament, Christ is shown as the true altar and the perfect sacrifice. He is strong like the horns, his work is steady and complete like the square altar, and his blood truly cleanses. This vision helps us see that all these patterns look forward to him.

Question 9

Why is this detailed description of measurements in the Bible?

Accepted Answer

At first, long lists of measurements can seem dry or hard to follow. But here the detail shows that God cares about how his people come near to him. The altar is not random or quickly made, but planned in each part. The careful description teaches that worship must be shaped by God’s word, not by our guesses. It also gives hope that God has prepared a real, ordered way for sinners to be forgiven and to stand before him, which finds its fullest meaning in Christ.

Question 10

How can this passage about an altar apply to my life today?

Accepted Answer

Even if we no longer use this kind of altar, the passage still matters. It reminds you that you cannot come to God in any way you wish. There must be a true altar and a real sacrifice for sin. For Christians, that altar is Christ and his cross. The care God shows in these measurements encourages you to take worship seriously, to trust the one sacrifice God accepts, and to serve him in an orderly, humble way, working with others as the priests did around the altar.

Ezekiel 43:13

¶ And these are the measures of the altar after the cubits: The cubit is a cubit and an hand breadth; even the bottom shall be a cubit, and the breadth a cubit, and the border thereof by the edge thereof round about shall be a span: and this shall be the higher place of the altar.

The Altar of Sacrifice

The Altar of Sacrifice

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Ezekiel 43:13

¶ And these are the measures of the altar after the cubits: The cubit is a cubit and an hand breadth; even the bottom shall be a cubit, and the breadth a cubit, and the border thereof by the edge thereof round about shall be a span: and this shall be the higher place of the altar.

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The Altar of Sacrifice

The Altar of Sacrifice

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