Ezekiel 41:22
The altar of wood was three cubits high, and the length thereof two cubits; and the corners thereof and the length thereof and the walles thereof were of wood: and hee said vnto mee; This is the Table that is before the Lord. Ezekiel 41:22 (KJV)
were of wood: and he said unto me, This
is
the table that
is before the LORD. Ezekiel 41:22 (KJV)
The book of Ezekiel presents a prophetic vision of a future temple, offering a detailed description of its layout, courts, and furnishings. In chapter 41 the prophet is shown a wooden piece that measures three cubits in height and two cubits in length. The LORD identifies this piece explicitly as “the table that is before the LORD.” The dimensions correspond to the table of showbread that served in the sanctuary of the earlier tabernacle and temple, a piece traditionally fashioned from acacia wood and overlaid with gold (see Exodus 25:23‑30). The table was positioned in the Holy Place, directly before the LORD, and held the sacred bread offerings that symbolized the covenant people’s continual fellowship with God.
The cubit, the unit of measurement used in the description, was roughly the length from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger, providing a tangible sense of the table’s modest size compared with other temple furnishings. While Ezekiel also records a massive bronze altar—ten cubits long, wide, and high—intended for burnt offerings, that altar is a separate structure made of durable metal and serves a different sacrificial function. The wooden table, by contrast, is not an altar for sacrifice but a distinct piece of furniture for the showbread, underscoring the dual aspects of worship: the offering of sacrifices on the bronze altar and the presentation of the perpetual bread on the wooden table.
The material of the table—wood—highlights its priestly service and the living nature of the worship it supports. Its placement “before the LORD” signifies continual access to divine provision, while its modest dimensions reflect the intimate, regular nature of the bread offering within the broader temple worship system. Together, the bronze altar and the wooden table illustrate the comprehensive vision Ezekiel received for a restored sanctuary, where both sacrifice and sustenance find their appointed places before God.
