"All the servants of the king and the people of the king's provinces know that there is only one law applicable to any man or woman who comes uninvited to the king in the inner court -- that person will be put to death, unless the king extends to him the gold scepter, permitting him to be spared. Now I have not been invited to come to the king for some thirty days!"

It so happened that on the third day Esther put on her royal attire and stood in the inner court of the palace, opposite the king's quarters. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the palace, opposite the entrance.

Then he brought me to the inner court of the Lord's house. Right there at the entrance to the Lord's temple, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs to the Lord's temple, facing east -- they were worshiping the sun toward the east!

(The cherubim were standing on the south side of the temple when the man went in, and a cloud filled the inner court.)

Then he measured the width from before the lower gate to the front of the exterior of the inner court as 175 feet on the east and on the north.

Opposite the gate on the north and the east was a gate of the inner court; he measured the distance from gate to gate at 175 feet.

The inner court had a gate toward the south; he measured it from gate to gate toward the south as 175 feet.

Then he brought me to the inner court by the south gate. He measured the south gate; it had the same dimensions as the others.

Then he brought me to the inner court on the east side. He measured the gate; it had the same dimensions as the others.

On the outside of the inner gate were chambers for the singers of the inner court, one at the side of the north gate facing south, and the other at the side of the south gate facing north.

Opposite the 35 feet that belonged to the inner court, and opposite the pavement which belonged to the outer court, gallery faced gallery in the three stories.

Then a wind lifted me up and brought me to the inner court; I watched the glory of the Lord filling the temple.

"'When they enter the gates of the inner court, they must wear linen garments; they must not have any wool on them when they minister in the inner gates of the court and in the temple.

No priest may drink wine when he enters the inner court.

On the day he enters the sanctuary, into the inner court to serve in the sanctuary, he must offer his sin offering, declares the sovereign Lord.

The priest will take some of the blood of the sin offering and place it on the doorpost of the temple, on the four corners of the ledge of the altar, and on the doorpost of the gate of the inner court.

"'This is what the sovereign Lord says: The gate of the inner court that faces east will be closed six working days, but on the Sabbath day it will be opened and on the day of the new moon it will be opened.