Later text
When they enter the gates of the inner court, they are to wear linen garments; they must not wear anything made of wool when they minister at the gates of the inner court or inside the temple.
Intertextuality Pair
Ezekiel 44:17 → Deuteronomy 22:11
Allusion
Earlier text
Do not wear clothes of wool and linen woven together.
Significance
Ezekiel 44:17-18 specifies that priests must wear linen (פִּשְׁתִּים, pishtim) garments with no wool (צֶמֶר, tsemer) touching their bodies, echoing Deuteronomy 22:11's prohibition against wearing שַׁעַטְנֵז (sha'atnez, "mixed fabric of wool and linen"). While the Deuteronomic law applies to all Israelites, Ezekiel applies the unmixed-fabric principle specifically to priestly service in the inner court. The prohibition against causing perspiration (44:18) adds a practical rationale: wool retains heat and induces sweat, which would introduce bodily impurity into sacred space. The eschatological temple intensifies the holiness boundaries by making the general sha'atnez prohibition a specific priestly regulation.
- Found via
- Keil and Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament (1866)
- Reference Type
- Allusion
- Connection Method(s)
- Longitudinal Theme
Linked Mentions 1